Natural hair is shown with pride in Purpose Toys’ latest collection, Littlelistas, as curls, coils, and naturally textured hair take the spotlight.
Purpose Toys is a Black-owned, woman-owned company that celebrates culture through dolls, helping kids build confidence and self-esteem. Each Littlelistas doll has different hair types from 3C curls to 4A coils, as well as various skin tones so they can represent more kids who play with them. This new collection will feature Lena and Lily, two dolls that come with natural hair and fashionable clothes. The dolls also come with a matching set of wear-and-share gold crowns that kids can wear to show pride in their curls.
“Currently there is an over-representation of straight hair, wavy, and jewel-toned hair across the Black doll market. The reality is many children of African descent identify with having loc’d, tightly coiled, curly, and natural-colored hair,” says Purpose Toys CEO and Littlelistas Creator DeeDee Wright-Ward. “From the standpoint of authentically representing ‘Children of Culture,’ most doll products marketed to Black children don’t often reflect their beautiful locs, coils, curls, or natural hair color, which can inadvertently send a message that hair that looks like theirs isn’t equally valued. We want to change this.”
Littlelistas is an expansion of Naturalistas, the world’s first all-Black doll line that represents different looks, such as curls, coils, braids, and more. Purpose Toys also makes HBCyoU Dolls, which feature dolls celebrating Historically Black colleges and universities.
Littlelistas will be available for $24.99 at Target, Amazon, CVS, and more retailers this August. For more information, visit mynaturalistas.com.
