DeKALB – Green, soul exempt eyes, diseased and rotting skin, distressed and knotted hair and covered in blood and scabs is not what Margot Robbie looked like in the “Barbie” movie. Actually, far from it.
Robbie would look that terrifying if she was ripped apart by a dog, collected dust in a corner, sold in a garage sale and then stood up by a chopstick in someone’s front lawn.
Every year, DeKalb resident Amy Forkell, 49, takes her collection of 800 zombie Barbies and spends over 8 hours, placing them in her front lawn at 517 Joanne Lane to celebrate Halloween.
The horde of zombie Barbies has been assembled over 8 years since Forkell got the idea after browsing through Pinterest.
Forkell did not get the idea because of an obsession with Barbies, nor has she seen the “Barbie” movie.
To create the zombie Barbies, Forkell tries to make them look as disgusting as possible.
“Yellow on the eyes and then pull the hair back, make sure the hair’s out of the face, and then blood on the mouth – kind of try to look over the body, see if there’s any chew points,” Forkell said. “If there is, cover those in blood, usually try to make it look like dried blood. So I would mix the red and the black together, so it would look older – it’s disgusting.”
The collection of zombie dolls includes not only Barbies but Chelsea and Ken dolls as well. The dolls are still in some of their obnoxiously pink dresses and floral swim trunks, only they’re covered in blood, and tarnished from the elements.
Forkell said she prefers to use Barbie dolls chewed up rather than throwing them away.
“I loved the ones that are chewed up,” Forkell said. “If the dogs got to it, it makes it even better.”
The zombie Barbies are also self-sustaining. As they sit out year after year, the weather provides its own effects on the figurines.
“I like for them to be out in the wind and the rain and everything because it makes it look yuckier every year,” Forkell said.
Forkell has gone to garage sales, church sales, Goodwill and the Salvation army to add to the collection. People even drop Barbie dolls off at her home.
“They just show up on the doorstep,” Forkell said. “I was putting them out this year. People just stopped by, and their cars will just slow down, and I’ll go, ‘can I help you?’ and then they just hand them to me.”
The zombie Barbies have also invaded Forkell’s work at the Nestle Distribution Center in DeKalb. Her coworkers have begun dropping off chopsticks on her desk, which she uses to stand the Barbies up. Forkell’s co-workers have even set up their own line of zombies leading to the doorway of Nestle and a zombie Barbie display in the lobby.
“This is the first year that they’ve done that,” Forkell said. “The forklift driver, David Barnes, he’s the one that put the Barbies out front.”
Forkell said she plans to continue collecting more Barbies and expand the collection.
“Hey, if they want to drop off Barbies, any condition, I will take them, anytime, leave them on my doorstep – that and chopsticks are always welcome,” Forkell said.
