A few months ago when I was at Virgin Records in New York City, I noticed a display of 10-inch Gwen Stefani dolls wearing different costumes. Each of the dolls had a name—Tick-Tock Gwen, Bananas Gwen, Cool Gwen and so on. According to the style icon, she and her Harajuku Girl dancers wore such "wicked costumes" on their last tour that she wanted to share them with the world again. The eight limited-edition dolls are available at Target and select fine retailers, and each one comes with interchangeable outfits plus Gwen collectibles like pocket mirrors, trading cards and posters. The dolls sport different hairstyles, from Gwen's trademark platinum-blond to a deep brunette. That's when the wheels started turning. What if I sent some of the dolls to a few of my hairdresser friends and asked them to work a little makeover magic on them? I enlisted the help of Executive Editor Kelley Donahue, who took three of the dolls and sent them to Paul Mitchell's Stephanie Kocielski; Michael O'Rourke, founder of Sexy Hair Concepts and the Institute of Courage; and Madonna's hairdresser, Andy LeCompte. I sent dolls to Mark Garrison, who owns Mark Garrison Salon in Manhattan; Aveda's Charlie Price; and Redken's Giovanni Giuntoli. All three are session stylists who have worked backstage during fashion week in New York City.
 Marianne Dougherty |
A few of them added hair extensions. Two gave the dolls haircuts. Michael O'Rourke even made a new dress for his Gwen doll and fashioned a necklace and bracelet out of copper wire. Meanwhile, Charlie Price, who enlisted the help of Antonio Toquinto at Click Salon in Denver, sent a hand-drawn picture of his Gwen look along with the doll. Turn to page 52 to see the results, which show an astonishing amount of originality. —Marianne Dougherty, editor in chief, [email protected]
 A sketch by Charlie Price and Antonio Toquinto of their Gwen doll makeover |