My View, Karen Staniforth: Dressing your doll in the summer gear

Hurray, the sun is finally shining and at long last we can dress for the warm weather.
The electronic paper dolls at the Frenchgate CentreThe electronic paper dolls at the Frenchgate Centre
The electronic paper dolls at the Frenchgate Centre

I feel like my summer wardrobe has been stifled away for far too long and I am really looking forward to embracing the hopefully long sunny days ahead.

It is so refreshing to see shoppers at Frenchgate wearing their summer clothes and taking a look at the latest top summer buys in our stores.

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Summertime always makes me feel quite nostalgic and think about how I used to look forward to the school summer holidays as a child.

The days and weeks seemed endless and were always hot and sunny – at least that’s what I like to think.

As a young girl I loved playing with dolls and really enjoyed dressing them and putting little outfits together.

I especially liked playing with my cut-out paper dolls and would spend hours attaching little hats, skirts, dresses and shoes to my dolls – all of whom had names of course.

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So when we were thinking about our next creative campaign at Frenchgate I decided to relive some of my childhood magic and create our very own Frenchgate #Paperdolls for 2016 and turn our shoppers into stylists.

Naturally we have moved with the times and our #Paperdolls is now a digital and interactive game, which allows shoppers to style and select a full summer outfit for their very own fashion doll.

It is really fun to do and is fully customisable as you choose your doll’s gender, ethnicity and even their hairstyle.

Once you are happy with your doll’s appearance you can dress and style him/her in various garments from a selection of Frenchgate’s 120 retailers.

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All the latest fashion trends are on display so if you are wanting a quick fashion update you can play #paperdolls to get a taste of what’s hot this summer.

When you have finished styling your doll you can share your creation with your friends on social media and everyone who takes part will then stand a chance of winning their summer wardrobe.

If you haven’t got access to the internet at home, you can still get involved by coming into Frenchgate and playing the #paperdolls game on one of our digital touchscreens.

We launched #paperdolls on Monday and have already had a fantastic response. I have thoroughly enjoyed creating this campaign and I really hope that people will enjoy playing the game as much as I used to do when I was younger.

Who knows, we might uncover someone’s flair and passion for fashion with the game which could see them being a top stylist in the future.

* Karen Staniforth, martketing manager at Frenchgate Centre