Sara K Joiner: A Barbie Doll House Is Special, Part 2

Four-shelf wire shelving unit used as the

frame for the Barbie house.

The pandemic hit, and Indiana shut down just as I had gotten an idea for how to build a new Barbie house to replace the old one.

What could I do?

I was working at home like a large portion of the country.

So, like a large portion of the country, I turned to Amazon and ordered what I thought I would need. Everything arrived quickly, and then it sat in my house for more than a year.

I had other projects to finish, and by the time I completed those, I had returned to working in my office cubicle.

Finally, more than a year later, I opened the boxes.

One four-shelf wire shelving unit on wheels, a box of 15 white foam core boards, various rolls of Contact Paper and 5x7 picture mats.

Testing the zip ties.

After assembling the shelves, I tested my theory that zip ties could be used for assembly. They worked perfectly.

On to construction!

Unlike the original Barbie house, this one would be three stories with a rooftop garden. I had Contact Paper for the exterior and interior walls as well as the ceiling. At this point, I wasn't sure if I was going to use the foam core board for the flooring or if I was going to use wood panels from a hardware store. I would have to test to see.

But first the walls.

I cut the side panels with an X-Acto knife, then covered the exterior with a brick facade and the interior with the appropriate wallpaper and trimmed as necessary.

One of the side walls.

Interior side wall.

By the time I started attaching the front panels, I realized I forgot to cut windows out. Oops! I would have to think of a Plan B for that.

Exterior front, sadly

missing windows.

Interior first floor walls.

Interior second floor walls.

Interior third floor walls.

I covered the roof in strips of silver duct tape. Then I tested the idea of a foam core board floor and decided it would work perfectly. So, I had to order more Contact Paper.