This is one of my first posts here on this blog…so it’s due for an upgrade! How to make a Barbie house out of a cheap bookcase! Yup! an easy barbie house that is so cute and wayyyy affordable! Perfect for a Christmas gift idea!
If you want to- you can see my old ugly photos on the original post here!) But the basic idea is here! Cheap bookshelf turned into a barbie house.
(Sidenote: I actually only got partial photos of this-I was finishing it up right before the fire happened!- it was sitting in my hallway waiting for a good light day to grab photos and then fire and my pretty barbie house got a layer of soot! I wish I had better photos-luckily I snagged some here and there–just not the best light!)
I bought a basic white bookshelf from Walmart. You will want the shelf height tall enough for a barbie. Mine is 3 shelves. You can do 4. You can do 2. You can do the square cubby shelf!
Before I even started-I actually did what I do when I’m decorating a real house/room. I went and grabbed some basics to theme the room around. I walked around Joann Fabrics and came up with a basic color scheme to go off of.
I also bought this pack of wood from Hobby Lobby–I used it a ton (and you can cut it with scissors so win win!)
Barbie house flooring:
You are going to want to hit up home depot! They have tiles for $1! Two tiles and you have a new kitchen floor. (they have wood looking options too! )
You also get carpet samples/remnants that you can cut to fit
or just leave it as is!
The Rugs are actually pieces of cardboard that we hot glued and then added yarn around in a pattern!
(I have used a doily as a rug as well as some fun fluffy fabric! Looks just like a shag rug!)
Barbie Furniture!
The couch and chair are super easy–out of a kleenex box! I posted about it HERE
and I already have posted about an easy barbie bed out of a shoebox!
I love it because it has a secret storage inside!
The headboard is an old one I found at the thrift store but you can make a cool 4 poster bed with pencils or dowels!
Another fun build was the stove and counter–
pop tart boxes for the win!
I added some cupboard lines using that balsa wood and a back panel
Spray painted them all and added some fun accessories to make it look real- washers for burners and beads for handles!
Kitchen table
is two samples of flooring or countertop material that they offer at Home Depot! I asked before taking-! I used the balsa wood to frame it out and add some legs.
Wallpaper Treatment.
Lots of fun ways to add some wall treatment. You could add the balsa wood and make some shiplap. If you have any wallpaper scraps- you could use those. Scrapbook paper comes in lots of fun patterns (they even have a white wood shiplap looking one) The black and white stripes in the kitchen is scrapbook paper.
The floral in the living room is actually gift wrap!
You can also just paint some fun designs or stripes.
AND don’t forget about all the patterned vinyl hat Expressions Vinyl sells! Two sheets would cover that back wall just great! ANd it would be just peel and stick!
HOME DECOR
This part is just the funnest! You get to take some random items you can find around the house and turn them into barbie’s home decor!
We made some windows by making a frame with the balsa wood and adding sky scrapbook paper.
We literally just glued the windows to sides of the bookshelf where a window would naturally be!
We added some curtain panels above the window- (these are hot glued as well!)
And our lamp- Can you tell what it is made from? This is an old tape roll and a empty thread spool!
We DIYED a chalkboard for the kitchen- (the eat is hot glue that we wrote out and spray painted when cooled!
We created a shelf and just added some barbie accessorizes we have accumulated over the years!
Smallest terra cotta pot we could find- add a fake succulent- and you have a house plant!
In my last barbie house- I literally staged the barbies and took photos and then framed them to hang the around the barbie house-
but the instax photos you can print out now are perfect sizes for a barbie house! 
The hello is just a chipboard I had leftover when I used to scrapbook!
Added some hooks in her bedroom- because holy cow! That Barbie has a lot of purses!
My daughter made the clock out of a wood flower- but if you have an old watch- perfect barbie clock! 
We also sewed some throw pillows for the couch and bed as well as a the bedspread!
Okay! I think I’ve talked about all the major points! This barbie house is so much for the kiddos who love decorating! They can paint the walls, learn to sew a cute bedspread, and rearrange to their hearts content!
You can also see the barbie organizer I made to hold all those barbies!
and the fun barbie tent pattern!
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