Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Barbie House -Before-The Victorian House!

First look at the Victorian House!
This is the first look at the Victorian house. Since it is the
first look at what I retrieved from the trash, I haven't
cleaned it so that you can see what I actually got.
Etienne, who has some construction skills, is here to
consult on some of the repairs needed. He is
also here for scale.He asks that you don't mention his
skills to his wife Renee, or she will have him fixing
everything.

First, Etienne wants you to know that he thinks that the
proportions of Barbie houses are way to small for the
average male doll and action figure. He hates have to bend
down to enter. OK, noted! I do have the front door. It is
just not pictured.

There should be more head room too. OK, OK, OK!

Here is the inside of the house. You can open it up or

close it for more of a real house feel. It has two floors.
The elevator is on a pulley system and it works.

You turn this know and it lifts to the second floor.
Somewhere I heard some talk about wheelchair Becky
was the reason for the lift but I don't know it that is
true. I do think it takes up too much space and I will
probably remove it for that reason.

I do love the corner window. Here is the right side of the
inside of the building. First and second floors. I like the
fire place. I not sure about the built in cabinet.

closeup on the fireplace! This will look good redone.

Etienne stepped outside to look at something while we
checkout the kitchen and bath.

The furniture was missing from this trash find, but hey...
for free... what can you expect. So, there isn't a tub for
the bathroom. I got a really nice but with the Moxie
House
that has claw feet. That is the type of tub you
would expect to see in this style house. I think I will
use it of here.

Moxie tub!
In the kitchen the stove is missing a door
and the cabinets don't open.

There are several faux stain glass windows throughout
the house. It is a nice touch but one is broken. I think
this could be replaced/redone.

Bay window with stain glass sides.

OK, the work! Plastic is discolored in spots and will need
to be painted. Most of the stickers, if not all will need to
be removed too.

I'm not a fan of the stickered rugs. I would have removed
this no matter what shape it was in.

The child/children this house belonged to must have been
aspiring graffiti artists. There is all kinds of writing and
drawing all over the house. There wasn't enough Barbie
symbols for this kid. They wrote a "B" on the porch.

There is some gluing and putty work that needs to be
done too.

More art work! Thank goodness it is mostly crayon.

I can't tell what this says.

Even more art work!

Etienne: mumble, grumble, mumble!

Mailbox is a nice touch too!

Putty work!

Windows and putty work.

Over all Etienne thinks that this is a major project! It is
not a home for him but someone else might be up to the
challenge. He will keep looking.

I agree with Etienne that it is a project and one I will do in
stages. I have another doll family in mind for this home.
My question is should I go historic -using the tub as an
inspiration(costly even for a toy house) ,fun-basic paint
job and any furniture-get it done to play with, or just for



a look- a uniformed look/color combo?

I guess after I prime and putty I will know. If not, it may
sit in the beginning stages for a long time. You could help
by sending me picture of what you think it could look like!
Thanks!

P.S. This is a big piece I will have to figure out how and
where I can display it too.

10 comments:

D7ana said...

Cool! Love the Moxie tub, too.

limbe dolls said...

What a find! These houses also came in pink and purple. Green is my favorite but the one I have is purple. You are lucky to have the door and that the elevator works. Also looks like the balcony railing is in good shape. Often spokes are missing.

I removed the elevator from my Victorian house and I use the spiral staircase from the My Scene Party Pad because I think it fits the period of the house better. I gutted the kitchen because I didn't like the existing fixtures and after soaking overnight in a Pinesol bath, I was able to remove the stickers as well. Looking forward to updates on your home improvement project!

Vanessa said...

Great post! Tell Etienne that he did an excellent job and I would refer him any day. Like I said earlier, I have this house and about 3 others, including that big A-frame. I will be putting 2 of them in action soon. I don't have any wonderful ideas. I do agree that the pulley takes up too much space. If it was for wheelchair Becky, it was a nice touch. I do love the tub. I say do a fun basic paint job and fun decor. I think the mailbox is missing on my house. Guess I'll head to the basement and check it out! JUST GET STARTED!

Alrunia said...

Huge project. Good luck and I hope you have tons of fun with it :D

Georgia Girl said...

Ms Leo, it seems to be in good shape. I can't wait to see what you do with it. I love the claw foot tub!

Thanks Limbe dolls for speaking about the Pinesol bath. I didn't know what to do about removing the stickers. I was planning to get some Goo be Gone Lol!

Ms. Leo said...

Thanks D7ana. The tub doesn't get enough picture or play time.

Thanks limbe dolls! I will try the pinesol. Did you dip the whole house or just pour it onto the stikers overnight? I would love to see pictures of your house. Please post some soon. The balcony railing is in good shape but the center(curved part)is missing. You are right about the stairs/elevator thing. I was thinking about doing just that. What funiture came with the purple house? I wasn't able to find any pictures.

Thanks Alrunia. It is a project!

Thanks Georgia Girl. I will try to post pictures and comments as I go along.

Hey Vanessa, I could tell by how impatient Etienne was and that he pointed out every little imperfection that this wasn’t the house for him. When he likes something it is immediate. Not even Renee could have talked him into this house.

I am torn between doing it just for me or for a doll family to live in. If it is for a family, then which one and shouldn’t the house reflect their style? Or, should it be my dream Victorian house of Germantown in Philly and I could make it as realistic as possible! Only, that type of house will need to be showcased. I really don’t have the space for that.

Oh well gang, I’m off to give it a good scrub!

Barbies4Sale! said...

Absolutely Fabulous Post! And I intend on keeping up with your progress. But before you get started, and to help you with your decision making. Check out this post of an actual Victorian home renovation.
http://hookedonhouses.net/2010/05/07/before-after-barbie-doesnt-live-in-this-victorian-anymore/

(That is Not a link to my own blog)

The house had a history of renovations that left it looking, "Plain Jane", or as you have said, "for a doll family to live in".

But then an original 1912 picture was found, and the house was restored to it's 1912 appearance. Gorgeous!

Yes, you would have to Display it if you were to go with your "dream Victorian house of Germantown". But it would be a labor of love, and one that you would forever proud of.

~ Ken

Jen said...

Wondering if you did anything more with this house? I didn't see any more pics.

I picked the same house up at a garage sale this morning for $5. It's in slightly better shape than yours was, but the elevator has no pulley system. Since this is for my little girl, I would like for it to work and I'm looking for pics, I'm not even sure what's missing from mine...

Ms. Leo said...

Thanks Ken and Jen!

Ken, I didn't see you post until now. Sorry! In Victorian times color was really popular! It look like more of a Mattel paint job that the toy house does. Many of the house here have be restored to look just the the after house in the picture. I don't know if it would look to crazy if I painted it like that.

Jen, I am still working on it. I couldn't do much painting until it warmed up here. I has been too humid to paint. I will let you know when it is ready to show. BTW that was a good price!

discodiva1979 said...

Nice find! What kind of putty do you use?
Thanks!
Deb