Blythe It Yourself! Sweet! Say Lilly, Maggy & Violet

The girls have been a bit displaced the last couple of days because I've been remodeling their pad, Blythe Manor. I lucked upon this vintage Barbie beach house, and after de-Barbie-izing it and cleaning it up, I began to add "wallpaper," valances, blinds, plants, artwork, flooring, rugs and more. It is just one more artistic and creative outlet.

So Blythe Manor is coming right along! Lilly was the first to check out the new roof-top pool, of course. She was just out in the snow the other day. Next you can see Maggy checking the weather from the office window: valance courtesy of me. Then, there's the new wallpaper, room divider (so 70's), furry chair, throw pillows and etagere, again by, well, you get the idea. It's called design on a budget or Blythe It Yourself, B.I.Y.

You can see the full estate in the next picture. The girls spent their inheritance on it and scrapped the trip to Hawaii, especially after Violet arrived. Then, you can see Lilly giving some attitude pool-side. Deee-Va! At least she put a hoodie on; it's chilly out there.

Meanwhile, Maggy takes a sit in her new fur chair, so retro! and with her fabulous Valentine's sweater from Andrea in Artsymama's LOVE of Supplies Valentine Swap. The sweater has a groovy, glossy detachable pin. This sweater is extra special, because we were doing a totally-nothing-to-do-with-Blythe swap, and Andrea noticed on my Flickr profile or blog that I like Blythes, and she sent the sweater along. I have yet to find out if she made the sweater. I am guessing she made the pin, because it's just we altered art people do, but the sweater is a perfect fit! I love it!

The next house photo shows the Beach house kitchen and lanai. The pool is on the roof! Maybe you can see the girls' choice of lunch that day: Coca Cola, Wonder bread for sandwiches and Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. But, they've gotten a chicken on the Barbie (That's Bar-B-Q, not a chicken on an actual Barbie, ewwww).

You can also see they've left out their bowling ball, golf clubs, bathing suit and Scrabble. What's a Blythe mom to do? At least we have a nice view of the lake. Lakefront property on ebay is just crazy!

Next, we have the bathroom with the lovely new (real) tiny sampler from SSimpson http://banchomarba1.livejournal.com/. Then, more pictures of the beach house. The gateleg table has attached barstools for which I affixed seat cushions to match my wallpaper, placemats and valances. It's kind of a crazy layout; who ever heard of a washer/dryer in the kitchen. At least they're back to back. (In reality, this was once someone's very cool toy as real running water circled through the washing machine, sink, aquarium and pool as well as the outdoor shower. And there's a built in air pump for inflatable toys and furniture. So chic! And handy, since the pool came with an inflatable palm tree and canopy. This reminds me of my daughter Adrienne's dad, who along with her step-mom, the very sweet Tess, have a double-decker pontoon with a palm tree on it. But, that's another story, kids.

Back at Blythe Manor, I converted the aquarium into a window, because I wasn't much for the fake fish, but I did visit the Wal-Mart pet aisle to try to find some tiny plants for the house. You can actually get those in a three-pack, you know. So we're really just waiting for a few other furniture pieces and accessories, before we park our VW Bug and call it Home Sweet Home.

I found a talented designer and seamstress, Shirley from Fort Wayne, IN or barbiefurnitureandfashions (just like that) on ebay who makes fabulous furniture a la Broyhill, and I have just the fabric here in mind to take to her. She normally provides her own, but I have a quilted purse (one can imagine what kind) that I want her to deconstruct.

Oh, another BIY tip, although I can't share them all: I cut up a straw placement and it made for some lovely beach house rugs, while a woven pattern placemat was the perfect flooring. I can decide if it looks like sand or Armstrong flooring, but it looks good, if I do say so!