Barbie Returns Home to Malibu but in a new Townhouse.

By Laura Medina

After living in Malibu for 41 years, Barbie Millicent Roberts decided to expand her horizons and hit the road on her grand tour, visiting 14 cities.  She kicked off her tour at The Grove in Los Angeles' Mid-Wilshire District, http://luxurist.blogspot.com/2013/06/barbie-is-moving-from-malibu-and.html then visited and experienced various cities and cultures of Dallas, Chicago, Minneapolis and New York. 

Over the past year, Barbie travelled the world to find the perfect place to call home. She toured the trendy streets of New York, experienced the cultural charm of Paris and even enjoyed the rugged Australian outback.

After much soul-searching, Barbie decided that heart is where the home is.  So, she returns to Malibu but a new perspective and a new coterie of friends.  Barbie decided she needs a townhouse with a lot of room for her friends and her clothes, shoes, and accessories, of course.

"After much thought and consideration, Barbie has made her decision to stay in Malibu," said Lori Pantel, Vice President, Global Marketing for Barbie. "Barbie feels incredibly connected to the beach and decided to renovate her Dreamhouse instead of move. She drew renovation inspiration from her many world travels and experiences.

She asked the world-reowned Otis School of Design students, from five different creative disciplines, to help her design the interior and furniture, decorate it, and a whole new wardrobe to reflect her new reflection on life, after doing the Grand Tour of the good ole U.S.A.

 "Otis students have collaborated with some of the most well-known designers and artists," said Rosemary Brantley, Chair of Otis' Fashion Design program, "Barbie was the perfect mentor. She's sophisticated, a world-traveler, and the ultimate fashionista." Rod Beattie, America's premier swimsuit designer also lent his expertise to the project.

Natasha Carovska, a first-year student examined Barbie's cultural impact and commented on deeper lessons learned for her Liberal Arts and Sciences class. "With Barbie, we find that she is teaching the young girls of the future to grow up and follow your dreams. Barbie was really a breakthrough. An African American Barbie doll emerged in 1968 when the civil rights movement was happening. In 1965 she was an astronaut, the same year the US was pushing space exploration, and in 2000 Barbie was a presidential candidate. Barbie has had every single career under her pink belt as if to say, 'Hey, yeah. I'm a girl. I can do anything and in heels, too!"

For these emerging fashion, interior, and product designers, these kids leaped at the chance.  In return, Barbie and Otis School of Design held an open house for the public to visit the world and lifestyle of Barbie at Santa Monica Place Mall, next door to Nordstorm, on the second floor, this past, recent weekend.

At the open house, folks discover that her new home is a three-stories sleek townhouse with a patio-pool, of course.

Barbie doll’s newly renovated, three-story Dreamhouse will debut as girls’ new luxury toy home, complete with unmatched ocean views. Every girl’s dream, the new house features six fab rooms and luxe details that any doll will appreciate, including pink “stainless steel” appliances, and not one — but two elevators! The house “expands” from the center to reveal the main elevator giving Barbie doll’s friends and family spacious living areas. A second elevator transports Barbie doll’s outfits between her favorite room in the house — her ultimate closet — and the bathroom for quick outfit changes.

Fully furnished and decorated in signature Barbie Pink, the doll-tastic features of the Dreamhouse include:

• Two Working Pull-String Elevators
• Six Deluxe Rooms
• Lights and Sounds Throughout the House
• Walk-In Closet
• Luxe Pink “Stainless Steel” Appliances
• Canopy Bed — Pulls Out to Reveal a Trundle Bed
• Television that “Flips” Channels
• Working Doorbell
• Balcony for Sunny Malibu Days
• 3½+ Feet Tall
• 50+ Pieces

A modern addition to Barbie doll’s Dreamhouse legacy, the new ultra-glam 2013 Dreamhouse is the perfect way to imagine and experience Barbie doll’s world. Girls can create their own Dreamhouse memories with the 2013 Dreamhouse playset (SRP: $184.99) available now at retailers nationwide for ages three and up. 

For real-life sized folks and fans, when they walked into Barbie's Open House, they discover custom-made "wave" wood bookcase acting as a partition/wall separator.  Inside the creamy ivory interior, the burst of vivid Barbie Pink pop in some vibrancy, such as the black and pink patio chaise lounge on Ionic ivory wire frame legs and the anaphoric settee in creamy ivory, curvy clover-shape reflect Barbie's chic feminine. The flowing pathway of Barbie's Open House reflects her free-flowing but cultured feminine in the interior design layout.

Of course, it isn't Barbie unless we talk about the clothes.  The fashion design Otis students leap at the chance to design a new wardrobe for her for her new townhouse.  With each outfit, it comes with a "mood board" displaying the initial sketches, inspiration, and most importantly, the fabric swatches to complete the outfit.  The vivid Barbie Pink reflects Malibu's fertile and sunny beach/resort climate and Barbie's new cosmopolitan vibe gleamed from visiting Australia, an equally hot and beach resort place.

As of today, the Open House will be reduced to window displays only from January 22nd to 29th at Santa Monica Place, 395 Santa Monica Blvd., Level 2 near Nordstrom, Santa Monica, CA 90401.

Welcome home, Barbie!