Come on Barbie, let’s go (house) party
You can bring some of Barbie’s playfulness into your home, without looking like an explosion at a Mattel factory. Kylie Klein-Nixon reports.
After two years of white-knuckle panic, grimness, death, destruction, insurrection and war how good does the upcoming Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling Barbie movie look? When the first pictures of Barbie (Robbie) and Ken (Gosling) in their matching activewear started popping up across social media like little dayglo flowers, you could almost hear the planet let go a sigh of relief.
All tanned, healthy and, above all, carefree, they were a welcome break from real life – and that goes double for us here in Aotearoa New Zealand where it feels like the sun hasn’t come out properly for months.
Life may not be ‘‘fantastic when you’re plastic’’, but there’s nothing wrong with a splash of colourful escapism, or having a little of that Barbie World in mind when you’re adding elements to your decor.
Sure earthy neutrals are all the rage, but they can be bland without pops of excitement and colour to break them up.
Here’s how you can bring some of that dayglo delight into your home, without making it look like an explosion at a Mattel factory.
Beyond pink
The colour most closely associated with Barbie is a particularly saccharine shade of pink, specifically, Pantone 219 C. Barbie’s dreamhouse is this pink, so is her car, and it’s a lot.
Any assertive pink will give you Barbie feels, and if you pair it with some contrasting colours, you can cut through the sweetness for a palette that is joyful, upbeat and summery all year round.
I love Resene Smitten, a warm rosy pink, with Pelorous, an aqua blue. Make them both pop with accents of Resene Wild Thing, a bright, sunny yellow, for the candy bright effect. Test pots are $4 each.
Lightly does it
The best way to add a splash of colour to an otherwise neutral decor is the lighting.
You can really go to town here as a good set of lamps or pendant is like jewellery for your room. It can be big and brash and loud if you like.
The retro styling of the Hippolyte-3 Chandelier has everything your Barbie-fied heart could desire in a pendant, from the Mid-Century glamour to hot pops of candy colours.
I won’t lie, it’s not cheap – US$345 (NZ$550) plus shipping. But if you’re going to blow the budget, it’s worth doing it for something that is practically a work of art.
Don’t forget the side lighting too. A classic design by Kartell is about as Barbie as a table lamp gets. It even looks like you pressed it out of one of those snap together toy sheets and made it yourself. It’s a bourgie classic, which is Barbie’s wheelhouse. Again, it’s not cheap, (US$319, NZ$505 plus shipping) but you can find smaller, lessexpensive replicas of these lamps in New Zealand from time to time.
Bed head
Barbie may have been born in the 50s, but she really came into her own in the 60s, which is why big, bold 60s-inspired prints like a Marimekko duvet set ($235) really bring her to mind. Plus, what could be more joyful than lying down in a bed of giant, raspberry-coloured flowers to go to sleep each night?
Add a dash of luxe loveliness with a jewel-pink velvet cushion from Bolt of Cloth ($75).
Art is a start
What better way to celebrate your inner Barbie, than with US artist Andy Warhol’s famous celebration of the proto-Barbie, Marilyn Monroe. A pop art print from Pop Motif (from $189) has all the colour and fun you could want on your walls, with a dash of Golden Age glamour, care of MM.
For something slightly more subtle, with a Kiwi angle, try a print of Simon Stockley’s Hydrangea Valley (from $49) with its sea of pink and white flowers, against a golden hour backdrop. Dreamy.
For something a little more tangible, you can’t beat one of Madeleine Child’s playful pieces of ceramic popcorn ($80) in hot pink. Delicious.
Dreamy furniture
You want to be a Barbie Girl in a Barbie world, you need to dress the part. That goes for your room too. A dusty pink Twinny locker is the perfect place to keep your pink faux fur coat, hot pink Lycra workout wear, and violently pink jumpsuit – $1199 from The Market.
Contrast the pinkness with a playful alternative to an armchair in the form of children’s play cushions from Ziggurat ($549) in aqua blue. They can be configured in all sorts of ways for sitting, lounging and even making play forts.
Finally, for a side table that’s as playful as the rest of your decor, you can’t go past the Arnoldino circus Stool, $150, from Made Good, which comes in various colours, but looks as fab as Ken’s rollerblades in yellow.
When the first pictures of Barbie (Margot Robbie) and Ken
(Ryan Gosling) in their matching activewear started popping up across social media like little dayglo flowers, you could almost hear the planet let go a sigh of relief.