Barbie 1998 Family Cottage

Dear Readers,

I was hoping I would be able to evade the cold that my husband, son and baby all caught.  But it finally won over and I am the last one to be sick.  Since nobody has complained and went on like it was nothing, I feel like a wuss for being weak and sickly.  You see, my husband and children are completely different than me when they have a cold.  They go on like it's regular business and don't fret at all.  On my side of the family, it's totally different.  My dad and brother act like they are about to die.  I am in-between.  I don't feel good at all and I want to lie down in bed and can't sleep because I feel so sick.   So I get up and work as usual except it's not the same of course and I am forgetful, unfocused and grumpy.

So I hope my writing today won't be too erratic because I just finished the photoshoot for this Barbie cottage that I meant to show you for months!

One of the advantage of living in a big city is that there are many people who will get rid of their unwanted toys.  It's not uncommon to find dollhouses in garage sales, thrift stores or personal ads.  A few months ago I found a dollhouse for sale for a good price.

It was in such good condition I was wondering if it was played with at all.  This dollhouse is the 1998 Barbie Family Cottage.  It is equipped with sounds for the microwave, radio and telephone (it requires 3 AAA batteries).  

The house is beautifully designed with reddish orange scalloped roof, blue walls, beige windows and lattice details. The outside of the house is very nice with a fountain/sink and a box for flowers.  The latch in front of the gate opens to reveal a compact but complete interior.

The back has nice windows and what looks like doors but they do not open.

The central piece rotates to display 3 different areas: a kitchen, a bedroom and a fireplace mantle.  On the left is a lounge area, which doubles as a bedroom or a bathroom.  On the right is a dining room.

The central room can be a kitchen equipped with a fridge with a door you can open to reveal a storage area.  There is a sink, a stove and a microwave.   The telephone and microwave make a sound.

The central room can also become a bedroom with 3 beds:

• one large bed Barbie size doll
• one medium bed for Skipper size doll
• one blue crib for Kelly size doll (the crib is missing so I replaced it with another one)

There is a computer with pullout keyboard and a shelf with a Radio that Plays music (it's pretty lame elevator music though).  I am missing the original cream-colored chair that comes with this playset.

This is what it looks like when the beds are pulled down.  I added a crib from another playset.

A fireplace with mantle is the third part of the rotating section.

The last side of this rotating center is where the batteries are found.  The hollow space on the bottom is probably where the original crib and chair would be stored away but I don't know for sure.

On the right is the living room/bedroom/bathroom. The room can be a living room but when you pull the wall down, you have a large bed for Barbie-sized dolls.  If you lift the lid on the bed, you have a Bathtub/Shower which comes with a rack for bathing items.

On the left there is a Table that folds down to create a small dining area.  There should be a fold-down bench attached to the wall but that piece is missing.  There should also be a baby chair that you can attach to the table but it's missing.  In 1998, Mattel created many furniture in the same blue color so I used my 1998 Barbie So Real So now furniture to complete the cottage.  It now has chairs for the dining room.

A dresser with mirror (from the 1998 So Real So Now Bedroom playset) is added to the bedroom.


I really like the door/gate.  It's so pretty and elegant.  The flowers on the front are beautiful.

The left-hand side is equally pretty and detailed.  I find this home cozy.  The cats sleeping in the front represent the cottage very well: it is a Home Sweet Home :)

One of the thing I like best about this dollhouse it that it's foldable so it does not take much space to store.  I don't think it will work for a diorama for my dolls but I want to keep it for sure for when my baby girl will be old enough to play with Barbie dolls.

Here below are my Licca dolls on the beds so you can see how a doll would fit on them.  I like how the dollhouse is meant to be a home for a family and not just for a single doll.  Still, that bed is very narrow and can only fit one doll... so dad sleeps on the floor?