Celebrating Barbie from the 1960’s to the 1993 Movie

My Beginnings with Barbie

Above: My Original Barbie and Ken (Barbie and her dress and hose are from the 1960’s era, Ken is from the 1960’s but his clothes are from a more recent era)

This year, with the Barbie Movie, there has been so much talk of the Barbie Doll thru the years, that I thought it would be fun to do a Barbie Tablescape. Did you have a Barbie when growing up? I had a Barbie, Ken, and a Midge in the early 1960’s and later added Barbie’s siblings Tutti, Todd, and Skipper. Contrary to the high school aged Barbies of the time, my Barbies were married with children and horses. I saved those dolls, as many do, in case I had a child or a guest who would like to play with the “old time” Barbies. Surprisingly, I still have them, and it was fun to get them out and look back on the hours I played with them.

Barbie in Tablescapes

Barbie became important to me again when I dove into making tablescapes and found that Barbies were perfect centerpieces for different tablescapes.

Barbie in this year’s Tablescape post – A Harley-Davidson Table for a “Rad Dad” 

Barbie in a Coming Soon “Aggie Football Tablescape” post

Barbie: The Movie

So when Barbie the Movie came out this year, I was very interested in seeing it. I was surprised that it didn’t seem to be a kid’s movie, and that it had attracted such a talented cast, such as Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrara, and Will Ferrell – to name a few. So off to the theater I went to check it out. By the way, I loved the Barbie doll box in the lobby, where you could have yourself photographed as a Barbie Doll – see photo above.

About the movie (movie spoiler alert for following paragraph) – After getting over the baby doll smashing scene which was distressing to a doll lover, such as me; I loved the creativity of the movie – Barbie’s house, the set, costumes, choreography and plot. I thought the questions it brought up, on the role of the Barbie, her refection of the times and her influence – especially on the role of women and men in society, her role in life expectations and goals, her positive (and also sometimes negative) impact on society were all very interesting. The music, dancing, acting and humor in the movie were so much fun!

Have you seen the movie? Did you enjoy it? I’d love to hear your reactions and how the movie did or did not reflect your own Barbie experiences.

The Movie inspired me to do a Barbie Tablescape.

The Barbie Tablescape – The Plate Stack

The first thing I realized I wanted were some Barbie plates, even though pink dishes would have been perfectly fine. I checked eBay and found some Melamine plates that showed the Barbie of my childhood and thought they would be a perfect item to “anchor” my tablescape.

I started the tablescape with the pink tablecloth.

The first plate in the stack, is a white charger from Maryland China. (photo below)

The second plate is a blue Pyrex plate from a local vintage shop, and this plate is also available often on eBay. (photo below) Although the blue doesn’t show much in the final plate stack, I love how the narrow band of blue, highlights the Barbie plate.

The top plate in the stack is one of the 4 designs of Barbie the melamine plates in the set I purchased on eBay. The different designs are shown below. The plates are unmarked (no brand, pattern name, or country of origin).

I love that the set of plates have both of the Barbie’s I played with as a child. My older sister had the pony-tailed Barbie, while I had the short haired Barbie.

My original Barbie, stands behind the plate where she is pictured.

Napkins and Napkin Rings

The napkins I chose for the Tablescape, are Kate Spade – Larabee Dot, and match the tablecloth. I purchased these about 5 years ago.

For the napkin rings, I chose these vintage acrylic daisy napkin rings. I believe they were made in the 1960’s, around the same time that I was given my first Barbie.

The Centerpieces

For the “centerpieces” I decided to go with vignettes or scenes of Barbies. Some scenes are from a specific era, and some are with dolls from different eras grouped together.

My oldest dolls are my original Barbie and Ken from the early 1960’s.

Midge (above – with the red hair styled in a “flip” is almost as old as my original Barbie and Ken. Todd, (next to Midge) is Tutti’s twin and Barbie’s little brother. (He’s from 1965 and on) Sitting on Todd’s lap is one of the “Chelsea” sized dolls.

Barbie from “Barbie: The Movie “- 1993 with her car (also 1993) The Barbie represents actress Margot Robbie’s role in the movie and sits at the center of the tablescape. Barbie’s car sits on top of my original game board for the Barbie game I played as a child. Tutti, Barbie’s sister from 1965 accompanies Barbie in the car.

I named this vignette “ESPN College Game Day with the Texas A&M Aggies”. Texas A&M is my husband’s college and where my son got his graduate degree. So of course it is the college we chose to represent on our table. A&M has “Yell Leaders” rather than “cheerleaders, however Mattel labeled them Cheerleaders on the box. Other than the name on the box, the Yell Leader Kens are very accurate. The yell leaders and cheerleaders were called the “university collection” and most were released in 1996. The two Barbies are more recent and are from a field reporter and camera “man” set. The girl decked out in Aggie clothes is a “fan” and I believe her outfit was handmade by an eBay seller. This set and 2 additional Aggie yell leaders will be in my Aggie Football tablescape pictured earlier. (post is coming soon)

These Barbies from the “Barbie Doll and Pets Collection” were purchased recently as I thought they and their dogs would be great for any dog tables I do. Both dogs are Golden Retrievers. The light colored one is an English Cream Golden Retriever, like our Simba!

These are from the Harley Davidson Collection (Barbie, Ken, and motorcycle). I used the Harley Davidson collection pieces in my ‘A Harley Davidson Table for a “Rad Dad”‘post.

This scene includes Ken from the “Barbie: The Movie”, this is the Ken character played by Ryan Gosling. The backdrop for Ken, is “The Barbie Game – Queen of the Prom.” This is the game I played as a child. I find it unusual that the goal of this 1960’s game was to be Queen of the Prom – a goal I’m guessing was not on my parent’s top ten list for me. But in today’s world Barbie can be a pilot, vet, or the President. What a long way both Barbie, and American girls have come.

This scene includes my original Skipper (Barbie’s sister) in vintage clothes, and the small boy is a doll from the Chelsea collection.

Also in the Room

Also in the room is this scene, on top of my chest of drawers. It includes a Harley Davidson Ken- holding Chelsea, and a Texas A&M Yell Leader.

Then and Now

Although the cars in the below posts are the same, (the 1993 car, representing the movie car is sooooo cool, as it is a remote control car – much more realistic than the one I pushed around as a child). I thought you would enjoy seeing the old vs new dolls and traditions. In the “Then” Photo, Barbie is shown as a passenger as Ken was most often the driver in 1960.

However, in the recent movie (below) Barbie is at the wheel and Ken is the passenger.

More Barbie Info

“For more info on the history and controversy of Barbie, you may enjoy the “Barbie” Wikipedia article. I found it interesting that his article also mentioned a Barbie Theme Park that is scheduled to open in 2024. The fun continues, as one attraction there is rumored to be a life sized Barbie Beach house from “Barbie: The Movie.”

More Tablescape Photos, and The View of the Sunset from the Window of “Barbie land”

In This Post

Below, in this post are sections entitled “Table Details and Origins”, “Coming Soon”, “Posts I Hope You Will Like”, “Link Parties”, and finally, when you scroll down to the very end, you will see the “Comments” section. I hope you enjoyed this walk down Barbie lane. I’d love it if you would comment about your Barbie experiences, and what was similar on different in your Barbie “era”.

Table Details and Origins for

The Eras of Barbie Tablescape

This section is coming soon, please check back on Monday.

Coming Soon

Some of the posts coming soon, are the “Texas A&M Football Tablescape”, “Mickey and Minnie Celebrate Halloween” and “Skeletons Dancing”. I’d love it if you could stop back in the coming weeks for these.

Posts I Hope You Will Like

If you like this tablescape, you may also like,

A Harley-Davidson Table for a “Rad Dad” – Celebrating My Husband’s Trifecta of Special Days This Month – His 66th Birthday, His Retirement and Father’s Day!!

and

Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse Go To School

and

A Regatta Tablescape for Summer, and also for Labor Day, Fourth of July, Memorial Day, etc.

Link Parties and Blog Hops 

I often participate in Tablescape Thursday at betweennapsontheporch.net, Please click on the link to see this website of one of my favorite bloggers – I especially love her “Tablescape Thursday posts” which are all about tablescapes and her tablescape post is followed by photos and links for many other wonderful tablescapers.  Her “Metamorphosis Monday” posts, which are all about “Befores and Afters” – is another favorite of mine. 

I also often participate in Marty’s “Inspire me Tuesday” link party at “A Stroll Thru life” I hope you can check out her website and her Tuesday link party which is followed by photos and links for many other ideas from her followers.

Recently I started following Katherinescorner.com. I frequently join her TFT blog party. The TFT – Thursday Favorite Things blog hop contains links on many topics with lots of great ideas. To get there click on the preceding link and go to her website and they check out her most recent Thursday – TFT post. At the bottom of the post, you will find many of her followers’ ideas. 

Recently I discovered the Imparting Grace blog, and I am really enjoying it. To get to this website click the preceding link and look for the “Grace At Home Blog party” which begins some weeks on Thursdays.

I have also started following SouthernSunflowers.com and recently joined their “Home Matters Link Party”. It begins each week on Thursdays. I hope you can check it out.

Very Recently, I started following KarinsKottage.com, and I am loving her blog as well, and can’t wait to see her Italian Castle remodel! I often participate in her Linky Party on Wednesdays . 

I have also started following EclecticRedBarn.com and am loving the “Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop” and I am also sharing on Eclectic Red Barn on Wednesdays at the You’re the Star Blog Hop. 

In addition I really enjoy Lifeasaleowife.com and share on the “Crafty Creators Link Party” and the “Happiness is Homemade” party on Mondays.

This year, for my first time, I have joined the “Home Imagined Link Party” at Masterpiecesofmylife.com. I love this website, and the hostesses and other contributors have some great ideas! To get to the home page, use the above link and then scroll down to “Home Imagined Link Party” and click on it to get to the Link Party page. A new link party is posted every other week. 

I have also shared recently on EsmeSalon.com. The following link, Senior Salon Pit Stop will get you to the link party on Esme’s site as well as getting you to some great recipes and other ideas!

This week, I joined the Saturday Sparks Party at Suzanne’s Pieced Pastimes Blogspot. I hope you can check it out.

Update: Today, (October 4, 2023) I saw that my Butterfly Tablescape was featured on the You’re the Star Blog Hop at Eclectic Red Barn. Thanks to Beverly at Eclectic Red Barn and also to this week’s hosts Angie @ God’s Growing Garden and Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures.

I hope you will enjoy visiting these wonderful bloggers on the above websites as much as I do!

Comments

I’d love to hear your comments. Please scroll down to the comment section below, and share your impressions of “Barbie: the movie”, my tablescape, or what you liked or didn’t like in the Barbie era you experienced.

Thanks for visiting!!!