36 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
The Perfect Barbie Dream House
I recently bought this house from Amazon.com. I am very happy with my purchase. The best deal for this house is on Amazon, as shipping was free and no tax! It arrived super quick even with super saver shipping, and with nothing broken amazingly enough because it was simply shipped in the house's actual box and not put inside another shipping box--so beware if you are...
26 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
PIECE OF JUNK !!
We bought this for our 2 gandchildren as a Christmas gift. My husband assembled it. He is very mechanically inclined. If anyone could assemble it properly, he could. The shower would not go in straight, and so the electrical connection to it was not made. Thus Barbie could not sing in the shower. The refrigerator did not light up, the fireplace did not crackle, and the...
This review is from: Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse (Toy)
I recently bought this house from Amazon.com. I am very happy with my purchase. The best deal for this house is on Amazon, as shipping was free and no tax! It arrived super quick even with super saver shipping, and with nothing broken amazingly enough because it was simply shipped in the house's actual box and not put inside another shipping box--so beware if you are buying this as a surprise gift maybe ship it to a friend's house or work as your child will know what's inside!
The lights and sound work great--although I had to put the batteries in and out twice to get the sounds to work, not sure why. Another customer was right, the elevator is the trickest part to put together--but I discovered that I was trying the to fit the top clip in the opposite way, oopsy. Once I fixed that, it only took me another minute to clip in. I was reading some reviews on another toy website, and people were having trouble getting the fireplace to work--I did too until I realized that it was shipped with the fireplace not completely snapped into the back wall. As soon as I pushed the fireplace back into its clips on the back wall, it worked great! I am so excited about this doll house. It will make a great display for my collector dolls. The only problem I see is how in the world I am going to move this house if I move someplace else as it's extremely huge and doesn't look like it can easily be taken apart. It might be a one time assembly, but not sure yet.
It really is the best Barbie brand house I have ever owned, and I owned plenty as a kid--wish they had this when I was growing up--although I don't know if my parents would have sprung for it! However, I think it's worth the high price tag if your little one is a huge Barbie fan! Get this house today while you can! I think that once it hits the store shelves this Christmas, it will go fast and be a hard item to find!! Must have toy for Barbie girls this Christmas for sure!
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This review is from: Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse (Toy)
I purchased this to give to my daughter for her birthday. The house is huge. It was quite simple to assemble. The hardest part and what took the longest was the elevator. I had a hard time getting this little plastic piece to snap into the top to make the elevator go up and down. I think I worked on the elevator for at least a half hour. That was almost as long as it took me to assemble the rest of the house and apply the stickers. It is sturdy and will hold up to hours of playing I am sure. The lights over the hot tub came with batteries. I will still need to buy some AA to make the rest of the lights and sound work. This is quite similar to the Barbie dream house I remember a friend of mine having in the 70's. I think it's a good value for the money and quite fun. I wish I had gotten to play with this growing up. I look forward to playing with it and my daugther.
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This review is from: Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse (Toy)
We bought this for our 7 year old daughter this summer and it is still working great. She loves this doll house! We also still have my original 1975 Barbie Townhouse (3 story), and it sits right next to this one. My daughter has been using the 1970's house since she was 4. I'm not sure the new one would have stood up to the usage of a 4 year old. It requires gentler usage than the old style.
We actually like the way elevator on the old townhouse is moved better, but this one is okay. However, the placement of the elevator on the new one is in a better spot. It doesn't break up the rooms like the old one did. There is a little stand in the elevator to help hold up the dolls, but it's really not needed and makes it harder to use.
We have had some trouble with the lamp. It is easy to put in, and easy to knock off with a Barbie head. Not a big deal. Also, would have been nice if the roof of the top level was solid and not lattice type. She can't set anything on top, it all falls through.
The shower was a big hit, not sure why. It just plays a short recording of Barbie singing in the shower. The kitchen chairs are a little flimsy, hard to make them stay upright when the dolls try to sit. But really, none of the Barbie furniture is that great.
The door is hard to use when the elevator is on the ground floor. Not a big deal, just move the elevator. Still, props for adding the door with doorbell. That was also a big hit. The actual kitchen accessories are great, instead of just background pictures.
Assembly was pretty simple - so were the instructions. So, if you need more than just little pictures you're going to be in trouble. But really, you can almost figure it out just by looking at the picture on the box.
This house does feel flimsier than the old townhouse. I doubt it will last until my daughter has her own children like my house did. The plastic doesn't seem like it will hold up that long, like the old particle board house. Still, it was a good buy and my daughter really loves it.
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This review is from: Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse (Toy)
Gave this to my daughter today, she's 3 1/2 years old, and she loved it. It has a lot of really nice features: the elevator, light up fireplace and chandelier, the tv pops up with a push of a button, flushing sound from the toilet, doorbell, kitchen timer, fireplace, and shower. There are lights on the tub and inside the fridge. It also comes with barbie accessories such as food for the the fridge, dishes and silverware for the kitchen, hangers for the closet, hairbrush, toothbrush, soap, tv remote,vase with flowers, and a laptop. It is pricey but comparable to most dollhouses. It has all the furniture you need (sofa/bed/a dining table with chairs/coffie table/tub/shower) included. My daughter has only played with it for a day but it seems really sturdy. I know she will have lots of fun with it!
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This review is from: Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse (Toy)
THIS ITEM COMES IN ITS ORIGINAL PACKAGING!!!!!! IF YOU DO NOT WANT CHRISTMAS AND SANTA CLAUS RUINED FOR YOUR 5 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER, HAVE IT SHIPPED SOMEWHERE ELSE OR MAKE SURE SOMEONE WILL BE THERE TO MOVE IT BEFORE YOU GET HOME!!!!!!!!!!!! GEE THANKS, AMAZON.
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This review is from: Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse (Toy)
My 4 year old daughter is getting this for Christmas this year. I've had in in the basement unassembled since this summer. After reading some of the reviews about the difficulty others had getting the electronics to work, I decided we better put it together prior to Christmas Eve. I agree that it is actually easy to put together...mostly snapping pieces with some stickers. You need to purchase 3 AA batteries that go in a compartment in the 2nd floor. These batteries work everything in the house. The tiki lights on the tub need 3 cell batteries but the house comes with these. They are already in the top of the tub frame, so you can just push the button on top and they'll work right out of the box. To put the columns in, follow the symbols on the drawings. They have to match. They are shaped like hearts, crowns, and ovals. We ended up with one extra column for some reason. The elevator string pops into the top and bottom phone cord style. Didn't have any trouble with this at all.
Now for the electronics. The fireplace took us the longest to figure out. You have to make sure it is pushed into the wall. The TV pops up if you push a button on the left of the mantle lightly. Push it a little harder and the fire will come on and crackle as the TV pops up. I saw someone had trouble with the 1st floor chandelier too. There is a very tiny button where the door hinges. The door must make contact there or the light doesn't come on. You can also push the button manually too. All of the electronics will work once the batteries have been inserted by simply snapping them into place. Most of them have some sort of "button" you need to push to activate them. You have the option to turn off the batteries when the house is not in use. There is a switch on the 2nd floor.
The house itself is very cute and I would have been in heaven to receive this as a child. I loved Barbie, but never had the house myself and always wanted it. All of the electronics on this are adorable. I love the singing shower and the fireplace with pop up TV. You can put water in the hot tub which I wondered about because it lifts off so you can empty it out. I think the quality will be fine. I still have some of my old Barbie things, and the quality is close as far as the plastic used. I wish the bed was more detailed. My canopy bed from my childhood came complete with a sponge mattress and satin sheets plus full bedding. This one has a cute pillow, but the blanket is cheaply made and the bed is just a mold. My old one which my daughter now plays with is much better although the style of this one looks cute. The top door of the fridge doesn't open (freezer). My four year old notices things like that and asks me why they don't open so this may disappoint her a bit. Also, the cupboard under the sink would be cute if it opened to store the dishes and glasses, but it does not. Love the light in the fridge though. I still have my 70s yellow fridge which was a little more detailed with opening drawers and removable shelving which this one does not have. Lastly, maybe I'm being picky but I would like to see the rugs and placemats made of fabric or felt. I'm disappointed these are cardboard at this price point, but plan to laminate them before Christmas so they'll last longer.
Overall, this house is stylish and cute and in a child's eyes I'm sure it's perfect. I can't wait to see my daughter's face on Christmas morning when she finds out her Barbie's have a home now! I would buy it again because, despite a few minor things, it's pretty adorable.
Now, I do have a request in case anyone from Mattel reads these. I think there are a lot of parents out there who would like to see you come out with another version of the yellow pool from the 70s. The new ones just don't compare. The only other Barbie pool I've ever thought was comparable was the fountain pool from the 90s. If you come out with one like the older versions, I'll be buying it!
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This review is from: Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse (Toy)
We bought this for our 2 gandchildren as a Christmas gift. My husband assembled it. He is very mechanically inclined. If anyone could assemble it properly, he could. The shower would not go in straight, and so the electrical connection to it was not made. Thus Barbie could not sing in the shower. The refrigerator did not light up, the fireplace did not crackle, and the light in the dining room didn't work. We returned the item. But even without these dysfunctions, the house is so cheaply and poorly made that I don't recommend it. There are no interior walls to help stablize it. It just has the pillers supporting the interior. If you would just set Barbie on the floor, the whole house would shake. If a child bumped into it(and that wouldn't have to be very hard), I think the whole thing would fall over backwards. The elements are made of thin, cheap plastic--the horizontal poles on the canopy bed bend and would break easily, and even the fence around the spa doesn't stand straight because the plastic is so flimsy. I expect some of the furniture and small pieces would soon be broken. What fun or educational value does it have if it is broken? Spare yourself the disappointment and save your money. There are other doll houses made to the scale of Barbie that are better made.
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This review is from: Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse (Toy)
I read a lot of negative reviews before purchasing this dollhouse, but I decided to purchase it anyway...mainly because it made me nostalgic of the dollhouse a friend of mine had when I was young. It was a bit pricey, but I got it when Toys R Us offered the free remote control corvette..so it was a great deal as my daughter loves it. We bought this for Christmas for my 3 year old daughter. My husband and I put this together on Christmas Eve and I have to say, yes the instructions are horrible. The most difficult part is the elevator. But just look at the picture on the box to guide you and pay attention to the columns. Some have slots for the elevator to slide up and down. Once you have strung the elevator, if it seems like the string is tight..make sure that the roof is on tightly and that will give you a little more leeway. There are working sounds and lights through out the house. On the 1st floor- the door bell rings, the chandelier lights up and the refrigerator lights up. We had a problem getting the chandelier to come on (as did many people), but found that you just need to make sure the chandelier is in tightly and properly. Also make sure you install the door tightly as well. There is a button in the top hinge that activates the chandelier when the door is open..so if it is not in good it will not work right. On the 2nd floor- the television pops up, fireplace lights and crackles, the shower makes water sounds and you hear Barbie singing and the toilet flushes. We had a problem with the fireplace. The Tv popped up when we pressed the button, but no light or sound from the fireplace. It seems that the fireplace is not completely installed. Check to make sure it is fitting snugly against the wall. There is a button behind the fireplace mantle that actives the lights and sounds. Click it into place so it is snug against the wall wand your lights and sounds should work. However if you are like us..once we did that the TV wouldn't pop up right. If that happens just fool around with it a bit to get the TV back on its track and you should be good to go. On the 3rd floor- the jacuzzi does not actually work unlike some of the pictures may lead you to believe. There is no bubbling mechanism. It does however hold water and the Tiki lights do work. The batteries for the Tiki lights were included, but I had to provide the ones for the house (I think 3 AA). Overall I think the house is really great. I think it was very sturdy unless your child plans to climb on it. No different from any other dollhouse made from Barbie. I was actually very pleasantly surprised at the space. There is plenty. I didn't expect the floors to be so wide. It is very tall and I don't think it will be very easy to take a part once put together, so make sure you pay attention. It is a beautiful house that best of all comes fully furnished. The furniture is not the greatest, but still nice. There are a lot of little pieces for the kitchen and bathroom, but you can always put them away like I did if you don't want your child to have them yet. If you want a beautiful house for your daughter with lights and sounds..buy it, follow these tips and I don't think you will be disappointed. I hope this helps someone!
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This review is from: Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse (Toy)
Let me start by saying I bought this at Amazon for a discounted price of 99.99 and it came quickly via FedEx (free shipping through AmazonPrime temporary membership). I READ AN AMAZON REVIEW WARNING ABOUT THE BOX SPOILING THE SURPRISE, and since this is a Christmas present from Santa, I knew to watch out for it. I had a tracking number and knew when it would arrive, so I got it safely in the house without any of my kids seeing it. But it was true, there was no outer wrap or box to cover the FULL-SIZED AND VERY OBVIOUS PICTURES OF THE CONTENTS ON ALL FOUR SIDES OF THE BOX. ANY CHILD WOULD KNOW WHAT WAS IN THE BOX RIGHT OFF THE TRUCK!! Don't know anything about it's durability as I haven't opened it yet. I do know my 5 yr old will love it and Christmas morning will be such a surprise! I just can't wait to see her face and I know she'll spend hours playing with this toy!
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This review is from: Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse (Toy)
I ordered this last week which was great that it came so quickly just in time for x-mas.....but it was sitting on my porch in the huge Barbie Box with the picture of the Barbie house on it.....It was not put in a plain box from Amazon. My daughter came a few feet away from seeing it sitting on the porch. I had no idea it would come like this, so it was very close to ruining her Santa gift that she asked him for. Phew.... Other than that it looks good so far. Just beware of it coming like this to your house if you are surprising someone this Christmas.
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