Donating refurbished Barbie (and similar) dolls for charities?

[BarbieRestoration]

Hi Everyone

My hobby is restoring and refurbishing old Barbie (and similar kinds of) dolls. I love restoring them so that they can be enjoyed as toys again.

I'm wondering whether these dolls could be donated and used in some kind of therapeutic setting, or given as gifts through organisations like the food banks or women's aid? I'm not looking to make any money from this, it's something I enjoy doing anyway and would love it if children (or adults!) could benefit in some way.

The dolls would be fully clothed and I could put them in a fabric bag with a little doll brush and maybe some accessories.

Please let me know if you think this could be done, or, if you are involved in these types of organisations, would you be interested in this kind of thing? Thanks!

Our after school club was delighted when we offered them some outgrown Barbies. I don't imagine they'll be exactly cherished though.

Haha! No that's fine, the main thing is they are toys and they are enjoyed by the children! The school my daughter will be going to in September has an after school club, so I could approach them :)

Hopeful bump :)

You could ask your local Home Start if they have any families who would welcome these. I volunteer for HS, and this is probably something we would do.

That's a great idea, thank you.

A different approach might be to film your restorations and upload to you tube. Barbie hobbiests are popular Grow a fan base and offer them for sale with funds going to charity. In the meantime though I'm not sure.

Sorry to hijack the thread but do you have any advice on how to deranged doll hair when it gets all matted?

@EscapeTheCastle

A different approach might be to film your restorations and upload to you tube. Barbie hobbiests are popular Grow a fan base and offer them for sale with funds going to charity. In the meantime though I'm not sure.

That's a great idea, thank you. Unfortunately I don't have the time or skills to do videos or organise sales, but if I ever do I will consider this.

When you say restoring them do you repaint thier faces and things like that? If so I don't know where you would stand with CE testing etc. It's been a while since I volunteered in a charity shop but we weren't allowed to sell home made toys for safety reasons.

@FightingTheFoo

Sorry to hijack the thread but do you have any advice on how to deranged doll hair when it gets all matted?

Hi, that's ok no need to apologise :)

You'll need...

A pyrex jug (or similar long-ish container that can hold boiling water)
A strong comb or brush, a clean metal pet brush is even better if you have one
Fabric softener
A couple of hand towels
Clean toothbrush (optional)
Hair conditioner
Tall-ish drinking glass

Get a pyrex jug and fill it with boiling water.

Add a few teaspoons' worth of fabric softener to the water.
Place a towel on the counter/table next to the jug
Soak the doll's hair in the water for a couple of minutes, avoiding submerging her whole head. You can either hold her or prop her up.
Carefully use a towel to squeeze the excess water off the doll's hair and lay her hair on the towel
Starting at the ends, take small sections of her hair and carefully and gradually brush through, working from bottom to top
Depending on how bad the hair is, you might have to repeat this a few times.
Expect quite a lot of hair to come out, this is normal

Once a doll is totally detangled I give her hair and body a good clean with using a toothbrush and washing up liquid. I then apply hair conditioner to her hair and rinse really thoroughly.
Once she's dry I comb her hair into place and stand her up in a tall drinking glass to air dry. You can of course speed things up a bit with a hairdryer if you want!

Hope this helps :)

@PomegranateQueen

When you say restoring them do you repaint thier faces and things like that? If so I don't know where you would stand with CE testing etc. It's been a while since I volunteered in a charity shop but we weren't allowed to sell home made toys for safety reasons.

That's a really good point, thanks. I do sometimes do repaints, but normally I clean and repair them. If I were restoring a doll for children I wouldn't use anything toxic on them.

Does this work on Barbour hair that’s sticking up from being tied up in a ponytail?

Also do you have a trick for reattaching heads?

@Terracedtardis

Does this work on Barbour hair that’s sticking up from being tied up in a ponytail?

Also do you have a trick for reattaching heads?

It will do yes :)

For reattaching heads, and other kinds of repair advice, I would really recommend this YouTube channel, they explain it much better than I could!

www.youtube.com/c/AThousandSplendidDolls

Amazing, thank you so much!

I'm sorry I can't help but this is one of the most gorgeously batty threads I've ever read.