Available now in my Etsy shop are these vintage Susy Goose Barbie furniture pieces, which have been lovingly refurbished and painted.
Susy Goose Barbie furniture
Susy Goose Skipper vanity
GAW Barbie convention preview
On Wednesday, I leave for the GAW Barbie Convention in Livonia, MI. For the last few months, I’ve been busy sewing, painting, gluing, and assembling. Here’s a preview of some of the things I’ll be bringing with me.
Susy Goose furniture repaints for GAW Barbie convention
5 days until we leave for the GAW Barbie convention … and I’m still working on last minute projects. I decided it was time to repaint some circa 1963 vintage Susy Goose Barbie furniture. I have two vanities (Skipper and Barbie) and a piano that are getting refurbished. After removing the music box, I had to do the dreaded soak and scrub to remove the gross red flocking from inside the piano.
I settled on Willow Mist for the base paint color … it’s a pale blush color that leans a little toward lavender. Then I’m accenting with treasure gold, pearl white and pearl pink. After 8 hours of painting, I’m ready for a break. I’ll finish the pieces tomorrow with a coat of sealer and then add new mirrors and seat cushions.
Refurbished Susy Goose Skipper doll vanity
By now, you probably know of my love for vintage Susy Goose doll furniture for Barbie and Skipper (we won’t mention the Francie bed they manufactured—not exactly my cup of tea). It’s getting harder to find these pieces in decent shape. While they were made of hard plastic, little pieces did break off or were lost and over time the plastic yellowed when exposed to light. Therefore, I don’t feel back about rescuing these little gems and painting them to show off the design details. The Skipper pieces seem to be exceptionally rare — maybe because they weren’t as popular or because smaller hands played with them.
In any case, I happened upon some Skipper vanity pieces in need of some love. I bought the vanity table from one eBay seller, and the vanity top (minus the mirror) from another seller. Neither seller had the vanity stool, drawer, or mirror. And the phone was missing the receiver. Luckily, I had an intact Susy Goose Barbie phone that fit very nicely over the phone molded on the Skipper vanity table. JoAnn Fabrics has a plastic mirror stock that you can cut with scissors, so I knew I was good there. And I went through my many bins of miniatures and found a little fairy garden table that was just the right height for a vanity stool. So then it was just a matter of some paint, fabric, and accessories to pull it all together. This lovely piece is now available in my Etsy shop and includes all the accessories shown on the vanity as well as 3 tiny Skipper books.
Ooak Susy Goose Skipper bedroom set
It took a while, but I was finally able to collect all 3 pieces of the Susy Goose Skipper bedroom set to repaint and refurbish. Instead of traditional white, I went for something a little more colorful: vergris with gold, champagne, and rose pink accents. I made a new mattress for the bed along with some luxurious bedding (including a pillow made from a petit point hankie). The vanity includes the flower arrangement and bottle set. And the wardrobe is the perfect spot to hang a lovely dress. Available now in my Etsy shop.
Hankie Chic Etsy sale!
It’s time for a summer sale. For a limited time, select items in my shop are up to 25% off! I’ve also just restocked my Barbie print face masks, which are also on sale. Check out the savings at http://www.hankiechic.etsy.com.
Refurbished Susy Goose Skipper doll vanity and bed set
And … here’s the final Susy Goose Skipper doll furniture set I’ve been refurbishing in turquoise blue and gold. I’m loving this color combination. Available now in my Etsy shop.
Refurbished Susy Goose Skipper doll bed and vanity set
Just finished up refurbishing my second Susy Goose Skipper doll furniture set. Available now in my Etsy shop.
Susy Goose doll furniture was manufactured in the early 1960’s in Jonesville, Michigan — about 90 minutes from my house. The doll furniture could be found in stores as well as Sears catalogs. Barbie vanities, beds, and wardrobes seem to have survived the years pretty well and can be found in abundance on eBay, although the white plastic is usually yellowed with time. Skipper furniture, however, is quite rare and very pricey. While the vanity originally came with a sheer skirt, I decided to skip the skirt to better show off the painted carvings on the legs.
Refurbished Susy Goose Skipper doll vanity and bed set
I finally finished the first of three vintage Susy Goose Skipper doll vanity and bed sets. This set is pink, but I have a blue set and a purple set in the works. This set is available now in my Etsy shop.
Painting day, part 2
I’ve spent pretty much all day painting these three Susy Goose Skipper vanities and two coordinating beds. Now to let them dry so I can seal them. Then on to bedding and bench cushions … another day.
Hankie Chic 