Architect Barbie finally gets her dream house


The winning design by Ting Li and Maja Paklar 

Architect Barbie, unveiled by Mattel in February, has finally got her dream house, courtesy of the American Institute of Architects. The organization launched a design contest for Barbie’s unofficial future home this year, and after some 30 submissions, a winner has finally been announced.

The winning design was submitted by New York City-based architects Ting Li and Maja Paklar.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

“We are very honored to have been chosen by AIA and Mattel as a finalist and as the public favorite. Barbie was both of ours’ favorite doll growing up in China and Croatia,” the pair said in a joint statement. “We hope to encourage more young female architects to flex their design muscles and just to have fun with architecture.”

Li and Paklar’s design features entertaining space, a chef’s kitchen, an office, library and meeting space. It also has a bedroom and “inspiration space” on the third floor. The roof has a landscaped garden to accommodate Barbie’s pets and is enviromentally friendly, with solar panels, bamboo flooring and an irrigation system.

While the design will not be produced by Mattel, the creators will have a $1,000 donation made in their name to CHAD, a charter high school in Philadelphia focused on architecture and design. — Katherine Clarke