A creative mother-of-two has transformed her home into the ultimate Barbie dream house by up-cycling eBay furniture and charity shop finds.
Rachael Havenhand, 28, from Sheffield, South Yorkshire, said it is ‘impossible to feel miserable’ when living in her brightly-painted home which has multi-coloured feature walls and a quirky kitchen floor.
The fitness instructor single-handedly transformed her whole house two years ago from beige and ‘boring’ to ‘wacky and wonderful.’
Rachael Havenhand, 28, from Sheffield, South Yorkshire, transformed her home in a dream Barbie house using brightly-coloured paint and furniture
The aspiring interior designer adorned the walls in the kitchen with artwork (left). The staircase is painted pink with lilac-sprayed speakers
Her bedroom features a life-size Barbie doll while the living room is adorned with pop art and speakers, which Rachael sprayed lilac and penned in details with a permanent marker.
Rachael said she regularly receives unwanted furniture from people but her creative flow means she has the ability to ‘zhoosh’ anything up.
She said: ‘My house may be wacky, but it is normal to me.
‘I went through a faze of trying to be ‘normal’ with beige walls and grey accessories but it didn’t make me happy.’
The mother-of-two said her daughters love the Barbie house and pink is all of their favourite colour. Pictured with daughter Gabriella, eight
Rachael uses retro designs and pop art to create her home interior (left). Miniature plants and a bright pink chest of drawers feature in the living room (right)
‘My home needed a bit of personality, so two years ago I began to decorate and found my style.
The interior designer continued: ‘I wear colourful 80s vintage-style clothing, and I think that really shows in my house.
‘I started by adding pink, purple and blue accessories as they are mine and my daughters Gabriella, eight and Florence, five, favourite colours.
Rachael practises a stencil design which also featured on her kitchen floor (left). The fitness instructor said she began the transformation two years ago
‘And it all escalated from there. I started adding my own art work to the walls and even spray painted an old stereo purple.’
Rachael updates her 15,000 followers on her Instagram page with her renovations and describes herself as ‘making plain, insane’.
She said: ‘I don’t spend a lot. I buy from charity shops and eBay, but a lot of my furniture has been given to me as people know I will just had a lick of paint to anything.
‘I have had to start saying no as my garage is full!’
Rachael regularly updates her Instagram followers on her progress. Daughters Gabriella, eight and Florence, five, love their home
Rachael cuts cost by creating her own paints – she mixes white emulsion and acrylic colours and creates her own matt emulsion by adding talcum powder to silk emulsion.
She said: ‘It is quite addictive, I am always looking at the walls thinking what can I do next?
‘I am always painting walls, floors or pictures to hang up – the wackier the better!
‘I am inspired by everything such as TV adverts, Pinterest, books or clothes.
Rachael revealed how she creates her own paints and said she is inspired by everything including TV adverts
Rachael continued: ‘Even when it is doom and gloom outside, it is impossible to feel miserable in our house.
‘The girls absolutely love our home as it is like Barbie’s house – their friends do too.
‘I have received negative comments from people who ask how I don’t suffer with headaches but I don’t mind, it isn’t for everyone.
‘We love our home and that is all that matters.’