Alright, so check it out, I finally got around to trying something I’ve been meaning to do forever: Barbie roller skates! Yeah, sounds kinda silly, but I wanted to see if I could actually make some cool, functional skates for my niece’s Barbies. Here’s how it all went down.
First thing’s first: scavenging materials. I rummaged through my junk drawer and found some old ballpoint pens (the kind with the straight, cylindrical barrels). I figured those would be perfect for the wheels themselves. Then, I dug up some craft foam – you know, the kind kids use for school projects. I decided on a bright pink, obviously, because, well, Barbie.
Next up: Wheel Time. I sawed those pen barrels into tiny wheel-sized pieces. This was kinda tricky, gotta be careful not to slice your fingers. After that, I had to make the holes for the axles. I used a thin skewer heated up with a lighter (yeah, I know, kinda ghetto) to melt a hole through the center of each little pen wheel. Worked like a charm, though! Just be careful not to burn yourself.
Crafting the Skate Body. I drew a simple skate shape onto the craft foam and cut out two matching pieces for each skate. Then I glued those two pieces together to make the skate body thicker. Next, I cut out thin strips of the same craft foam to act as straps to hold Barbie’s feet in place. I glued these straps onto the skate body, making sure they were positioned correctly for Barbie’s feet.
Assembling the Wheels and Axles. I used some thin wire as axles. I threaded the wire through one skate body, then added the pen wheel. Then, I threaded it through the other side of the skate body and bent the ends of the wire to keep the wheels from falling off. Did the same for all four wheels on each skate.
The Finishing Touches. Okay, so they looked a little rough. I grabbed some glitter glue and went to town. Everything’s better with glitter, right? I also used a thin black marker to draw some details, like fake laces and little logos (a “B” for Barbie, naturally).
The Grand Test. The moment of truth! I strapped the skates onto one of my niece’s Barbies (with her permission, of course!). And… they actually worked! She was able to push Barbie around on the floor and the wheels rolled pretty smoothly. Score!
Lessons Learned: If I were to do it again, I’d probably use thicker craft foam for the skate bodies to make them more sturdy. Also, maybe invest in some proper glue, the stuff I used was kinda weak. But overall, it was a fun little project, and my niece absolutely loved them. So, yeah, Barbie roller skates: mission accomplished!
