Inside HGTV’s ‘Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge’: Get a Look at the ‘Unreal’ Space

HGTV designer and self-proclaimed Barbie expert Tiffany Brooks talks through what it was like to judge the new show—and see the Dreamhouse in real life.

We’re all truly living in Barbie’s world right now. From themed candles and lemonade to furniture collections, nobody can get enough of the cultural icon ahead of Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, in theaters July 21. Perhaps the most exciting element to come out of all the hype: the influence on interior design. If Barbiecore has been speaking to you ever since it took off on TikTok, HGTV’s Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge is a must-watch—and we got a sneak peek on highlights from the series from judge Tiffany Brooks.

In the show, which premieres July 16, supermodel-designer-author Ashley Graham hosts as fifteen HGTV home design and renovation experts (and one Food Network chef) transform a Southern California residence into their take on Barbie’s ultimate home. Brooks tells Better Homes & Gardens that each team tackled a different room and decade, from the birth of Barbie to the present: For example, a 1960s atomic-age kitchen and ’70s disco-inspired den for Ken.

“The energy was so amazing on set, and to see how each space transcends through each Barbie decade was very, very cool,” Brooks says. “The whole show is unreal. I can’t wait to see what everybody's feedback is out there in TVland as they’re watching at home.”

Related: What We’re Loving About the Start of HGTV’s New ‘Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge’

When assessing a space, Brooks and her co-judge, acclaimed designer and Barbie collaborator Jonathan Adler, looked for how well it channeled Barbie in that given decade, the design itself, and the creativity of a “toy” feature that had to be interactive in some way, like an elevator or voice-activated element.

“The teams have to be really clever to pull off some of the magic that they pulled off,” Brooks says. “We also judged based on the overall style, that they were able to pull off how tastefully it was done. And that whole house, let me tell you—the teams pulled off that so well. That house is very, very livable.”

“Livable” may not be the first word to come to mind when you think of Dreamhouse-like design, but decorating with Barbie in mind doesn’t have to mean turning your home into a monochrome pink movie set.

Brooks argues that before Barbiecore became a trend, its signature style elements were already cemented in interiors: Bright colors, bold textures, and shiny fabrics have always been the focus—but now, there’s a personality to connect to the aesthetic.

“If you think about it, we have been doing that for a while,” she says. “Now Barbie is [associated with] glamor and with the use of Hollywood Regency glamor, and even going into a midcentury-modern era and adding glamor to that—we’ve been doing that.”

Her main piece of advice for getting the look at home: Play with color. Every room can handle a pop of pink, she says, and you can also inject blacks and whites if you don’t want the space to feel too overwhelming.

Related: 8 Gorgeous Barbiecore Colors that Aren’t Pink

Because she grew up playing with Barbies in the ’70s and ’80s, the Barbie-inspired design of those decades is Brooks’s favorite. She references the A-frame Dreamhouse of that era, which featured bold reds and yellows and traditional architecture. Complete with floral motifs and trellis patterns, the style serves as a reminder that Barbiecore is more than hot pink—so you can expect to see various interpretations (and endless inspiration) in the HGTV series.

“Each space [had] a ton of surprises, but some of my favorite moments of the house were definitely the closet,” she says. “I absolutely love the bedroom. Even Ken has a special place in the house, so all the viewers need to look out for that… There are a bunch. I mean, you’re walking through a life size toy, so there’s no space that wasn’t impressive.”

Related: The Ken Den Is the Upscale, Personalized Evolution of the Man Cave

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