Barbie: Phoenix woman shows off her extensive doll collection

PHOENIX - The Barbie movie took the box office by storm, and it inspired many Barbie fans to get into the collecting game.

Long before the movie came out, however, an Arizona woman started collecting Barbie dolls and their accessories.

"Barbie is the best thing since sliced bread," said Lisa Davis.

When you step into the collection room at Davis' home in Phoenix, a large Barbie greets you.

"I found her on eBay, and they advertised her as being in a New York window as a prop for MAC Cosmetics," said Davis.

Davis loved Barbies growing up, but her dolls were put away in storage. Her love of collecting began in 2009, when she pulled out some of those dolls from her childhood in Chicago. Then, she started browsing eBay.

"Before I knew it, I had spent a bizillion dollars and a bizilllion hours just down that rabbit hole, checking out everything that reminded me of my childhood that reminded me of Barbie," said Davis.

Today, Davis has nearly 300 dolls. A few of them are number ones, or first ones that were sold. Those Barbie dolls could be purchased back in 1959 for $3, and they are worth thousands today.

The outfits, as well as accessories, are also important to a collector.

"Every single one of these outfits that you see has a name and a number," said Davis. "It's catalogued by Mattel, and somebody keeps track of all of that."

Since the Barbie movie came out, more have started collecting. While there might be more competition out there for a collector, Davis said she has no plans to stop.

"I take breaks every now and again because life gets in the way, but I don't see a plan to stop," said Davis. "It's a collection that I love, and I have fun doing it."