Prisbey built a "village" of shrines, walkways, sculptures, and buildings from recycled items and discards from the local landfill.

After Theodore's passing at age 72, Prisbrey and her seven children moved up to Seattle where she married an unnamed and unemployed man.

They had spent all their money paying for the property so she resorted to visiting a local dump where she found thousands of colored bottles.

She moved away in 1972, but later came back to live in a trailer alongside the village where she continued adding sculptures and flower planters.

[5] In 1982 Prisbrey, in poor health, left Simi Valley to live with her daughter and son-in-law in San Francisco.

[6] After starting with a wall, Prisbrey continued to build until she had constructed 16 buildings and structures made of glass and assorted other materials, a mosaic sidewalk, the Leaning Tower of Bottle Village, the Dolls Head Shrine, Cleopatra's Bedroom, the Round House, and more.

"[7] Bottle Village is seen by art historians and folklorists as a complex work combining the desires of an elderly lady to provide simple shelter for her valued personal collections; memorialize family, friends, and important life events; grieve over the loss of family members; entertain visitors; and leave behind a testament to her very personal vision, exuberance, and inspiration.

It is a rarity created out of actual mass consumer throwaway from everyday lives of Americans of the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Her daughter loved flowers so Prisbrey decided to make her a rose garden made out of headlights and recycled materials.

There are heart, diamond, and spade stepping stones that symbolize when Prisbrey visited Las Vegas, Nevada.

Because of the severe damage, Preserve Bottle Village applied for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding.

The City of Simi Valley also contributed at least $24,000 through Community Development Block Grant funds to restore the 1920s woodshed with concrete pillars, a remnant of the area's apricot industry.

[14] The Doll Head Shrine has created a cult following and was reproduced on the cover of Wall of Voodoo’s chart-topping single "Mexican Radio" in 1982.

The Village inspired a 32-page children's book, Bottle Houses: The Creative World of Grandma Prisbrey by Melissa Eskridge Slaymaker.