Third in the series of do-it-yourself dollhouse designs is the little living room. This little living room can fit a small coffee table, sofa or arm chair and maybe even a fire place. These are the ideas we have for you today.

Coffee Table

The coffee table is an easy fix. First you should decide if you want it to be round or rectangle. Then, based on your choice you will find a carton in that shape, and cut it down so that it is just tall enough to make the sides of the table. You can then put pushpins in to make the bottom and a cardboard cutout for the top. Decorate however you’d like. Spray paint, crayons, markers and even construction paper or stickers are good options.

Arm chair or Couch

Using a cardboard or even plastic berry box is a good option for an armchair or sofa. You may have to add a little padding afterwards to make it look believable. Cut the bottom of the box around the air holes and set it upside down for the base (picture included). Then cut a another section out and place it right side up for the seat and back.

Cushions and throw pillows can be made by placing cotton in between two squares of fabric which are then glued, stapled or sewed together.

Fireplace

A paper towel (cut short) or toilet paper tube can be used for the chimney portion of the fireplace. The actual fireplace itself can be made with a tea box. You can make it square by simply cutting a square out of one of the long sides and placing the chimney on top of the box, or you can be a little more creative. To make a more funky, diagonal looking fireplace (picture also included)- use the following steps:

- Cut off and discard the front and bottom panels of a tea box.
- Cut a rectangular opening centered along the lower edge of the back panel.
- Trim the long edge of the box lid to fit around the stack.
- Cut the shorter edges diagonally and fold the box sides back against them.
- Tape the pieces together.

No matter which version you do, you can paint it to look like a fireplace.

Wood and fire can be made using a bottle cork and mylar or colored foil.

Next entry we will learn about the bedroom.

This is the third in the series of do-it-yourself dollhouse decorations. Today we get to talk about the bathroom and what little, around-the-house objects you can use to give your dolls the pristine perfect potty while on a penny pinching budget.

Let’s start with the most important part of any doll’s bathroom, the “John

The Toilet

You can make the toilet using some objects that would normally be found in your bathroom. First, for the tank, paint an empty soap box white, or whatever color suits your fancy. After painting the box, cut a small round flap/opening in the box to serve as a toilet seat lid. For the flusher, use a cup hook wrapped in tissue paper.

Now comes the bowl. For the bowl, get the top from an individual plastic juice carton and invert it. Picture is included for a clearer idea. Glue all parts to a piece of cardboard for easy “remodeling.”

The Tub

For a rectangle tub, use a painted tea box with the lid cut from the top. Leave little edges on the lid to flip out and form the tub lip. For the water faucet aspect. Insert a cut bendable straw and push pins for knobs.

You can also create a circle spa tub using paint and an old individualized sour cream container. It comes with everything built in but the jets and seat. You can make the seat out of a trimmed down plastic cup and jets can be either drawn in or made using the back side of brads inserted into the plastic.

The Sink

Last but of course not least is the sink. This again can be made using a tea box, cut in half and placed on end. Use a plastic bottle cup to trace a spot just big enough for it to fit tightly in and then cut from the tea box a place for the sink basin. Use the same method as the tub for the faucet.(Bendable straw and push pins)

These are just a few of the many ideas you can come up with for your dollhouse bathroom. A bath rug can be made from a piece of an old cut up washcloth. Use a tea box upright with some fabric and a straw (rod) for a shower. The more ideas you discover on your own the more unique it will be for you.

Last post we promised that we would give you some ideas for crafting your dollhouse room by room from ordinary household objects. For this first post, we will start in the heart of the home, the kitchen.

Start with an empty orange juice carton for the counter and make the sink using pudding cups and a bendy straw faucet. Use two pudding cups for a double-wide sink. Bottle cap tops and liners and buttons make excellent dishware.

For a handy-dandy stainless steel stove “set a tea box on end, then cut off and discard the top half. Cut a door opening with a window in the front panel and wedge plastic berry basket ‘racks’ in the oven. Glue on pieces of cardboard for a stove top and control panel, then cover the entire stove with aluminum foil. Attach paper fastener ‘controls’ glue on bottle cap ‘burners’ and tape on a paper clip ‘door handle’.” Picture included.

For kitchen chairs use sections of a paper towel roll as the base and use a section of an egg carton as the chair, you can even make a milk jug cap the “cushion.”

The table is simple as well. You can use the bottom end of a plastic drinking cup cut in half or a box or carton of some kind and cut out in a rectangle table shape, then paint to cover the carton design. Use foam for the table top.

For the refridgerator use a tea box set lenthwise. Cut out doors and then create shelves by cutting straws into sections and make shelves out of clear plastic berry boxes. Once again, use paperclips as door handles.

These are just a few ideas to get your homemade dollhouse kitchen started. You can also make a floor mat using scraps of fabric or lightbulb casings.

If your children have been bugging you to get them a doll house or even just simply to spend more time playing with them, we have a fun craft for you that can “kill two birds with one stone.” That’s right, you can save money by helping your child build a dollhouse, barn or other project from stuff sitting around your home and spend time with them at the same time. Who knows, you might even have some fun yourself.

During the next few weeks we will be giving you ideas for each room so that you can have something as simple as one bedroom cabin to as luxurious as a castle built for a princess. Let’s get started with the house itself.

We have found that in general bigger is better! You will want to start out with the biggest empty box you can find, within reason of course. We suggest using a large refrigerator box and cutting off one of the long sides, leaving a “look-down-upon” feel.

Now that you have your frame, it is easy to put in doors, walls and even windows using scissors or box cutters. (Be sure to help your children with this step. You can even add paint, “wallpaper” and even siding by cutting out magazine clip-outs or craft paper and glue. You could also add windows and doors to rooms by the same “paste on” method. Walls of course can be added by using leftover box parts.

Making the walls snug, but not glued together will make them adjustable as well, adding even more fun and variety.

Now that you have the general idea of what you want to do, start gathering items. You can use anything from emptied perfume bottles, to buttons, to bottle caps. Scraps of fabric make good rugs and carpets. Egg cartons, q-tips, toothpicks, matchsticks and even paperclips can find a home in your homemade dollhouse. Just use your creativity.

Don’t forget the best part. When you are done, it is already mostly put away. It’s in a box! Just find a place to store it and you’ll be ready for when you want to pull it out again.

As an adult, it’s sometimes easy to look back at life and think how good things were, and how they could’ve been different, or better.

With a dollhouse mania in full swing, you can literally purchase dollhouses in just about any color, style, size, shape, and match them with various toys or dolls.

If you’ve ever seen the TV show Kate plus 8, you know that she purchased play dollhouses for her children a few years ago. Not one for every child, but ones for them to share and play.

It’s easy to look back and think how different your childhood could’ve been, if your dreams and imaginations could’ve been let loose.

How incredible would it be to have a life-size house (when you’re a child this is much easier to achieve)? You could play out all different fairy tales and imaginative stories with a literal house. A life-size dollhouse.

These houses literally come in wood, or cabin type houses; plastic princess, medieval houses; bright pink, Barbie houses; and just about every different combination you can imagine. They even come with shed or cabin type options for boys as well. (We’re not surprised—these houses are a lot of fun!)

These play houses are a fun way to act out grenades, bombs, army-style scenarios, or Little House on the Prairie scenarios.

Let’s face it: these large, almost life-size play houses are a way for parents to live vicariously through their children. With these houses they can enjoy having a place of their own to host tea parties, BBQ’s, grenade-launching battles (pretend, of course), and anything else kids love to dream.

Whether they’re indoor or outdoor play houses, kids can enjoy these fun toys and decorate them to make them their own. Wouldn’t it be fun to match their personalities with the right play house so they can grow and get the most out of their childhood dreams?

Polly Pocket is probably the smallest dollhoue I’ve ever seen. These doll houses started out so small that they were given a string, and you could wear them around your neck. After development, who little houses and shopping malls were designed in the more traditional flat on the table sense. Polly Pockets are designed for little girls and come in all different shapes and sizes. One of the fun things about Polly pockets is that they usually fold up to look like something else. When a Polly Pocket is closed, it can look like a jewelry box, or a castle, for example.

Thes were really fun toys for girls a while back. I’m not sure how popularity is now, but I’m sure they are still available. One of the down sides of such small toys is the ability to lose the dolls and accessories because the are so small.