DIY Box Dollhouse

I enjoy creating. It’s a wonderful, wonderful thing. My kids are creative creatures themselves, and they do a lot of craft unassisted, however sometimes I make things FOR them, not necessarily with them, and this dollhouses project is an example. I had SO much fun putting it all together. It’s like playing with house designs on a small scale. I enjoy playing with colours and textures and coming up with simple homey fixtures. I made the box dollhouse for my daughter, and she helped me pick up wallpaper and other features too. I have done this before (for Barbies) in a bookcase when we lived in New Zealand (because we didn’t bring many toys with us). This time I made a smaller version for my daughters small mermaid collection.

Materials

• Boxes – ideally the same size (just one or however many rooms you want – I made four). I purchased some gift boxes for a few dollars each at Spotlight
• Scrap fabric (off cuts or quilt square size)
• Section of lace (this goes around the base of the bed)
• Hot glue gun
• Paper (scrapbook or search for relevant images and print a design out)
• Reclyed materials (medicine boxes and other small items)
• Items like beads, match boxes

Putting it together is a matter or gluing paper inside the box and then outfitting the room. Below is a video of me putting together one of the rooms.

Room 1

• Books are made from thick cardboard (from a box). Folded in half, glued together and the binding coloured. (Tutorial here).
• Little pegs you can get from craft stores hold snaps on a piece of string.
• Lamp is made from the top section of a egg carton and the base is a soft drink bottle lid and toothpick.
• Wall picture is printed and framed with a scrapbook frame.
• Drawers are match boxes with bead handles.
• Rug is a section of burlap.
• Bed is made from an empty bandaid packet, a small section of wadding and wrapped in fabric. You can find step by step instructions on how to make a bed like this (a bigger version) here.

Room 2 

• A box lid becomes a shadow box for a shell (from our collection).
• A twig with hanging beads is a wall feature.
• Drawers are made from match boxes (with left over beads for handles).
• Bed made from an empty Nurofen liquid bottle. I used plastic bead lengths for the valance. Step by step tutorial here.
• Wall picture is printed and framed with a scrapbook frame.

Room 3

• Bookcase is made from little boxes.
• Books made from cardboard (tutorial here)
• Bed is made from an empty medicine packet (with a rope valance). Step by step tutorial here.
• Curtains from left over materials.
• Burlap for rug.
• Wall picture is printed and framed with a scrapbook frame.

Room 4

• Bed made from an empty medicine packet, fabric, wadding. Step by step tutorial here.
• TV made from a little box.
• Bedside table made from 2 lids.
• Wall picture is printed and framed with a scrapbook frame. Other frame is made from toothpicks.

Either glue the boxes together or keep them seperate so you can move them around. You can even put a roof section on with cardboard. My daughter loves the dollhouse and has had a blast playing with it. It’s been a fun project made from a lot or recycled and off-cut materials.