DIY Dollhouse Furniture
Do you have a little one who loves to play house?
I was wandering about a toy store last Christmas trying to decide on a gift for my daughter Sarah (2.5yrs). She is still at the wonderful age where I can take her along to the toy store and she is none the wiser.
On this particular occasion, as I picked up this and that I noticed that Sarah had spent the entire time playing with a dollhouse. As she chatted away, she put little people to bed and others took baths. Her sweet reenactments of our daily lives very quickly helped me decide on a gift. Â Sarah plays with her dollhouse everyday. Taking care of ‘her kids’ is her favourite game.
Now a dollhouse just simply wouldn’t be complete without furniture. These tiny chairs and tables are beautiful in their simplicity. They take next to no time to make and are free; being made from beautifully textured branches.
How to make dollhouse furniture
You’ll need:
- some branches – at least wide enough to fit your child’s little dolls
- a saw
- a chisel
- a hammer
- some sandpaper
How to make a chair:
- using the saw, Â make a cut where you would like the top of your chair seat
- cut about 2/3 of the way through the branch – this will be your seat
- make a series of cuts up the branch
- using the chisel and hammer, gently chisel out the cuts – this will be the back of your chair
- give your little one some sandpaper and have them help you sand the chair smooth
How to make a stool:
- simply cut your branch to the height you want for the stool
- sand your stool
How to make a table:
- using a thicker branch simply cut a thick slice to make a table
- use the sandpaper to smooth
Once you’ve made your first set, your mind will be buzzing with ideas for making new additions. You could make:
- a little bed from a long thin slice
- or use some twine and some smaller branches to make a clothes line
- add a fabric scrap for a rug
- some upturned acorn caps for bowls and some little wood chips for plates
See.
Buzzing with ideas.
And if you have older children, this would be a wonderful project for them to take creative control over as they fill their dollhouse with beautiful, natural furniture.
What a great idea! Did you dry the wood? Or treat it with anything?
Thank you 🙂 Nope just a regular old branch left over from some garden pruning. It was in the yard for a month or so though so might have dried out a little.
I love this idea! We often go outside, and find a big tree or a unusual crevice and play farm animals and set up a scene, your ideas will be such fun to implement in our games! Thanks, I love following your blog. From Lawrie, fireflyfarmadventures.blogspot.com
That’s a lovely idea. My children like to set up little imaginary play scenes outside in the garden. It always makes me smile when I see them doing this, I remember setting up my own when I was a child 🙂
This is so completely amazingly awesome and I feel soooo lame for never thinking of this myself before! Thank you so much for the post 🙂 I love the natural look and that it doesn’t cost $20 a set! 🙂
🙂 I love the natural look too. We bought Sarah a kitchen set and bedroom when we bought the dollhouse but I love these natural ones so much more. I’ll think we’ll be making new items from now on 🙂
This is such pretty furniture! I would be wonderful to give as a Christmas gift.
Good looking furniture!
I love these. I just traipsed home a whole heap of branches I found on the side of the road after some wild weather here. We don’t have a doll’s house but I wonder if I’ll have enough to create some fairy furniture.
These are wonderful! I love the natural look! For Christmas this year, I am making a bunch of wood presents (a la Mama May I) for my boys and their cousins. I think I just might have to include some branches! Thanks for the idea.
Hi Kaly 🙂 I hoping to make some lovely wooden pressies this year too 🙂 I’d love to see what you make 🙂
I love it! Such a lovely set. Thanks so much for the inspiration.
This is beyond gorgeous, Kate! I’m in love 😉
Thanks Steph 🙂 They actually turned out much better than I was expecting. Jack and Sarah love them too 🙂
Love these and can’t wait to make some this summer. Shared here http://siayla.blogspot.ca/2014/01/got-wood-try-these-wood-crafts.html
Love this! How did you do the bottles?