Bookcase Dollhouse

Dear Readers,

I didn't realize how long it has been since I posted on Blogger!  Free time is a luxury nowadays so I usually post pictures on my Instagram account because it takes less time than to write a blog post!

Thanksgiving weekend has given me a little bit more leisure time so I finally got the chance to post about my present project: a bookcase dollhouse.  Or rather a dollhouse in a bookcase.  

I have a few folding Barbie dollhouses but the display was never permanent and I had to store everything away once I finished taking pictures.  They serve their purpose and I am happy with them but I also wanted a permanent display of my Re-ment collection and doll furniture.  

I didn't want a big Barbie dollhouse because the accumulating dust would drive me crazy (I already have quite a lot of dusting to do with the little Sylvanian Families dollhouses!).  So I opted instead for a bookcase or cabinet with closing doors so I can keep the dust away!

Since the bookcase fits dolls of about 9 inches tall, I decided to give this dollhouse to Licca and Dal dolls yet.  The furniture from Licca, Re-ment and IKEA brands can fit these dolls very well.   The Licca furniture set I have right now is available on Amazon.com. The Re-ment furniture are available mostly on Ebay (at very high prices) but there is a new collection of furniture being gradually released so I am hopeful that Re-ment will eventually remake some of those rare items. 

Right now, I only have two shelves furnished but I am not done decorating them yet.  I intend to set up all four shelves eventually.  

Do you have a dollhouse in a bookcase too? If not, how do you solve the dusting problem with an open display dollhouse?

Have a lovely week!

Storage Space

Dear Readers,

I am so glad it's Friday.  I look forward to the last day of the week because the weekend is near and I will finally have time to be with my children at home.  This week seemed longer than normal because my daughter was teething and so she was feverish and cried for hours non-stop.  She is usually clingy but this time I literally could not let her down and had to carry her in my arms all the time.  Well thank goodness it's over now and she is back to her happy self but it's been tough for her and for us to see her so miserable.

Now that she feels better I will be able to take our family out to dinner with my father and his wife who came to visit us all the way from Canada.  They are staying for a month so we will probably go out more often than usual so we can show them around the city.

I also hope to have more time to organize the new cabinets my husband has installed this week.  I desperately needed more storage space for my miniature collection, dolls and dollhouse furniture!  I started to store them inside the cabinets and I realized how much stuff I have.  I knew I had a lot but it's not until they are all gathered in one single space that it really shows.  I will have to do some more purging!

Here below are some pictures from the shelves I have filled.  It's just one portion of the cabinets.  There are lots more to organize.  Like my craft supplies and my son's toys... Hopefully I will have time to do it soon.  Have a great weekend everybody!

Licca Wardrobe for the Dollhouse

I have not received my dollhouse yet.  It should be here soon though and I am so looking forward to have Licca-chan move in! Since the only 1:6 furniture I have are the ones which will come with the dollhouse and my IKEA living room set, I went on the hunt for some more items to complete the decor.

I found a pink wardrobe from the 2004 Licca furniture collection! I don't usually like an overload of pink but this one is really cute and functional so I couldn't resist!

Look how neatly organized Licca-chan's clothes are now :)

All the drawers can open so it is great to store socks, bags, hair accessories, etc.  There is plenty of space on the floor to store shoes and boots too.

The wardrobe came with four pink hangers. While the hanger are nicely designed, they do not fit in the closet unless they are placed diagonally.

So I used miniature wood hangers instead.   They are smaller but they are the right size for Licca-chan's clothes and they fit perfectly in the closet. 

Here below is a photo of the pink hangers inside the wardrobe.  The hangers automatically take a diagonal position so the clothes are slightly slanted as well.  I guess it does make it look nice when you open the closet.  

But for now I prefer to use miniature wood hangers because 4 hangers are not enough to store away all of Licca-chan's clothes!!!

Play Wonder Dollhouse at Target

The Play Wonder Dollhouse is on Clearance Sale at Target online website!  It's $65.03 instead of the regular price of $130.06!!!  It's also free shipping for the usual USA 48 States.

Photo Credit: Target


I have never seen a brand new house for full-size dolls (11 inches and taller like Barbie and Pullip) at this price.  Of course you can get cheaper dollhouses but they are usually made of cardboard.  Since I didn't have a dollhouse yet for my Licca dolls, I decided to purchase this one :D

 

Notice how there is an opening on each side of the first two floors?  Well it's for a door in case you want to add more rooms to the house.  Play Wonder has a Nursery Room Builder and a Pet Shop Room Builder.  Those units are very big and are sold separately but I can't find them anywhere else except for Amazon and Ebay (at a very high price!).  

 

I am not interested in buying those separate units anyway so I am content with just the dollhouse.   What I like about this model is that I can always build my own Room unit later if it's needed and personalize it the way I want.  I am actually thinking about adding a music room and a sun room. 

 

The house comes with 10 pieces of furniture (the description below is from Amazon):

 

1 bed with removable pillowcase

1 nightstand

1 small lamp

1 couch

1 adjoining chaise lounge

1 coffee table

1 bathtub

1 bistro table

2 dining chairs

 

Play Wonder also has more furniture you can buy separately from the dollhouse like the Kitchen Set or the Patio Set.  There were apparently many sets, like a Bathroom Set, a Living Set and a Bedroom Set, but they seem to be totally discontinued unless you can find them on Ebay.

 

Frankly, I don't really like the bulky wood furniture even if they are probably more durable than the plastic furniture.  I like changes anyway so I would probably make my own furniture and modify them as often as I want.

 

And I already have the fantastic and affordable IKEA Huset Dollhouse Furniture Set ^_^
 

IKEA Dollhouse Furniture

Ever since I bought Pullip and Licca doll, I have been looking for 1:6 scale furniture.   Up to now, I only had 1:12 scale dolls, dollhouses and furniture.  I did manage to find two garden chairs and a table last week but I wanted something to furnish a living room.

After reading Melissa's post at Julia's Bookbag about IKEA dollhouse furniture (click HERE for her blogpost), I knew I had to stop by IKEA to take a look!  I was not disappointed.  The furniture set is AWESOME!  It's in 1:8 scale so it will fit Licca dolls perfectly.  Barbie dolls will be a little big for the furniture but it still works if you are not too picky! 

The set are miniature version of the Klippan sofa, Lack table, Expedit shelving unit, Vago chair, rug and heart cushion.

Unlike full-size furniture, the dollhouse furniture come already assembled.  The price tag of $12.99 makes this Living Room playset even better.  Here below is what is in the box:

• 1 pink couch
• 1 pink slipcover
• 1 yellow chair
• 1 green table
• 1 white cubicle bookcase
• 1 black & white striped rug
• 1 red cushion

A bonus to the furniture playset are cardboard pre-perforated cut-outs that you can color and add to your Living Room:

• 1 grandfather clock
• 2 windows
• 1 lamp
• 1 parrot
• 1 fruit bowl
• 2 frames
• 1 mirror
• books

The couch is very sturdy and I like how the fabric slipcover can be taken out.  I am not crazy about the pink color but it's something that can be changed easily (the plastic couch with spray paint and the slipcover with fabric dyes).

Here below is a picture of the bottom view so you can see how it's made underneath. It is very sturdy and very well made.  The slipcover is attached with a velcro closure.

I placed all the furniture (except the cardboard cut-outs) on an IKEA bookshelf and used some of my Re-ment and Sylvanian Families decorations to fill up the cubicle bookcase.  

Licca-chan made herself feel at home right away. 

I think she looks quite comfy on that couch, don't you think?