AmericanGirlFan

Interview with Build An American Girl Doll House!

Since I love dolls, I've always loved doll houses too! There are so many adorable doll houses out there. When I was contacted by Chris of Build an American Girl Dollhouse, I was blown-away! He created and built an American Girl sized dollhouse for his daughters, along with selling his doll house plans for others to use on his website. His daughter's doll house is truly amazing!

Here is the outside of the doll house...

...and the cute rooms inside!

I thought it would be fun to get to know more about Chris and how he built his daughter's doll house with an interview! I'm super excited to share it with you!

How did you get the idea to create an American Girl Dollhouse?

I first built American Girl sized triple bunk beds for my girls for Christmas 2009 and thought that these dolls really should have a place for the beds and all of their other accessories. I searched online for ideas or plans and really couldn’t find any, so I dreamt up this dollhouse and gave it to my girls for Christmas 2010. I studied a lot of small dollhouses and then made those ideas American Girl sized!

How long did it take for you to build your first American Girl Dollhouse?

It’s hard to remember exactly, but it was a lot, only because I built it with every option I could dream up –doors that close on the front, lights, siding, and a hinged roof on the attic.  A basic version of this dollhouse can be built by someone with beginner woodworking skills in a weekend.  Then, you can add options like the ones I list above, which will add more time to the build.

How did you learn or get into woodworking? Had you made other doll-sized items before?

I started woodworking about ten years ago with some small projects in our house. I just learned by trying new things which worked a lot of the time, but sometimes didn’t.  I have included a picture of the dollhouse beds I made as my first AG project.  My daughters have just loved the things I have built and that means so much to me.

What inspired you to share your ideas/plans with others to use?

When I found that plans and instructions for the dollhouse didn’t exist, I kept all the measurements and took pictures as I built.  Since my daughters loved the dollhouse so much, I thought there might be other girls who would want one too.  There is one of these dollhouses sitting in a classroom in California, it has been built as a fundraiser in a raffle, and now this dollhouse has been built in Australia and Italy.  I offer email support to anyone who does this project and it has been such fun to be a part of this again and again.

Did your daughters play a part in creating the dollhouse with you?

The dollhouse was a complete Christmas surprise for them!  That meant that during the build they didn’t get to be a part of it.  I didn’t do any decorating of the inside so they could do all of that.  They decided to make the AG bedrooms the same color as theirs, they painted stencils and picked all the things to go up on the walls.  Many other families have done this project together and they tell me it’s a very exciting thing for the whole family to be involved with the build.

How many American Girl dolls are in your family?

We have 7 dolls in our family. Saige and McKenna are the current favorites.

Do you have any encouraging advice to ones who would like to create their own American Girl Dollhouse?

It’s not as hard to build as it may look! I have had folks buy my plans and finish a basic dollhouse without any other woodworking experience. The plans are written so you can get the big cuts done at Lowe’s or Home Depot and start assembling when you get home. If you start small, the project is not hard. Go check out the customer gallery on the website to see some of the things that have been done with the plans!

Thanks Chris for sharing with us! Those are some very lucky girls to have such a gorgeous doll house! :)

The best part about Chris' dollhouse building plans, is that YOU could have the same doll house by following his instructions. I think this would be such a fun family project. You can take a look at how easy it is to build your own, at Chris' website:

http://www.buildamgirldollhouse.com/

What do you think of the doll house? If you had a doll house what rooms would your dolls want inside?

My Extreme Doll Clothes Makeover: The Results!

In the beginning of the month I told you about our Extreme Doll Clothes Makeover, that Hope and I were going to combine our doll stuff together into one big bin. I'm so excited to show you the results! It took me about three days to clean it all up, but I love it now!

Just to refresh your memory here's the before picture...

 

...And...

...After! Kit's very relieved it's all finished!

Here's a little tour of how I organized each bin:

The smaller bin on top holds accessories and some odds and ends...

And, then I also stored my doll hair supplies and doll jewelry in recipe boxes!

One of my friends gave them to me a while back, and I wanted to put them to good use. I've seen other ones like them before at Michaels Craft Store for $1. They are really useful. :)

Now, onto the bigger bin! On the top shelf I put all of our Historical doll clothes.

The middle shelf I put all of our MyAG American Girl clothes.

And, the bottom shelf I put all of our Non-American Girl clothes and a few bigger accessories, like the doll guitar.

To store all of our doll shoes (our dolls are shoe fanatics!), I reused this flexible bin my Aunt and Uncle gave me for Easter. It makes a good seat too, I guess. haha ;)

Kit and I hope you enjoyed a quick peek at how we store our AG stuff! I'd love to know how you organize too, where/how do you store your doll stuff and doll(s)?

My Review of American DollHouses!

My absolute favorite thing to do with my American Girl Dolls is set up fun scenes of them!
So, I loved hearing about this awesome new product for 18 inch dolls...American DollHouses. The American DollHouses are made in America by It'z Purple, a family owned company that loves creating products for girls and their dolls. When Kathy, the owner, offered to send me one of their Doll Houses to review, my dolls sure got excited! :)

When the box showed up on my doorstep, I was so surprised at it's size! It made the American DollHouse experience even more fun! :)

The American DollHouses come in 3 different sizes and scenes. The One-Room Ice Cream Shoppe, the Two-Room with a barn scene, and the Four-Room that includes bedrooms and a kitchen space. The one I'm reviewing is the $95 Two-Room doll house with the barn scene. It comes with a large vinyl floor mat and two panels to make the doll house.

The panels are made of a very well constructed hard plastic material. They both have gaps, so you can slide the smaller panel into the larger one to seperate the two rooms!

It's so easy to set up, and start playing with your dolls!

Cecile is enjoying a yummy snack in the cheery dining room. I just love the windows in this room!

And, Kit and Abbey are having a sleepover in their new bedroom.

Here you can see the three different areas, and if you turn the doll house on the other side there's another scene...

...the barn scene! Elizabeth can't wait to go for a ride on Sugar. :)

One of the great things about the American DollHouses are that once your done playing, you can easily take the panels apart and store them under your bed or in your closet. Then all you have to do is wait for the next time you want to play!

Be sure to check out all of the awesome American DollHouses, at their website: AmericanDollHouses.com

Which American DollHouse is your favorite? :)