Ask me what books I’ve read lately, or what I’ve needlepionted, or what workout class I’ve been to, and I’ll just stare at you blankly. Not just because life feels very full {two little kids, a husband with a demanding work schedule, and my work} but because I’ve been over here renovating an American Girl Dollhouse. ha! I suppose falling asleep to HGTV shows over the years made me think I could shingle a dollhouse or something. Lack of skills aside, this was such a joy-filled project to do with Maxi. When I think back to my fondest memories of play as a child, it ALL centers around my American Girl Dolls. I named my sister after my doll Kirsten after all!
So how did this life-size house end up in our house? A grandfather in Fort Worth made it for his grandaughter. She loved it for years and then handed it to a girl at our dance studio. She enjoyed it, and then last fall her mom texted me asking if Maxi would like to have it. A house passed down through three little girls? I sent Paul the address immediately. It was in the middle of some football game and I said, “Nope! We can pause that. This is urgent.”
Talk about Christmas for the kids. Harry got a kick out of it he could fit inside {seriously} and Maxi spent hours setting up the furnishings “just so.” My husband stared at me wide-eyed knowing I was scheming with ideas. This doll mcmansion had to be sawed in half to fit in the last house, so we put it back together, and I made mental notes of all the things we could do to give it a little more life.
And for the past few months, we have done just that! I added shingles to the roof, repainted it all, installed wallpaper leftovers we had and friends donated, and hunted for a few pieces of decor and furniture. This house brings old memories together with new. Some of the furniture items were mine or my sister’s as a child {which is why the bedding says Katey}, some of the items are brand new {I took the leftover fabric from her drapes and made pillows to match}, some are handed down {the school desk and accessories are from the girls I nannied in college}, some were gifts {the gardening pieces were gifts from her dance teacher}, and some were found on Etsy. This was a slow process that we savored. On nights Paul would work late, Maxi would crawl in my bed and we’d look on buy/sell/trade groups for dollhouse furniture. We took it room-by-room and then would hunt through my old toy boxes at my parents’ house.
I wanted to share it on the blog and source a few of our favorite Etsy finds for y’all in case your little one loves dolls, as well. This little project has given me such great perspective in the things I save for my kids. I have boxes upon boxes of clothing saved, but I was always eager to donate a toy or two. And while we live in an older home, storage isn’t great, and I have to purge; I choose to hold on to their favorite books and toys more now. Maxi wears a few of my dresses as a child, but not boxes full. However, she plays with so many of my Barbies, reads my favorite childhood books, and plays with all my American Girl stuff. Hold on to those toys, mamas! They bring back the fondest memories.
coffee table | locker | art set | calendar | bookcase | bulletin board | mixer | doll candles | small dollhouse | doll kitchen | Little House on the Prairie books | tea set | groceries | kitchen rug | frame and flowers | bow hooks | shingles | mirror | shelves
Katey,
I don’t comment all the time, just on the adorable little boy bubble suits and cav. dog bookends and doing darker hair and Fairy parties, and Elouise and low toy shelves. I have been thru 3 kids and now onto Grands! I just did a house using a pretty standard, Victorian doll house because although my girls SOMETIMES liked the regular doll house set up w/a 4-5 piece family and pets they were more Barbie and AG.fans! Well, I took the standard wood dollhouse and used the MINI AG dolls(do they still have them??) and Barbie pets and a MIX of regular and Barbie sized things (keeping SOME 😉 proportion in mind) and “renovated” for the grands. It was a hit! There are things in there from my childhood and both my girls. I am glad for the things that I have kept, and I agree about the clothes, even the nicest dresses kept don’t end up w/the use of the sentimental doll/toy items! NEXT, I think it is onto an American Girl dollhouse. I will never be able to downsize! Great job Katey. The time you spent doing this w/your precious girl will be LONG remembered, perhaps for ALWAYS!
You sound like the MOST fabulous grandmother and the type I aspire to be! Maxi LOVES the mini AG dolls and would just die for that!! How precious. I just finished making Harry a Buzz Lightyear house I’ll have to blog soon. Thank you for reading and your kindness!! xx, Katey
Sooooo cute!!! I die!!! I also grew up playing with my American Girl dolls and am so grateful my mom saved all the things for our little girls to enjoy now! I may have to convince my husband to build one of these!
Hello Katey,iam a mother of 3 young girl’s myself,and WHOA‼️This is definitely the AG Dollhouse they have longed for.Thankyou so very much for your post,I have yet to figure out where to purchase [ of course at a reasonable cost]the unit needed to construct this AG Doll house 😱.
Please if possible tell me the name of and where I can purchase this same type of unit.I know I’m no construction builder yet iam determined to erect this AG Doll house for my bby’s. I know just to see their eye’s light up it would all be worth it.TY‼️ Again.
Sincerely,
Lisa Mother of 3 girl”s
Hi Lisa!
Oh thank you so much for your sweet comment! This unit was passed down to us. A grandfather made it for his granddaughter, she passed it on to a girl at our dance studio, and then it was passed on to us! xx, Katey
Hi, I would love to have this built for my daughters. Could you share the room dimensions on it?
What is the best way to build a all american girl dolls houses
Hi Taylor! I’m sorry, we didn’t build this. Someone else did and it was passed down to us, so we don’t have the blueprint of it.
This is adorable! Can you share the measurements of it? Including interior spaces? Thank you!
Katey, this is absolutely beautiful! You did a wonderful job! I am currently doing one of these for my daughter and I am having a hard time finding light fixtures, even on Etsy. Can you give me the link to any of the light fixtures you have in this dollhouse? Or recommend where I can find some?
Thank you!
Katey! I am thrilled that I have randomly stumbled upon your blog post featuring some items from my shop! Your pictures are gorgeous and I’d love to use some in my listings with your permission. You can email me at amcinnis618@gmail.com or reach out via Etsy messenger. I’d love to make you more custom items in the future! Thanks again for linking my shop/products!
Hello,
I am so inspired by your beautiful dollhouse!!! I want to construct one for my daughter. For those asking, this is the closest I could find with dimension and instructions to build it.
https://www.ana-white.com/woodworking-projects/american-girl-dollhouse-fits-18-dolls
Best of luck!
Kimberly
Fort Worth, Texas