If you don't want to do down the plastic dolls house route for Christmas 2019 there is still time to do something different.
A couple of examples of the most simple option are shared by German business Limmaland, worldinsidepictures and mumsgrapevine.com.au. Limmaland sells doll wallpapers and although they ship to the UK, it takes two weeks to deliver and a similar result could be achieved with the wide range of sticky-back plastics available from Amazon.
The main part of the house can be made with an Ikea Kallax unit (used to be called Expedit) retailing at £25 for a 2x2, or £19 for a 2x1 shelf if you want to do something smaller. The beauty of this approach for a dolls house is its flexibility, giving the opportunity for remodelling and redecorating in a way that a standard plastic house does not.
Six years ago I had a go at my own Kallax dolls house during some time off with the family. Minime, then 4, was desperate for a house for her Barbies but I was dismayed by the plastic and the cost of what was out there. I started with a Kallax unit as a base and build an attic room with some strong cardboard, which was then covered with sticky back plastic.
Add a gingham cover and we had one of the best 'reveal' moments on a birthday morning that I have ever seen. This is what I ended up with:
...and over the years we have remodelled the house a few times. Firstly, because I was disappointed in the markings on the attic wallpaper where the glue showed through, and then to add floor tiles for the kitchen and bathroom and a bit of lighting... (sorry for the poor quality photo)
...other times to change the colour scheme to match Minime's changing colour choices (from pink to turquoise) and most recently, simply as it needed a bit of a tidy up before it was passed on.
To furnish the house I purchased a Huset dolls house lounge set from Ikea which comes with 'pop out' cardboard windows and clocks etc, some standard Barbie furniture (which also had helpful pictures of furniture on the box which I cut out and stuck on the walls), and some DIY items such as the double bed (from an iPad box), kitchen sink/cooker combo, and wardrobe. Since the original build, the furniture has been added to with another Ikea Huset bedroom set, ideal for the kids room. Sticky back plastic and wrapping paper have both been my friend throughout, and your house can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be.
At 10, Minime has decided that its time for the house to go, but we've had incredible value out of this, with it being the longest standing present ever. We even got a bit of fun out of it ourselves.
