Painting a faux wood grain on doll chairs...

Left, Bold green and purple paint, stripes and polka dots. Right, painted with gray base coat.

        I picked up these sturdy but ugly doll chairs at my local Goodwill for three dollars a piece. They fit our 18" American Girl dolls perfectly and will make a nice option for dining room seating. However, the bold colors and patterns will not match any of the other furnishings in our giant dollhouse.

Left, I've painted the cracks in my chairs with black acrylic. Right, chairs dry between coats of paint.

        Something about these chairs reminds me of fairy tale decor. They are the kind of chairs one might be seated on inside of a cottage in the woods, surrounded by seven little men. In any case, they will look much more attractive in my own estimation after I've repainted them.

Above, stripes of grey in many tones and shades are layered on top of the chairs until transformed.

       I have lived with old furniture for so long that painting something to look antique has become second nature to me. I sometimes feel like I have cobwebs between my knees! After painting so many stripes, I combine the last grey layer with white and soften the remaining wet surface with a dry, soft brush. The chairs are ready for play once these are sealed with a clear acrylic varnish.

Cut and Paste A Mosaic Floor

Finished tile floor for our 24"x48" dollhouse kitchen.

       Here you can see that I have just finished the construction of our 18" dollhouse floor, for the kitchen. This floor is very inexpensive to make and easy enough for a ten year old child to craft! Most of you will have easy access to the supplies if you live in the U.S. Save up those used cereal boxes! Because our dollhouse floors are so large, the cardboard tile application is perfect. This floor is not too heavy at all.

Supply List:

• cardboard from Cereal boxes (to cut the tiles from)
  
• cardboard cut to the exact measurements of your dollhouse floor
• white school glue
• spray paint primer (grey)
• patching plaster
• clear acrylic sealer
• additional books and cardboard to weight the floor down between applications
• sharp scissors
  

Tiles made from cardboard clippings cut and pasted in a loose geometric arrangement.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Measure the floor space of your dollhouse kitchen and cut a thick piece of cardboard to fit into it exactly. This will be the piece that you will glue tile shapes to.
2. Cut a variety of square and rectangle shapes from the cardboard cereal boxes you have collected. You may wish to keep all of these cardboard "tiles" in neat stacks according to shape and size. I found that this organization of shapes helped me to work quickly while assembling the floor tile.
3. Use dabs of white school glue to paste your tile designs on top of the cardboard flooring. Do not use too much glue and work in large areas. It took me several days to cover the floor you see above. Between drying times, I weighted the cardboard down with heavy books. This kept the floor from warping while drying.
4. Spray paint the entire floor's surface outside using a primer. This will seal the cardboard so that you can successfully apply patching plaster. Choose a color of primer that you want the majority of your tiles to be. I chose grey. 
5. Use acrylic paints to add random tile colors if your wish. You may need to give these color tiles several coats of paint.
6. Apply the patching plaster as directed on the label. However, wipe down the surfaces with only a slightly moist cloth, barely damp. Let the plaster harden inside the cracks only.
7. Touch up with paints if needed
8. Spray the entire surface again with a clear acrylic sealer.
9. Fit the tile floor into your dollhouse kitchen.

More Dollhouse Tile DIY:

• Miniature dollhouse kitchen floor made using linoleum by Loy Dollhouse
• A vintage pink bathroom for the dollhouse

Sculpt Luncheon Meats and Cheese

Left, before the luncheon meat and cheese are painted. Right, after the paint is applied and
plastic tray lid is glued over the doll food permanently.

Doll size deli meat, crackers and cheese from Natural,
Oscar Meyer and Lunchables. These are clipped photos
from a magazine and then decoupaged onto cardboard.

       We made this 18" doll sized lunch meat and cheese tray using a recycled plastic lid once used in packaging for nails. It's amazing what you can think to make from uninteresting recycled packaging when you are crafting for the kitchen of a doll house. 

 Supply List:

• Sculpey or any oven bake clay
• Recycled plastic cover from small nail box
• acrylic paints: pink, yellow, white
• cardboard
• decorative paper
• white school glue
• tacky glue

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. First sculpt the tiny foods using your choice of either oven bake clay or air dry clay.
2. To make the luncheon meats: ham, turkey, pressed chicken or baloney, first roll up a tiny ball of clay between your fingers and then flatten it thin. Fold over the meat to make it look like deli types. I stacked my meats to look as these often do inside of lunch trays from our market.
3. Then to make the cheese I simply rolled out the clay and cut it into mini squares.
4. Bake these pieces in your oven as directed on the package of clay.
5. Paint the cheese slices pale yellow, orange or white depending upon the kind of cheese you doll likes best.
6. Paint the meat for a doll sized sandwich several pink shades.
7. Layer cardboard pieces to craft a tray for the 3d deli lunch foods. Make sure this cardboard bottom is the same size as your tiny plastic lid. 
8. Glue the clay foods on top of the cardboard tray and then glue the plastic tray cover on top of the crafted foods. I sealed our 3d example so that the tiny slices of cheese and deli meats would not be lost over time.

This little 3d project is sculpted, painted and then glued inside of a tray in order to protect
the tiny parts. Different close up views of the luncheon meats and
cheese sculpted using oven bake clay.

 Learn How to Make More Doll Foods:

• Taylor makes food for her American Girl Doll
• The AG Cooking Competition! AGSM
• Making doll groceries using fliers 

Mini Breakfast Skillet for 10 - 11 inch Dolls

These mini breakfast skillets are the perfect size for Barbie
dolls and scout SWAPS!

       In order to craft these tiny skillets for your dolls, you will need to collect: bottle caps, a hot glue gun and hot glue, coffee stirrers, acrylic paints and some kind of oven bake clay.

       First clip off enough of the wooden coffee stir stick to make a handle for the skillet. Then hot glue it to the bottle cap. Let the glue harden before painting the entire skillet and handle with black acrylic paint. Set these aside to dry. You will probably need to repeat this step again in order to cover the surfaces completely.

       Then shape tiny sausages, bacon and eggs (sunny-side-up) from the oven bake clay. Set the oven at the temperature recommended on the manufacturers package. Bake the clay breakfast food and let it cool down before applying any paint to it's surface.

Decoupage a Spool Canister Set

The finished canisters on top of our doll's diner shelf. You can cover
 your faux canisters in any scrapbooking paper you like.

       You will need the following supplies for this simple doll craft: empty spools, buttons or beads if you do not have the dowel pegs that I used for my own version, scrap paper, white glue and a print of the words for doll canisters included below.

       Decoupage the tops, bottoms and sides of the empty spools with decorative papers. I chose black and white polka-dots for our versions. Then I pushed the dowel pegs through the holes of my spools on the top end of my doll's canisters only. The pegs are the handles for the canisters, except this version of a canister craft does not have canisters that actually open. 

       I then painted the faux handles red to match the occasional red dot in the printed paper. Then I printed out the canister labels located below and chose the ingredients I thought my doll's would use the most inside their diner's kitchen: Flour, Sugar, Tea and Coffee. I drew an oval shape around these words and carefully cut them out. Then I pasted these on the outside of each canister to identify the contents for our pretend kitchen.

Left, you will need empty spools made from any material and wooden
 dowels with plugs. Beads would also work as an alternative. Right, cover the
 tops and edges of each spool with paper. Then push the dowel peg
into the holes of spools at one end only.

Four varieties of text for your doll's canister sets.
Canisters may be marked: Flour, Sugar, Coffee,
Tea, Rice, Salt Oats, Barley and or Cookies.

DIY Cardboard Plates for 18" Dolls

Green and white print dishes for our doll's St. Patrick's Day Celebration.

       These cardboard doll plates are so easy to assemble and then layer decorative papers on top for effect. You can choose any designs you like, for any or all of the holidays. Make a set of dishware for everyday use and extra sets for the change of season. Your only limited by your imagination and your cardboard supply.

       I used a white tacky glue for assembling the cardboard pieces that I cut from the template below. Then I layered on the decorative paper with Mod Podge. This technique is called decoupage.
       Mod Podge is a relatively tough glue that will hold up to all kinds of play inside your doll's kitchen. And when the dishes wear out, you can simply make more!

Cardboard cutouts for our doll's dishes before they are assembled.

Templates for a service plate and a dinner plate for 18" dolls. Remember
you may size these down for other dolls by dragging the template 
into a Word Doc File and clicking on the image to drag the corners.

DIY a Bakery Kitchen Unit from A Box

       Even though our little ones are a bit sad over Grace's French Bakery being retired, I am not worried about replacing it with something similar made from boxes and a bit of imagination! 

        We've already made some delicious looking sweet treats and have also collected some nice wire shelving. 

       Now what we need to make requires decoupage supplies and a solid cardboard box for the following kitchen unit.

The finished bakery kitchen unit for our own version of  Grace's
French Bakery is decoupaged using paper, metallic tape, and faux
 marble shelf paper. Added details include buttons, fabric, dowel
rods and one china bowl for the sink.

Supply List:

• metallic tape or silver spray paint
• faux marble shelf paper (get at dollar store)
• buttons and beads for oven knobs
• fat and thin dowel rods for oven door handle and curtain rod
• black and red papers 
• black paint
• hook from a bungie cord for the sink faucet
• small white bowl for the sink
• masking tape
• glue gun and hot glue
• Mod Podge
• tacky white glue
• decorative fabric (shelf curtain)
• blocks for kitchen unit feet
• cardboard box, plus extra cardboard for the kitchen unit, oven and shelves
• needle and thread for sewing shelf curtain

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. First you will need to assemble the basic kitchen unit using masking tape and a box of your own specifications. I will include measurements for mine but it really isn't necessary for you to make your own version with the same exact measurements. I do not know the exact measurements of the original French Bakery belonging to Grace; I chose my own. (10"x7"x3 1/2") 
2. Cut cardboard shelves and tape these into place using masking tape.
3. I chose to use a smaller box (6 1/2"x 4 1/4" x3 1/2") for the oven unit and I just taped this into the larger box after covering it's outside surface with metallic tape.
4. Before attaching the oven door with metallic tape, I cut out the window and pasted a small sheet of plastic behind the door to act as glass. 
5. I covered the fatter dowel (6") handle with the same silver tape and attached it.
6. The oven controls are made with black and silver buttons and the digital temp. screen a black , square bead.
7. Next I decoupaged the shelf units with red paper and the inside of the oven with black paper You could do these steps alternatively with paint if you prefer.
8. Cut the cardboard for your kitchen unit's counter top. (13"x5") Glue this firmly down to the top part of the shelves.
9. Cover the counter and edges with a faux marble shelf paper. Although this is sticky paper, you may need to add extra tacky white glue to your surfaces in order to get everything pasted down properly.
10. I glued together three wooden blocks for the unit's feet and painted these black after the glue had set. (blocks together measure 8 1/4"x 2 3/4"x 1 1/2") The weight of the blocks help to keep the kitchen unit upright because these are much heavier together than the cardboard unit as a whole.
11. The curtain in the lower shelf was made last. I hemmed it and folded over the top edge of the curtain to form a long narrow pocket for the thinner dowel rod to be inserted into. 
12. You will need to measure your opening for the curtain and then double the length in order to have enough fabric for the ruffle. Leave 3/4" fabric for the top pocket and 1/2" additional fabric for lower hem. 
13. Iron 1/4" seam on both the length of the top and bottom. Then repeat this step for the hem only. Iron the top of the curtain over 1/2" and sew it down using a whip stitch to form the pocket.
14. Work the rod through the narrow pocket, ruffling the fabric as you go. 
15. Take your scissors and push the tip of these half way through either end of the location where your curtain will hang. 
16. Fill these shallow holes with sticky craft glue.
17. Now guide your dowel curtain rod into these two holes and let the glue dry. See picture below.

Left is a close-up shot of the button oven knobs. Center are the shelves next to the oven. Right, you
can see one of the two holes that I made with the tip of my scissors for the curtain rod to slide into.

Left, I cut a small, shallow hole into the counter of my kitchen unit so that the porcelain sink's lower
 lip would fit neatly into it. I covered the bottom of the sink in masking tape and the cut out portion of the
counter with masking tape also. Because both surfaces are covered with masking tape, the hot glue will
adhere the sink to the counter. Right, I used hot glue to adhere a button to the center of the sink. The button
looks like a drain and the glue like water. The black faucet, a bungee hook, is sunk into an additional
whole and glued in with hot glue.

Left, you need to turn your fabric edges over twice and press them down before sewing them in place.
The top of your curtains should have a larger open hem for the dowel rod to fit into. Center, here you
can see the curtain on the dowel curtain rod. Right, now glue this into place. There are shallow holes
 at either end of my curtain rod. I squeezed a bit of tacky glue inside these openings to
make sure the curtain was permanently attached.

See More Photos of Grace Thomas French Bakery:

• Grace Thomas, American Girl of The Year 2015 by chiilmama.com
• Grace's Bakery from Dolltastically

Craft a Sturdy Paper Mache Doll Table

See the size of table compared with an 18" doll. On the left is a dining table  for six dolls. 
On the right is a buffet table with a rustic finish. I will cover it for parties 
and leave it uncovered for picnics.

       If your dolls need a large table for sharing meals at or displaying a buffet at a party don't fret! Tables are some of the easiest doll furnishings to craft. Gather together some strong stiff corrugated cardboard, masking tape, scissors, utility knife and wood grain shelf paper. (The paper is commonly sold at dollar stores.)

       Cut the table top to the size that best suits the space you need it for from corrugated cardboard. I chose to cut two identical pieces and glued these together. Then cut two smaller pieces of cardboard ( 1-2 inches smaller than the table top) to glue underneath the table top. These should be thick, strong, and the same size. Glue them to the underside of the table top.

       Recycle two tubes that are exactly the same length and diameter. These will act as the table legs.

       Cut also a stand for the legs to attach to. (see photos below.) Double these parts up and glue them together.

       Now I do not permanently attach the table base to my table top because I wish to store my doll tables flat. I also switch out my table tops and use the same legs for different tables. So, I only glue the table legs into the stand. In order to do this properly you will need to cut two identical holes for the tubes to fit into before you glue these in place. A utility knife or an Exacto knife are best to use to make these cuts and you should ask an adult to supervise you with this part of the craft. The tubes should fit nicely into the cut holes but should not go all the way through the base. Mask everything you craft after the glue drys. Then paste the wood grain shelf paper over the surface.

       You will then need to repeat the same method with the underside of the table top. Trace around the table legs (tubes) and cut away several layers of cardboard so that the legs fit neatly into the top of the table. However, you will not need to attach these permanently. 

       Cover the table top with wood grain shelf paper.

       When the table is in use, fill the tubes with marbles to weight the table down properly. 
       If you want to permanently attach the table together, fill the paper tubes with several inches of plaster and let these dry. Then glue the legs in place inside of the shallow cut holes underneath the table top.

Left, Cut shallow holes where arrows indicate to insert the table legs. Remove the same 
amount of cardboard from both sections so that the table will be level. Center, Put marbles
 into the tubes when the table is in use. In order to give it balance and weight. Right,
 The table is ready for decoupage.

More Table Crafts for Dolls:

• Glue Together & Paint Two Night Stands
• Craft a Unique Doll's Table Using Only Four Tiles! 

How I Restored An "Our Generation Gourmet Kitchen Set"

The before and after photos of my "Our Generation Gourmet Kitchen." I papered the back
 splash, painted the burners, painted the lighter pink trim and shelving white, replaced the clock,
 covered the old hinges, added a view behind the window panes (free alternative here) and then
 papered hot pink shelves.

 

Restoring The Food and Accessories That Once Came With The Kitchen

Above are the vintage doll foods from Japan that I purchase from a local
estate sale. I paid fifty cents for two small, unopened bags. Each piece
measures approximately 3/4" across. Top Left fruit are: watermelon, pear,
pineapple, lemon, bananas, grapes, two apples, pomegranate and orange.
Top, Right breads are: two toasted cheese, three plain glazed donuts and
and one larger bagel. Bottom Left meats are: two hamburgers, hot dog,
two pork chops, Cornish hen, lobster and two fried eggs that are sunny-
side-up. Bottom Right vegetables are: two small iceberg lettuce heads,
two carrots, one tomato, one yellow onion, head of cauliflower, celery
stalks, one red beet, a cucumber, one green pepper and one lonely potato.
All of the play foods are made of paper mache and hand-painted. I don't
know a date but the packaging looked very old. One of the hamburgers
is marked Japan.  This tiny collection adequately replaces similar food 
 items that once came with the collection belonging to the Our Genera-
tion Gourmet Kitchen. In fact, I'd say it greatly improves it altogether.

       This doll kitchen set came with a large collection of food items. However, I was only able to purchase the single, larger unit from resale for $4.99.  So over a period of several weeks, I managed to collect & craft most of the following items to replace what once accompanied it. Below I've listed the original contents of the sets normally sold at Target, and now also at Amazon, so that visitors may also be encouraged to undertake a similar challenge.

       The bad news is, as you may also have noted, I did not obtain the original refrigerator with the used kitchen! The good news is that I will be making a DIY for a doll refrigerator in the near future and link it up to this post when it has been completed.

       I've included lists of those items accompanying three popular doll kitchen sets so that you can decide which of the three you might prefer to purchase in the future or, you could go the least expensive route like myself, and hunt one of these down at resale or on ebay. Printing the lists out and working off of these makes crafting or purchasing similar items easier. 

• To see a review of the original Our Generation Kitchen set by IconaDollies. My set is the version with a hot pink kitchen counter. This review is of a red kitchen set with the same design features.

Above are custom grocery items made from my vintage label printables.
Shown here are: a sack of flour, country ham, Five Roses Cake Flour,
two bags of dried peas and two frozen packages of Ozark Strawberries.

The Original Food Items: Note - I have seen alternative, updated food sets for My Generation Kitchen set that come with egg trays + removable brown eggs, plastic milk cartons, butter with a transparent container and removable lid, a raspberry fruit basket, an additional skillet with a clear plastic lid, realistic salt and pepper shakers, a clear plastic cookie jar with a removable lid, a clear bottle of olive oil with a silver spout, peanut butter jar and Nutella jar etc... So depending upon when and where you purchased this set will determine what is included in your version of this play kitchen.

1. colorful marshmallow flavored cereal box (empty)
2. fruity crunch flavored cereal box (empty)
3. a paper container for pretend orange juice (empty)
4. hot chocolate mix, including 2 sachets inside
5. a paper container for pretend milk (empty of course)
6. 100 percent hamburger patties, freezer box (empty)
7. rainbow pops made with 100 percent fruit juice (empty)
8. a Sunday ice cream kit (empty)
9. an egg container for 12 extra large eggs (empty) - farm fresh eggs here!
10. a small empty bag for All Purpose Flour
11. two 3 dimensional chocolate chip muffins
12. two 3 dimensional cup cakes (red and blue icing) - see how we mad blue and red cupcakes with rosettes
    
13. three chocolate chip cookies
14. one small plastic can of tuna fish
15. one small plastic can of peaches - fresh peaches here, not canned
16. two small plastic sandwiches sliced in cross length shapes
17. three plastic eggs stuck together
18. a soft red plastic tomato
19. a soft orange plastic orange
20. a soft, red plastic pepper - peppers and tomatoes sculpted using oven-bake clay
21. a wedge of Swiss cheese 
22. a cardboard box of butter - handmade dairy items for play

The vintage labels for doll canned foods above include: yams, asparagus, pineapple, pickles, spinach, tuna
baking powder, pumpkin, and pet foods for both a dog and a cat. The copyrights for my versions of these
labels are free for people to print out and craft with but not sell. Link back to the originals if you wish but
don't republish or redistribute them from alternative other websites please.

Kitchen Dishes, Tools, Accessories & Decorative Items:

1. a blue, transparent, plastic serving pitcher
2. a pink plastic drying rack + the draining tray that accompanies such kitchen equipment
3. a plastic cookie sheet
4. a plastic muffin baking tin
5. two blue plastic glasses that match the serving pitcher
6. three plastic shakers with red, white and blue caps for spices
7. a set of red plastic measuring spoons
8. a plastic spatula with a blue handle and grey tip - doll kitchen utensils crafts
9. a plastic spoon with a grey handle and blue tip
10. a remote, plastic, red phone and charging unit (phone can be removed)
11. a red, plastic hand mixer (grey beaters that are permanently attached)
12. a plastic, soft soap dispenser (red lid, white container)
13. white and red, plastic spray bottle for pretend cleaning fluid
14. a grey frying pan with a red plastic handle - how to make doll sized pots, pans and skillets here
15. two blue polka-dot plates made from plastic (polka-dots are white)
16. a plastic, blue polka-dot mixing bowl (goes with plates)
17. a white sponge for cleaning counter tops
18. a transparent measuring cup
19. two small decorative plants with attached plastic pots
20. Three plastic, white canisters for: flour, sugar, and coffee beans (Traditional canister sets usually include four pieces, the fourth being used for tea) - spool craft canister set
21. two red plastic soup bowls
22. two tall, white plastic chocolate mugs (not coffee mugs, the shapes are traditional to hot chocolate sets crafted a couple of centuries ago) - how to craft hot cocoa
23. one grey, plastic loaf pan - Our version of this craft here.
    
24. a pale pink sink strainer ( These are made to fit over the top of a sink so that veggies and fruit may be washed thoroughly; directly under the faucet.)

These tiny granola cereal boxes are made from advertising on
the side panel of an actual cereal box. They are just the right
size for a Barbie doll. See how to make the same for 18" dolls.

*Note, the colors of items may vary according to the color combinations of your kitchen set.

*Second, many of items in all sets are doubled up to increase the count of how many accessories and pieces of food come in each play kitchen set. 

* I don't mention the kitchen hardware on the lists.

Here is a listing also of all kitchen items normally included with the Journey Girl Gourmet Kitchen set originally sold by Toys-R-Us. You can view the exact toy kitchen sets here by Just Craft It.

The Original Food Items:

1. white, plastic milk carton - Doll dairy container crafts pictured here.
2. one paper juice carton
3. one box of butter (empty)
4. three, orange plastic carrots stuck together
5. three, yellow plastic bananas stuck together
6. one plastic orange
7. one red condiment bottle of ketchup
8. one yellow condiment bottle of mustard 
9. two plastic pieces of toast
10. one green plastic head of lettuce - How to make Bibb lettuce for your dolls
11. one red plastic tomato
12. one brown, plastic chocolate cake sliced into four pieces - pretty pom-pom chocolate cake craft
13. four chocolate cup cakes
14. four sugar cookies iced with pink plastic - Our sugar cookie star versions with jelly filled, heart shaped centers...
    
15. one large uncut sandwich
16. one cardboard cereal box (empty)
17. one box of processed macaroni and cheese (empty) - how to make pasta boxes for doll pantry...
18. one plastic green celery or broccoli? - doll size celery handmade
19. one box of Neapolitan ice cream for the freezer (empty)
20. two boxes of frozen veggies (empty)

Our set of very realistic looking desert erasers are now
kept in the doll's kitchen. These include: ice cream cones,
ice cream pops, ice cream sandwiches and dishes of
ice cream.

Kitchen Dishes, Tools, Accessories & Decorative Items:

1. a free standing, green colored mixer with matching beaters
2. a grey, plastic mixing bowl
3. one white plastic mixing bowl
4. a set of pale green measuring spoons
5. a green, plastic toaster - two versions of cardboard toaster crafts here
   
6. a grey, plastic drying rack
7. a grey, plastic ice cube tray (comes with 6 pieces of removable, heart shaped, plastic ice)
8. a grey, plastic pot with a detachable lid
9. two, green canisters with attached lids
10. a pale pink, plastic cake stand
11. two transparent containers with grey lids
12. a grey cookie sheet
13. two, red, heart shaped serving bowls
14. a pale pink strainer
15. two see-through plastic cups
16. one lemon scented, liquid dish soap bottle
17. a set of little salt and pepper shakers - button-top salt and pepper shakers here
    
18. one plastic spatula
19. one cookbook (doesn't have actual pages)
20. two pale pink plates
21. two pale pink coffee cups - Our paper tube coffee mug craft here.
22. two see-through glasses
23. one pink oven mitt
24. one pink hot pad - braid vintage fruity potholders for dolls
25. two sets of grey, plastic silverware including:one knife, one fork and one spoon - See how you can make silverware for dolls from cardboard here.
26. a transparent measuring cup with a spout
27. a pink hand mixer with attached grey, plastic beaters
28. a green container for mixing spoons and spatula
29. a plastic shaped bread box with a bread shaped lid
30. a grey plastic cutting board

Our dolls now have a selection of sushi erasers to eat.

Last, but certainly not least, is a listing of all the supplies sold along with a Gourmet American Girl Doll kitchen set: Review by American Girl Spirit

The Original Food Items:

1. one box of baking oats (empty)
2. one box of apple cinnamon stars cereal (empty) - How to make cereal boxes for your dolls here.
3. one box of pet food (empty) - Can labels for doll pet food here.
4. one box of brown sugar (empty)
5. one tiny box of baking soda (empty)
6. four plastic chocolate chip cookies
7. four plastic dark brown chocolate brownies - make rich chocolate brownies in a casserole here
8. half a loaf of bread
9. three slices of cut bread to insert into the toaster
10. one green basket of strawberries (removable)
11. one green basket of blue berries (removable) - Baskets of fruits with free pattern too!
12. two canisters: one for flour and the other for sugar (clear plastic, contain glitter, color labels, non-removable lids)
13. white plastic milk jug - Milk containers both glass and paper here...
14. clear plastic olive oil bottle
15. white plastic egg carton with eggs
16. plastic butter on a blue butter dish (comes with a clear plastic lid) - See our dairy for dolls to learn how to make butter sticks.
17. rolled out sugar cookie dough
18. pet food and water (removable) - Dog water and food bowl craft here.

A collection of food shaped erasers are just the right size
 for our 18inch dolls. pizza slices, burger, hot dogs,
 fries and sandwiches all look delicious!

Kitchen Dishes, Tools, Accessories & Decorative Items:

1. one grey square brownie tray - Our replacement versions here.
2. one grey bread pan
3. a green toaster that pops your doll's toast up and lowers it down with a built in spring - our craft version of toasters here
   
4. one grey plastic skillet with a pink handle
5. one grey plastic pasta pot with blue handles
6. two dark pink soup/cereal bowls
7. two white plastic plates with colorful designs
8. two metal spoons
9. two metal forks
10. a salt shaker made of clear plastic and grains of salt
11. a pepper shaker that looks like metal - button top salt and pepper shaker craft
    
12. one plastic whisk (metal looking handle, rusty orange whisk)
13. one plastic mixing spoon (rusty orange)
14. one plastic rubber spatula (pink and grey)
15. multi-colored measuring spoons
16. grey plastic measuring cups
17. one butter knife with metal looking blade and green handle
18. a blue plastic recipe box
19. a plastic pen for writing with
20. note cards made of paper for recipe box
21. eight spice jars with a sheet of sticker labels - Our replacements for doll sized spices...
22. 2 clear plastic glasses
23. one plastic rolling pin - Make your own rolling pin and sugar cookie dough here.
24. one yellow mixing bowl
25. one grey cookie sheet - My versions of a cookie sheet craft here.
26. a polka-dot pink hot pad
27. a polka-dot pink apron - Directions for sewing a simple doll apron here.
28. a peach mixer that spins two alternative attachments: a whisk and a bread dough kneader
29. a large mixing bowl with measurement markings on the side (clear plastic + handle)
30. pink square trash can

See More Toy Kitchen Reviews for 18" Dolls:

• Ari. J The official reviews "My Life As Kitchen Playset"
• American Girl Fridge Playset "Maryellen's Refrigerator & Food Set with Shopkins Surprise by CookieSwirlC
• American Girl Doll Kitchen Set - The 2020 lavender set reviewed by agoverseasfan

What is A Nuremberg Kitchen?

       Nuremberg kitchens date back at least to 1572, when one was given to Dorothea and Anna, the Princesses of Saxony, daughters of Augustus, Elector of Saxony aged five and ten. Since then, many adult collectors as well as children have owned multi-room dollhouses, but these one-room kitchens seem to have almost always been thought of as girls’ playthings. They reached the height of their popularity in the 1800s. In the early part of the century they were assembled by artisans working from their homes, who produced a remarkably large volume of toys made by hand. By the later part of the century they were being manufactured in even greater numbers in industrialized factories by such firms as Moritz Gottschalk, Gebrüder Bing, and Märklin.

       German mothers would pass on their childhood kitchens to their daughters, which became a widespread practice by the nineteenth century. By this custom, Nuremberg kitchens that might have been very up-to-date when first made would be noticeably old-fashioned after decades of being handed down as a family heirloom. Similarly, while many nineteenth-century German toy manufacturers offered miniature versions of all the latest kitchen gadgets, their catalogs also showed toy kitchens that went virtually unchanged for decades, as did many of their pots, pans, and dishes. Thus, late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century examples often incorporate components that were distinctly anachronistic by that time.

       Nuremberg kitchens were also often associated with the Christmas holidays. In many German families, they were only brought out to be played with at Christmastime, when they served as part of the traditional holiday decorations and as a seasonal toy. It was popular to give little girls items for their toy kitchens as Christmas presents, on their birthdays and similar occasions.

       The purpose of Nuremberg kitchens has usually been explained by dolls’ house historians as meant to teach girls lessons in housekeeping and cooking. However, these model kitchens are probably better understood as meant to encourage girls to adopt traditionally gendered social roles by making housekeeping seem fascinating through the appeal of attractive and impressive playthings. It would have been much easier for mothers to teach their daughters how to cook by taking them to the real kitchens in their homes and having them observe and assist with preparing meals than to provide miniaturized counterparts. Also, given that these toy kitchens had layouts that were more aesthetic and theatrical than accurately representational of real kitchens in full scale houses, that they often evoked nostalgia as family antiques or as deliberately old-fashioned new products, and that they were often associated more with the festivities of Christmas than with the practicalities of everyday life, Nuremberg kitchens were probably not truly meant primarily to provide girls with practical training in the skills of homemaking. Instead, they were intended to generate wonder and amusement, to make kitchens seem magical, and thereby inspire girls to anticipate and desire their traditionally expected future roles as homemakers. Read more...

• See more Nuremberg kitchens and ideas to make your own here.

presented by Pat Arnell.

DIY Durable Boxed Doll Foods for Play

Our American Girl Doll, Molly, unpacks groceries made
with our vintage food labels.

       In order to make play foods durable, I often will craft them so that boxes can not be opened and emptied of contents, especially if I am going to gift these to a child younger than six or seven.

 Supply List:

• flimsy cardboard
• corrugated cardboard
• white school glue
• Mod Podge
• printable labels
• food labels cut from ads and/or food product

Step-by-Step Directions:

1. Print and cut out labels found under the 30 vintage labels post.
2.  Stick these to a smooth faced, light weight cardboard first. Cut them out.
3. Stick the same labels to corrugated cardboard four times over. Layering the thicknesses on top of each other. 
4. Stick light weight cardboard to the final outside layers on both the edges and the back of each small cardboard food.
5. Mod Podge the entire surface of each box shaped food.

The labels for these particular food items may be downloaded from here and printed out on your
home computer for personal crafts only. I restored them for this purpose from the public domain.
They are, however, my own interpretations, so do not resale the content or redistribute it
 from your own web pages.

Frozen strawberry boxes and the Five Roses
Flour cake box for a doll's pantry.

10 Quick Tips for Working With Cardboard:

1. Because cardboard is processed with acid, this chemical will leach out and be absorbed into paper materials glued to it's surface over time. Therefore, turning surfaces yellow and corroding them completely.. If you wish to slow this process, seal the cardboard with liquid Gesso before applying acid free paper prints of labels.
2. Apply a thin cardboard to the face of corrugated cardboard surfaces in order to avoid a rippled texture in your paper mache crafts. 
3. Many layers of cardboard compressed together, lend greater strength to your paper mache toys. 
4. Toys made entirely with cardboard and paper are biodegradable. This means you can toss them into landfills and the bacteria there will break them down naturally.
5. Paper mache toys that survive well, are also collectable.
6. Cardboard is a forgiving craft material. It can be easily manipulated, cut, molded and transformed into practically anything if you develop the skills to use it.
7. Cardboard is cheap and in many cases, free!
8. If your cardboard warps, layer heavy books on top of it overnight, or until it's surfaces are restored to rigidity. 
9. Do not store too much cardboard at any given time in one area of your home. Collect and work with it as you need it. Cardboard can attract insects and spiders who love to make their homes inside it's cracks and corrugated medium.
10. If you work with cardboard frequently, you will find that you need sharp tools to cut it. Remember to carefully store razor blades, craft knifes, box cutters and sharp scissors away from places where small children can access these tools!

Left, you can see that there are four layers of corrugated cardboard glued together to create the
illusion of a 'box' for the doll's Five Roses Flour cake box. The outside layer is made with
cardboard from a cereal box. This layer is smoother and yellow as is my printed logo. I didn't
 need to paint my samples for this reason; I only needed to seal all four sides with Mod Podge
 in order to give the finished craft a professional look. Right, here you see that I'm trimming off
the edges so that the boxed food items can stand on their own.

Left, a Fashionista models for the camera. She demonstrates size/scale of boxed granola.
I found these tiny photos on the side panel of product I purchased for breakfast.
They are the perfect scale for our Barbie dolls to play with and they are made with
the same method of layering cardboard described in our simple craft above.

• Remaking Play Food Boxes to Last
• DIY Miniature Cereal Box made from recycled cereal boxes

30 Vintage Labels for Crafting Doll Foods

The finished doll canned goods made for our American Girl Doll's food pantry.

        Here I have pictures of how I used my vintage labels to make canned goods for our American Girl Doll kitchen. You will need the following supplies to make the miniature doll foods: Mod Podge, white school glue, a printer, some thin cardboard (like cereal boxes), masking tape and silver acrylic paint.

       First you will need to print out the labels. These labels are very old, some of them date from as far back as 1915! I have cleaned, colorized and taken some of their elements out and improved some of the graphics. You may use them for your child's own doll food collection but, do not redistribute the labels from your own website. Read the terms of use here.

Left, cut out the labels. Center, cut long strips of cardboard to fit each individual canned food label
 after you have printed them out. Right, roll up the strips and tape the sides down once you have
 determined how tight these roll must be. It is not necessary for the rolls of cardboard tube to be as
 dense as you see them above here. These miniature cans are quite durable enough for play if they
 have much thinner interior walls.

       Next, cut a strip of cardboard for each canned food label measuring approximately sixteen inches in length and the width of the label's height. It is very important that you use relatively flimsy cardboard for this project. Because next you will need to roll it into the shape of a tube.

       You can 'soften' the cardboard up a bit by crushing it against the edge of a table. This will help it to curl up easier. Roll it up tight and then hold it between the tip of your index finger and thumb while wrapping the label around the cardboard form to see the size ratio of the cardboard can. If it is too small and the label overlaps too much, simple release the grip of your finger tips gently to let the cardboard spring out a bit. Use a piece of masking tape to stick the sides together once you have determined how thick the can shape needs to be.

       Set the tube on top of a piece of cardboard scrap and then drip white school glue down inside the tube. Allow the glue to dry. When it is dry, trim the bottom of the can and turn it over to glue a top piece of cardboard onto the remaining open end.

       Now apply the labels with Mod Podge. Let the glue dry and repeat several more layers of Mod Podge. If you don't have anything but white glue, you can use this to seal the labels as well. The Mod Podge just dries clearer.

       To give your canned food a professional look, paint the tops and bottoms of each can with grey or metallic silver paint.

Left and Center are the canned foods tubes lined up and waiting to dry before I trim the cardboard,
flip them over, and glue on a top for each. Right, is a photo of how the label will fit around the rolled
 tube once I apply the Mod Podge.

       Some of my food labels are for products that come in bags and frozen box food stuffs. I will post how I turned these into miniature groceries on a separate blog post and link it up below.

• DIY Durable Boxed Doll Foods for Play

Food labels for asparagus, dill pickles, pineapple, cat food, strawberries, and pears.

Food labels for coffee, a sugar cured ham, a large sack of flour, spinach,
 apple sauce, pumpkin and peaches.

Food labels for cake flour, dried peas, evaporated milk, yams, 
dog food, loaf of artisan bread and tuna.