Making a solar tv for dollhouse from vintage coaster holder

This is a vintage coaster holder. You can use any coaster cabinet for the tv. 

This is what the inside looks like with the doors open.

This is plastic I got from a throw away container, I like to use these for a lot of my projects.

You need to cut a piece of the plastic to fit the size of the opening. Remember you need to have the doors to be able to close.

You will also need two pieces of wood.  They will be on the front plastic area. You will see in the pictures.

I had this picture which was part of a card that had a kitty on it. It's made of transparent plastic so I had to also cut a piece of paper for in back of the picture. So you need a piece of the plastic, a piece of white paper and the picture.  They all need to be the same size.

First is the plastic piece from container, on top of that you glue down the piece of white paper and then the kitty. In another blog I show you how to make a solar tv out of a picture you would download off the computer, you can check that one out also.  Let’s get back to this one.

Now you need to glue the two pieces of wood on the piece you just put together, you can see this in the photo.

Next, go on the internet to find images. Print out a picture of a tv panel, you will be using this next.

On the one piece of wood, you will be cutting the tv panel out of the printout and gluing it to the wide piece of wood.  On the thinner piece of wood, cut out a piece of the brown area on the picture and glue it down using tacky glue.

On the panel I cut a piece of wood dowel making a circle that could make the dial 3D, I covered it with aluminum foil or you can paint it silver I then glued it over the picture of the tv knob.  The line on top of the knob is a piece of a round toothpick which I also glued down and drew a black mark on it.  I then glued this whole piece to the inside of the coaster holder as you can see in the photo.  To make it easier what I do with my projects is put tacky glue in different areas of the piece and then putting dots of hot glue in the areas that don’t have tacky glue on it.  The tacky glue keeps the piece in its spot while the glue is setting.

Here’s what it looks like with the doors shut.  Next is the solar light getting installed to light it up.

In the back of the cabinet you need to drill a hole the size of the LED on the solar light so it can slide right in and be held into place.  If the solar light keeps sliding out use some black electrical tape to make it tighter.

In Walmart and the dollar tree you can buy cheap single solar lights. All you need is the top part of the light, with the solar cell and the LED.  But remember don’t throw out the other piece you need to recharge the solar panel for it to light up.

After putting the solar light into the hole in the back, this is what it looks like with the doors opened.

This is what it looks like with the doors shut. Use your imagination put in any picture maybe use a picture of a family member etc.. Use your imagination and it will soar!

Making a decorative floral piece for a dollhouse

Do you remember when you were small your mom always had this round globe that had a rose in it and you didn’t know what it was or the question... Why? Well this is what I decided to make, now the dolls can say why oh why.

We are using these glass globes which I will be putting a flower in each.

I cut off one globe from the batch.

I’m using these buttons for the project.

These are the flowers I will be putting in the globe.

This gold globe will be the base, these came from a light set.

In this picture I glued the button onto the base.

I then put one rose into the glass globe. Next is to glue the base and globe together.

Here they are with everything glued together.  Now you can say why oh why. You can put anything in the glass globe, use your imagination and it will soar!

Making cotton ball holder out of something from dollar store

These are very small storage containers that I purchased from the dollar store.  I will be using these for the containers, I’m taking off the plastic cap and putting them away for a future project.

I used buttons for the lids. If you look in this picture I filled each of the containers with something.  I took q-tips and pulling off the cotton on the ends and made small cotton balls.  I also use scissors to cut the tips off the q-tips and use them by themselves for the cotton balls also.  I also put some baby powder in one of them. I glue buttons to the tops of the containers and write on the containers what is in them.  You can put anything in them for the dollhouses, use your imagination and it will soar!

Making a frame for an antique metal photo

This is the type frame you start with, a cheap wooden one. You can find them at most craft supply stores.

Here’s the antique metal picture, I need a nice frame it so I can put it in a dollhouse.

The first thing you do is paint the whole frame including the back with black paint.  Then you take some copper colored paint and using your finger smear on copper paint over the black. You also need to be taking some of the copper paint off as your putting it on.

This is a belt I bought from a dollar store, I like using these types of belts for different projects.  I’m using pieces off it for the corners of the frame.

Here is the frame with the corner pieces which I glued on with tacky glue.

I then added some metallic gold paint around the edges and also used some black paint for different areas.

Here is what the frame looks like with the photo framed. It makes this beautiful photo stand out now.  You could add some more details to the sides if you want or any other designs.  Use your imagination and it will soar!

Making a nice shelf for your dollhouse

You will need to cut two pieces of wood, one for the back wall and one for the shelf.  The wood that I’m using came from a white wooden blind.  Just because the blind doesn’t work anymore doesn't mean you can't use the wood, you can use it for crafts.

I love this magazine, you can get so many pictures out of it. I’m going to cut some pictures out of this magazine.  Best of all the company will send you one of these catalogs for free all you need to do is ask for one. The request catalog button is just on the bottom of their site.

I saw this picture of pink flowers and thought, "I will use that".

In this picture you can see that using mod podge I glued the picture onto the back wall, then I used a black permanent marker to draw some black designs and a border around the picture.

Next thing you do is glue the shelf onto the back wall piece.

I glued on some small glass jars which you can find in the nail polish area of a store.  Inside the jars are sprinkles for your nails.  I also use these jars for making "spices" for in my dollhouses.  I have a post on how to make them in my blog too. In the middle is a small bunny glued down for Easter. 

Here is the shelf on the wall, I glued it to the wall.  The mirror above it used to be part of a cheap cameo necklace I took off the cameo, which I use for another project and use the back piece for a mirror.  Don’t pass up those cheap cameo necklaces, you can use them like this.  Use your imagination and it will soar!

Making a beautiful table for a dollhouse using Melissa and Doug wood container

My daughter bought something for her son, it came in this wooden crate.  She didn’t want to throw it out, she knew I could use it.  Well I needed a table for a dollhouse so here it goes.

The first thing you do is take out two rows of the wooden sticks on the sides, don’t take out the last row that is left for your table.

Here’s what it looks like after you take out the two rows of sticks.

You can put a border around the edge of the table, I used this. The next picture you see will be with this border on it.

In this picture you can see the border, which I glued into place around the table.

Here’s what the side looks like.

I wanted some decorative pieces on the legs so I used these ornaments which I got from Michael's craft store during Christmas time.  You can also find them sometimes at thrift stores and garage sales. I’m going to cut pieces off them.

You can see on the legs of the table the pieces that I used.

Another view.

After looking at the table, I decided to add some trim around the top where I glued on the other wood trim.  You can leave the trim on only or add some other trim to it.

At some dollar stores they sell plastic in rolls that have pictures on them, I bought 2 feet worth off the big roll.  Then I cut the pictures separately, this is one of the pieces I will be using this for the top of the table.

I then took some metallic gold paint and with my finger rubbed it all over the table top. Next is to glue on the plastic picture using mod podge.

Here it is with the plastic piece glued on with mod podge.  I know you can see the white glue under it but the best thing is, it dries clear.

I thought I would show you how beautiful it looks set up with items.

Here is the table inside the dining room in the dollhouse. The rug under the table is made from a placemat. You too can make a beautiful table with your imagination, and it will soar!