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Table as base? Wheels?


EarlyMom

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First time poster, new dollhouse builder here. I’ve just finished building the RGT Vermont Farmhouse Jr and I’m looking for a way to make it easier for my kids to play with it. What ideas do y’all have about finding a “base” for it to sit on? I’ve considered building a platform with casters on it, finding a similarly sized end table and cutting the legs to make it short enough for little ones to easily access the top floor, and building a low table.

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21 minutes ago, EarlyMom said:

 I’ve considered building a platform with casters on it, finding a similarly sized end table and cutting the legs to make it short enough for little ones to easily access the top floor, and building a low table.

Hi, Kay. Welcome to the forum. Any one of those bases would work well. It all depends on what works best for your situation.

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23 minutes ago, EarlyMom said:

First time poster, new dollhouse builder here. I’ve just finished building the RGT Vermont Farmhouse Jr and I’m looking for a way to make it easier for my kids to play with it. What ideas do y’all have about finding a “base” for it to sit on? I’ve considered building a platform with casters on it, finding a similarly sized end table and cutting the legs to make it short enough for little ones to easily access the top floor, and building a low table.

I have an RGT lighthouse (thrift store find, cheap!) that sits perfectly on an Ethan Allen round side table I found at a yard sale for $15. I'd go with cutting down an end table or side table if possible. You can find very sturdy pieces for next to nothing at thrift and consignment stores, or on Craigslist. Unless you're a furniture maker, they are probably better built than anything novices like myself could create.

Oh, and "brown furniture" (that's what the industry calls those old stained wood pieces) are very much out of style, so they go cheap. One word: PAINT, lol. Look for good manufacturers such as Ethan Allen, Drexel, Henredon, etc. Don't get IKEA, it doesn't hold up.

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Thanks everyone! My first thought was essentially a plywood base and lazy susan, Medieval, but I got impatient when I couldn’t find exactly what I was looking for. I’ll still keep an eye out because I like the idea of our kids turning the houses around while playing. I’ve been looking at “brown furniture” (I like that term!) on Craigslist and in junk stores for that very reason, Kells—I am definitely not a furniture maker, but I thought *maybe* I could attach some 2x2 stumps to some plywood ... or something? The details were fuzzy. I like the idea of finding something sturdy and already well made to paint. If I build more than one house (that’s the plan, anyway!), I can paint the end tables all the same color to create a little cohesion ... or maybe I can just sprinkle dollhouses around our home, each one painted differently with a different table/base to match the decor ... haha! thanks again, y’all!!

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If your children are very young you might think about putting the dollhouse on the floor or a surface it cannot be tipped off of and fall.  I would also leave the doors and window openings open/ unfinished because little ones love to stick their hands through the openings to move their dolls around whilst they play.

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One other thought I just had on the topic - It can be nice to have drawers in the furniture item on which the house resides. Extra storage is never a bad thing, right? My Newport is perched on an antique dresser that was my great grandma's, and I put seasonal accessories in the drawers when it's not their time to decorate the house. It can be a great spot for kiddos to store their "extra" dolls and accessories too. 

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One of my houses is on a lazy susan atop an old microwave cart on wheels. I like that it can be stored against the wall but easily pulled out for swiveling and has the storage below.

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