Once you receive your kit, you will be in for a big surprise. When you open the box, all you will find inside are baggies of trims, beads, jewelry findings, wires, floral sprigs, fabric swatches and paper printies. Oh, and of course, the instructions....in Chinese. You have read correctly. These kits are Chinese. The most common manufacturer is Flever, but there are others as well, like Rolife. Aside from room boxes, these manufacturers also make shadow boxes, dollhouses and miniature scenes in different scales. All of their products use a similar assembly technique.
When I first heard about these kits and saw their price, I was not very optimistic. You get what you pay for, right? They looked like fun, but I figured the end result wouldn't be very impressive. I was pretty sure they would end up being cheap plastic items, which would make interesting toys if nothing else.
But, when I saw one, finished in real life, I was amazed. These kits are great! They are brimming with realistic details and the items inside are no different than what you would find at a miniature retailer. In fact, the methods of creating these miniatures is identical to the ones used at expensive miniature show classes.
Because miniatures have become so costly and these kits are so cheap, I knew there had to be a catch, somewhere. When I received my first kit, I realized there was. They are cheap, because you are only paying for bags of parts. You have to make EVERYTHING yourself. And when I say everything, I truly mean everything. Nothing is too small or too intricate. Nothing comes pre-made. This is why you will not recognize any items, in the kit baggies, as miniatures. To get a feel as to what you're in for, you can view a Flever dollhouse assembly blog here.
Kit Facts:
- All items have to be cut to measurement. These kits use centimeters not inches. Some bring paper templates to make cutting easier, but others do not.
- These kits have mixed scales. Some appear to be truer to half inch scale and this allows for half inch scale dollhouse miniatures to work with them and vice versa, but don't bet the farm on this, because this doesn't always work across the board. Sometimes the furniture is more one inch scale, while the accessories are more half inch scale. Some kits are not really one or half inch scale, but somewhere in between. When everything is put together, though, it all looks correctly scaled. Just keep this in mind if you plan on using items, from these kits, in your dollhouse.
- Though these kits are advertised as being suitable for kids, they truly aren't. Not even remotely. In fact, these kits are best for people who have had prior experience with miniatures. They take a lot of patience and a little know-how to even make sense of what you are doing. But, once you get the hang of it, you realize that it's not as difficult as it looks.
- Read the kit's listing very carefully before you buy. Some kits bring music boxes, dust covers and miniature cars, but not all. The photo shown, on the listing, might not be representative of what you're ordering. Make sure that the kit you want includes everything you're looking for before you order, because replacements will be difficult, as many of these kits come directly from China. Take a screenshot of the listing, so you can dispute your purchase directly through PayPal or Amazon.
Below are a list of Room Boxes which I have assembled and finished. I give tips throughout each one for how to make the most of your kit. I am not blogging these assemblies, step by step, because many are already blogged on YouTube, but I will give tips I have learned along the way.
Tip: Scan and print out extras of your kits printies, so you can make the items again for other projects.
Materials Needed:
First, prepare an assembly area. Scroll down to the section titled 'Small Dollhouses and Making Miniature Furniture/Accessories' for assembly area tips specifically for these kits.
- Scissors - Paper and fabric scissors, small and medium sized. Some kits bring a pair of small scissors. Keep them handy because they might work well for cutting out certain items.
- Tweezers - A set of different styles and tips are ideal.
- Aleene's Tacky Glue - This is the main glue that you would use for most of your kits assembly. It dries fairly quick, but still allows time to position items. Some of these kits bring their own glue. Keep it handy because it might work better with some items like wire and metal.
- Hot Melt Glue - Use the low setting for use on fabric, but you can also just use any fabric glue you prefer and/or sew.
- Krazy Glue Craft Gel - This glue is not used often, but you might want to keep it handy anyway for items that require very quick drying, in order to hold their place, like wire and metal. You can also use any jewelry glue you prefer.
- Testors Liquid Cement For Plastic Models - This glue is used for putting together the acrylic dust cover, which is included in some of these kits.
- Glue stick - For adhering wallpaper, flooring and other paper. Wallpaper mucilage and/or tacky glue are too thick and contain too much moisture for gluing small items. I recommend UHU Stic instead.
- Temporary adhesive glue dots - For holding tiny items upright, for assembly or until they are ready to be used.
- Glue bottle with fine tip - It's best to put your glue in a small bottle that has a fine tip or use a syringe.
- Ruler - Make sure it has centimeters. Some kits bring a small ruler.
- Small binder clamps - For holding tiny items while they dry.
- Cutting mat - This will allow you to make straight cuts and align angles correctly.
- Craft knife - This is the ideal tool to use for cutting all paper printouts. Make sure you have extra blades.
- Utility knife/box cutter - This is needed for cutting clear plastic tubing. One with a long, retractable blade is best. Some kits bring a utility knife.
- Miter box - This allows straight cutting of clear plastic tubing or other items.
- Nail clipper - This works better for cutting wire than a wire cutter.
- Fine tip brush - You will not need to paint anything, with most of these kits, but a brush is perfect for wiping off extra glue from tiny areas.
- Electrical tape - This will be needed when joining wires. Preferably find it in white.
- Clear packing tape - This is great for holding wires in place, invisibly, especially if the assembly requires a lot of twists and turns in wiring. Use this tape on wooden parts only. Using it on wallpaper or flooring can result in damage when removed.
You can view assembly examples here.
Also, go to the craft store and stock up on jewelry wire, thin fabric trim, metallic scrapbook paper, clear scrapbook paper, beads, fabric swatches and other doodads you will become familiar with in your kit. All of the items that come in these kits can be easily found in the sewing, jewelry and floral aisles of most craft stores and Walmart. So, acquiring replacements or extras will be easy to do.
Also, go to the craft store and stock up on jewelry wire, thin fabric trim, metallic scrapbook paper, clear scrapbook paper, beads, fabric swatches and other doodads you will become familiar with in your kit. All of the items that come in these kits can be easily found in the sewing, jewelry and floral aisles of most craft stores and Walmart. So, acquiring replacements or extras will be easy to do.
Lastly, if you wish to embellish your kits for even more detail, you can always use miniature accessories as addons. Clay fruit and candy rolls can be sliced for added details. Rugs, flowers and other miniatures can be added to your room boxes, as well.
The Cake Shop Room Box
The Pink Bedroom Room Box
The Autumn Room Box
The Star Coffee Bar (Starbucks) Room Box
The Chocolatier Shop Room Box
