DIY doll’s house

• An old bookcase bought through Trademe
• Wood-filler
• Resene Quick Dry primer undercoat
• Resene Lustacryl (water based enamel) untinted white base.
• For wallpaper: Scrapbook paper from Spotlight or patterned wrapping paper (you could also use actual wallpaper if you have some to spare.)
• PVA glue
• Black permanent marker
• Double-sided tape
• Foam board from Gordon Harris (it’s also available at some $2 shops)
• Scrap fabric for curtains
• Led light from a $2 shop
• Various ribbon for curtain ties and crystal ribbon for the chandelier, from Spotlight
• Fabric-covered drawing pins from Whitcoulls
• Flat and spherical drawing pins from $2 shop
• A good selection of suitably sized toys and knick-knacks for furniture.

To make

1. Wash bookcase down with hot soapy water, wipe dry, then allow to dry completely.

2. Fill any holes will wood filler.

3. Sand down entire bookcase then wipe down to remove sanding dust.

4. Paint with Resene Quick Dry primer undercoat and allow to dry.

5. Paint with two coats of Resene Lustacryl, a water-based enamel paint and allow to dry.

6. Work out what arrangement of rooms you want and use a craft knife to cut foam board to divide the different levels accordingly. You might like to create a couple of bedrooms upstairs, a nursery for the baby and a sitting room below – but it’s all up to you. You can either hot-glue the walls into place or just cut them so they fit snugly (then they can be rearranged when the householder feels like a change!)

7. Cut different ‘wallpaper’ for the back wall of each room and glue to walls using PVA glue.

8. Cut fabric for curtains and attach with drawing pins. Use contrasting ribbon to tie curtains back.

9. Create a chandelier/lampshade by wrapping card around your LED light and sticking on ribbon with double- sided tape. Attach to the ceiling with more tape.

10. Make a bed out of foam board and ice-block sticks, then paint; make pictures to hang on the walls using more foam board and cut-out images; Use silver paper to make a ‘mirror’.

11. Put together a collection of suitably sized furniture from the toy box and whatever you can find at the $2 shop or similar – then move on in!