If you follow me on twitter, you may have seen a few building related tweets last week as I tackled my first solo building project and made Lila a doll closet for her American Girl. We gave it to her yesterday for her birthday, and despite its many flaws, she seems thrilled with it.
I followed these plans by Ana White but made a few changes.
And there are flaws. I briefly considered photo shopping the gap between the doors but then decided to just be straight. I could have sworn I followed Ana White’s measurements exactly so perhaps the gap is intended {smile}.
You can see I skipped the cut-out star and added knobs. The star was just way out of my league at this point in time but if you don’t cut the star, you need something to grasp to open the doors. I went with a distressed, vintage look for the cabinet and these knobs from Hobby Lobby seemed perfect.
I spray painted the entire closet but after some {unintentional} roughing up during the hinge installation, I decided to distress the cabinet all over and use a dark stain to give the closet an aged look.
I love the inside of the closet. A dowel sits across the top to hold little doll hangers. Ana’s plans suggested using a wooden dowel and rod pockets but I skipped the rod pockets and screwed the dowel right into the sides of the closet.
The little shelf is the perfect spot for a basket that can hold all those shoes, stockings, and other small American Girl items.
The inset closet doors and inset hinges were the part that really gave me a run for my money. My slightly warped boards, a faulty hinge, and a general lack of building knowledge had me running to my dad for help. The doors don’t hang perfectly straight but they’re sturdy and they close. My perfectionist personality is letting it go. At this point in the process, I also decided to forgo the decorative molding on the front and keep it simple.
I hung the knit robe on little doll hangers {affiliate link} in the closet when we gave it to Lila and she’s been busy putting away the rest of her clothes and accessories.
This little doll closet is far from perfect but I really enjoyed the building process and I think I might tackle another project sometime soon. But nothing with inset hinges {wink}.
Looks great! We bought a small wardrobe from Ikea that we use as a doll dresser.
I think it’s awesome and way to go for tackling such a huge project. I love me a woman with power tools!
Cute. Did she love it?
Very sweet. You did a great job, Randi.
Oh how sweet! Love how it turned out, great job! My girl would love it.
What size dowel did you use?
I love the vintage look of it to be honest! The gap and the sanded areas really add to that! 🙂 Well done I say!
The gap may indeed be intentional to keep from harming little fingers. Great job. Would love to make this but not sure I could.
The gap may indeed be intentional to keep from harming little fingers. Great job. Would love to make this but not sure I could.
Looks great! Where did you find the little wicker basket?
Michaels! They carry that size and style regularly.