Showing posts with label shoebox kitchen. Show all posts
Showing posts with label shoebox kitchen. Show all posts

4.12.20

Shoebox kitchen units

shoebox kitchen

We made a shoebox kitchen a while ago, and fully intended to add more rooms, but then got sidetracked, as you do.. And when I looked at it again recently I felt the kitchen units could be improved and simplified. So the old ones

25.8.18

Pots and pans - shoebox kitchen


This is probably the last kitchen project before we move onto another room (though there might be a bit of an animal interlude before we get going again.. ) So these are just a few accessories - plates, saucepans and a bowl of salad. 
Bottle top lids are really useful for kitchen extras! 

Plates

We cut these out of some spare cereal box card. You will need something small and circular to draw around like a bottle top lid or a coin. We used a smaller coin for the centre of the plate (5p). 


Before cutting them out, have fun with felt-tips! If you want to space your pattern evenly around the plate, start by drawing marks opposite each other, then keep making marks halfway between the previous ones until you’re happy (see pics below)








When you’re cutting out the plates, cut them out roughly first, then cut as carefully as you can around the circle, turning the card towards you, rather than trying to turn the scissors.




We then glued our favourite plates to the shelves on the wall in our kitchen.




Draw food on some plain plates to put on the table.



Saucepan

Choose a bottle top lid for the base of your pan and draw around it on some spare card (for the lid). Cut a strip of card for the handle too. 




Use a strong glue, like UHU to stick the cardboard lid onto the plastic bottle top and the handle on the side (let the glue dry before you bend the handle down, into place).

We glued a small bead on top of the lid and when the glue had set, sprayed the whole thing silver (best done by an adult or under supervision). It’s tempting, but don’t over-spray! Best to do one quick coat, let it dry, then apply another one.




Salad bowl 

Another bottle top lid, brush glue inside - cut a piece of green tissue paper and lightly scrunch it up before putting it into the lid. When you’re happy with your lettuce, use a hole puncher to punch a few small round tomatoes out of some red paper (or plain paper coloured in) and glue them on. 





Add more if you want, or put something else in the bowl. You could make some fruit out of modelling clay and have a fruit bowl. 
And if you have any little stickers why not use them to decorate a bowl.








13.8.18

Mini flowers in a vase - Shoebox kitchen

shoebox kitchen

toilet paper tube chairs and mini egg carton flowers

We’ve had a bit of a break from our homemade dolls house kitchen, but I keep thinking of little things to add to it, that could work in the rest of the house too… when we eventually get round to making the other rooms!
These little vases of flowers are tiny and sweet, and not difficult to do.

You will need:
Egg carton
Scissors
Green paper (or plain paper painted)
Coloured tissue paper (for the flowers)
Craft glue
Paint (if you want to paint the vase)

  1. Roughly cut out the middle cone from an egg carton - you need the top 3cm (1in.), so either measure from the top, mark the sides and join the marks, or draw a rough line by sight (halfway down the cone should be about right). Cut up from the open end and along the line.
2. Cut the tip of the cone off - easiest way is to squeeze the cone flat and snip across the very top of the cone. You will have to trim the corners so it sits on a flat surface.


3. For the base of the vase, cut out a small square or circle from the egg carton lid, dab some glue on the narrower edge of the cone, and stick in place.


4. While that’s drying, make the flowers. Cut a strip of green paper about 6cm long and 3cm wide. Snip all the way along the strip, just over halfway down. Keep your snips close together.



5. Hopefully the glue on the vase will be set enough now to paint. Paint any colour you like - or you could just leave it plain.

6. For the flowers, cut little square shapes from some tissue paper (about 1cmx1cm/1/2in.) A good tip is to fold your tissue paper a few times so you have several layers, cut a strip and then cut squares from the strip. (They really don't have to be perfect!) 


7. Scrunch up your little squares into your buds and blooms!



8. Brush glue inside the vase, roll the bottom part of your green strip, and put it into the vase. Let it unfurl a bit and push out and arrange your stems and leaves.

Dab glue on some of the green stems and stick on your flowers.









9. Optional - snip some of the green leaves into a more pointy shape if you want.

mini egg carton vase of flowers



DIY dolls house


9.3.18

Shoebox kitchen - table and chairs

toilet paper tube table and chairs

Sometimes a craft idea just makes me happy... and this is one of them.

They're often the simplest ideas, and though the chairs mightn't look that simple, honestly, they really are. Each one is made from a single toilet paper tube, and you won't even need any glue.

You will need:
Toilet paper tube (for each chair)
Toilet paper tube (for the table, narrow if possible)
Cereal box card (for table top)
Scissors
Ruler
Pencil
Paint
Craft glue

1. Flatten a tube with the palm of your hand and press firmly all the way down the two creases.


2. Squeeze the tube back into shape, carefully line up the two creases you've just made, and flatten again with the palm of your hand, pressing firmly along the new creases. You'll now have four evenly spaced creases.


3. While the tube is still flat, draw a line across the tube, 4cm from one end. (This will be the height of the seat part of your chair. Check this in relation to your kitchen - you may want it to be higher)


4. Cut down all the creases to the line (from the longer end) and bend out THREE of the flaps, pressing firmly along the fold.



5. Shorten the two flaps either side of the one you didn't bend (the back of the chair). The flaps should be about a cm or so.


6. Bend the front flap inwards, creasing it where it meets the back of the chair, and then snip off the extra, leaving a cm or so (to tuck into the back of the chair). Press firmly along this crease.


7. You can stop here for younger makers - just bend the side flaps inwards, and tuck in the front flap (trim the sides of this flap a little if you need to, for a neat fit). Move to step 13.


8. OR, flatten the chair again and use a ruler to draw a line about a cm below the one you drew in step 3.


9. Then, draw chair legs either side of the creases - try to keep them even, and cut up to the line, OR, have a go at cutting up to the line without the pencil guidelines, keeping the cuts as even as you can. It's easier (and quicker) than you think!



10. Bend each flap of card between the legs outwards, fold on the line and cut off.



11. Squeeze the chair back into shape, press along all the creases one more time, and then fold in the flaps. You may need to trim the sides of the seat flap to get it to fit in neatly. You shouldn't need glue, but if the seat part is popping out, put some glue on the flap and use a paper clip to hold it in place while the glue dries.


12. (OPTIONAL) If you would like to add some detail to the back of the chair, you could draw some rectangles (or a different shape) here, and use some small, sharper scissors, like nail scissors to pierce a hole through the card (put a piece of plasticine/modelling clay behind the card, so there's something to push against). Then carefully cut out the shape.



13. For the table, use a narrow tube if you can, place it beside your chair and decide what height you'd like your table to be. Mark this on the tube, but cut the tube about a cm ABOVE the mark.

14. Make lots of small cuts down the tube to the line and firmly bend and fold back all the flaps.


15. Cut the top of your table from a piece of cereal box card. Ours is 10cm long by 7cm wide, and then we made about a cm fold along the length of the table on both sides (to make it look thicker), but leave this part out if you want to.


16. Glue the base to the middle of the table top and leave it upside down with something on top of the tube, to weigh it down while the glue dries. Then, paint your table and chairs any colour you want.

We went for a wood effect..

shoebox kitchen