kids room Archives - A Dabbled Dwelling

Easily Access Both Sides of the Dollhouse with This Useful Stand

March 28, 2024 by kelsey.mackall

I got an adorable dollhouse from Melissa and Doug for my middle daughters birthday. She desperately wanted one, and plays with it a lot. When I redid her room I wanted to make the dollhouse accessible with a way to contain all of the pieces that go with it. It was hard to find exactly what I was looking for, so I built a stand that would accomplish what I needed.

How I Built a Dollhouse Stand

I started with an idea and a sheet of plywood. Since I needed to build a space for a storage drawer I started by building, well, a box. I cut the plywood to size and used wood glue and my nail gun to build the outside of the box.

I made sure to add a face and a back to the box, and then added these adorable feet. After the glue was dry I sanded the entire piece to ensure that it would be a smooth finish when I painted. I built a drawer box to fit in the face of the box and then added soft close drawer hardware.

Woman attaches furniture feet to drawer box

I built a drawer front using plywood and 1x4s, and then painted the entire thing white. A word of warning, keep the paint out of reach of your toddlers! When the paint was dry, I used construction adhesive to attach a lazy Susan to the top of the drawer. The dollhouse sits on top of the lazy Susan and viola! The dollhouse spins and is easily accessible from both sides.

Rotating Dollhouse Stand Success

This project kind of started as a whim, but I think it was super successful. My girls can easily play with both sides of the dollhouse and when it’s not being used we can have the cuter front side on display. I love the drawer because it is a place to keep all of the little pieces. This is such a cute addition to my girls’ room and it gets used A LOT. Click here to see it in action!

Versatile Big Wall Décor for Any Room

September 14, 2023 by kelsey.mackall

I was so happy to give my daughter her dream bedroom. We were excited to choose the décor and really make the room her own. A lot of our style choices will grow with her, but some things needed to be chosen for the kid she is right now. As any parent can confirm, kids grow up and their tastes change. Finding large wall décor that would be easy to transition as she grows was important to me.

* This post is sponsored by BIG Wall Décor *

BIG Wall Décor

We had one large wall in her room that needed a BIG piece of art. How do we know what size would work best for the space? As a general rule of thumb, you want your artwork to take up at least 55% of the width of your wall. If you’ve decorated a room before, you know that wall décor big enough to be the focal point of one wall can be expensive. I am so glad that I found BIG Wall Décor, they have so many options for wall art, and they offer so many different sizes!

A woman admires a blue and yellow painting in a pink room

Super Versatile

Their approach to artwork is so unique. They have found a way to make it easy to switch out your wall art without costing a ton or taking up a bunch of space. The frame that the artwork is mounted on is sleek and beautiful and also specially designed so that the art can be changed at a moments notice. I received two fabric prints for the bunk room and you will not even believe how easy it is to switch one for the other to give the room a different vibe.

A woman removes a large piece of art from the wall.

So Easy to Change

These frames are lightweight. They are super easy to move and change out your artwork. All you have to do is take the print off of the frame and stretch the new print over it. Then tuck the silicone edge into the metal infinity frame. It really is that simple. Also, instead of storing bulky canvases, you’re just storing the fabric prints. Overall, it takes up so much less space.

A woman removes a fabric print from a frame.

A woman is holding two fabric prints, the frame is on the bed.

A woman places a new fabric print into the frame.

A hand tucks the edge of the fabric print into the infinity frame.

A hand is showing the silicone stitched to the underside of a fabric print.

Simple and Well Designed

BIG Wall Décor thought of everything. Not only is it lightweight but there are other features that make this art ideal for kid rooms and family spaces. The fabric prints are durable and the material they are on is resistant to scratches and tears. Did I also mention that they are washable? Because they are! They can be spot cleaned, or if more is needed they can be thrown in the washing machine on delicate. The frames come with everything you need to hang it up. It’s as easy as assembling the frame and putting it on the wall. No last minute trips to the hardware store. Look at how nicely this frame hangs against the wall too!

Versatile Décor Made Simple

I love the way this art looks on the wall and I’m so glad it’s easy to swap the prints. Right after I changed the pictures, my daughter informed me that she likes the first print better. BIG Wall Décor has changed the game when it comes to wall art choices. It’s family friendly, super simple, and much more affordable when looking for large pieces.

LED Wall Light DIY- Pottery Barn Dupe

June 17, 2021 by kelsey.mackall

I love being able to include my kids in DIY so when my daughter and I were eyeing this LED wall light from Pottery Barn, I just knew I had to make one. I wasn’t about to spend $150 on one so check out how I DIY’d this for just $25!

Scroll to see what my dupe looks like!

Wall light shaped like a half sun from pottery barn product image — The Inspiration Photo from Pottery Barn

What You’ll Need:

LED Strip lights
1×2 primed pine board
Scrap wood or wider board
Spray Paint
Table Saw (optional)
Miter Saw
Jigsaw
Electrical Tape
Nail Gun and/or Hammer and Nails
Wood Glue
Wood Filler

How To Make The LED Wall Light:

First, we taped out the design above her headboard where we planned on putting it. In other words, doing this gave me a guide to determine overall size and the cuts I would need to make. My longest pieces were 17″ and my shorter ones were 12.5″. Next, I ripped a 1×2 in half to get some skinny pieces. You don’t necessarily have to do this step, the 1×2 would look great as is, however this also allowed me to use less wood and achieve a thinner design.

sun taped out on wall above bed with blue painters tape — Planning with a photo bomb from Hobbes

white 1x2 board on table saw — Ripping a 1×2 to 2 .75″ pieces

Next, I cut the long skinny pieces of wild to the desired lengths with my miter saw. These will end up being the “sun beam” parts of my LED wall light. This was a great opportunity to get my 10 year old to put down the electronics and pick up a tool!

The hardest part of this project was cutting the curved semi-circle portion of my sun. I grabbed some scrap plywood, traced a bucket, and cut it out with my jigsaw.

mother and daughter using miter saw together

Then I assembled the sun using my brad nailer and wood glue, filled my nail holes and seams, and then had my daughter give it a coat of white spray paint.

Adding the LED Lights:

Finally, I nailed the finished wooden sun to the wall and began attaching the LED strip lights. They have sticky tape on the back so this was easy. I just made sure to go all the way around the inside and outside of the sun and return to the same place I started.

There were some lights than ran down the wall to the outlet and I really wanted this to look like a stand-alone fixture. Therefore I covered it with black electrical tape and then painted it the same color as the wall. Its like it was never even there!

woman stands on bed and puts led lights on sign shaped like a sun

black electrical tape covering led lights and paint brush getting ready to paint it

This Pottery Barn Dupe turned out SO CUTE and my daughter loves the color changing LED lights. In addition, the LED strip lights come with both a remote and phone app so she can customize the colors and light patterns.

Let me know what you think!