The Mini Play Kitchen

I had way too much fun this Christmas, creating more gifts than I ever have to date.  I worked my heart and soul out, much to my delight, enjoying the process of creating and imagining how perfect each gift was crafted for each receiver.  It literally made me giddy.  I shared early in January the gift I made for my brother, the Coat of Arms table.  It will be a process of sharing the other gifts as well.

This one was really, really fun.  And it was a quick project; actually a very good beginner project for those of you who are thinking of restoring and repurposing thrifted goods for perfectly crafted toys.  So our daughter is overshadowed by four wonderful older brothers.  There is a serious lack of girl toys at our house.  She knows how to build legos, fly an airplane and make a train go round and round.  This Christmas was going to be a great asset to her girl play-time.  I knew her grandma was getting her little pots and pans and dishes to play kitchen, but its not as fun to play kitchen on the ground or couch or chair, now is it?

Have you seen the adorable mini-kitchens people re-create out of old consoles and entertainment centers?  I have been smitten with them way before I ever had a girl.  But I knew now was not the time to dive into a larger project, she was only 16 months.  But I had an idea to make a smaller version of a play kitchen; if I could just find the perfect breakfast tray at a thrift store, I could paint a stove and make some sort of a make-shift sink.  So I looked for quite a while.  Until one day I spotted it.  It was a homemade breakfast tray, but I knew it would work.  I had envisioned it on the bottom shelf of our built-ins, and when I brought it home, it was as if it was made for the space.

Because of all my other projects I was making for Christmas, this one didn’t get done til Christmas Eve.  I painted it in Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint Trophy, and layers of Trophy and Grainsack on top to give a faux-marblish look.  I painted on the burners with black acrylic paint.  I used knobs for the stove that were from our original kitchen cabinets.

For the sink I found a vintage petwer bowl at Thrifters Rock, my husband sawed a hole and cauked it in to stay.  The faucet was a Restoration Hardware candleholder I also found at Thrifters Rock turned upside down, with some glass knobs I purchased at Homegoods while in California last year.  Then I covered the whole thing (including the pewter bowl and candlestick-turned faucet) in Miss Mustard Seed’s Tough Coat, just to be on the safe side, since it is a toy.

Have you seen the Instagram photos of the glamorous kitchen sinks with amazing flowers dripping off the sides?  I couldn’t help it.

Before setting to work on the mini play kitchen, I had it in my mind to make a little bit of felt food.  I had seen some on Pinterest and thought how cost effective and easy these would be.  At this time, I do not have any tutorials on the felt food, however, you can follow me on Pinterest and under my board A Little Girl’s Favorite Things are links to directions on how I at semi-followed some of the felt food tutorials.  Making the food was one of my favorite memories.  We turned on a Christmas movie, and three of my boys helped me sew, cut out and stuff the adorable little food.  I can’t wait to make more delectable treats like pretty cakes and donuts.  But we started with more healthy pretend food.

My favorite are the strawberries.  And the carrots, the two loaves of bread, the eggs, the crackers and cheese. Okay, so I love them all.  I liked making felt food more than real food. Ha, sad but true.

On Christmas, my daughter opened up her pots and pans from her grandma, and I showed her her kitchen.  Without missing a beat, she started to work in her kitchen.  Sauteing, chopping, cooking, I mean I was impressed!  She knew what she was doing!  And she played there for over an hour, taking food from the pan to the plate and serving her dad and I.  I was actually a little surprised at how fast she took to it.  She has been playing with it every day since.

It was definitely a perfect little girl gift that is and will get lots of use.  But, I am keeping my eye out for the perfect piece of furniture to make over into a real play kitchen.  I can’t wait to embark on that.  Why are making mini things so fun?!

What’s you’re favorite part?

Thanks for stopping by!

Cheryl