We did it. Holy cats, we did it.
Just a few days before Christmas we started Clara’s homemade play-kitchen (in secret of course, since she thinks Santa brought it)… and we actually finished it on Christmas Eve! Yes folks, it was a Christmas miracle. We went into it with a goal of spending under $99 since this basic play-kitchen from Ikea is that price – but we wanted to add a bit more detail like oven knobs that actually turn, an oven light that goes on and off, a wire baking rack inside the oven instead of a shelf, and a real faucet (not plumbed of course, but movable!). So here’s how we made our own little Clara version in the last 72 hours before Christmas, for what ended up being $74.
More pics in a moment (lots more!), but first the dirty details. The core of our homemade kitchen was initially going to be a real kitchen cabinet, so we had it around already (yessss!). It was actually the one we bought for $14 from the Habitat For Humanity ReStore when we intended to hang a big microwave next to our pantry. Heck, we even hung it temporarily when determining where we wanted the electrician to add our microwave plug a while back.
But in the end it never got used (since we opted for a smaller microwave – more on that here) so we hung onto it in preparation for its eventual rebirth as a play kitchen.
It was a little low (only 15″) so we began by building it up on the bottom with a quick box made out of a 1 x 4″ remnant that we had in the basement. We offset it from the front a bit so it would even look like a real base cabinet in a kitchen (toekick and all).
John also had a spare 1 x 12″ board in his scrap wood pile that, when paired with a leftover plank from our desk-building project, fit perfectly as a counter and low backsplash. Well, perfectly once they were cut down a bit.
Picture me rubbing my hands together maniacally and saying things like “it’s all going according to plan!”
But before attaching all that, we had to build our sink area. We hit up the ReStore again and snagged a real faucet and handle for $10 (and inadvertently crashed their company Christmas party in the process – sorry ReStorians, thanks for letting us quickly grab that faucet!). We thought those two real kitchen features paired with a metal bowl (found at Target for $7) would make for a purty chrome and stainless steel kitchen sink area. Only the best for our girl. Haha.
After tracing around the lip of the bowl, John jigsawed a hole just inside the line (so the edge of the bowl had something to rest on). It didn’t have to be perfect since the bowl would be covering it.
After cutting matching holes in both the counter and the cabinet top (and sanding them both smooth), the bowl was officially transformed into a sink – just by dropping it in.
I wish I had peeled that sticker off for this pic, but you get the idea.
Adapting the sink hardware was also pretty straightforward. The faucet was pretty much ready to go, but the handle had lots of tubing that was just going to be in the way under the counter.
Luckily, with a wrench and a copper pipe cutter we removed the excess mumbo jumbo. Oh, and since the bottom of the fixture will be concealed between the top of the cabinet and the counter we don’t have to worry about Clara messing with it.
Then it just took drilling some holes…
…and securing both fixtures to the underside of the counter (though the handle was so thick it required an extra block of wood to keep it secured).
Now that we could finally secure the counter to the cabinet, it was starting to look like a play kitchen! So yes, this is where we got all weird / annoying / giddy / hyper.
But just wait, there’s more excitement in store. Check this out…
Every play kitchen needs an oven right? So we bought some $3 fence hinges to convert one door to open downwards.
And we also snagged a piece of pre-cut plexi from Home Depot (for just $3!) so that we could give Clara’s oven a proper window (the girl’s gotta check on her souffles). We completely lucked out that this pre-cut pane was the perfect size.
We weren’t so lucky when cutting the hole for the plexi though. John can’t figure out if it’s him or his Dremel Trio, but he has trouble getting straight cuts sometimes (his words, not mine). It looked okay from a distance…
…but up close he was less than happy with it. Yes, there may have even been some hushed cursing.
So after a dash to the craft store (we had to buy materials for some oven knobs anyway) we grabbed some thin pieces of craft wood and cut a miniature frame to trim out the imperfect opening. Huzzah for Plan B!
We didn’t want to actually attach the plexi until we were done priming and painting, so it was onto making some knobs for the oven. I guess knobs are usually for a stove, but we figured it wouldn’t hurt to have something for Clara to spin and interact with. So we took some small wood discs from Ben Franklin (for $2) and drilled a hole in the center for a washer and bolt.
Luck was back in our favor when it came to drilling holes for the nut on the back of the oven door. The Kreg Jig drillbit (which has a small pilot drill on the tip before becoming larger) made the perfect sized holes for not only sinking the nut into the door (since our oven wouldn’t close if they weren’t flush) but also kept the nuts from spinning too, which made attaching everything really easy.
Final attachment of the knobs wouldn’t happen ’til after painting, but here’s a preview (check out the assembled one on the left). John used some of the leftover craft wood (that he had from the Plan B oven window frame) to cut some little arrows that would later get glued over the bolt head on each knob. But back to these in a minute.
Now that everything was constructed, we snuck it upstairs to the sunroom after Clara was asleep and primed the whole darn thing (after patching some holes with wood putty). It was actually not that bad since we were in priming and painting mode for our real kitchen too. Then it was painting time, and we did all those finishing touches like gluing in the oven plexiglass and adding hardware over the next 48 hours.
The rest of the finishing touches are easier to explain while looking at the “after” kitchen, so through the magic of the Internet we’ll fast forward a bit:
We primed and painted it using leftover paint that we already had. The top is our kitchen wall color (Sesame by Benjamin Moore) and the base is the same stuff we used for our office cabinets (Benjamin Moore’s Advance paint in Decorator’s White in a satin finish). We painted the inside of the pantry Sesame also, but did the oven in a medium grey thanks to a test pot of paint that we had leftover from grey-washing our living room beams (in Benjamin Moore’s Shaker Gray). It’s sort of hard to see in the pics, but in person the gray oven and the grellow cabinet are fun little details to help each side feel more defined.
To dress up the inside of the oven we used heavy duty velcro to hold up a simple tap light, so Clara can actually “turn the oven on” just by pushing it. We also found this black wire shelf (it’s actually one of those bottom-of-the-sink drying trays) at Target for $5. It definitely helps things feel more oven-ish in there.
Oh, and here’s what the plexi-glass looks like from the back. We just used some clear silicone caulk to adhere it to the backside. That keeps it in place, but is totally invisible from the front thanks to the blessing-in-disguise frame that John had to add. Three cheers for happy accidents along the way.
We also whipped up a last-minute shelf on the sink side when we realized that most of the play food Clara was getting from her grandparents (they sweetly offered to give play-kitchen-themed Christmas gifts, knowing what we had up our sleeves) would be dwarfed by one big open cabinet. She’s got the basics covered… soup, cereal, crackers, pasta, tuna, sugar, milk (oh wait, maybe this girl needs a fridge someday…).
We opted not to add a stovetop so that she’d have more flexible-to-use-for-other-stuff-too counter space (you know, for mixing and setting out dishes, etc). It has already been a handy choice because there’s room to house the play toaster her Grammy and Tom-Tom bought her for Christmas (yes, it’s kind of the cutest thing we’ve ever seen). But I did make her a makeshift hot plate of sorts, so she has one burner to play with (instead of four space-hogging circles). What does she use it for? To fry sandwiches, apparently.
All that little DIY hot plate entailed was buying a $5 trivet from Bed Bath & Beyond and a $4 round of wood from Michael’s (which I painted teal with leftover paint from this project) and then drilled into it in three spots (to allow the feet of the trivet to “sink” inside the wood round so it was nice and solid). Then I used a flat washer and a screw to hold the trivet into the round of wood from the center. Voila: instant burner.
Oh and I used little felt furniture feet on the bottom of my burner (to lift it up ever so slightly to keep it from scratching the counter) which you can sort of see in the picture below.
Here’s a closer look at the final oven knobs too. I sprayed them with leftover spray paint (Rustoleum’s Titanium Silver that we bought to test on our old kitchen hardware). It’s not a perfect match to the new shiny chrome door hardware ($5 each from Home Depot) and our sleek sink and faucet, but it’s close enough. And it sort of glitters, which is semi-adorable (new rule: every play kitchen should have at least one glittering element).
We actually bought three of those Home Depot door handles so that one could act as a towel bar on the side of the sink. Little details like that were kind of my favorite part. As for hatching this whole kitchen plan, John and I took Clara and Burger for a nice long walk and chatted about things we could add to “our kitchen” (didn’t want to spoil the play-kitchen surprise for Clara) which is how we came up with things like the towel bar, the wire rack, the oven tap light, all the other little details like those spinning knobs that we thought would make it Clara’s favorite thing ever. The brainstorming part of a project is always my favorite. So much possibility…
So now I think you’ve see just about every nook and cranny of this puppy (can you tell we’re proud of it?)…
So how about a budget breakdown?
- Secondhand cabinet (from the ReStore): $14
- Secondhand faucet & handle (also from the ReStore): $10
- Stainless sink bowl (from Target): $7
- Oven knobs and frame (from Ben Franklin craft store): $5
- Hinges for oven door (from Home Depot): $3
- Pre-cut plexiglass and wood trim for oven window (from Home Depot): $4
- Wire oven shelf (from Target): $5
- Tap light for the oven (from Home Depot): $2
- Wood counter, backsplash, and toe kick: $0 (already owned scrap lumber, but it might be $15 or so to buy it all)
- Trivet (from Bed Bath & beyond) and wood round (from Michael’s) for hot plate: $9
- Three hardware handles for oven, cabinet, and towel bar (from Home Depot): $15
- Primer and paint for counter, cabinets, and hot plate: $0 (already owned, but a few $4 paint testers would do the trick if you needed to buy it)
- Miscellaneous wood pantry items (by Plan Toys): $0 (Christmas gift from Grammy and Tom Tom, but they might cost around $15 if you were to buy them)
- Play toaster (also by Plan Toys): $0 (another super thoughtful gift from John’s parents!)
- Total project cost: $74
And as they say in the commercials, watching Clara play with what Santa brought her: priceless.
If only a certain larger kitchen were this easy to knock out. Oh well, I guess that’s the difference between one cabinet and 20 of them. But I gotta say that this little guy is getting a ton of action. Stuffed animals regularly get bathed in the sink, fake slices of lettuce and tomato get toasted, boxes of cereal and crackers get baked in the oven, and random cars, balls, and trains get stuffed into the pantry cabinet. It’s also really nice to have a little “Clara zone” shaping up along the living room wall right off of the kitchen (we moved it to the wall on the left side of her new desk after Christmas). Good stuff.
Oh and oddly enough, folks ask us all the time what we want to “parlay” this blog-thing into, and for the past few years we’ve never really known how to answer that question because we love blogging as-is (we don’t want a TV show or anything – ack, that makes us break out in hives – so, we’ve actually turned those opportunities down a few times). But I can honestly say that “designing” Clara’s desk and her play kitchen have been hugely amazing and fun projects for both of us. So for once I might have an answer the next time someone asks what sort of side projects we’d love to end up doing in a decade or two (right along with the blog of course, since YHL = our first baby). Designing cute and affordable kid furniture (which seems to be surprisingly hard to find for some reason) might just be the sweet spot. Ya never know, right? So I’m just putting that out there into the universe. Who knows where we’ll end up…
Ann Marie says
Cutest, bestest, most creative-est gift for a kiddo I have EVER seen! Heck, I want one for me!!!
Anna Weaver says
Best DIY ever! Love this little kitchen!!
Michelle says
Sweetest thing EVER! Now I want one…
Stacey says
Such a beautiful present for a beautiful little girl. This post made me smile as I thought about the Wendy House my late father made for my sister and I. Compliments of the season to your lovely family.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Stacey! I’m so sorry for your loss. That Wendy House sounds amazing!
xo,
s
knittingant says
Awww, this looks so much better than anything you could have bought! Amazing job!
Watching Clara exploring her new kitchen was so cute! Thanks a lot for sharing!
India says
Wow! Clara is such a lucky duck to have such amazing talented parents like you!
Oh, and you are totally lucky to have such a cute, sweet, smart daughter too =)
This is one of my favourite projects of yours, ever! I just absolutely love the creativity that clearly went into it. And $74?! – you guys really are so inspirational. xx India.
Melissa B. says
Love it! I think homemade play kitchens are the best kind! I haven’t checked out Sherry’s pinned play kitchens, but this one must rank up there with the CUTEST, def top of the list for personalized-thoughtful-made-with-love-ness. John – I also have a Dremel Trio and… it sucks. I’ll admit I was duped by the marketing. I bought a new cutting bit for it (after like 4 uses!!), so we’ll see if that makes cutting a little easier next time I use it. Reviews I’ve read post-purchase seem to all concur that it’s just not powerful enough for most cutting and routing tasks. PLUS you have to buy Dremel Trio accessories and new cutting bits, regular Dremel bits won’t fit the Trio shank, router bits won’t fit… so you’re stuck with whatever overpriced P.O.S. bits they make. PHEW…There, done ranting. I’ve also had more than a few less-than-hushed cursing sessions whilst enjoying my Trio!
YoungHouseLove says
That stinks! Although I must admit I’m thrilled to hear I’m not the only one having those issues.
-John
Janel says
Oh my goodness, my jaw dropped when I read this entire post. Amazing job, guys! This may be my favorite project of yours! As a dietitian and food fanatic, I always dream of my future kiddos playing with kid-version kitchen sets and food models. Maybe by the time I have said kids, you guys will be in the kid-furniture business ;)
jenponix says
what a lovely and cute small kitchen for a child!
if a child have this one,maybe she/he can join the junior masterchef soon.:)
Kristine says
OMG! That is so adorable! And thanks for posting that home video for us too! I was so giddy to see the video after reading all the effort you put into making it. I have a 5 month old girl and I can’t wait to get her first kitchen too. But it definitely won’t be as nice as yours, of course. Clara is so lucky! I wish I was as handy as you guys.
Jenny says
LOVE IT, I think this is my favorite YHL creation to date!!! Way better than IKEA’s!
Erin Clark says
“Holy Cats” is right! We went the Ikea route :) Great job…VERY creative. My little one would be jealous if he knew how to read your blog too!
Kate from zmombie.com says
That is so genius! I bet she LOVES it. My little one is only 4 months, but I would love to do this for her someday. Maybe it will help mine want to cook when she grows up (unlike her mother who can just boil water). One of my goals is to remedy that…
Nina says
That is the cutest little kitchen ever! And you two are so funny, “Santa came!…and left a balloon version of himself!”
ToTheMoonandBack says
You guys seriously ROCK! This is the cutest thing ever. My 9 year old is jealous;)
kate brittain says
my favorite part of the video. “wash, wash, wash”. so adorable!
Lori says
So last night while I made dinner my daughter (2.5) wanted to help. She made a space on the kitchen counter and got her supplies and ingredients (plastic containers, a wooden spoon, Memory game cards, foam clock numbers) to make her macaroni and cheese. Then she wanted a burner to put her pot on. She had to go searching through her toys to find a pretend burner and ended up picking out a box of lacing beads as her burner. All I was thinking about was Clara’s super cool kitchen with a burner!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, so cute!!!
xo,
s
Becky says
LOVE! What a precious girl. Isn’t christmas SO much better with kids? Our peanut is 1 so he had no clue what was going on, but it was still a blast giving him presents.
The little kitchen is fantastic. I’ve been formulating a similar plan for a ‘tool bench’ for Ethan’s gift next year. Or maybe I’ll just give him a kitchen. Real men cook, right?
YoungHouseLove says
Amen! My man does 99% of the cooking and I consider myself to be a lucky lady!
xo,
s
Rosemary says
Your kitchen for Clara is tons nicer than the Ikea one!!
Beautiful job.
Kathleen says
Only you two could whip up something so cute and perfect in 72 hours. That is amazing and I’m sure Clara will love it for years to come. By the way, I would like your honest opinion about the Haven conference. If you weren’t speaking at it, would you pay the $200 to go?
YoungHouseLove says
I’m so excited about it! There are so many faces I’ll finally get to put to names and of course Katie B lives out there so we get to see her too! I would totally go.
xo,
s
Kristina says
Nice jon on the play kitchen, but don’t go knocking that Ikea kitchen just yet! I modified it a bit and my girls LOVE it > http://kmehmen.blogspot.com/2012/01/ediths-room-reveal.html.
FYI: The Ikea model has burners light up and the faucet swivels and turns.
YoungHouseLove says
That’s amaaaaaaazing! I love it!
xo,
s
Natália says
Hello!
I love that idea! Clara’s little kitchen is so nice!
maybe I’ll be doing one in 1 or 2 years!
Have you ever thought to do a dollhouse for Clara? :) If you ever do one, please show how you’ll do it!
Keep going with your great job, and never quit blogging!
About your book… will it be available in Europe?
Xoxo
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes a dollhouse is next on my list for sure! Maybe for her b-day in May? We’ll be sure to share all the details! As for the book, we hope it’s available in Europe! It’ll be on Amazon, so hopefully that’ll be a source for international orders!
xo,
s
Aryn@LivingonaDimeorLess says
That play kitchen is absolutely perfect!!! Way to go!!!
JoDi says
Wow, you should be proud! That turned out awesome!
It’s funny you mention designing kids’ furniture. As I started reading about how you made it, I kept thinking how great you guys would be at designing stuff like this for kids and grown-up furniture too! You really have a knack for thinking of all the details that make something special.
Kate @ Stripes and Polka Dots says
I’m dying over how cute this is! And the fact that you guys made it yourselves makes it that much more special.
Robyn says
Ooooh I love it! It wouldn’t even occur to me to make a play kitchen, never mind one as brilliantly executed as this (cute burner!). I always wanted a play kitchen so very jealous of Clara’s. Wonder what you guys will dream up next?!
cappy says
Did not read all the 500+ comments but I am thinking… here’s to your second book…DIY kids toys…an instruction book for building your own safe and kid approved toys that are so functional and stylish!!!! And hurry up…my daughter is 2.5 and thinking about building her a kid size doll house for the yard. Clara’s Kitchen rocks!
Claire @ Claire K Creations says
Will you be shipping this gorgeous kids furniture to Australia? That is the cutest kitchen ever!
Trude says
Good lord, I’m now suffering from a severe case of Cute Overload. You guys officially win the Awesome Parents award! That is by far the cutest play kitchen I’ve ever seen. :)
Mellissa says
I usually reserve cute kid comments for my two nephews who have completely stolen my heart. But, I gotta say that video of Clara is absolutely adorable! It must have been so rewarding and heartwarming to see her get excited over something you two made. What a neat idea!
Kathy says
This is definitely cool! Love, love the light in the oven, the ‘real’ faucet and wire rack. I can see where designing this had to be so fun. Great job!
I’ve been thinking of building a farm stand so that my grandson can sell vegetables from our garden. I think it would be way better than a lemonade stand and, at the ripe old age of 5, he will talk about composting to anyone who will listen! Nothing like providing him with the appropriate audience. Seeing your kitchen only confirms that I need to get started on that stand.
YoungHouseLove says
Haha- that sounds awesome!
xo,
s
Alicia says
Holy cow, I could listen to her talk all day. So freakin’ cute!
Eryn says
You guys have outdone yourselves! Uhmazzing!!!!!
molly says
That is the cutest ever. And, it is so far superior to its Ikea counterpart. Good job, team!
rita @ busylittlebeaver says
It’s perfect! Clara is so lucky to have such creative parents!
Noelia says
Sherry & John…I write this with tears of joy because you make it clear that love is real. You are passionate about one another, your home, your family, and your awesome projects! I admire you and and wish with all my heart that I personally knew you guys (not in a creepy sort of way, hehe) because you are so exceptional and candid, and seem like such a blast. You project such joy and warmth, and reading your posts is always enriching–far more than on a “DIY” level, but on a personal one as well. You are an exemplary couple, are obviously the best of friends, are the sweetest and proudest parents ever, and not to mention exceedingly creative and talented. May God continue to bless your home and family. I look forward to your future posts and continued success. Hugs and kisses from New Orleans,
Noelia :)
YoungHouseLove says
Aw shucks Noelia. You have me sniffling over here. Thanks so much for the kind words!
xoxoxoxo,
s (& the fam)
Candis says
I love it! Me and my hubby also built our little chef a kitchen for Christmas! I would love for you to check it out! http://twicethrifty.blogspot.com/2012/01/diy-play-kitchen.html
YoungHouseLove says
So sweet!
xo,
s
houseofearnest says
all I can say is WOW… above and beyond and it looks PHENOMENAL!
Jeanna Walton says
You guys, just wanted to say how adorable the little kitchen is. I just don’t know how you found the time to pull it off, along with everything else you needed to finish in the house. So much thought went into it for your darling little girl……… she’s very lucky to have you both :)
Logann says
You guys should do this for your second book, since you got a two book deal! It would be so rewarding for two parents to work on small goals for their kids! Total positive effect in all areas! You guys are great!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw that would be fun!
xo,
s
Natalie says
Clara is the cutest child on the interwebs. Seriously. How do you even stand it :)
Julie says
This little kitchen is superb!!! Better than any you could ever find at a store…great, fabulous, fantastic o, totally rad job guys!!! LOVE <3
Susann says
You guys are amazing!!!!! It’s 1000x better since you made it yourself, it will definitely be an heirloom!
Leslie N says
I just saw this posted on Apartment Therapy (Ohdeedoh) today (after I saw it here of course). That’s so neat!!! Congrats!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Leslie! We’re so flattered!
xo,
s
Tracy says
I’m currently making a play kitchen for my son, and so I’ve got a question about yours. How long did it take you to find the perfect faucet? I’ve been checking our local restore regularly and so far, no dice. All they’ve got are bathroom faucets that are in really bad shape. Did you guys have any back up plans for a faucet if you hadn’t been able to find the one you did? Any ideas for making one that won’t look crappy? :)
YoungHouseLove says
Aw so sorry! We just snuck in there one time and found it! But it can definitely be hit or miss. I think if we couldn’t find it there maybe we’d try ebay or craigslist?
xo,
s
Tara says
This made me cry a little! I am going to insist to my husband that we create a kitchen for our now 8 month old daughter for next Christmas! I had one as a child (not as kick-rump as this one, mind you) but I loved it! He loves any excuse to use his tools, and making her this happy is as good a reason as any. Thank you for sharing – you guys rule!
Julie Benson-Grant says
First, I want to add my congrats on a job well done. I only have a son (now 16) and wished that I had a little girl for this kind of stuff. Well, now I have two grandnieces that visit me semi-often that I want to try this for.
Second, I want to say that I love the detail, photos and information you include in your posting! Very well done! I have begun blogging about do-it-yourself crafts and usually don’t realize the in-between steps need separate photos until it’s too late. I hope you don’t mind that I will probably ‘borrow’ your style for my blog.
Good luck on future projects!
Amber @ Au Coeur says
This is awesome! We up-cycled a play kitchen from our daughter’s second birthday (actually from another wooden, but very ugly play kitchen) and it’s one of the most played with things in our house. http://www.amber-hinds.com/2011/09/noras-vintage-inspired-upcycled-play-kitchen/
YoungHouseLove says
AHHHH! That apron sink is adorable!! I love it!
xo,
s
gcroft says
OMG, Clara is absolutely adorable and what a smashing Christmas present. If I didn’t already have a grown up stove, I’d want this version too. Well done!
brandi says
This is the most adorable kitchen that I’ve ever laid eyes on! You guys are so unbelievably creative! Such a beautiful gift for Clara to treasure for many years to come!