dolls house source information about building a dolls house room box or vignette

…Build A Room Box (Vignette)

This is an ideal first project if you would like to make the shell of your dolls house as well as the interior. The most complicated part is understanding how the pieces making up the box fit together and getting the measurements correct.

The design for this room box is exactly as its name suggests. You are going to produce a box with an open front (and/or top) so the contents can be viewed.

The back wall fits between the two side walls and the floor fits between the two side walls and underneath the back wall. The diagram below might help (not to scale.) It is based on a vignette cut from 10mm MDF

The external measurements of this finished room box are therefore 41cm x 30 cm 25cm. If you wanted to add a roof, the dimensions for this would be 41cm x 30cm. It would rest on the tops of the sides and the back.

Some people choose to use a sheet of Perspex as a front wall to enable people to view the room but to prevent it getting dusty (and manhandled!) The Perspex is slotted into grooves cut into the inside walls of the two sides. If you prefer to use lighter MDF 6mm or 9mm for example, alter your measurements accordingly.

If you prefer to use plywood, this is liable to warp. To reduce this, cut the pieces so the grain runs vertically up the side walls and horizontally along the back wall and floor.

Assembling The Room Box

Draw the pieces onto the wood and cut out carefully.

Push them together manually, to check that your measurements are correct.

Lay one side wall horizontally and push the back wall up against it. Push against a weighted right angle to ensure that the join is perpendicular.

Using a metal ruler, draw three or four short lines across the two pieces of wood. This will indicate where you screws will go

Place the base in a vice and use a drill to make holes for the screws to feed into

Place the side wall in a vice and use a drill to make the holes for the screws

Use a countersink if necessary to gouge the wood on the outer face so the screw head lies just below the surface

Repeat this will all the pieces that need to be joined together

Start to assemble the room box by practicing a “dry run”
Screw the back wall into the floor

Screw the side walls into the floor and into the back wall

Add the top if required

If the pieces are not connected neatly, pull apart and redrill some new holes

When all the pieces align correctly, pull apart and run some wood glue along the seams of each piece.

Glue piece by piece and screw together as you go

Your room box is now ready to be lit, decorated and furnished

Veneer or panel pin can be used in place of screws if you find this easier. A front door can be cut and hanged using 1 inch hinges or piano hinges. This works particularly well if the room box is to become a shop and you would like to dress the shop window. If you decide that you would like a door to your dolls house room box, you may need to make some “feet” from ½” or 2cm pieces of dowelling. This lifts the box off the surface slightly and enables the door to open and close more easily. A small cupboard hook will keep the door in place.

A “vignette” is traditionally shallower than a room box. A sealed Perspex or glass front works well when mounted below a picture frame. The vignette can then be hung on the wall as an alternative to being displayed on a shelf or table. Typical dimensions for a vignette might be 25cm x 20cm x 10cm deep. The procedure for assembling a vignette is exactly the same as described above.