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Eighteen-inch dolls have a scale problem: 'dollhouses' at the store fit dolls a third their size. This build solves it with architecture — a 73" tall, 48" wide, 23-3/4" deep three-story house where an American Girl doll stands in her own kitchen. It's two sheets of 3/4" plywood (or MDF, which paints beautifully but weighs more), a 1/4" back, and a 1x4 roof.
The 45° roof layout is solved with plain geometry, and the plan hands it to you: find the top center of each tall panel (11-7/8" from the sides), measure down 11-7/8", connect the points — that diagonal IS the 45° roofline. Windows and doors get marked and jigsawed at the same flat-on-sawhorses stage, which is the only time cutting them is easy.
Two practical notes from the source build: have the store rip the sheets to 23-3/4" if you can't haul plywood (the crosscuts at home are then manageable), and put the thing on CASTERS — a six-foot dollhouse gets moved constantly, and wheels are the difference between furniture and installation art. Window trim is fitted piece by piece and glued; shutters are a 1x2 flourish for whenever the mood strikes.
| Item | Qty |
|---|---|
| Plywood or MDF, 3/4", 4x8 sheetMDF paints smoother; plywood is lighter and holds screws better. | 2 each |
| Plywood or MDF, 1/4", 4x8 sheetThe back. | 1 each |
| 1x4, 12 ftRoof and base trim — one more if trimming the base in wood instead of adding casters. | 6 each |
| 1x2, 8 ftWindow trim and optional shutters. | 4 each |
| Pocket hole screws, 1-1/4" | 60 each |
| Finish nails or staples, 1-1/4" | 100 each |
| Wood glue | 8 oz |
| Caster wheelsThe source's choice over a trimmed base — a 6-foot dollhouse moves a lot. | 4 each |
| Primer and paint | 2 quart |
Overall cost: $$$. Lumber prices vary by region, species, and season, so we give a band rather than a figure we would only be pretending to know.
| Part | Qty | T × W × L |
|---|---|---|
| Sides and center divider3/4" plywood/MDFTops cut to the 45° roof angle — layout method in step 1. | 3 | 3/4" × 23 3/4" × 73" |
| Bottom3/4" plywood/MDF | 1 | 3/4" × 23 3/4" × 48" |
| Upper floors3/4" plywood/MDF | 4 | 3/4" × 22 7/8" × 23 3/4" |
| Roof panels1x4Or one 3/4" plywood panel at 49-1/2" x 17-1/2", measured and cut to fit. | 5 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 49 1/2" |
| Roof front board1x4 | 1 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 49 1/2" |
| Roof front returns1x4 | 2 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 14 3/4" |
| Back1/4" plywood | 1 | 1/4" × 48" × 61 1/2" |
Buy 13 boards at 8 ft.
4 boards
2 boards
6 boards
1 board
Assumes 8 ft stock, a 1/8" saw kerf, and buying each part at its own width. Change the board size or kerf on the full board plan →
Break down the sheets (or have the store rip them to 23-3/4" widths and just crosscut at home). Longest pieces first.
The 45° roof peak, no protractor: find the top center of each tall panel — 11-7/8" from either side — measure DOWN 11-7/8" on the sides, and connect the marks. That diagonal is your 45°.
Mark every window and door now and cut them with the jigsaw while the panels lie flat. A window cut into an assembled dollhouse is a punishment; the same window cut on sawhorses is a pleasure.
Attach the two sides and center divider to the bottom panel — 3/4"-setting pocket holes with 1-1/4" screws, holes facing down and inward where dolls won't testify to them.
Add the four upper floor panels with pocket holes drilled on their UNDERSIDES — invisible from every doll's-eye view. Floor heights set the room ceilings; an 18" doll wants about 22" of clearance to stand with hair intact.
The source made the top floor one big room, which leaves no center bearing under the ridge — so a plywood roof panel works for the big slope: glue and nail it with the top edge flush at the peak. (Going all-1x4 works too if you kept the upper divider.)
Pocket-hole the 1x4s into a single roof panel flat on the bench, then set and fasten the whole panel to the front slope. Building it as a unit first is why its board gaps stay even.
Glue and nail the 1/4" back into every wall and floor edge it crosses. Beyond keeping dolls from falling out the back, the panel is the shear web that stops a six-foot case from racking when it's rolled.
Screw the four casters to the bottom corners — the source's pick, and the right one for a piece that weighs as much as a dresser and lives in a kid's room. Prefer the furniture look? Trim the base in 1x4 instead.
Measure each window opening and build its 1x2 trim to fit snugly, gluing the pieces in place. Fitted one-by-one because jigsawed openings vary — the trim is what makes each one look intentional.
Prime and paint — this is the step where it becomes THE dollhouse, so let the resident designer pick colors. 1x2 shutters flanking the windows are the plan's someday-flourish; glue them on whenever the renovation budget allows.
Sand every opening edge a hand will reach through before handover. Then stand back: you built a house.
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