American Girl Grace's Street Bistro Scene

We've added a new room in our dollhouse with this Parisian street scene for Grace and her friends.  Although, we do not have Grace yet, we are ready for her.  Take a look at how I put it together.

Here is an overview.

I started by covering a box with red poster board and gluing on the images of the windows and the pastry menu boards.  The open/close sign is an image glued onto cardboard.  I added an extra piece to the top and slanted it for the roof.

The chairs I had, but they have been recently located at Hobby Lobby, and I painted them red and added the seat cushions.  The dog is from the My Life As raincoat set and the table base a candle holder and tabletop a round piece of unfinished wood that I painted white.  The pink carafe was a thrifty find that I painted with glass paint, the menus images, and the fruit is polymer clay and some accessories from Our Generation sets.  The menu chalkboard is from Hobby Lobby along with the Eiffel Tower glass vase.  The side wall is scrapbook paper and the flooring is some images that I printed out to resemble a stone grassy walkway.  

The background wall is an image that I cropped into several pieces and printed in large sections and taped to the wall.  The pastry cart is a DIY project also that I have here on this blog.

The red lanterns are from Ikea from their clearance Christmas section.  Love them as they do have battery operated lights.  The flower piece is a nice touch of red and greenery that serves well for the ambiance.

Leilani and Ivy have a peaceful place to grab a bite to eat and catch up on times.  They are waiting patiently for their friend Grace to arrive.  

If you want to see more details, take a look at our video on PlanetAG4U Click on the link to watch.  

American Girl Grace's DIY Pastry Cart

Once American Girl's GOTY Grace was released it was all systems "Go".  I love challenges and love to craft, and absolutely love this doll so I let my mind go on the fast train to accomplishing this task.  I went on a scavenger hunt in my home and basically had the basic supplies except for the wheels and wire to make the scroll work on the cart.  I happened to take my weekly trip to Goodwill and came across this metal tissue holder and knew I had my base for the structure.  So here is what I did.

 Here is the tissue holder and I glued 2 painted dowels to the back.

I cut 2 pieces of foam board and glued them on.

 I found some Cool Whip container tops and glued on the image of the wheel and outlined it with a silver paint pen.  I also used a bottle cap for the front wheel.

 Here you can see that I have attached the side shelf for the bread box also using foam board and covered it with silver tape.

 I purchased floral wire and bent it around a pencil and marker to give it the scroll look and hot glued them in place.  I attached an image of the menu and cart sign to a piece of cardboard and glued them in place.

 I attached a small high shelf on the side where AG has a tall cake box.  This was also foam board and attached with hot glue.

 Here is a close up of the top of the cart so far.

 I happened to have this small clear rectangle cover to a small box that was perfect for the bread box and I glued on a bead.

 Here is my "engineering" to make the wheels a bit more stable.

 Here is a close up with some of the accessories in place.  I used mini gift boxes and glued paper to the outsides.  The assorted pastries I already had from different prior purchases and the bread I made with polymer clay.

Here is the completed cart with all its bells and whistles.  I love the way it came out.  Two days of work but so much worth it as I will not be purchasing the original.  Now, I do have to mention that I made this as a prop for my dollhouse as it is not sturdy enough for child play.  I would make it with wood and maybe doll stroller wheels if it were to be made for play.  

THANKS FOR TAKING A LOOK!