What Kind Of Research Should You Do When Purchasing A Dollhouse?

Whilst the dollhouse is one of the most traditional toys around

, it has never diminished in its popularity. Of course, since its earliest days however the dollhouse has changed very much! Historical dollhouses may certainly have had many more floors than today's models but unlike today, these houses were intended to fit fairly small dolls. Today people generally require a dollhouse that will fit Barbies or other tall brands of dolls and the consequence is that the scale of dollhouses has grown very much. Most dollhouses are made to accommodate dolls of 12 inches tall and this has lead to a big increase in the scale of dollhouses since around the end of the 1970's (if you are interested in how the dollhouse has developed in history by the way, you can read some fascinating information here on Wikipedia )

There are 2 leading makers of large dollhouses that fit the those tall Barbie sized dolls and these are 'Kidkraft' and Barbie themselves (or rather Mattel, who manufacture Barbie dolls) . If you are intending to purchase a dollhouse for your children then you'll probably want to be picking between these two companies. In fact of course there are many different models made by each of these companies, and too many to critique individually. How therefore can you make your decision when buying a dollhouse? Which factors should you consider and how important are each?

Well one thing to look at is is the various dollhouses' degrees of' interactivity' - do they have moving parts, electronics and so on? KidKraft houses' main interactive feature is their working elevator, so they are maybe a little limited in this respect compared to Barbie dollhouses which tend to have many more of those 'working' parts. For example Barbie's main showcase dollhouse, the 'Townhouse' features 'tiki' lights above the outdoor whirlpool, and a lit refrigerator. Then there are its sound effects - doorbell noise, shower humming noise, and flushing toilet sounds. If you want a lot of interactivity then Barbie win over KidKraft fairly easily. However of course all of these interactive features are powered by batteries, which can become an expensive hassle and you may prefer a simpler dollhouse that will require no further input once you have assembled it.

Perhaps the primary visible difference you will observe between the two dollhouse makers is in their appearance. Barbie dollhouses seem designed to completely pander to virtually all little girls' love of the colour pink and are extremely 'girly' in their style. In nearly all Barbie dollhouses, every part seems to be made in pink and purple so this is probably the brand to buy if your child wants a girly pink dollhouse above all. For adult tastes however (and after all, this dollhouse will have to live in your house!) the more traditional style of the KidKraft dollhouses may be more pleasing. Certainly these more familiar dollhouses from our own childhoods' are not as glamourous as Barbie's but their colors whilst still pretty but they tend to be more naturalistic and less 'fantastical' .

How do Barbie and Kidkraft's dollhouse sizes compare with one another? Well Barbie dollhouses are generally a little shorter than their rivals. Assuming you'd prefer your children to play together or with their friends without any fighting, size may be a critical factor! Having a bigger dollhouse with good access will certainly help there. On the other hand if size is a problem for you and you don't want a large dollhouse that takes up the entire room, Barbie may offer a better choice of models of only one or two floors which may be easier to accommodate. Remember that most Kidkraft houses are almost four feet tall and will also therefore be difficult to move around, should you need to.

Last of all how do they compare for quality and value for money? If you have less money to expend on a dollhouse, Barbie do some smaller and cheaper options. There are not as many 'budget' options in the Kidkfraft range. Overall however when making a straight comparison of value for the price, KidKraft win without difficultly for the sheer quality of their materials . Whilst Barbie houses are made from thin plastic, KidKraft's houses have a wooden frame which will probably stand up to daily play for a lot longer. That's the end of our introduction to selecting a dollhouse - good luck with your research and hope you find the right dollhouse for you and your family and don't forget to read plenty of customer reviews before making your purchase.

by: Mary Brand

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