DIY~ Doll Fire Pit & Smore's

Over the weekend our DIY project focused on making a fire pit for the American Girl dolls. My kids have been using a little Barbie doll fire pit that was not nearly big enough to suit an 18 inch doll.

What we did was found some rocks outside. I cut a circle out of some heavy duty cardboard for the base. (I am thinking that one of those round plastic things you buy to put a plant on to catch the water would work great too. Lowe's sells them right by the plants for about $1 each.) We then lined up the rocks the way they would fit well in a circle, then hot glued them together.

Next we put a little electric tea light in the center for the fire. (I bought a 4 pack at the hardware store for $3.50.) We then broke up some twigs for the logs and put them over the tea light. Very simple, and the girls have a doll sized fire pit.

I also decided to break out the polymer clay and make marshmallows on a stick as well as some already assembled smore's.

DIY Doll Food~ Tacos, Hot Dogs, Poptarts, & Crackers

Allison and I decided to break out the clay again and make some more play food for her dolls. This time we focused on lunch and dinner type items. I thought it would be good to do another post since the Sweet Treats Tutorial was a lot of fun to do.

Remember, these don't need to be perfectly formed. Mine certainly aren't, but my kids don't seem to mind, as long as they slightly resemble food. Working with polymer clay can be a little tricky until you get the hang of it.

What you will need:

An assortment of polymer clay packages in different colors

Knife or other small sharp tool

Damp paper towel

To make a hot dog:

Break off a tan colored chunk of clay. Rub it between your palms until it is soft and pliant. Roll it into a ball about an inch in diameter.

Next roll it between your palms or against a flat surface until it is a long hot dog shape about 2 inches in length.

Using your knife or other sharp tool, draw little lines through the sides of the hotdogs to give it the pinched hot dog look.

Break off a darker brown clay chunk. Roll it into another ball about 1/2 inch in diameter to start making the bun. Flatten it into a nice round circle until it is 2 inches all the way around.

Place your already formed hot dog on top of the brown bun. Pull the sides of the bun up around the hot dog and gently press the two pieces together.

Pinch off a tiny bit of red and yellow clay for the ketchup and mustard. Roll each (separately) between your palms until you have a thin strand the same length as your hot dog. Form each color into small squiggle lines and place on top of your hot dog, gently pressing down to form a bond between the clay pieces.

If you notice any finger prints or dings, use a damp paper towel and gently rub them away.

Pop Tart:

Start with a small chunk of gold colored clay. Roll into a 2 inch ball. Press clay into an even flat circle.

Using your knife, cut a square about 2 inches in in length and height.

Depending on the flavor of your pop tart, repeat the above process with another color of clay for the icing, only making this color much thinner.

Cut this new square just a bit smaller than the pop tart crust.

Place thin square over the gold square, gently pressing to make the two clays stick together.

Break off bits of other colors of clay (white, pink, blue, ect) and form little sprinkles for the tops of your pop tart icing. Gently press each sprinkle onto the frosting.

Tacos:

Roll a 2 inch ball of gold clay. Press into a flat, round circle until it is about 2 inches in diameter.

Break off a dark brown chunk of clay for the beef. Roll it into a long rope the length of the taco shell. Place in the center of the shell.

Break off a small bit of red, green, and yellow clay. Roll each color between your palms until you have a long thin strand of each color. Using your knife, cut of small bits of each for the lettuce, tomato, and cheese.

Mix each color together, then sprinkle the mixture over the top of the taco, gently pressing down so the clay sticks together.

Peanut Butter Cracker:

To make the cracker tops, roll out an orange ball of clay about 2 inches in diameter. Flatten clay evenly on a hard flat surface.

Using your knife, cut 2 squares from the formed circle, about an inch in length.

Roll out a small gold ball, about an inch in diameter. Flatten, making the gold clay thinner than your crackers.

Cut a square the same shape as the cracker pieces, then sandwich it between the two orange squares.

Using a toothpick, poke several small holes in the top and bottom of your crackers.

Allison was having fun making her own creations. She made meatballs and onion rings, as well as her own tacos. It so much fun to get the kids involved in making their play things!

Now, place all your food onto a cookie sheet. Bake in a preheated oven at 225 degrees for about 15 minutes. Do not over bake or you will get scorch marks on your food. It can also cause cracks. Remove from oven and let cool. I usually don't let the kids play with them until the next day when I
know they are fully set and hard.

Don't forget to check out the Sweet Treats Tutorial more more DIY doll food ideas!

*Note* Any kitchen items used while making your clay projects should no longer be used in cooking with real human food. The clay leaves a residue on the surface of these items that is not safe for human ingestion.

Sweet Treats- Make Your Own Doll Food!

My daughters received a few American Girl Dolls that their cousins outgrew a few years ago. They were super thrilled and immediately started badgering me for the accessories, mostly play food. We got online to start pricing these things, and I was shocked at how much they were charging for doll food! Thankfully I had just read an article in Family Fun or one of those similar magazines on how to make your own doll food. While I took a ceramics class in high school and played with clay a bit way back then, I am no artist when it comes to creating things out of clay from scratch! However, I did find that once you get the hang of twisting and shaping the clay, it's actually pretty easy! Here is a tutorial on making a few sweet treats of your own. Mine aren't perfect, by my kids don't seem to mind. They actually take all the food we made together and show it off to their friends!


What you will need:

Polymer Clay in assorted colors
A damp paper towel
Wooden Bamboo Skewer

First we went to Michael's Craft store and bought an assortment of 2oz polymer clay packets. They carry serveral different brands from Sculpy to Premo, but I don't think brand matters.

These usually retail for about $2 each, but they are often on sale. I just got these for $1.25 each.

First we will start with a lollypop. Break off a small chunk of the clay in the color of your choosing. Squeeze and roll it between your palms for a few minuites to get it warmed up and ready to be molded. Once it's pliant, roll it between your palms to get a strand about 8 inches long. Repeat this process with a seperate color of your choosing.

Next, wrap the two colors around each other, pinching the ends together once you are done. Roll the strand between your palms or a flat surface until the two pieces have molded together and there are no cracks or spaces between the colors.

Lay the strand on a flat surface and curl it around, pressing the end of the rope together where it meets the curl.

I broke off a small bit of wooden bamboo skewer and inserted it into the base of the lollipop.

If you see any cracks of finger prints, gently rub the damp paper towel over it until it blends to a smooth finish.

Now we will make a doughnut. Break off a small chunck of the clay in donut color of your choosing. Roll the clay into a tight ball, about 1 inch in diameter.

Next, poke a hole through the center of the ball. (I just used the skewer). Insert your finger into the center of the ball, pinching and shaping the ball with your finger and thumb until it is donut shaped. You will have to press down on the top of the ball to flaten it also.

Break off another tiny bit of another color of your choosing for the frosting. Roll it into a small ball, then flatten it with your fingers until it is very thin. Pull the edges out around the flattened bit to make it more like a frosting shape. Lay your frosting over the doughtnut and press gently to have the 2 pieces stick together. Poke a hole through the center of your frosting and press excess frosting to the insides of the doughnut. Repeat with the outer layers. *You can also top with different color sprinkles for a decorated look*

For an ice cream cone, break off some brown clay and shape into a cone base, about 1 1/2 inches in length. If you feel creative, draw some lines through the cone to make it have a waffle cone appearance.

Roll another colored clay ball, about an inch in diameter. Scoop out a small section on the top of the cone for your ice cream ball to sit. Gently press together. Repeat with as many different colored scoops as you like. Top with a small cherry.

To make peanut butter cookies, roll a small tan colored ball of clay about an inch in diameter. Flatten to cookie shape on a flat surface. Using a rounded tool (Again, I just used the leftover skewer) press lines into the top of the cookie.

Finally, we'll make a candy cane. Repeat the first 3 steps as you did with the lollipop, using red and white clay. *The red clay bleeds onto hands very easy, so I would shape the white strand first!* Bend top to shape into a candycane.

Now, place all your candy onto a cookie sheet. Bake in a preheated oven at 225 degrees for about 10 to 15 minutes. Do not over bake or you will get scorch marks on your candy. It can also cause cracks. Remove from oven and let cool. I usually don't let the kids play with them until the next day when I know they are fully set and hardend.

*Note* Any kitchen items used while making your clay projects should no longer be used in cooking with real human food. The clay leaves a residue on the surface of these items.