Customer Reviews

Plan Toy Victorian Doll House

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

We looked at every dollhouse -- on-line and up close. Our criteria was:
1. Made of wood
2. Durable
3. Large enough for (2) children to simultaneously play
4. Not made in China

This beautiful Victorian dollhouse fit the bill - the pictures, while nice, don't do this product justice. Imposing and elegant, easy to construct, and durable. So far it's been a catalyst for hours of rich, imaginative play.

If you're not familiar with Plan Toys, there are other incentives for buying this product. They are a designated Green company. The wood comes from recycled rubber trees, non-toxic glues are employed and, while not applicable here, organic vegetable dyes are used instead of paint. The company is located in Thailand, where the toys are also manufactured.

I gave it (5) stars but there were (2) imperfections, one the fault of shipping, the other by design:
1. A shard of gable trim was broken upon opening the box. It arrived a day before the birthday so I repaired with a quality wood glue. Since the shard fit perfectly and didn't splinter, it was a perfect fit and undetectable.
2. As another reviewer mentioned, the stairs are not stable -- if the house is moved or jostled they fall down. Again, I used wood glue and it can now survive a rough night at sea.

However, given the ease of remedying the staircase issue, I would hardly label this a show stopper.

I love Plan Toys for the fact they are completely non-toxic and from replenishable rubberwood.
The dollhouse in large enough for little hands to get in their are really play.
My only complaint are the staircases...they fall out quite easily.

I was shocked to discover the Plan Toys Victorian Dollhouse I ordered for my 3 year old contains panels of MDF. I worried it contained off-gassing formaldehyde so I opted to return the item. The seller is awesome and made the whole experience completely painless. My fears were eased when I received a detailed explanation from Plan Toys explaining the whole MDF thing. I include it here since I could not find the same info on their website:

"Thank you for your email.

[I am] Marketing Communications Manager for PlanToys.

I like to inform you that the glue that we use for the MDF is special glue. We called it "E-Zero" glue. It is non-toxic. Together with a leading university in Thailand, we have developed this e-zero glue that contains less then 0.05ppm (part per million) of formaldehyde emission. It contains so little that it doesn't show up in the standard detecting equipment for the formaldehyde. E-zero glue does not harm consumers' health and thus it is highly appropriate for toy manufacturing. We also have a certificate by an international certified body to confirm this too.

The standard glue that uses in the toys and furniture industry is E1. For PlanToys this is not enough. Everything we do must exceed all standards. All of our toys are tested above the international toys safety standard by both in-house laboratory and international testing laboratory. Safety of the children is our top priority.

You can be assured that all PlanToys are safe and environmental-friendly.

I hope that I answered your question. If you need any more clarification, please do not hesitate to contact me.


Regards"

I purchased this dollhouse because I wanted something that my two girls aged 3 and 4 can play with together. I wanted it to look traditional, and girly. I painted and wallpapered the house to customize it. I also purchaed all the colorful furniture from le toy van, as i do not like the unfinished and modern wood furniture that plan toys offers. I also made sure to get the base for the dollhouse to get the extra rooms and height. It is extremely durable. My girls love it!!! I added photos to the product images above so you can see how it turned out.

I really wanted a large, gender neutral doll house for my 3 year old boy/girl twins and found this one really fit the bill. It opens completly so they can both get in and play, it is totally neutral (no pink, purple or any color at all) and it is just so cute! The Plan furniture is super cute and durable and again, very gender neutral and we have had such fun putting this together. It is on the expensive side especially once you get all the furniture and dolls, we're talking a few hundred dollars but it seems very durable and is sure to last a very long time. I can see how you might want to take some wood glue and glue the stairs in place but aside from that it's awesome. Husband said the assembly instructions were pretty vague but he was able to get it put together ok in the end. I love that you can close up the house when you are done playing since I often babysit younger children and I wouldn't want them getting into the tiny pieces so this is another plus. My older son even said he could see painting it to look like the house in the Madeline books which I thought was very funny. I really debated between the Plan house and the Calico Critters set but didn't like the plastic and the tiny clothes that came in the set, also I thought the Plan might be more durable in the long run and more realistic.

I love the look of this dollhouse, like the natural wood and little touches like working windows... but the assembly instructions are a real problem. There are a number of parts that need to be put together with a specific orientation, but the instructions don't tell you that anywhere. I had to take the entire thing apart because a hinged wall segment wasn't closing properly, and even after that it didn't fit perfectly. Some of the components felt slightly warped, and there was a small split that needed glueing. The staircase also has a tendency to collapse, but the parts can be held in place with a bit of putty.

Overall, I'm still glad we bought it, but we'll have to see how it holds up over time.

I bought this used and my kids love it! My son might even be more interested in it than my daughter. High quality product, so glad we have it for them for years of play.

This doll house is lovely. My granddaughter likes using it. My big disappointment is that I can't find the Extra Floor available anywhere, which I was planning to get. It adds a lot of extra play potential to the doll house from what can be seen in the pictures. I hope it won't be discontinued, because investing quite a sum for the doll house, people and furniture, it would seem the company wouldn't discontinue a valuable accessory.