Lundby: The Swedish Doll House

By Tara Richter…

In a word “WOW!” This doll-house is amazing! If I were a little girl, I would be in make-believe heaven. Then again, you certainly don’t have to be a child to fully enjoy this house of make-believe.

Even my 11-year old “sport-loving” son was enthralled with the house and exclaimed “It’s so fun!”, although his version of play was creating comedic scenes where the dog placed her puppy in the toilet, the snowman took a shower, and sister skied down the roof of the house. Nevertheless, it has completely inspired loads of imaginative play, creativity, and plenty of laughs.

The amount of detail in this play-set blows my mind, right from the tiny toothbrushes in the bathroom, to the decorative pillows for the bed. Nothing is missed. The phrases “Oh neat” and ” Cool” were repeated numerous times as I opened each of the packages to decorate the Småland house. The feature I absolutely love the most, is the fact that certain items in the house can be lit up through a series of plugins including lamps, the kitchen stove, bathroom vanity and even the Christmas tree. It really adds a sense of “life” to the house and makes play so much more exciting.

The possibilities are endless in the manner in which a person can decorate the house, set up furniture, or add their own personal and unique touch to the home. Included with the house was the “Lundby Living” catalogue, which shows the numerous options for decoration, additions to the house, additional families, and furniture sets. I’m already thinking of getting the bottom-floor extension to the house so that brother and sister have a bedroom; I suppose for now they’ll have to sleep on the couch. The Lundby Living website also has some great information on how to decorate your miniature home, print new wallpapers, print your own pictures, create your own items, and even a Lundby Instagram board to share interior design ideas with others.

The Lundby doll-house sets come with a lot of very small pieces that could potentially be choking hazards for young children, therefore parents should use discretion if giving this to a child. There may be plenty of adults who would also greatly appreciate this doll-house as a gift; allowing their inner child to come through in imaginative play & the adult in them to really take on home-décor and design. I can speak from experience – it’s really a lot of fun.

Lundby was first started in 1945 when Axel and Grete Thomsen settled down in a Swedish town called Lundby. Grete started to design doll houses & furniture for her niece and later turned it into a business. Since the early years, Lundby has continued to grow, taking the lead in contemporary houses. Today, the houses are built on the same fundamental belief that the urge to play lies in the details, from fixtures, furniture and interior design. I also appreciated the fact that the plastic used in the houses does not contain environmentally detrimental softeners or other undesirable substances, which allows the lighting component to be incorporated safely.

No matter where you are in the world, you can easily find a retailer to purchase Lundby products near you. The website has a feature on their home page that allows users to type in their location and to find the nearest retailer. In Canada, Lundby is available for purchase through Mastermind Toys (in-store or online). The Småland house retails for $99.95 with all families and accessories sold separately. The various sets range in price from about ten to thirty dollars. While it may seem a bit much to purchase all at once, I believe half the fun is ‘starting’ somewhere and using your imagination in deciding ‘what’s next’. In addition, if a child (or adult for that matter) is going to spend hours of time using their creativity and imagination in the land of make-believe versus staring blankly at the TV or electronics, I figure its money well spent.

Whether you have a little boy or girl, niece or nephew, grand-child or any family member who loves to use their imagination, the Lundby doll-house should definitely be top of mind for a great Christmas gift this year!