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Home » Tips and Tricks

Should I Glue Down Dollhouse Accessories?

Published: Jan 21, 2021 · Modified: Aug 1, 2021 by Laura

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You spend a lot of time (and money!) setting up your miniature scene. Which begs the next question, “Should I glue down my dollhouse accessories?”

A black and metal miniature cupboard open with mini stemware and bottles inside

As you start having fun filling up your dollhouse cupboards and cabinets with all the fun miniature accessories and chachkies, you’ll start noticing how easy it is to knock things down! When my baby nephews come over, they love playing with all the mini foods and the dollhouse always looks like a hurricane blew through it.

Which begs the question, should I be glueing these mini accessories down or not?

There is no right or wrong answer to this question. Like with many questions, the answer is, well, it depends!

Permanent solutions

Assortment of glues used in building miniatures and dollhouse accessories

This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience (which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission but it won’t cost you a penny more)!  Read my full disclosure policy.

If you are creating a diorama or scene that you do not want to change, ever, then gluing your minis in place is a terrific idea. This could be small scenes like food on a charcuterie board or everything on a bookcase. You are preserving a moment in life.

For whatever reason you want to permanently secure your miniatures, you will need to use the right glue. Heavier objects need a stronger adhesive. I use wood glue when I am gluing wood together.

For simpler smaller objects, I have found that white glue or super glue works really well, depending on how quickly I need the glue to dry. Also, I read that super glue dries ‘hot’ and can melt some paints.

Mini wood board with mini bread loaf, knife and slices of white bread

Experiment and see what works best for the item you are trying to glue down. For the most part, Aleene’s tacky glue works great for most solutions. One glue not pictured that I do use a lot, is fabric glue. I use this when I’m too lazy to sew!

The main thing to remember when working with glue is to be patient. You have to wait for the glue to dry. One glue you don’t see here is hot glue. I use my glue gun sparingly. It makes a mess and it is hard to be precise with it. Also, its hold is not very strong, especially when building furniture.

If you are gluing something complicated, like furniture, try using a gluing jig. This helps holds sides up when you need an extra hand or two or three! Also, it holds your object while it dries, freeing you up to move on to other mini making.

Miniature basket with baby things inside of it and miniature playpen with mini baby

Temporary solutions

Assortment of temporary adhesives used in building miniatures and dollhouse accessories

Most of the time, I want to be able to change things up in the dollhouse for the seasons or just for fun. Plus, it is taking me FOREVER to get things done. I can’t really make up my mind on what to keep permanent in the dollhouse.

I recently bought a variety of mini stemware, wine and liqueur bottles that I wanted to store in this miniature pie safe that I found in Hobby Lobby. I wanted to make it a bar. Every time I placed a plastic wine glass or bottle on that shelf, something else would fall right back down.

Closeup of inside a miniature cupboard open with mini stemware and bottles inside

After 5 minutes of this, I knew I needed a better solution. I knew I didn’t want to permanently glue anything, so I used these clear double-sided adhesive gels to keep things in place. I cut some in half to make them fit into the shelf and they work great!

Besides these kinds of gels you can use adhesive putty or double sided tape to keep your minis in place. There is also double sided foam tape. Some of these options last longer than others and are stronger than others. The gels and putty do not usually ruin the surface they are stuck on. Double sided tape can tear off paint when removed.

I also use these temporary adhesives to hang any wall art that I like to switch out for the seasons or when I just can’t make up my mind on what I want.

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  1. Caroline says

    June 04, 2024 at 11:13 am

    This was incredibly helpful. Many posts on glue just list types of glue, or specific surfaces, but I had to search a bit to find one specifically about gluing down accessories. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Laura says

      June 06, 2024 at 8:53 pm

      Hi Caroline-

      Glad I could help! It really is a personal preference. I’m a big fan of museum wax!

      Laura

      Reply
  2. Lida says

    October 27, 2022 at 1:27 pm

    We recently were given an incredible dollhouse by the husband of a master dollhouse craft woman who died. It is to be sold for our church, as she wished. Can you give us any advice as to how best to sell this? It has many hand crafted pieces of furniture and a zillion wee little accessories, mostly hand made. It is truly a treasure.

    We live in Bethel, Maine. Any advice you can give us will be appreciated.

    Reply
    • Laura says

      October 27, 2022 at 2:03 pm

      Hi Lida,
      This is a tough one. Selling a fully furnished dollhouse may not get the price it is actually worth because who can truly afford that. You can sell the pieces individually or in rooms. Many people sell their miniatures on Etsy. There is also eBay. You can try selling the whole piece on Facebook Marketplace or offer up, but again, you may not get what you are looking for. If it is to benefit the church, do they do fundraisers where this could be featured with other things and sold in a silent bidding auction? Or they could email their parishioners and see if anyone is interested in purchasing it?

      You can also check in with antique and miniature shops in the area, consignment store, that sort of thing. You can also look for miniature enthusiast type groups in Maine and nearby. There are also traveling dollhouse shows that could be coming in town or in a town nearby. If you are on Facebook there are MANY different dollhouse miniature groups and you can sell in some, not in others, but you could also find people who might be interested that live in your area.

      But I do believe you will get the most amount of money by selling the pieces themselves, not necessarily individually but in sets and groups.

      I hope that helps.

      Laura

      Reply
  3. Norman Rosen says

    January 31, 2021 at 4:24 pm

    Micro-Mark sells “Detail Tack,” which dries clear but remains tacky so figures and details can be easily moved and repositioned.

    Reply
    • Laura says

      February 03, 2021 at 5:43 pm

      Thanks for the tip, Dad!

      Reply
Image of Laura Bashar

Hi, I’m Laura! I’m a food blogger and cookbook author that loves miniatures and crafting. I live in San Diego with my three kids and started this blog to share my passion for minis, including tutorials and free printables. More…

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