Before, I wrote a blog post on comparing the DIY dollhouse kits from Robotime versus Hongda, but today we are going to have a Cutebee dollhouse review versus Robotime/Rolife!
I had a lot of fun with this dollhouse kit, with the consequence that I also made a lot of pictures and (short) videos, so I had some work assembling/adjusting the size and uploading everything, but the result is totally worth it, I hope 😉
Let’s go!
updated 03/01/24
But first, what is this dollhouse kit brand called Cutebee and is it legit?
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I have already written a little bit about the house kits from Cutebee, but this was the first one that I assembled myself.
I have done a lot of other brands before, so this was a good opportunity to compare the 2 brands against each other.
So basically, Cutebee is one of the many brands for dollhouse kits, but one thing is certain, this brand is amongst the biggest ones.
What I mean is, that they have a LOT of different kits, which is amazing of course 🙂
During this review, it will become more clear to you what this brand is all about.
Product Information And a few details
Let’s summarize some details on this particular product:
- Brand: Cutebee aka Cutelife.
Sometimes you could see other “brands” on Amazon, but they actually are the same as Cutebee and they are just retailers.
Most of the time, I recognize the brand though and you will too after a while 😉 - Name: ” The Chocolatier”, aka “Coco’s Wonderfull ideas”
- Where to find this product: On Amazon or AliExpress
- Warranty: the warranty is not available on this product, but on AliExpress, this product does have a 90 days buyer protection.
- Scale: on AliExpress it says that this is on a scale of 1:32
Size: 20(L) x16(W)x16(H) cm
Weight: 0.75kg - Includes:
– the complete kit, including all the furniture pieces and accessories
– LED lights
– mine also included: paper scissors, a little utility knife, tweezers, a plastic little ruler, and even a little screwdriver
– a Chinese manual - Does not include:
– glue, I used grab-fast tacky glue and some super glue. Check out here which other materials you could use for these kinds of kits.
– a music box is optional
– Dust cover not included
- Materials: wood, paper, cloth, a little bit of plastic
- Suitable for dolls?
Not suitable for Barbie dolls or Blythe dolls. Can be suitable for Polly Pocket dolls and Sylvanian dolls.
But remember that these kits are not suitable to play with! - Average time to build: My estimate is about 30 hours, but I changed a few things.
- Extra materials that are needed:
– Tacky glue and for some parts superglue
– I would recommend a ‘fingertip crafting knife‘ from Fiskars, I’m so happy to have bought it, it’s much handier than your usual crafting knife!
– Have spare electric wires (1mm) and heat shrinkable tubes available, because trust me: you will break a lot of them, especially in the beginning.
There’s also the final video walkthrough and final result:
A Cutebee Dollhouse Review: My Journey and a little bit of hacking.
Well, this journey was quite enjoyable, with just a few issues, but not so much as usual with these miniature kits haha!
Let’s start at the beginning!
- You need to measure the sizes of the pieces that you will assemble, to match the sizes on paper, and to find out which pieces you need for your miniature furniture.
This is different from the Robotime kits, as for that brand, the pieces match exactly.
So, a manual is included, but it is in Chinese.
Now, that wasn’t really a problem, as the pictures were pretty obvious to work out.
As you can see, the paper from the manual itself, was even good enough to also cut out for more accessories, although they were a little smaller than the actual miniatures haha!
As you can see here, I took the time to paint all the pink pieces too violet/purple.
One of the first thing I’ve done is to attach the lights, but I made a mistake there because I had to attach the lampshades first!
So beware to do that first and don’t make my mistake, because that will double your job haha!
Let’s assemble!
Assembling the miniature chairs:
Assembling something from wires is always something that I honestly dislike, and these chairs were no exception haha!
I don’t know if you can tell, but I had to use some support while these were glued together tight.
As I used grab-fast tacky glue for these, I need to assemble these step by step, as this glue grabs fast, but really tight takes at least half an hour.
If you want it faster, then it’s better to use superglue, make sure to use tweezers then.
As you can see in this picture, I had some issues with warped pieces.
To have them glued well together on all sides, you can use little clamps to clamp these together tight:
As you can see in the pictures below, I added my own pieces of wallpaper, with some pink flowers on it 😉
Instead of the heart accessory of the first picture on the left, I got my own little silver cup on the right.
Starting to place things inside and arrange the electricity.
Be sure to attach the lights to the rooftop before you finish the kit.
So at this point, I was almost done, and then this happened: the battery box for the lights just broke off like that! GRRRRR
So I’m not sure at the moment what to do next, as this can’t be repaired just like that and I need a new box, as I would assume.
So in the end, I just decided to leave it like that, for now, without lights, and maybe purchase batterie lights on a scale of 1:24 later, we will see.
That last bit surely made my review go down with one star though!
A few detailed pictures of the result:
A Cutebee dollhouse review: pros and cons.
Overall Rank.
The Good.
- although the manual is in Chinese, it is quite easy to follow according to the pictures
- Lots of the pieces of the same object are actually in the same bag for the furniture.
- A very cute design, the color pink actually suits together nicely with the rest, and I’m actually sorry that I changed it to violet haha
- very affordable kit
The Bad.
- Doesn’t include a dust cover
- This scale is very small for me, and sometimes a bit “all over the place”. I prefer a little bit bigger, but that’s personal 😉
- The manual is in Chinese
- Many warped pieces, nothing that you can’t clamp together, but still annoying
- the wires from the light switch are very fragile, I broke them!
Cutebee versus Robotime/Rolife
Let’s compare Robotime/Rolife to Cutebee/Cutelife.
Characteristic | Robotime versus | Cutebee |
– Scale | Larger then Cutebee | Smaller then Robotime |
– Quality | better quality | quality is not as good as Robotime, lots of warped pieces and very fragile wires |
– Painting | More to Paint | Already Painted |
– Stackable? | Yes | No |
– Materials Included? | Sometimes: paint(brush), batteries, tweezer | No materials included, except a few basics |
– Musicbox? | No | Yes, but it is an addition, and it wasn’t included in my kit |
– Paper projects | Many paper objects | As many paper objects |
–How Many Rooms? | One room only | Has kits with multiple rooms |
– Dust covers? | Not included | Can be included, check with seller though |
– Price? | More expensive | less expensive than Robotime |
Furthermore:
The pieces from Cutebee do not match the figures on the sheet, unlike the kits from Robotime, so you need to measure each piece to look for the right piece to assemble. I have to say that this was easier for the Robotime DIY kits.
Related article: I have created another Cutebee kit, and this time it was one of their book nooks!
My Final Conclusion
Overall, I really loved this kit enormously, as I love the design.
What made me need to give it 3,5 stars only though, was the bad quality of the miniature lights, what a bummer 🙁
I hope that you enjoyed this Cutebee dollhouse review and if you have any more questions, please feel free to ask them in the comment section below or join me on my social media pages or Facebook group.
I wish you happy crafting!
Kind regards,
Lizzy
Related article: The 10 best DIY Miniature Store kits.
Hi everyone!
My name is Lizzy, and I am an amateur miniaturist obsessed with everything in the dollhouse and miniature world, ever since I was a teenager.
So far, I have created 2 dollhouse projects, a backyard shed and a miniature treehouse, tons of DIY dollhouse kits, and “hacked” some.
I also created a fairy garden, and lots of small and simple miniature projects on my YouTube channel. (mostly made from trash or everyday items).
I love to write as well about all things happening in the miniature world, hence the reason why I created this blog!
I wish you happy reading and crafting!
Lizzy
Lizzie,
Your attention to detail is very apparent. Even though the instructions were in Chinese, you were able to cut out and assemble your dollhouse with precision. The extra touches you added give your dollhouse a more finished and professional look than most I have seen.
Some of the tips you give will surely save time and effort while making sure to end up with a professional-looking house that has a character of its own.
Jerry
Hi Jerry!
Thank you for the compliments and yes, I try to always add in my own touch, sometimes I make something completely different than the original kit, like Simons Coffee, have you seen that post?
I wish you happy crafting!
Kind regards,
Lizzy