KidsCraft Creation Cottage Review

For a cardboard playhouse, the Creation Cottage from KidsCraft is surprisingly durable. While the cost (about $60) seems steep for a fancy box to play in, the sturdy cardboard will actually hold up for several months. The white exterior gives plenty of coloring space so little artists can decorate their new play space, and the pre-cut door, windows, and mail slot make the playhouse very realistic.

I have to admit, although I thought the KidsCraft Creation Cottage was really cute, my expectations for the product were pretty low when it arrived. It is a playhouse made of cardboard, after all, and I have nine nieces and nephews, plus one daughter, and all of them were ready to play in this thing once it was set up. How on Earth can cardboard stand up to the onslaught of my small family members?

I started out with the idea that I'd just set the Creation Cottage up and let the kids play with it until it fell apart, then write up my review. Three months later, the playhouse was showing no signs of falling apart any time soon, and I finally had to take it down to reclaim some living room space. It was colored on, camped in and moved often. My youngest nephew refused to use the door and instead flung himself repeatedly through the windows. Cats were passed through the windows and the chimney. My nieces turned the playhouse into a tropical beach hut, complete with fruit stolen from my kitchen. The Creation Cottage saw almost non-stop play during the months it was set up in my house. For a house made of cardboard, it performed far better than I ever would have imagined.

The Creation Cottage costs about $60, which is a lot, considering the materials. However, it should last for quite a while for that cost, and I think it will in most homes. It is probably not a good choice for outdoor use or in some basements, though, since any moisture at all would probably hasten its demise.

The other drawback to the Creation Cottage is its size. While the kids loved that several of them could hide inside, I was not so fond of giving up that much of my living room. Before you order it, figure out where you're going to put a 3.5'x3.5' square with room on the sides for using the windows and door. It took up more space than I thought it would.

Overall, I think the Creation Cottage is a good value for the price, given its size and longevity. It was easy to set up, and didn't tear easily during play. In fact, when it was stuffed full of kids, or when my daughter tried to skip cleaning her room by piling everything in the playhouse, the tabs on the sides just released instead of tearing. When we took the playhouse down, it was easy to stack the pieces together flat for storage. It's in good enough shape that we could definitely set it up again for more playtime.

Disclosure: Review samples were provided by the manufacturer. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.