Mini Target & Dutch Bros
My kids have adopted my love for Target and Dutch Brothers. When my oldest (6) mentioned I should have a Target themed birthday party this year for myself and I started planning it, it got me thinking...
I should build them a mini Target in their playroom!
We aren't a Starbucks family, nothing against it, but Dutch Brothers is our favorite. So instead of a Starbucks inside Target, I put a mini Dutch Brothers!
Keep reading to see how I transformed the bottom of the kid's playhouse into (my) a dream shopping showcase.
Starting with the register. There were a lot of pre-built registers online that I saw, but none were exactly what I was looking for. So, I decided I would build one myself. Turns out I definitely did NOT build it by myself. One of my best friends, Savannah came over and in 2.5 hours we knocked it out. From sketch to building process, to paint, to wooden letters (also compliments of Savannah and her husband Devin who have a laser machine and created the logo PERFECTLY) it turned out to be the cash register of my dreams.
Now that the register was built, we needed a place for all the inventory. We had an old bookcase that I thought could do the trick. So I cut the bookcase in half, attached an old/leftover Ikea kids kitchen top to the top of it (this would later become the mini Dutch Bros) and boom, we had our store.
I then painted part of the top of the register black for the belt and cut some scrap wood and painted red for the dividers (this just cracked me up)!
The actual register is from Target and I am obsessed! I listed it below with a picture - it's so cute! It has English and Spanish modes! The only thing in the Target/Dutch Brothers that I kept the batteries in.
For the inventory, I used these clear containers; attached velcro to them and the price tag to the other side. I created the tags through Canva and printed 6 to a page and laminated. My favorite inventory bucket was the Target Run!
You can't have a min target without having your seasonal section! This was one of the few things I actually bought for this project. We had 13in cube storage systems, but that was slightly too big for the space, so I got an 11in cube storage bookcase. This fit the corner perfectly and allowed for our "seasonal" area. This lets me change some of their toys out to keep the space fresh and exciting. For August it's 'Back to School'. I went to Target's website, saved one of their back to school images, applied to to Canvas with a colorful background and printed it. Last year Target had paintable wooden back to school shapes (apple, bus, pencil) and I used one of those for the decor.
Then I put all of their books that were school related on the bottom shelf.
The top of the bookcase we have our Bullseye Dollar Spot. I linked the Bullseye plushie in the picture below as well as here. I used random toys we had around the house to fill in the dollar spot.
Before Target came out with their Halloween costumes specifically for Target, I found these plain red vests and paired them with these adorable magnetic name tags on Etsy. And what Target uniform isn't complete without a walkie talkie? The ones I found were on a lighting deal for half off. I did not put batteries in them (the less noise the better IYKYK), but they still love playing with them! The walkie talkies are also helpful for their "Drive up" orders. I googled the drive up sign, printed it out and laminated it and stuck it on the wall. Then added two parking spots. Conveniently located next to the shopping cart return made out of PVC pipe. I don't have the exact pipes I used but my receipt was $30 including spray paint!
We had one shopping cart from last Christmas in the playroom, but I bought one more for this.
Dutch BRothers
Now for the coffee! As I mentioned in the beginning we are way bigger Dutch Bros fans than any other coffee chain. We don't get it often, but often enough that the kids know my order 😂
Again, it's all about the details; I used the coffee machine the kids use in their play kitchen (I'll still link it here). Every time we went to Dutch Brothers we would get a kids water (comes in a kids cup and is free). I saved the cups so we had 6 to use for the shop. Then I found these awesome light up ice cubes that they could put into the coffee cups for the iced coffees. They automatically light up when in liquid, but otherwise look like ice cubes. The thongs from the play kitchen happened to be orange which is perfect branding for this!
I printed off a menu and laminated it so they can truly take coffee orders. My favorite is when my oldest asks me, "and would you like that as a breve?"
Finally the stickers, if you've ever looked inside a Dutch Bros the inside is covered in stickers and pictures. I wanted to channel that and found a 52 pack of stickers on Amazon!
Since they are not inside Target and it's a completely separate experience, I found a handheld card reader they could use to pay for their coffee.
The icing on the cake was that I told our local Dutch Bros I was building this surprise and if they had any old signs they would otherwise be throwing away that I could use. Not only did she hook me up with 4 8.5x11 signs that fit perfectly in the back of the "shop" but two huge posters! Those are sadly not being showcased at the moment as I try to find the best place for them in the tiny space, but the point is when they heard this idea they were all in with me! I loved the support!!
All in all I spent under $250 on this project by using a lot of what we already had and repurposing items (wood, paint, toys). I had so much fun creating this space and making it feel as authentic as possible. The kids have been loving it and it's been so fun to watch their imaginations grow as they play.
I do not get any commission for any of the links provided. This is a project I did and paid for myself.
