Man pressured by family to gift dollhouse shelf he handcrafted for his wife to his niece instead, offer to show the girl how to make one rejected by entitled brother: "You're a bad uncle"

Author image for Ely Bulnes
Ely Bulnes • Writer and Editor
Jan 26, 2025 9:00 PM EST

When I was a small child, I imagined myself as an adult doing all of the things that I was not allowed to do as a child. I could have ice cream for breakfast, see my friends whenever I wanted to, and play video games until well past midnight. Well, as a fully-formed adult, I can admit that I do occasionally partake in the aforementioned indulgences. An affogato is a lovely morning treat, I do try to see my friends as often as our schedules will allow, and I have recently acquired a Nintendo Switch and installed Animal Crossing, which sometimes does keep me up a bit later than it should. Indeed, part of being an adult is the freedom to choose how to spend your well-earned time and money; sometimes it is worth it to spend both in such a way that satisfies your inner child.

In our story today, a man uses his carpentry skills to make a dollhouse for his wife. The dollhouse is not meant to be played with so much as it is intended to be a themed shelf, but the project catches the eye of his entitled brother and niece. Get all the details down below. 

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  • 01

    AITA for not giving the "dollhouse" I built to my niece, but to my wife as a gift? Image Labels

    "Isn't it a little weird to make a dollhouse for an adult woman?"
    via simonbradfield

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02
    (It's NOT a dollhouse, but I didn't want anyone to think I was being misleading on purpose by saying I built a house)
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 03
    I (28M) made my wife (28f) a replica of a house that's known to fans of a musician, but wouldn't mean much to others. It's about 2 feet tall and wasn't very complicated to build, but my wife had said a few times over last year that she thought it would be cool to have for little trinkets. She's like a
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 04
    crow with her trinkets, I love it. She didn't know I was making it for her, but I did sneakily involve her in its creation through having her make a couple Tiktoks when we were out together so I could get the colors right. She has no idea, lol.
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 05
    I was excited, so I showed a picture to my brother. He told me it was cool, but didn't get the purpose. He showed it to my niece Ava (13f) who knew what it was and said she wanted one too. My brother asked if I would give it to Ava for her birthday.
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 06
    I said no, it's for my wife, but I could make one with Ava. It would help teach her some basic woodworking skills which they don't do in schools here anymore. I'd like that. Brother said if it was so easy then I could make a second one for my wife and just give this one to Ava since her bday is the end of the month.
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 07
    Cheezburger Image 10458465024
    via Lokibaho

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 08
    Again I said no, this was done specifically for my wife. He seemed to accept that but then came back to me and said "Isn't it a little weird to make a dollhouse for an adult woman?" I told him it's not a dollhouse, just a fancy shelf. He argued that makes it worse, because Ava would actually "play" with it.
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy

  • The fact that he was willing to teach his niece how to make one shows how much of a good uncle he actually is. 

  • 09
    He must have gone to complain to mom about it (he is the younger brother) because mom called me to tell me that it was "stupid" to give my wife a dollhouse. I tried to explain that it's not a dollhouse but she just kept saying "that's stupid."
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 10
    This weekend I was at their house and Ava kept bringing up the house and laying it on thick with statements like "I've alway wanted one just like it." She kept asking why my wife wanted a dollhouse. I said it's not a dollhouse, but she kept asking why she needed a dollhouse.
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 11
    I told my brother that he was encouraging his kid to be manipulative and I really didn't like it, so I was going to leave. He told me that I was dangling the house over her head like McDonald's and teasing her and that it made me a bad uncle.
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy

  • Why do they think that teasing his wife about her interests will endear him to giving the house as a gift? They're being so mean and deserve nothing!

  • 12
    Being a good uncle is important to me and I do feel for the girl because she's a big fan too. I admit I have a blind spot for this because I don't have kids and maybe I shouldn't have shared the picture with my brother to begin with. Am I really the ah le for not just giving it to her? Yes, it WAS easy to make and I COULD make another quickly.
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 13
    Cheezburger Image 10458465280
    via PeopleImages

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 14
    Sorry guys Ava isn't my brother's biological daughter, there's a long story involved that I didn't want to add but I should've realized the age would be surprising. I still see her as my niece regardless but I get why that would be alarming. Nothing bad happened or anything.
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 15
    amoamareamaviamatus I'm guessing the "dollhouse" is a replica of the Lover House? If it's anything like I'm imagining or what I've seen online, it is more like a fancy storage display for her Taylor Swift memorabilia rather than a toy anyway. NTA in either case, OP. It's your creation that you get to gift to whoever you want.
    via u/amoamareamaviamatus
  • 16
    JustSome UncleGuy OP Yeah it's the Lover house! Lol I didn't know if I said that directly if it was going to affect what people said because of how weird people are about her
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 17
    prettyminotaur I think it's an awesome present for your wife, and your brother is being an entitled j who's raising his daughter to also be an entitled j NTA!
    via u/prettyminotaur
  • 18
    Fionaelaine4 I'd make sure that they can't do anything to the item you made your wife in the meantime OP. "Accidents" happen
    via u/Fionaelaine4
  • 19
    Lissa Bryan Yeah, I can picture Ava taking it down off the wall and breaking it and brother saying, "Well, I told you she would want to play with it. Why are you so mad? It's a toy and it should have belonged to a kid anyway."
    via u/LissaBryan
  • 20
    Obiterdicta Also, as much as it's great to see kids not growing up too quickly, how many 13 year olds are really going to play with a dollhouse?
    via u/0biterdicta
  • 21
    MillieBirdie That's what I was thinking this whole time, everyone's giving him a hard time for giving his wife a 'dollhouse' that she won't play with, but a 13 year old is extremely unlikely to be playing with a dollhouse also.
    via u/MillieBirdie
  • 22
    scorpionmittens Yeah, a 13 year old is absolutely not going to "play" with a dollhouse, they're way too self- conscious at that age. Most kids stop playing with dolls at or before 10. She'd also use it to store trinkets
    via u/scorpionmittens
  • 23
    blueyejan I wouldn't be surprised if your brother told Ava "of course you can have it"
    via u/blueyejan
  • 24
    JustSome UncleGuy OP I'm a little worried that he did that and told her that
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 25
    blueyejan This whole thing of crying to Mommy and her getting involved is really strange to me. It's really not her concern. I can't imagine getting in the middle of my sons disagreements. Did she baby younger bwother?
    via u/blueyejan
  • 26
    JustSome UncleGuy OP Oh yeah he's the baby of the family and always will be, he's mom's favorite because he was planned lol
    via u/JustSomeUncleGuy
  • 27
    lihzee NTA. Your brother is being weirdly entitled and he's encouraged Ava to act like a nuisance about it too. Your solution to make one with your niece sounded like a really nice idea.
    via u/lihzee
  • 28
    At this rate, I wouldn't be willing to help her make one or make one for her at all. This is ridiculous behavior from your brother, and now his daughter is being influenced. Unacceptable. Do not cave in on this.
    via u/lihzee
  • 29
    GOTfangirl In a year, she will only look at her iPhone and the house will be under a pile of dirty clothes.
    via u/GOTfangirl
  • 30
    Big Flamingo4061 NTA, especially since you offered to gift her the experience of making one with you and decorating it herself. Your wife is allowed to have nice things, even if kids around you want the same thing. Full stop. They are definitely TAH, especially your brother who is clearly sharing his AH tendencies with his daughter.
    via u/Big_Flamingo4061

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Reddit wholesome taylor swift family drama entitled parents siblings wife niece reddit story relationships husband swifties couples uncle love entitled reddit thread red flag
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