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You are here: Home / Archives for dollhouse

Rain, Dollhouse Stuff, and a Pending Faceup

May 23, 2025 at 9:38 am by Claudia

Rain, rain go away. Honestly, it’s so dark and rainy around here that we’re getting depressed! It’s also very cold for this time of year and we’ve had to turn the heat on. Next week will be better. The rain should stop after today and it will warm up starting on Monday. I feel water-logged even though I’m not out in the rain, if you know what I mean.

It’s hard to take any pictures when the house is dark as well. I did my best.

I spent a couple of hours going through the box that holds the unfinished version of the Beacon Hill. I was looking for replacement parts – window trims that are missing, the base for the kitchen window extension and the bay windows, and a few other things. Greenleaf dollhouses have a lot of detail, but they’re made with cheap plywood. The parts are on big sheets of plywood and there’s a schematic diagram that shows where things are. When you find the part, you have to punch it oh-so-carefully out of the plywood sheet or you’ll break it. Supposedly, all the plywood sheets are labeled by number, but my experience tells me that not every sheet is numbered. So I had to spend a lot of time looking at the schematics and then searching for the corresponding plywood sheet.

This is something I’ve had on my mental list of things to do for years. I think I have everything, but we’ll see. I can tell you this, putting this monster together would be a giant pain-in-the-tush and I’m so glad I changed my mind and purchased one that was already assembled.

Inside the modern dollhouse. That chair was made by Arlette of Arlette’s Minitures in England. I have several of her pieces. Alas, she retired last year. This particular Art Deco-ish chair was a gift from a reader of the blog. She purchased it and then realized she wasn’t going to use it and graciously passed it on to me.

The sofa is identical to the gray sofa in Don’s mini music studio. Made by an Australian miniaturist.

I got the coffee table at a miniature show. And the vase, as well.

Don has a gig this evening at one of his favorite venues.

And this will be Jessie’s sister. Eventually. I don’t have a body yet and it’s far too rainy to work on the faceup as I have to spray it several times during that work and let it dry outside. But soon.

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.

 

 

Filed Under: Beacon Hill Dollhouse, bjd dolls, dollhouse, mipad 14 Comments

Flowers, Bugs, and the Modern Dollhouse

May 21, 2025 at 9:01 am by Claudia

Wild phlox is blooming everywhere on the property. I took this while I was mowing yesterday. We mowed the lilac side of the front lawn and the corral. After that, I suggested we mow the back 40 as well because we are due for 3 days of rain starting today. So we did. And now we are very, very tired.

But, we are appreciating the sight of a completely mown property.

Also seen on the climbing hydrangea the other day:

This guy. It’s an eastern tent caterpillar, which will turn into a moth. In the meantime, I’m sure he’s chomping on the hydrangea.

I was missing the original directions, so reassembling the modern dollhouse took a bit more time than I expected. But I did it and I remember just how much I like this dollhouse. It’s name is the Mi Pad by MIAIM miniatures.

It was designed by Elaine Shaw, who lives in London. Initially, she designed it for her daughter. It’s definitely a niche dollhouse and I don’t see it very often. Each floor is a dollhouse in itself  (like a roombox) and it’s made to stack. I purchased two floors, but there were 5 different floor designs available and I’ve seen a few miniaturists who have all five floors. I purchased the top floor first, then I added the lower floor. I love the clean lines; they’re quite a contrast from the rest of my dollhouses. I don’t know if Elaine is selling it anymore, I know she was having some trouble with suppliers at one point.

The ‘glass’ walls/windows are acrylic.

I may keep it this way, only adding a piece or two. I like the spareness of the rooms. Don looked at the photo and said “You should keep it this way.”

It’s sitting on the sewing table, which means that my little cubicle in the office/studio is now completely enclosed. Yikes. Oh, how I wish I had more space! I used to display it in the bedroom, but I sense that Don, though completely supportive, would like one dollhouse-free space.

Okay. Time for more coffee!

Stay safe.

Happy Wednesday.

Filed Under: dollhouse, flowers, mipad 8 Comments

Friday

May 16, 2025 at 9:29 am by Claudia

I had to crop the heck out of this photo so you wouldn’t see too much of the wallpaper coming unglued. If you look to the left of the painting, you’ll see it. After many years, these things happen. I’ll have to take a serious inventory of needed repairs. On the other hand, I’m usually looking at the exterior of this dollhouse and only rarely look at the interior – mostly at Christmas time.

I am going to order more of this miniature Roseville for the Beacon Hill.

I don’t know if you remember but I have two Beacon Hills; the “finished” dollhouse we brought home after making a long trip to Philadelphia suburbs in order to retrieve it, and the unfinished kit which is still in the box. I had planned on building it and then realized that I didn’t want to. I’m going to open the box today so I can see what I might use to fix some parts of the dollhouse.

The box is heavy, big, and awkward. Wish me luck.

It may not rain today. It’s definitely cloudy out there and we have the chance of a thunderstorm both today and tomorrow, but I’m hoping they hold off. Phileas the frog is clearly living in the culvert. Don went down there yesterday and as he drew nearer, he heard him jump into the water. So he sang to him, of course.

I’ll try to get some updated photos of the porch today. The potted plants have really taken off and are growing by leaps and bounds. After mowing a few days ago, Don and I sat on the glider and gazed at the fully leafed out trees and our property and the porch and had a tremendous moment of gratitude. My dream was always to have a little cottage in the country and it seemed that it would be an impossible dream for most of my life. But it came true.

We’re so grateful.

Ruby on the porch.

Okay. Must make our second cup of coffee!

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.

Filed Under: dollhouse, miniatures 8 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

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