dollhouse — Page 14

Some Details and a Valentine

February 14, 2022 at 10:23 am by Claudia

Happy Valentines Day.

It took me a while to realize it was Valentines Day. Once the coffee kicked in, I remembered. I hope you have a lovely day. I think our most important Valentine is ourself. So give yourself a Valentine treat today – a hug, a bubble bath, some chocolate, a nap, some cocoa, or just a little time to yourself – even if it’s five minutes.

The figurine was created by VintageByCrystal on Etsy.

It’s frigid today. We went from about 55 degrees on Saturday to snow on Sunday to wind chills of below zero today. By Wednesday, we’ll be back up in the 40s. It looks like we’ll stay that way until the end of February.

I’m working on a puzzle by the makers of the all the “World of…” puzzles I’ve been doing lately. This one is, surprisingly for me, The World of Dracula. I love it. I’ll share more when I have a bit more of it put together. The illustration is fabulous.

Are you tired of dollhouse photos? I hope not, because here are some more with some details about where I purchased some of these pieces:

I added a book and a cup of tea to the bedside table. The lamp is just a place marker until I find one I like – this one is from the Petite Princess line of minis from my childhood. (I have some bed pillows on order.) The teacup was a gift from Barbara, the book is from LandauHouse on Etsy (It’s an Agatha Christie.) The quilt was also a gift from Barbara and the handkerchief used as bed linen was a gift from Martha.

The wicker table was a purchase from the IGMA Show a couple of years ago; made by Uncle Ciggie’s Miniatures. I love it. The bed was made by TinyIronMiniatures on Etsy. Rug was found at the IGMA show.

Boots, boot tray, and umbrella stand. The lovely print is from MiniMyEye on Etsy – it’s called Les Muses. Boots are from miniatures(dot)com, tray from LavandeHouse on Etsy. The umbrella, walking cane, and umbrella stand were purchased through TinyDollHouseNYC. (Don gave me the umbrella stand as a gift.)

The teacup and saucer are from LavandeHouse on Etsy. Her creations appear everywhere in this house and in my very first dollhouse. The teapot is from TinyDollHouseNYC on Etsy. The chair was also purchased at TinyDollHouse – it was made by June Clinkscales and I cannot tell you how much I treasure it. June is a rockstar in the world of miniaturists. Sofa by my dear ArlettesMiniatures in England (on Etsy.) Rug is from TinyHomeGoods on Etsy. The table was also from Etsy. I copied the link for Don and he purchased it as a gift. So I can’t remember the shop’s name. Sorry.

Another view of the living room. I have to thrust my iPhone inside, point it, and hope it comes out.

Bookshelves. Most of the books, if not all, came from LandauHouse. I have more on order. The seashell is one I found on the beach. I can’t remember where I got the candlesticks – maybe from Barbara? The vase on the floor is from Maddie Gerig Shelly. I got it at the IGMA show. The stone piece on the shelf was a purchase made long ago at a dollhouse shop in Chautauqua. The clock was one of the miniatures Ben gave me at the end of filming. The shelves themselves were a custom order made by Cinen on Etsy. I love, love, love them.

Most of the plates are from TwelveTimesMoreTeeny and LavandeHouse on Etsy. The blue pitcher and matching plate were a gift from Barbara, as was the tin. The white bowls/cups were purchased in Paris – I thought they were egg cups but they’re out of scale, so now they’re dessert bowls. The butter crock is by Jane Graber – purchased on eBay, I believe. The domed cake plate was purchased at the IGMA show – it was made by Veronique Cornish who lives in England. The tiny egg cups were made VictoriaFasken on Etsy. The cupboard – one of my prized miniatures – was made by Bubba’s Miniatures, aka Barbara Vajnar, who has since retired, making this even more precious.

A closer look.

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

English Cottage Bedroom

February 12, 2022 at 9:08 am by Claudia

While Don was cleaning out his file drawers up in the studio and dumping stuff in a big trash bag, I was across the room in my half spontaneously working on the bedroom in the English Cottage. I played around with a few things in order to begin dressing the bed. I have two ‘iron’ beds and I’d been using the single bed because this bedroom is so tiny. But, I decided that the double bed would be the better choice. So I switched them out. Then, I put something together that works enough for me.

I’ve since tweaked that dust ruffle so it hangs correctly. The dust ruffle is a handkerchief that was sent to me by Martha, a longtime reader of the blog. It was her dear mother’s. Thank you, Martha. I finally put it to use and I love the way your mom’s hanky graces this house.

The quilt is a patchwork quilt sent to me by Barbara. When I turned it over, I discovered this print which works perfectly in the bedroom. Thank you, Barbara! I have to get pillows and a lamp and some books on the bedside table and I’m not sure if the red chair will stay, but for now, I really like it there.

Can I tell you how much I would like this to be my bedroom?

The rug was in the modern dollhouse, which I packed up for storage. Thankfully, I quickly realized how perfect it is for the bedroom.

Since I moved the red chair (made by Arlette’s miniatures) into the bedroom, I decided to use this chair that had been in the modern dollhouse in the studio:

The interior so far:

I don’t know about you, and I’m certainly not blowing my own horn, but this is a place I would find utterly charming and want to move into immediately. Preferably, somewhere in the Cotswolds.

I’m really happy about finally getting my miniature mojo back. I’ve accomplished quite a bit this week. Still more to go, but my dump-dollhouse is becoming a swan.

From the archives:

Maeve and Pippa on the piano.

Oh, as for yesterday…we did get out, just to drive to a neighboring town to buy groceries (we were out of practically everything.) I wanted to stop at an antique store there, and we did. It was the mustiest smelling place I’ve ever been in and the “antiques” were not antiques but junk. Ah well. At least we have a full larder and we took a nice drive.

Stay safe,

Happy Saturday.

The English Cottage: A Progression (So Far)

February 10, 2022 at 10:13 am by Claudia

Stayed up way too late watching Nathan Chen win the Gold Medal for Men’s Figure Skating but it was worth it!

I did a lot of grouting and aging work on the English Cottage yesterday – also known as Dove Cottage, but I never seem to call it by that name. I had come to the conclusion that the stones looked too pristine, like a new house that is trying to echo the past, but looks like an imposter. So, I got the grout and some water and some rags, as well as various tools to apply said grout – including a toothpick and a popsicle stick functioning as a spatula. It’s messy work. I had to vacuum the area around the dollhouse, as well as the floor.

I’m pleased with the results. The front of the house and one of the side walls are finished. Just one more wall to go. It’s tedious, but it pays off. When this is done, I can deal with the porch and window boxes.

It always helps to see a before and after progression:

The exterior of the house on the day I rescued it from the town dump. This is the Arthur, a Greenleaf dollhouse, and it was meant to have a porch and railings – they were missing when I adopted it. I could have recreated it, but I didn’t want that look.

The interior:

The interior on the day I brought it home. I eventually removed the interior wall and stairs. As you can see, both of those elements limited what I could do with the house. Let’s not even talk about my efforts to remove that green carpet, if you can call it that, and the tile in the kitchen. Remember the hours I spent with a hair dryer softening the badly applied glue?

Taken after priming and making the decision to cover the exterior with ‘stones.’

That little process took forever.

I primed the inside as well.

The interior now (still needs more work done.)

Wallpaper added, as well as ceiling beams, wood floors in every room, new acrylic inserts for the windows, new trim (from the backup Arthur kit that Barbara graciously sent me.) New door (from the same backup kit.) The wood beam trim in the studio was added because I screwed up the wallpaper application. I made the desk. I made the painter’s box. I refinished an unfinished armoire, as well as the island in the kitchen.

And the exterior, after grouting and aging.

I’m very happy with the results. I’m going to age the roof a bit, too. Eventually. Who knows, I may do it right away as I seem to be on a roll.

(Maybe I’m avoiding the massive amount of work that needs to be done on the Beacon Hill.)

Stay safe.

Happy Thursday.

Some Details and a Valentine

English Cottage Bedroom

The English Cottage: A Progression (So Far)

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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