miniatures — Page 11

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.

Monday Morning in Ice Land

February 7, 2022 at 9:55 am by Claudia

Do you think Santa has had it?

Time to retire these two and move them upstairs to their off-season home.

We are so tired of ice everywhere. A warm-up is on the docket for today, but at the same time, we’re having the dreaded ‘mixed precipitation’ which has resulted in a winter weather advisory.

I AM OVER IT.

In the meantime, we have to go get a box and bubble wrap, etc. this morning because I have to let Country Living know the dimensions and weight so they can send me a UPS label. I need to get the box to UPS tomorrow. I briefly considered whether this was worth it. Sigh. I did wash all the cups yesterday, so they’re ready to pack.

At least I don’t have to be at a rehearsal or travel.

Here’s a photo of the miniature Tintin book that was in the tote bag that came with Madeleine. Isn’t it adorable? It’s 1:6 scale, so it would be too big for the dollhouse, but it’s perfect for my girls. (The title is in Spanish.)

I decided that Madeleine must be tired of her traveling clothes, so I put her in another dress.

It was her turn to walk Bertie. The girls take turns – it’s one of their chores.

There was a discussion in the comments the other day about the size/height of Blythe dolls. They are 11.8 inches tall. The head is about 3½ inches tall. There are also slight differences in the size of the bodies that are used. There is the neo Blythe body, which is the original, or close to the original size, there is the Licca body, and there is the Obitsu body. I have all three. I’ve noticed that the Licca body, which is the body that Olivia has, is a little shorter and the arms and legs are thinner, as well. Therefore, she always looks like the youngest sister because she’s a little smaller. I’m not sure about the Obitsu 11 body, which is the one that Pippa and Mei have – it might be a bit shorter. I’ll have to check. The Obitsu is the most flexible, the most posable. But it’s also the most fragile. The rest of the girls; Sophie, Maeve, Zoe, Imogen, and Madeleine have the standard Blythe body, sometimes called neo Blythe or Azone.

I’m fine with all of them. The only thing I want to change is the neck support on Sophie and Maeve. As it is now, the head can turn from side to side but it can’t be raised or lowered or tilted – all of which make for more interesting poses. I have to resort to shooting from below so it doesn’t look like they’re constantly looking down.

Probably way more information than you wanted or needed this morning!

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

English Cottage Bedroom

The English Cottage: A Progression (So Far)

Monday Morning in Ice Land

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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