Archive for July, 2012
Dollhouses make fascinating family heirlooms and need to be maintained regularly to ensure that they last for a long time. Restoring old dollhouses is a project in itself and requires patience and some investment too. Refurbishing a wood dollhouse is quite a challenge, however, the results are fantastic, and it will be well worth the effort.
Start by dismantling the dollhouse and if you feel there are accessories and pieces of furniture that need to be replaced, collect their replacements even before you start the refurbishment process. Wood dollhouse chairs and tables could do with a lick of paint and worn-out wicker furniture could make way for new wooden furniture.
Antique wood dollhouse furniture and accessories bring in a vintage feel and make for perfect collectables. If you’re running short of ideas on what furniture to use for a doll house, how about trying something different like an art deco table, a grand blanket chest, wooden tea carts, ivory or silver rocking chairs or a miniature manicure set.
Accessorize your wood doll house with perhaps a toy grand piano, wooden sewing box, glass vases, umbrella stands and delicate lace curtains. Based on the amount of space available you could choose from a range of accessories and furniture. Just make sure that the dollhouse does not look too cluttered.
Specialty kits for wood dollhouse are handy and easy to assemble. There are quick-build varieties that can be put together in a matter of hours including the roof shingles and trims as well as floors and minor accessories.
Contemporary dollhouses can also be put together easily as they do not have intricate features. It’s just a matter of putting together the roof, floors, doors and windows in addition to furniture pieces and accessories.
Little cottages are petite and can be a collector’s delight as they could feature a little garden or a summer terrace.
July 26th, 2012
Creating dollhouse miniatures can be wonderful creative outlet for all those pent up ideas in your head. If you’re building one for your little girl then her imagination is bound to expand as well. She could spend the day playing with her friends and making up daily routines or even something more creative.
Dollhouse miniatures are not complete without a family living inside this little home. Every child deserves to have a family and dollhouses need one too! Usually the dollhouse family has parents, grandparents and children and since no one likes an empty home – the bigger, the better. Like real life families, even doll house families come in different shapes, sizes and colors and possibly represent different nationalities too.
There are several books that suggest how to make doll house families and there are readymade kits where you could just assemble doll house miniatures. It’s more fun if you create the doll house family from scratch and assemble them later.
Polymer clay can be used to make mini models of mom, dad or baby, but you might want to give it a second thought as your children might play with them.
Hand sewing them is ideal as you could even decide what they would wear at different times of the day. Although, the results will be amazing, this calls for a lot of effort and time.
Now that we have a family, can toys be far behind? Making and getting the toys in place is a part of creating doll house miniatures. Decide on the kind of toys you’d like, mostly wood or plastic variety. Wood is more durable, safe and looks better than plastic toys. Next choose where to place them, either in the drawing room, bedroom or kitchen.
Plan accordingly and ensure that doll house miniatures are well-coordinated and built to a standard scale.
July 25th, 2012
Although doll houses are pretty and petite, designing them and choosing the right dollhouse accessories can be a bit of a challenge. On one hand, you’d like to be as realistic as possible and include as many features to reflect your taste and possibly your lifestyle. On the other hand, too much clutter can spoil the whole look of the doll house. So it’s essential to maintain a fine balance between the two while choosing doll house accessories.
Not all of us can afford to collect dollhouses, so if you’re creating one, plan well in advance so that you eventually make something you’d really like to keep for a long time.
Everyday household items like shopping bags, newspapers, china, luggage, glasses, trays, and tea sets are a few doll house accessories that might seem essential. There are plenty of unused items lying around the house than can be converted into something useful for the doll house, alternately online shops and retail stores sell plenty of collectables for your miniature needs.
If you love artwork or perhaps the doll house residents love it, choose a nice oil painting in the right scale and it could add a touch of class to the interior.
Certain dollhouse accessories such as wallpaper and floral prints are not preferred by some, in such cases choose a pastel colored wall and put up a miniature painting that defines the theme of the doll house.
Basic paintings are suitable for a simple, conventional doll house, but for more contemporary ones, choose abstract artwork that fits in with the overall design of this mini house. Other doll house accessories that could brighten up the wall include traditional Chinese scriptures, oriental paintings, animals, landscapes, and even ships. A well-accessorized dollhouse could easy give any interior designer a run for their money, so put on your creative caps and get started.
July 24th, 2012
More than a hobby, dollhouses are now a “passion” for people of all age groups. Dollhouse miniatures are available in different textures, sizes, colors and styles. Various miniaturists spend hours together planning a particular project to create outstanding dollhouses. They bring life to your plan with their creativity.
These tiny toy houses have several fun components like dolls, furniture, lighting equipment, accessories, other tools, etc. It is only about striking a balance between the accessories and the size of the house. It’s always great to follow a particular theme or a style to make your tiny toy house complete. There are different styles to opt for like contemporary, wooden dollhouses, cottages, Georgian etc. So, once you pick up a preferred mode, you are good to go with creating your own dollhouse.
You could have a look around different online stores for buying dollhouse miniatures. Otherwise, you could visit a well known dollhouse shop in your city. There are many kits for dollhouse miniatures too that are available in stores for those who would not like to have a fully furnished one and wish to bring their creativity while setting one up. If you too belong to the alter group, you could simply get a kit, follow the instructions given with the kit and assemble it, and you will have your tiny dollhouse ready!
Dollhouse miniatures have become very popular options as collectables. Dollhouse enthusiasts keep looking for interesting and innovative add-ons for these mini houses. Since these items come in different varieties, textures, colors, deigns, etc., you can have more options to choose from. It’s a great fun to decorate your tiny toy house with matching accessories, wallpapers, floorings, pets, furniture, toys, and of course, dolls. So, use all these elements together to have pretty looking dollhouse miniatures, which you can call your prized possessions.
July 11th, 2012
Add elegance and create illusion of space to your dollhouse with dollhouse wallpaper. These wallpapers are available in all sizes and colors to beautify the walls and can be selected based on your needs. However, choosing a good wall decor is quiet tricky for new owners, when a lot of beautiful styles are available. Some handy tips for selecting dollhouse wallpaper can assist in picking up the right one, not to mention the absolute pleasure of owning it.
The size of room is a vital factor as it helps in selecting the color of dollhouse wallpaper. For small rooms, light colored wallpapers are well-suited as they make it look spacious and illuminated. Consider using small prints keeping the scale in mind as overly large prints make the tiny space look overwhelming and also diminish its effect. Miniature dollhouse wallpapers can be selected in such cases to provide a unique look.
Creative people can plan their own design from floral, strips, themes or even plain colors and mix-and-match it accordingly. Depending on the scale of the room, re-size these wallpapers to make them fit perfectly. Avoid half and unfinished designs, as they make the wall look unpleasant. To make the room look taller, vertical striped wallpaper can be used and for wider looks, horizontal striped wallpaper will be great.
Some interesting effects can be added to your dollhouse wall decor by using a contrasting color and pattern that is quiet appealing too. Another way to make the room look pleasant and small is by using two types of papers with different prints. For instance, a strip design on bottom of the room combined with plain print on the top can be a good idea.
Never neglect to check whether electric fittings are installed or not while planning the decoration process as it may mess up the entire thing if not installed properly. During the application process, make sure the design is upright and not reverse.
Finally, use a self-adhesive back for dollhouse wallpapers, which is often considered the best and most hassle-free option.
July 11th, 2012
