New Acquisitions and Inventory Time

I usually browse Facebook Marketplace with a simple keyword search: dollhouse. The results are mostly plastic children's play toys but occasionally wood dollhouses and dollhouse kits pop up.  If you've followed my blog you know I've acquired some great houses on Marketplace. When I did this recent search a garage sale popped up because they mentioned a dollhouse in the description of the post. I contacted the seller to inquire if the dollhouse was wood or plastic, and she replied with TWO wood dollhouses for $30 total. She attached pictures of the houses, and I couldn't do the electronic payment fast enough. I purchased a DuraCraft Sweetheart that is completely finished and fully electrified, including two working light fixtures and the second house is a Walmer Cranberry Cove, unfinished on the inside and missing the front porch attachment. I can do a lot with this Walmer house, I'm looking forward to working on that one.

 

Walmer Cranberry Cove, 1:12 Scale

 

DuraCraft Sweetheart Cottage 1:12 Scale

Both of these houses are new projects for me, as I intend to finish off the Cranberry Cove, and completely redo the Sweetheart as a Tudor style with a thatched roof. I just can't look at the roof lines on this house and not see a thatched roof. I'm not fond of the current colors either, or the decorative hearts all over the house. I could possibly get carried away and make it a fairy house, the potential is there, but as of now I'm thinking of a clean lined tudor.

The Cranberry Cove may end up with a solid brick exterior with no front porch, or my second vision is a smaller front porch than the original, that just covers the front door area. If I do that I would try to add a bay window on the first floor as well. I'm still looking at both of these houses carefully, to get a clear vision.

I wasn't able to blog about this next acquisition, because four days after I bought it my home flooded in the storm surge from Hurricane Ian in South Florida on September 28, 2022. This is a Hofco Federal Victorian, that I drove 2 hours one way to pick it up. I also found this on Marketplace, and honestly didn't realize how big it was until I picked it up. Not only is it the largest house I have, it's made of MDF wood so it is very heavy. The back is solid flat because it's a front opening dollhouse, so it's a lot like a piece of furniture. It's similar in size to a small dresser. The house is in pretty good shape, a few pieces need to be reassembled and the hinges need reinforced, but overall it's great.

HOFCO Federal Victorian Front Opening Dollhouse 1:12 Scale

Since I have a dollhouse display room now, I'm starting to absorb the size of my collection. In addition to the houses I have listed below, I have many room boxes, lanterns, odd scale houses and my built Quarter Scale houses. Once my dollhouse room is completely set up I will post a video and photos. 

CURRENT DOLLHOUSE INVENTORY
Listed in order of acquisition

 

Built Houses:
1949 Keystone of Boston
Greenleaf Travel Trailer
Greenleaf Arthur
Greenleaf Brookwood
Greenleaf Harrison Rehab
Greenleaf Harrison Partial Build
Petite Dreams Victorian
Greenleaf Buttercup
DuraCraft Ashley
Greenleaf Brimbles Mercantile
Whitney Tennyson
Batrie Sparrow Lane
Skilcraft Colonial
Greenleaf Washington
Skilcraft Cape Cod
Lundy Gotenburg
Hofco Federal Victorian
Walmer Cranberry Cove
DuraCraft Sweetheart
Four Greenleaf 1/4 Scale Houses

Dollhouse Kits:
DuraCraft Pioneer Log Cabin
Real Good Toys Princess Anne
Real Good Toys Victorian Cottage Jr.
Artply Highland
Walmer Mint Julep w/Left and Right Wing Additions
Greenleaf Rosedale
Greenleaf Orchid
Greenleaf Travel Trailer
Greenleaf Village Kit
Greenleaf Town Kit
Greenleaf Emerson Row
Real Good Toys Beachside Bungalow
DuraCraft Newberg
Real Good Toys Conservatory

I have several projects in mind that I want to get started on, I need to decide which one I should tackle next. Most likely it won't be a new kit, as I have several built houses that need to be refinished. In the meantime, I think I will stay off of Facebook Marketplace for a while, Ha! 

Thank you for visiting!

~ Mini - Shack

Mia's House

Just finished Mia's house! She's going to be so excited, and I wish her many years of imagination play in this custom house, made just for her. She requested these colors, and I must say they turned out lovely.  I left the house very basic so she can add her own curtains, lights, rugs, pictures, furniture, etc.

This kit was an older Whitney Tennyson, and the wood was rather challenging. Not good quality at all, but overall it's a GREAT house to build. This version of the Tennyson requires a lot of trim, and I'm referring to extra trim not included with the kit. They're pretty generous with trim in the kit too, but again the wood quality was really bad I had to use my own.

I ended up using a set of stairs that I had in my stash instead of building the stairs from the kit. With the wood quality as bad as it was, I didn't feel like slicing my fingers up any more than I had to. I was shocked at the porch balusters however, as that part of the wood was in decent shape so the porch and balcony railings came out good. The doors all open and close, and they're reinforced with a strip of ribbon holding them in place. When I glued the roof peaks together I also ran a strip of electrical tape across the tops for some extra reinforcement. I added a foundation since the kit doesn't come with one. The stone exterior is actually strips of wallpaper.

I would be very, very interested in getting my hands on another Tennyson kit and doing some major kit bashing and upgrading. When I was dry fitting the house, prior to adding the third floor peaks, I definitely saw an Art Deco modern Miami style house. Would love to explore that further!

Please enjoy this short video, as it includes the building process as well:

Here is the front and back of the finished house:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now I need to figure out which project to start next! I have so many waiting, plus quite a few room boxes. I may do a few room boxes so I can get those hung up on the walls. I've always wanted to do that, and I managed to find just the right ones. For now though, as I do after every build, it's time to clean up and reorganize.

 

Happy Sunday and Thank you for visiting!!

 

~ Mini-Shack

A surprise visit

I've been working from home the past few weeks because I tested positive for Covid-19, so I've been in quarantine. I received a call from a friend I have not seen in a while, and she said she found a dollhouse for me at a thrift shop while she was out shopping. She was nearby so she stopped by and dropped off the house. We spoke safely through the window for a few minutes and then she was on her way. It was so good to see her! It was perfect timing too, I was feeling kind of blue about postponing Christmas and being in quarantine. There's no better feeling though than getting a new dollhouse! 

So next in line to be built....the Tennyson! The version I received is the Tennyson by Whitney. Several dollhouse manufacturers have produced a Tennyson model over the years, with some slight variations. The main difference being a roof off the second story that covers the balcony, which is found in later Greenleaf Tennyson models. This version doesn't have the roof, and I'm fine with that. The basic design and footprint of the house is similar to my Princess Anne (which is still in the box), so I've been looking at it several ways to see how I can bash it into something different. Maybe add a wing, not sure so stay tuned on that!

Meanwhile, I've been contemplating which project to actually start next. I have so many ideas for each house, my mind keeps bouncing from project to project. I've been drawing and making notes in my dollhouse notebook quite a bit lately, and scanning eBay and some of my favorite dollhouse supply sites for accessories and building supplies. I'm excited about each one! I will probably wait to start until after the holidays are over, and I'm back to my normal routine. By then I will have settled on which project to start next.

Thank you for visiting and Happy Holidays!!

~ Mini-Shack