Blue Box Dollhouse

callsmall September 19, 2015

I've had my Blue Box dollhouse for quite some time now, but it has been forgotten amongst the other houses in my collection. In fact, I neglected to add it to the My Collection resource page, so I put it there with other small scale houses.

These plastic houses, manufactured in Hong Kong, date from the 1980s. They are quite petite and are closest to 1:24 scale. My house came with its own furniture and people and the people are actually more interesting than the furniture, which is quite boxy and lacks detail. You can see more about this style of house on Rebecca's blog; here is a photo of one of her Blue Box houses that is identical to mine:

Courtesy of Rebecca's Collections

I decided to decorate my house with new floor coverings and I also added washi tape to the living room wall. I had to really search through my collection for pieces that were of the right size. It was challenging!! And you can see that some of the pieces are a tad too large, but I still used them. The pieces that actually worked particularly well are the ones by Paul MacAlister -- in addition to some beautiful 1:12 furnishings, I have a set of his 1:24 scale pieces and I put some to use here.

My people were feeling a bit dwarfed by their surroundings!

It was actually a lot of fun to decorate this house. I am embarrassed to say that this took place over some weeks...! I never had more than 15 minutes at a time, so progress was slow. And I know there is so much more that could be done, like wallpaper, but if I didn't capture it now, I'm not sure when I might have done it!

Credits: Livingroom shows a LISA couch, a Paul MacAlister table, and a Dol Toi ottoman. Kitchen has a table and chairs by Fisher Price and a Paul MacAlister shelf. Bathroom has a Fisher Price vanity and a TOMY plant. Mudroom has a Plyamobil stroller and baby and a Lil' Bratz stool. Entryway has a Paul MacAlister credenza. Accessories in all rooms by: Re-ment, Paper Source, AG Minis, Miniatures.com, Gigi N Studio, Minimodernistas, Playmobil, Michaels, and Lundby.

The time it took me: See above; weeks!

Storage Saga

callsmall October 27, 2014

I'm a storage machine. Can't stop. For the past few months (!), I've been working toward a more sane collecting existence. This has extended to my real home as well. We have decluttered and pared down, so I have been reluctant to add new miniatures to my collection. This has meant selling one of my houses (a Brio "Chalet" from 1963) and pushing myself to take stock of everything I have collected since 2008.

I'm probably about 3/4 of the way there. The biggest step was buying a ton of storage boxes from Michaels, which I managed to get on clearance, and filling then systematically. We bought a label maker, and I put it to use!

The next milestone will be arranging to get an old refrigerator and freezer hauled out from the basement. This will free up some needed space for another work table.

All of this is a bit of an excuse why I haven't been posting. The Horrorstor book cover had me occupied until April, and then I jumped into storage mode.

Let's hope I get out...!

Boxed In

callsmall September 29, 2014

I've been exercising some serious willpower and have not bought any new miniatures (and certainly not houses!) in quite some time, primarily motivated by the mess of my collection these days. I bought storage boxes from Michaels and have been boxing up furnishings bit by bit to try to get more organized. I actually went through them pretty quickly, so I will have to get more to continue. Progress is happening, just slowly...

I couldn't help but to arrange a super quick scene in my Bodensee with some boxed pieces.

Within the next few weeks I hope to free up some additional space in our laundry room so that we can move things around and maximize space. There are so many little projects I'd like to get to!

Credits: Couch, lamp, side table, and chairs are vintage German; coffee table is Brio; sculpture is Bozart; rug is minimodernistas. Accessories are Re-ment and assorted dollhouse finds.

My Collection

callsmall February 12, 2013

I've been asked many times: how many houses do you have in your collection?

I usually stumble, mainly because I have not compiled them in one post to date. It seems like such a simple thing, considering this hobby entails some level of attention to detail, but...

The Shopping Sherpa compiled all of her houses into a resource page a few years ago when she was preparing for an exhibit of her houses, and this has inspired me to do the same. I often go an drool over her houses and it's nice that they are all accessible for quick viewing!

I decided to create this post and I can add to it when new things enter in my collection. I will put a link on the sidebar of my blog too so that it can be accessed by the curious.

Hope you enjoy my little tour...

Here are my dollhouses in rough order of acquisition, beginning in 2008. I included the year of production--or the closest approximation--for each structure, and I have hyperlinked to the first post on the house. I also note if the house is made from a kit or was a scratch build from plans; if there is no notation, then the house was built by the manufacturer or required assembly.

Please note that I have grouped room boxes, fold away/pop up houses, and vintage school rooms together in one category after the collection listing.

Call of the Small Collection

1. Villa Sibi, 2004