Sunday, December 22, 2013

Jen's Cottage - a Commissioned Custom Dollhouse

 This is how all the dollhouses start out.  Pieces of walls I cut out of pretty thin plywood.  I buy the plywood sheets at the regular big box hardware stores.   It costs about $11 a sheet.  
Then I gather my wallpapers if the house is going to have some.  These all come from the scrapbook department of a craft store.  I apply the wallpaper to the walls with white glue before I put the house together.
The house comes together very quickly after that.  Next, I put the wood floor in place. These are craft sticks painted with watered down white acrylic paint.   I also started working on furniture. 
I have a mantel, chair, table set, and kitchen sink/counter. 
 I bought this table and chair set.  It was pristine white.  So I sanded the edges and took a craft knife to make nicks in it too.  I wanted a oilcloth tablecloth.  A real one would have been to thick to fall correctly. So I took my favorite fabric and coated it with 5 layers of gloss. It looks just like oilcloth!
 I made this chair from scratch out of wood veneer.  It's covered with a very pale pink fabric.
 The mantel is wood.  I made it smaller than my usual mantels so it would look more Victorian.
 The sink piece is not quite finished.  I just laid the countertop on the cabinet for the picture.  This piece has a tutorial here:  http://1inchminisbykris.blogspot.com/2012/02/kitchen-cabinets-how-to-make.html
This lady is very talented. She explains everything.
 This chandelier will be featured in American Miniaturist Magazine as a tutorial in March. 
 I had made the bed a while back. I needed the perfect space for it.  It will fit perfectly in this house.

The 2 walls have different wallpapers. I still need to finish the front wall. 
More to come! Thanks for coming over.

22 comments:

  1. You make me almost believe I could do this myself! So lovely, Caroline. :)

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  2. Do you cut the wallpaper in the shape of the walls before applying or do you apply first and then trim the edges down to size with a craft knife?

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  3. Hi Kasey! I cut the wallpaper first and then apply it with glue. But either way would work if you have a real sharp craft knife.
    hugs♥,
    Caroline

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  4. Phenomenal job as always Caroline! :) I love all the wallpapers you selected. Congrats on getting a chandelier tutorial in a mini magazine! How exciting!

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  5. Beautiful as always. Love the chandelier and bed.

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  6. Hi Caroline! Your little cottage project, is once again a complete delight! I love the papers that you have chosen for the walls. I also use Scrapbooking papers for wallpaper and you are right in that it is so much easier to apply them prior to putting the walls up permanently. The little bed with the hand painted head and foot board is just Perfect for the bedroom! Love it!!!
    Merry Christmas to you Caroline, and keep it coming!

    elizabeth

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  7. An other beautiful house, Caroline. It is so generous from you to share your plans for each house, thank you, dear!
    I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and my best wishes for 2014!
    Hugs, Ilona

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  8. Lovely house! I love this beautifuly painted bed.
    Marry Christmas!
    Magda

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  9. Я восхищаюсь вашей скоростью и талантом!!! Я свой домик строю почти 2 года!! ХИ-ХИ!!!
    Мне нравятся кровати и кресла вашей ручной работы!
    Счастливого Рождества и Нового года!
    Объятья
    Татьяна

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  10. Your houses always looks wonderful, thanks for sharing all these pictures =)
    I love the chandelier and that table cloth is great.
    Happy holidays
    Hannah

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  11. Am I brave enough to try myself? I won't know if I don't try,right? Dollhouse miniatures are almost nonexistent in Turkey, so I don't have any kits to work with. I will have to make everything from scratch, Is only gluing the pieces together enough? It looks wonderful as usual :) I can't tell you how I admire your taste. Hugs, Ebru

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  12. AuntLov said 'You make me almost believe I could do this myself!' :D ! feel so same! :D So lovely, Caroline.
    MERRY X-MAS!

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  13. Tus proyectos siempre son preciosos, estoy deseando ver el resto.
    Que tengas unas maravillosas fiestas.
    Un abrazo.

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  14. Wonderful cute house. Your houses are always very special.
    Wishing you a Merry Christmas.
    Hugs Maria

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  15. Oh Wow thats such a Dreamy Wonderful house - and the bed head and footboards are exquisite! Love it All! ~ TiGGy

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  16. Its going to be another work of Art Caroline :) and that cute little bed is to die for!

    Merry Christmas
    Hugs
    Marisa

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  17. Thank you for your lovely tutorials!
    Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year!

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  18. Dear Caroline. The cottage looks gorgeous. You make everything seems so easy, but I know how much work and love you put into these little cottages. The Pearl Cottage in your previous post is waaay beyond adorable, I want to move it right away!!
    I also wanted to come by to wish you and yours, a very Merry Christmas.
    Big Hugs, Jannet

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  19. Dear Caroline. The cottage looks gorgeous. You make everything seems so easy, but I know how much work and love you put into these little cottages. The Pearl Cottage in your previous post is waaay beyond adorable, I want to move it right away!!
    I also wanted to come by to wish you and yours, a very Merry Christmas.
    Big Hugs, Jannet

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  20. Another charming project! I love the tablecloth.
    Joyeux Noël à toi, ma chère Caroline, et ta famille.
    Bisous
    Geneviève

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  21. Wow! I love everything about this project! The tablecloth, chair, and chandelier are favorites. Congrats on your March publication!!! xo Jennifer

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