Monday, June 30, 2014

Featured in DollsHouse and Miniature Scene August Issue

Some of my houses and furniture are in the August issue of DollsHouse and Miniature Scene.

A big thank you to Deb Weissler for writing this beautiful article. She really did an awesome job!  And thank you to Lucie Roper for including me in the issue.
 If you are interested in owning a copy here's the link:
 http://www.collectors-club-of-great-britain.co.uk/Magazines/Dolls-House-and-Miniature-Scene/Issue/_is459


Sunday, June 22, 2014

The Tranquil Nordic Retreat - Completed

The Tranquil Nordic Retreat custom dollhouse is all done. 
 This is another A Shabby Chic dollhouse but with a bit of Anthropologie style!
 The roof is covered with sheets of moss.
 These roses are tiny miniature mulberry paper roses found in scrapbook or millinery shops.
 The switch and battery for all 3 chandeliers are hidden in the chimney.
 I had to have bunting!




 I just used a mix of brown and black paint watered down to get a wash effect on the window's frame. Looks super time worn. I love that! :)



 The curtains are a heavy canvas. They are actually the drop cloths you find at the home improvement store. Drop cloth curtains are so shabby chic! The texture is perfection. I just used hairspray to keep the folds in place.


 The painted ceiling like Scandinavian homes have brings a very eclectic feel to this house.
 I pulled out the upstairs bedroom so you could see the bed and nightstand better.
 The nightstand is a little Prim style bench I made out of wood. That's a chocolate & sprinkles doughnut on the plate.









Thanks for the visit! 
hugs♥,

Monday, June 16, 2014

The Tranquil Nordic Retreat

Back to the Tranquil Nordic Retreat dollhouse now! 
I've been working on the interior.  The mantel, ceiling, ladder and chandelier.
Cami, the owner if this dollhouse, showed me a photo of a house with this painted ceiling. I decided to reproduce exactly because it was so pretty.  I painted the ceiling boards blue. Then I painted the scrolls.
I used  cream, white, light brown and dark brown paints to get the scrolls colors.
The fabric is also in place in the loft section.
I made the mantel.  The inside is a slat and plaster finish.  And I crackled the exterior.
The exterior has siding. This side of the house will have a a cream or white finish. I might sand it a bit to look older.
And this was the front and other side of the house before the paint.
Then a coat of gray paint...
a coat of white glue that I let dry for 5 minutes and a coat of white paint...
and now I wait for the paint to crack a little.
Still waiting for it to dry completely. 

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Hart and Bear's Shabby Shop

I made a shop/shop keeper's cottage for Jen. It's called Hart and Bear's Shabby Shop. I made this house entirely by hand. No kit.  I use wood from Lowe's. I draw out a plan and cut everything out with my Dremel Trio.  But if you don't have all the cutting tools, do use kits. I did when I started out. You can customize any kit very easily. Even the cheapest kits can look extraordinary.  And it's a great way to teach yourself scale and how to make minis. 
Jen's style is very sweet and very romantic. Lots of roses, lots of lace, lots of cuteness. Easy! :)
The porch has a bike, clay houses and a box filled with old treasures. Notice there's a big sale going on!
The flower boxes are filled with moss and mulberry paper roses. There also pink Heather in there. I get the vines and Heathers from Hobby Lobby. I just look for things I can cut down to mini size.  The roses are online. Just type 'mulberry paper roses'.
I added a piece of molding under the porch. Extra cuteness!
Adding bunting banners makes a really big difference. It just ads an incredible amount of whimsy.
I always struggle to make my dormers straight. But I think I finally got it!  If you are a novice, you can buy dormers already made. The shingles are pine. 
Another chandelier on the side porch. Super romantic!
The siding is birch. 
A view of the pink underside of the porch.
And inside!
The shop keeper's bedroom is upstairs.  I made a dollhouse, half round table, chandelier and dollhouse bed/bedding. I painted the chair with a faux seat cushion.
It's a very romantic bedroom with the pink polka dot and roses wallpaper.  The 2 dog paintings are Jen's Bear and Hart.
Downstairs
There's a working fireplace.  I made more houses to put everywhere.  Another banner on the mantel. 
The armoire in the back is filled with fabrics.  The ceiling is covered with textured scrapbook paper.
I was going to make an all lace chair. But when I was looking for more lace for the cushions I happened to lay the chair on the pink check fabric. Instant LOVE!  Had to change my plans. I covered a whole lot of little books with printed papers from the internet.
I usually like to put beds in my shops. But it was weird having one bed up and one downstairs. I happened to have a stove left from my dollhouse vintage stove tutorial.   I tried it out and it occupied the space perfectly.





The curtains are a piece of white cotton fabric and one piece of sparkly sheer fabric. I rolled the end up. Then I sprayed it with a fabric stiffner. Hairspray works perfectly. Then I added pink and white baker's twine. Paper roses I made with tissue paper add a finishing touch to every window.
In the middle of the shop, I made a round table. The base is a wooden candlestick holder I think?? And the top is from another table I pulled apart. On top I put a bigger house covered with concrete. I wanted it to look like something for a yard- a bit rougher looking for contrast with the other smaller houses. I also painted the rug. I use a thick canvas used for book binding. 
I hope you all had your sugar fix with this super sweet house. 
Now I'll get back to the Tranquil Nordic Retreat in the next post. See you then!
hugs♥,