calling on you crafty peeps

[Heldi]

I was at a car booty last weekend and spied a scruffy looking doll's house. The man wanted 20 quid for it but I managed to get it for 10.

It's really tatty but I thought it looked like a project in the making.  It would be nice to do it up espesh as it's the Toot's birthday in a couple of weeks. She was with me when I bought it so it isn't a secret,infact she has already played with it. So atleast she likes it  :).

So where to start?  It needs a new frontdoor. Can anyone suggest or show me what style the door should look like? I'm guessing the house is meant to be Tudor style..hmmm or is it Elizabethan ?!

Should I paint the inside with period colours or should I leave it white?

What type of paint should I use on the outside? It doesn't look like gloss,it looks more like a soft sheen though the black bits look glossy.  Would gloss look naff?

What do you think of the red roof?

I quite fancy putting some lights in it if possible? How do I do that and where do I get the stuff from?  Can you tell I aint had a dolls house before,sob,sob. Yes it has already been mentioned to me that it is really for me not Toot  :D  Well I got a little bit excited when I found a sideboard on another stall and was given it for nothing. It's lost all but one of it's drawers but it seems to fit in with the house...knackered !!!  ;D

Advice gratefully received.

[Heldi]

[Heldi]

The sideboard. Great init!  ;D  If only I knew a teeny wee carpenter to make it some new drawers  ;D

[Belinda]

http://www.dollshouse.com/

You could request a free catalogue online from this company - lots of inspiration!

[Heldi]

OMG! Have you seen those houses! I feel like the poor relative from the slum  ;D !

Thanks Belinda

[Tulipa]

Regarding the walls Heldi you can get special dolls' house wallpaper all done to scale, but you know once you start it can become adictive - I love the food etc you can get for them, there are such wonderful little accessories...  Have fun.... :)

[emmy1978]

Ooohy Ooh. A project!!  ;D ;D ;D

There is a dolls house shop just up the road from my place and they have everything but soooo expensive.  They have some great stuff from all modern scandanivian look furniture to proper period stuff, wallpaper, teeny tiny candles and fruit bowls. My girls can't walk past it!
You can probably find all you need with a good old internet search but if you want I'll pop in and ask if they have any website addresses.

I love the red roof and would have red front door to go with.
It looks like it is a tudor house.
I guess there are at least 2 camps on dolls house deco - purists who would want it just so and correct to period and people like me who would just do it out to suit their own kids - or selves!  ;D

Have fun - great present.

[prink13]

Looks great - alot of  craft stores do dolls house wallpaper which you could use as wallpaper, try somewhere like Hobby Craft, they also do lights, furniture, flooring etc.

Alternatively you could use some pretty paper,maybe craft paper, wallpaper or even wrapping paper, depends on how authentic you want it to look, or whether you just want it pretty and quick!

Good luck, and keep sending us pictures

Kathi

[Jeannine]

Heldi somewhere in my house I have some very old paper floor patterns for a dolls house,like parquet or old kitchen tiles, you can have them if you want them, let me know and I will look for them XX Jeannine

[calamityjayneuk]

Hi Heldi

love the doll's house. It's definitely worth  doing up - one of my earliest memories is of the one my great grandma had, although we were never allowed to play with it.

If you are feeling crafty, you can make cute little tiny food using fimo (modelling paste that you bake) or salt dough, we used to spend hours making tiny cakes and when we were kids!

[Jeannine]

I have found the book of flooring Heldi.I was having a think, your little ones birthday is not far away, could you perhaps do it up so far and then make it a joint project for the two of you.I have a few dollshouse books with making furniture instructions in them I can cope a few if you wish,I can give you some tiny little patterned cottons for drapes from my quilting stash.

I didn't bring my dolls houses when I came from Canada but still have many of the books

XX Jeannine

[mc55]

heldi, have you got a hobbycraft nearby ?  they have dolls house accessories, ideas and projects.

[kenkew]

By 'eck. I used to make doll's house furniture and fittings. The hardest part I found was making stairs and railing for: I used to work with a magnifying glass and scalpel cutting the rails...I think it's all done by machine today.

[Mrs Ava]

Heldi, my mum did one up for my little urchin a couple of years ago.  There are a lot of websites with mini printables for wallpaper, rugs, pics for the walls etc.

http://www.atpo29.dsl.pipex.com/printies.htm
http://68.38.137.242:8090/dh/Printables.htm
http://www.printmini.com/printables/p1.shtml

[Hyacinth]

H, until you get lecce in the house, I can provide a pair of wee brass candlestix.....will be in the post to you termorra. Get the Brasso ready ::)

[quizzical1]

Regarding the walls Heldi you can get special dolls' house wallpaper all done to scale, but you know once you start it can become adictive - I love the food etc you can get for them, there are such wonderful little accessories...  Have fun.... :)

In this modern computer age, you could even design your own wallpaper and print it out in sheets large enough to do one wall at a time in a doll's house.

[Sajaself]

Better still let little one design her own wallpaper on the computer! What a lovely project. I use to love my dolls house when I was little. Hours of fun

[mc55]

we used to make our own wallpaper the lo tech way - coloured pencils and paper ... used to keep us quiet for ages !

[Heldi]

Thanks for all the top tips and web links. Really good info.

There is a hobbycraft about 40/50 miles away.  Not as bad as it sounds as we are often down that area so I will HAVE to take a look!

I live in a wallpaper free zone so hadn't even considered it lol!

You are right about addictive.  I was at car boot sale again this morning and found a sofa for 30p  :D

Lovely idea Jeannine about getting Toot to help.  She'll only be four this next birthday but she knows what she likes! Would love to take you up on your flooring  ;D  I didn't even thinking about flooring either. I just thought it was all painted inside. Now you can really tell I've not ever had one before lol! 

Thanks Lish! Can't wait  ;D You are such a star!  :-*

I'm hoping to find pieces of furniture in charity shops and car boots if not attempt to make bits. Attempt being the operative word.

I think the lighting is the first thing to decide on. I'm so nervous to start incase I make a thingy up.   :o

[kitten]

Heldi, what a lovely project you've got yourself (I mean the toot  ;) ) there, sounds like fun!

I'd say get stuck in, who cares if you make a thingy up, just take it out and start again!  You'll soon be as addicted to crafting as veg growing mark my words  ;)  I'm not a dolls house maker so can't offer any tips etc, but would love to see some pix of your handy work?

Good luck & enjoy  ;D

[Jeannine]

Heldi. end your addy for the flooring book