I woke up from a nightmare last night and couldn’t get back to sleep, so my mind started to wander. I received the latest issue of Stuffed Magazine (thanks mom!) earlier that day and was excited about all the cool plush, but sad over still having a broken sewing machine. Some of the dolls that intrigued me the most in the magazine were the ones that people had painted onto.
I have been wanting to get back into painting, as I used to really like it in college. But alas, no sewing machine. And I had enough hand sewing with my Birds of Change. So now what? Then, my little dollhouse popped into my head.
I bought this dollhouse, with the little people, and everything in it for $3 at a garage sale when my mom was up last year. The woman who was holding the sale said that she brought it over from Germany, and I knew I had to take it home. The little people didn’t have arms, but some string and a few knots fixed that right up.
I started thinking of all the things I would do to the dollhouses I’d buy. I picked out paint colors and roof styles, and wondered if scrapbook paper would make good wall paper. (I think it would.) Today, I started looking online for little dollhouse kits. But the only ones I could find were these super fancy, expensive ones. I just wanted a simple little house like the one I had. Why can’t I find that? I don’t want to paint the one I have; I want a different one!
Does anyone know of any places I should look? I even thought about cutting out the pieces myself, but I am really afraid of power tools, so I don’t think that would work so well. *sigh*
February 26, 2009 at 8:42 am |
I don’t know about $3, but if I were looking for a wooden dollhouse, I’d check Secondhand children’s stores, craigstlist, garage sales or maybe Michael’s (or other craft shop)
Your dollhouse looks pretty handmake-able to me. Thin wood is easy to cut with a hand saw and there are all sorts of fun things you could make with wooden knick knacks and scraps like door knobs, finials, spacers blahblahblah http://www.ssww.com/arts-and-crafts-supplies/wood-crafts/dowels-and-shapes/
February 26, 2009 at 9:43 am |
Hahaha well, I didn’t think I would get another one for $3! That would be crazy! I’m pretty sure it is handmade, and I might just make my husband cut me out pieces. We were going to go to Home Depot last night, but he wasn’t feeling well.
I do have to find thrift stores near my new house. The only ones I know of are near my old one. Until then, I’ll look through that site you sent me and hopefully I’ll find something! I was surprised that I didn’t see anything on etsy. Maybe that’s a good thing though, once I actually put them together. I’ll meet all the demand! (Assuming there is a demand.)
May 8, 2009 at 2:42 pm |
[...] wooden doll houses I blogged about a while ago. But I’ll have to wait until my dad comes up so he can cut the wood for me. I didn’t [...]
May 29, 2009 at 8:04 pm |
You could try making one yourself out of ‘foam core’. You don’t need power tools for that and it’s quite sturdy. You can also make almost all the accessories inside for yourself. Or swap with other people who can make what you can’t.
Perhaps keep looking for second hand houses? I know of lots of people who had good finds. However you’d be extremely lucky if you got one for under $50.