Category Archives: dollhouses

Posted on 23 November, 2015

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Queen Mary’s Dolls House Library

Queen Mary’s Dolls House – In The Beginning

Queen Mary, wife of King George V. was an obsessive collector of ‘tiny craft.’She especially liked objects that had a connection to the Royal family. By her late 40s, the Queen had amassed a valuable collection of miniature items.

Princess Marie Louise, George V’s cousin, and Queen Victoria’s granddaughter was at an “at home” one Sunday afternoon at the height of the social season. Another party-goer was Edwin Lutyens, a leading architect of the day. The Princess later claimed that ‘on the impulse of the moment’ she mentioned that it would be nice if the Queen had some sort of large cabinet for all her diminutive treasures.

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Posted by Susan Downing

Categories: amazing miniatures, dollhouses, Great Dollhouses


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Posted on 28 October, 2015

Uppark-Dolls-House

The Palladian style Doll’s House c.1735-40. The center pediment shows the Lethieullier coat of arms.

Uppark Dolls House

The Uppark Dolls House has a connection to the most famous dolls house in the world — Queen Mary’s. The Uppark country estate is now owned by the National Trust. The Hall is often called, “A giant dolls’ house, perched high on a hill …” Legend has it that the architect that designed Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House, Edwin Lutyens, used the Uppark dolls’ house as inspiration.

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Posted by Susan Downing

Categories: dollhouses, Great Dollhouses, Queen Mary's Dolls House


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Posted on 16 October, 2015

all-about-dollhouses--cabinet-kitchen

The kitchen in a cabinet dollhouses found on All About Dollhouses

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Xandra Dekker’s Cabinet Dollhouse

Xandra Dekker’s “All About Dollhouses”

The Dutch to English machine translation of the caption under this blogs cover photo reads:

“ON THIS WEBSITE YOU FIND EVERYTHING ABOUT THE DOLLHOUSE HOBBY, MINIATURE, DOLLHOUSES, WORKSHOPS AND MORE … “

This is not an overstatement. “All About Dollhouses and Miniatures” is outstanding. The information is primarily European, which puts artisans doing period projects closer to the source than we US bloggers seem to provide.

Maybe it just seems that way, because Ms. Dekker is focused on one geographic area, while I find myself flitting all over the map and through the centuries.

It is obvious that Ms. Dekker has done her research, giving one a true sense of authenticity. There are so many links to other great sites. Check out Ms. Dekker’s “Blogs I Follow” for access to more useful information.

Travel Blog

Xandra Dekker also has a travel blog, with many of the posts about tropical climes. That’s understandable, I guess if you have ever experienced winters in Northern Europe. I’m sorry if I sound smug, but that’s the way it is for escapees from Cleveland who found paradise in Florida.

Enjoy exploring both of Xandra Dekker’s blogs.

 

Susan Downing, with Patrick Owens

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I invite you to visit my Etsy Shop where I offer many accessories and pieces of furniture in 1:12 scale. 

Posted by Susan Downing

Categories: cabinet, dollhouses, Dutch


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Posted on 11 October, 2015

victorian-gottschalk-blue-roof-dollhouse

Gottschalk Victorian Blue Roof Dollhouse found on Ruby Lane (Out of stock)

Victorian Style Dollhouses

It is a huge subject, of course. I thought I would do a series of posts. The best approach seemed to categorize by time period, then by room or object. And I learned from hanging around Dougless Bitler at the Cabbage Patch (way back in the day), that authenticity is critical!

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Posted by Susan Downing

Categories: dollhouses, Victorian


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