Help Needed

 A week or so ago I posted a wee short video showing my Greenleaf Mckinley  on my Youtube Channel.  The house is 'mostly' done.  It is fully furnished but while I am thrilled with it, I know that it is missing something!!!!!  I have learned something about myself.....somehow my eye for making the houses look lived in and 'real' has disappeared.   And I'm struggling with that!!!!  I asked for help on that youtube channel.....and I'm going to ask for help here too!!!  I am showing the rooms and adding in the ideas that I was given and that I already have or have come up with.....but HELP!!!!

So here goes......

The kitchen

The kitchen definitely needs something also!  It was suggested a tea towel, a rug and a table.  I had resisted the idea of a table simple because of space.  But I am planning on adding one (I have a wooden one I can paint).    Throw your ideas at me!!!!

The Living Room 

The suggestions:  A teacup, books or vases in the cabinet, logs in the fireplace, a rug.   I have added a pack of cigarettes beside the ashtray (hey, I don't smoke but it IS a 1950's era house!)  What else????

The Nursery

The nursery...probably my favorite room!  It was suggested mess it up with some toys on the floor, someone suggested a rocking horse.  (which I happened to have one).  I am in the process of adding books and a rug....the rocking horse and a rocking chair.   But I don't want a 'sterile' nursery....I want a lived in nursery....help!  

The Bathroom

I actually think that I have this room pretty well done.  I need something on the wall behind the toilet.  Someone suggested a fish or something...but I'm open to ideas!

The Master bedroom

I have added some small rugs beside the bed.....and someone suggested a full length mirror (which will replace the rocking chair that I moved to the nursery) and a trunk at the end of the bed.   

So that seems to be my weakness......turning the dollhouse from a sterile neat home to a lived in house.  I am looking for inspiration to help get my creative juices flowing.

I know that once the ideas start flying at me that my brain will kick in with all sorts of things.  I have also come up with an umbrella /cane stand by the front door, radiators, pillows for the couch and window seats, light switches, and lights around the house.     SO if you have any other suggestions.....

If you want to see the short video......

I went and did it! Dollhouse number 5

I went and did it!     I saw a dollhouse on Facebook marketplace and I just had to buy it!  Honestly I didn’t really want another house.  I had other plans....but a new house I got!!

Finishing up other miniature projects

I have worked on the StoneHouse quilt shop in the past year and it is honestly starting to show signs of being close (closer) to being done!  I have also been working on some of those last items in the 1950’s house   That house really just needs all those little items that make it a home and not just a decorated house.   I have been slowly working on getting those items added to the house.  It’s been fun!

I was making my plans to finish up one of those projects and then I was going to dive into my next project.  I had my next project perfectly planned in my head. I was going to create a 1950’s diner!   I was so excited!

Change in plans for my miniature dollhouses 

I was honestly not looking for a new building!  I had decided to build my own room box for my diner.  But, things don’t always go as planned!   I was scrolling through Facebook and noticed a post by someone talking about a house on Facebook marketplace.  They even mentioned that it was in Frederick, MD....my town!   Uhhhhh. I had to go look at the post!   I don’t know what overcame me...next thing I knew I was contacting the seller!  She originally turned down my low ball offer...but eventually made a counter offer that I accepted.  I was excited but had no plans to work on this dollhouse anytime soon.  I had my diner to build!!!  This new dollhouse was going to go into our storage closet...I figured it was about the same size as my other houses and I could spare that room in the storage closet!

We went to pick up the dollhouse. Uhhhhh. It was huge!   My heart sank even as excitement poured through me!   I was excited to get such a neat project to remodel!   I'm thinking 1920's time frame!!! But seriously...this thing was huge!  There was no way it was going to fit in our already overcrowded storage closet! 

A solution to the miniature madness

We carried in the dollhouse and put it on the dining room table. With the drop leaves down and no extra leaves in the table, this dollhouse hangs over the edge! It dwarfs the other houses! 

  I knew that I had to get to work right away on the new house!  I had to at the bare minimum shore up the outside and bring it to life. This dollhouse needed some love and I just couldn’t wait!

The dollhouse needed some work on the shingles and the porch was a hot mess.   I also decided that gray was not my thing.  I wanted an old fashioned looking farmhouse...so white with green trim was the way I decided to go!!  I luckily had some shingles that matched and I was more than happy to fix the shingles and the railing around the porch.

The biggest work that needed to be done though was finding homes for all of my dollhouses.  We live in a small apartment and 5 dollhouses are a serious threat to taking over!  

The easiest solution was to hang the McKinley dollhouse.  The Greenleaf Mckinley is actually created to hang on the wall and thus save space.  I have NOT hung it in the 4.5 years since I have owned it.  It was time!   That cleared up so much space!   The next thing was the little blue house...as I affectionately call it, the Mini Mansion.  I went out and bought a shelf and hung that one also!  Two dollhouses out of the way!   I have some plans to hang the Stonehouse Quilt shop also.  But that will come eventually!   
In the meantime, I have created enough room to be able to not be quite so overwhelmed with dollhouses!

Let the work commence!!!!!