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Questions about dollhouses and miniatures in general OOAK stands for One Of A Kind. It refers to items that artisans and craftspeople make that are unique. Items referred to as OOAK are usually handmade where no two are alike, or where the design is created by the artisan and therefore "one of a kind". [Top] What is 1:12 scale and all the other scales I hear about? Dollhouses are typically built in 1/12 scale. This means that 1 inch in the dollhouse equals 1 foot in real life. You can find out more information about 1/12th scale and the other scales in the miniature hobby by reading the article we wrote about miniature scales. [Top] What is kit bashing or bashing a dollhouse? Kit bashing, or bashing a dollhouse is modifying a dollhouse from its original design to customize it to your tastes. Bashing could be something as simple as removing a wall to enlarge a room or as elaborate as combining two kits together to make one larger dollhouse. We bashed The Arthur dollhouse manufactured by Greenleaf to make our Dollhouse Store. Any dollhouse can be bashed but bashing is typically done on die-cut dollhouse kits since the wood is thinner and easier to cut without the use of major power tools. [Top] MDF stands for Medium Density Fiberboard. It is a specific type of wood formed from a special process that produces wood panels that are more durable then plywood (and also heavier!). MDF is made from wood fiber mixed with resin (glue). It is then pressed into a wood panel and cut to size. If you ever bought a bookcase or microwave cart that had to be assembled, chances are it was probably made out of MDF. MDF does not warp like plywood since it is not a single piece of wood but rather fibers pressed and mixed to make wood panels. Dollhouses made from MDF are much, much heaver but also much more durable then dollhouses made from plywood. [Top] A die-cut dollhouse refers to the method that the wood was cut to form the pieces of the house. A dollhouse manufacturer begins with sheets of plywood that are run through a machine that stamps the pattern into the wood thereby cutting the wood into the pattern. The best way is to think of it like a giant automatic cookie cutter. The individually shaped pieces then need to be "punched out" from the sheet of plywood. The advantage of die-cut houses is the intricacy that can be achieved in the design (such as elaborate trim) and the lighter weight of the house since thin plywood is used instead of heavy cabinet-grade plywood or MDF. [Top] Aren't dollhouses for children only? Of course not! Dollhouses are for anyone and everyone! Even husbands are into dollhouses after seeing how much fun their wives were having furnishing their own dollhouses. Dollhouses are for everyone, regardless of age or gender. Our article titled "The History of Dollhouses" talks about how some of the earliest dollhouses were built and "played with" by grown men and women! ! So the next time you think dollhouses are just for children, remember The History of Dollhouses and let your imagination run wild! [Top] How did dollhouses come into existence? Information about the earliest known dollhouse dates back to somewhere between 1550 and 1580 where Albert V., Duke of Bavaria commissioned a dollhouse to be built modeled after his own house. From there, dollhouses were used to teach young ladies about household management, as display cases for travel souvenirs, and as toys for children. Our article "The History of Dollhouses" has detailed information about dollhouses from their early days to today. [Top] Where can I buy wallpaper, lights, and floor coverings for my dollhouse? There are many places where you can buy lights, wallpaper and floor coverings for your dollhouse. Some craft stores sell dollhouse wallpaper and floor coverings as well as hundreds of online stores. Miniatures.com sells mostly everything you would need for furnishing your dollhouse. A quick search in your favorite search engine will also provide you with dozens of online stores. [Top] Where can I buy furniture and accessories for my dollhouse? Furniture and accessories for your dollhouse can be purchased or made by you. There are dozens of online stores that sell miniature furniture and accessories. There are also many online stores that sell unique, handmade miniature items. A quick search on your favorite search engine will provide you with numerous links to online stores that sell miniature furniture and accessories. [Top] How should I clean my dollhouse? Cleaning your dollhouse is easy and fun! Yes, we did say fun! Unless something drastic happens, your dollhouse will only need dusting from time to time to keep it looking like the showpiece it is. A simple household duster (like Swiffer) will do nicely for the outside of the dollhouse. Use caution around any delicate trim. For the inside, a small, dry paintbrush will act as a duster to remove any dust on your dollhouse furniture. If your furniture is really dusty, you can remove the furniture and use a can of compressed air to remove any dust and replace the furniture. That's the fun part - rearranging your dollhouse after cleaning! [Top] How should I display my dollhouse? Your dollhouse is a showpiece and an extension of your tastes and decorating style. Therefore, your dollhouse should be prominently displayed for all to see, especially you! Depending on the size of the dollhouse, it could be on a shelf or on its own table. Some dollhouse collectors prefer to display their houses facing front out, while others prefer back facing out. It depends on your personal preference. It is advised that you display your dollhouse out of the way of direct sun so that the sun does not fade the house or furnishings inside. [Top] What should I use as a platform for displaying my dollhouse? Depending on the size of your dollhouse, you can use anything from a piece of ceramic floor tile to a large table. Microwave carts are excellent display tables since they are typically on wheels and provide for easy "spinning" to display the front and back of the dollhouse. There are also display tables that spin around. You can make your own "spinning" platform with a piece of plywood and a lazy Susan base that you attach to the wood. Nearly anything you can think of will provide a great platform for your dollhouse. Just be sure it is sturdy enough to support the weight of the house and all the furnishings inside. [Top] |
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Questions about buying a dollhouse What dollhouse should I get for a young child? Any dollhouse is good for a young child. It depends on how long you want the dollhouse to last and how much you wish to spend. Dollhouses made from thinner plywood (such as die cut houses) will not have the durability that a house made from cabinet grade or MDF (Medium Density fiberwood) would have. Our suggestion would be to get a dollhouse with large rooms that is made of cabinet grade plywood. Real Good Toys manufacturers dollhouses made of MDF and cabinet grade plywood that are excellent for children to play with. [Top] What type of dollhouse should I buy? If you are buying a dollhouse for yourself as something to display your miniature collection, any house that appeals to your taste, budget, and space availability would be perfect. It's best to look at a variety of houses to get an idea of what style you like - Victorian, Georgian, Colonial, large, small, etc. Then, once you have an idea of the style you like, determine your budget to spend on the house. Lastly, determine where you will display the house. Once you have an idea of style, price and size, then you can find your dream dollhouse. [Top] Most dollhouses shipped by us are shipped by UPS Ground or UPS Freight, depending on the size and weight of the dollhouse. If the dollhouse is extremely heavy or very, very large, we may use a different shipping method. Please see our Shipping Policy under the Customer Service Tab for additional information. [Top] Can I pick up my dollhouse in person? Yes, if you are in in the South-Florida area and would like to pick up your dollhouse in person, please let us know and we can arrange a convenient time when you can pick up your dollhouse. [Top] We can deliver your dollhouse to you if you are within a 120 mile radius of us or near all major cities in the South Florida. The major cities we can deliver to include Palm Beach, Ft. Myers, Ft. Lauderdale, and Northern Miami. Please contact us for additional information about delivery. There will be a delivery charge for delivering your dollhouse depending on your location. [Top] Can you build a dollhouse kit I already have? Yes. If you have a dollhouse kit you purchased that you would like us to build, we can build it for you and finish it to your specifications. The kit must be complete and have all the parts (including instructions) in order for us to be able to build it. Please contact us for additional information about having us build your dollhouse kit. [Top] Can you custom build a dollhouse for me with my own colors? Yes, we can take a dollhouse kit of your choice and custom build it for you. Pricing for custom built dollhouses varies depending on the dollhouse and level of finishing. Please contact us for additional information about building your dollhouse kit. [Top] What type of materials do you use to assemble the dollhouses? We use high-quality materials that you can buy in most any hardware store. Specifically, we use wood glue, regular wallpaper paste, latex house paint and latex primer, oil-based stain, rubber cement for gluing floors, and epoxy glue for attaching shingles. We do not use lead based paint on any of our dollhouses. [Top] We do not sell the unfinished, unbuilt dollhouse kits. We only sell the assembled kit in either finished or unfinished form. If you wish to purchase the dollhouse kit itself, please visit the manufacturer's website for that kit. [Top] |
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Questions about finishing a dollhouse What tools will I need to finish a dollhouse? If you purchase an unfinished dollhouse from Small World Builders, we will include a detailed list of items you will need to finish your dollhouse. Depending on how you wish to finish your dollhouse, these items may include (but not be limited to) paint (in your choice of color), wallpaper, wood floor or carpet, lights and lighting accessories, stain (for the shingles and floors), wood glue or white glue, paintbrushes in various sizes, an x-acto knife, scissors, sandpaper, masking tape, a clear workspace, and imagination. [Top] Should I pick a finished or unfinished dollhouse? That depends on how comfortable you feel finishing a dollhouse yourself. Finishing a dollhouse once it is built is not very difficult but does require some patience and basic skills. There is some time and effort to go into finishing the dollhouse so take that into consideration. If you want a house you can finish to your liking, perhaps to work on with someone else (a child, spouse or friend), then an unfinished dollhouse is for you. If you want a house that you can immediately begin decorating without having to lift a paintbrush or bottle of glue, then a finished house is for you. A finished house will cost more due to the amount of work that went into it, but you will not have to spend any time painting, gluing on trim, wallpapering, laying floor, or gluing shingles. You can jump right into adding furniture and accessories and immediately display your new house. [Top] How do I pick the colors for the exterior of my dollhouse? There are many ways you can begin selecting the colors for the exterior of your house. You can use the "historical" method selecting colors that were used during the period that house style was popular. You can match the color of your dollhouse to your own interior decor. You can select colors based on what your favorite colors are or you can pick the colors after a favorite house in your neighborhood or your own house colors. [Top] How do I pick the colors for the interior of my dollhouse? Picking the colors for the interior of your dollhouse is a fabulous, fun process. For inspiration and recommendations, try looking through magazines, on home and garden websites, or look through wallpaper websites for ideas. When choosing color scheme for each room, keep in mind the amount of light going into that room, whether the room will be lit with dollhouse lighting, and colors of adjacent rooms. [Top] How long will it take me to finish an unfinished dollhouse? The amount of time it will take you to finish an unfinished dollhouse is largely dependent on how you intend to finish the house. For example, if you decide to install lights, that will take considerably longer then foregoing lights. Hanging wallpaper will take more time then just painting a room. Installing wainscoting or paneling will take some time also. If you decide to shingle the roof instead of painting it that may add time. Also, consider the type of shingles you will use (i.e., if the shingles come in strips or individually) since installing individual shingles takes longer then installing strip shingles. Generally, when you purchase an unfinished dollhouse from Small World Builders, expect to spend at least a few hours finishing it but you can easily finish one of our unfinished dollhouse in a weekend or so. [Top] |
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