Sink: Just saw one in an old NN that appeared to be a Sucrets box (maybe) with a snap grommet for the drain hole. looked very good.

Leslie

Antique Houses: Please, if you want to restore a dollhouse yourself, PLEASE wear a respirator. If this is a turn-of-the-century dh, you may want to give this some thought...1. It may have LEAD PAINT. You would not know this for sure, unless you have a paint chip analyzed. 2. It could have some sort of historical significance. In either case, I would wear a respirator when handling. I have several items I suspect have had lead paint. If this were my house, I would (respirator on) use a soft animal hair paint brush to 'clean house', over a disposable drop cloth. Then seal the heck out of the dh. I would NOT allow a child to play with it because of unknown paint products. Just a display. I don't mean to scare anyone out of purchasing an antique anything. The paint could very well be Milk paint. So please, be very careful.

Rita

Iowa Stores: One is in Bettendorf itself and the other is in Waterloo. They both have ads in the May issue of DM. One on page 9 and the other on page 67. Chelsea Lane House of Miniatures, located in Toad's Treasures Antique Mall by the Holiday Inn Convention Center, downtown. 622 Commercial. Phone: 319-234-3235 (I have never been to this store). The Cranny 2120 E. 11th. St. Davenport Ph: 319-324-3785 (I was in this one quite a few years ago and it was nice then) Davenport and Bettendorf are more or less the same place. I guess Bettendorf would be considered a suburb.

Jeni

Magazines: if you want a magazine primarily for projects, your best bets are probably Dollhouse Miniatures (US) or Dolls House World (UK); the latter is more expensive, but overall more of the projects are better suited to beginners than DM's, and sometimes a bit more unusual. I haven't seen the UK Projects magazine, so can't judge that.

Loretta Sniarowski

Harry Smith Book: I want to say that I recently received Harry Smith's book "The Art of Making Furniture in Miniature". The best part is that it is one of the best books I have seen for crafting miniature furniture. This book is for making fine furniture indeed - no drawer pulls fashioned from beads, no balsa wood, etc. It is clear, concise, very well illustrated and quite inspiring. I recommend it to anyone who considers building from scratch, as well as to those who build from kits. In fact, it is especially good for kit builders, because it gives you information on assembly, sanding and finishing, which will allow you to build that kit at a much higher level.

Jonathan in Israel

Filling Punch Cups: The clear/tinted nail polish sounds like a winner. However, BEWARE - if there's a way to test it. Some plastics/acrylics just don't jive. Last summer I made a doll for a show in Atlanta ("Madam Martini"). I found some of those little clear plastic champagne glasses in a party store (about 2" tall?), and thought if I filled it with clear polish, and garnished with a bead/olive, I'd have a great martini. It looked fabulous - that night - the next morning I figured that was sufficient time to 'set up' and harden, not only did it not set up, but it completely melted the cup into a grotesque Salvador Dali thingee. Madam Martini looked equally crestfallen. With the tiny Chrysnbon cups if you're just PAINTING them with tinted/clear polish it may be okay, but be careful of FILLING them. All nail polishes are not made the same. Good luck.

dollladie

Jars: Try using some clear plastic straws (cut in various lengths)....coat the inside of the straw with clear fingernail polish....this turns the cloudy straw into a clear one...fimo could be used to make a lid.

Shani Nelson

Kitchen cabinets: I made the kitchen cabinets in the Greystone B&B with glass fronts so you see into them, then of course you have to fill them. I made a shell somewhat like bookshelves and then made frames with the Plexiglas installed. My cabinets are actually non-working except for the fact that I did make them so the fronts would slide off if I needed to change a light bulb.

Fannye

Kitchen cabinets: For the person wanting glass fronted kitchen cabinets I thought of the hutches that Michaels sells. Some of them have double doors with dividers in them on the upper half. You could separate the part with the doors and use them for the top cabinets. Just put a clear plastic behind the doors for glass.

Elizabeth

Prairie wagon: The prairie wagon or schooner was basically a covered wagon used to transport household goods so almost anything that you would find in a home could be found in a wagon including upright pianos. They had to plan and pack the wagon very carefully to leave the things that they would be using accessible during the trip. Things such as trunks with their clothing, cooking utensils, etc., would be near the rear of the wagon. Also, their bedding would be rolled and near the rear. Often they would be spread under the wagon at night to sleep.

Rusty in Ky