Nailheads: I am a new webby from N.Z. Just read your problem nailhead letter. I made a stone cottage - using real rock pieces - with a corrugated roof and my nail heads were made with little blobs - dots or what ever you like to call them - with liquid lead. Seems to hold its shape and looks quite realistic.

Lyn Wilkins.

18th century barn: My next project will be the interior of a derelict 18th English century barn, and I'm having a hard time finding out what it would have been made of. All reference books I've consulted go into great detail about houses and public structures, but I can't find anything that tells me which materials a farmer would have used to construct his barn. Perhaps a stone foundation and wooden or thatched roof?

Lynn

18C English barns. It depends on what part of England the barn would have been. In Sussex for example, there were/are lots of barns made from flint - chipped and fixed in place with mortar. In Somerset barns were often made from the local stone, a beautiful golden colour, In Cornwall/Devon, made from 'Cob' (a sort of plaster, finished white) with a thatched roof, in other areas they were made from wooden planks.......I could go on.

Jacqui in Hampshire, UK

Slate Roofs: Microcosm Miniatures
http://www.microcosm-miniatures.com.au/cart/ sells moulded plastic slates on a roll. I had the idea of real slates for my church but the weight would have been too much for the MDF roof so I looked around and Microcosm carry this roll stuff. It is on a strip, moulded to resemble slate and comes in grey slate and a red/brown slate for decorative accents. It glues on along the top which is then hidden by the next row sort of like shingles. My MDF church roof has roof trusses to support it but it would still have sagged (apparently) under the weight. We have some huge bits of slate about an inch or so thick that were used originally for crazy paving in the garden, so I asked stonemason about cutting slices to size for me. He laughed and then tried (unsuccessfully) to cover his smirk when he realized I was serious. Men! It was a darn good idea at the time!

Trace, Melbourne, Australia

Orrin's Turntable Idea: Not only is this a good idea, it works beautifully. I have used Lazy Susans, even Rubbermaid turntables, divided them into halves and made wonderful scenes. Great for the front façade of any store with window-shoppers looking through the window and the interior of the front of the shop. Good for Halloween trick-or treat scenes, and the list goes on and on and on.

Becky Holliday

Book cases with glass fronts - they're perfect for miniature scenes. Many years ago I bought an antique 3-section bookcase (each section fits onto the top of the lower section, and each has a swinging glass door that slides up into the top.) Mine was for a Dr's or Attorney's books, so each section is taller than usual. But I've seen reproduction bookcases out there this size for sale. The only thing you can't do is a ceiling. One section of mine is a miniature doll shop. Another is a miniature Victorian Dress and Hat Shop, and the third section is split into two rooms: a parlor where little girls are playing with their dollhouse, and a Bride's bedroom. The doors even have locks on them, for safe keeping. I consider that bookcase one of the best investments I ever made.

Paulette in IN

Front Opening Houses: You can get around the landscaping issues by having very low foundation landscaping with the sidewalk directly in front of the house and creating a yard/garden on the side. Cut some windows in the back and cover the outsides with pretty postcards so you are not looking at the wall. Another idea I saw somewhere and an still "thinking on" was a front opening house that had a tiny ledge extending into the room over the floor. Then when you open the front a tiny bit of the room comes away with it. They had small things on it, like perhaps a stool, some vases, and stuff like that. This way the hinged front had sort of a vignette effect.

Linda in GA

Front/back opening houses; In the UK we are more familiar with front opening houses and speaking for myself I prefer to look at the house "face on" with all the curtains "flapping" as it were just as they did in the early days of Baby Houses. The best dolls house makers in the UK will put additional windows in the sides, back, or wherever you want them to maximize light, viewing and realism. The dolls houses they make are usually the basic item (excellent in itself) but customers can make changes or additions to this design to suit their own requirements.
To answer the question about kits having "ready cut parts". It means what it says. The entire house is all cut out so all you have to do is follow the instructions and fix it all together like a giant jigsaw puzzle. With a plywood house of top quality there is minimal sanding or filling of gaps. I have completed a Honeychurch Town House and am working on an Anglesey Victorian shop and after just priming and sanding they were both ready to decorate.

Karon

Front Opening Dollhouses: Following the thread about dollhouses that are front opening. Speaking from the "displaying" point of view for our miniature museum due to open the end of June--they are difficult to display. We have one dollhouse that has a removable front and back and we will hang these pieces above the dollhouse. Another house has hinges on 2 sections of the front. We will also hang these pieces--however, it is a shame to lose the lovely 2nd floor porch area--but to be able to see the interior, it is necessary. We also have a 3 story + dormer apt house with shops on the 1st floor. This building is completely enclosed and the dormer areas lift up. It has a lovely facade which loses a lot when it is opened. We choose not to open the dormers but are opening the two sides. We had to have display bases and covers built for these pieces and displaying is not a "piece of cake." I think front-openings are fine for your own personal use, but for museum display they create some display problems.

This is one reason that my big dollhouse has the front and back solid and the both sides open, with plexi on each floor that can be removed with the simple removal of 2 screws. That way if I want to get into the kitchen, I remove that floor's plexi (about 12" high and 36" wide) and don't have to wrestle with a huge piece of plastic that covers the entire side.

Fay in St. Louis

Front Opening Dollhouses: This is not to try to sway anyone's opinions, but there is much to be said for both styles of mini houses. The N.E. Town House featured on my web site is a front opening style and it was a delight to work in. There are windows in the back. There are 15 windows on the front doors and I always have it closed when someone new comes to see it so they can "window peep" inside. Since it is electrified, it never fails to delight them.

When it was on exhibit twice, I had a piece of Plexiglas which was screwed to the opened front and the doors remained open but could still be seen if desired. It was built in 1980 and I have never had to dust anything in it. The same does not hold true for my "real" house that we live in. I also have a Victorian dh with a tower, which is four sided (like a real house) and it stands in a corner on a table built for it. It is not finished but is a pain to try to turn around even though it stands away from the walls. Those zero-clearance turn tables would be nice, but I don't have one & suspect they are very pricey.

Jeanette in Wisconsin

Front Opening Dollhouses: To avoid the "box" room look, what if you did a false wall a few inches into the room, with the door propped half open. Before you glued in the wall you could set up part of a scene to glimpse through the door way. Maybe a pantry or linen closet type thing? What does everyone think? I haven't tried it but it sounds neat. I bet you could even make the false wall removable incase you ever wanted to redecorate with a minimum of effort.

Linda in GA

Side Opening House: To all who want to see a house with side-openings: Have you ever seen this website? It has a great house with little shops on the ground floor and lovely rooms : it opens on both sides. But also other great projects worth visiting. Is this a member from SS? I don't know where I got this website, but it is GORGEOUS! Worth visiting and drooling!
http://swallace.bizland.com/chessington_plazamainpage.htm

I have a front opening house, mainly because of the cats and the dust. But I am very happy with it. The front also tells something about the house and the period. AND: What is a shop without a front?!

Atie J. from Holland

Houseworks Victorian/Front Opening Dollhouses: I have the Houseworks Victorian and I love it. It was my dream house. Some things haven't gone well but we keep plugging away.

One of my complaints about dolls houses is they have so many windows that it becomes hard to arrange furniture. I opted not to put the windows in the back panel because of this. I have a fireplace on the back wall of the living room and the room above which will be the master bedroom. I also added a staircase from the second to third floors. We split the top floor into three rooms and one is the bathroom. I didn't use the bathroom that they suggest on the second floor. That is one big room.

One of the windows that goes onto the balcony is now a door. I moved the steps to the front of the porch and made the base of the porch shorter so I can have real lattice. I'm sure that doesn't make sense but it works.

I really suggest you get the plan book that comes separate. Some of the directions that came with the house are poor (at least to me). We used piano hinges (very long hinges from Home Depot) instead of the short ones that come with the kit for the roof. It is much sturdier. We've had some problems with the doors, they just don't want to hang right. And at least in my house, there are still dust bunnies even with the doors. It's a great house .

Rita A.

Front Opening Dollhouses: Coming from the UK myself I cannot for the life of me understand why anybody would want the bother of spinning a house around just to look at it from the back. All you have to do is arrange your landscaping to accommodate the opening 'doors'. I don't fully understand your idea about postcards Linda - you don't have to cut a hole in the wall of the house but you can always put a 'false' window on the back wall to make it look as if there is a view beyond. Is this what you mean? My basement did not have access to the main house for some obscure reason so I have 'done away' with the stairs to the main house and will put in a false door with a piccy of stairs beyond it giving the illusion of a staircase and at the same time allowing me to put that space that should be the basement hallway to better use. Does this make sense to you? now that I see it in print it looks confusing but I cannot think how else to explain it!

Dolly Kay

Front Opening Dollhouses/Plexiglas front: My house opens from the front so that the stairs go up from front to back. The outside front of the house is in one piece with windows, clapboard, etc. So that I wouldn't have to remove the front every time someone wanted to see it, I came up very a very satisfactory solution. I used tiny earth magnets (very powerful - available from Lee Valley) and countersunk them into the inside edges of both the house and the front piece making sure they match properly. I have extra magnets and a piece of Plexiglas that fits over the front and is easily held in place with the magnets. Because the magnets are countersunk, the front piece will fit right over the plexi if I don't feel like removing it. I'm really pleased with this and plan to do the same technique on roomboxes. Hope this gives you some ideas.

Housebound in Ontario

Front Opening Dollhouses: When putting in a window that will ultimately face the wall of the real house as in the back wall of a front opening dollhouse, I actually go ahead and cut the window opening. Install a regular component type window. Hang window treatments as usual inside. Then I use some "blue tac" or a similar product to mount a post card or magazine pic on the outside of the window to simulate a view seen out the window. This way you can change the view easily as seasons change or just whatever suits your fancy. I wish I could say I thought this up myself but I know I read it somewhere. I guess I am just lucky to remember the idea and never mind where I found it! LOL

Linda in GA

Front Opening Dollhouses/Sid Cooke: Oh joy! I'm new to the list but thought I'd jump in on this one as I am currently deeply embroiled in an English style kit.

After years of daydreaming about dollhouses, I finally made the move to dive in. Not being overly fond of the majority of American style houses I spent a weekend scouring the UK websites and ran across the Sid Cooke line:
http://www.sidcooke-dollshouses.sageweb.co.uk/

Their prices for shipping to the US were very reasonable I thought (but I expected it to be hefty, so this could be relative), and they ship directly, so do email them for specifics. They are very forthcoming & friendly. You also, as an American, do not have to pay VAT, so the price is a little cheaper than listed.

I prefer the front opening houses because it is the front of the house that I want displayed on a daily basis and I don't like the idea of turning it around for peaking, but I *do* agree with the windowless box issues Molly mentioned ... which is why I liked some of the Cooke houses as several have internal windows & doors. I picked the Bow St. Corner Shop as it was only two rooms that I could decorate easily, and fit in with my dual purpose of having a shop and also a room to play with. It also helped inspire my theme ... which will be a Hogarth inspired house (with a li'l Tom Jones thrown in), the shop will be a quackish apothecary & the second floor a harlots boudoir (loose inspiration from "The Harlots Progress" & "Before & After"). The exterior (so far) is weathered stone & cracked plaster and is currently entitled "Gin Lane" ... hehe

But as to specifics regarding the Sid Cooke House/Shop (at least the one I am working on) ... it is very sturdy MDF sides & back with plywood fronts. Trim, window & doors included. The windows are molded plastic with *no* glazing ... the door is a little simple so I may replace it with the Houseworks "Palladian" but this will take some adjustment of the door opening. All the parts are cut and no need for punching out, tho some sanding is in order. Had I not been decorating & painting as I went, it could have been up in a day easily. Comes with some wood glue, hinges, nails & fine sandpaper. Excellently packed and with a little extra $ arrived in a week! The main weirdness with the corner shops is that the rooms are roughly 12" x 12" ... and a square room is a little awkward to decorate convincingly.

Kallisti

Front Opening Dollhouses: For those of you who have yet to be converted to front opening houses (I have both, but I much prefer the front opening ones as I have an inquisitive cat and two children).

I think these houses are a natural evolution from the cupboard houses which
were the first kind of baby houses.

Go and look at Honeychurch toys' site. All their houses are front opening, but the facades can be extremely elaborate. I love them, especially the corner shop! They're beautifully cut and constructed, too. http://www.honeytoys.co.uk/houses/hdhouses01.html

My big half timbered house opens at the front and the side. It was made by a local joiner, who did what he thought was best. What I love about the openings is that each room has its own opening, so you can have one room open at a time (except for the attics, where the roof is hinged up). all the joins are hidden by the timbers. I love it! When DH gets round to taking some pics for me, I'll put them up on my website, to show you what I mean.

Lynne Connolly

house openings: I think my fav is side-opening houses, ranging from the various bungalows I've seen to the Seaside Villa we've been treated to pics/descriptions of . With these types, you get to see the facade and the inside of the house, with no 'dangly bits' (curtains flapping in the breeze, etc.). Just my .02, of course!

Molly/StormBorn

Side Opening Houses: I have a side-opening house on my Photo Point site, if you want to take a look. It's the Yellow Townhouse.
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumList?u=742148

Dani, in Bradshaw, MD

Covering rear of dollhouse with Plexiglas: I attach the plexi with Velcro strips. I hide the strips with pieces of molding applied to the exterior. Easy, economical and attractive. Some of mine have been in place more years than I care to admit.

Becky