Pages

Monday, October 20, 2014

FAO Schwarz Keystone Dollhouse Tour

 Today I bring you a new dollhouse tour!  I've had this house for a couple years, and have finally finished up with the inside.  It is a Keystone house that was sold exclusively at FAO Schwarz in the 1950's and 1960's, from what I understand.  It's the largest model that Keystone made, which made it fun to decorate, since there's so much space!
 
The occupants of this house are the Meyers.  They are the first Erna Meyer dolls I got, thus their name.  You may remember them from last year's Christmas dollhouse.  Actually, you'll probably remember some of the furniture and layout from that house as well, although this is actually a different house (same floor plan) than that one.
 
In this family we've got Papa, Mama, Big Sister, Little Brother, Baby, Kitty, and also their beloved Mammy.  Mammy actually came with my 1906 dollhouse, but she fell in love with this family, so has decided to work for them instead!
 
 Here is the house as a whole, before we start the room-by-room tour.
 
 We'll begin in the kitchen.  Mammy is working on some lunch, while Mama puts Baby in her high chair to eat.
 
 Looks like the Meyers' could use a new kitchen table, or at least some new paint on their old one!
 
 Mammy loves the extra storage space in this kitchen- not many dollhouse kitchens have a separate pantry cupboard!
 
 While Baby is eating her lunch, Mama will show you her dining room.
 
 She's very proud of her matching dining room set, and loves having dinner parties to show it off.
 
 Although her serving cart is empty right now, be assured that it's nice and full of party beverages when guests come!
 
 She'll play a little piano music while you look around her living room.
 
 And Papa will entertain you with his singing- anyone up for a round of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow"?
 
 Even Kitty likes to sit in the comfy chair and listen to the beautiful music!
 
 Let's go upstairs and see what the children are up to in the nursery, shall we?  Looks like Little Brother is riding his horse toy, and Big Sister is playing with her doll.
 
 Now that they've got guests, they want to show you that they each have their very own beds!  Little Brother still needs a little step stool to climb into his though.
 
 They also have a little writing desk in the corner and a nice big dollhouse of their own up on the chest.
 
 Mama comes upstairs with Baby.  She's finished her lunch, and Mama's going to rock her a bit before her nap.
 
 Right now, Baby sleeps in a crib in her parent's bedroom, but soon she'll be able to move into the nursery with the older kids.
 
 Night-night little Baby.  Have a nice nap!
 
 Finally we make our way to the bathroom.  Mammy has come up to do some laundry.  The Meyers are very lucky to have a washer and dryer in their house!
 
 Mama wants to check her hair and make-up, and Big Sister wants to help!
 
"Can I put on some lipstick, Mama?  Please??"
"Alright, but don't tell your Papa!"
 
And there we have it!  That's the whole tour- here's another shot of the whole house.  I really love this house, but of course, I say that about all my dollhouses!
 
I've got several other houses that are close to ready for tours as well.  Most of them are pretty much finished, but just need final touches like curtains, bedspreads, knick-knacks, etc. 
 
If anyone is interested, I'm actually selling this same dollhouse model on Ebay right now.  I ended up with two of the same house, so am selling the other one.  It's a really fun model- you know you want it, right?? 
 

Thursday, October 09, 2014

Newest Studio Remodel

 First, I'd like to thank you all for your sympathetic words regarding my failed estate sale purchases from my last post.  It's always nice to know that I'm not completely crazy, and that others feel the same way I do!  I'm over my disappointment now though, and considering what I'm showing you in this post, it's probably a good thing that my efforts were thwarted during my little estate sale venture!
 
Above are photos of the entrance to my studio from the years 2008, 2011, and from today.  Hmmm, do you notice anything happening in there over the years?  Other than the aqua paint color looking like it's changed three times (it hasn't), I think that there's been just a bit of hoarding collecting going on, don't you think?
 
Ever since I started seriously collecting dollhouses, space in my studio has been an issue, as I'm sure you can imagine.  I always seem to find room for one more, but it's been getting harder and harder!  So I finally convinced my wonderful husband to build me some extra shelves in the ol' studio.
 
 They run from the white cabinet to the opposite wall...
 
 ...then wrap around the corner to the other cabinets.  While I did lose a bit of wall space, I gained a ton of shelf space, which is what I needed!  As you can see, the perfect amount of space to display some more dollhouses!  And also more space for my other doll furniture and other collectibles.
 
 The shelves in the cabinets over here are all full,...
 
... as are the tops of the cabinets!  I am a master at stuffing it all in, I tell ya! 
 
So, now that you've seen the overall picture, I'll show you some little bits of eye candy from around the room, because of course, that's the whole reason I collect this stuff- it's so fun to look at!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Well, there you have it- the latest state of my studio.  I hope you enjoyed it!  I still think I could stuff one or two more dollhouses in there, don't you?