Ninja

I love power tools - couldn't live without my Dremel or my Unimat Basic (jigsaw, sander & lathe all in one), and I love my bandsaw too! I have a scrollsaw but I need to start building my confidence & skill with it yet.

Thank you :-) Havanaholly, unfortunately I didn't stitch the stair runners - they are all bought ones. I am hoping one day to get time to stitch some, but that's probably a long ways off! The stair rods are painted florists wire, with a bead glued on each end & then the whole thing glued to the stair tread. Pleased you all like the rocking horse - he was one of those jobs where you get so far in that you just can't quit!

This is the upper hall. The rocking horse started life as a Schleich pony. Hope you are not squeamish...I sawed his legs off, wired them & filled with milliput to get the rocking horse stance. He got painted with acrylics & his plastic mane & tail also got the butcher treatment & were replaced with dolls hair. I made the rockers from bass wood, and the hardest bit of all was attaching horse to rockers - ended up drilling his feet & rockers in matching places, then inserting cocktail sticks covered in epoxy glue to join them. Has never come adrift since, thank goodness! His tack is made from felt & ribbons, with the stirrups made from paperclips.

Still can't seem to create an album, even a 35kb pic won't save to it! So decided to post some more here. These are the hallways, starting with lower & middle

If anyone likes reading about vintage dolls houses, try Mirror Grange - The Book of The Daily Mirror's House for Pip, Squeak & Wilfred. It's from the 1920s but is oftenavailable on Amazon, Abebooks etc. It has some wonderful info in it about how they made various pieces & the challenges etc. The house went to a children's school, but sadly seems to have ended up in a private collection & has never been heard of again.

The yellow frogtape is low tack & meant for delicate surfaces but if you look at reviews online it's a very mixed bag. Have used it before for various jobs on motorcycles, but that's glossy varnished surface, I will say it is absolutely the best on the market for preventing paint bleed under the tape. If anyone has used it in DH setting I would love to hear your experience, as the reviews always put me off trying!

Thanks everyone ;-) mks - I guess I was just in the right place at the right time! Only one was off Ebay, and that was almost unrecognisable. Three were from antique/vintage shops in a town nearby where my dad is in a care home. Having a browse clears my head when it's been a difficult visit! I did have to wait 6 months to finally get the Lines 74 as they were asking way to much for it, so I just kept offering my price periodically & they finally gave in! The small Handicrafts house was at a local auction. I left a bid at my top price & was lucky enough to get it. Elsbeth I would love to see the 1920s furnishings! I have a collection of antique furniture & bits too - I have had to restore quite a few as they seem to be getting exceptionally dear now. Re the wallpapers, the ones in the first & last two houses are original. The Lines 71 off Ebay didn't have any original papers but it did have a large heron on the back wall of the kitchen which I left, & I printed wallpapers with a bird theme to use in the rest of the house. The Lines 74 doesn't have any original papers in & the jury is still out on which way to go with it...!

Thanks for the lovely comment Jo. The rocker washer was built from bass wood & aged with steel wool soaked in vinegar. I love finding out about all the quirky things they uused to have in days gone by :-) It's lovely to see you on here - I remember you from another place a few years back, & love your work. Looking forward to catching up with your builds (can't remember my username from the other one but I'm Cath from Cumbria!)

Thank you everyone :-) Your comments are so kind, and have given me a real boost! The parquet floor seemed to take forever but has turned out as I hoped. I love doing mini needlepoint, in particular items like cushions & bell pulls as they are small enough to take anywhere with me (even though we always go off on holiday on our motorbikes, there's always a little corner to stash a small item to work on!). Here's a couple more pics. I still have tons of books to make & curios to find for the study, and the bedroom needs some ladylike clutter...

And finally a 1940s/50s Amersham - all original inside & out, just needing new acetate for the windows

I have a handmade 1930s Handicrafts house. This is also being treated for woodworm, but when it comes out, it only needs the proper windows made & some furniture, so will be trying my hand at mini fretwork for this one! It's pretty small being somewhere between 16th & 24th scale.

I just got another Lines house - a number 74 from the 1920s - it's currently all wrapped up having been treated for woodworm, so it won't be back out until autumn, but this is how it looks outside. Other than the stirs, there are no original features left inside so currently debating whether to do this one in repro Lines papers or have more fun & do it my way!

It's taken over 7 months due to sourcing the correct original windows and fireplaces, but now the exterior is restored to how it should be & I have had fun with the inside

I also have a Lines number 71 from the 1930s. This was in a bit of a state when a friend kindly alerted me to it on Ebay, in fact it was just about unrecognisable as a Lines house

Just wondering if anyone on here is into vintage houses? When I first started in minis I steered clear of them because I couldn't see the interest in having a house I could do so little with (as keeping the original decor etc seems to be the key with them), however over recent years I have had a change of heart & now have a few... This is a G&J Lines house from the 1920s, interior decor all original, exterior could be restored to original if I decide to in the future

Wonderful - just been for a tour round the album & it's magical. The sketches are fab & the end result is a masterpiece!

Thank you :-) Griffonfeathers if you shrink you can certainly move in, although the kitchen is not up to modern standards...hence the hedgehog to eat some of the bugs! Been trying to create an album but I think I must be restricted as yet as even a 35kb pic won't upload to it. So forgive me for posting a couple of upstairs pics here.

Thanks everyone. Hoping I can now post some pics of individual rooms....This is the kitchen & laundry