mc10213

aw, one of my favorite celebrity couples! very romantic :throb:

http://www.greenleafdollhouses.com/forum/index.php?app=gallery&album=5766 is the link to the album-- I've included shots of the structural detail (which serve both style and function), classic straw and stick furniture (they hold up for YEARS!), panoramic views of the house, and greenery. If you have any questions about the structure, please feel free to message me.

Thanks a bunch for all your kindness, everybody! Currently my mom's eldest brother and younger brother split up the time between every 6 months to settle in and make sure the "live-in help" are doing their job to up keep it. We have a huge family, so there's always somebody visiting the house. Not to mention, directly behind our home is my maternal grandfather's brother's home, so they also look after it. I'll make an album now of some of the building process, and the end result-- maybe it'll come in handy for some!

the old house was taken down completely. My cousins saved about 5 or 6 bricks from the old house, and we had them embedded into the inner wall of the living room-- we kept them unpainted, so that they are visible. it's like a mini wall shrine.

I'm sorry to be posting so much, but I just remembered that our own home was recently re-built/renovated... and although it's not a dollhouse, it illustrates just how drastic the homes can be! left: our home, built in the early 1920s... when Bangladesh was "East Pakistan". right: it took about a year for the new house to be up. BIG difference, eh?

Aw, that's a really intriguing question. Bangladesh is considered one of the most corrupt and over crowded countries in the world-- therein, the homes are either made out of straws OR they are huge villas. It represents the fact that there really isn't a "middle-class" population. The doll houses, and even dolls, that are most commonly made are usually out of mudbrick, wood, or straw. They are usually very humble in appearance and full of cultural detail-- like filigree designs, floral artistry, and paisley prints. I have yet to see a dollhouse built lavishly because that kind of a world just isn't relevant to the majority of children who are born to low income families. Their idea of luxury is a toy-- no matter what that toy is. Also, back then plastic was branded unsafe (even lead poisoning was common). My first doll was a square piece of cloth with lots of cotton balls inside, and we would twist the full portion of the cloth to make it look like a head and then draw on a face I didn't have plastic toys until I was 7 because my parents didn't want my cousins and I to fall ill. I often visit back home and look through all my childhood memorabilia, and I thank you for asking because it took me back down memory lane.

Yes, Deb-- my dad made both the brown and the teal house. He also made the furniture in that photo. Here's a better look: