New or rehab preferences and advice

[amyole]

Recently a new member asked about purchasing an already built house to rehab or purchasing a new kit. There was a lot of advice for both options, so I thought maybe we could all put down our preferences and recommendations.

Here are my thoughts:

I became a little soured on rehabs when I tried to rehab a very old, scratch built house that was falling apart every time I touched it. I ended up scrapping it (& still carry the guilt). I did not have the experience to know that either it was probably beyond repair or really be able to repair it. I have purchased a couple of houses that were partially put together and that has worked out better (2 have had hot glue that has to be removed). That said, I prefer to purchase a kit. I like the clean slate and am learning how to bash kits a little now that I have some experience.

Price has also factored into my decisions. Some of the kits I have found or partially made houses have been financially worth the investment. I would not have known what was reasonable when I first started (but sometimes my impulsiveness still gets the best of me).

[Sable]

My second house was purchased through Craigslist and it was a perfectly pre-built kit. It had been primed but that was it as far as decor.  It was a massive Worthington. Personally, I don't think I would ever but a kit for a massive house, I would search out one already built but not finished. On the other hand, I don't mind building from a kit if it is a medium or smaller sized. 

Another deciding factor is that I like to use my own roof shingles. I wouldn't buy a house that has already been shingled.

[CraftyMtnMom]

I prefer to build the kits, but have one house for rehab and recently gave a fully built, almost completely decorated house to my great, great niece (she's only 3). She loves the house and plays with it daily.

I think that I would have to see the condition before I absolutely went with a house for rehab. I saw one not long ago on Craigslist and it was in bad shape in my opinion. There was obvious mold and water stains. Even if they would have given it for free, I don't think it would have been worth the effort.

[havanaholly]

IF the house has good "bones" I might consider a rehab, IF it meets a few other considerations; cheap or free and built with hot glue, so that I can take it completely part and start over.  I prefer to start with a clean slate/ NIB kit.  I might still make new doors, windows, stairs or whatever I might want to change or add, but basically rehabbing for me isn't really fun unless I can rebuild.

[fov]

When I was pretty new to minis, I paid too much (in retrospect) for a built McKinley and started rehabbing it, but got really frustrated. It wasn't poorly built, but it was 20-30 years old and needed a lot of work to spruce it up. If I'd bought the kit new it would have been the same amount of work but a blank canvas for me to work from, and theoretically better wood (or at least newer wood). I ended up giving the partially rehabbed house away for free to a woman who said she wanted to rehab it for her granddaughter, but she'd never done a dollhouse before... I wouldn't blame her if she ended up trashing it!

I think part of why I didn't enjoy rehabbing that house was that it was an older die cut kit, so the wood was in no better shape than if I'd built it from a kit -- but it had already been assembled without all the prep work to make the plywood look nice (work that I've since realized I hate doing!). I haven't done any other extensive rehabs, but earlier this year I bought a finished Front Opening Victorian (cabinet-grade plywood) and I think I'll have an easier time with that because nothing's begging to be ripped apart. With the die-cut houses you *can* rip them apart, fairly easily, which is tempting if you want to change things, but that's when it spirals into a situation where it might have been easier to just start from scratch.

 

 

 

[kathi17]

I prefer starting from scratch, but if I saw an unusual house that was really different from anything available as a kit, I would grab it if it was the right price.

I wouldn't buy a readily available house to rehab unless it was a really good price on a house I couldn't afford the kit for. I really like the building and decorating part, but I don't like repairing houses that are already built!

[thresadep]

Yep. Good "bones" and reasonable price. Otherwise pass.  If the price is cheap,use for parts. . Make sure to save anything you remove.  Never know if you need is or can't find a new piece to fit.  I'm starting a rehab soon myself. Figure either this is a great idea of a bad one. Lol

[jbnmini]

I guess for me, my love of seeing RL old houses getting fixed up and brought back to life filtered down into my miniature life.    I get pleasure from seeing an old, worn out dollhouse being brought back to a new life for another generation to love.

Sure, trying to fix another builder's mistakes can be frustrating but I love the challenge - plus, I am learning to hone my skills with each rehab I do!  Now if I could just have a steadier hand at painting! 

I do like the "starting from a clean slate" at times....I have a huge Hofco kit waiting in the wings for me....I guess I just prefer the rehab process. 

[claireliontamer]

I only have experience of one of each so not a great sample size but here are my thoughts.

The rehab was the first house I got and I was lucky that the shell is extremely well made and is very solid.  It is challenging in places though and I find myself wishing parts weren't already glued on.

It wasn't really until I got the kit (a sugarplum so one of the simple ones) that I really realised how much easier decorating a kit was.  It's so nice to be able to plan properly! 

However, I do think overall at the moment I am getting more satisfaction and enjoying the rehab more. Feels more unique as it's a house I haven't seen anywhere else.

[stickyfingers]

I also think it depends on the house. I don't know if I'd want to bother rehabbing a small, easily found house, as it would probably be faster and easier to build from scratch. I also wouldn't bother with something that had extensive damage,  or had to be completely taken apart to be fixed.

I would take on anything that was free, though, because, well, free is free. A partially built house, or an unusual/uncommon house would be worth it.

The Craigslist/Freecycle/thrift/garage sale finds here are slim to none, though, so it doesn't really seem to be much of an issue for me. There was a $20 Garfield that I missed on Craigslist that I'm still sad over. The shell was complete, covered in white primer, kit had all of the remaining pieces, plus flooring and wallpaper sheets thrown in. $20!!! Nice seller, but someone beat me to it.

[LPCullen]

I prefer to build from the start, but that may be because I enjoy the building process too. However, if a dollhouse "falls into my lap", I won't turn it away LOL

[Elsbeth]

I'm the odd one out here..I prefer to buy fantastic finished houses done with skills I don't have by artists I will never catch up to. I LOVE a well built, finished, decorated house. I furnish them and thats it. I leave them be and marvel at them. Instead of spending time building, I decorate for the seasons, add to accessories...basically a 1:12 retiree who is enjoying what I have.

However, I have built my glencroft from scratch and then rehabbed my own work after improving skills over the years (i rebuilt all the window frames with better wood, redid trim and some floors). It took a lot of time.

Now I build quarter scale kits--love it as I can get a lot done in a smaller scale. But, I still find myself buying beautifully finished quarter scale houses...I guess that is just how it will be.

Short answer: I prefer neither scratch build nor rehab. But I've done them both.

[minikelli]

I personally like both, kits and rehab houses. I obviously like them for different reasons, and admittedly some rehabs have made me want to just start with the kit. When all is said and done I love the building process, and with a number of rehabs I'll take them completely apart to get rid of old hot glue and papers/flooring that I just don't think go with the vision I'm seeing. There are houses however I've gotten for rehab that other than touching up shingles and re-doing some paper I've been completely happy with how they've been built.
My main reason for loving the kits and building from scratch however is due to the matter I have knowledge that it is built soundly and to a point I can be comfortable with it structurally. Both have their ups and downs no matter which way you go, just a matter in trying them both and seeing what you yourself prefer to deal with.  :)

[wormwoodz]

I'm not as lucky as to live in a country where dollhouses are an accessible hobby, specially after the economic crisis few years back that hit europe pretty hard, most shops for miniature planes/trains/cars etc in my area closed... Since this hobby wasn't very popular in the first place, oportunities to find good used deals for rehab are also practically nonexistant. If however I had plenty of oportunities to get old dollhouses for a reasonable price I would definitelly like to try this option. Unfortunately since they can't be shipped internationally (at least in a safe and affordable way) I can but only sigh and hope one day I'll be lucky to find a good deal closer to me.

Another thing that's not very popular here is American style dollhouses, I had to look everywhere for a victorian house and couldn't find anything that would fit that style (odd, I know!). Having a 'niche' hobby in a country with low population can be a bit frustrating sometimes 

[shamrockgirl18]

Personally, I love rehabbing dollhouses, as long as they are stable. I find the building process tedious, and for me the exciting part is deciding on a theme/residents/interior decorations. I don't mind if I need to repaint or put up new wallpaper or new flooring, but it's much more fun for me if the house is already put together.