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House ID - worth buying?


WestPaces

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It's gorgeous but in pretty rough shape. Do you have a picture of the interior? Are they open to offers? You need to think about what you would use or how you would address those two missing columns.

If it were me, I'd probably do it, but that's because I'm a sucker for a sad old dollhouse. You have to decide what it's worth to you and then offer her that and be at peace with the response. 

Ask yourself if you would regret it if you didn't get it.. Then decide on a course of action. Good Luck!! I think it's swoon worthy :D 

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I think the two columns could be replaced with the same size dowels, but I agree with everyone else that it depends a lot on the inside. Sometimes it's harder to rehab a dollhouse than it is to just buy a new kit, build it from scratch, and decorate it yourself. If there is already wallpaper in the rooms, it may or may not be easy to remove, depending on whether the owner primed the house. I do know that removing any wainscoting can be very difficult and you may have to reshingle the entire roof. That could be difficult because then you'd have to remove the shingles already there and that's a major pain depending on how they were attached.

If the stairs on the inside were painted, you probably won't be able to do anything but repaint them unless you want to replace them completely, so if you wanted a stained staircase, you're out of luck. If any window trim has been put in on the inside and you want to redo the interior rooms, you'd have to very carefully take that trim out if you want an easier time repapering or painting the walls. Then you have to either put all the interior window trim back in or just replace the trim completely. Those windows look standard size: 2 1/2 x 5, but if they aren't, then you'll be making your own windows, too. Shutters will have to be removed to repaint the outside and the door widths look very narrow - to fit a standard door size, they should be 3 x 7.

Lift that house up and see if it has a maker's name on it. It looks familiar to me and is probably a kit house from a long gone company. That might make it worth restoring.

But I agree,  $200 is too much to pay for that house unless you are in love with it. You might not see another one for a long time, so then the price becomes secondary if you really want that particular house.

Again, though, you will have to decide how much work you really want to do. In addition to doing all the regular work of decorating a dollhouse, you have to do the extra work of removing all the previous decoration as well. Of course, some people really enjoy that and if that's the case, go for it. You know better than we do how much or how little you would enjoy doing a rehab. And if you do enjoy rehabbing a dollhouse, you'll feel very proud of yourself when you're done and you should. You'll have a beautiful house that you brought back to life again.

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Thanks everyone for your input. I keep telling myself it's not reasonable... but then I keep going back to it. My gut tells me I can make something very pretty. Inside is definitely not 'wow'. Very little to no decorating has been done, any wall and paper flooring have been scotch taped to the interior. It's all in a very 'raw' state :/ The staircase is very plain and unfinished. I think that's what appeals to me - the potential! As in real life, I like 'fixing' things so I think I'll go for it. I especially love the porch feature, the owner has the missing columns, one of which is broken but I think I can replace it with a dowel. Oh well, here goes, it's calling to me and I never was a very reasonable person. Wish me luck! :)

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Yay! I hope you get it... The less that is done to the interior the better so it sounds like you are winning in that department. Make a cheeky offer, if you don't ask you don't get.

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2 hours ago, Sable said:

Too many misplaced columns on that house. 

Now that you mention it, it does seem like an awful lot of columns for that front.  Still its a neat house.  If it was speaking to you that much, I’m glad you got it.  

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13 hours ago, Keifer said:

Now that you mention it, it does seem like an awful lot of columns for that front.  Still its a neat house.  If it was speaking to you that much, I’m glad you got it.  

The columns would be ok if the windows were spaced evenly and since the windows are not easily fixed, those extra columns have to go. More like this:

https://www.tripadvisor.ie/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g40470-d105805-i154760053-Oak_Alley_Plantation-Vacherie_Louisiana.html

 

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19 hours ago, WestPaces said:

Thanks everyone for your input. I keep telling myself it's not reasonable... but then I keep going back to it. My gut tells me I can make something very pretty. Inside is definitely not 'wow'. Very little to no decorating has been done, any wall and paper flooring have been scotch taped to the interior. It's all in a very 'raw' state :/ The staircase is very plain and unfinished. I think that's what appeals to me - the potential! As in real life, I like 'fixing' things so I think I'll go for it. I especially love the porch feature, the owner has the missing columns, one of which is broken but I think I can replace it with a dowel. Oh well, here goes, it's calling to me and I never was a very reasonable person. Wish me luck! :)

Good Luck.....I can't wait to see it. It reminds me Tara from Gone With The Wind.

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19 hours ago, sparklepuppies said:

Hooray! And now you have a new project to shop for on Saturday!

I'll be happy to help you spend $$ after I've helped Tracy empty her wallet. <BIG GRIN>

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Hmmm, Kathie, I don't need any help spending $$$ , I do quite well by myself :D Which is why I will probably bring a LIMITED amount of cash to the fair - I just don't trust myself - especially since this will be my first and I'm sure I'll want / need EVERYTHING :)

 

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32 minutes ago, WestPaces said:

Hmmm, Kathie, I don't need any help spending $$$ , I do quite well by myself :D Which is why I will probably bring a LIMITED amount of cash to the fair - I just don't trust myself - especially since this will be my first and I'm sure I'll want / need EVERYTHING :)

 

I was teasing. Put some extra folding in your sock for the must-have item(s) you find after your initial stash is spent.

30 minutes ago, WestPaces said:

@Sable thanks for that stunning plantation photo from Tripadvisor - that is exactly how I see the house when finished :)

I've spent many lovely hours at Oak Alley. It's a wonderful inspiration piece for you.

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