CourtneyRichie Posted November 18, 2018 Share Posted November 18, 2018 (edited) Hi everyone! My name is Courtney and I live in San Diego, CA. I’ve recently acquired an 8 room, 2 story dollhouse that has seen better days. I have a 15 month old daughter that I’m looking to restore it for and have something to pass down to future generations. My father had built me a dollhouse when I was a kid. It was the most amazing thing and I loved it growing up. It won several first place prizes in different county fairs. Unfortunately, we no longer speak and he kept the dollhouse for himself. So I don’t have access to his knowledge on how to restore this dang thing. I’m not sure which dollhouse it is. I’m going to take pictures of it today as I’m hoping someone on here can help me identify it so I at least have somewhere to start. I’m expecting it to be a several year process due to the fact that a toddler doesn’t exactly allow me too much time for a hobby. But I’m very motivated for this project. I hope everyone has a great day! Edited November 18, 2018 by CourtneyRichie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mid-life madness Posted November 18, 2018 Share Posted November 18, 2018 Welcome Courtney! I can't wait to see a picture. Hopefully we can ID it for you. I like that you are not in a rush and are being realistic with the time frame. This will be such a great family heirloom. Carrie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CourtneyRichie Posted November 18, 2018 Author Share Posted November 18, 2018 Thank you. I don’t have any experience at all in building/restoring. So this is all going to be very new to me, but I’m excited to learn. I do remember that it took about 3-4 years for my dad to restore my dollhouse. And there was no toddler involved. Haha. So with that I know I can definitely expect to add some time to the project. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CourtneyRichie Posted November 18, 2018 Author Share Posted November 18, 2018 Ok, so here are some pics of the dollhouse. Anyone know what make and model it is? It is Saran wrapped up right now because it’s in storage and I’m trying to protect it from any further damage. The people who gave it to me cut these horrendous, huge, ugly holes in the ceiling to put these lightbulbs in. It makes me cringe even thinking about how I’m going to fix/replace the damage, let alone trying to figure out how to completely re-do the electrical. My childhood dollhouse had an attic where the roof was hinges and could be open and closed. That is where my dad has the switchboard (not sure if that’s the proper terminology) and controlled all of the electrical. This dollhouse just has a metal switch on the “yard” of the dollhouse...and it doesn’t work when plugged in. Any tips on where to start with this project would be greatly appreciated. I’m excited, but a tad overwhelmed at the same time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mesp2k Posted November 18, 2018 Share Posted November 18, 2018 Hey Courtney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted November 18, 2018 Share Posted November 18, 2018 Welcome to the little family, Courtney. When you have made five posts you can put your pictures into albums in the Gallery here. If at all possible to remove the roof you might want to replace that ceiling. The house appears to have good bones, but the Saran wrap makes it hard to tell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fov Posted November 18, 2018 Share Posted November 18, 2018 Welcome! I did a Google search for plantation style dollhouses but don't see any that look exactly like this. Could it be a scratch build? To fix the holes in the ceiling, my suggestion is to create a new false ceiling out of thin wood or cardstock and glue it in over the original ceiling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CourtneyRichie Posted November 19, 2018 Author Share Posted November 19, 2018 (edited) Thanks guys! I actually just saw the people that gave it to me and it is a scratch build. No wonder I couldn’t find it anywhere! I think I’m just going to buy a kit and start from scratch and keep the house I have for a later project once I have some experience under my belt. Good thing Christmas is coming up. Lol Does anyone have any experience with the Victoria’s Farmhouse kit? And would anyone have some recommendations on what to do first through last after the kit is finished? i.e electrical, floors, wall paper etc. Or could possibly point me in the direction of a post with that info? Thanks again for all your help! Edited November 19, 2018 by CourtneyRichie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sable Posted November 19, 2018 Share Posted November 19, 2018 Watching this video is a must if you plan on wiring. Pour yourself a cup of tea or coffee, take notes or save the video for when you are ready. https://www.dollhousestrainsandmore.com/pages/how-to-videos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
queenannediva Posted November 19, 2018 Share Posted November 19, 2018 2 hours ago, CourtneyRichie said: Thanks guys! I actually just saw the people that gave it to me and it is a scratch build. No wonder I couldn’t find it anywhere! I think I’m just going to buy a kit and start from scratch and keep the house I have for a later project once I have some experience under my belt. Good thing Christmas is coming up. Lol Does anyone have any experience with the Victoria’s Farmhouse kit? And would anyone have some recommendations on what to do first through last after the kit is finished? i.e electrical, floors, wall paper etc. Or could possibly point me in the direction of a post with that info? Thanks again for all your help! https://earthntree.com/miniatures/index.php?main_page=page&id=3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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