Merry Miniatures: Decorating My Wooden Dollhouse

I don't always have dessert after dinner, but when I do, it's usually something decadent, and it's usually eaten in the kitchen, before I start cleaning up. Through Amazon, I purchased these cups and dishes, ... ... along with these pans ... ... and the forks and brownies pictured below. For the plates, I took 2 plastic rings from a pompom maker kit and filled the center hole of each with tacky glue. To keep the glue in place, I used a 3x5 index card, trimmed (mostly) to size.       The napkin holder is actually a paper clip, ... ... which I made following the instructions in this YouTube video: For the bar stools, I first collected 2 lids from some empty spice containers and inserted into the bottom of each lid a small piece of foam. Then, I carefully cut a slit into the center of each foam piece to accommodate the top of a popsicle stick, which would serve as the stem. For the base of the stool, I chose a large black binder clip. To match the color of the...

As much work as putting together this playroom required—a bit of an irony, I know—the process certainly brought back some fond memories from my childhood. While growing up, I loved to play with all sorts of toys, from Creepy Crawlers to Polly Pockets to rainbow-colored Slinkys. And of course, there was always a pile of stuffed animals on my bed.         The miniature baseball in the photo below is a souvenir I purchased several years ago while visiting a friend in New York.  The alphabet blocks are part of a scrapbooking kit I received from my grandmother-in-law many Christmases ago.  This brings us to the things I actually made, starting with the tent. I followed the instructions in a YouTube video that is unfortunately no longer available, making a few modifications along the way. For instance, I used printer paper instead of cardstock paper and tacky glue instead of double-sided tape. Then, I decorated the outside of the ten...

Designer Terence Conran once said, "The living room should be a place where we feel totally at ease — temple of the soul." I couldn't agree more.  Unquestionably, the logs for the fireplace was the easiest decoration to assemble. I simply opened my pantry door and retrieved two cinnamon sticks. The coffee table was the second easiest decoration: I attached a spool of thread to the bottom of a gift box lid.  In contrast, the most challenging decoration to make was the couch throw, namely because it was my first attempt at double knitting. With US 6 knitting needles and Lily Sugar'n Cream yarn in the colors Black and White, I followed this pattern on Ravelry.  Here's one side of the throw:  And here's the reversible side: For the board game, antique radio, and envelopes, I visited this website .    Finally, I purchased the latte and pastry through Amazon.  Now, my miniature self can relax by the fire, enjoying a sweet treat while listening to some ...

While redecorating the same rooms in my dollhouse, I enjoy choosing not only different colors, but also different media. Previously, the dining room table was covered by a cloth I had knitted using dark blue yarn, on top of which I placed some plastic food items and tableware. This time, I made the tablecloth out of white and purple paper, followed by a matching centerpiece made of craft foam, as shown below. Because I don't own a clothes iron—cue collective gasp from grandparents everywhere—I tried an alternative flattening strategy: I simply set the doily under 5 heavy textbooks and waited a few days. The results were virtually identical. I then glued the doily to a circle made of purple construction paper measuring the circumference of the table. For the centerpiece, I made the teacup featured in the following video (see timestamp 0:47), ... ... adding adding a few changes here and there, such as replacing the decorative flowers with a design on one side of the cu...

Fredrick, or Freddie as his friends like to call him, is the lesser-known brother of Frosty. Here he is posing in front of the door to the upstairs porch of my dollhouse.  I knitted the Christmas wreath hanging from the porch light with US 8 knitting needles and Loops & Threads Charisma yarn in the color Green. After seaming the ends together, I wrapped around the 3-stitch I-cord a piece of red ribbon. Then, using a second piece of ribbon, I made a tiny bow and attached it to the front of the wreath. Freddie was quite fun to put together. For his top hat, I first cut out of a piece of black craft foam a small circle and a rectangle. Next, I joined the ends of the rectangle together to form a cylinder, glued the bottom of said cylinder to the circle, and covered the top with a smaller circle, trimmed to size. Freddie's eyes consist of 2 small jingle bells, while his nose consists of a piece of orange non-dry modeling clay that I molded into a carrot-like shape, on...

Early on, I decided that the living room would be the first room in my dollhouse to decorate for Christmas. If nothing else, it would allow me to showcase some of the most popular and recognizable yuletide adornments. To make the Christmas tree, I shaped a piece of green craft foam into a cone, wrapped some gold ribbon around the base, and topped it off with a gold pompom. The look I was going for was "simple and understated"; I think I hit the mark.  Anyone opening the miniature presents would surely be disappointed; after a bit of trial and error, I wound up gift wrapping 3 small pieces of cardboard and an empty travel-size toothpaste box. But oh, the things they could be, with just a little imagination.... The throw blanket on the back of the couch is actually a bookmark . I used US 3 knitting needles and Kollage Yarns Cornucopia in the color Antique Lace. While the bowl was manufactured, the pieces of candy were handmade, by yours truly. I simply rolled some...

Usually, when I think of Thanksgiving, I think of the 3 most important "F"s in life: food, friends, and family (not necessarily in that order). This year, I focused on frills, of the miniature variety, as pictured below. I used a fabric bundle from Hobby Lobby, featuring a fall-inspired assortment of cotton fabric pieces, not only for the chairs ... ... but also for the rug ... ... and tablecloth. I knitted the following turkey using Kirsten Hipsky's pattern on Ravelry, US 5 and 8 knitting needles, Red Heart Super Saver Solids in the color Dark Brown, and some kind of multicolored, bulky weight yarn that was gifted to me several years ago sans label. For the eyes, I hole punched a piece of black craft foam to make 2 small circles, then attached them to the front of the body with a hot glue gun. For the beak, I used a yellow sponge, and finally, for the legs, I inserted 2 toothpicks into the bottom of the body. The cornucopia, pumpkins, gourds, fall leaves, and shaft...

After assigning a room for the dead, I turned my attention to the living, more specifically, the living room. Below are this year's Halloween decorations for the second floor.  I purchased the foam spider webs last year from my local Michaels store. They're actually drink coasters, but I never wound up using them as such; they're just too decorative to hide under mugs. The rubber eraser cat is a gift I received from a student I once tutored. So adorable and thoughtful (the cat and the student, respectively).    I made the notebook featuring Frankenstein—or rather Frankenstein's monster, to be accurate—using only printer paper, permanent marker, and craft foam. The ghost mug required even fewer materials, just a tad more manual dexterity. If you'd like to make your own notebook and mug, watch the following YouTube video, starting at timestamps 4:21 and 5:33, respectively. To craft the pumpkin, I started with a stuffed ball I had knit...

This post marks the debut of my dollhouse attic, and what better way to introduce it than by featuring a trio of ghosts? I knitted the 2 smaller ghosts using US 6 needles, Cascade Yarns 220 Superwash in the color White, and Caron Simply Soft Solids in the color Black. The pattern I followed is called "Little Ghosts," designed by Alexis Hamann-Nazaroff.    Here are the ghosts with 2 LED tealight candles on the outside, ... ... and here they are with the candles on the inside. The third ghost was made from a different knitting pattern, Trixie Zynch's "Gus & Augustus GHOSTS." I didn't have enough yarn to knit both versions, so I opted for the slightly taller Augustus, shown below, using Red Heart Super Saver Solids in the colors White and Black. Stay boo-tiful, my friends!