The other day Mercedes at Liberty Biberty showed us the adorable porch on her house-- it was so inviting and inspiring. The picture above is of my little porch, which is still a work in progress! See the dog? I'm going to paint him to look like Hagrid, my golden-doodle-goofy-boy.
I'm embarrassed to admit to all of you amazing miniaturists that I didn't build my house, nor can I say that it is vintage. It's the Real Good Toys EasyBuild Classic Colonial with the porch addition. (I'm trying to say that as proudly as I can.) As in, you can build it in an hour. Did I? Eh, nope. I didn't even do that! I bought it assembled. I was terrified of jumping into building a house! However, I did break down and wire it for electricity, and I've changed out the flooring. I'm in the process of covering the walls now.
You see, I've got some kind of mental block about wallpaper. I've never been a big fan of it in big houses, although I must say it looks great in the mini houses I've looked at. I'm just very indecisive! So, I've started papering my little house in solid colors. Yes, I know... it's kinda' boring, but give me time and I'll make a decision on some cute wallpaper! I need to take baby steps, that's all. The fact that I actually wired my house is HUGE. All that fussing, and then that tapewire was amazingly easy!
The picture above is of my hasty application of tapewire! The instructions said to draw the lines, and well, I didn't and it shows. :) You can see the new flooring in the pictures. I think I'm going to like it. The picture doesn't show it, but since taking this picture I've covered the kitchen and room above with white paper, and the big bedroom in blue. The blue is a bit dark, so I may do chair rails with another (lighter) wallpaper on the top.
I just wanted to show you what we received at the "Folsom Fiesta" workshop that I attended. Everything but the chaise lounge, dressing table, and stool were gifts that they showered on us all throughout the day! All of these gifts were made or purchased throughout the year while planning the workshop. Aren't they wonderful? But wait! There's more...
Here's the rest of the loot! I have painted the standing mirror frame, the table, the wall mirror and the trunk white to go with my style-- oh, the wonders of white paint!
Someone made this adorable sassy little bra and garter set- it's one of my favorite things! I LOVE the lace gloves too!
Isn't that a pretty lamp? I wouldn't mind having a full size one for my big house! I love the perfume bottle also!
Oh! And the roses! Love them! Isn't the dish with the comb and hat pins sweet? I was so lucky to end up with gifts that coordinated with fabric that I brought for my upholstery!
Someone made this adorable nightie!
I love the little purse and necklace! I'm going to try to find some dresden to "shabby up" the table.
And these are kits that we received- a chamber set, a set of greeting cards/envelopes, and a wedding veil. The block with pegs is a bow maker!
A few weeks ago I attended the "Folsom Fiesta" workshop. It's a miniature room box workshop put on by a group of wonderful ladies (and a man). They've been doing this workshop for about 25 years. Each year has a different theme, and they spend the entire year planning it. This year's theme was "A Place to Pout." We learned how to make this little chaise lounge, dressing table and seat. All throughout the day they shower you with coordinating gifts that they've made or purchased all year! It was wonderful-- so much work and thought put into each item. 
They gave us this little nifty pleating board to construct our pleats with. It's covered with graph paper, then wax paper for easy-to-measure pleating. The board is some kind of foam board, so that the pins can be easily pushed through.
You just double the length of your fabric, based on the actual length you need. Pin the left end to the pattern. Take a pin, go two squares to the right, pick up the fabric, bring it over one square left and pin it down. Just repeat until finished. Then to set the pleats you can spray with spray starch (or hairspray). 
Another warm welcome to new followers Susanna, Kim, Debbie, The Whittaker's, MiniKat, Heather, Doreen, and Tallulah-Belle! So many of you are from blogs that I have read and admired!
I just wanted to show you one of my new favorite things in my little house! I had been obsessing about the adorable little breakfast table in Kim's Green Victorian. When I had the chance to ask her where she found it, she said that she had an extra that I could purchase! Isn't it wonderful? Our favorite thing about it is the teeny tiny teabag!
I just had to show you this little trunk they're sitting on-- do you like it? I just fixed it up the other day. The color and carvings didn't suit my style, so I used wood putty to cover the carvings, sanded, and added the german dresden to the front prior to painting it. It fits my style much better now!
This is a close-up of the dresden applique. I had to alter it a tiny bit to get the proportions right. Oh, and if you are looking for the world's best dresden source, you've got to check out Castle in the Air in Berkley. If you get a chance to visit their store, do it! It's... absolutely majical!
Welcome to my nest-- both my home, and my little dollhouse! I'm looking forward to sharing my little nesting adventures as I embark on my quest to live a creative life!
