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DOLLS HOUSES HISTORY
The earliest records of dolls houses or baby houses;
as they were also called, date back to the sixteenth century, but these were
exclusive, tending to be replicas of wealthy family homes and were built as
a record of the times rather than for hobby or play purposes.
During the same period wealthy women in Holland and Germany created miniature
houses in a study of contemporary fashion and . During the eighteenth century
cabinet houses began to appear ; where a dolls house was created in the interior
of a beautiful cabinet.
The "doll cabinet" of Sara Ploos van Amstel is one of the best-known
examples and this exquisite work dates back to 1745. However, it was not until
the Victorian era in the late 1800s that dolls houses became truly popular
.
Though still not seen as a hobby, many a Victorian nursery rang to the joyful
sounds of children playing with the dolls house
In the early 1920s a project was hatched to create ;the ultimate; dolls house.
Queen Mary was an avid collector of miniatures,
and a cousin of the King had the idea of building the house and presenting
it to the Queen.
Sir Edwin Lutyens, a renowned architect of the time, was commissioned for
the project. After the initial shock he accepted the unusual request and set
about the project with great enthusiasm.
"Let us devise and design for all time, something which will enable future
generations to see how a King and Queen lived in the twentieth century, and
what authors, artists and craftsmen of note there were, during their reign"he
was quoted as saying.
This nicely summed up the work which was undertaken. After contributions from
1,500 tradesmen, artists and authors the house was finally completed in early
1924 and exhibited at the British Empire Exhibition, to great popular acclaim.
Built to 1/12th scale, the dolls house measures 102 inches by 58 inches, and
is 60 inches tall. Sir Edwin had to manage a project, which was to involve
most of the great tradesmen and artists of the times.
Great care went into sourcing the items for the house. The list of famous
names contributors is endless ; sewing machine from Singer; real Champagne
from Veuve Clicquot and Mumm; clocks by Cartier; china by Doulton and even
cars from Rolls Royce and
Daimler. All were lovingly crafted to 1/12th scale
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle even wrote a short story (500 words) in a miniature
book for the library.
Exquisite furniture made from exotic woods fills the house;such as the large
Victorian wardrobe veneered in amboyna wood, which can be seen in the Queens
Suite.
A bathroom floor laid in mother of pearl reflects the opulence the dolls house
portrays.Still on display in Windsor Castle, and ever popular with the public,
this is truly a masterful record of a bygone era. It may be that we can attribute
the dolls house hobby, as we know it, to this project.
Many people who saw the house and were inspired by it to collect there own
miniatures. Two of the most well known collectors of
the pre war years were Mrs Thorne, creator of the Thorne Rooms in America
and Mrs Carlisle in England who also created a series of rooms.
Both strove to re-create the ambiance of the periods they represented. Whilst
these works were not dolls houses in the true sense of the words, nevertheless
they were fine examples of miniature house creation and doubtless also enthused
all those
who saw them.The hobby was now growing in to that which we see today, and
since the 1970s
its popularity has continued to grow in leaps and bounds.
During the early 1980s another great dolls house was created. West Wood House
was created by David West, so large that he even managed to get stuck in it
for half an hour, at one stage during the construction.
Other large projects are created from time to time, but in general people
enjoy the dolls house hobby on a smaller scale, but it is no less rewarding
for them because of it.Nowadays the miniature hobbyist has a world of assistance
at their fingertips, unlike their earlier pioneers;.
Shops throughout the world give easy access to the
thousands of items, which go towards the creation of a dolls house. This not
only makes it accessible but affordable.
Books and magazines can help fire the imagination with ideas and tips. Clubs
for dolls house and miniaturist enthusiasts enable ideas to be swapped and
enthusiasm to be shared. From those early beginnings in the 16th century we
now have a hobby that truly reaches the masses and has ;something for everybody
DOLLS HOUSE FURNITURE SCALES AN EXPLAINATION OF DOLLS HOUSE FURNITURE SIZES
The baby dolls houses of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and the toy dolls house of the nineteenth and early twentieth century rarely had uniform scales, even for the features or contents of any one individual house. Although a number of manufacturers made lines of miniature toy dolls house furniture in the Nineteenth Century, these products were not to a strict scale.
From left: half inch scale, three quarter inch scale, 1 inch scale, 1/10th scale dolls house furniture
There have been several standard scales in dolls houses over the years. Children's toy dolls houses during most of the 20th century were three quarter scale (where 1 foot is represented by 3/4 of an inch), also known as 1:18 (1' equals 18"). Popular brands included Lundby (Sweden) (established in 1947 and still going strong), Renwal, Plasco, Marx, Petite Princess, and T. Cohn (all American) and Caroline's Home, Barton, Dol-Toi and Triang (English). A few nominally 3/4-scale brands may run closer to 1:16 scale. With the exception of Lundby, 3/4-scale furniture was most often made from plastic. Houses were made from a variety of materials, including metal (tin litho), fibreboard, plastic, and wood.
In Germany during the middle part of the 20th century 1/10th scale became popular (based on a metric system where 10 inches is represented by 1 inch). Toylike dolls houses coming out of Germany today remain closer in scale to 1:10 than to 1:12.
In the 1970s, the standard for adult collectors dolls houses became 1/12th (also called 1" or one inch scale, represented in the U.S. as 1:12). There is also half inch scale or 1/24th (1 foot is represented by 1/2 an inch), quarter inch scale or 1/48th (1 foot is represented by 1/4 of an inch), and "dollhouse for a dollhouse" (1:144). Half-inch scale was popular in Marx dolls houses in the 1950s but only became widely available in "collector" houses after 2002, about the same time that even smaller scales became more popular. These smaller scale houses are much more common in the U.S. than in Britain.
And finally there is "Playscale" or 1/6th which is proportionate for Barbie, Blythe and other similar dolls.
Contemporay kit and fully built houses are typically made of plywood or medium density fibreboard. Tab-and-slot kits use a thinner plywood and are held together by a system of tabs and slots (plus glue). These houses are usually light-weight and lower cost but often require siding, shingles, or other exterior treatments to look their best. Kits made from heavier plywood or MDF are held together with nails and glue. In the U.S., most houses have an open back and a fancy front facade, while British houses are more likely to have a hinged front that opens to reveal the rooms. The great majority of contemporary dollhouses are built in one inch scale.
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