The first step in building your own Victorian dollhouse is doing your research. There are detailed books on the subject. You can read about valuing your building, how to build your furniture, and even kitchen design. There are books on the history and development of materials, design alternatives, and furniture and accessory options. Building and furnishing your home can be as complicated as you want.
Books shouldn’t be your only resource for your design. Because it is a miniature reflection of a life-size product, any information that relates to the actual homes and décor will be related. When deciding on your Victorian dollhouse, look at what is included in a real Victorian home. Take a look at the sample images and choose which colors, features and styles you want to include in your tiny version. The Queen Mary dollhouse at Windsor Castle was developed to showcase the skills, tastes and materials of the time. Its content reproduces many of the elements contained in the royal castles in England.
Take a look to see what you like and what you would like to include in your miniature home. Then watch to see how to incorporate those elements into your miniature creation.
Now we have the opportunity to find our materials all over the world. There was a time when the best miniature paraphernalia was made by hand in Germany. Access was restricted to the very wealthy, and at times the owner was limited in geography and money to what was possible. Today there are many more places to find quality miniature products and with the internet, the world’s bargains are available to us. Online, you will be able to find many, many options for decorating, furnishing, and personalizing your dollhouse. Those options will include items to purchase and instructions for your own creations.
As important as material resources, interaction with other collectors and builders will provide a valuable repository of experience. There are groups for enthusiasts on the Internet. Finding a group of like-minded people who share a passion and who are there to support, encourage and advise each other is invaluable.
One of the benefits of creating in miniature is that you have a lot more freedom to experiment. If you try something and it doesn’t work, drop that part and start over. I’m not talking about scrapping an entire building, but moving things around and changing colors and styles is much easier on a smaller scale than in a life-size setting.
Working on a 10-inch-square floor creation will be less painful if you don’t like it than redoing 300-square-feet. And any project that is rejected comes with the learning experience intact. That translates to an easier process next time.
Watch decorating your little frame just like you would in your own home, except that the furniture is less expensive and easier to move. You’ll want to do your research to see what fits into the bigger picture of your design theme, and then choose what you’d like to live with.
The beauty of a Victorian dollhouse is that you can go crazy over the foam, colors, and furniture that you may be hesitant to incorporate into your current living environment.