bigger isn't always better...

almost done..

Gottschalk dolls houses are some of the loveliest and most collectable of all .. especially the blue roof types.  It is most unlikely that I would find one here to buy, or, be able to afford it if one did arise, so I decided to make one and have almost finished my own version.
A lovely collector named Charlotte who is a member of a group that I belong to, gave me permission to use her acquisition of a tiny blue roof Gottschalk, as inspiration to build my own.

old pine used for project..

coming together nicely..

getting the attachments organised...

My compulsion to salvage old cupboards and drawers for their timber has paid off again! Some lovely old distressed pine and some odd bits were quickly found for the job at hand....

some fiddling around..

getting there!!

suitable papers..

The step by step photo's show that this was a fairly detailed exercise, it took some time, but I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge.. It was fun to try and match shapes and colours and replicate wallpapers to give a similar feel to the original dolls house.    

in the gottschalk style..

almost...

It's a sweet little house and mine has turned out better than I  had expected. Of course I will label mine as a reproduction and made by me, so that there is no doubt and cannot be confused as an original sometime in the future.
it's almost done, I am working on the ageing and distressing process (the dolls house! not me!) and that should finish it!  What's that saying? "waiting for paint to dry!"  Well not me! I'm way too impatient... too excited!!
My next post will have photo's of the finished house and if I go through my stash, with a little luck it might even be furnished! So a big thank you to Dottie Lottie for sharing her little house and letting me have lots of fun building my little cutie!
I'm off to do a touch test on my paint job!
Catcha later!!
love Christine xx

Long live the Queen!!

Story book of the little house given to the young Princess Elizabeth and her sister Margaret.

My Princess the day she arrived home!

My gorgeous Triang Princess.....
The day that this beauty arrived here from England was so exciting. I was overjoyed watching the delivery man struggling up the path with the massive carton. I knew what it was. I had been waiting (not) patiently for it's arrival to this fair land....I was a little surprised at the size of the box that had kept it safe on it's long journey, and it did get here unscathed... I could hardly contain myself as I unwrapped it and sat it on the trunk that we use as a coffee table. It's lovely, not as big as the Stockbroker, but impressive to say the least!

Where she sat for ages, so i could watch her constantly....

I hadn't seen one in the flesh and i wasn't disappointed..
Because of the excitement and fanfare that has preceded the Queens Jubilee celebrations, I thought that this was the perfect time to show this.. I think, no, it is my favourite dolls house.. you would probably say i was a royalist, i love all things british.... cottage gardens, thatched roofs, castles, and like all little girls, princesses.

The back, showing where the original wiring and battery compartments are...

A young Princess Elizabeth standing in the doorway of this precious gift..

No doubt everyone knows the history of the little house that was a gift to the princesses from the people, so i won't go into the details... (easy to google)..

Another book.. this one says 'cut-out' ..

I have decided to furnish it with mostly Barton Tudor furniture.. not easy to come by, but it's there if you are patient and keep searching. It's taken a little time, but my collection is growing. I'll show you next time, some of the tiny treasures that will make this house a home...
Blogger has not been my friend lately, i think it's all the changes that are being made. 0R, maybe it's me .. I need to get back into the swing of it.
 See you soon
 Christine xxx

if it smells like a rose....

I haven't posted for some time, but I'll leave the "buts and why for's,'' for another day... I wrote a few words for my garden club and thought that I'd kill two birds with one stone.. so its getting used twice. We have moved house many times over the years and I always find it hard to leave the garden. More so than the house, so I take numerous cuttings and many pots of things that I can't bear to part with... we end up moving more garden stuff than furniture and belongings.. I tend to grow mainly cottage garden type plants with roses being my undying love. Roses are the world's most photographed, most written about and most loved , the world over... everyone has a favourite, whether its for colour, type or perfume. I am no exception, I love the old world roses and David Austin's...   our garden is not large, it's easy to maintain but it does get overgrown quickly, due to the fact that i hate to cut things back.. 'just a little longer,' I say, as the last blooms of each season, linger....  This year the roses rambling over the front fence, the invincible 'Albertine' and the constantly flowering 'Duchesse de Brabant' that adorns the arch, have been prolific. I find myself checking the mailbox contstantly, just to get a whiff of their sweet perfume... All too soon, they will be just a memory, but, how lovely it is to know that they will endure and give pleasure for many years to come.. these two roses take pride of place, but there are others that I have planted here with success. there's 'Pierre de Ronsard', Reine des Violettes', 'Jude the Obscure' with the glorious fruity aroma. the ever popular 'Pinkie' that never disappoints. theres the climbing 'Blue Moon' on the side fence near the cricket oval. we have many more and of course you need lavender, daisies and the clipped hedges to compliment them... Max is as passionate about the garden as I am. We tend to be haphazzard with our planting, so we end up with a chaotic somewhat wild look.. we prefer this, rather than the very neat orderly style that many adopt. For accent in the garden, we use anything that is old and/or rustic. Any old bits and pieces, mirrors mosaiics, pretty much anything goes! I think our gardens echo ourseves to some degree... oh dear!! this really is a mad woman's muddle and muddle on, we will!  And if we continue to get pleasure fom planting, growing and sharing then this garden has well and truly earned it's place in our lives!! It is constantly changing and always rewarding!
happy gardening...
lots of love
 Christine xx

Sew little time .... or .... Sew what's new?

poke the piccy's for close-up...

Like many of you, I have had some trouble lately with blogger. I haven't been able to reply to comments left on my blog and I lost my followers for a while... but you're back now, thank goodness... what would I do without you. Apologies to anyone who couldn't reach me..

                                                       Wedding Bands Mini Quilt

I've finished a couple of little quilts recently and thought that you might like a squizz...
The Wedding Bands quilt is my favourite and was fun to do.. it's not pieced, but is photocopied onto cotton fabric. (not by me) its a bit of a cheat, i know, but as the little coloured squares are only about 5mm they are a bit small to piece.. i have used a very fine fill and backed it with an old hanky. Each ring is quilted on the inner rim and again on the outer rim and i have quilted a 4 petal daisy in the white centres. Its a bit hard to see it properly in the photo's. I thought that it would be fun to photograph it on top of the real size one, that you might have seen in a previous blog 'Sweet dreams are made of this'.

                                                           Piggy Back

The other 2 little quilts are printed fabric, that come up quite nice if you quilt every line in the design.. I'm not finished with these yet. I think that they will look much nicer with a bit of ageing treatment.. first I'll soak them in a bleach solution and wash and let dry, then I'll dribble cold tea over them to give the appearance of age.. I have lots of little quilts waiting to be finished, but, 'sew little time'...

                                            needing some ageing..                 

Its winter here, so I don't have many roses out at the moment, but the angels trumpets are just finishing their run. I've posted a few piccy's to show you how they looked..

                                                                       Pink

                                                                     Apricot

                                                          Double White

 Great hey!  I know they are poisonous (hence the name Angel's Trumpet) but I have always grown them and never had a problem..  Hope they add some cheer to your day..
Lots of Love
Christine xxx

A little R and R...

A little rest.. now some restoration.....

A lot has happened since i was here last... I have recovered nicely from my surgery, had a much needed rest and best of all I am now a great grandmother.. His name is Bailey Maxwell Jones and he will be much loved and smothered by hugs and kisses by all, in this huge loony family...
I might not have blogged, but I have kept up to date with all thats been happening in blogland... I have also kept my finger on the pulse on ebay! OOPS no,,, that was the buy button! .. hehe... seriously... I have added some more pieces to fill some of my houses. Some were a bargain, some I just couldn't live without..
The Lines DH/D is coming along nicely. Some of you will remember it from the post  fate... and fancy...

This was before the new paintwork was antiqued and distressed...
and before the shutters were added.

The shutters I copied from an original.

Window bay and front door with its original lion doorknocker.
The ring was missing so this one was from a piece of jewellry.

It's only 2 rooms but it looks very cosy when it's filled..

The pink wallpaper I bought from america..

This wallpaper came from england.. thanks Lizzie.

I decided to use vintage wallpapers that are of the same vintage as the house. I did consider using replica triang papers, but as I had these in my collection, it was an easy decision.. I must say I am happy with the end result.. now for curtains and furnishings, thats next time!!

Real glass in the windows and suitably distressed..
now just waiting for occupants...

It's so nice to be back talking to you.. I don't know why I put it off for so long... well my coffee's getting cold and the garden is calling, but I'll be back soon! promise ..

Lots of Love
Christine  x