Retrocraft: Vintage dollshouse

I'm going to start making a few projects from the vintage craft books in my collection, and showing off some vintage crafts made by me and my family. It will be a new feature on my blog, on a semi-regular basis (in other words, whenever the inspiration strikes!).

I'm starting off, not with something I've made myself, but with the most amazing dollshouse ever, the one that my grandad made for me. My grandad made many dollshouses (in fact, this was not the first he made for me, but the other one took up a lot more space, so my parents swapped it for this one).

My dollshouse is pretty much the sturdiest thing ever made, and my friend Jane and I were known to sit on it on occasion (don't tell Mum!). And 40 years later it's still in great condition, although I wouldn't attempt to sit on it now! Grandad used wallpaper and carpets from sample books to decorate the house, and the patterns and colours are amazing, a real window into the decor of the era. The wooden partition walls between some of the rooms slide out, and there are walls with windows that fit on the front and back of the house using dowels.

Not only did Grandad make the house, but he also made most of the furnishings, and they are also wonderfully retro in style, with coffee tables made from coffee jar lids with hairpin legs, lamps made from bottletops.