Vollmer House Front.jpg

Another view of the front. Here you can see the warpage on the right side, and also a glimpse of that dumb plaque I mentioned in the overall description. The front door is a dream - I photoshopped in the one I really want (a double Penniman door by Bespaq). The original door is missing. The frame can only accommodate a 3" x 7" door but I am terrified of cutting into the opening to make an appropriate double door fit!

This house is so nice. I wish we knew who really made it!

Have you considered removing the warped door and installing plexiglass over the opening, or just leaving it open?

I'd be worried about enlarging the opening for the door, too. Looks like it would be a tight squeeze anyway. Have you looked at the single doors from Majestic Mansions (which are also made by Bespaq)? They have some nice ones that would fit the style of the house.

The only other house I've come across that resembles this one was built by Ned Kellogg, but surely he always signed his houses. This looks more like his work than Jim Marcus's; some of the details are very similar. I am definitely not attributing it to him, though.

http://www.kelloggsdollhouses.com/images/archive/FIL3.jpg

The single interior Penniman door by Majestic Mansions is 3" x 7". It has a solid panel insert rather than glass, but I may have to accept that. I can get the entire frame out and then insert the new door pre-hung, which is good. Just not sure how a solid panel door is going to look there. I guess better than no door at all!

I've considered plexi for the warped side, but also custom-ordered cabinet doors with safety glass. I say doors, plural, because I'd hinge one on the front, one on the back, and have them meet in the middle to cut down on the weight.

I may do that, although recreating the side (even splitting the new one in half) would not be difficult. It's all straight cuts, no bevels. The siding is simple strips, not even clapboarding. A woodworker friend thinks the overall finish is thinned down amber shellac. I'd test that on scrap first, of course, to see if I got a match.

50 minutes ago, Kells said:

The only other house I've come across that resembles this one was built by Ned Kellogg, but surely he always signed his houses. This looks more like his work than Jim Marcus's; some of the details are very similar. I am definitely not attributing it to him, though.

It's funny you say that, because I saw a house several years ago that this one reminds me of, and it's also very similar to that Ned Kellogg house. I just threw the pics into a gallery:

This one was also attributed to Jim Marcus but I sent him the pictures and he said it wasn't his. I then reached out to Ned Kellogg's widow to ask if it might be his, and she said no. I wonder if this house and your Vollmer house could have the same builder? Or maybe the fact that they're both based on SF Victorians gives the illusion that they have more in common than they do.

This one was raw wood, not shellacked like yours. I think your house is nicer!

15 minutes ago, fov said:

It's funny you say that, because I saw a house several years ago that this one reminds me of, and it's also very similar to that Ned Kellogg house. I just threw the pics into a gallery:

This one was also attributed to Jim Marcus but I sent him the pictures and he said it wasn't his. I then reached out to Ned Kellogg's widow to ask if it might be his, and she said no. I wonder if this house and your Vollmer house could have the same builder? Or maybe the fact that they're both based on SF Victorians gives the illusion that they have more in common than they do.

This one was raw wood, not shellacked like yours. I think your house is nicer!

Is that Peg's in Santa Rosa? That clocks, because the woman I got this from was gifted it by elderly neighbors who were moving, and she brought it with her from... get this... BERKELEY. I'm thinking a craftsman in that area may have built both of these. Perhaps sold through local miniatures shops or out of a personal workshop? I assume that because Peg thought it might be a Marcus, that means hers wasn't signed either or else she'd know who made it.

The house in your pics absolutely has similar details to mine. The fluted brackets for sure, but also the "carvings" on the front. Mine are wood appliques, not carved into the wood. The ones on that house appear to be the same. Appliques, that is, even if not exact in style. The shellac finish could have been by customer request or done later. The bare wood one could be intentional so a customer could paint it as desired.

Yep, in Santa Rosa! So interesting that yours came from the Bay Area too.

This was the same summer that I bought my Little Belle from Peg (which is a Jim Marcus dollhouse), and that came from the stock of a store named Studio 7 that had closed down many years before and had only recently been taken out of storage. The store was in San Anselmo. I think the Jim Marcus knockoff came from the same place. So maybe Studio 7 was selling for a local artisan, and that's where your house's original owners got it.

8 minutes ago, fov said:

Yep, in Santa Rosa! So interesting that yours came from the Bay Area too.

This was the same summer that I bought my Little Belle from Peg (which is a Jim Marcus dollhouse), and that came from the stock of a store named Studio 7 that had closed down many years before and had only recently been taken out of storage. The store was in San Anselmo. I think the Jim Marcus knockoff came from the same place. So maybe Studio 7 was selling for a local artisan, and that's where your house's original owners got it.

And San Anselmo is right across the bay from Berkeley! We may not have a name but I do believe you've solved the mystery, Emily!! All of this adds up so well.

That is a beautiful house, and so nice to see your Little Belle again. That is a thing of beauty! I've bid high on a couple Marcus houses over the years - and dug deep into my purse to do it! - but never got one. At this point, I'm going to be satisfied with my Not da Marcus and stop trying (I say resolutely, trying to convince myself).

Oh, I should add, when I mentioned doing the interiors justice, google for interior pics of the Haas-Lilienthal House in San Francisco. That is my inspiration. Not that I'll ever be able to pull off that woodwork.

I have a boatload of Brodnax's recreations of Wm. Morris and Bradbury & Bradbury wallpapers. I've planned out a lot of combos of papers, borders and medallions to wallpaper the ceilings in the style of the Aesthetic Movement. I am particularly excited about having a go at that!

The Haas-Lilienthal House is gorgeous. I took the in-person tour a few years ago. (Back when we were allowed to do things in person...)