minime Posted May 8, 2014 Share Posted May 8, 2014 I was in the miniatures aisle at Hobby Lobby yesterday. A lady and several of her kids were standing next to me looking at the large Victorians. She was amazed at the price difference between a house that was in kit form compared to the price of the house if hobby lobby built it. She turned to her 10 year old (he couldn't have been older than 10-11) and said "you should start a side business building dollhouse kits, you could easily build these". I hope eventually she buys one and lets her 10 year old try putting it together. Oh, my ... what do you have against 10-year-olds? :lol: and wouldn't we laugh if the kid pulled it off? Have you guys ever read the History of Greenleaf Dollhouses? http://www.greenleafdollhouses.com/about.htm 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Debra from Olde Cape Cod Posted May 8, 2014 Share Posted May 8, 2014 What do ya know...a ten year old! LOL! Thanks Pam for this info, I had never read that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathieB Posted May 8, 2014 Share Posted May 8, 2014 Dang! My face is red!! Apologies to 10-year-olds the world over! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WyckedWood Posted May 8, 2014 Share Posted May 8, 2014 How interesting Lol ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morgansmith Posted May 8, 2014 Share Posted May 8, 2014 Thanks for the link to the history of Greenleaf, Pam. I have read it before and enjoyed it again. I am glad it points out the skills of a 10 year old. As i read this, I kept thinking how at 10 I was more crafty than most adults and could have built a dollhouse kit then as well as now. As for what we call our hobby. Ever since someone called it 'dollhousing' on here I have LOVED that term. It connects with my thinking I guess. But, I have long said we should call them miniature houses because that is what they are. Many people never put a doll in a miniature house yet call it a dollhouse. My last years Spring Fling has only ever had mice in it Is it a Maus Haus? (Deborah's spelling) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tinkerbelle Posted May 8, 2014 Author Share Posted May 8, 2014 morgansmith, I love that term 'dollhousing'. I say all sort of funny words such as ' that big yellow ball in the sky' (for the sun) and that sounds like something I would say. lol Today someone was telling me about their hobby and I mentioned that I was interested in miniatures. They looked at me confused and only when I said 'dollhouses' they understood. I have always thought I would buy a Audrey Hepburn doll for the house once I'm done but recently I thought I would prefer to not have any dolls in my dollhouse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shamrockgirl18 Posted May 9, 2014 Share Posted May 9, 2014 Personally, I tell very few people about my mini hobby. Not because I'm embarrassed, but because I got tired of people dismissing it, saying something like "Oh, how cute!". I'm not a 4 year old with a sock puppet on my hand! I take alot of pride in building my scenes and creating/finding the details to make them 'come alive.' I don't think alot of people appreciate the labor and the imagination and the craftsmanship that this hobby demands. Worse than telling them and have them not understand, is when I try to explain that I'm a children's librarian, so many of my dollhouses are based on/inspired by books. . .that REALLY confuses people (I mean unimaginative people.) That being said, I have gotten some wonderful compliments from people when they see my work, and ask where I got it and I proudly reply "I made it." My friends all know, and even if they don't 'get it', they still think my dollhouses are cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minsanity Posted May 16, 2014 Share Posted May 16, 2014 You know what he does do, that is actually pretty cool..he can copy my houses ( the Tudor type) almost exactly on the video game Minecraft. It's really fun to watch him doing this. I hope all of my children learn a love of miniatures from me, that would be fantastic. that is so cool I wonder if I could get my son or daughter to do that they both love Minecraft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonberry Posted May 16, 2014 Share Posted May 16, 2014 that is so cool I wonder if I could get my son or daughter to do that they both love Minecraft. My daughter is 7 next week, but she hasn't been playing Minecraft (too easily distracted from homework). I did, however, introduce her to the original Sims games this week when she was sick at home and she loved being able to play with the little Sims. Soon I will let her build her own house for them and do the wallpaper, carpeting, interior too. She said it was just like Minecraft, only cuter and with more people and animals and stories for the people. I have Sims 2 and Sims 3 as well, but will keep those for when she is older. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sculptor Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 (edited) For some reason I felt embarrassed and wondered what my dad would have said if he'd asked what it was. The feeling came out of the blue and shocked me. Miniatures fascinates and makes me happy and after years of anxiety disorder that's a good thing. I don't bother with what other people think about such matters, even though I'm an over 50 year old guy and even though today in 2014 you know there's still a significant percentage of people who think and feel that "boys" don't play with "dolls" and they aren't supposed to like traditionally "feminine" things either, "boys" have always been expected to play with trucks and trains, GI Joe action figures playing "war", cap pistols etc., but the fact is I had a doll house when I was little kid, and I certainly do have a feminine "side" in that I also like miniatures, frilled/lacey type curtains, I have a ponytail in real life and so forth. I run a dedicated server at home with public access 24/7 that runs the Opensimulator virtual 3D world software (similar to Second Life) and my avatar is a "furry" I made myself, and he wears a Native American Indian style toga that could be taken by others to resemble a skirt, I don't care what anyone thinks in-world, or at work and I've certainly printed out images and videos of my virtual world and avatar, I am also part of a small on-line group for people in my small town of 1,800 people, and I remember posting photos and all there that I took from my virtual worlds, including my avatar. Here's my avatar, so if I can look like this, don't pay any mind to what anyone thinks about your interest in miniatures! Edited May 18, 2014 by Sculptor 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 Your avatar is totally awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sculptor Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 I did, however, introduce her to the original Sims games this week when she was sick at home and she loved being able to play with the little Sims. Soon I will let her build her own house for them and do the wallpaper, carpeting, interior too. She said it was just like Minecraft, only cuter and with more people and animals and stories for the people. I have Sims 2 and Sims 3 as well, but will keep those for when she is older. Interesting, I looked at that once but it was too limited, have you ever looked at OpenSimulator? it's free open source virtual world software that will run on any computer so it can be run and accessed only on your own computer, home network, or public access so anyone in the world can come in and visit. It can seem complicated to set up initially, but I love it and what I can do in it, build anything, stream music, videos into it, have live voice chats with others and much more- you aren't limited to a certain pre-made "scene" or certain pre-made objects, your virtual avatar can be anything you want- child to grandfather, animal, mineral, vegetable, robot, and all the content is completely free. I chose to run it and my sims on a dedicated server (a used Dell workstation) and the special "viewer" you use with this (similar to a web browser) logs into a public access grid located in Germany, the free public grid hosts all of the inventory, log-in stuff, groups, IM's, voice and chat functions while my server hosts the sims themselves (the land, and all the content and builds on the land) This video shows a little bit of one of my sims which should give you some idea: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x17b1vb_library_videogames Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiniCrazy Posted September 25, 2014 Share Posted September 25, 2014 This topic hits home. The first time I mentioned it at work I felt like checking to see if I really did have Martians sitting on my head to explain the look on their faces but then when I showed them the pictures they found a new respect for my passion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beyondbaffled Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Ha! I felt just this way today! It's hard to tell sometimes if someone (especially an adult) is only patronizing my enthusiasm to be kind or if they really care at all! I collect dessicants from the stock bottles at work - I have a few thousand! After all they are the perfect size for mini 1:12 scale canisters and lot of other things that I have been dreaming up to use them for (I painted one silver and added handles to make a stockpot and I bent jewelry wire to turn one into a working step trashcan). At least everyone at work seems nice enough to indulge me on occasion and they ooh and aah over how tiny my work is. I get alot of "Well at least we know what we're saving all of these for now!" Which I think is just a way for them to feel less silly about not chucking the things into the trash like normal! I blush and feel silly for being an adult who builds dollhouses, but I love it just the same 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 ...I blush and feel silly for being an adult who builds dollhouses, but I love it just the same I do NOT blush, and feel proud for being able to build dollhouses. If people want to be patronizing or try to make me feel like an idiot, it's their problem, not mine. As has been mentioned, such people have other issues and probably no hobbies. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Debra from Olde Cape Cod Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Yeah, it depends what adults you talk to....the guy in Radio Shack is all excited about seeing the Tilt-a-Whirl of Death video.... 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caseymini Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 I have business type cards that have my blog address and my e mail addy and a picture of Tessie on them. If someone questions my sanity, I simply hand them a card and tell them to go see what I am doing. Actually, I have had several friends come back and thank me for "explaining" what I do. And I have had other people join my followers list from the cards too. That way I don't have to stand around explaining myself. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Debra from Olde Cape Cod Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 Good idea Casey! I wonder if the skellies would like to be on my cards....LOL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sable Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 The other day I asked my neighbors if I could stage and take pics of my Summer Kitchen/pool House by their brand new pool. They tentatively obliged not really understanding why I needed their pool for a dollhouse. As I assembled it over their new spa. Their jaws dropped and they were speechless. As I raved about their new backyard, they raved about my pool house. It was fun and I believe they have a better appreciation concerning my hobby, now. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiniCrazy Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 That is a great setting! I can see why you wanted it. So pretty! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiniCrazy Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 I know this is an old topic but I thought it was a fitting story. I did feel quite weird when I first told the ladies at work about my hobby. I got strange looks. One of the ladies at work is a possible mini-holic. She keeps bringing me things and asking will this work in your doll house. Well the other day her mini eye was working great. She found that some of our component parts are packaged with small white rectangles of thin cardboard. I was so excited my mind was racing. I started rambling about how these would be perfect for bathroom subway type tiles. I could paint them different colors... on and on Anyway just wanted to share. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathieB Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 Cheryl, what fun you'll have using those little chips. Do you think your friend with the mini eye will one day cross over and join us? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 Cheryl, in the process of thanking your coworker for her thoughtfulness, invite her to join the fun here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luanne Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 My sister in law said this to me after seeing my bakery pictures- "Do you do this to relieve stress? Because working on them would give me more stress. " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Selkie Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 My sister in law said this to me after seeing my bakery pictures- "Do you do this to relieve stress? Because working on them would give me more stress. " I can see where that could happen to someone, especially if they are a very particular person, you know, sort of on the perfectionist side of a character quality. Then whatever they created would never be good enough and could stress them out. If they aren't especially gifted in working with their hands it might do that too. Me, on the other hand, I say let's just jump in and get messy. It will all wash off later. Although, in all honesty I have to say, I am fussy about the final product. When all is said and done I do like it to look right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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