First Dollhouse Kit

[LittleChairs]

Hi, all!

I have built my own kid-friendly dollhouses in the past out of old wood. I finally decided to graduate to my first kit.

I recently bought a Hofco Federal Victorian House Kit for $150. It included bedroom furniture, bathroom furniture, Christmas decorations, a complete lighting kit, etc. The kit itself is complete and in great shape - which is impressive for its age. 

When I opened the kit, I was so impressed by its details. The doors, the windows, everything. There was a marble fireplace buried deep in the box. Clearly, this is way too nice for me. I needed something I wouldn’t feel bad messing up! 

So here we are. I was wondering what advice you would give a first timer who is way in over their head. I plan on building this with my mother and she already insists we throw out the instructions. 

And lastly, Victorian era decor or modern decor?  

[rodentraiser]

Don't throw out the instructions! If you ever resell the house, the new buyer will want them.

Personally, I'd keep the house. It's a nice house and it's not that difficult to put together if you can hammer some nails in. You won't mess it up. And in terms of money, you really got a bargain. Most kits using 3/8" wood cost more than what you paid and then you have to buy the doors, windows, and staircases separately. 

First thing is to see if there is a list of parts with the house. If there is, just go carefully through the parts and label them with a pencil. You can also use duct tape to put your house together without gluing or nailing it first. That will allow you to see any future problem areas and give you an idea of what rooms there are and what size they are. Just take it one step at a time. Remember, if you put your house together slowly, by the time you get towards the middle, you'll be very familiar with the parts and there will be a lot less of them as you go along. 

As for decor, you can do any decor you want. How about making it an updated Victorian? You can have all the Victorian trimmings you want and still have some modern things in it as well. I would personally want to have a 1950s house for my own dollhouse, but I'd make sure I also had a computer. People do style like that today. 

 

Good luck!

 

[havanaholly]

Hi, Lauren; my mother would have thrown out the instructions, too, and then whine about how the house wasn't going together as pretty as she wanted.  I find when building kits that they will tell me what they want, how they want to look, etc.  When I do the dry fit I use masking or painters' tape (the blue stuff), rather than duct tape.

[LeeB]

hi Lauren!

I also vote that you keep the kit and tackle it one step at a time. I am now working on my first kit assembly. I also second the advice not to throw out the instructions. It is good to become very familiar with them and then decide which parts you want to follow and which parts you want to customize. I would guess you will need to keep to the basics of the original structural design and then add, subtract, or change details after the main structure is in place. 

As to the question of Victorian or modern décor - do whatever you like. the first dollhouse I decorated was already assembled. I wanted to respect the style of the Victorian architecture, but not be slavishly restricted to authentic period wallpaper, furnishings, and accessories (which is also likely to be more expensive and difficult.) I decided to use an eclectic mix - as I do in my own home. We enjoy mixing various periods of antiques with contemporary pieces. So our philosophy is to make the whole thing look like something we'd like to live in. We have a modern stove and fridge but old-fashioned wooden and upholstered pieces. It's a little fantasy - so have fun with it! 

Looking forward to seeing some progress photos as you go along!