Kami Posted April 12 Share Posted April 12 (edited) I guess I'll start with dolls. I am finding myself drawn to the German 1930s-ish dolls, but they are small, maybe around 4 1/2 to 4 3/4 inches, 5 on their tippy-toes. Today's dolls via Amazon or eBay are 6 inches, and come with a litany of 'beauty surgeries' already complete. I have built this house based on my own height and frame (at 60++ and shrinking), so going smaller or bigger might throw off the scale ?? I need a doll just to check my scale and traffic patterns and all those things that make a dollhouse space appear authentic. So far none seem to work. Is this common? I was hoping just to order something to get started, and can trade up later. All dead ends so far, however. I know I can make my own - and that option is getting closer every day - but I was hoping for a quick fix. The 30s dolls are tempting, and they have some collector value as well. Plus they are very cool, and most come already dressed. The new ones need to be clothed, and at my age that feels weird. There are lots of options out there, from jeans and a tee, to athletic wear, to evening wear and on down the line, but I just don't see myself clothes shopping for a doll, and then actually dressing her or him. Mental block, I guess. I'd rather get a Poodle with those little doggie vests. This is going to take more coffee than I budgeted for. Then there are the accessories, from small vases to chairs to microscopes, coffee makers, books, and so on. My microscope is humongous, while my antique motorcycle feels small. I have checked out the suggested links this community has provided, and certainly a lot is avail, but much of it feels very traditional. Not a bad thing, but I'm going contemporary with a few antiques and odd finds here and there (in design land we call that eclectic- Or used to. Trends change) - okay, I confess I'm filling it with picker finds like old tables found in barns, chairs with repaired legs - the stuff you really find in those open-aire antique markets, my total happly place. I am making most of the wood pieces, but upholstery just isn't working for me, so I am looking to buy the sofa, etc. But, alas, my issue with scale consistency. Will I end up with the world's smallest sofa set next to the world's largest chair? Both sold as 1:12? I have yet to sign up for Etsy, but I don't really see much difference. I do see some sellers not on A or E, but more or less the same conundrum lives on. And no, listed measurements are not always accurate either. Should I just abadon all hope of consistency and just buy what I like? I'll end up with a 4 1/2 foot woman, maybe in her mid to late 20s and dressed in burlap, carrying a 600 pound microscope to a table that comes up to her natural, God-given boobs. There is some humor in that, I guess. More coffee, please. In a large 1:1 scale cup. NOTE: According to Wikipedia ... The 1:12 scale was also used in Jonathan Swift's 1726 novel Gulliver's Travels. The ratio was used to compare the Lilliputians to Gulliver. Okay, so it is at least that old. Edited April 12 by Kami Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted April 12 Share Posted April 12 (edited) I have a sneaking suspicion that 1:12 is loosely applied because they are dollhouses. In real life there are large and small extremes, but it's worse in miniature. This is why I wound up making nearly everything that goes into my houses (including upholstered furniture; old polyester neckties work really well for this). The 1:12 armchair my 1:12 Ken is sitting in doesn't show up too well: I found that the tie I used for my 1:24 Knowle settee worked just fine: I had enough of the tie to upholster two armchairs, but the second one doesn't show up at all. I found 1:12 Barbies in a local doll shop. The lady in front of the settee is one of my polymer clay and pipe cleaner concoctions. I dress my dolls myself, and the books with patterns fit scale 1:12 dolls. Edited April 13 by havanaholly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FurMama Posted April 12 Share Posted April 12 I try not to order anything that doesn't have the measurements listed for the item. Even that is not always accurate. Like Holly said our RL environments have less than perfect scale items. I love my humongous RL recliner. It totally dwarfs my grandmother's antique sofa and overwhelms my small living room but neither one are going anywhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kami Posted April 13 Author Share Posted April 13 (edited) Beautiful work, HavanaHolly. For me, so far, upholstery is winning every battle. I'll look for some old ties. I think some of your text is lost behind the pics? Are my eyes playing tricks, or is a woman (Barbie) looking at Ken through the door window ?? Edited April 13 by Kami Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kami Posted April 13 Author Share Posted April 13 (edited) FurMama, I also had a humongous recliner, and yes it dwarfed everything else in the room. In the end I gave it away to my Father-in-Law, and scored lots of points! I guess I need to just roll with the flow, gather what I like and make the rest. My Grandmother was quite short, and used a small stool while cooking in the kitchen. Art imitates life. https://forum.greenleafdollhouses.com/blogs/blog/205-the-ginkgo-house-start-to-finish/ Edited April 13 by Kami Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted April 13 Share Posted April 13 Kami, the first part of the sentece was next to the photo; I fixed it. 22 minutes ago, Kami said: Are my eyes playing tricks, or is a woman (Barbie) looking at Ken through the door window ?? It's a "stained glass" insert in that door, not Barbie; she's up in the attic/ nursery with the baby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kami Posted April 13 Author Share Posted April 13 Yes, so my eyes are playing tricks. Not the first time. Nor the last, I'm sure. I swear I see hair, a face, shoulders and the chest. Ghost of Barbies past. Anyways, she'd be twice the size of Ken. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted April 13 Share Posted April 13 1 hour ago, Kami said: Yes, so my eyes are playing tricks. Not the first time. Nor the last, I'm sure. I swear I see hair, a face, shoulders and the chest. Ghost of Barbies past. Anyways, she'd be twice the size of Ken. Considering regular Barbies are 1:6 scale, you'd be absolutely right! I was pleasantly surprised to run across the three I found in 1:12. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FurMama Posted April 13 Share Posted April 13 @Kami I saw the "woman" in the door too! You are not alone in the tricky eye department. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kami Posted April 14 Author Share Posted April 14 17 hours ago, FurMama said: @Kami I saw the "woman" in the door too! You are not alone in the tricky eye department. Oh, good. I was worried I'd lost all my marbles. Again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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