MamaV Posted June 7 Share Posted June 7 Hi all, I just made an album called the Whirlybird dollhouse. In case you haven't seen it, here's what I'm looking at: I'll let you dig into the gallery for more, but suffice it to say, I have no idea what it is but I love it. The roof slides out/off, and I have at least one swing-out room. I'm positive there should be another on the opposite side, but it's been lost, as are two out of the three windows. It seems to be a sort of particle board, cardboardy without being cardboard. It looks like the Keystone style, but nothing I'm seeing online matches this one. None of it is tin, and the roof sets into the house, rather than ONTO the house. So, 1: Any ideas what this is? 2: What material should I make repairs with? Should I aim for thick cardboard, or maybe basswood? Many thanks! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaV Posted June 7 Author Share Posted June 7 I FOUND ANOTHER ONE, sort of: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/1950s-vintage-wood-cardboard-room-1910482743 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaV Posted June 7 Author Share Posted June 7 I DID IT! It's a Keystone Large Put-Away, #41 (or maybe that's the blog number), from 1949. https://my-vintage-dollhouses.blogspot.com/p/my-keystone-of-boston-houses.html Super bummed I'm missing one of the extensions (the garage), but maybe I can work my way around that/find a new one. ^What it should look like when folded up This is her sister put-a-way house, but the smaller version: https://www.ebay.com/itm/405001547205?itmmeta=01HZT47BCMC3JYQEXRDSXHGEEM&hash=item5e4bf92dc5:g:JakAAOSwWK5mPwDa&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAAwGnYA9pofOr3fKNXenWYWEmdR1iDlkzvvmw49yZHpVxRXwOfyKsv7YehDNaBCh4IS2Nga6priSPCReZm657VWO%2FxubvbN4mPoaXEL6myw%2F6Jjot71o996dnrw4JmAplRi426pMjh7LKRjm3gmp%2FnrWtaj2Xl6vL5nStdbCfgxG16VikrnEkuRsDzwyyoBQLe3CXnyrzgxsvtT0yuZT5sNThJs0m6PLE8kno73m1Bu%2FxOqWgdzZosMpejMK39zqAkKQ%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR7K2ncT-Yw I have also just realized that if I'd looked at the bottom of the house more closely, I would've seen the brand written. Go figure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted June 7 Share Posted June 7 Tekwood, huh? My Keystone's walls looked like a kind of early particle board (mdf) with a truly heavy paper adhered to the surfaces so decorations like siding, wallpaper, etc could be litho'd on. When my mother decided I was "too old" to be playing with a dollhouse she put it out in our leaky south FL garage for the roaches, silverfish and other nasties to play with; it no longer existed when I finally had the time and room to try to get it back. Mine had an appliance bulb over the stairwell to give light, and metal shutters on the windows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaV Posted June 7 Author Share Posted June 7 2 hours ago, havanaholly said: Tekwood, huh? My Keystone's walls looked like a kind of early particle board (mdf) with a truly heavy paper adhered to the surfaces so decorations like siding, wallpaper, etc could be litho'd on. When my mother decided I was "too old" to be playing with a dollhouse she put it out in our leaky south FL garage for the roaches, silverfish and other nasties to play with; it no longer existed when I finally had the time and room to try to get it back. Mine had an appliance bulb over the stairwell to give light, and metal shutters on the windows. Awww I'm sorry to hear about your Keystone's demise...I wonder which one it was? One of the above-posted blog links has what may be the whole catalogue of Keystone houses so maybe you can find the exact one you had? Also yes, the same blog says Tekwood was early MDF, with different names but effectively the same thing. I'll see if I can find any, if it's worth building with...otherwise I'm not sure what I'll use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted June 7 Share Posted June 7 My house was masonite, it was like the #37 from 1947 but without the double doors in the middle room upstairs. The #40 from 1949 was a put-away with just the one extension, so tht could well be yours. Rather than plywood I'd check with your local hardware store to wee if they have off-cuts of 3/16" plywood and use that. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaV Posted June 8 Author Share Posted June 8 1 hour ago, havanaholly said: My house was masonite, it was like the #37 from 1947 but without the double doors in the middle room upstairs. The #40 from 1949 was a put-away with just the one extension, so tht could well be yours. Rather than plywood I'd check with your local hardware store to wee if they have off-cuts of 3/16" plywood and use that. I'll try that with the hardware store! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted June 8 Share Posted June 8 Don't wee at the hardware store. I touch type and the "s" and "w" kets are close together. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaV Posted July 13 Author Share Posted July 13 Well everyone, I'm back! I made a cardboard mock-up of the missing wing of the house, and now I just have to decide how to make a better replacement. I also need to invest in plywood (see above conversation) but I haven't pursued that in the slightest. But I WANT to! My current hang-up is how to make it look like it should (e.g. that Keystone look), when I know I won't get it perfect. Do I just paint and hope the new wing fits in? Or repaint all of it (I hope not, I like the original look)? Or do some sort of mashup? I just don't know...there are definitely scrapes and scuffs in the original paint that would probably need dealt with anyway, so it's not just the new wing causing problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted July 13 Share Posted July 13 If you can, just touch up the dings & scrapes, and then paint your repair parts to match. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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