Caught In The Web

I was just getting going on the electrification of the Lovely Old Dollhouse when I realized that I wanted a certain style of light that was not to be found at the nearby miniatures shop. And this sent me searching on the internet. Being slightly "old fashioned" (a gentle way of saying "no longer young") I was not in the habit of spending time on my computer looking for things on the "Web". I am almost embarrassed to admit that it really had not occurred to me just how much there might be "out there". So I was truly amazed at what I found when I finally started looking! I have already confessed that I was at work when I first started looking up "dollhouse miniatures" (very briefly during my lunch break!:)) and therefore did not stay long in the vast internet. Just long enough to find the light I wanted for the bathroom of the Lovely Old Dollhouse.

Here you can see it installed - along with the glossy black tiles I mentioned before.Of course, as you may imagine, the black light was not the only thing I found on the internet. The bathroom was developing a decidedly black theme, and when I spotted some black ceramic fixtures I just HAD to have them too! Here you can see the set (not yet installed).


It was easy to tell myself that I would only buy the things that I couldn't make by myself.......in part because I love to make things.......but also as a way of protecting my pocket book! So I was being GOOD and NOT buying all kinds of yummy things I saw on the internet. Because I couldn't STOP visiting the "WEB"! It crept up on me....I would think of something and ask myself if there might be one on the "Web"...and then go looking! And of course, the number of things I saw that I would LOVE to have or even better make one of, was vast and ever expanding! This project was no longer simple at all!


But NOTHING prepared me for discovering "blogland"!


I stumbled upon it on one of my forays online. I was really just aimlessly looking up every picture reference that google gave me in search of inspiring ideas for dollhouse decor. I am embarrassed to admit that it took me a while to realize that the photos of the perfect miniature artist's studio that had me mesmerized were indeed a post on a miniature lover's blog! And I won't admit how long it was before I discovered the REST of her blog! Or how one could click on the other listed items and be propelled through the ether to an entirely different world! Or that everything was a link to something else.......talk about falling down the rabbit hole....!" I would bore my family silly with tales about what I had found in the magical miniature dollhouse wonderland of the "Web"!


But I get ahead of myself. Because, being old fashioned, I was not doing this all in one internet blitz! I was tip-toeing in, stumbling on new discoveries and slowly realizing how big the picture was. Besides, it was the Christmas season. And everyone in my family knows that I am always busy with making ornaments and selling my small craft creations and drawing the annual Christmas card. So there was almost no time to be working on the Lovely Old Dollhouse.



The beautiful and mysterious ladies stayed for Christmas, and even found time to decorate a Christmas tree before they left. After that, I suspect they went South for the winter.....as Winter in New England can be rather harsh.



It was really only after the busyness of the Holiday Season was over and the Long Cold Dark Winter (okay, long and dark, but not very cold last year) set in that the internet truly captivated me. The first blog I found led me (via her incredibly beautiful exotic dolls) to another blog which simply enchanted me! I returned to it time after time to read and explore every link (still not all explored I am sure)! The creativity and energy and ideas and projects just made me want to try everything for myself! (I am sure you ALL know what I mean! You are all such a creative bunch and just keep giving each other wonderful new ideas!:)) And that led me to more blogs....


So it was that I realized that my ideas of what I could do with the Lovely Old Dollhouse had changed. I had never been so completely sure of what it was I wanted to do with it, decor-wise. I was feeling my way along bit by bit. And I still am. It's just that now I have seen about two hundred or so (and counting!) different dollhouses out there with all their beautiful details for inspiration! I have to work much harder at being selective in refining my own dollhouse decor!

Thus it is that when I see something on the "Web" that speaks to that elusive image I am trying to build, all my GOOD intentions of not buying pieces I thought I could make for myself, go out the proverbial Window! It's just so darn EASY to order things on-line! And once you get started, it is awfully easy to get "click happy" and just keep on adding to that invisible shopping cart! But, I have NO regrets!

Just LOOK at the beautiful chest of drawers I bought! It is ALMOST exactly like one we have in our family... so I just had to have it for the Master Bedroom!

And then there is this lovely cupboard.......which doesn't even remotely resemble anything my family has ever owned.....but.....there was just SOMETHING about it that spoke to me.....so I clicked that magic button and sure enough, in good time, it arrived at my house!

I think it will look beautiful in the second best bedroom, especially once I get the room all painted.......which you can see I have begun in the picture below, along with some lovely sconces with tulip shades (just like the ones we had in the house I lived in when

the Lovely Old Dollhouse first came into my life)




Here is a better shot to show you the beautiful peachy color I have painted that room. So you see, I have not ONLY been playing on my computer! There is still a great deal of detail to be done with the trim and the doors and windows... but I will get to that in another post!

And the kitchen is now the yellow I promised you would see. I know some people will think it is too strong a color for a tiny space like this........But you will see that it is toned down quite a bit when the wainscoting and window are completed and the cabinets added. Besides, I LOVE strong colors and love to inspire others to reach for the more vibrant hues!

And here is a standing back shot of the whole house, with most of the lights installed and shining brightly. I will have to begin working on the attic soon......I have a few ideas I want to try, and I'm SURE I can find even MORE on the internet.......

And as for the OUTSIDE of the Lovely Old Dollhouse, that is another whole world of options to explore! I can tell you that I have only just begun. I can't decide if I want to leave it white, in the style of so many houses in this area that are white clapboard Colonial and Federal period houses, or go with a brick finish that would make it more stately (as well as being more colorful) but would require much more of me in the execution......

I think I will have to do some more exploring on the "Web"!

Because, once you have gone through that door into the Wonderful Wild "Web" there is no turning back!

So, I have been truly caught in the Web.