Lovely Vero East German Puppenhaus Chalet

Found in Michigan, of all places!

After a lot of researching, it appears my latest find is a 1970's VERO Olbernhau puppenhaus (dollhouse). Vero was an East German government owned company that absorbed, took over or dissolved individual toy makers in the 60's and 70's, among those were makers Gottschalk and Albin Schönherr. These wee homes were marketed and sold all over the world to take advantage of the better currency rates of other countries. Anyway, it's a 3/4 (1:15) scale gem!

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Driveway and Garage...

 This poor thing has the worst glue holding it together, as you can see the way the balcony sags a bit. The garage door swings open to park one's car or....

...to keep one's pony in! (Take that Dad who never let me have a pony in our garage! xoxox)

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The back of the house...

 I really like the open sides on this home. Usually, I prefer the homes that have big access doors, to keep the dust out. But this is just so welcoming!

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The living room side...

 The living room will have to be a combo with the kitchen. Even though the home appears large, it really has limited space. The little clear plastic wall is removable.

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Decked out a bit...

Even though I have to take it apart for cleaning and repairs I just have to try some furniture!!

Living Room...

Strombecker couch and chairs, Lisa of Denmark fireplace and Barton sink and audio stand.

Bedroom...

Barton Tudor cabinet and chairs, Strombecker bed and vanity.

 Manly Balcony...

Strombecker chairs.

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Well, down to the workshop for repairs!!

Lost In the Woods: Tulip Cottage

A handmade, primitive, 1/2 scale plywood dollhouse. Love needed!

Sometimes something comes along and asks to belong to you. No one else wants it, but to you it's so cute, in that bowlegged way. Like that ugly puppy, you take it in. So is the beginning of my adventure with my little "Tulip Cottage".

 

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A bit wonky that's for sure. Crooked and plain with messy glue residue. But open it up and more potential, slivers and all...

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The side window flourishes are so nutty...

 but so appropriate for this odd little find!

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Renovations Begin!

It had some wasted space in the attic so I removed the roof (well, Dan did) and blew out the ceiling of the left bedroom.  Now that's better! I begin to paint the outside.

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 Sometimes ideas just don't work out. Staining the floors didn't make me happy! Painting all the insides made it so bright. Much better I think...

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Here I've I turned scrap booking paper over (as it has glitter as part of it's pattern, yuk, right Devin?) and x-actoed parts away to expose the cute trimmings. I then glued it down with Yes glue. This application ended up looking a bit like lace, which wasn't what I was going for, but I decided that was OK. Besides, it was too late by then!

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The interior windows get trimmed out....

and the rest get "base boards and "ceiling beams". The beams aren't glued in, just held by tension in case I ever change my mind!

  

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Interior Decorating!!! Finally!!!

Now the real fun begins. Decorating instead of just renovating!

The Kids' Room

Bunny wallpaper I created with the help of my awesome MacBook Pro...

The kids' room furnished...

I'm not sure, could it be Dora Kuhn furniture???? It's 1/2 scale. Hmmmm.

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The Master

The master, scrap booking paper wallpaper...

 Furnished... 

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The Bathroom

In the attic??? Well we have to have one!!

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The Kitchen

I made the kitchen appliance set using a little porcelain sink and cupboard (I was lucky to get these, 1/2 scale to boot), some cardboard and scrap booking embelishments...

The finished Kitchen. More computer generated wallpaper...

More Dora Kuhn furniture????

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  The Living Room

More digital wall paper. Pages by Apple is awesome!

Not sure the make of the fireplace. Pretty sure it's German.

Strombecker couch, chair and ottoman. Tootsie Toy lamp and side table. The cuckoo clock is a little brooch.

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The whole kitten kaboodle inside...

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The Exterior Is Finished!!!

(finally!! And the whole thing gets two coats of polyurethane!)

 I thought bead flowers would be the best look for this dollhouse...

Bead caps and string pull bases make beautiful flowers!!

I originally made seven window boxes, but decided on just the three for the front of the house...

The boxes themselves are made out of popsicle sticks. Cheap!

All the access doors go on and the bunnies are secure under their red red roof!

Whew! That only took a good month and a half of solid fun!! And I'm pretty pleased with the results.

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Bunny Bun hopes you enjoyed the adventure! Now that her home is swankied up she figures she better wear clothes, to show how far she's come as a bunny ya know!

Rich Toy Mansion, Poor Little Thing Revisioned - All Better Bachelor Abode

The Then....

Recall from memory Poor Little Thing in all its tortured glory- majestic, yet disgusting, yearning for a new life and look... 

 

 

The Transition...

After major renovations by the tiny Flip My Dollhouse crew, Poor Little Thing begins its conversion from a condemned property to receiving a dolly Certificate Of Occupancy...

The Now...

Staging is everything, as they say. Poor Little Thing's new owner, Barry StormTrooper, hires Dolly Dollhouse Design (DDD), to transform it to his All Better Bachelor Abode (ABBA, not just a Swedish band anymore!). No expense is spared, well except he has no money for pots and pans now. Oh well, a bachelor's life.

Room By Room - ABBA - A Bachelor's Abode

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Bedroom

 

Barton of England bedroom set, Strombecker lamp, and Dollar Tree coaster bamboo curtain.

 Every dude needs his beauty sleep and our Barry is no exception. This is where chicks see his gentler, zen kinda side (if Barry gets lucky).

Barry's Van Gogh rug and 1930's Tootsie Toy chairs. Computer made wallpaper.

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Bathroom

 

Being a storm trooper is dirty business. Barry goes for the 2 person corner tub (wink wink).

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Den

Barry needs his Man Cave, perfect for chess playing, his preferred technique in honing his storm trooper skills. He's an accomplished lute player as well....

Stombecker yellow wire chairs and lamp.

Lundby bookcases and Oscar Mayer weenie whistle.

Barry's a big fan of the tv series, the Prisoner. He fancies himself as a Patrick McGoohan kinda guy...

Knight pencil sharpener. Computer made wallpaper.

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Kitchen

The DDD had to convince Barry to install a kitchen. He likes take out too much but the DDD told him chicks really like nice kitchens. So he got a kitchen, just no dishes and pots and pans yet, but he does have a butcher block...

Lundby kitchen cabinets, table and chairs. Computer made wallpaper.

Barry's pass through.

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Living Room

Obviously, Barry loves those old British tv series'. He'd love to go out with Diana Rigg, Mrs. Emma Peel from the Avengers....

Fisher Price coffee tables entertainment center, handmade fireplace and curtains. Swing chair modification.

The DDD convinced him he needed a dining room. Barry might change it out for a pool table when he gets his next storm trooper paycheck...

Revamped Concord vanity/bar and chairs, Fisher Price spiral stairs. Computer made wallpaper.

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Petite Princess barrel chair.

 Well, Barry hopes you liked the tour of ABBA. And give him a call if you know any single dollhouse chicks! He likes clothes pin dollies in particular. Baby!