Beacon Hill Classroom Progress

Happy New Year, everyone! I know I should be posting on resolutions or reflecting back on this year, but the light was coming through so beautifully, I couldn't resist taking these pictures. :)

This is the main classroom in the Beacon Hill Girls' School. In the foreground is a small teaching area (what subject, I don't know yet!)with a standing chalkboard on the right that I'll show in more detail later. In the background, you can see a hint of the traditional American schoolhouse desks sitting on some checkboard patterned paper. That's my way of trying out different flooring ideas.

The top picture also shows my crown moulding shortcut. After wasting many pieces trying to cut the proper angle, I finally decided to cheat and make the corners square cut and put a section of wood block in the corner. A fancy finial will come later. You decide: crafty or cheating?

Again, blog friends, Happy New Year! I hope that 2012 is full of everything that is good and lovely for you and all your loved ones!!

The Kitchen

Here is the Orchid's kitchen. Don't mind the crooked curtains! Can you spot the Michael's hutches? There are three.

A Beginning...

I love the little things in life that make it so precious... my family, nature, and dabbling in anthing creative! Since I was born a little late to experience the Little House on the Prairie era, what better way to explore my love of antiques and handcrafting than through miniatures? Minis aren't just houses for dolls, but a way to explore and learn about architecture and history, craft with wood and paint and paper and fabric; a world that we create in which everything is in order... What a marvelous stress reliever! Thanks for exploring it with me.

Here's the back story... When I was a little girl, my grandmother gave me a Greenleaf Beacon Hill dollhouse for Christmas. It was marvelous (check out their wonderful site!) and I spent hours sitting as close as I could to it so that I could imagine myself in those wonderful scenes. I grew up and forgot about miniatures until last Christmas. I started feeling sentimental and my wonderful husband took me to an antique store.

There sitting up on a shelf was a very neglected, gaudily painted Orchid by Greenleaf. I rescued the little house and since then I've been hooked! During the painting process and ....after!
She's still a work in progress... more pics soon...