Calling this dollhouse vintage is a bit humbling. If you recognize this dollhouse then maybe you are around my age and, like me, have spent hours upon hours playing with one very similar to this. As a kid my dollhouse was one of my favorite toys, so seeing my own daughter play with it now is very nostalgic.
I don’t typically have sentimental attachment to items, in which case, I am able to throw or give away just about anything and not give it a second thought. So, thank goodness for my mom who managed to spare my old dollhouse from my liberal dispensing. I remember it was a big deal when it was given to me on my birthday by my grandparents. My Granny passed away recently, so this project was an emotional one for me. She and I have always shared a special bond and she would have loved to see what I had done with it. I told my daughter that she could choose only a few different colors to keep our project budget on track. She had free reign with choosing the wallpaper (scrapbook paper) and I love her choice! She told me that when she grows up she wants us to remodel houses together so this was our practice house. I will be so pleased if that comes to fruition!
One thing I love about my daughter is that she always sees the good in everything and everyone. Her dollhouse was no different. Despite the yellowing and peeling stickers, she loved it! She told me anything we do to it would only make it that much more special.
What you need:
1) Spray Paint (the fewer colors you choose, the easier it will be on the time it takes and your budget)
2) Painters Tape (my favorite it Frog Tape)
3) Garbage Bags
Optional:
1) Scrapbook Paper (for wallpaper and rugs)
2) Hot glue gun
3) Puzzle Glue
4) Acrylic Paint
The first part, which is the most difficult, is taking apart as many pieces as possible. Be careful not to break the plastic clips as you force them out. I was able to disassemble everything except the front porch and bottom floor. The two sides easily come off once you undo the screw at the bottom and slide the dowels out. The stairs and kitchen are each screwed in with four screws. I got some funny looks from my neighbors when I had plywood spread all over the yard with all the different pieces.
I always start spray painting with the lightest color first. Its no problem to cover white with gray or brown, but its much more challenging to do the opposite. So I began with white to remove all the yellowing. My brother (the spray painting king) taught me that several light coats with a few minutes in between gives you a much better finish then a heavy coat. Make fluid passes, starting your spray before you get to the object and continuing until you are off. This will insure that you don't have any "pools" of paint. For the first coat or two, don't be too heavy handed.
After taping off the porch and bottom floor I painted the brown. I always use Frog Tape because it gives me nice clean lines and removes easily with no residue. We live in a windy area in Hawaii so I have to be super careful that everything is fully covered so that it doesn't get overspray on it.
I decided to make my life a little more difficult by painting the chimneys on both sides to make them stand out. That meant a lot of extra taping and covering.
All in all, I believe it came together quite well! My daughter is thrilled and I'm off to play "bertend" as requested by my sweet girl.
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