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(Hiomtnineamenntitecrtitdaion ——[] Gecnedpniewanerantinit tna | ema Butterfly cottage
Bice bat Gas
Caroline Dupuis makes small cottages
with a vintage charm that makes you
want to stay for a restful get away.
in 2010. Before that, | made
cardboard architectural
models of real homes. My
work was for sale on Etsy and
a couple of people asked me
if 1 could leave off the back so
they could furnish them with
dollhouse items. I didn’t think
cardboard could sustain the
weight of furniture, so I need-
ed to use wood, | decided to
buy a dollhouse kit so I could
see what 1:12 scale looked
| started making dollhouses
“L asked my sister
Melanie to join me so
we could keep up with
orders. This year my
youngest sister, Sophie,
joined us after a bit of
arm-twisting. We're now
truly a family business.”
like in person, I took this kit
and changed it to my liking
using only a box cutter to
cut out new windows. I later
(24 American Miniaturist
found out dollhouse build- _tions. I like spaces between
ers called this kit bashing. my floorboards, cracks in
This little house sold in a few my plaster walls, rips in my
hours! [knew Thad to make wallpaper and tons of vines
more. So 1
bought a
few more
kits and
bashed
them. Soon
Iwas ready
to build
houses
with or
without
any kits.
My style
is very
vintage,
worn and
with lots of
imperfec-
Right: This
issucha
peaceful
placeto get
away from
italland
relax while
watching
butterflies
flutter by. Butterfly cottage
growing on the outside of the and sometimes ceiling Caroline used many
house. I make a lot of things _ planks are made of techniques to achieve a
by hand. The results are quite craft sticks. We dilute weathered look for this little
cottage, which gaveit a
unique. My theme is always paint with water to bi has
the same - a little place to get__ make a very aged
away. They are totally girly, wood floor
romantic and dreamy cot- color. It lets
tages that make you want tothe wood
find that shrinking potion so grain
you can escape for a quick show
recharge.
My dollhouse business grew
a lot in 2012. | asked my sister
Melanie to join me so we
could keep up with orders.
This year my youngest
sister, Sophie, joined us
after a bit of arm-twist-
ing, We're now truly
a family business.
Our doll
houses either
begin as kits
or are made
from scratch. I
begin by designing
a cottage on paper.
I then trace out the
design on the kit or on
a sheet of thin ply-
wood. I cut everything
out. We then begin the
downstairs interior. The
walls are always first. We
like plastering the walls.
Then they either get
a couple of coats
of paint or get
wallpapered. I
print my wallpa-
pers from real
wall coverings
online. Or I
use scrapbook
paper. The floors
American Miniaturist 25 Butterfly cottage
e and below: Hand-cut paper butterflies were glued
‘on throughout the inside and outside of the cottage.
through. The exterior of
the dollhouses usually gets
covered with concrete for
strength. We have to ship
these houses! If the design
26 American Miniaturist
calls for
rocks I just
carve them
into the
‘wet con-
crete with
a sharp,
pointed
knife, The
vines are
from the
floral de-
partment at
crait stores.
Look for
small leaf
plants.
‘Then I cut them apart and
glue the pieces individually.
Tuse the same method for
the flowers. I glue everything
on with hot glue. I do have
ove: Each tiny leaf and flower
that make the lush vines were glued
on one at atime using a glue gun.
a professional glue gun that
heats the glue to a higher
temperature.
We use acrylic paints for
all our houses. We have come
up with a method of aging
everything. It’s a mix of brown
paint, black paint and water.
‘To stiffen the fabrics we use
hairspray. Some people have
said this might turn the fabrics
yellow in the future, But
since we are always after that
vintage look, it would actu-
ally be a good thing for our
dollhouses.
Our furniture is mostly
handmade. 1 want to have
realistic styles in my little Above: This small handmade wing
back chair is shabby in the best way.
Acomfortable place to sit and read.
homes. | don’t like the overly
formal, brand new looking
dollhouse furnishings. I love
to develop unique character
that matches the homes they
occupy. I love to try online
tutorials,
This allows
me to make
the furniture
exactly the
size I need.
Recently, I
figured out
how to make
wing chairs
from scratch.
Love making
the lace cov-
ered chairs
or very old,
rustic counterbal-
anced with super
feminine décor.
A place to study
butterflies, cozy
up with a good
book or write
new stories
ered the interior
shabby chairs with holes and
stains. I make hand-painted
beds with roses and birds.
They have to look like puffy
clouds with oodles of bed-
ding. I want that “ready to
jump in” feel.
Butterfly Cottage was
an idea I had to make
a secret little hideaway.
I wanted it to be very
clubhouse like. It would
be that little place
tucked away in the far
comer of the backyard
or in a meadow sur-
rounded by trees, I envi-
sioned board construction
on the inside and outside.
Something very
First we cov-
Butterfly cottage
wall with boards on three
sides and the ceiling. The
boards were made with craft
sticks of different widths. We
also covered the ceiling with
them and the floor. Every-
thing was then coated with
our aging mix (brown and
black paint heavily watered
down). For the remaining wall
Thad an idea to cover it with
different bits of wallpaper
some peeling away and others
wrinkled. I glue my wallpaper
with regular white glue.
Below: A hand-painted bed with
birds and flowers and handmade,
sparkly chandelier make for a girly
place for hours of beauty sleep.
American Miniaturist 27 Butterfly cottage
e:This fluffy handmade bed is.
begging to be jumped into. Its allthe
litle the details that make itdreamy.
Next, I made the crystal
chandelier. I use a baitery-op-
erated light. It’s very tiny and
easy to install. The chandelier
is decorated with handmade
roses and crystal seed beads. I
made a bed from wood veneer.
I’s hand-painted with roses
A mini set of keys hang ona
tiny butterfly hook by the door.
(28 American Miniaturist
and birds.
With cozy
bed linens
it’s ready to
be jumped
in! The wing
chair is,
handmade. 1
got the mea-
surements from a miniature
furniture maker's
site. The loft is
a place for our
resident to write. I
painted a desk and
rug with roses. The
entire interior has
posters of butterflies,
I printed from the
Internet. The books
are plain miniature
books you find at
fe Ayummy
little pink cupcake
makes your stay
at the Butterfly
Cottage an even
sweeter treat.
the store. I just
painted the covers
pink and white. The table is a
wooden candlestick base with
several layers of cardboard
for the top and a cardboard
trim, It was painted silver for
the tabletop and the base was
left unfinished. The dresser
The dresser was akit that
was left unfinished and topped off
with a white rose and candles. Butterfly cottage
was also left unfinished, This
piece and the loft desk are kit
pieces from an old miniature
kit maker. The downstairs rug
is hand-painted with a famous
Paris pastry shop’s logo. And
the windows have simple lace
coverings.
The exterior is covered with
rustic boards meant to look
like leftover building materi-
als. Then we aged everything
with our mix of watered down
brown and black paint. The
look we ended up with was
grey weathering. | then went
over some boards with differ
ent colors to look like weath-
ered off paint. The roof was
covered with pine shingles
that we colored by dunking in
a tub of grey paint, unmixed
white and lots of water. After
they are fully dry we hot glue
them on the roof. The vines
are from a craft store. I only
look for small leaves. To make
them look like the right scale
wwe cut them into smaller sec-
tions and indi-
vidually hot glue
them on the
walls. The flow-
ers get the exact
same treatment.
I then printed
butterflies from
the Internet and
dispersed them
on the house.
Butterfly Cottage
was ready for its
new owner!
Making
dollhouses has
been the perfect
way to try out
Ee ic
The walls of the
loft are full of butterfly
posters. There is also
alittle white desk for
writing or sketching.
all my design dreams,
ve had so much fun
bringing my visions
to life, Being able to
work with my sisters
has been the icing on
the cake, We are look-
ing forward to exciting
developments. Cin-
derella Moments has
been a dream come
true for me. Not only
do I have a dream job,
but I've also met the nicest
friends through the Internet.
Miniaturists are truly magical
people! And I am proud to
have joined them in this artful
venture.
elow: Nowa family business,
Caroline makes magic with her
sisters and their furry little helpers.
ih
American Miniaturist 29 Miniature dreams
A ost
NOW FOUN
Susanne Idun March rediscovered her
love of miniatures and has now devel-
oped her own romantic brocante style.
be the place where you find
the special items that makes
your miniature living individ-
ual and personal. ‘A place that
talks to your senses, the things
you find there are special
because they look like they
could tell a story. Just like you
were browsing a flea market
in 1:1 life, looking for...you
are not certain when you go
there, but when you see that
thing, you just know that itis
right for your home. And you
would feel happy, inspired and
creative, eager to go home,
maybe move things around in
your rooms a bit, but it will
add a new dimension, a new
meaning a new constellation.
So Petit Brocante is a place
in my miniature dreams, and
I also realized it in real life,
it has become a shop and a
term that I use when I want to
describe my work, This is the
story.
| ‘would like Petit Brocante to
Right: Two wreaths covered in white
roses sit gently on a beautifully
antiqued miniature arm chair.
30 American Miniaturist
Way back then
Asa child in the 60's and 70's
my two grandmothers taught
me how to sew, crochet and
knit, along with embroidery,
bead work etc. These are
skills that I treasure very
much today. When I was in
my early twenties, in the be-
ginning of the 80's, I became
fascinated by miniatures and
started to make a dollhouse.
Thad a friend with the same
interest and we had great fun
together. Then a lot of years
went by. I was busy, occupied
with my husband, children,
house, studying, and building
a career. I erased miniatures
from my mind for nearly
twenty years,
‘Then one day in - I think
it was 2008 - I realized that I
had been neglecting a big part of myself, always being occu-
pied with intellectual matters,
which is the main focus in
ny job as a head of a depart-
ment at a University College.
Not using my hands and my
creative skills very much. My
Miniature dreams
old friend reminded
me of my earlier work
with miniatures and
told me to take a look
at the Internet.
A whole new wo
‘To my big surprise
a whole new world
was just a few clicks
away. | forgot every-
thing around me, as
I was busy search-
ing and discovering ove: Its all of the wonderful
an endless world, where one tiny details positioned in just the
link lead to a minimum of right way that make a miniature
ten more. And they were all scene seem like a dream.
American Miniaturist 31 Miniature dreams
about miniatures, with stories,
pictures, tutorials, advice, and
shops - a wonderful communi-
ty of people that had the same
eyes as I, so to speak. The last
time I looked for miniatures, 1
was happy to find a small note
in a magazine or the news-
paper about a person sharing
the same interest, now I found
connections worldwide. It was
so amazing to me.
1 found my old boxes in
the attic and I was hooked
again. | wanted to share and
get response to my work, so I
started a blog called Miniature
Dreams. In the beginning 1
had no followers, then a few,
and suddenly a lot. I enjoyed
the thought of knowing that 1
was talking to people on the
other side of the earth. T can
only recommend miniaturists
to take a look into that world.
Thave always had a small
obsession with old things and
furniture. Not that | want my
home to look like a museum,
but I like to combine old and
new, and I prefer things that
show they have been used.
They tell a story, and they
reveal a lot of details you can’t
find on a new thing. One of
these is patina. I am the kind
of person who can fall into a
swoon over an old door with
layers of paint and crackles,
and [ have a huge collection of
pictures to inspire me.
Being a miniaturist | have
to admit I am no minimalist.
34 American Miniaturist
1ve: Susanne prefers item that show their age and that they have been
used. Then she combines them with newer items to create a romantic mood.
low: This grouping of gardening miniatures all compliment each other,
right up to the bucket of lavender that sit in the wooden gardening tray. Miniature dreams
Catch the style
© Textures like stone, tiles,
sand, wood, iron and zine
Less is not more in my view, Above: Patinais Susannes favorite _¢ Patina like crackled paint,
and I love to make small finish. She has a collection of rust, verdigris, unpolished
installations with items that _Pisturestoinspireher creations. sitver and gold
complement each other in * Colors all very soft, on worn
different ways with a common of my Etsy-shop. It’s the flea __fabrics, scabs of old linen and
theme. This could be a nuance markei/brocante style that is lace, and worn items
of certain colors, it could be a predominant based on inspira- _ Items with a theme, a color
collection of a certain thing; tion from European countries, or a combination of textures
for example frames, vases, and mainly France Plants and flowers like
items related to a certain You might also like
