Something a bit different!

This is another of my new dolls houses in Bathurst. The house itself is fairly recent, and I don't know who made it, or even what it's made from (mdf? pine?). I bought it for the decorations - it has been painted inside and out by Australian artist Janine Daddo, and I love the details on it, especially all the cats!

There's a black and white cat on the front left, like my Harriet, and two white dogs with black spots on the front right. 

On the inner left front, there's a ginger cat, like my sister's cat Treasure.

 On one side there are two white cats:

 and on the other side, there's another ginger cat, as well as several kennels:

The roof doesn't open, but the attics are accessible through the dormer windows and the round windows at each end, so the space is usable.

Three more dogs are on the back:

 The house came with furniture, which is painted as brightly as the house itself:

The bedroom:

 The bathroom - lots of fish!

 The kitchen:

 And the living room (not many chairs - I wonder if there were more once? I might have to add some):

 

 Who will live here? I don't know yet, but they will certainly have lots of cats and dogs!

 

Five Years Old!

Yesterday, 7th February, it was five years exactly from my first blog post! To celebrate, I have been thinking about a giveaway - then I read Anna-Maria's post sharing the winners of her 8th blogiversary giveaways, where she mentions legal issues .... so I am still thinking about whether to do one or not.

So, for now, I will share with you some paintings by a distant cousin of mine. Cicely Elmslie Shand was born in 1898, in Newcastle, Northumberland, in England. (She was my second cousin twice removed - my maternal grandmother's second cousin.) She painted designs for postcards and greeting cards during the 1930s. She had married a naval officer, Cecil Sheppard, at the age of 18. We don't know much about this period of her life - where she and her husband were based, for instance - but we do know that they did not have children. Cecil Sheppard would have been at sea for much of the time - perhaps she painted then. Like many professional women of the time (Georgette Heyer and Marjorie Allingham spring to mind), she worked under her maiden name.

I was lucky enough several years ago to buy some of her original paintings for cards, on ebay. 'Welcome', above, is dated 1938. 'Acceptance', below, is dated 1935.

A fan of her work has created a website showing all the cards she published. These designs are not shown - perhaps they were not all published, although I do have a card of Acceptance. She was also included in the lovely book Postcards from the Nursery, by Dawn Cope and Peter Cope (although unfortunately, the description of her family mixes up the generations,  naming her grandfather William (my great-great-grandfather John Shand's younger brother) as her father, and her father Hinton as her uncle).

To Greet You With Joy, original artwork by Cicely Elmslie Shand for a greetings card, undated.

I would like to take the opportunity of my 5th blogiversary to greet all my followers and readers with joy, and to welcome my new followers. I hope we all have lots of fun with our collections in the year to come - I enjoy sharing mine with you, and seeing and reading about yours!

Toys, original artwork for a greetings card by Cicely Elmslie Shand, 1934. Image from ebay seller apb113 (Peter Haddon); sadly, I was outbid on this painting.

In which I become an internationally exhibited photographer ...

in the miniature world of dolls house bloggers!

Rory Hill, a successful accountant in Houston, Texas, recently moved out of his mother's house at the age of 37. His new bachelor pad, a mid-century modern Schönherr bungalow, is the subject of a recent spread in the Houston publication My Vintage Dollhouses.

© My Vintage Dollhouses

Looking for just the right art work to compliment his "new" furniture, Rory visited a couple of his favorite galleries, Nau-Haus and John Cleary. Finally, in a small gallery in his new neighborhood [Rice Village , north of Rice university], he discovered several prints he thought would be perfect for his new space. The prints were listed by Australian photographer Rebecca Green, but no titles were given. ...For now he decided to refer to them as Table Tops and Stacked Tables.

I was thrilled to see that not only have I made my first international sales*, but they have been featured in this wonderful publication!

The prints that Rory Hill chose were originally published here as part of my study exploring differences of scale. I'm delighted that Rory gets such enjoyment out of them! And I like his names - I would probably have called them something like Tables Scales I and Table Scales II. Thank you, Rory - you have given me great encouragement, and I wish you all the best in your new home.

© My Vintage Dollhouses

*The author of the spread on Rory's Schönherr bungalow informed me that "Rory said he is sure the check is in the mail....;)". I didn't ask which postal service he used!