HOW IT ALL BEGAN

I first became interested in miniatures in 1979 when a dear friend gave me a dollhouse kit.  Since building the Tennyson by Greenleaf, I have made and sold several other dollhouses including the Cambridge by Dura-Craft and several shops by Real Good Toys. 

Bitten by the miniature bug, I soon began 'kit-bashing', which is the art of altering kits.  I 'bashed' a second Cambridge and joined it with the first, creating a fabulously large dollhouse, but I still wasn't satisfied.  It needed to be bigger and it needed to look more like a mansion than a house.

Then, on a lucky trip into my local dollhouse shop, Dollhouses Plus, I began chatting with the owner, Millie Smith, and before I knew it I was hired to work there as the consultant for dollhouse interior design!  Soon I was helping customers coordinate wallpaper, tiles, molding, wood, lighting, textiles and other various architectural elements to achieve their miniature dreams!

When the owner of a local hair salon (John L. DiMenna) came in one day to ask if we were interested in selling his fabulous handmade bird houses I could not have imagined he would, eventually, offer to build my dream dollhouse- a custom design from scratch!  Armed with only a few photographs of The Elms, John was commissioned to build Crown Jewel Manor.  The only dollhouses he had built until then were a few kits for the dollhouse shop but you can see the wonderful job he did by clicking on the link to Crown Jewel Manor!

I loved my job and went to all the trade shows but meeting fellow miniaturists was the most rewarding experience of all.  Random people would pop into the shop bringing in minis, sharing techniques, asking for advice and selling some of the most incredible miniatures creations!  Barbara Par brought in her amazing Victorian gazing balls, Cheryl Riello shared her magnificent character dolls and the parade of talent went on and on!

As they say, all good things must come to an end and the dollhouse shop closed. One by one I watched in sadness as most of the dollhouse shops in New England, and then across the country, closed due to their inability to compete with online stores with no overhead and craft store chains. It was a sad time but I still cherish the people I met, the places I visited and the knowledge I gained.

Everything I know about making minitures was taught to me by the kind generosity of fellow miniaturists who make this hobby so special. They are too numerous to thank here, but I try my best to honor them each day by sharing my knowledge and techniques with others. 

My work is not 'perfect'. I learned long ago to leave that talent to others. I strive for realism and hearing others exclaim "It looks so real!" is the very best feedback a miniaturist can possibly receive.

E-mail me with your story!  I would love to hear how you became interested in miniatures!