ULLABENULLA

Ulla's Dollhouse - Tiny Splurge and Process

When I was out and about today, I had the wonderful opportunity to take direct inspiration from yesterdays post, and create a 'Marie Antoinette Cake Stand' just for the dollhouse! While brousing a local antique shop I found the tiniest little 'half doll' to use for the top. I hurried home and created the bottom from little wooden odds and ends I had laying around. Just needs a little varnish and it will be all done - Isn't it sweet? I can't wait to make mini 'petit fours' to lay all around it!

I thought you might be interested in seeing how I 'figure out' what I want to do with each room... This is a 'In Progress' photo of the Bedroom, which I have not shown you yet. As you can see, it looks like a teenagers room with clothes etc. scattered everywhere. I am toying with different wallpapers, wainscoting, and using shoes for beds. I also have some wonderful old textiles I want to somehow incorporate into the room. The photocopies leaning on the left side are 'color' inspirations, and a possibile ceiling mural. I get so many ideas, I have to throw everything together, and then slowly eliminate. Hopefully I will be able to show you progress on this room sometime next week...

Princess Cakes

These delightful illustrations were in Cleo Papanikolas 'image books' seen while taking her class last weekend. The top one has a lady made out of paper doilies! Marie Antoinette Cakes anyone???

MUSTARD AND CRESS

Last week I found this wonderful antique children's book, called 'Mustard and Cress - and the Downfall of Burdock', that I wanted to share with you. The inscriptions inside are dated 1879, and 1915 - perhaps handed down from one child to another...

The story is about two little elves, Mustard and Cress, one prickly old elf, Burdock, and a beautiful fairy princess. The illustrations are truly wonderful, and full of nostalgic charm! I wish one could find children's books with as much imagination and whimsy today as this one created over a century ago...

Ulla's Dollhouse - Part 2 - Itty Bitty Progress

This time of year (with Halloween only 2 months away!) so much is happening around here, that I seem to be meeting myself coming and going. I did however have some time to continue work on my dollhouse last week, and as promised, will keep you posted! First, I stained and put in a 'chestnut' floor in the boutique. I also gilded and framed some wonderful old chinese embroideries for the walls, and base painted the 'french door' white. The dressing table has its first layer of pink paint, and the new 'shoe stool' from Mrs. Staggs, was given a hand-dyed velvet cover - hope you approve Lena! I also made a 'ceiling mural' from a 'sky' scrapbook paper and gold Dresden birds. Hopefully it will keep the little ladies calm while they are enjoying their delicious pleasures...

Next came the Monet-green shutters and flower boxes on the front. The house still looks 'too sweet' on the outside to me, but these help. I added a 'House Muse' sculpture over the front door (a ceramic brooch I bought at an art-fair in Minnesota years ago). Every house should have its own muse - don't you think?

On to the kitchen! I was inspired by Carl Larsson's wonderful blue and white kitchen, and put up blue wood paneling that will have a little shelf over it. I am thinking of adding the 'painted' blue/white tiles on top of the white tile floor - the white is so stark... Fresh from Cleo's class I am also envisioning a 'foodie mural' and perhaps even a quote over the windows like Carl has done...

The next room I started was to be the 'childrens bedroom' but has now become the 'children's playroom'! I decided that all the little ladies visiting the boutique (those with small children that is) might find it nice to have a safe place to drop off their little dears, while they enjoy themselves downstairs... I found these wonderful celluloid swans on ebay a few months ago, not really knowing what I needed them for. Now they are to be a special 'Swan Merry-Go-Round' for the playroom. There is of course one Drake in the bunch, for the little tomboy who visits occassionally. (I found a 'lazy susan' mechanism to put underneath so that the 'merry-go-round' will truly be merry and really spin!

Laure of the wonderful blog Laurelines has graciously given me permission to use these Swan drawings for a mural I am planning on doing at 'childs height' on the walls. I also found the original 'christmas card' that my parents gave me when they gave me this dollhouse kit, when I was in my early 20's. Its so sweet, that I am going to frame it and hang it in this room as well. So progess has been made - in itty bitty steps. More soon...

Creating Art 'Mise En Place'

'Mise en place' is a French term referring to having all the ingredients necessary for a dish prepared and ready to combine up to the point of cooking. (Definition from Food Lover's Companion)

Yesterday I had the real pleasure of taking an art class with Cleo Papanikolas (yes she is Greek!) who calls her journals and books "Mental Mise en place" - a place where she can put all her thoughts and ideas in place. I blogged about Cleo in April Here, and was so excited to have the time to take her class at the Castle! Her book Cook Until Desired Tenderness is an inspiring and very creative 'cooking journal' - and a must have for any of you who like to play with art supplies and paper! (the above photo is one of my favorite illustrations from this book - I would love to have this chandelier 'dripping' in my kitchen!)

We spent our day learning 'secrets of the trade' from Cleo and painting, sketching and inking wonderful 'foodie' art... We each worked from one image all day long (I found this very liberating and fun, to do different techniques with one image). First she demonstrated a few of her personally favorite art techniques while drawing and painting a charming little goat. Next she set us loose to play, while she treated us to her own personal 'cooking prose' on the ins and outs, trials and tribulations, of being a cooking writer who creates art 'mise en place' - such a treat!

I chose a photo of a glass pitcher and delectable salad of sorts with a pink background. First I transferred the image onto various papers (Cleo is a master of using found materials in her art) and sealed them in place with medium. Then came the fun part! Using Gouache we painted to our hearts content and dibbled and dabbled - cooking up a wonderful assortment of delicious art... As you can see from my samples, my salad became 'chocolate with whip-cream' at one point, cooking always makes me think of desserts... It was a wonderful day, and my mind is spinning with ideas on how to use my new-found techniques - I am thinking that my dollhouse needs a 'foodie' mural in the kitchen, among other things...

Ulla's Dollhouse - Dreams of a Boutique!

When I put together my dollhouse years ago, the idea was that it was to become a 'Hat Shop'. Well now my visions are grander - and more complicated... I have painted one room on the ground floor a lovely Laduree green, in hopes of making this room a shrine to delicious food (pastries and cake specifically!) and beautiful things to wear (hats in this case!) A place where a woman can feel special and pampered! I created two lovely epergenes out of tiny teacups and 3-tier round shelves which I painted a darker 'Laduree' green. I am thinking of painting the shop counter pink or gilded gold - what do you think?
Next came the tea tables, I still don't like the chairs, (wanting something a bit more substantial and French looking) but these will do till the 'lady of the house' has more money... The dressing table has dreams of being pale pink with pretty little flowers painted on it. And the silver shoe, from dear Mrs Staggs is destined to be the seat one must recline on to admire oneself! The birdcage in the window, (with tiny little birds inside!) was purchased for almost half-off - as some of the little finials are missing. I can't tell - can you?

I have another tiny little teacup, that I have put on top of an old chess piece, in the thoughts of it becoming the vace for a luxurious bouquet by the front door - now I have to learn how to make itty bitty flowers... In the 80's I actually taught a class on how to make dollhouse size hats at a local miniatures shop. The shop is long gone, but I still have the hats! I hope they will be happy in their new home.

I am debating about hanging either tiny mirror tiles in lengths on the walls or pieces of old faded embroidery (you can see a tiny bit of them on the floor) or both... any ideas? I also am thinking of using both gilded and white trim on the walls. I love the idea of using things you wouldn't think of using in a dollhouse - for accessories and furniture (like the teacups). With this in mind, I went searching at one of my favorite places to find old and unusual things in Berkeley called Addison Endpapers and managed to leave with all kinds of wonderful treasures!!! The blue silk will make lovely curtains - don't you agree? And those fish have got to go into the Loo somehow!
Last but not least, I have been toying with the idea of having a mural in the hallway leading into the boutique. One of my paper theater backgrounds (with a lovely Italianite scene) looks fun there. I also thought it would be fun to have a life-size (doll size that is) figure painted on the wall - looking like he is going upstairs! More to come...

Ulla's Dollhouse - Beginnings of the Loo

So what does one do when faced with the daunting task of decorating a home? Start with the smallest room first! - or at least thats what I did! I had these funky old ceramic loo fixtures, and knew I wanted to personalize them. So I covered them in seashells, and added a rusty jewelry finding for the toilet lid. I really like how they turned out. I have a brass chandelier that I want to encrust with tiny shells too, just haven't figured out to do it - gravity wise... Adding to the ocean theme I glued a mexican wooden mermaid ornament onto a big shell, glued tiny shells around the perimiter - and now its a unique backsplash for my 'tea-green' porcelain tub! I want to white or blue wash the wood floor, and add some kind of mosaic or ?? fish-pond scene onto the floor... any ideas??? I am thinking of a ocean-blue paper for the walls over wainscotting... Itty bitty pondering...

Ulla's Dollhouse - Part 1

Thanks to Melissa for overcoming my 'stuckness' on electricity (I just ignored it for now) and to Amy with her wonderfully inspiring 'miniature swap stories' I finally dug out my dollhouse that I started over 20 years ago. Its a basic shape with lots of fancy 'working' windows. I got as far as putting it together, and priming it and then put it in the garage until I could 'find more time'. Well I don't know if I have more time now, but I do feel inspired to work on it again. A few weeks ago I stuccoed the outside and painted it pink. My inspiration is Monets House (see last photo). The green shutters and flower boxes are still in progress, as you see, but hopefully will go up by the end of the week! And I still need to paint the windows cream... It looks a bit saccharine to me right now, but I intend on covering it with vines and flowers some day - and hopefully that will give it more the feel I want... I really wanted to show you the finished product, but with life as it is, even itty bitty things go slow here. Plus, I am finding that making itty bitty decisions are not any easier than full-size ones! So you will get the 'in progress' version for now...