My Little Corner of the Net

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Recent Acquisitions

I have not had much time for miniature projects this summer.  We are getting our house ready to put on the market.  So I have been busy with repairs, painting and de-cluttering.  Any advice on how to pack up a room full of miniatures would be greatly appreciated. 

These are some recent purchases from my lunch time estate and garage sales.


I was fortunate enough to find a 1" scale Strombecker side table and carpet sweeper.
I have another table like this one, but not in as good condition as this one.



I came across this small box marked "Made in Germany" at an estate sale yesterday.
It has most of the pieces to make a miniature sleigh.  I am not sure of the date, but it looks pretty old.  Any help would be appreciated.


I found this small country style table at a local antique mall.  I will probably find a home in my cabin.  I will make some small checkers for it.


This small lead house is probably part of some railroad set, but I thought it would make a great dollhouse in one of mine.   

13 comments:

  1. Hello Troy!
    You do have a knack for finding some great vintage minis! Love the little house and the carpet sweeper.
    Good luck to you and your family in selling your house........hope the market is good there.
    Ray

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  2. Thanks Ray,

    We are hopeful that we wont lose too much in this market. My father-in-law passed away last year, and we are now in the market for a house with a mother-in-law suite.

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  3. NIce finds Troy.... I love the sweeper and the house in particular. What is the material on the sweeper? Is it paper?

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    1. Hi Tom,
      Thanks for the note - The sweeper is painted wood and with metal accents.

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  4. Son todo piezas maravillosas!! Pero la casita me ha encantado!! Con respecto a empaquetar las miniaturas, lo único que te puedo recomendar es muchísima paciencia.

    ¡Enhorabuena!

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  5. More great finds, you are very lucky! You must have an eagle eye to spot so many lovely miniatures at the sales! Love the carpet sweeper and your little house too

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  6. When we moved 9 years ago, I was dreading having to pack up my houses. In the end, for the 1/12th scale houses, I decided not to empty them at all. Instead, I cut lightweight bubble wrap up into pieces about 5 inches square, and began to lightly scrunch them and place them into each room. Gradually, from the centre out, I filled each room with bubble wrap so that the bubble wrap itself lightly held all the furniture and miniatures in place (I tend to stick most things down with tacky wax anyway). Once the rooms were full, I shut the door if there was one, or bubble wrapped over the open back, and wrapped the entire house in several layers of bubble wrap ready for transport into storage. Eventually, once we were moved in and I was ready for the houses, this is the way I did it. I spread a clean solid coloured sheet on the carpet and put the house on a stand in the middle, then carefully unwrapped the outer layers. Once I was able to open the door or access the rooms if it was an open backed house, I worked on one room at a time. I took out each 5" square of bubble wrap, carefully opened and shook it to make sure nothing was trapped, and put it to one side. Bit by bit, I exposed the rooms. It worked great, the main furniture mostly hadn't shifted at all, pictures were still on the wall, and only a minority of small things had come loose. These were either still in the room or if they were in the bubble wrap, I found them when I shook out the wrap. At the very end, when the houses were all unpacked, I carefully examined the sheet to make sure nothing had fallen to the floor. Good luck with your move, we are planning to move again in about a year and I will have several houses to pack up. I plan to use the same method.

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  7. ¡Woooow!! Son preciosas ÖÖÖÖ
    Saludos
    Flor

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  8. More great finds! The carpet sweeper is wonderful.

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  9. You find such wonderful things! I don't think we have lunch time estates sales here, but they sound like great sources. I love the mini house - it will look great in a nursery. I love Strombecker and this is one of their nicest small tables. The sweeper and chess table are great too and the sleigh is so unusual. Keep showing us your fantastic finds. It's fun to see what can be found out there.
    Susan

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  10. All of your finds are precious! Don't you just love it when the neatest stuff surfaces from the most obscure places?!!!
    It makes them that much more special!
    elizabeth

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