'Some of the houses I've restored have had a water tank in the roof. You think you've finished decorating, but then there's a leak somewhere and the water starts pouring. This scenario may be heart-sinkingly familiar to some readers, but there is a saving grace: the houses Trevor Cain is talking about aren't real ones, but dolls' houses.
A Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust (QEST) scholar, with a master's degree in conservation, Trevor specialises in dolls' house restoration - a niche he found himself carving by chance. About 25 years ago I wanted to buy a real house to restore, but I didn't have the funds. Then a dolls' house in need of restoration popped up on eBay. I knew nothing about dolls' houses but my passion was craft, and I thought I could start with that house. I happened to be talking about it in an Islington pub one day and a journalist overheard me. They wrote an article about me building my dream house in miniature because I couldn't afford to buy a real one and, overnight, I had a business.'
That business has been going well, especially since the start of the pandemic. One of the unexpected legacies of repeated Covid lockdowns has been the adoption of dolls' house making and collecting by a new generation. And not before time, according to Charlotte Stokoe, curator of the Kensington Dollshouse Festival, which brings together dolls' house makers and miniaturists with collectors. Charlotte says that, in the run-up to the pandemic, many dolls' house makers had retired. It was quite a worrying time. All these makers were leaving and there wasn't as much interest.' Then lockdown happened and 'we got this amazing insurgence of young enthusiasts who had discovered miniatures via social media.
Denne historien er fra January 2023-utgaven av Homes & Antiques.
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Denne historien er fra January 2023-utgaven av Homes & Antiques.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
THE ANTIQUES THAT SHAPED ME - Tess Newall
The decorative artist and homeware designer shares her love of patina and a treasured childhood flower press
A Victorian Vision
There's a magical, story-book feel to this 19th-century manor in the Lincolnshire Wolds, where much-loved antique and vintage collections and a sensitive restoration have brought it back to life
Farm FRESH
Filled with painstakingly sourced primitive antiques and Welsh decorative pieces, Dorian Bowen's atmospheric farmstead is an authentic homage to bygone times
THE WOMEN OF MODERNISM
In the Modernist era, when clean lines, geometric forms, and functional design reshaped the world, a group of often-overlooked visionary women defied convention, pioneering innovations that laid the foundations of modern design, says
Global Treasures
Amber Clery has created a cosy, bohemian home filled with unusual finds gathered from her travels across the world
A blazing SUCCESS
This Georgian home in Northern Ireland, once ravaged by fire and time, has been reimagined for the modern age with vibrant colour, joyful patterns and a perfect balance of old and new
HEIRLOOMS OF THE FUTURE SHANNON CLEGG
The botanical sculptor talks to Dominique Corlett about finding her niche and how her creative practice connects with the landscape of her childhood
48 hours in FROME
A cloth town of great importance from the 15th to the late-18th century, Frome in Somerset is now on the map for its vintage fashion and sustainable clothing, as well as its buzzing antiques scene, discovers Rosanna Morris
Island HOPPING
The traditional fitted kitchen island now faces competition from more flexible, modern alternatives
ON THE COFFEE TABLE Art through the ages
Explore 700 years of art history through the paintings of The National Gallery, with people at the heart of every page
