"Don't Be a Hoarder"

"Don't be a hoarder." These were some of my mother's last words. Surprisingly, the warning was not directed at me, but to my sister, Jeanne. (Ok....truth be told: I wasn't in the room at the time.) Mom wasn't a hoarder - not in the classic sense anyway - but she loved her "collections". Dolls, dollhouses, tiny tea sets, books. She was a crafter, always working on or planning a project.

Mom built this house for my girls in 1997. Caitlin was 12 and Meghan, 8. The house, the Granville by ArtPly, was built in my mother's typical manner - quickly. As a result it was a bit lopsided and not quite as sturdy as it could be. Mom also committed the "cardinal sin" of dollhouse building: DO NOT install  windows or porches before painting the shell of the house.
 
The girls and I  moved the completely built structure to our home to paint it. What a pain! Trying to negotiate between porch railings and avoiding paint on the plastic windows was near impossibe. We left the house in the dining room and took a break.Then we had a house fire.

The dollhouse sustained some minor damage. Plaster from some holes punched in by firemen while putting out the fire in the wall littered the roof. Some larger pieces of plaster knocked off some of the porch railings. Just enough damage to put the project on hold - for 16 years.

Mom passed away in December of 2011. I am the "keeper" of her collection. Slowly but surely I am finishing projects. Last week I finished the 40s room box which features a dressed mannequin I won at one the last miniature shows Mom and I attended together. Now, I have hit on the PERFECT solution for this far-from-perfect building: The Hoarder House!!

The Hoarder House will be chock-full of items that reflect Mom's hobbies as well as mine. I hope it will be a fitting tribute to the woman who built this house hoping to share her love of miniatures with her beloved grand-daughters.

No worries, Mom. I won't be a hoarder.....but thank goodness I saved all  your stuff!