http://openhouseminiatures.wordpress.com/2013/03/01/how-to-make-a-folding-dolls-house/

1. McLoughlin’s
Folding Doll House

2. Credit where it is due !
A couple of months ago I had the
very good luck to come across a
patent, dated Jan. 30th 1894.
I don’t know if this design by
Eleanor McCulloch Smith
was created specifically for
the McLoughlin Brothers
company, or if they liked it and
adopted it.
Either way, all credit for original
Folding Doll House is entirely
theirs and not mine.

3. My version is 12th scale
Each miniature wall is
1 inch (2.5cm) square.

4. Please bear in mind that I collected fragments from
various houses over a
number of years and used
them to re-create a version
of the original.
I have had to make some
adaptations to what must
have been the assembly
process, due to the size of
my 12th scale version and
the materials available to
me.
The edges of the
pictures for the walls and
floor of the original were
folded neatly over the
edge of very thick card.
I do not have all the
labels for the rooms,
so none of them are
named in my version.
My version is bound
with paper and not
with cloth
My version does not have instructions
pasted on the front

5. Another thing The original houses were
produced using the lithographic
printing process.
This means oil-based printing inks
were used to make the decoative
papers.
A modern ink-jet printer cannot
reproduce the quality and density
of colour, or the texture, of a
lithograph.
The process is not the same, the
ink is not the same, the result is
not the same.

6. Is it possible to fake a lithographic finish?
The closest I have ever come to
reproducing an effect similar to
lithography, involves applying a
thin coat of satin-finish, waterbased varnish to a high quality
print on matt, ink-jet paper.
The Ronseal brand is my current
favourite - for all sorts of varnish.
However…
The most important thing is –
Use what you know will work for
you.
From past
experience, I
would say
that most
varnishes
sold for “craft”
purposes are
utter rubbish
and will ruin
your work.
However…
The most
important
thing is –
Use what you
know will
work for you.

7. In addition to which All the varnishes that I have
so far tried – including the
ones for varnishing
paintings – react with ink-jet
printer ink and either smear
it, or make the it “yellower”.
The varnish I used here
doesn’t smear but (in
daylight) I can see the
difference in colour.

8. Another thing I have not yet found a varnish, or
glue, that will bind the coated
surface of an ink-jet paper to its
backing paper.
On the right is a sample house
that I made using ink-jet paper
pasted onto thin card.
Even with very light handling the
edges rubbed.
This is, however, useful to know,
if you are looking for a distressed
finish !
The paper makes a
HUGE difference to
the finish !

9. So what do I do
when I make a
McLoughlin
Folding Doll House?

10. I use •
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
a sharp knife
a blunt knife
a metal ruler
white, water-based
wood glue, and a small
paint brush
200 gsm cold pressed
water colour paper
90 gsm plain paper
90 gsm coloured paper
a pair of scissors
a professional printing
service
This project needs
clean, crisp edges.
A “sharp” knife will cut
a straight line without
damaging the paper.

11. First I cut out all the walls and floors When I have a lot of small pieces to
assemble I often find it useful to put
them on a towel.
This stops them moving about and
getting muddled up.
D
A
LAST
B
In the original houses,
the papers for the walls
and floors were printed
on to paper. This was
then pasted on to very
thick cardboard. Mine
are printed directly onto
200 gsm paper.
C
I printed the example in this slideshow at home, on my
very basic home printer. This is not what I usually do !

12. Then I cut the binding paper To do this, I score a fold
line, fold the paper over
and then, using a steel
ruler and a sharp knife, I
cut along the edge.
This means that I have
a straight fold right in
the middle of my strip of
paper.
I cut along here

13. Note I tried a variety of binding materials before
I settled on paper.
Close woven bias binding, looked
authentic, but it was too thick.
Silk was difficult to get in a suitable colour,
and it was too loosely woven and did not
hold its shape.
Paper on the other hand is very tough,
especially when it is coated with glue.
So I use paper – and for a little added
strength, I apply a little extra glue to the
back of every strip, after I have glued it
into place.
It is almost impossible to see in the
photograph, but it is there.
My version is bound
with paper and not
with cloth.

14. NOTE I find it easier to glue
the binding and then
trim it to size, so I
always cut each strip of
binding paper a little bit
longer than it needs to
be.

15. When all the pieces are cut and ready I start gluing.
The first room I assemble is
marked D in the pdf.
The straight fold in the
binding paper fits against
the straight edge of the
floor, making them easy to
match up.

16. Note I hold the floor and wall
together, face to face,
and glue the binding
paper in place, over the
two edges.

17. Then I unfold the wall and
floor and check that
there is a nice, straight
gulley between them.
And that, believe it or
not, is the first room
completed.

18. The next room (A) Is a little more
complicated, but it starts
in the same way.
I glue the binding strip
to the floor…

19. Then Just as before, I attach
the wall to the binding
strip, making sure that
there is a clear, neat
gulley between the wall
and the floor.

20. Then I trim the excess from the
ends of the first binding strip
and attach another binding
strip – to the left hand edge
of the wall.
NOTE –
It is important that the end
of the binding strip does not
extend beyond the end of
the wall.

21. Then (and this is IMPORTANT)I fold up the floor again.
Then I apply glue the reverse side
of the right hand edge of the
second wall - the one that has the
archway with the purple curtains.
Then I put the second wall, face
down, on top of the folded up
floor.
Then I carefully fold the binding
strip over, so that it sticks to the
gluey edge of the wall and then…
This wall

22. I open the walls out And unfold the floor,
and check that the
gulley between the two
walls is clean and
straight.

23. After that I trim the binding paper.
Then I am ready to glue the
first room and the second
room together.
I do this before assembling
the other rooms because I
need the glue to dry, before
cutting out the archway.

24. NOTE The result looks rather
odd, when flattened out.
BACK
VIEW
FRONT
VIEW

25. Then I assemble the kitchen (B)
and the bedroom (C).
Following this pattern Attach floor to wall
with binding strip
Note: This wall is
not attached to
anything yet !
Fold up floor
Attach second wall to first wall
with binding strip
Note: I have not
cut out the archway
yet. I want the glue to
dry before I do this.
B
C

26. When the glue is perfectly dry I cut out the archway.
To do this, I use a very
sharp knife and I cut away
from the corners,
The thin strip that remains
at the bottom of the
archway, next to the binding
paper, adds strength.

27. Then I assemble the house I glue the back of the
wall, with the kitchen
cupboard on it, to the
back of the wall with the
fireplace on it.

28. Then I glue the back of the
bedroom wall, with the
doors on it, to the back
of the wall with the
kitchen stove on it.

29. Finally I glue the last wall to the
last blank page, at the
back.

30. Then I check That everything is fairly
square and neat.

31. Then I Cover the blank backs
of the floors with the
(90 gsm) paper with the
Folding Doll House
design on it..
My version does not have instructions
pasted on the front.
I do not have all the
labels for the rooms,
so none of them are
named in my version.

32. And then I double check that
everything is where it
should be.
When these are for sale
on Etsy, anyone who
buys a folding house –
and points out the
(deliberate) mistake in
the photos there - has
their postage refunded.
B
A
C
D

33. All done

34. Well,
nearly
all done
I put the houses under a light weight,
for at least 24 hours,
before boxing them for sale.
That way I feel certain that they are
completely dry and flat.

35. Ah, yes, the box…
My version of the
McLoughlin
Folding
Doll House
comes with a box
The box is not exactly like
the original box and it is not
included in the
downloadable pdfs