Interview with George Held - Miniature Dollhouse Expert

1. What’s your name, what city are you located and what is your craft?
[George] I’m George Held. I live in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and I’m a dollhouse miniaturist.

2. How long have you been doing your craft?
[George] As I mention in my blog, my roots as a lover of miniatures goes back to my childhood when my parents gave me a miniature circus with figures that were approximately 2 inches tall. I was hooked. As I grew, I collected many miniature settings – a castle with knights, a western town with cowboys and Indians, a jungle set, Zorro, a north pole set, and scads of little miniature army men.

I really got involved with dollhouse miniatures, though, when I was in my mid twenties. My wife found a book about decorating dollhouses with all sorts of found objects from the home. It also offered a list of “must have” tools. She took me to a hobby shop and picked out all the tools “we” needed. After we got home, all of those items sat in a box for about a year. I finally asked her if she planned to do anything with them. She admitted that she probably wouldn’t; so, having spent the money on them, I hated to have wasted the dollars. So, I began to putter with them.

The first thing I made was a bookcase. It turned out awful. But I enjoyed the idea of what I was doing. So, I tried another kit, and it turned out better. The fun of creating my own settings was the final aspect to get me really going with the hobby.

3. Where would someone go to learn more about your craft?
[George] There are many books available about dollhouse building. There are also miniature clubs in many of the larger cities across the U.S. and Canada. Some have waiting lists for members. Others, such as the club here where I live are open to new members to join. Contact National Association of Miniature Enthusiasts (N.A.M.E.) for the chapter nearest you, if you live in the U.S. or Canada.

4. Please share some tips for someone starting out.
[George] You don’t need a lot of tools to get started, really. I built an elaborate Victorian bookcase using all hand tools. I’d say the following items would give a beginner an excellent set of tools:

* An X-Acto knife
* A razor saw (X-Acto makes these, and the teeth come in varying sizes). Don’t go with the tiniest set of teeth – that takes too long for cutting most wood.
* I used a combination square for making exact right angle and 45 degree angle cuts. This is not a miniature tool, but it’s a very useful one.
* Jeweler’s saw. I love this tool. It’s got a blade so small, it fits through a pin hole. You can cut out all sorts of furniture pieces and decorative trim with this saw. By the way, I got mine from a dental supply company. I had an X-acto brand jeweler’s saw, and was quite disappointed with it.
* A pin vise (tiny drill) and drill bits to use with it.
* For power tools, I’d highly recommend buying a Dremel rotary tool. I use it a lot. It has a variety of attachments such as a router table and a drill press attachment. Each of these can be helpful for making miniature moldings and other parts.
* Clamps are a MUST. You can use bull clips and clothespins for mini clamps, too.
* Disposable emery boards are WONDERFUL for shaping and smoothing edges of cut or carved wood pieces. They can be cut smaller to fit into tiny places for hard to reach places.
* Needle files are also very useful for shaping and carving. I’d recommend getting a round one, a square one and a half-round one to start.

I’d also recommend finding a source for miniature wood that is cut to widths of 3 or 4 inches and thicknesses varying from 1/32 to 1/8”. The wood I use most often is 3/32” cherry wood. I also use a lot of 1/16” thickness wood. Bass wood is the wood you’ll find in most kits, but I do prefer the beauty and hardness of the cherry wood. I’d recommend they stay away from using balsa wood for any dollhouse furniture.

5. What draws you to doing this type of craft?
[George] I love to challenge myself. I get a kick out of it whenever I can create something and have people say, “How did you DO that?”

6. Are there any big projects on the horizon that we should know about? Maybe a craft fair or award you are working toward?
[George] I was hoping to complete my dollhouse for the Iowa State Fair. Unfortunately, it’s taking me longer to do the draperies than I had thought it would. So, I’ll probably enter it next year. In the meantime, I have another house I completed a number of years ago. It’s not as fancy as the one I’m currently working on, but I’ll take it in anyway.

I’m also leading our miniature club in building a room box that will be an old-fashioned barbershop. It’s turning out nicely so far.

7. Do you blog about your craft? If so, please provide your address.
[George] I do. My blog is http://tallminiguy.blogspot.com/

George, Thank you for taking the time out to talk with us about your work. Miniatures are a very gratifying and fun hobby. I'm glad you told all of our readers about your craft. Good luck at the fair!

Thank you,
~Tiger and Lily Boutique