By Betsy Brewer Brantner
Contributing Writer

Barb Ortiz never set out to dabble in the world of dollhouses, but when her mother gave her one for her birthday, she got hooked.

“I was 40 years old when I got my first dollhouse,” Ortiz explained. “My mother paid $100 for it in 1990. I really had no idea what I was getting into. That dollhouse came built, but it was unfurnished. It didn’t take me long to start filling it up. I had no idea where that would lead me.”

She took a couple of years to just think about what she wanted to create with the dollhouses. When she looks back on that time, it is with fondness, and the dollhouses have helped her take an amazing journey—one that she has even shared with her husband.

“He put electric in the house. I think I realized then that I would never be the same,” she explained. 

Ortiz was surprised to discover what was available to buy for dollhouses.

“I think I’m most happy with what I found in Texas. I bought tacos. Later on, I got nachos. It’s those little things that I was looking for,” she said.

Ortiz, who is also a crafter, crocheted curtains for one of her rooms, plus pillows and a cover for a bed. She crocheted tiny doilies and made mats for the floor. That was one more fun aspect of having a dollhouse—not just buying pieces, but creating them.

Finding items or making them to scale was a little difficult, but at that time it was easier to find things. 

Ortiz explained that when her children were young, they were not allowed to play with the dollhouse. The family did buy a dollhouse for their daughter, and she painted the walls and floors.

Some of the pieces of furniture Ortiz has purchased over the years was more expensive than others, but she felt it was all worth it. In order to prevent things from moving around in the dollhouse, she used a tacky substance on the floors. She stained the entire outside of the house.  She also put wallpaper on the walls after the electric was installed. She purchased another house for her daughter and that one has carpet on the floors.

The kitchen comes complete with a refrigerator and stove. She even has food (not real) in the cabinets. There is also a sink, but no running water. There are beautiful light fixtures and a candelabra on the table. There is also miniature fiesta ware, bowls and plates.

Pictures of her children throughout personalize the home. The house is similar to her own home, which is a two-story cape cod. The house even came complete with a widow’s walk.

Probably one of the most surprising rooms in the dollhouse is the bathroom. Obviously, there is toilet paper and no bathroom is complete without a basket of magazines by the toilet. They have thought of everything. There is even a toothbrush and toothpaste.

Ortiz did a lot of traveling to find her miniatures and  even picked up a miniature basket of flowers at the Philadelphia Flower Show. She enjoyed that time finding the perfect pieces for her house.

She admits dollhouses are not as popular today as they once were, but she has hopes that her granddaughter will pick up where she left off.

“She does seem to have an interest in the dollhouse and I’m happy to see that,” Ortiz said. “It will be great handing that down to her and seeing what changes she makes. She might even buy another. I hope she gets as much joy from that as I did.”