Making of Miniature Furniture

How is that cute kid-friendly dollhouse furniture made?  Not with stained basswood.  All of Happy Bungalow’s colors are natural wood.

Miniature wood furniture starts with big pieces of wood.  From left to right in the picture there’s hickory, red oak, maple, and walnut.Happy-Bungalow-wood-dollhouse-furniture-minature-process-alt001-570I joint and plane the boards smooth then slice the wood into thin pieces on the table saw with a shop-built resaw fence.Happy-Bungalow-wood-dollhouse-furniture-minature-process-alt002-570

It takes several passes to slice the boards leaving the wood a bit jagged along the cut.  The new thin slices of wood are smoothed on a planer and thickness sander.Happy-Bungalow-wood-dollhouse-furniture-minature-process-alt003-570Smaller pieces of wood are made even smaller on the table saw (ripping the wood into thin strips) and miter saw (cutting strips into short pieces).  After some sanding they’re sorted and ready for assembly.  In the center of the picture you can see my full size drawings for these 1/12th size pieces of furniture.  Happy-Bungalow-wood-dollhouse-furniture-minature-process-alt004-570Below are some dining chairs during glue up.  In the background are their companion tables.  Half the chore at this stage is keeping all the pieces organized.  The rest of the process is patience and a steady hand.Happy-Bungalow-wood-dollhouse-furniture-minature-process-alt005-570

Full size clamps employed to hold together some shelves while the glue dries.  I’m also a big fan of masking tape for clamping.Happy-Bungalow-wood-dollhouse-furniture-minature-process-alt006-570

Beds, tables, chairs, and shelves are ready for finishing.  Happy-Bungalow-wood-dollhouse-furniture-minature-process-alt007-570

Post finishing with linseed oil the grain and texture of the wood pops.Happy-Bungalow-wood-dollhouse-furniture-minature-process-alt008-570