Dollshouse & Miniatures Fair, York

This is a well-established fair (2002) and is still going strong. 

There were around eighty vendors and many customers!  If you buy a ticket in advance it allows you into the show half an hour before the folks who pay on the day, so you do get a bit of a breathing space for a while.  Having said that it is a large venue and spread over three floors so you can pretty much always get to a table to look at the items and get served fairly quickly,

It is a particular favourite of mine as it is held at York race course and York is an interesting  place to visit and is surrounded by pretty countryside and several NT places to visit too.  We usually stay in a hotel adjacent to the race course but as we left it to the last minute this year we discovered that very many of the hotels were fully booked.  It appears there had been a large concert the previous night so that is probably why there 'was no room at the inn' for us.  We stayed out in the boon docks at a much more laid back affair.  Aldwark Manor

We always build a short break into visiting this show and that was even more necessary this year.  Now we have moved to Scotland we have a four-hour drive rather than the less than two hours which we had from Bury.  We headed down there (rather than up there) on Saturday.

Our cunning plan was to stop off at an NT place for lunch on the way up and another one on the way home.  At the eleventh hour I happened to check on Washington Old Hall only to discover the cafe was serving limited menu due to a problem - quick diversion to a garden centre, some purchases for my 'other' hobby and a decent enough lunch and we were off again to York..... well the hotel in Alne, technically.

So to the next day and the show....

I arrived at ten and left at one - that is just enough time (for me) to get round all the vendors once.  In my fitter days I would have done that and then gone back to a selected few for a good old rootle and would have been thrown out at closing time (4 pm).  My limbs and stamina are not up to it now but I would recommend you allow a full day for this show if you are a serious mini person.

For me, the bulk of the vendors are very familiar faces now, so not many surprises.  I did think there was an increase in the number of vendors who are adding quarter scale to their tables, which is good news for UK 48th folk who have struggled compared to our American counterparts.

Here are my purchases:

J & A Supplies

Some lovely quality one eight inch square wood trims to edge my mansard roof when I get up there to finish it off.  I was in the vendor's good books as I bought ten strips making the maths easy.  10 x 26p each = £2.60

Y Hunt for Miniatures and Bears

I have always admired this trader's work but never bought from her as I didn't really have a way of working her items into my projects.  Finally I decided I was having one of her exquisite bears and would make a spot for her.  This bear measures one and a quarter inches top to toe - the scale and the detail is incredible.  The limbs are jointed, a lovely fluffy (mohair?) texture, the face so characterful and the overall style is absolutely a Steiff bear of great character and prestige.  I am so pleased I did it.  The price is also remarkably low for the work involved in making such a creature.  She cost me all of £12

Rainey's Small World Minaitures

From Rainey's  I picked up some things for the house that I bought my three year old grandson in April.  On closer inspection I think I may steal (or rather swap for something of mine) the little dishes as they nicely made and 'thin'.  He was pleased with his books for his shelves. These blocks of books have been around as long as I have been in this game but, incredibly this packet of them was the one and only one I could find in the whole show - I need more for him.  Total spend £5.25

Jaybee Minis

This was my first purchase of the day for the grand total of £1

Tumdee Dollshouse Miniatures

How to become a vendor's friend:  When they sell teeny items at 35p each on a pick and mix basis - buy them in multiples of ten!  Twenty veggies ready to make a beef in red wine casserole.  Total cost: £7

AmanSpeak Miniatures

I was lucky enough to find Amanda at her very first show and have seen her many times since of course.  She has made me some super special orders and her attention to detail is excellent.  Here are the rest of my ingredients for my beef in red wine casserole.  I particularly like the braising steak in its plastic box.  Princely total sum of £4.50

Mini McGregor

A huge favourite of mine is Mini McGregor.  Her work decidedly needs to be seen.  I became a fascinated fan of her absolutely accurate 1/12th matchbox that actually opened!!! An item that you have to see in the flesh to fully appreciate the work involved.  This show's delight was her paper clips!!  Just pick up a paper clip and then imagine one twelfth of it.  She was my biggest spend a the show with a miscellany of things to dot around the place.  Total spend £39.30

Jacqueline Wheatly

This husband and wife team offer a lot of very different items so there is always something there for me.  I have all of their fabulous wooden spoons and brooms and other items that the husband makes - they are exquisite and such great value for the work which must be involved.  My PhD French student needed a Sunday outfit and the pyjamas will do as a blouse.  It was the buttons that got me! Bargain tea-towels and a cute outdoor tap to attach to the wall - hopefully somewhere near a water supply????  I liked the idea of each of the coloured pencils being in their own space in a stand, it would make it so quick to find the one you want.  They are much tinier and finer than this photo implies.  Spent £11.00

Dolls House Draper

As I hadn't spent all the money I took with me to this show I decided not be mean with myself and splurge on a Pretty Pleater in anticipation of all those drapes.  I did have a wooden one but I quickly gave up on it as it seemed to grab on to the fabric and refuse to let it go.  I saw this was a silicone one and flexible and decided it would probably do the job better.  We will see.  

This vendor has lovely fabrics and lace.

The pleater cost £26

So, that's all my buys from York.  I was shattered but went off to lunch at my favourite eatery (Trinacria) a very happy mini person.

On the way home the next day we broke our journey with a trip to an NT property for lunch and a quick tour of the house and its collection of dollshouses.  We are pretty familiar with   Wallington having been there a couple of times and the dollshouse are historically interesting if you are in that neck of the woods.

The Hammond house is the centre of its collection.  Here is the Trust's description of it and a couple of my photos.

The Hammond House, a late Victorian doll's house, circa 1890, with paper and painted exterior, of 39 (thirty nine) fully furnished rooms on three floors, three connecting corridors (which run the full length of the house) and three staircases. Comprises about 1,500 pieces of furniture and seventy seven china-faced dolls ranging from a master and mistress, a large family to a full staff of servants. The dolls are all original to the house and most of them were in good condition when they were acquired. Only a few had to be redressed with spare clothing that came with the collection. The furniture is original and much of it is of the Duncan Phyfe type made at Walterhausen in Germany. Some of the other furniture is from Diessen and there are also examples of French furniture. The wallpapers are original and in some cases hand painted as are the floor coverings. There are lace curtains at each window. It is papered on the outside in red brick paper and the wood is painted in off white. There are five chimney stacks. The furniture is not individually numbered. The items in the house are original. There was a lift and running water in the bathroom and scullery. The water being piped down from a tank on the roof. The rooms are lit by electric light, which has been re-wired by a Newcastle firm of electricians. The name Hammond comes from the fact that 'Ruby Hammond' appears on a tiny towel and in a miniature copybook. There have been suggestions that there may be a link with the Hammond department store in Hull, but no link has been established despite inquiries.

In summary ....... the York Fair is a particularly good event to attend because:

• location is easy to find - York Race Course
• good parking
• great tourist area, plenty to see if you want to make an extended break of it
• spacious setting so you don't get 'overcrowded at the show
• cafeteria serving a reasonable range of food for lunch
• less used,  there is a small servery on the top floor where there is a smaller choice but still some nice things like their picnic boxes, plus drinks plus a ton of seating with pleasant views
• usually a class or two you can sign up for
• often a free talk by the delightful Jane Harrop
• there are hotels pretty much on site - book early!
• not to mention good bathrooms 

The next York Fair is 10th November 2019.  

Pre-booked tickets: £4.00 (Adult) £1.50 (Child)

Tickets on the door £5.00 (Adult) £2.50 (Child)

Opening times 10.30am - 4.00 pm.  Doors open to advance ticket holders at 10 am

Free prize draw 

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If you want to see where these things will end up please visit my Dalton House Blog