My miniatures make the national press!
A month ago my lovely friend Sian, who happens to be the deputy news editor at Metro.co.uk, asked if I'd like to be put forward for a series on collections that would be featured in their lifestyle section.
Ten years ago my pub (the Rachel's Return) was featured in our local paper but I'd never had any national coverage. I have to admit, I didn't for one minute think it would mean a photographer would be sent round but that's what happened - and the result was lots of pictures of me looking awkward next to my house and room boxes…
One of the best things about the whole situation was that I suddenly had a very definite deadline. My beach hut had been half finished for a while but I spent a very happy evening finishing it off, and then adding all the bits and pieces I’ve been collecting over the last couple of years. I also found some miniatures that had been missing since we moved house four years ago, which was a huge relief.
The journalist I spoke to was absolutely lovely and I think I changed her perception of what collecting dollshouses is all about. If you read the article – which you can do here – you’ll see it mentions the word ‘creepy’ several times. That was her influence as she was asking me if other people thought it was creepy, which led to me denying it.
She had the impression that it was older people, collecting dusty Victorian furniture that was never to be touched. She soon became really enthusiastic about the hobby when I filled her in on what it’s really like and I genuinely felt she ‘got it’. We had several conversations and I was pleased with the resulting article.
I had to guess at a few things I was asked. To be honest, I have no idea how many pieces I have and 4,000 may be too many. That said, when I was piling individual pastries onto a cake stand the night before the photographer arrived it certainly felt like it could be that many.
I think I probably underestimated how much I’ve spent over the years. While £10,000 is an awful lot of money, I’ve been collecting for more than 30 years so it’s been spread over three decades. When you consider the price of individual items, it’s probably a lot more than that but as my mum says: “It’s worth every penny”.
My love of tiny things was compounded when my parents gave me a train set for Christmas in 1989. I was 11 but I remember I’d wanted one for some time. My dad had made it from scratch, but had purposefully left the middle blank so I could decide what to fill it with.
When I was asked what the most unusual thing I’d seen in miniature was, I could only think of one thing. These days it’s not uncommon to see slightly tongue-in-cheek scenes, or even entire houses, where ladies of the night are working, or a cellar that’s decked out as a bondage room.
I can’t remember what I was searching for when I came across this one-of-a-kind set – only that I was looking for a present for my mum. Needless to say, I decided not to go with the fluffy handcuffs.
I think it’s a bit of a shame that there aren’t any close up shots of the things mentioned in the article so I’ve posted a few below. You can see the ketchup bottle that was almost impossible to source (no pun intended), the poppy appeal collection box complete with poppies, and my favourite pair of shoes.
I shared the article everywhere and got a very positive response. From a PR point of view (which is my day job), it was really interesting to see how the headline was frequently changed and how the story moved around the homepage. I’d love to know how that affected the clicks but I’m satisfied with just knowing I’ve spread the word about this wonderful hobby.
Ten years ago my pub (the Rachel's Return) was featured in our local paper but I'd never had any national coverage. I have to admit, I didn't for one minute think it would mean a photographer would be sent round but that's what happened - and the result was lots of pictures of me looking awkward next to my house and room boxes…
The journalist I spoke to was absolutely lovely and I think I changed her perception of what collecting dollshouses is all about. If you read the article – which you can do here – you’ll see it mentions the word ‘creepy’ several times. That was her influence as she was asking me if other people thought it was creepy, which led to me denying it.
She had the impression that it was older people, collecting dusty Victorian furniture that was never to be touched. She soon became really enthusiastic about the hobby when I filled her in on what it’s really like and I genuinely felt she ‘got it’. We had several conversations and I was pleased with the resulting article.
I had to guess at a few things I was asked. To be honest, I have no idea how many pieces I have and 4,000 may be too many. That said, when I was piling individual pastries onto a cake stand the night before the photographer arrived it certainly felt like it could be that many.
 |
| I love that cake stand - but it takes A LOT of patience to position everything. |
I think I probably underestimated how much I’ve spent over the years. While £10,000 is an awful lot of money, I’ve been collecting for more than 30 years so it’s been spread over three decades. When you consider the price of individual items, it’s probably a lot more than that but as my mum says: “It’s worth every penny”.
My love of tiny things was compounded when my parents gave me a train set for Christmas in 1989. I was 11 but I remember I’d wanted one for some time. My dad had made it from scratch, but had purposefully left the middle blank so I could decide what to fill it with.
 |
| If you're in any doubt that it's 1989, just look at the TV, stereo and video players. It didn’t take long before it was full of a row of shops, a market square, allotments, fields full of animals, a cricket pitch, a church with a wedding taking place and much, much more.  |
When I was asked what the most unusual thing I’d seen in miniature was, I could only think of one thing. These days it’s not uncommon to see slightly tongue-in-cheek scenes, or even entire houses, where ladies of the night are working, or a cellar that’s decked out as a bondage room.
I can’t remember what I was searching for when I came across this one-of-a-kind set – only that I was looking for a present for my mum. Needless to say, I decided not to go with the fluffy handcuffs.
I think it’s a bit of a shame that there aren’t any close up shots of the things mentioned in the article so I’ve posted a few below. You can see the ketchup bottle that was almost impossible to source (no pun intended), the poppy appeal collection box complete with poppies, and my favourite pair of shoes.
 |
| Sauce bottles are hard to source! |
 |
| One of the few dolls I have - George wears his poppy with pride. |
 |
| Gorgeous shoes that I'd be too clumsy to wear in real life. |
The article was on the Metro’s homepage for a day (something else I hadn’t expected) and I was pleased with the 237 shares. Plus, nobody in the comments called me crazy which is always a bonus. You never really know what you’re letting yourself in for when you open yourself up to national coverage.
I shared the article everywhere and got a very positive response. From a PR point of view (which is my day job), it was really interesting to see how the headline was frequently changed and how the story moved around the homepage. I’d love to know how that affected the clicks but I’m satisfied with just knowing I’ve spread the word about this wonderful hobby.
Comments
Post a Comment