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  Sometime back in the 1990s when our daughter,
Sally, was around three years old, her grandmother (Melanie's mother) made one of
these Rabbit Family House sets from the McCall's pattern #8346. Grandma was a very
craftsy person who had decades of experience making rugs, wall hangings, quilts,
clothes, and decorative items. You can see from the pattern instructions that a
lot of work is involved with many different types of skills required.
Now that we have a five-year-old granddaughter, Melanie decided it would be nice
to make a Bunny House for her. Sally found the pattern package at a Goodwill store,
and it was of the same vintage as the one Melanie's mother used. At first, the plan
was to make one that looked like Sally's, but the further she got into planning,
the more of a personalized look the project took on. Rather than using the muted
colors of the original, brighter, happier patterns and colors were chosen, and with
more variation for the many separate components. Cloth windows were replaced with
clear garment plastic, hand-crafted flowers were made for the window boxes, and
braided rugs were made for the floor. Also, Melanie designed the bunny clothes and
altered the faces to be more defined. A custom picture frame contains miniature
photos of our granddaughter's family, and a "Photoshopped" photo of Melanie and
her sitting on the very sofa in the Bunny House. Note also the personalized nameplate
on the door!
Most of the fabric for the furniture and features was gotten from
A.C. Moore in their "Fat
Quarters" packs. The plastic mesh used for the house walls, roof, and floor, and
the furniture was also bought there. Larger pieces of fabric were gotten at
Joann Fabric and
Hobby Lobby. Overall,
the total materials cost was probably around $35. Time invested (not including shopping
for materials) is estimated to be about 40 hours spread over three months - partly
due to a lot of hand stitching being done.
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Pattern package front.
Pattern package back.
Pattern sheets 1 & 2 front.
Pattern sheets 1 & 2 back
Pattern sheet 3 front & back
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Customized McCall's Miniature House, Furniture, and Families.
Bunny House left side view.
Bunny House right side view.
Bunny House bottom view.
Momma, Baby, and Papa Bunny front.
Momma, Baby, and Papa Bunny bottom.
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Bunny House opened up with rugs on the floor.
Bunny House opened up w/o rugs on the floor.
Bunny House furniture set side view
Bunny House furniture set front view.
Bunny House crafted flowers.
Momma, Baby, and Papa Bunny rear.
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Posted May 18, 2019
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