French Country Manor

Welcome to the French Country Manor. This home was created by Lawbre Company in Illinois. I have two full structures created by them. In addition, I use their finish pieces, windows and doors quite extensively. It has been my experience that they create fine structures and support their work. 

A Tip: 

Always buy houses from reputable companies that have a means of sending extra supplies, paints, windows, and spare pieces. I have had to replace various pieces many, many times and could not have done it without the help of the company!

The interior of French Country is actually 8 main rooms, 3 stairwells and 2  attic rooms.

Please click on the  picture or the arrow for an enlarged view of the entire interior.

Just a few highlights for you before you begin your traveler's journey:

Most all of the window treatments are from Marcia McClain of McBay miniatures. She worked carefully to create just the right flair for each room. I think as you walk through The Manor you     will enjoy the diversity of curtain, drapes, colors, fabrics and design.

Lighting came from three main sources: Ellen Blauer, The Lighting Bug, and NI-GLO LAMPS. These represent a mix of costs, designs, and colors.  

Most wallpapers came from the William Morris Collection. They represent actual period wallpapers in England.

 

Each room in this house has it's own story. 

The rooms were individually planned, crafted and developed and deserve some special attention. Two rooms were really creations of Whitledge and Associates. The kitchen is a Noral Olson design, and the Alice in Wonderland room was hand painted by Libby Martin. The living room furniture was hand painted by Renee Isobel. The majority of the  wallpaper came from England and is part of the William Morris Collection.

Please click on the basic room descriptions and pictures to review the detail of the rooms that interest you the most! Now, where to start....let's start in the kitchen where so many of our daily activities occur!

The kitchen in The Manor was created by Noral Olson. This particular kitchen was featured on the cover of Dolls House Miniatures in  October 1998. Please click on the picture or kitchen to view the kitchen photos close-up.

 

The dining room was developed in stages.Please click on the photo to view an enlarged version of the room. This room, designed by Whitledge, clearly adds a distinctive flair to The Manor!

The main entry is really quite spectacular. However, there is no way to get a really good photo of it! From one side it shows only the staircase and from the other the view is blocked by the front door!  It has a spiral staircase, an Ellen Blauer light, hand laid "marble" floor and lovely drapes by Marcia McClain. It was designed to be a central focal point and it certainly succeeds. The dining room and living room arches  help create the desired result.

The living room in the Manor was a room that "came together" after I had purchased the Renee Isabel furniture pictured. 

The Whitledge den is directly adjacent to the living room. This room, like all of the rooms, as its very own story.... it starts with a dream and a birthday present!

Lets move on to the second floor. This floor really holds two bedrooms and a stairwell.The Alice in Wonderland bedroom located above the dining room certainly has  an Alice in Wonderland story that goes with it!

The stairwells are worth a special look. This one is actually a room itself!

The master bedroom is actually a simple room incorporating the work of the same artisans shown throughout the Manor. Click here.

Moving to the Manor third floor...

Noah has always been a favorite of mine. Noah's reluctance to build the ark has always captured my attention. Therefore, when I saw the Robin Betterly furniture I knew immediately that the ark bedroom was a must.Click the ark! 

Although their is a third floor stairwell, it did not photograph well. Over time I have added pieces to the simple design. The window treatment over the arched dormer window was created by Marcia McClain

The final room in the main Manor structure (we still have an attic and bathroom which are roof rooms above the kitchen and den) is an art studio! It is certainly worth a close up view to catch much of the detailing.

Now on to perhaps my favorite room in the entire Manor---the attic! We often choose rooms that represent special memories to us...I recall finding many family treasures in our attic. It was a special place to me. Here is the room I created, does it remind you of YOUR attic?

And finally.....what room do we seem to be missing? The bathroom! I have created many, many bathrooms and decided to create a unique bathroom in a unique space. I hope that you think I succeeded! Please click here to view the bathroom!

Thank you for visiting my French Country Manor which was featured in the April 1999 issue of Dollhouse Miniatures.

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