Tell us a little about your hobby.  

Sara: We actually grew up with our mom making dollhouses. There used to be a little miniature dollhouse store we would go to and could spend hours looking at things. We had a big Victorian house that had the same living room carpet and wallpaper as our real house. Ever since then our favorite part of the Iowa State Fair was going to the dollhouse room to see all the dollhouses. It’s been on my bucket list FOREVER to make one to enter in the fair, but life always got in the way. This summer my sister and I agreed — we are going to make it happen! It’s definitely bringing back old memories of creating dollhouses as kids. We’ve had to intentionally carve out time to work on it because again, life is so busy, but having the goal of entering it in the fair has given us the time crunch to stop putting it off.

When did this hobby start for you?

Sara: As kids we loved our dollhouses, but as adults we’ve tinkered with some for our own kids and still have the Barbie dollhouse our dad made us when we were kids that we’ve enjoyed redoing over the years.

What’s something this hobby provides you that applies to your job?

Sara: I’m a Realtor so I see hundreds of homes each year, and I’m always fascinated by how each one reflects its owner’s personality. That’s also what I love about dollhouses — the creativity, the detail and the freedom to design a space that’s uniquely yours. It’s a small-scale way to explore what makes a house feel like home. Someday, I’d love to be invited to judge dollhouses at the fair — that would be a dream come true!

Emily: I run the By Degrees Foundation, so dollhouses don’t have a lot to do directly with my job, but it’s been a really wonderful way to balance my professional role. I’ll have had a long day, and after I put my 3-year-old to bed, I’ll go downstairs to my workshop and tinker around. I love the creative problem solving needed often with miniatures. I find all sorts of bits and bobs that I tuck away and then find ways to turn them into dollhouse items later. I find that when I stop actively thinking about work projects or parenting struggles and let my brain focus on other things, I come back with clearer thoughts and good ideas.  

Tell us a tip or fun fact about your hobby.

Sara: Pro tip: Get your sister — who is far more creative, crafty and willing to take charge — so it ACTUALLY happens and gets done. 

Emily: My favorite detail in our current dollhouse project is adding all the artwork our parents had (still have!) in their home, including local artists like Frank Miller and Jim Buckels and Carolyn Blattel-Britton.