My Healing Odyssey

This Medieval Castle was given to me 10 years ago by the daughter of Architect William Bentley. Named Kleines Neuschwanstein after the famous Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany, Mr. Bentley's award winning Castle was created to the 3/4" scale of Ideal's 1964 Petite Princess Dollhouse Furniture. I was blessed with this gift in 2009 after I was contacted on my website at  www.petiteprincess.com . My Castle was featured "as is" in the "Princess Linda's Collection" section of our 2009 1st Edition Book: The Complete Reference Guide to Ideal's 1964 & 1965 Petite Princess and Princess Patti Dollhouse Furniture. Unfortunately, due to "life events" ( i.e. laid off as a Kindergarten Teacher on Catalina Island and acquiring breast cancer to mention the biggies), I was unable to restore it. Sadly, it sat unattended in a dusty storage dungeon on the Island until it was recently recovered and brought home. Please join me in

Just two days before arriving at Healing Odyssey,  a women's retreat for cancer survivors  https://healingodyssey.net , I excitedly retrieved my Medieval Castle from the  Catalina Island barge. The poor thing had been held captive in a dusty Island storage dungeon for the past 10 years just waiting to be rescued. I eagerly awaited its restoration.

We were introduced to journaling during our retreat, which is right up my alley as the author of the Complete Reference Guide to Ideal’s 1964 & 1965 Petite Princess and Princess Patti Dollhouse Furniture that can be seen at  www.petiteprincessbooks.com . I had definite plans to photograph my Castle's progress for our upcoming 2nd Edition, but didn't consider journaling how I "feel" while working on it. At least, not until I left that retreat! As suggested by Healing Odyssey: “Use your journals to express your feelings. You may not feel comfortable verbalizing them. It can be less threatening, but therapeutic, to write your feelings down. Journaling cleans our emotional palette!” Thus began my emotional journey in the "Restoration of Kleines Neuschwanstein!"

Here is Kleines Neushwanstein in its current state, patiently waiting its restoration. This exquisite Medieval Castle was constructed almost entirely of a special Masonite-faced 1/2" plywood.The stone facing was cast in a wooden mold, fifty stones at a time, from polyester plastic. It weighs over one hundred pounds and is very large, with its actual overall size at 27" x 50", and the top of the turret rises 43" above the base.

Alas! My Castle returns home, recovered after 10 years abiding in a dusty storage dungeon on Catalina Island. Now, what will I do with it? I think this majestic Castle deserves a restoration beyond its original condition, to the amazingly fabulous appearance it deserves! I will begin with the exterior…. Following a thorough cleaning, I began to sand away the “surface blemishes” of tiny specks of glue, residue, and left over dirt. I liken it to life’s “little irritations” that I need to no longer concern myself with as they don’t really matter in the “real” course of life. Amidst the exterior walls are droplets of glue and staples initially holding straggling vines of ivy. As my Castle will not have a forboding appearance, there is no longer a need for them.

Screwed onto the front entrance is a sheet of plastic preventing anyone from entering through the front door. It was promptly removed and I discovered the discolored plastic had obscured my ability to see its elegant lion head doorknocker. I wondered why a well known architect would place a plastic sheet here? It appeared to serve no purpose other than prevent its inhabitants entrance.

No longer closed up inside its stone ridden shell, my Castle will be a home that welcomes others, inviting all to experience its inner beauty. I promptly sanded down the residue around the door that had been sealed behind plastic for the past 45 years.

Strips of “bricks” were obviously missing in places on this fortress and reapplied. Amazingly, I still had even the tiniest piece after all its many journeys…. played with 45 years ago by a special little girl; moved with her as she grew up; displayed in all its glory at the Orange County Fair after winning the “Best Craftsmanship” award; and serving as a “cat house” under her staircase for a litter of kittens.  It was finally crated to travel across the ocean to me because it was especially made to the scale of Ideal’s 1964 Petite Princess Dollhouse Furniture line and I own the Petite Princess website. Who would have thought a complete stranger would "gift" me such a treasure?

Admittedly, some of the larger patches of glue weren't as easy to remove. As I tediously scraped away at these nearly permanently affixed globs, I realized some trials in life are much more difficult than others. They are those that take courage and determination as you press forward a little to see the final product.... not an easy thing to do, but so rewarding to have persevered and met your goal! My exterior walls are now ready to be patched and painted!

It took me over 3 hours to patch in all of the many cracks that had occurred over the past 45 years. But, the end product is so worth it! I reflected back on the many many chips and cracks in my life that at times seemed hopeless to repair. Yet, in due time (with much patience and perseverance on my part) they all seemed to work out, with many in much different ways than I had hoped or expecte d.

One final obstacle remained in my path.... a huge chip of marble was missing from my Dining Room floor! As I don't have any marble, I had no other choice than to do the best I could to patch it with the same compound. I could have left it, an obvious gaping hole in the corner and allowed it to fester until I took action. But, not this time. Although imperfect, the white plaster blends in better with the marble than its wooden platform. I have completed my exterior repairs and now it is ready for a new face lift! I can't wait to paint it! The best is yet to come!        

As I began to apply pale pink paint to my Castle, I began to panic. Am I making a mistake? Should I have just left things as they were? Streaks of pale pink over the original paint looked good in places, yet awful in others. But, didn't I especially purchase this paint ten years ago for such a time as this? Why am I doubting myself? I have started something and I can't turn back now! Four days later, I am ready to apply my third and hopefully final coat of pink paint.  One thing I can say is I was much more confident painting the second coat as I could see a great improvement, but  I'm really not looking forward to this. I know it needs to be done, but I ended up with sinus headaches both nights due to breathing in the fumes. Let's face it, there are things in life we don't want to do and choose to do so because it is in our best interest. One more coat of pink paint and this Castle's black patches should be completely covered up.  I took the challenge and

I decided not to paint the Castle's alcove off the Bathroom pink and keep it "as is." This patio will be distinctly different from the rest of the Castle and I have special plans for it. Even though I have enough pink paint to paint the entire Castle pink, I have decided to keep the beige bricks "as is" so they are more noticeable. It is also easier this way because I am still unable to match their original color after three trips to the craft store. I am learning in some cases in life, it is easier to try something completely new. I did find a similar blue tone for the Castle's roof on sale for only $1.00. As I began painting it, I realized how nicely the paint filled in the many cracks in the shingles and covered the dirt I had been unable to clean. As an added bonus, those shingles with chips seemingly disappeared when sealed by the paint. I was reminded of the roof serving as a covering for this home to protect it from the weather. So it is the sam