The Miniature Travelogue

Today I went on a rather long jaunt from the little homestead in Richmond. We loaded the kids in the Sedan and told them to settle in for a long day. It had been a very long time since I had traveled up Route 1 from Wiscasset to Camden or points further, and I was ready to give it a go. From Damariscotta on we same quite a number of new sites, as well as many familiar ones. I think that this was the first time since February of 1999, when my grandmother died, that I had been past Route 32. A lot has popped up between Moody's and Camden in that time.

Our first stop was a funky, little building with a big, yellow awning on the right a little ways past Glen Cove. Rockport is now home to a great little hobby shop run by Kent and Rose Woodward. Coastal Hobbies looks tiny and my daughter joked that the five of us walking in there together might fill the place. Another car with four more people dropped in at the same time and we literally flooded the store all at once. The space inside turned out to be ample and the greeting was warm.

In this space, no more than 600 square feet I'd guess, you'll find planes, trains, and automobiles, not to mention (doll) houses and more. There is not a wide selection of any one things, but there is enough to interest the hobbyist in a number of areas. Planes and trains might not interest many miniature enthusiasts, but because they carry those lines they have a great selection of hobby tools and general supplies like wood, metal, glues, Dremels, X-acto tools, air brush items, etc.

Their dollhouse miniatures section is not extensive, only taking up about a 5x6 foot area to the right of the front door. But they do have a number of house kits from Dura-Craft, Corona and Greenleaf, plus a number of finishing items like roofing material, wall paper, and bricks. They carry a few Town Square and Handley House items, and have a number of typical miniature accessories, of which my daughters purchased a few clearance items. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by what I found there and was very tempted by a jewelers saw and some Micro-Cut hardwoods. I'm glad to see that folks from Newcastle to Camden to Swanville are adequately served by a shop that likes mini people.

My hopes were not high when I visited this store at 15 School Street in Freeport. But, it was close by and I like all kinds of wood products, so I packed up the troops and drove the 26 miles on a sunny Saturday afternoon.

My heart sank when I saw the big real estate sign out front, but they were open and we plunged inside. The smell of bare pine and lots of colorful bins greeted us, along with a smiling couple of a certain age. What also greeted us were a few signs. One said that the upstairs was closed (which was supposed to be the doll furniture and miniatures are) and that the shelves up there were for sale. Another sign said that there was a sale going on, and that was quite true. Looks like they are selling out of their miniatures line, and only a very few miniature furniture items are left.

The back wall is lined with pegboards full of typical mini items from Town Square, Darice and Multi-Mini (Dee's Delights) in 1" and 1/2" varieties, and all are marked way down. I was not really looking for anything in particular, but I did snag several fifty-cent items. There were several shadowbox dioramas on sale as well, and five or six furniture items.

All in all, the visit was rather melancholy. Seems that the building is up for sale and the shopkeepers are anticipating that the hot, in-town Freeport location will bring a buyer eager to update the building (or replace it), which will certainly price this little craft shop right out of the market. That is the nature of things, I suppose. In the mean time, there are bargains to be had. Many things are less than half price now, and I'm sure that a closeout sale is imminent.