Posts from November, 2009

Win your dream house thanks to Lindsey Lodge Hospice and The Dolls House Emporium!

Scunthorpe-based Lindsey Lodge Hospice is offering you the chance to win your dream house – albeit on a slightly smaller scale!

The hospice, which is an independent charity offering special care for people in North Lincolnshire with specific life-limiting conditions such as cancer, multiple-sclerosis and motor neurone disease, is giving away a fantastic 1:12^th scale dolls’ house from The Dolls House Emporium worth up to £800.

The six-room Victorian Fern Villa, which was donated by a supporter of the Hospice, is in near perfect condition and comes fully decorated, lit and furnished – perfect for the avid collector, or as a unique Christmas present!

The house has been given a new special name by the Director of Lindsey Lodge Hospice and the entrant who guesses the correct name, or is the nearest to it, is the winner.  You can enter as many guesses as you wish and each guess is just a £1 donation.  The competition will close at 12 noon on Tuesday December 15^th 2009.  More information can be found on the hospice website at www.lindseylodgehospice.org.uk or by calling Sarah Cruise 01724 843731.

You can enter by writing to the hospice enclosing your contact details, suggested house name and appropriate donation.  Hospice donation envelopes are available from Lindsey Lodge Hospice shops, on request by calling 01724 843731 or emailing fundraising@lindseylodgehospice.org.uk. You can also enter on line by visiting www.justgiving.com/LindseyBearDollsHouseCompetition.

“It costs over £3.50 a minute to run Lindsey Lodge, and although we receive generous funding from the North Lincolnshire NHS Trust we rely very heavily on the generosity of local people and organisations.  Donations such as this lovely dolls’ house are vital to helping us raise funds for the every day running of the hospice,” explains Mel Banham, Head of Fundraising at Lindsey Lodge Hospice.

“We are overwhelmed by the generosity of this donation and hope it will help us to raise both money and awareness for our cause.  I also hope that the winner will enjoy their prize for many years to come,” adds Mel.

For further information, please contact Lindsey Lodge Hospice on 01724 843731 or email fundraising@lindseylodgehospice.org.uk

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About Lindsey Lodge Hospice

Lindsey Lodge Hospice is an independent charity offering special care for people in the North Lincolnshire area with specific life-limiting conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis and motor neurone disease.  The hospice was opened in September 1992 and provides loving, specialised nursing and medical care which is sensitive to the needs of the individual patient and their loved ones.

About The Dolls House Emporium

The Dolls House Emporium is the world’s leading supplier of dolls’ houses and miniature collectables. Based in Derbyshire and trading from 65,000 square foot premises with a retail shop, the company employs over 65 people and distributes worldwide via traditional channels and the Internet, whilst supporting over 400 retailers at home and abroad. The company supplies over 30 precision-made house kits and over 2,500 related accessories, which it promotes through its free 220-page catalogue.

Contact Details

For further information please contact:

Louise Hatton, PR Co-ordinator: + 44 (0)1773 514462

or email: louise.hatton@dollshouse.com or visit www.dollshouse.co.uk

We have noticed over the past few months that our miniatures are being used in some unusual places, such as fashion shoots in magazines.  Because of this we sent our latest catalogue, together with a letter, to a number of Creative Directors at advertising agencies across the country with the aim of encouraging them to use their imaginations and our miniatures.  On the whole the response was positive, but there was one letter that really stood out (and put a smile on everyone’s face, so thank you Mr Mackintosh!):

We obviously couldn’t leave Mr Mackintosh in such a quandary, so our Managing Director, Jackie Lee, sent the following letter, which has hopefully put his mind at rest:

Dear Mr Mackintosh,

Thank you for taking the time to peruse our new September catalogue. I’m sorry that the catalogue failed to provide all the information you require but I will attempt to answer your questions as best I can:

a) Unfortunately, due to a dispute with our TNT supplier, we are currently unable to pre-explode items for you. We are also unable to provide dismembered figurines, although you are welcome to purchase whole figurines and dismember them yourself. However, if this is how you enjoy spending your time then perhaps counselling would be a more prudent investment?

b) Sadly our miniature food is not edible and will not contribute towards your ‘5 a day’. Having said this, they may still contain more nutritional value than a pot noodle.

c) The Dolls house Emporium dolls are shy folk, unlikely to reveal their ‘wares’ on a first date.  As such you may have to wine and dine the ‘Gentlemen and Servants’ a little before finding out the answer to this question.  If you do require dolls specifically for nude scenes then please provide further details and measurements of your requirements and we will try to accommodate you.  Please be aware that our dolls are modelled in a 1:12 scale and try not to be offended at the results.

d) We are unable to provide a plumbing service as part of the delivery, but your local directory will have many numbers for local plumbers in your area.  As our houses are built to a 1:12 scale you should be able to successfully haggle them down to 1:12 of the price.

e)  I am surprised at your request for an alternative installation technician as ‘Miriam’ is the poster-girl for our company and has wowed many a customer with her charm and wit.  However, if you require an alternative we can dispatch your purchases with ‘Malcolm’; an ex-west-end actor who loves to get into character by dressing as a postal worker and pretending he’s only responsible for the delivery, not the installation, of your items.

f) Unfortunately our ‘astronaut range’ was removed from our catalogue in the wake of allegations from conspiracy theorists surrounding their use as props for NASA’s Apollo project. Due to legal reasons we are unable to comment further.

g) Mr Douglas is an emotive person and is certainly capable of an expressing a wide variety of emotions ranging from subtle contentment to mild indignation. He is, however, well renowned for his ‘poker face’ so your guess is as good as ours.

h) To be frank, we aren’t 100% sure how the stag came to be in this picture.  We believe that it was simply running too fast and just happened to crash through the wall at the instant the photograph was taken. Post-photoshoot examination revealed no trace of the stag’s whereabouts so we can only assume that he extracted himself successfully and without harm.

i) Traditional 5-pin tumbler locks are installed on all outer doors.  However due to the friendly nature of the inhabitants and a strict neighbourhood watch scheme these are rarely employed by the residents.

I hope I have been able to answer your questions to your satisfaction, if you have any further queries please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours sincerely,

Jackie Lee

Managing Director