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October's Member of the Month - Meet Greg
By Teresa Martens
Greg (Hallowell) has been a member of the Greenleaf Miniature Community since October 7, 2006. With 4,695 posts (and counting!) Greg is a valued member of the community sharing his insight, skills and talent with us. His talent as a decorator leaves us inspired and in awe and we’re often left wondering, how’d he do that or where’d he get that? Greg also has a generous heart, often helping out in his community wherever there is a need.
Greg can’t remember a time in his life when he wasn’t building something. When he was a kid in the 60’s he would build houses with Legos and Lincoln Logs. In the 70’s he built plastic model ships and vintage cars. In the 80’s he was into model trains and loved building the small structures from scratch that would go into his model layouts. He developed an appreciation for detail that he still carries with him today.
In the 80’s Greg got together with a friend with the thought of possibly starting a small dollhouse building business and selling them. However, it never happened, but it helped Greg to start thinking about the miniature hobby.
Greg grew up on a farm in central Maine. When Greg was ten his father died in a farm accident and his family moved from the farm into town. To fill that empty space in his life, he turned to minis and that perfect world he was able to create. When Greg was in his late teens he wanted to try something different. He knew that his mother had always wanted a dollhouse as a girl, but being from a large family it was impossible. Greg decided to build her the dollhouse she always wanted, but with all the responsibilities of being a single parent and keeping a home, his mother was never able to enjoy the dollhouse so it sat in her basement for many, many years where Greg found it.
Greg’s mother told him to take it and finish it, which he did. That house is now the Victorian Seaside Farmhouse. This house was displayed in a storefront window last Christmas which drew a lot of attention from his local paper and later from Down East magazine who wrote an article about it.
Greg has a passion for restoring old dollhouses. When his mother gave him back the one he had built for her, it was in tired shape. Restoring the house was so enjoyable for Greg, and he fell in love with that part of the hobby. He’s always on the lookout for that lost house that needs restoration and a good home. Greg also loves decorating and all the details that go into it. He has a sizeable Bespaq collection and he loves to collect minis created by Maine artists.
Greg’s favorite projects have been the restoration of his mother’s dollhouse and his current project, the Farmingdale, which he found at a yard sale a few weeks ago. He enjoys finding those little unexpected surprises that one finds in a restoration, like finding windows that have been covered by walls or where, as in the Farmingdale, it was built stud by stud like a real house.
Greg’s future goals are to finish some of the projects that have been sitting around for a few years. He also wants to build a workshop in his attic with more space for his collection. Greg has also approached his town with the possibility of eventually leaving the collection to be displayed in the library or museum.
Greg is currently working on the Farmingdale to which he is adding doors and changing details. He’s also collecting furniture for the house.
When asked about any advice he’d like to pass along, Greg says that you should pursue what you really want in a dollhouse. There is always a way to achieve what you want or something reasonably close if you put your mind and heart into it. Also, if you get frustrated with a project, step away from it for awhile and regroup and always remember, don’t take it seriously and have fun!
What doesn’t Greg like about mini-ing? Well he doesn’t care much for shingling and painting. He finds those tasks to be tedious (I couldn’t agree more!). Greg procrastinates for as along as possible to avoid those jobs.
At the young age of 46, Greg was born and raised in central Maine where he still lives with his partner of seven years, Russ. They have a very spoiled kitty named ‘Sapphi’ who loves to have her picture taken and who takes center stage in Greg’s avatar. They found Sapphi in an art gallery in their town of Hallowell on September 11th, which gives them a positive spin on this awful date.
Greg and Russ live in a 200 year old house that they bought last year and are currently renovating to accommodate Russ’s mother. Both Greg and Russ work in the local hospital system. Greg loves the ocean and mountains and long drives.
Since Greg discovered the Greenleaf Community last year, he has met some amazing and talented people, made friendships and gained a lot of knowledge. He is looking forward to many more years in the community and he hopes his sense of humor shows through in his posts. He likes to keep things light!
You can view many of Greg’s other houses and miniatures in his gallery including my favorite, the Syosset.
As our ‘Featured Member of the Month’, Greg will receive a $25 Gift Certificate to the ‘Greenleaf Store’. Congratulations, Greg!
Written by Teresa Martens
October, 2007
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