This small dollhouse room built by Anita Kirwan and Leslie Hopwood is entitled, “Bama’s Sweet Treats.” It’s on loan courtesy of the San Diego Miniature Crafters Association. Chocolate Coke anyone? For a time, as a teenager, Anita worked at a soda fountain on the New Jersey boardwalk. A spoonful of chocolate syrup into a Coca-Cola and yum! Who wouldn’t love that? This is a collection of miniature sweets and treats appealing to young and old alike. And the best sweetie-pies in the shop? Anita’s great grandsons are pictured on the walls.
Although born in Chicago, Anita claims San Diego as her home having moved here as a very young girl. One of Anita’s most treasured items is a small family of tiny Asian dolls she made some 70 years ago. Anita began working on miniatures again after she began taking her daughter to the Doll and Toy Emporium in Old Town San Diego.
Anita has an eye for the delicate, and things that remind her of family. She has a dollhouse, built by her and her husband, which is a treasure trove of family memories. Her many room boxes represent the things and people she loves. Each one presents a place you’d be happy to walk into and spend the day if you could.