The metal harmonica in Bill Studebaker’s palm is no bigger than five millimeters, its comb and cover plates are barely visible to the human eye once set against the scale of an Indian Head penny.

The wee instrument sits in a glass case with other handcrafted musical instruments Bill has made by hand, including a wooden flute, a lute and a spinnet, each built with extraordinary intricate detail from wood and ivory.

Above Bill and Barbara Studebaker’s garage in Rockland is a miniature-making shop and showroom along with work tables, a miniature drill press, mill and lathe, among other tools and endless boxes of materials to make miniatures.

The Studebakers came from Virginia six years ago where they formerly owned a miniature store. Now retired, their studio is still their day job and shared passion.

“After we first got married in September of 1992, I overheard Barbara and her sister talking about toys they had as kids and they said they never had a dollhouse,” said Bill. “I thought to myself ‘I can build a dollhouse.’ And I’ll have it done for Christmas!”

As a former furniture builder and restorer of antiques, he got to work.

“For the next three months, I just lived in my shop building her a copy of the house we were living in. I was having so much fun doing it. I was building everything from scratch, because I didn’t know at the time you could buy them online or at shows.”

Forget Christmas; It took two and a half years to complete it, but by then Studebakers were hooked on everything miniature.

“We just discovered that there was a dollhouse world out there globally.”

For the last 20-plus years, the Studebakers have made and sold their own creations through their website and through shows, while simultaneously running workshops and classes. Bill primarily crafts furniture, while Barbara, a fiber artist, handstitches pillows, quilts and bedding.

“One thing I really like is that I naturally save every little thing, so I do a lot of re-purposing and repairs on antiques,” said Barbara, who mostly runs the day to day details of the business.

As for Bill: “I’ve always had to make things; that’s part of who I am. If I didn’t have a place or shop to make things it would drive me crazy. So, it was a chance to make little things and not overwhelm the space. For example, if you want to build a desk and it’s complete, you put it somewhere in your house. But, what if you have the idea for a different kind of desk—or six different ideas? You can’t build them all and put them around the house, but you can if they are in miniature and they all fit on a mantle piece.”

There isn’t a huge community of miniature lovers in Maine, said Bill, but the hobby worldwide is bigger than ever since they started.

“The shops and shows [where miniature makers gather to showcase and sell items] are winnowing down,” he said. “I think part of that is that the older communities are aging out of physically going to shows, and the younger people are buying primarily online.”

Still, there is something that captivates certain men and women of any age. For many who grew up with a dollhouse, it’s a lifelong fascination.

“There is something really basic about miniatures,” said Bill. “I don’t know what it is, but I’ve seen it over and over again. People are so completely charmed when they pick up and physically touch say a tiny piece of furniture. They literally turn into a five year old before your eyes. I don’t know anything else that does that...maybe a circus.”

Click on our gallery of photos to see all the detail in each piece.

Photos by Kay Stephens

Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com