Which Scale?

Ordering the right scale

So you have a dollshouse and you want to buy some furniture or accessories for it, but you don't know what scale it is. Below is a short guide to how scales work and a couple of tips to determine the scale of your house.

1/12th scale

Also known as 1" scale in the US. The most common scale. Easiest to work out: 1 inch = 1 foot - so a 6 foot person would be 6 inch tall in scale.

1/16th scale

Not easily available in new houses or furniture. Popular a few decades ago.

3/4 inch = 1 foot - so a 6 foot person would be 4.5 inchs tall in scale.

1/24th scale

Also known as halfscale or 1/2" scale in US as it is half of the dimensions of 1/12th scale.

1/2 inch = 1 foot - so a 6 foot person would be 3 inch tall in scale.

1/48th scale

Known as quarter scale or 1/4 scale in US as it is a quarter of the dimensions of 1/12th scale.

1/4 inch = 1 foot - so a 6 foot person would be 1.5 inch tall in scale.

1/144th scale

Also know as micro miniatures and very close to N scale in train models.

1 inch = 12 feet - a 6 foot person would be just 0.5 inch tall in scale.

Cut out some rough figure shapes in the sizes given above, stand them in your house to see which suits the size best.

Or if you are confident with your maths - measure the door or the ceiling heights and see which scale would fit into the real world, remembering that old cottages would have quite low ceilings