In 1948 Kellogg's produced a set of what has now become one of the hardest to acquire American-made cardboard houses. They were called the 'Kellogg’s Modern Home Kits' and were available through mail order on boxes of Kellogg's 'All-Bran' cereal. Today Toys and Stuff is proud to bring you the 'Blandings Dream House' based on the movie “Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House” starring Cary Grant, Myrna Loy, and Melvyn Douglas.
The set had some unique features I don't believe were ever repeated by a manufacturer, especially a cereal company.
-They were based on articles in ‘Better Homes and Gardens’, 5 Star Homes series
-Full-color models in 3/16” - O-scale
-Designed by architects, not toymakers
-Floor plans, decorating hints, elevations, and interior sketches were included for all models
-A set of working drawings was available to those who were
interested in building an actual house
The set itself consisted of:
No. 56 Cape Cod
No. 84 Town House
No. 810 Concrete Colonial
No. 1066 “The Colonial Cottage”
No. 1510 “Home For Beginners”
Blandings Dream House Kit
Here's the back of an 'All-Bran' box showing some of the kits along with a still-intact mail-in request.
The envelope the houses would have come in
a partial floor plan - landscape chart
The booklet which came with the No. 95 Suburban Home
At 35 cents, the Blandings Dream House was the most expensive in the set and measures 10 1/2" (26.7cm) L x 5 7/8" (14.9cm) W x 5 1/2" (14cm) H.My Wife & Me Enjoy it Enjoy! The Berg's Enjoy :)
****Added May 16 2015****
Hello Ed,
ReplyDeleteWonderful model, great history and really beautiful photos!
Greetings from Brazil!
Mauther
Thanx Mauther! This truly was a special find. I like it as well because the movie it's based on was a favorite of mine as a youngster.
DeleteFrom the odd numbering, do you think these were re-badged from somewhere else...like Micromodels?
ReplyDeleteHugh
Hugh, the numbering was based on actual house plans that appeared in 'Better Homes and Gardens' magazine. I'm only speculating but Kellogg's probably chose the designs based on a broad spectrum of popular late-1940s architecture which is why they have single story, double story, ranch, concrete, Colonial, etc. No Micromodels here - this way too early.
DeleteWonderful post, thanks! If you have any of the other cardboard house plans, I would love to see them, especially the modern town house.
ReplyDeleteMany Thanx! Gosh, I wish I did have the rest but these have been a real bear to find and I only managed to get two houses and some of the peripheral items so far.
DeleteLike it Deine Frau Gattin Bettina <3 :)
ReplyDeleteHello-
ReplyDeleteI am not sure if my post went through, I am interested in reproducing the house model for my collection. I have located an image of the unbuilt model. Thanks to your post I see that it is at 3/16" scale. I will have the image digitally printed to scale but in order to do this I would need a dimension on the house. Would you mind measuring the overall length of the base without any additions like the bay window or the chimney? This will give the proper ratio to print it at the correct scale.
Thanks so much
Charles, it may take a couple of days to get to the model. I'm in the middle of \destroying (aka re-doing) The Cave and most everything is boxed up
DeleteOk thank so much.
DeleteI really appreciate it.
Good luck with your Cave
All best
Charles
Check back here over the next couple of days as I'm planning to get back out there to do some more work and will try to find the box okay?
DeleteCharles, I updated the blog with measurements of the bottom plate. Hope this helps.
DeleteThis is perfect!
ReplyDeleteExactly the info. I need.
Thanks so much
All best, Charles
You're welcome! Hope the project turns out well!
DeleteMy friend has five or so if these. How can she find the value? Would you want pictures? She doesn't have the big one. Than you!
ReplyDeletekarihayes@cfu.net
As far as I know these haven't been featured in any collector's books or price lists. That being said, there's so many publications out there that it may be listed somewhere. The going rate for these on eBay has been around $50 - $80 per building.
DeleteWonderful post! Have you seen any of the BHG Magazines that reference or advertise the Blandings set? I'm working on an exhibition that will include Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House as a story, in particular the many Blandings "Dream Homes" built across the country. Your model -- and the entire Kellogg's set -- is just fantastic! Thanks for sharing - Deborah Sorensen (dsorensen(a)nbm.org)
ReplyDeleteThank you! I have not actually seen the BHG mags that cover the Blandings set. I started to track them down but then, as always happens with me, I got distracted by other projects.
DeleteI have the Concrete Colonial if anyone is interested. USA shipments only, thanks
ReplyDeleteI would be interested. How much were you asking?
Delete