Materials used to build and furnish high quality doll houses are not necessarily expensive. The real expenses is in the apparent hours of labor and high degree expertise required for their construction.

However, many “expert” doll house craftsmen have no more training or background than a normal wood-workers or wood hobbyists. If you have ever built a model airplane or car, you can probably produce doll houses that will command a good prices. All it tales is a little attention to detail, practice and a few tricks of the trade.

Basically, building doll houses involves selecting and cutting out (according to plans 1/8″ to 1/4″ paneling for walls, a little stronger plywood for the bottom floor, and thin paneling with a simulated overlay for the roof.

Cut out the required windows, doors and spaces for stairways. For efficiency, you will probably cut out several parts from the same basic plan at a time.

Check these parts often to make sure they fit properly. Most walls and floors should be decorated before they are permanently installed or you may not be able to get them to apply the desired coatings or linings.

Although you will develop your own procedures, it’s wise to follow the plan instructions explicitly for the first few models. remember that although you can substitute materials freely, some substitutions may require different applications from the plans so be careful!

If you want to try without a plan (a commercial plan is recommended, at least for the first effort), you’ll need a sheet of plywood (or plain 3/8″ paneling), some ice cream sticks or tongue depressors, glue, nails (brads), a few pins and screw eyes, a coping or jig saw, plus other normal shop tools. Get wallpaper and linoleum (or contact shelf paper )remnants from the hardware store and fabric scraps from an upholstery shop or yard goods store.

Much of the fun building doll houses is the ingenious and often, Unique methods craftsmen come up with to create really amazing effects for door, windows, roofs, outside and inside decor. Your total material cost could be as low as $200 including furniture. Of course, the cost can be much higher with veneer walks, silk rugs and fancy furnishing.

Doll house patterns are available from many sources–your public library probably has several books on the subject; discount book sellers offer a wide selection of books, plans and suggestions.

Decorations and furnishings can also be obtained from a variety of sources (several are listed under BUSINESS SOURCES). Subscribe to one or more trade magazines to learn and stay abreast of additional sources for materials, building and marketing techniques.

The first “trick” is to build your doll houses to the scale of the furniture that you intend to use! This is much easier (and smarter) than building one haphazardly or to a standard which the furniture is hard to get or even unavailable.

This would mean trying to cut little pieces of furniture down or enlarge them to fit a non-standard scale doll house.

Unless you are equipped to build doll house furniture from scratch to the described scale, stay with the standard scales!

To find the scale of the furniture, measure the height of a table and compare that a similar table in your own home.

If the doll house table is 2 1/2″ tall and it equates to yours that is 30 inches (2 feet), that’s a one inch to one foot (or twelve to one) scale. An inch or difference ON YOUR TABLE is not bad. The same procedure works on hour house scale. If your doorway opening is 32 by 80 inches ( 2 2/3 by 6 1/2 feet), then the same size opening in the doll house would be 2 2/3 by 6 1/2 inches. The one foot equals one inch is a widely accepted scale. You can use any scale you want, however, even metric.

A good tip for furniture is to buy imported doll house furniture cheap and refinish it even though it’s new (SMC has a nice selection of inexpensive “imported furniture” see BUSINESS SOURCES). Buy a $1.30 chair, and sand and give it a coat of good polyurethane to make it into a $6.95 (retail) chair instead of the suggested retail of $3.95.

Much imported doll house furniture is mass produced by children or untrained workers. It is poorly sanded and lightly coated with varnish or other inexpensive finish (even shoe polish!). Their materials and tools are often poor quality and the finishes usually look and feel rough. Their wood, however, is usually excellent (good wood is cheap overseas.

With some fine sandpaper and sell wool, smooth the finish until looks and feels hand crafted. If the stain and finish is really bad, remove it with BIX (at your hardware store), re-stain and refinish it.

This process needn’t take long, especially if you do several at once. Give your wooden furniture one or more coats of quality vanish, polyurethane or liquid resin. Spray is fine a dust free area (some overseas furniture markers spray out in the open with cars going by).

Check the upholstery for fit and quality. Replace if it doesn’t look nice or go with your “decor” or treat it. Trim loose threads and glue any loose corners. A few moments with piece of doll house furniture can triple it’s value. It can also make the difference between a $40 and a $400 doll house!

Market your doll houses wholesale through craft shops (usually on consignment), toy or department stores, and/or do your own advertising and sell from your “factory.”

If you retail, two things will help immensely: a catalog and a nice display. Take a good (professional quality) color pictures of each of your creations from several angles. Use professional backgrounds and lighting to present them in their best possible light.

If you can’t afford to have a catalog printed make up a scrapbook of your work to show both the quality and the variety that your produce. Add comments and prices to make it into your catalog. List various options and prices for each. For example, modifying the layout, adding a room or porch, changing the type of roof.

Next, make arrangements to display your doll houses. This can be a corner of a room in your house or shop or rented display window (check with real estate agents for windows in unoccupied stores). Pictures and advertisements are nice, but you just can’t beat the real thing. The closer your doll house display is where little girls can see them, the better!

You can sometimes arrange with local businesses to feature a display (the bank, bowling alley) for a week at a time. As a local craftsman of note, these businesses will often cooperate especially if you’re good. You get exposure; they have an added attraction for their customers at no cost.

Unless you live in a big city it would probably not pay to advertise continually in newspaper except around Christmas. Of course, if you could get the names and addresses of parents with little girls in the 3 to 10 age brackets, you could mail out brochures with pictures to their parents.

One way to obtain such a list is to offer a doll house as a prize. Contestants fill out coupons with their name and address to enter (which becomes your mailing list). Take part in community affairs to meet potential buyers. Operate a booth at the county fair, give out free balloons at the parade and come up with doll house variations that the local paper will cover (perhaps a model of a prominent local house).

Be sure to have several completed models on hand or at least ready to finish in time for Christmas. This should be your best season. Don’t over look the possibly of building (or finishing) custom doll houses.

For example, a shape something like the family home, painted and decorated to match (these would start at $00!). With 4 or 5 different basic patterns, you could make minor adjustments to come up with quite a few totally different models.

One of your secrets that you keep all patterns, jigs, molds and simply change outer materials to get different effects.

For example, all of your roofs will be similar, but some can be finished in painted sandpaper or cut out thin panel wood “for asphalt shingles and tile. You can probably imprint some wood paneling with brick design, spray it a light color, then roll it with a reddish brown to look like brick. Similar designs inscribed on light wood would look like patio and walkway tile.

There is simply no end to interesting effects that can be realized from your imagination and a little experimenting.

The best advice from this point is to remember that the more patience and care you take in building each doll house, the more enjoyment some little girl will receive.

If this is your motivation, you will undoubtedly be a successful doll house and doll furniture builder. Even so,, keep accurate records and always try to work out procedures to enable you to produce sections of the doll houses assembly line fashion. This helps avoid mistakes, speeds construction and increase your profits.

Making replica houses and furniture can be an absorbing past time. Please share your plans and experiences with your fellow enthusiasts at HealthSufficiency.

if you do not already know how to upholster or refinish wood, the first priority is to learn how. If you are experienced, you can begin with small projects and work your way up to the more complex and better paying jobs.

In the case of a husband and wife, one could specialize in each to provide a complete service! Learning these crafts starts with reading, then practicing. If possible, get a job working in the field to learn direct from the professionals. Otherwise, there are schools, courses and hundreds of books covering every possible aspect of furniture upholstery and refinishing.

During your preparation, you may decide to specialize –modern, antiques or just chairs and sofas for example. When you are ready for customers, have a sign made and place an ad that announces your services (be specific). Put signs on your car or truck too, so people can see them when you pick up or deliver furniture.

When you bring in jobs that are badly in need of repair, take “before” pictures of them — to compare with “after” pictures when they are finished.

Post the best of these in a photo album to show prospective customers and for possible future use in ads or brochures (you may need well contrasting black and white photos for these.) Arrange your album with good examples of each major type of work that you do and include a short (no more than 3 line) title and explanation for each. This way, if you are busy, customers can browse through them while waiting.

These pictures will not only show what fine work you do—they will also suggest other jobs to the customer. Use a good camera for these pictures (hire a photographer if necessary), so the pictures will accomplish their mission.

Plan your shop according to the work you are going to do in it. You will need more room to refinish tables, stands to do smaller items and a dust free section for the application of wood finishes. Upholstering takes less room, but the area must be safe from mice and moths — especially your storage areas.

When operating a business like this, you will be asked to recommend finishes, fabrics and methods. As a professional, you are often in a better position to answer these questions than your customers, but be careful not to routinely recommend those things that bring you the most profit. Remember that they may also ask someone else! It is OK, however, to point out things that are easier (therefore, cheaper) to work with.

You will find that in the long run, honestly really is the best policy!

Pricing in a business like this is very difficult, and you have to give estimates on most of our work. If you see the cost is going well over your estimate, give the customer a call before proceeding.

The rule here is “never surprise a customer with bad news.” If the cost is slightly more, and your “estimate” was pretty firm just absorb the cost as the price of a “lesson” in how to estimate. Your pricing of course, will be based on the cost of materials,labor and utilities plus your profit.

Note that labor and profit are two entirely different categories.

Labor is the amount you would have to pay someone to do the job;profit is your “override” on the labor plus your profit on the materials (usually 25-40%).

A fully qualified upholster or furniture re-finisher should not earn less than $10 (gross) per hour — and in some areas, $25 per hour may not be out of line for top quality work. When making your estimates, add a little “padding” (perhaps 5%) to cover unforeseen costs. Always figure your estimates and prices with good quality materials — when you use lower quality materials, usually to save money, let it be your customer’s decision.

The fastest way to learn if you want to get into the furniture refinishing or upholstery business to redo some of your own.

Take a chair or table, set up a practice area and try your skill. Use BIX finish remover (available at most hardware stores) to remove paint ( a second coat will also remove the stain), clean thoroughly, sand and apply the new finish.

The secret is not to get in a hurry! Let the wood dry between operations; take the extra few minutes for a first class sanding job; wait another day for the finish to dry enough for the next cost, and go over the surface with fine steel wool (if recommended) and wipe thoroughly between coats.

In a business, you will have several pieces in different stages of completion, so the temptation to rush will not be so great. Another way to help expedite your “education” is to hire an experienced helper — for both the assistance and “lessons.”

In addition to your signs, have a good quality 3 or 4 line rubber stamp made to custom print your own invoices and even business cards.

If funds are scarce, get some duplicate ticket books at the local stationery store and stamp your name on each original ticket to get “custom printed” invoices.

As long as your business is not too professional, you can place 3 x 5 cards with your name and services on supermarket bulletin boards. Keep an ad in the local paper, but change it a little every so often (like a new special every month), to help stimulate interest. When you are ready for more business, put an ad in the yellow pages.

Whenever business lags, you can always contact rental agencies (both real estate and furniture) to either buy used (but good quality only) furniture that needs repair, or to do their repair work. The profits will be lower, but low profits are better than NO profits.

Also, bear in mind that refinishing and re-upholstering other people’s furniture is not your only option.

You can also buy things to restore — from auctions, garage sales, foreclosures (business furniture is a whole new market!) and from individuals who answer your “will buy” ads. The item you buy to refinish must bring at least double its cost plus a fair return for your labor and materials to restore it.

For this reason, buy only high quality or antique furniture, so you will “have something” when it is completed.

One possible pitfall in the refinishing and upholstery business is unpaid bills. People sometimes really want to have a couch recovered and visualize how nice it would look with a nice, quality (expensive) fabric.

Trouble is, while the couch is being covered they spot a new item at half what they owe on the old couch — and buy it!

This leaves the upholsterer with $100 worth of material cut and sewn onto a $50 couch. The message here is to protect yourself; get enough down to ensure the recovered couch will be worth your investment should the customer “disappear.”

BUSINESS SOURCES

• MINUTEMAN, INC., 115 N. Monroe, Waterloo, IA 19101. Sells furniture refinishing supplies, plus a “business kit”.
• BEDFORD LUMBAR CO.,Box 65, Shelbyville, TN 36710. Sells unassembled cedar hardwood furniture.
• DATHO MANUFACTURING, INC.,Box 12110, Lubbock, TX 79452.Manufactures of upholstery sewing machines.
• MODERN UPHOLSTERY INSTITUTE, Field Building, Kansas City, MO 64111. Offers a course in upholstering; free booklet.
• UPHOLSTERY TODAY, Box 2754, High Point, NC 27261. Trade journal for furniture upholsterers. Note: this is the journal of the
  Upholsterers International Union of North America, 25 N 4th St.,Philadelphia, PA 19106.
• JIM DANDY SALES, Box 30377, Cincinnati, OH 42530. Upholstering instructions and supplies.
• FREESTYLE, 17835 E Skypark, Irvine, CA 92714. sells “Sundura” furniture kits wholesale. Free info.
• LEISURE PRODUCTS BY BB, Box 3171, Apollo Beach, FL 33570, 813/677/8280. Instructions and fittings for PVC furniture; kit
  $15 with samples, catalog and manual.
• HOME FURNISHING, Box 581207, Dallas, TX 75258, 214/741-7632 Biannual magazine for home furnishings dealers and manufacturers.
• VISTA COMMUNICATIONS, INC., 180 Allen Rd.,NE, Ste 300, Atlanta, GA 30328.. Monthly magazine for furniture retailers.
• DOVER PUBLICATIONS, INC.,31 East 2nd St.,Mineola, NY 11051. Discount books, clip art, stencils, etc.
• QUILL CORPORATION, 100 Schelter Rd.,Lincolnshire, IL 60917-4700. 312/634-4800. Office supplies.
• NEBS, 500 Main St.,Groton, MA 04171, 800/225-6380. Office supplies.
• SWEDCO, Box 29, Mooresville, NC 28115. 3 line rubber stamps - $3; Business cards - $13 per thousand.
• ZPS, Box 581, Libertyville, IL 60048-2556. Business cards (raised print - $11.50 per K) and letterhead stationery. Will print your copy ready logo or design, even whole card.

Please share your hints and tips with your HealthSufficiency family and friends.

Silver-Plating

• 1 quart of water
• 1 oz. Precipitate Silver
• 1/2 oz. Cynate of Potash
• 1/4 oz. Hyposulphite of Soda
• Whiting

To the water add the Precipitate Silver, Cynate of Potash, Hyposulphite of Soda and a little whiting and shake before using.

Apply with a soft rag.

Nickel-Plating

• Water
• Nickel Salt
• Sal Ammonia

Dissolve in water equal parts of double Nickel salt and Sal Ammonia.

Heat to near boiling point.

Immerse the metal to be nickeled together with some aluminum foil touching it.

Rinse in clear water.

Please share your silver and nickel plating experiences and projects with your HealthSufficiency family and friends.

Solution 1:

Dissolve in 6 fluid ounces of distilled water: 1/4 ounce of Silver Nitrate 1/4 ounce of Ferric Ammonium Citrate 1/4 ounce of Citric Acid Stir until dissolved and pour the contents into a dark bottle until ready to use.

Solution 2:

Dissolve 1/4 ounce Sodium Thiosulphate in 10 ounces of water. Bottle until ready to use.

Method:

Place the picture exactly where you want it, then mark around it with chalk or something that will easily wash out. Now take a piece of cotton, saturate it in Solution No. 1 and spread the solution evenly over the spot where the picture is to be printed. If you are printing on cloth, it will be a good idea to stretch the cloth over a piece of glass and hold it in place with spring type clothespins.

Now take a piece of heavy wrapping paper and make a frame for the picture, cutting a hole just the size you want the picture to be. Place this frame over the negative and old it all down tight with another piece of glass. If you can clamp the two pieces of glass together with clothespins, so much the better.

When you have it all prepared and held firmly together, expose it to bright sunlight for several minutes, then remove the glass, the frame and the negative. Apply Solution No. 2 to the printed area, and soak it good for about one minute. This application of the second solution “fixes” the picture and prevents it from fading out later when exposed to light. Rinse the surface in clean water and allow to dry.

When you have familiarized yourself with these simple directions you will have no trouble in producing remarkable results that will amaze your friends, and enable you to prepare many unusual items for gifts, etc.

You should be able to purchase all the above ingredients at any good wholesale drug company or photographic supply house.

Please share your photo transfer experiences and projects with your HealthSufficiency family and friends.

Your first step will be to clean the shoes thoroughly. With a damp rag, clean the shoes of all dirt and polish. It is best to complete the cleaning by rubbing the shoes with a rag saturated in denatured alcohol (this is alcohol which has been boiled). All wax and polish must be removed. Now allow the shoes to dry.

Next you will want to arrange the shoes as you want them to be bronzed. Tie the laces and arrange them properly. Adjust the tongue so that it touches the sides of the shoe. You may want to hold the laces and tongue in place with a little rubber cement. Now drive a tiny hole through the sole of each shoe and loop a string or wire around it. You are now ready to begin bronzing.

To prepare your liquid bronze, use bronze, copper or gold powder and mix the powder with a fast drying spar varnish, stirring well and adding the powder until you have a liquid about like paint. Stir to prevent particles from settling on the bottom. You will probably want to mix a fresh batch of the liquid bronze for each job.

To apply the bronze, use a good camel hair brush and paint shoes, inside and out, with several coats. If there are dull spots when the liquid dries, it means the liquid has soaked right into the material and more coats are needed until the finish is even and glossy. Hang up each shoe by the loop of string to dry between coats and clean the brush each time.

When the final coat is dry, you can create an “antique” effect by mixing a little burnt umber or black color in oil with the bronzing liquid and painting it into the creases of the shoe with a small brush.

If you would like the shoes to be heavy and rigid, fill them with plaster of paris to about 1/2″ from the top and let them dry for several days before starting to paint.

You will find bronze powder at any good paint or hardware store or even a printing supply house.

You will be amazed at the very professional job you have done using this method. Perhaps you will do such a good job and enjoy it so much you may want to begin a service doing it for others. It is really a lovely way to make your treasured memories last forever.

Have you bronzed other items? Like flowers? Please share your bronzing experiences and projects with your HealthSufficiency family and friends.

Sand-drying can be used to dry a wide variety of flowers, such as roses, tulips, dahlias, marigolds and snapdragons. Flowers which last only one day, like day lilies, do not dry well. Do not dry asters, azaleas, chrysanthemums, geraniums, petunias, phlox, pinks, poppies or violets. But feel free to do your own experimentation.

To prepare for sand-drying

Cut the flowers at the peak of their show as any imperfections will be exaggerated by drying. Pick the flowers after the dew has fully evaporated. Make sure the stems are dry.

Prepare the flowers by reinforcing the stems and blossoms with florist’s wire or with white glue. For daisy-type flowers and flowering shrubs, push a 6″ piece of wire through the stem and right through the flower head; bend the end of the wire into a hook over the flower head and then pull it down, thus securing the head to the stem.

For flowers such as roses and tulips which are dried face-up, cut off most of the stem except an inch or so and insert the wire as above.

For many-petaled flowers, use glue instead of wire. Diluting the white glue with a drip of water and using a toothpick, dab a thin coat of glue at the base of each petal, working the glue into the base of each flower to attach each petal to the base. Dry completely.

To dry the flowers, slowly cover them with white sand in deep, open boxes. Cup-shaped or rose-shaped flowers should be dried face-up. Make the sand deep enough to hold the flowers in an upright position, position the flower carefully and slowly pour the sand around the base of the flower, then around the sides and under and over the petals. Pour the sand evenly and slowly in order to preserve the natural shape of the blossom.

Daisy-type flowers should be dried face down. Make an even base of sand in the box and make a little dip in the sand the same shape as the flower. Hold the flower steady and carefully build up the sand around the blossom until it is fully covered.

Snapdragons, lilac, elongated flowers and flowering branches should be positioned horizontally in the sand, flowering branches face up. Carefully pour the sand around and between the flowers and into individual blooms. A soft artists’ brush will help you in lifting the blossoms slightly as you pour the sand so that they won’t be flattened by its weight.

When all the flowers are completely covered with sand put the drying box in your drying area and leave undisturbed for one to three weeks. Rapid drying in a very warm, dry and brightly-lit place will produce bright blossoms; slower drying in a more humid spot will produce more muted colors.

Removing the sand should be done very carefully, tipping the container slightly, allowing the sand to flow slowly from one corner of the box. As each flower is released from the sand, lift it gently out.

If you wish to store your dried flowers for later use, seal them in airtight containers such as tins or plastic boxes sealed with masking tape, or in sealed cardboard boxes enclosed in airtight plastic bags.

Air-drying can be very successful with herbs, everlastings and ornamental grasses. Choose perfect plants with long stems, removing the lower leaves. Put the flowers in small bunches, fastening them together with an elastic band; then open each bunch into a fan shape. Hang the flowers head down from nails in a dry, dark place for one to three weeks until they are completely dry. The colors will usually be muted. Display your flowers in the house or store them as above.

You may want to experiment with waxing fresh flowers. This too is simple; just melt some paraffin wax and plunge each individual flower into the wax. Remove and shake the excess wax off each flower. Put it into the refrigerator to set and harden.

Having dried, preserved flowers in your home year-round can really brighten it up. You may want to give dried flower arrangements as Christmas gifts. It is a wonderful, satisfying hobby to preserve your own flowers. You can also make lovely cards by pressing your flowers and covering them with clear mac-tac on a piece of construction paper. It’s easy to do and looks lovely.

The PC or laptop is ideally suited for a Blu-Ray drive as its built in internet connection and hard drive expands the Blu-Ray disc’s interactive content. Similarly the Sony Playstation 3 comes with built in internet connection and a hard drive. The Blu-ray disc player gives enhanced and faster game graphics and audio along with DVD movie playing functionality. (Upgrading the hard drive from the supplied hard drive capacity is probably an early requisite!) Sony’s website allows you to download game demos, online special movie features like actor interviews, sounds, screensavers and games,etc., Blu-Ray movie trailers, browse the internet on your TV and do online shopping.

The Blu-Ray disc (BD, as in BD-Video or BD-Rom) was established to store content in high definition TV format which has a significantly higher resolution and, therefore, requires much more storage space, i.e. 25GB on a single layer, and 50GB on dual-layer discs.

The Blu-ray Disc format utilises a blue-violet laser with a shorter wavelength to enable higher storage capacities. Compared to a CD with an infrared laser and a wavelength of 720nm or a DVD with a red laser and a wavelength of 650nm, the Blu-ray Disc format utilises a blue-violet laser with a wavelength of only 405nm.

Right now, it’s hard to see how home entertainment can get any better!

• It can play almost all disc formats (don’t try to force a vinyl, old laser or non-circular shaped disc into it, but otherwise…)
• It is up to true HD (1080p video/7.1 audio) compatible.
• It can upscale standard definition movies/games to High Definition (it’s not true 1080p but any improvements are worth it if you’ve got a big screen TV or have very good eyesight).
• Its compatible with most formats and popular codexs (the latest model doesn’t support Super Audio CD, and none of them support HD-DVD, but then even HD-DVD doesnt support that anymore).
• It can allow you to browse the net from your computer screen (at a lower definition than on a computer, but do you really want to ever have to get off that couch?).
• It is easy to upgrade the systems firmware to provide additional functionality.
• There are a huge number of PS3 Games and Blu-Ray movies for you to watch on it (well there aren’t yet, but since the extinction of HD-DVD you can expect a lot more)

Here’s some information you may not be aware of - there are four PS3 Hardware based models and three of them have now been discontinued:

1. 60gb - Super Audio CD reader, Memory Stick/SD/Compact Flash card readers, 4x USB ports, Backwardly compatible with many PS2/X/1, Ethernet cable included, 60 gigabyte internal hard disk drive (initial worldwide release - discontinued worldwide)
2. 20gb - same as 1 but with 20 gigabyte internal hard disk drive (available only in Japan/Korea - discontinued worldwide)
3. 80gb - same as 1 but with 80 gigabyte internal hard disk drive (available only in North America/Asia, discontinued worldwide)
4. 40gb - 2x USB ports, no Super Audio CD reader, no Memory Stick/SD/Compact Flash card readers, no Backwardly compatible with PS2/X/1, Ethernet cable excluded, 40 gigabyte internal hard disk drive (current worldwide model - available in Black, silver or white cases)

So if you don’t already own one of the first three models you may not be able to play your PS2/PSX/PS games on it - this isn’t really a bad thing since a fair number of pre-PS3 games suffered debilitating glitches when played on the PS3 - yes I know the PS3 was supposed to upscale the games to Hi-Def - but you can do the same thing by plugging your old PS2 console into a Hi-Def amplifier/receiver like the Yamaha RX1800 - and this is my recommendation.
Also if you’d made copies of your pre-PS3 games (to protect them from scratches/other natural wear & tear - never for any other reason) you can at least have your PS2 chipped to play them should said damage have occurred - this is not possible on the PS3 (yet).
The PS3 also lacks a memory card reader meaning you’d have to purchase a separate PS2 memory card reader if you wanted to play your saved PS2 games.
Super Audio CDs haven’t become a popular format and there are very few titles available so not a great loss - You can always buy an external USB multi-format card reader and plug it into one of the front ports and at least that way should one format get an update you can always purchase a new card reader that can cope with the new format.
Same with the USB ports, get a self powered (external mains adapter) USB HUB for recharging your Sixaxis/Dualshock 3/Logitech controllers/USB Dualshock 2 controller adapters or USB Keyboard/Playstation Eye/GT Driving Force set/HDTV Tuner/Flash or Thumb Drives etc. Lets face it, it is very unlikely that you’ll have all the above plugged in at once anyway.
The instruction manuals clearly tell you how to change the included Hard Disk Drive for a larger (, equal or smaller) capacity one - so if you need more capacity (and an upcoming HDTV tuner accessory means you probably will), you can D-I-Y upgrade.
The whole system has ‘wireless’ networking built in as standard, but wireless signals can drop out and aren’t especially fast - network cables are cheap and can easily plug into your preexisting 10/100/1000 network - if you’re worried about the game dropping out while you’re multi-playing over the net, get your own cable.
As far as the colour of the case goes - what do you watch? The TV or the console?

• Europe - PAL/Zone 2 DVD/Region B BD Movie Playback
• USA - NTSC/Zone 1 DVD/Region A BD Movie Playback
• Australia/New Zealand - PAL/Zone 4/Region B BD Movie Playback
• Asia - NTSC/Zone 3 Movie Playback
• Russia - PAL/Region C BD Movie Playback
• Japan - NTSC/Zone 0/Region Free BD Movie Playback

These are copy protection features, meant to stop people from taking a holiday in South East Asia/Meso America and buying a cheap pirated copy of a game or movie. They are not hardwired into the system, they are only programs stored in the systems permanent memory (BIOS), this makes manufacture of the consoles cheaper.
PAL vs. NTSC - it’s no lie that PAL has always been higher definition than NTSC, but it has a slower frame rate than NTSC thus giving NTSC smoother motion than PAL - with the advent of High Definition Televisions these differentiations basically become void since the TV sets contain their own firmware to recode PAL &/or NTSC into a worldwide standard digital signal that is then displayed on the television set - so don’t let it upset you.
When DVDs first came out they were all Zone 0 encoded (this is an unofficial name indicating the discs could be played on and DVD player anywhere) - not long after most DVDs were Zoned, meaning they could only be played on DVD players that correspond to that Zone - North America is Zone 1, Europe Zone 2, SE Asia Zone 3, Australia Zone 4 etc. Again to make manufacture cheaper the Zoning was Firmware and you can find instructions online to make most DVD players region free (allowing them to play any Zone)
Now we have BDs (Blu-ray Discs) and as with the first DVDs most of them are Region Free (meaning they’ll play on any player), now however the Blu-ray drives are already set up to be either Region Free (meaning they’ll play any region encoded/unencoded disc) or coded to a region (A - North America/Japan/China; B - Europe/Australia/New Zealand; C - Russia; etc).
Although it isn’t currently available I’m sure instructions for making your PS3 zone and region free will soon be available online - I do not recommend buying pirated games/movies, remember the PS3 is basically a computer and any pirated products may contain viruses that would seriously void your warranty - only ever create copies of disc you own the original print of if you’re concerned about them being scratched/damaged (I know several people with Parkinsons who have their relatives do this for them, since their infirm hands can’t guarantee a firm hold on their discs and they don’t want to have to buy a new copy every time they scratch one).
Further more Blu-ray is still under development as a format - if you have a standard Blu-ray player you will have to periodically upgrade the firmware to ensure it can play all those special features on the newer discs (this involves using a PC/MAC to download the firmware from the web and burn it onto a disc before inserting it into the player and installing it) - this is a good reason to get a PS3/Blu-ray player since its direct web connectivity makes it very easy to install firmware upgrades and it is the only drive currently in production confirmed as being capable of upgrading to Blu-ray 2.0 (web content/interactivity).
Although not mentioned above other important features are controlled by firmware, such as sound (the PS3 supports up to 7.1 audio channels), one of the latest firmware updates adds the new Dolby-HD decoding ability to the console (on top of DTS/Dolby Digital/etc.).
Firmware updates can be easily downloaded and installed via its built in wireless/broadband network connection.

Until this run of toys came along, Bumblebee had been missing off the roster of characters for quite a while. The original toy was very simple in construction and therefore I think it is nice to see newly constructed figure for this classic character. Is he up to standard?

It always struck me as a bit odd that the cartoon gave Bumblebee a completely new face. It bore little resemblance to the original toy which I believe is a good thing, because the toy’s head was a little ugly. This Classics incarnation of Bumblebee is modeled on the cartoon character’s face really well. It has his horns, the right shape for the head, his chin and rounds it off with a cute little smile. I suspect it is one of the first Transformers to look happy. In his fore-head is a small moulded vent which has been coloured blue. It works well to break up the yellow in the helmet part and his face is painted silver. He has the usual ball joint for a neck and it seems a little stiff. His cheeks feel like they impede his head movement slightly.

His shoulders have the same blue highlights on them as his fore-head vent and breaks up the black of the upper arms and tire section well. The shoulders have quite a bit of movement available to them, as the tyres can swivel around and the arms themselves are connected via ball joints. One small difficulty with him is if you swivel the tyres about too much in robot mode, the plate that holds his head in place will pop up. Fore-arms are grey plastic which have the doors of the car joined onto at the wrists. The elbows are joined with ball joints and the doors can swivel around his wrists, so even though they are large, they can be maneuvered out of the way easily enough. His hands are black and have a peg hole in each for weapon holding, but the toy doesn’t come with a gun. The chest, which is formed from the cars roof and windshield has an Autobot rub-sign sticker on it as well as some white paint decals. His thighs are covered by the backs of the chairs in vehicle mode and have ball joints, his shins are covered by the bonnet. Feet consist of the front bumper and wheel base of the car. The robot mode is very close to the make-up of the original toy in transformation and even closer to his cartoon representation.There are some nice details moulded into him. On his legs, just above his ankles, there are some shock absorbers, his groin has some detail, that although nothing exceptional is effective, as in robot mode it can only be seen through the windshield. One I really like is on the side of his upper arms are some stripes that look like rank stipes for the army. Although Bumblebee never really climbed the ranks, he was a reliable chap and it’s good to see that he may have progressed a little.

Even though he doesn’t some with a weapon, he is accompanied by his “Wave Crusher” (aka a jet ski). This little addition can be towed behind the car in vehicle mode, or it can also transform into a Jet Pack and be mounted behind Bumblebee’s head. Although it looks a little small in vehicle mode (the scale is out, or perhaps it’s just a really, really small jet ski), it is mainly designed to clip into the back of Bumblebee, which it does well. It is easily and securely fastened and looks reminiscent of the old Action Master version of Bumblebee (which came with a “Heli-Pack” a back mounted Helicopter which could convert into his gun).

The vehicle mode is a two door compact sporty car with the jet ski mounted on the back. Although a very nice and sleek vehicle mode, I feel that it is not all that much suited to Bumblebee. His original form was a Volkswagen Beetle and not a sporty one at that (Volkswagen has denied Hasbro/Takara permission to have a Beetle change-form since they wish to distance themselves from anything battle related). Personally, I feel this is more of a Cliffjumper suited vehicle. However, that is perhaps for another review.

Luckily some of the sporty feel can be removed by un-clipping the spoiler on the back of the car. I was informed of this by a friend and to my relief it is easily done with no chance of damage. Once done, the car looks a lot more like Bumblebee’s car mode should. The main colour is of course yellow, with white decals. The boot area is painted white with red for the brake lights and the doors have a little bit of white with mostly yellow. The bonnet has a couple of stripes running up it and they lead onto the roof. The moulding of the car is good, with some air intake ports on the bonnet and the roof. Obviously this is a rally based car. The front grill has a nice radiator effect and the headlights are transparent plastic. From the side, it can be seen that the vehicle is very low to the ground. One touch that I really like is the seats. They form thigh covers for the robot mode, but the detail on them in vehicle mode is a very nice touch. However, aside from the seats, there are no other details. Overall, Bumblebee is an extremely well designed figure. The homage (is it homage if it’s the same guy?) is striking and it is obvious this is an update. Even though the articulation is let down by bits getting in the way, it doesn’t get in the way so much as to make the figure a brick. The detail is well done and I recommend this figure to all those who have been thinking of getting it. You won’t be disappointed. It’s also designed by an Australian!