Friday, November 16, 2012

Hogarin Play Set


Introducing...a new acquisition! Presenting a Hogarin play set from 1973, purchased recently on eBay. Hogarin is a brand of Modisa, a now-defunct company based in Spain that produced a range of doll houses, play sets, furniture, dolls, and accessories in the 1970s.

First, a little background...

I first became acquainted with Hogarin when reading a 2007 post by Mini Modern a few years ago, which included photos about an eBay sale of two Villa Hogarin houses and many boxed sets. I was completely taken with the design of the houses, which resembled German bungalows from the 60s. Then, in 2010, I read about Florine's Hogarin on her blog (including her humorous take on the house's inhabitants!), and really enjoyed looking at all the detailed photos.

Photo courtesy of My Vintage Houses

Photo courtesy of My Vintage Houses
About a month ago, there was a GORGEOUS two-story Hogarin on eBay within driving distance (Florine tipped me off), but the Buy-it-Now price was incredibly high and out of my reach.So, it went to someone else :(

Photo from eBay listing
Photo from eBay listing
Photo from eBay listing
So, for now, I will have to console myself with my first Hogarin play set and hopefully one day I can add a house to my collection. It came intact with its plastic cover, and is a toy store with brightly colored walls and shelving. The colors and lines reminded me of Modella room boxes, and I recalled that blogger diepuppenstubensammlerin, who has an amazing Modella collection, wrote an article in Dolls Houses Past and Present in 2011 about the history of the room boxes. She notes that the "die-casting machines, molds, and other patents" were likely sold to Spain, because the Hogarin play sets and room boxes look quite similar to the Modella sets. You can see this in the fabrication of the chairs, credenzas, and tables.Check out diepuppenstubensammlerin's Flickr stream of her Modella sets -- worth a look!

Here are some photos of my set. I do love the miniature room boxes on the side wall shelves, the shape of the main shelving, and the Saarinen-like Tulip chair.











The set also came with the original catalogue, and it was great to see pictures of other sets available in 1973.










For more Hogarin eye candy, look at El Cuartin de Juguete's blog. Great photos and information, and the blog has photos of the same set. 

Photo courtesy of El Cuartin de Juguete
It has been very interesting for me to find out a bit more about Hogarin, and I would love to hear more from anyone! 
Share some pictures and information about your Hogarins!


Tick, tick...! Time is slipping away to enter the Call of the Small/Cubebot Challenge, which ends on December 1. Get your entries in for your chance to win $200 from AREAWARE! Good luck!


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14 comments:

  1. diePuppenstubensammlerinNovember 17, 2012 at 3:18 AM

    incredible, especially the little room boxes on the shelves - looking exactly like the original ones sold by Modella years earlier.
    There is a connection to Bodo Hennig, too. They must have bought or copied the design for the square accessory boxes - some contents is exactly the same, e.g. the children toys or part of the bathroom pieces.
    Great if you'd find out more about Modisa, I do not even know when the firm ceased to exist.
    Modella faded away - yes, it happened like that, bought and sold by other firms - at the end of the 70s - Modisa, too?

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    1. callsmallNovember 17, 2012 at 9:52 AM

      They are identical, no? Very interesting about Bodo Hennig, too! I think you have enough content for a book! I tried to find out more about Modisa, but no luck yet. Perhaps the blogger El Cuartin del Juguete can help out!

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  2. RebeccaNovember 17, 2012 at 4:03 AM

    Oh, wonderful! The mini roomboxes in the mini roombox are so cute! And the catalogue is great :-) I hope to have an article about Hogarins, from El Cuartin de Juguete, in a future issue of the DHP&P magazine.

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    1. callsmallNovember 17, 2012 at 9:50 AM

      I know, I love the tiny roomboxes as well! That's so great to hear that an article is planned!! Great news!

      Delete
  3. mcddissNovember 17, 2012 at 6:56 AM

    me encanta esta tienda de juguetes , me he quedado de piedra,no sabia de esta empresa , aunque por lo que cuentas desaparecio cuando yo era muy pequeña , muchas gracias por toda la infromacion y las fotos, he disfrutado mucho

    besitos

    Mari

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    1. callsmallNovember 17, 2012 at 9:50 AM

      Hola, Mari! Sí, Hogarin desapareció a finales de los años 70, por lo que los productos no son tan conocidos, por lo que estas cosas son muy difíciles de encontrar. Espero poder añadir más a mi colección. :)

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  4. Beth LemonNovember 17, 2012 at 11:07 AM

    I love it when dollhouses get meta and have minis in them. I don't think life can get much better!

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  5. FabiolaNovember 17, 2012 at 12:26 PM

    I like the little room boxes on the shelves.
    Bye Faby

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  6. Luijuas y Cia.November 17, 2012 at 2:38 PM

    Hola: Gracias por incluir foto de nuestro blog, El cuartin de juguete y por nombrarnos. En España los Hogarin desaparecieron también a mediados o finales de los 70 después de comprar moldes a Modella. Saludos.

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    1. callsmallNovember 17, 2012 at 10:22 PM

      ¡Gracias! Me encantan todas las fotos Hogarin en su blog. Si usted encuentra algo más acerca Modisa / Hogarin, por favor háganoslo saber!

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  7. AnonymousSeptember 12, 2017 at 3:53 PM

    Hi all, I have a Villa Hogarin dolls house to sell. Let me know if anyone is interested. I can send pictures. I grew up in Germany and my Dad bought it for me early 1970s. My own 2 girls have outgrown it now as well, so I think it's time for someone else to enjoy.

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    1. callsmallSeptember 12, 2017 at 4:04 PM

      Hi! I'd love to find out more about your Hogarin dollhouse. Please send an email to call-small@call-small.com. Thanks!

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