Kristin Baybars & her Aladdin’s Cave.
Kristin Baybars death in 2021 was a huge loss to the Gospel Oak community & the dolls house & miniatures world. Over the last 40 years Kristin ran her magical shop in North London. She was one of the forerunners in the new wave of dolls house collecting in the 1970’s-80’s, opening her traditional toy shop that specialised in hand made miniatures.
She was a great supporter of many incredible craftsmen (with a particular focus on British miniaturists) whose work we still admire today. She bought the 1st dolls houses made by Mulvany & Rogers for example & also bought work from Stokesay Ware & Country Treasures when they were beginning their careers. She encouraged makers (like David Ward) by buying their work & championing them when they needed support to start their businesses. All the money from sales in the shop went back into buying new treasures.
Her shop, located in Gospel Oak, North London, looked like a traditional toy shop when you entered in through the portal, but if you were lucky enough to be invited through to the back of the shop by Kristin (only true miniatures lovers were allowed) you discovered an incredible tiny world of beautiful dolls houses, & scenes by some of the best makers around.
Kristin never missed any of our shows until her health prevented her from attending. She would arrive first thing in the morning & be there all day chatting with our exhibitors and buying their work for the shop. She always had a sparkle in her eyes as she looked around at the stands & wandered around the show.
I was lucky enough to spend time with Kristin about 5 years ago when I made a documentary about her life & work with my friend Fred Burns. We learnt all about her unconventional life & spent time with her in her shop & her home. It is an intriguing look into her world which shows how much she loved her collection of toys & miniatures & her her precious shop. You can now watch the full version of this film below.
Sadly, Kristin’s shop closed in lockdown & never re-opened.
