At Lynn Haskins’ house, there’s pasta on the stove and fresh shirts hanging in the closet on any given day.

But the food is made of clay and the clothes are only a few inches wide. Even the houseplants and knick-knacks aren’t exactly the “real thing.”

Haskins, 56, has spent 12 years working on a doll house that is a replica of her real home in Sebastian, Fla., on a scale of one doll house inch to every foot of real house.

“This is unique, even for people who make doll houses,” Haskins said. “There’s no such thing being done. It’s a lifelong hobby. If I get something new (in my home), I’ll sit down and make one for my doll house.”

When a friend offered to build Haskins her first doll house 12 years ago, she went shopping for kits and didn’t see anything she liked. Rather than build a Victorian house, for example, she decided to build a replica of her own house so she would have an ongoing project.

The one-story doll house doesn’t have a roof; it’s topped with a piece of glass that does double-duty as Haskins’ dining room table.

“We put food on the table at parties, but everyone moves the food out of the way to see,” said Haskins. “It’s a conversation piece, and my friends really enjoy it.”

There are very few store-bought pieces in her doll house. Most accessories and furniture are made with either clay or balsa wood. Doll house furniture can cost hundreds of dollars in stores.

“It can be a very, very expensive hobby,” said Haskins. “But if it’s not all by hand, it kind of defeats the purpose.”

Lynn Haskins has spent 12 years working on a dollhouse that is a replica of her real home in Sebastian, Fla. The dollhouse is topped with a piece of glass that serves as Haskins' dining room table.

Haskins has a difficult time finding some matches, especially when it comes to fabrics. She had to paint flowers on the curtains and bedding in a bedroom by hand because she couldn’t find fabric with such tiny flowers.

“It has to be on a (1-inch-to-1-foot) scale,” said Haskins. “I look constantly. Everywhere I go, I’m looking for things I need.

“If something doesn’t work out the way I want, I do it over,” she added. “I’ve made many things twice, or temporarily.”

Last year Haskins decided that her real house needed a new look. To prepare for a remodeling job, she moved the kitchen in her doll house to the front of the building and enlarged the living room area. When builders asked how she would like her real home remodeled, she pointed to the doll house and said, “Just like that.”

Now Haskins is working on her second dollhouse, which will represent a house she plans to build within the next two years. Her husband, a retired builder, will oversee construction.

“(The dollhouse) is a nice guide,” said John Haskins, 52, who also will use regular blueprints to build their new home. “You can actually see what you’re doing. It’s not just lines on paper. It gives you an idea of what you’re building before you start.”

Lynn Haskins has an eye for detail. Her dollhouse replicates even the smallest of accessories in her home, from a thumbnail size photo of her husband on the replicated living room fireplace to the painted flowers on her china cabinet.

The new doll house still is in the beginning stages, although the basic structure has been built and one room already has polished wood flooring

The Haskinses haven’t decided what they’ll do with their first doll house when they sell their current home. They’ve talked about leaving it for the new owners.

“But who would do this?” asked Lynn Haskins. “Who would keep it up?”

Most accessories and furniture are made with either clay or balsa wood.