tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48490399775615306702024-03-19T03:04:48.510-07:00Clockwork DollhouseSteampunk in minatureUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-74343186121802097052015-01-05T06:23:00.005-08:002015-01-06T07:15:31.832-08:00Pocket Doors - Part 2I'm making progress on the pocket doors, but sheesh, these things are a lot of work! At least, they are more work than I initially envisioned. Let me show you.<br />
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The doors require 3 layers - a wood frame (made from 1/32nd coffee stirrer sticks that I "acquired" from Starbucks (some might say <i>stole</i>, since no one could ever need as many stirrer sticks as I have taken, but -ahem- technically they are getting put to good use...but if that's not the road for you, you could also use 1/32nd Craft Basswood), a middle "wainscoting layer" made out of cardstock which also holds the stained glass pane in place, and another wood frame on the back.<br />
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I built these the way you'd build them in real life (well, kind of - real life doors <i>are</i> a tad more complex) - the frame is made of 5 separate pieces which are glued together and squared. This is then glued to the cardstock middle layer, which makes it quite sturdy, and sanded until all the joints are smooth and flush and any excess glue is gone.<br />
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You can see the first layer and second layer here, before I trimmed the excess cardstock off and sanded:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uWCTnNJCftc/VKqRirNBRJI/AAAAAAAAFoE/7HWLscIof48/s1600/door3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uWCTnNJCftc/VKqRirNBRJI/AAAAAAAAFoE/7HWLscIof48/s1600/door3.png" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Each coffee stirrer measures 3 mm wide except for the top, which has an extra lip for the slide - that measures 7 mm wide. I used the same overall measurements as my Grandt line doors, so for scale purposes, these are 7 ft tall by 3 ft wide - or standard door size. There are 2 frames per door, and each frame consists of 5 pieces. 10 pieces per door x 4 doors. Am I tired of cutting wood yet?<br />
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I've turned the frame over here to show you the back. You can see the groove where the cardstock frame is smaller than the wood frame, and this will allow the stained glass pane to nestle inside without creating extra bulk. As part of my finishing process, I'll lay a second wood frame on top of this to create the finished sandwich - but I've still got a ways to go before I can do that!<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Mn4nSAyWdCo/VKqTWBwIZAI/AAAAAAAAFoQ/6ING_iJtkyY/s1600/door4.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Mn4nSAyWdCo/VKqTWBwIZAI/AAAAAAAAFoQ/6ING_iJtkyY/s1600/door4.png" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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I wanted these to be Victorian in style and just a little romantic. So I decided to add some carved wainscoting to the bottom panel. This is such a tiny space (less than 1" x 1/2")! First I built my wainscot frame, using 3/64 Double Bead from Northeastern Scale Lumber:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Dr13mZwKOfY/VKqUnhZhflI/AAAAAAAAFoY/O2hnA1_z8Ow/s1600/wainscoting2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Dr13mZwKOfY/VKqUnhZhflI/AAAAAAAAFoY/O2hnA1_z8Ow/s1600/wainscoting2.png" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
2 frames per door, x 4 doors, = 8 tiny frames. Yep, I'm tired of cutting wood already. <br />
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To square the frames, I lined them up with the grid lines of my cutting mat and let the glue dry.<br />
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The next step is to add the relief carving. I drew out a number of tiny designs and finally settled on this "arrows and hearts" style. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XQRV_zALaFI/VKqVjV1V_xI/AAAAAAAAFog/6RqA8JvkWDQ/s1600/door5.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XQRV_zALaFI/VKqVjV1V_xI/AAAAAAAAFog/6RqA8JvkWDQ/s1600/door5.png" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Then, using a toothpick and a steady hand, I outlined the design with Elmer's craft glue. When this glue dries it is clear, but it also creates a raised effect. I let the glue dry and then went back over it again 3-4 times to build up the relief so that it would be visible. I also built up the relief higher in different areas to simulate real carving. And yes, I did this on both sides of the cardstock, because of course, I want wainscoting on both sides!<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Mm6JtGC6O98/VKqVkj-QTnI/AAAAAAAAFoo/KJvn1H8i9_M/s1600/door6.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Mm6JtGC6O98/VKqVkj-QTnI/AAAAAAAAFoo/KJvn1H8i9_M/s1600/door6.png" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then, once the glue was dry, I added the frame to the panel and primed everything:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dmeG60qxb6c/VKqW3o-frXI/AAAAAAAAFo0/SYpc6-uXWGM/s1600/door7.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dmeG60qxb6c/VKqW3o-frXI/AAAAAAAAFo0/SYpc6-uXWGM/s1600/door7.png" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Now it's starting to look like something! I only have 3 doors left to do now...Only 3.<br />
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I'm also toying with the idea of finishing the raw interior edges of the doors with 3/64" quarter round molding. This adds a nice finished look, but I'm not sure if it adds too much to the width of the frame, making it look "fat" and out of scale. I'm debating still. Perhaps I can use sandpaper instead to round the edges for a beveled look. Hmmm.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hm5pG2dJSlQ/VKqYvzTx_gI/AAAAAAAAFpE/QuRFjFhB1dk/s1600/door8.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hm5pG2dJSlQ/VKqYvzTx_gI/AAAAAAAAFpE/QuRFjFhB1dk/s1600/door8.png" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qPaYDyD2wn0/VKqYuriOEqI/AAAAAAAAFpA/QLMpOV1beZY/s1600/door9.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qPaYDyD2wn0/VKqYuriOEqI/AAAAAAAAFpA/QLMpOV1beZY/s1600/door9.png" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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The next step is to finish the other doors and then age them. Since these are meant to be "original" to the house, I'd like to give them a little bit of wear, but not too much. I'm not going for a shabby look, just an antique, lived-in look. Then I'll add the stained glass, glue the back frame on, and voila! My <i>doors</i> at least will be complete.<br />
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Which does not mean they are ready to be installed. Sigh.<br />
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Once the doors are done, I still have some engineering to do on the wall. I need to add the top channel which will hold the doors in place and allow them to slide open and closed. It also serves as the bottom jamb for the transom. I need to build and install the transom frames as well. And I need to install the wood floor for the dining and parlor as it will be necessary for the doors to slide open properly, and just makes sense to do it before they are completely installed rather than later. At that point, I might just be done with these pocket doors, aside from adding the final trim around the outside.<br />
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In order to finish all these things, I also have some work left in the parlor. The built in bookcases need to be installed before I can paint, and I'm bashing the bay window to make it a little larger and add some sidelight windows for more light. <br />
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I have to say I didn't anticipate that this would require so many steps or be so complex overall. I <i>could</i> probably have simplified things a bit, but I'm happy with how they're turning out so far. And, one thing to look forward to is when the pocket doors are stamped as <i>DONE</i>, the parlor and dining will be done too :) That's almost like getting three birds with one stone, right? :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-91638382149942220582014-12-26T12:07:00.000-08:002014-12-26T14:21:12.937-08:00Pocket Doors - An interludeWhile I wait for my transparency film to show up, I decided to work on the pocket door frames - my plan was to get everything sized and cut so that when the film showed up, I could print out the leaded/stained glass pieces and glue everything together. Unfortunately, during the process I wasn't quite sure I like my end result well enough yet. My original inspiration for the doors was this picture:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j6QxBfbs83c/VJcZauB1UJI/AAAAAAAAFk0/i1ZyZi03aWQ/s1600/pocketdoor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j6QxBfbs83c/VJcZauB1UJI/AAAAAAAAFk0/i1ZyZi03aWQ/s1600/pocketdoor.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
But after building the model frame from cardstock, I'm not sure I actually like the arched door after all. To me it looks really modern, or very French Renaissance. And while there are definitely some french-themed elements to Victorian design (Second Empire) that will be a part of this build, I just keep feeling like these are "off" somehow. I don't know.<br />
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Here's my dry fit of the door frame (from the dining room side) with some "stained glass" pieces (these are just paper printouts) for effect:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdbr7TOOFXXk3TZOHNgO8jEEkzvtj-31RhbIDw4d3oQjwGHuxf_csRS7CFbY62Sl7wzY1vgww466F2G3uQE3uGFdNiOBxAs43iN8n883jSMyVm7cVhrcRQtMQPuU01isM2skpLJoodq4RV/s1600/pocketdoorglass.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdbr7TOOFXXk3TZOHNgO8jEEkzvtj-31RhbIDw4d3oQjwGHuxf_csRS7CFbY62Sl7wzY1vgww466F2G3uQE3uGFdNiOBxAs43iN8n883jSMyVm7cVhrcRQtMQPuU01isM2skpLJoodq4RV/s1600/pocketdoorglass.png" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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This doesn't look so bad, I guess. It just still feels a little too modern to me, and I think it's the style of that arch. And then, of course, I found this picture, and suddenly the idea of making these transoms square instead of arched seems to fit much better:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-q4q8TTwsM1w/VJ28sfIEREI/AAAAAAAAFng/boZ_7-lcJRY/s1600/transom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-q4q8TTwsM1w/VJ28sfIEREI/AAAAAAAAFng/boZ_7-lcJRY/s1600/transom.jpg" height="266" width="400" /> </a></div>
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So I'm still debating. A rectangular transom would certainly be easier, as there are far more rectangular glass designs than the half-arched ones. Plus the trimwork would be easier. I might also need to scale down the size of trim on the door panel a little bit still as well, and maybe that will help add a more antiqued look. Meanwhile, my transparency film should show up today or tomorrow, </div>
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which means I need to resolve this debate quickly and get a move on! </div>
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More and more I think I'm leaning toward the square transom...</div>
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Update: I adjusted the trim size on the door framing and I like that much better! I think I will go with the square transom too. The arch doesn't look so modern now, but finding a stained glass pattern to fit this particular arch shape has been very difficult. I haven't given up on it completely (it looks remarkably feminine and delicate now, I think) but I think that transom is going to require some more work.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9ZogjNZrYKA/VJ3eSFhHJbI/AAAAAAAAFnw/Gl7M-B5PCjk/s1600/door2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9ZogjNZrYKA/VJ3eSFhHJbI/AAAAAAAAFnw/Gl7M-B5PCjk/s1600/door2.png" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-62374244659014839482014-12-21T12:27:00.000-08:002015-01-06T07:15:31.827-08:00Pocket Doors, Part 1<br />
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I started work on the pocket doors this weekend. Having limited mobility sure does change some priorities around, and gee, this might be hard to believe, but I would rather create mini things than watch TV!<br />
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Pocket doors are traditionally installed using a wheel system, where a small wheel attached to the top of the door glides along a track above the door. It makes for a smooth operation and uses gravity, the track (and the pocket wall) to hold everything in place. I thought about engineering something like this for the best fit, but finding components small enough to work with my design proved somewhat difficult and in the long run, left me doubtful of how well they'd hold up.<br />
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There are some great tutorials out there for pocket doors from some master mini makers, and for the most part I'm going to follow along the same lines. Here are the tutorials I found in case anyone is interested:<br />
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<a href="http://myrtlewood.blogspot.com/2009/10/dining-room-pocket-doors.html" target="_blank">Myrtlewood Manor Pocket Doors </a><br />
<a href="http://www.otterine.com/blog/blog1.php/foyer-to-kitchen-pocket-door" target="_blank">Otterine's Pocket Door Part 1 (search her blog for the other parts)</a><br />
<a href="http://kathiebminis.blogspot.com/2009/02/creole-cottage-2-pocket-door.html" target="_blank">KathieB's Creole Cottage Pocket Door </a><br />
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The key difference between these miniature doors and the wheel system is the track. The mini door needs a guide to slide along. It's not getting opened multiple times every day, and no one really cares about gravity in a mini house, so a simple channel that allows the door to slide back and forth works fine. Some miniaturists add a little wax to the channel to help the door slide better, and I'll probably do that too.<br />
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My dilemma now is the style of pocket door I want to do. I'm adding these doors to both the parlor entrance and the dining room entrance, which means they will have a transom above the door track and I want them to resemble french doors. Here's an inspiration shot:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j6QxBfbs83c/VJcZauB1UJI/AAAAAAAAFkw/H0azM6-BlSM/s1600/pocketdoor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j6QxBfbs83c/VJcZauB1UJI/AAAAAAAAFkw/H0azM6-BlSM/s1600/pocketdoor.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
This door is obviously not a pocket door. But it's not hard to re-imagine it as one, like this one:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsmUJJT134Om3bNSpprpp6e8WnNe8tM_x_0A8jUfYKPe4V2BDmOhuneKsFaYzkkr_OpsCyMcQjDg_HCxK8qU8ZWzeeeExjIhyj0XLradztjd8UHdrL3UtBbfHmqIWLzJ24YD7IarfFoWt-/s1600/pocket2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsmUJJT134Om3bNSpprpp6e8WnNe8tM_x_0A8jUfYKPe4V2BDmOhuneKsFaYzkkr_OpsCyMcQjDg_HCxK8qU8ZWzeeeExjIhyj0XLradztjd8UHdrL3UtBbfHmqIWLzJ24YD7IarfFoWt-/s1600/pocket2.jpg" height="320" width="217" /></a></div>
Combined, these two pictures reflect what I'm looking for - an elegant door that allows the light to flow through, adding that modern open and airy feeling while also keeping the pocket door element that was so popular in Victorian homes. I also like the look of the french doors, and I plan to make the window lights look like old, antique glass. Also, because the Fairfield's foyer is so tiny, pocket doors are a perfect complement to the space and allow it to feel much bigger than it would be otherwise. (Experienced FF builders will note the staircase is no longer in the entrance hall on this build...that is getting it's own addition and will come later.)<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XVimDRN6Hfw/VJccacNBqJI/AAAAAAAAFls/mDWI8XyC4DE/s1600/pocketwall7.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XVimDRN6Hfw/VJccacNBqJI/AAAAAAAAFls/mDWI8XyC4DE/s1600/pocketwall7.png" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
To start, I needed to do some surgery on the wall. First, I cut a piece of matte board to the dimensions of the interior wall (parlor/dining side), which was 5" x 13". Then I traced the outline of the parlor door, which came pre-punched in the arch style with the Fairfield kit. I wanted to repeat this arch in the dining room to add some symmetry and extra light. The FF is full of arches - from the bay windows to the parlor entrance, and it makes sense to keep that as a consistent element where I can.<br />
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I cut out the arch and then traced that over where I wanted the dining room arch to go. In order for the doors to have enough room to slide into the wall on the dining side, I needed to move the dining room arch over slightly.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cp-yZGNg8sg/VJcccLsmQaI/AAAAAAAAFlw/dT0Udu4MaaU/s1600/pocketwall6.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cp-yZGNg8sg/VJcccLsmQaI/AAAAAAAAFlw/dT0Udu4MaaU/s1600/pocketwall6.png" height="300" width="400" /></a><br />
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Then I checked the fit with the pocket wall in place. You can see where the old square door was located (This was originally a single-wide door with an arch that I squared it off because I had originally intended this to be the entrance to the kitchen...which has obviously changed.) I'll need to cut some pieces to fit that gap. Since I'm planning to spackle the walls before I paint them, I'm not too worried about these little gaps or the structural element.<br />
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That little bit of surgery went well, but I discovered another little problem:<br />
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The tab slot for the tower front (where the door is located) leaves absolutely no room for trimwork on the foyer side of the parlor door. I suppose that if you built this according to how it's laid out in the original kit it's no big deal, because there would never be a chance that you'd be able to see this corner of the house. But I'm not doing that, and I took this shot through the window that I've added to the foyer, so it's definitely going to be visible. What I'll have to do I suppose is sacrifice a tiny bit of porch width, and slide the tower forward just a tad to make room for trim. That will probably require me to cut new tower walls out of plywood, but that's ok because that's relatively easy to do. Especially since I bought ample wood to cut walls for all the other rooms I'm adding...Ahem.<br />
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Here's another shot where you can see the adjusted location for the tower section. I've slid the tower back about 1/2", which adds an extra mini "foot" of space to this foyer room. Considering the foyer is barely 7 ft x 7 ft in mini-measurements, it's still incredibly small. Then again, why stand in the foyer when you have such a warm, comfortable parlor and a roaring fire right there to enjoy?<br />
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Having decided on that, the last step before I was done for the evening was to flesh out the dimensions for the doors to be cut and figure out where to put my door track.<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VpQo0wkqIGo/VJckHwpcVVI/AAAAAAAAFm0/c7zYaEpVR3s/s1600/pocketdoorconcept.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VpQo0wkqIGo/VJckHwpcVVI/AAAAAAAAFm0/c7zYaEpVR3s/s1600/pocketdoorconcept.png" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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The transom definitely complicates things. In the other tutorials, a significant top extension piece holds the door in place on the track and this is all hidden behind a solid wall. But with the transom, I don't really have much space for a track unless I make it <i>look</i> like there's a track there. That's just not as visually appealing, because the trim size ends up being too large and ultimately, will look out of scale. Here's some real world installations for comparison to see what I mean:<br />
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The trim work around this pocket door and transom has a consistent look and feel. All the framing trim is approximately the same width, including the center beam where the track is located, so what your eye is drawn to is the beauty of the glass doors and the room beyond. Unless you really look closely, you don't even notice that the outside pilaster trim is actually wider than the interior frame, but this detail adds a touch of elegance that helps the eye focus on the symmetry of everything else. It's a very professional finish.<br />
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But in these next two installations, the center trim below the transom where the door track resides is wider than the rest of the framing trim and the eye picks up on it being out of place right away. It makes the door construction look uneven and dare I say (considering the houses in these pics are probably 4 times the cost of my own),<i> cheap</i>. The second picture on the right isn't as bad as the first, but the feel ends up being more farmhouse and less old to new Victorian. One thing about remodeling a Victorian home and keeping old elements like original trimwork, etc is that they almost never look cheap because they are works of art. They were built with the same craftsmanship and attention to detail as the above example. <br />
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So, the next stage of this build is going to be building that narrow track so that it's consistent with the rest of the trim size and seeing how that works. But, darn it all, to START I need window panes, so I need to order some transparency film. The center channel supports both the track for the door below and the groove the glass sits in for the transom above. Glass (or in this case, transparency film) doesn't need much to hold it in place, but overall I'm only looking at a trim width of 3/16" for my doors. I based this width on the width of the trim around the Grandt line doors I purchased awhile back and I'd like to keep things consistent with them, as I'll be using them elsewhere in the house and feel that size trim really looks in scale. I might be able to get away with a full 1/4", but keep in mind that 3/16" is just over 4" wide in real world scale, and 1/4" is 6", and that's a really wide door trim size. If the track space is too short to allow the door to slide easily or it somehow skips out of the track, I'll have to resort to plan B - which is to go with something more like this:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JfXmzgqfC3w/VJcm5TWZ3vI/AAAAAAAAFnE/Eziq6EG-WAg/s1600/pocketdoortransom4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JfXmzgqfC3w/VJcm5TWZ3vI/AAAAAAAAFnE/Eziq6EG-WAg/s1600/pocketdoortransom4.jpg" height="400" width="395" /></a>This is of course a gorgeous door and evokes a very elegant, Victorian feel, but it wasn't my first choice. It has grown on me quite a bit though, and I love that wall color and the wainscoting, so we'll see :) Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-26608016185148785502014-12-19T12:54:00.000-08:002015-01-06T07:15:31.821-08:00An Update and A Fireplace I haven't posted anything in a good long while because, while I have dinked around with the house here and there, I haven't made any real progress beyond conceptual stuff. I've had some pretty major life changes as well - I moved to a completely different state and I got pregnant. Both of which have contributed to nearly zero house-building time. And finally, there is that old, nagging problem of "every time I sit down to work on the house I want to change what I'm doing to the house." It makes it incredibly frustrating to make progress.<br />
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FINALLY, I think I have a working plan and something to show off. I guess being 8 months pregnant with no real desire to move above sort of puts the building table front and center for me. I CAN sit in a chair and I CAN mini, even if I've got a giant belly and swollen feet and an aching back. So let's see if I can actually accomplish some things!<br />
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First things first, the Fairfield is changing. My original goal was to build it stock, without bashing things too much, and that has all gone out the window. Rooms are getting expanded, more rooms are getting added, a grand staircase is in the works and no, it won't really look anything like a Fairfield when it's done. But, I feel pretty happy that the overall concept will let me accomplish my goals in every which way possible, so there is that, at least.<br />
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The front parlor is first on my finishing agenda. Before I can lay floors or paint the wall or frame in the bookcases, I need a fireplace, and not just any fireplace. The style of this Fairfield is "modern Victorian." Which basically means I want antiquated elements, but I want them to look "renovated." This is a house that was once a very grand old Victorian, but it's current owner has updated it to reflect a more modern style. She's throwing out all the dark colors, the busy wallpaper, the heavy wood - and knocking down walls, adding windows and re-painting in favor of a house that is airy and full of light. It's a comfortable place to relax, write, quilt, watch a storm at sea and live in - with all the convenience of a modern home. So, my goal while building is to keep/embellish a lot of Victorian thematic elements but also modernize them a bit.<br />
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Enter the fireplace. Fireplace surrounds are expensive (in the real world) and the craftsmanship and artistry on a Victorian-era mantel or fireplace surround is often one of a kind, so this is one of those elements that feels like it has to be there. Because the parlor in the FF is just off the entry way and would be the main room guests would be ushered to when visiting, I decided that the fireplace here would need to have a very rich aesthetic to complement the higher level of ornamentation. But how to create something that was ornate (read: lots of carvings) in such a small scale?<br />
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There <i>are</i> fabricated options out there. Most of what I could find easily on ebay or at other retailers either looked out of scale to me or wasn't the look I was going for. Sue Cook from <a href="http://www.suecookminiatures.com/">www.suecookminiatures.com</a> has some phenomenal plaster fireplaces (among other things), but with a minimum of FOUR fireplaces in the Fairfield (I'll probably add one or two more), I just couldn't justify that kind of cost. <br />
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So meet my secret weapon - The Paper Studio's "Gemstones" collection. <br />
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These are 3D plastic stickers that come in two sizes that are scaled remarkably well for using in 1:12 and 1:24 scale trim work. You could use them for the obvious - fancy picture frames (the little one is perfect for a very large overmantel)- or get a little crafty, chop them up, and reassemble into a carved marble fireplace. What? <i> A carved marble fireplace?</i><br />
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First, I measured the size for my fireplace. Half scale can be tricky to do right - I always try to make my measurements match real world measurements as much as possible because otherwise, even though the difference between 3" and 6" in half scale is a mere 1/8" of an inch, it really can add extra bulk that the eye can see. One of the biggest turnoffs for me in the "pre-made" fireplace category was that they all seemed to stick out into the room, taking up valuable floor space and making the incredibly tiny Fairfield parlor feel even smaller. Since depth was the most critical part from a bulk standpoint, I created a basic cardstock "frame" that was a mere 3" deep - or about 1/8." Then I cut my sticker out to frame the interior opening. Because these are just plastic stickers, they're extremely easy to cut in any which way with an x-acto blade.<br />
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Just looking at this got me really excited! I'm not quite done here though. That's a nice start, but I wanted a fully ornate marble fireplace, and that meant adding corbel supports.<br />
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Here are a couple of real Victorian marble fireplaces I used for inspiration: <br />
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To finish my fireplace, I added some gentle arches from the larger sticker to create what would be in real life 4.5 foot tall marble corbel supports. I cut two pieces for each side and stuck them together to create a truly 3D corbel.<br />
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Then I used my fingers to gently bend them to give them a more rounded, natural appearance. Here are a couple of shots of the fitting process.<br />
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For the mantel, I laminated three pieces of 1/16 matte board together and sanded the edges for a nicely beveled, crown molding sort of look. <br />
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And finally, I added a base and fireback out of matte board. Because these were going to be painted to look like iron, I wanted them to be nice and smooth and the matte board definitely has the right texture for that. Here I am checking the final fit, and you may notice that the mantel is just a tad wide for the wall space. This is actually on purpose - it wasn't an uncommon design element in antiquated days, especially with flanking bookcases, and it's one of those quirks left over from the "old house." It also adds a little extra grandeur to the fireplace wall without taking away any space. Here are some more real-life inspiration photos to show you what I mean:<br />
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It was quite tempting to do this as an iron fireplace at this stage - the black and silver just make such a nice combination. But I really think it will look exquisite as marble.<br />
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Awhile back I purchased some metal firebox inserts from Phoenix Models. They were a little on the spendy side ($15 each) but these are quintessential Victorian fireplace elements and I knew I wanted them in my fireplace. I decided to use a hob grate with a custom fireback for the parlor fireplace. This would hold a glowing ball of coals and flickering fire flames, and be set inside the firebox of my fireplace. Here I have added my first two coats of white primer.<br />
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Now it's starting to come together! I used gesso as a primer, partly because it has a great texture and partly because it really helps fill any holes or gaps in the pieces, sort of like wood glue. Now begins the sanding/painting process...gesso, sand, paint, sand, glaze, paint, sand, glaze etc. I'm not going to go through an entire tutorial on how to paint marble because there are plenty of those out there, and really, it comes down to a lot of tweaking and a lot of coats until you feel you've got the look <i>you</i> want. My general process generally goes something like this (with light sanding (220 and 600 grits) between each layer):<br />
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1) Prime with base coat. In this case, the gesso was bright white, and since I was emulating Carrara marble, it just used it as my base coat as well.<br />
2) Using Dove Grey and Licorice (FolkArt colors), I created two medium gray tones - one light, one dark, and dabbed a few lines here and there. Then I used a flat brush to blur/smudge them. This helps create the illusion of depth to the marble, as if there are veins deep under the surface.<br />
3) Glaze with white again. This creates a layer over the smudges and adds depth.<br />
4) Second glaze of white. Also touch up smudges that are just too smudgy - Carrara typically has very light veining, so you don't want a lot of color on the white.<br />
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****Note: you may find you want to repeat the above white glaze several times until you build it up to your standard. Don't be afraid to experiment. You have sandpaper, so the worst that can happen is you sand down your entire last coat and start again.<br />
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5) Lay down a very thick, wet base of glaze. Working quickly before this dries, use a liner brush dipped in more glaze mixed with your medium gray tone and draw the liner quickly through the glaze base. These are creating your fine vein lines. You want a lot of glaze for very fine, easy, squiggle lines. Don't press hard and allow the liner to skip in spots. For Carrara, you want the vein lines to generally all run in the same direction. Use accents of Licorice or a dark gray tone to add depth to the lines. Let this dry and lightly sand.<br />
6) Glaze with white.<br />
7) Add a layer of triple thick gloss. Note how much depth suddenly pops out!<br />
8) Lightly sand the Triple thick.<br />
9) Wash with plain white (no glaze.) This helps dull the Triple thick, unless you really want a "polished" marble look. I haven't seen too many shiny polished fireplace mantels, so I went with more of a flat marble look.<br />
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You may feel the need to add more or less paint than these steps suggest, and you may feel like you have to add or subtract white a lot to get the look you want. Do a test piece first to get the technique down and don't be afraid to experiment! Marble is natural stone and has lots of variation. The more layers you add, the more real it will look. <br />
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And here is my <i>nearly</i> finished product:<br />
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Some close up shots to show the veining, and also you can really see some of the places that could still use some smoothing. It's really amazing what the camera (even slightly out of focus) can show you that you don't see as well with the naked eye! I've come to rely on taking macro shots just to see the imperfections I need to touch up. </div>
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There are still some little things I need to tweak. Up close you can see some lines from the stickers and some uneveness in the paint coats - those need to be sanded a bit so they look less like plaster and more like smooth stone. I've also decided to replace the decoration on the fireback - it's just too large for the scale.<br />
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One really cool, unintended thing that I like is that you can see that when the light isn't directly hitting it, the marble veining really pops out. To me, that adds some realism, because that's how light affects real stone as well. I also like how the pattern of the carving has a little bit of an Octopus-tentacle look to it - to me, it adds a little bit of a nautical/deep sea feel, and since I envision this house sitting on a bluff overlooking a stormy bay, I think that is perfect. Maybe I'll add some more sea-themed touches as I go to complement. I can totally see this house having belonged to a sailor once, and when he was out to sea maybe his wife would stand on the balcony and brave the salty winds, looking for his return.<br />
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The above pictures makes the fireplace look a bit crooked, but it's really not - that's the warpiness of the Fairfield's chimney column behind it, which doesn't sit fully level and will be adjusted further along in the building process. I'm also happy that the tab slot is still open above the mantel here, because I'll be using that to thread the wire for some candles for the mantel a little bit down the road, and it saves me a little work drilling holes. (Those should be exciting, I'm going to try fiberoptics.)<br />
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The total fireplace depth ended up at about 15 inches, or 5/8" inch. That makes for a deep mantel, but the corbels are set at an angle, so the real depth is actually only about 3" or 1/8". The effect is that the fireplace looks in scale, but maintains that ornate, somewhat imposing styling that is so typical of Victorian homes.<br />
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I'm pretty happy with how this turned out. All in all, the fireplace surround cost me about $3, and the Phoenix Model was $15. That's still a little pricey for one fireplace, but the satisfaction of getting what I want and doing it myself is <insert corny smile here> priceless. Not bad for a custom marble fireplace! I've definitely got plans for the rest of the fireplaces in this house. I might try going for an iron look in the bedrooms, and maybe - maybe! another marble option for the upstairs bathroom. I'd also really like to do a fancy wood-look fireplace too. Those Paper Studio stickers are definitely giving me good ideas!<br />
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I think the colors in this room will echo the cool marble tones - perhaps a cool light green, or even a seaglass blue. For the fire itself, I used a flickering led from a tealight candle which I wired to a battery pack that will also power the other fireplaces. The coals were made from crushed plastic beads, which I painted a layer of soot onto and then added the flames - made from jagged cut pieces of plastic blister packaging and painted orange/red with glass paint. I still have some work to do on the fire, both with the installation (the durned led does NOT want to stay in) and because I plan to wire all the fireplaces to the same circuit. But that's more for another day.<br />
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To finish this room, I'll be adding bookcases to either side of the fireplace, a set of pocket doors, wood floors and a coffered ceiling. The pocket doors come first though, since the rest of the room dimensions will change once the pocket wall is installed. I'll be working on those next...and hopefully be able to show them off soon. I'm really ready to get this room finished...I can't wait to set an armchair in front of that warm, cozy fire :) If only I could shrink myself to fit!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-55691423951713726242012-12-17T12:29:00.000-08:002012-12-20T16:22:59.603-08:00The Easy Cutter Ultimate - a reviewToday I got an Easy Cutter Ultimate (from <a href="http://www.miniatures.com/" target="_blank">Hobby Builder Supply</a>.) So that I could finish cutting this:<br />
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and turn it into this:<br />
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Honestly, how did I ever live without this
tool? My hands are under enough strain as it is, and it's not uncommon
for my mini-work to go slowly because I have to take breaks to rest my
hands. I have Sjogren's/Lupus, which means my joints ache whether I
take breaks or not. They ache more often with repetitive movement or any
movement that places strain on the finger joints. So, when I decided
to cut a thousand 3/4" long wood floor pieces to craft a herringbone floor, I knew there was going to be some pain. The problem was, I just didn't realize <i>how much</i>.<br />
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When I first began cutting, it quickly became apparent that a million
small cuts with the X-acto wasn't going to work. I stepped up to the
box cutter, which was slightly easier but still painful and slow. Then I
went to the scissors, which were much easier but didn't offer precise
cutting. What to do?</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Easy Cutter, next to all my other mini-cutting tools. </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Enter the Easy Cutter. The blade cuts like butter. The grip feels
comfortable even in my small, fragile hands. The action of cutting is
smooth and gentle, so precise cuts are easy. It doesn't require a lot
of hand strength to use, which is key for me. All in all, I am extremely
excited about adding this tool to my toolbox, and it's going to make
cutting all those little wood pieces so much easier! Not to mention, it
can cut precise angles for crown moulding! If you don't already have
one of these for mini work, you need to get one today!</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-24854098060440059952012-12-10T22:32:00.002-08:002012-12-10T23:11:09.414-08:00Kitchen Appliances!<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">My refrigerator looks small next to the massive stove - but it's 5 ft tall in scale!</span></td></tr>
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I got my Aga stove from <a href="http://half-scale-miniatures.com/shop/" target="_blank">Scale Designs </a>today! I'm stoked because now I finally have all my kitchen appliances, and all I have to make are the cabinets (well, at least when it comes to what I have to make structurally, that is...) I have been drooling over this unfinished stove for several months and finally decided that I needed to get it before it was gone. It's made by Rosemarie Torre and is the only 1:24 scale Aga I've seen made in the US and the only one with such exquisite detail. The listing on the website indicated the hood was no longer available so all I would get is the stove, which was fine by me - I was planning to insert the stove into the alcove of the "old" kitchen hearth, so having a hood wasn't really necessary.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Doesn't fit the way I thought it would!</span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RVwUIlQhEow/UMbRsjzMPPI/AAAAAAAAEkk/TXNcfIweSDE/s1600/2012-12-10_22-08-38_819.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RVwUIlQhEow/UMbRsjzMPPI/AAAAAAAAEkk/TXNcfIweSDE/s320/2012-12-10_22-08-38_819.jpg" width="320" /></a>Imagine my surprise when the stove showed up with a hood! Boy, now my mind is spinning. It looks so fancy, and of course - the stove doesn't fit in the fireplace alcove. Time to bash that hearth right out of there and install a lovely french-styled range instead. I can't wait to start on this one! And oh oh oh, what color to paint it... :)<br />
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And finally, an inspiration shot: <br />
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<a href="http://www.houzz.com/photos/156723/Kitchen-traditional-kitchen-toronto"><img border="0" height="778" src="http://st.houzz.com/simgs/34c187a00d9de043_8-1939/traditional-kitchen.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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<small><a href="http://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional/kitchen" style="color: #444444; text-decoration: none;">Traditional Kitchen design</a> by <a href="http://www.houzz.com/professionals/interior-designer/toronto" style="color: #444444; text-decoration: none;">Toronto Interior Designer</a> <a href="http://www.houzz.com/pro/jenback/jennifer-backstein-interiors" style="color: #444444; text-decoration: none;">Jennifer Backstein Interiors</a></small></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-74642234311967839292012-09-05T11:33:00.000-07:002015-01-06T07:16:00.301-08:00Circular Stair - Part 1<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Real-life inspiration for my mini-version</td></tr>
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The spiral staircase is an elegant, beautiful and utterly silly invention. To be effective as a staircase that allows for a person of average athleticism to travel to a second floor as well as the moving of furniture (otherwise, you'd have to use a crane, rope or other mechanical means to haul your solid oak library desk up over the balcony), it has to take up a lot of floor space. And if you don't have the floor space, then it becomes a steep incline best assailed by people who climb mountains in their spare time. It is, of course, quintessentially Victorian.<br />
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The Fairfield does not have a lot of floorspace to convert to stairs. But it demanded a lovely, grand, eye-catching spiral staircase. Here's how I did it.<br />
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Admittedly, I could have done this a lot more simply than I did. Hindsight is better than foresight, and now I know there are calculators
on the internet that help one figure out rise, run and angle (<a href="http://www.blocklayer.com/stairs/Spiral.aspx" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">like this one</a>), and even give you a nice pattern to print out, but me being me, I sort of just winged that part. I'm pretty proud of how it all turned out, especially because math and geometry are really not my strong suit!<br />
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First, there's one important distinction about my method. While the difference between a <i>spiral</i> and <i>curved </i>staircase may not seem like much, there is in fact a difference: a spiral staircase rises radially around a central support and a curved and/or circular staircase does not have a central support and can adopt varying degrees of curvature, allowing for changes in direction based on the particular design situation. It's not terribly important, but if you need to google for specific information (like inspiration photos) separating the terminology can help.<br />
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Secondly, there are some terms to keep in mind, such as the <i>tread</i> (the flat piece of wood you stand on) the <i>riser</i> (the vertical support for the tread) and the <i>stringer</i> (the supporting piece of wood on outside of the tread/riser.) In my case, the curved stairs are <i>free-standing </i>or<i> floating</i> (not supported from underneath) and the stringer (actually called a <i>closed stringer</i> because the treads are not visible) serves as the single point of support for the entire stairway, aside from where it mounts to ceiling and floor. Even though this is in miniature, the strength the stringer adds to the staircase is really helpful.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Wp1rxDOPOCM/UMGeNQdmLaI/AAAAAAAAEi0/xT2hvDOJqv8/s1600/2012-05-31_20-42-57_37.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Wp1rxDOPOCM/UMGeNQdmLaI/AAAAAAAAEi0/xT2hvDOJqv8/s320/2012-05-31_20-42-57_37.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
This is the dry fit before I began assembling the stringers. If you're familiar with the Fairfield layout, this view looks through the back of the regular "kitchen" toward the front door, and previously the straight staircase was located on the large wall section to the left. If you're not familiar, then you're seeing a sneak peak at my large entry hall. The space for this new curved stair is very small and measures a mere 3". I wanted a 3 ft (or 1.5") wide staircase, so this space just happens to suit my idea perfectly.<br />
To give this small space a "grander" flair, I changed the angle of the curve slightly so that the bottom half of the staircase flairs out into room a bit and the bottom tread is slightly larger, which creates a more formal look. Additionally, the staircase rises directly in front of the bay window, adding a dramatic wash of light. I was hesitant to block the window at first, but the more I thought about it, the more I decided it would create another romantic effect - a lovely little reading alcove. <br />
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My first step was to draw my stair design. I already knew the basic size needed to be confined to 3 inches along the back wall, and I wanted the stair to really fit in that space without blocking the hall or access to the bay window. So I drew a 3 x 3 box. Then, knowing that my stairs were going to be a max of 1.5" wide, I found the center of the box and marked it. <br />
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Finally, I needed to do some basic math to figure out how many stairs I needed and the angle. I already knew I wanted my total rise (actual riser height + tread height) at 8 inches (I knew this because I measured some stairs in my house...very scientific, I know) which translates to about 8 mm. I also knew the ceiling height was 5" or 10 ft. So, I did a basic calculation:<br />
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10 x 12 = 120 inches (converting feet to inches)<br />
120 (height)/8 (total rise) = 15 (# of stairs)<br />
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So, I knew that I needed to cut 15 stair treads that were about 1.5 mm thick (or 1.5 inches in 1:24 scale - see the converter <a href="http://scale-models.nl/scalc.html" target="_blank">here</a>) I then marked the 1/2" tread in increments along the outside of the box, and began drawing lines from the center dot to the outside mark. Ideally, you want every tread to align to the same angle - in my case, I'm pretty close to a 220 degree angle. Again, not as scientific as it could be. In the picture above, I drew a copy of the first design - one as a pattern to cut, and one to use as a layout guide. If I had gone with the calculator method in the link above, it would have created a pattern I could print and that would have simplified this entire process immensely.<br />
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Here I have cut the treads and riser pieces (out of 1/16th basswood) and marked them to keep the order.<br />
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Next, assembly. This was probably the trickiest part, because I had to be able to support the stair while the glue dries. Luckily I had a lot of 1/2" scrapwood, but anything that can support the stair's weight so that the tread/riser combo dries straight will work. <br />
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Here I'm taking the completed stair and attaching the stringers. These are 1/32 birch plywood (veneer thickness) that I cut on a diagonal and softened inside of wet paper towels that I heated in the microwave. I don't have a picture of the cuts I made, but it's essentially cutting on the bias - diagonally across the straight grain of the wood. This gives it a lot of flexibility it doesn't have which is absolutely necessary for bending it to this tight of a curve. Then I lathered them with glue and carefully bent them around the curves on the stair. I used rubber bands and clamps to keep them properly aligned.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lbSJb5HiQ7w/UMGkUTGYnjI/AAAAAAAAEjk/38X80yWWZIQ/s1600/2012-06-05_08-00-08_432.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lbSJb5HiQ7w/UMGkUTGYnjI/AAAAAAAAEjk/38X80yWWZIQ/s320/2012-06-05_08-00-08_432.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
I layered 4 stringers together on each side to give the stringer a thickness of 3" in 1:24 scale. This is just wide enough to support the railing and balusters that I'll install later, and doesn't look bulky. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBh-8llkJvIcGIrm4KowS6SPoOyibh7WH_0c8xExIWlZuRG-bg7hLL-l7vByajKS-IdOsU-DIg-bcaqsJdnRwzGDg5lM9m-zQajxAjtw-8h7rPpiw7QvAiOkMunrIezlt4wJEAS3-xJFHy/s1600/2012-06-10_23-52-00_802.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBh-8llkJvIcGIrm4KowS6SPoOyibh7WH_0c8xExIWlZuRG-bg7hLL-l7vByajKS-IdOsU-DIg-bcaqsJdnRwzGDg5lM9m-zQajxAjtw-8h7rPpiw7QvAiOkMunrIezlt4wJEAS3-xJFHy/s320/2012-06-10_23-52-00_802.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Here's the finished assembled staircase with wood gaps filled (shown here on the second floor.) My next steps, which I'll detail in a second post, are to sand everything smooth,"bullnose" the treads, apply the floating back for a solid look, assemble the railing and paint!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-10135436234591069052012-09-03T16:00:00.000-07:002012-12-10T22:36:21.439-08:00Updates & NewsIt's been some time since I updated. A LOT of time, I guess! And since then, a few things have happened:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.greenleafdollhouses.com/dollhouse-kits/fairfield-dollhouse-kit.html" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Iv4iG84spGU/UL4xtBArbsI/AAAAAAAAEic/mQz7h0Ot6mA/s200/8015_fairfield_dollhouse_PF_400_fs.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.greenleafdollhouses.com/dollhouse-kits/fairfield-dollhouse-kit.html" target="_blank">Greenleaf's Fairfield Dollhouse</a></td></tr>
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First, I decided to postpone the "big" dollhouse (Clockwork House) in favor of starting smaller. I made that decision because it was moving into the rainy months and I didn't want to be trying to cut the wood in the rain, plus we are considering moving, and I really didn't want to have to figure out how to move an assembled 4 ft long dollhouse. But I also made the decision because I wanted to hone my skills and build an even finer steampunk mansion. Which is why I decided to start on something smaller - a half-scale kit, <a href="http://www.greenleafdollhouses.com/dollhouse-kits/fairfield-dollhouse-kit.html" target="_blank">The Fairfield</a>. I have liked this kit for a long time and when I found it on ebay for $25, I decided to go for it. I promised myself that I would just do a straight build - no experimental stuff or kit-bashing involved - and I promised my husband it would cost less because, well ya know, everything is half the size.<br />
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<i>Yeah</i>, not so much, actually.<br />
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A year later I am utterly in love with the Fairfield. It's a miniature dreamhouse. It's huge (for half-scale), with tons of rooms for whatever kind of room you want to build - music room, parlor, second bedroom, library, steam-powered laboratory etc, in addition to the normal stuff like living, dining, kitchen and bath. The layout adds unique depth to the house which you don't get with front or back-opening houses. It's designed to give miniaturists a lot of fun, and it comes in a relatively small package which means you don't need a lot of room to display it.<br />
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It really should have been big enough for me, but I am now convinced that I do not have the ability to do a straight build of anything. As soon as I popped the pieces out and did a quick dry fit, the ideas started pouring in. And you might say the Fairfield started talking. The box it came in was old and ragged and looked like it had been through the muck and then shoved in someone's closet, to be forgotten, for at least twenty years. It came out of the box like a sentient creature locked away for too long and immediately started throwing out all the ideas no one had ever listened to. Change the room height here. Add a room there. Remove a room here. This will be the library, that will be the dining room, and - oh dear! Wherever will the stairs go? We are <i>not</i> keeping those stairs, no matter what.<br />
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I have to agree. The one thing I don't like about the Fairfield is the stairs. Not only do they block the gorgeous arched living room entrance, they make the extremely tiny foyer even more miniscule. They create corners. Dark places. This was not a house that wanted to be shut up anymore in a dark place. It wanted grand open spaces scattered with stained glass light. It wanted to be wandered through and wondered at and dreamed about. And so, the first order of business was to figure out what to do with the stairs.<br />
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This is partly why I haven't updated things in so long. I felt like the stair situation had to be remedied before I could move forward, because I had to know where they were going in order to anticipate layout and decorating needs. The Fairfield, of course, wanted a grand and glorious staircase as a centerpiece of a large room, but I wanted to build something easy and I <i>absolutely did not</i> want to build extra rooms just for a staircase. I realized I was going to be building a lot of things on my own, so finding easy ways to build them was paramount. I was <i>certainly not</i> going to be building a circular staircase, no matter how much the house went on and on about it.<br />
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And so, for the next post, I shall detail exactly how I constructed the Fairfield's circular staircase, which is actually to be two circular staircases, one for the first floor and one for the second...<br />
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Because the Fairfield is a popular half-scale house and I've been inspired by all the other builds I've seen on other miniaturist's blogs, I'll be detailing my build here in hopes of providing someone else a little inspiration along the way. The theme of this build is a seaside writer's retreat. Imagine an old Victorian clinging to a seaside cliff, weathering the storms year after year. Tucked away inside with a cup of joe and a stoked fire, it's the perfect place for crafting a little steampunk fiction. :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-18374636337129719642011-10-20T01:31:00.000-07:002012-12-04T10:49:14.396-08:00The ground floor is built and inspected!<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OiRzF0SmHeI/Tp_cStZZKJI/AAAAAAAAALQ/y-vg2d-D1S8/s1600/inspectorgryph1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" rda="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OiRzF0SmHeI/Tp_cStZZKJI/AAAAAAAAALQ/y-vg2d-D1S8/s320/inspectorgryph1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inspector Gryphon checks for a level floor.</td></tr>
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After a not-so-fun experience gluing my floor together in reverse, it has been reassembled in the proper way. We shall here-after make a note of paying attention to the blue-prints when assembling the structure and also note the importance of dry-fitting and husbands to the process. Ahem.<br />
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However, I was in luck: Inspector Gryphon was available to drop in and ensure my first floor was up to building code. He may have received a bribe of almonds, which may have influenced his feelings on the matter, but no one will ever know.<br />
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Next...the walls go up!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-55309076339632920382011-10-12T23:15:00.000-07:002012-12-07T12:26:43.303-08:00Stained Glass<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MNdmgVnOWlM/TpaCSQzB9UI/AAAAAAAAAJ4/MgTwkSsK2GM/s1600/window1.jpg" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="112" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5662856831723238722" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MNdmgVnOWlM/TpaCSQzB9UI/AAAAAAAAAJ4/MgTwkSsK2GM/s200/window1.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px;" width="200" /></a>After researching what other dollhouse enthusiasts like to use for realistic stained glass, I finally decided on Gallery Glass. It's a stained glass paint that goes on opaque and dries to a wavy, glass-like finish, and it achieves my goals of looking realistic and challenging my crafting skills. I bought a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Gallery-Glass-17030-Window-Color/dp/B001BPXJME/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1318574234&sr=8-7">kit off of Amazon</a> for $15 which has small pots of just about every color Plaid makes in the gallery glass paint. These small pots go a long way when it comes to miniature work, so for just a few dollars you get a lot of color choices to play with. This picture shows my first attempt; in retrospect I probably should have tried a less ornate design but - <i>le sigh -</i> I've never been known to do things the easy way! <br />
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The painting was pretty easy but very time-consuming. This one window probably took 4 hours, although it could have gone faster had I not tried to color both sides. First, I used a 10/0 liner brush to lay down the lead lines with the GG leading. Lead lines are not too difficult if you can maintain a steady hand, but the biggest help to getting the lines straight was my 5x craft magnifying light. I let the leading dry for a couple of hours, then came back and filled in the panes with color. I got a little overzealous with trying to mix colors together for a swirled, "old-world" stained glass look, and so some of the panes look a little thick in my opinion. I've got some ideas for how to avoid that in the future.<br />
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Things I learned:<br />
<ol>
<li>Use a craft lamp with a magnifying lense. </li>
<li>DO the lead lines on both sides, but you don't have to <i>color</i> both sides of the window. The color on both sides makes the glass look extra thick - which could be useful for certain applications, but in the case of stained glass the panes are very thin. So color one side, then use clear on the other side. The color will show through equally and trust me, you'll have a really hard time trying to figure out which side is the clear or colored one. </li>
<li>If you make a mistake or decide you don't like the finished window, the GG paint scrapes off really easily with a finger nail</li>
<li>Use a toothpick to swirl colors together</li>
<li>The leading lines can be gently "shaped" into a straighter line by smooshing with a toothpick or the edge of a fingernail if they end up too wobbly.</li>
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All in all, I'm happy with how this window turned out. I have awhile before I plan on installing it, so I may scrape it all off and try again, but for now, I'm pretty happy with the result!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-43846056071213429442011-09-01T23:54:00.000-07:002012-12-07T12:27:05.796-08:00Building from scratch...or a kit.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My idea was to build a Queen Anne style dollhouse from scratch, but being that I don't know much about dollhouses, I didn't really know where to start on this. I drew up some plans and considered material choices, wall thickness, ceiling height etc, but I kept losing focus. Dang, this dollhouse scratch-building stuff is a lot of work!<br />
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I began to oggle the kits that were on the market. How much easier would it be, I thought, if I just bought a kit and knocked out wall here, or put a dormer in there? Far easier, I imagined. In fact, there was even a Queen Anne kit, made by Real Good Toys, that would almost entirely fit the bill of what I wanted in a house - and it was giant! With, unfortunately, a giant price tag.<br />
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Then, for my birthday, my husband suggested I go buy a kit that I wanted. We both agreed the RGT Queen Anne was too expensive, and in reality, the QA was a little <i>too</i> big and just didn't "speak" to me in the way I wanted. Instead, I kept coming back to an old Duracraft San Franciscan and falling in love with it's two front towers. The only problem was, the SF was <i>too</i> small for what I wanted! Do I sound like Goldilocks yet?<br />
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This, of course, was not a problem for the house, because it picked me. I've heard a lot of Dollhouse hobbyists suggest "listening" to what the house wants, as if the house was sentient and capable of speaking. That's a good explanation, but on a practical level, what they're talking about is an artist's intuition, and what that means is that sometimes as an artist, you absolutely know when you have a scene to work with and you just know you have to do it. You're inspired by your material, and inspired by what you know you can turn that material into. Shakespeare called it his "muse"; in miniland, we say the house is speaking to you. And that's what the SF said to me. I <i>had</i> to do this house. Somehow, I knew, I would make it the house I wanted it to be.<br />
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Luckily, about the same day I decided I wanted the San Franciscan, someone posted up a new-in-box kit on craigslist for $40, and I jumped on it! Not only had I saved a ton of money, but I'd gotten a complete kit with instructions that would help me figure out how to solidify my designs. It was off to my sketchbook and the internet to come up with a design.<br />
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It's taken me a few weeks and a lot of research to settle on an idea, but I'm pretty happy with the direction I'm going in. I'll be keeping the original facade of the Duracraft SF (but adding a lot of extra trimwork), and expanding it on both sides to give it the space I need for the rooms I've got in mind, which I'll list here:<br />
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Front Entry hall w/stairs<br />
Formal Dining<br />
Parlor w/elevator<br />
Kitchen w/glassed-in Butler's Pantry<br />
Common Library<br />
Captain's Gallery (a private study inside the library, housing the rare books and serving as a formal meeting chamber)<br />
Laboratory<br />
Master Bedroom<br />
Boudoir<br />
Master bath<br />
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Of course, I've got lots of goodies planned for these rooms, and I'm planning to set them up in an unconventional style - instead of lined up side by side like you'd see in most dollhouses, many of these rooms will be connected by halls and door ways. I intend to fully enclose the back, with the idea being that you must get up close and peek through the windows to see the goings on inside. I'm still working with the design of the house openings, but for now at least I've got a basic layout ready...now time to do some measuring and cutting!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4849039977561530670.post-33655629198188078662011-08-02T20:33:00.000-07:002012-12-04T10:50:35.765-08:00What I'm doingI started this blog with one idea in mind: to chronicle my progress building my first dollhouse - which also happens to be the dollhouse of my dreams. And what would that be? A Queen Anne filled with just a touch of fantasy. The steampunk genre is growing more mainstream these days in fiction, movies and real life, and I love the idea of marrying Victorian aesthetics with steam power and weird science to create a minature fantasy world - after all, what is a dollhouse if <i>not</i> a fantasy? So why not dive into the rabbit hole and see how far it goes? <br />
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Also, I'll say it now before it becomes much more obvious: I don't do anything the easy way. While I <i>am</i> new to dollhouses, I'm <i>not</i> new to the fine arts, so I'm just going for it. I might have a thing or two to learn, but I'm not too worried about whether the outcome will be as glorious as I imagine it to be. :)<br />
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I likely never would have given a dollhouse more than a passing thought if not for my grandmother, who passed away last year with a half-completed Victorian farmhouse sitting on a mahogany side table in her guest bedroom. It had been a private dream of hers to have a dollhouse, but by the time she could afford one she didn't have the mobility to work on it. She'd always wanted me to help her finish it, but I lived on the other side of the country and our visits were always too brief. When she passed the dollhouse went to another family member, so I decided I would build my own, and in the building of it remember a woman who lived out of her time and who gave me a childhood I will always treasure. For a lady who was always so proper, she never ceased encouraging me to forge my own path in life.<br />
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I'm very thankful for the friends who've given me advice, and for all the mini enthusiasts at the Greenleaf miniature forums for their expertise and amazing miniature work. Please join me as I work on this project!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0