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Thank You For Visiting

2012-01-23T15:29:00.003-05:00

More Minis @ Blogspot will always be your number one stop on the internet for step by step assembly blogs of popular tab and slot dollhouses by Greenleaf and Corona Concepts Dollhouses.

These beautiful but often over looked dollhouse kits require a basic knowledge of their unique assembly process in order to achieve a successful outcome. I am dedicated to helping new dollhouse enthusiasts become better acquainted with these kits. So, give tab and slot dollhouses a second look and you will be surprised at how rewarding owning one can be.

In this blog, you will also find many helpful guides and tutorials on dollhouse finishes and accessories. Everything you need to know to help you through your tab and slot dollhouse assembly is just a few clicks away.

Stay tuned for more dollhouse assembly blogs coming soon. Don't forget to visit my new gallery and browse through my list of many informative links while you're here.

Enjoy your stay!

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 27

2011-12-15T07:00:00.000-05:00

I did all of the touch ups to the dollhouse and then I went to the dollar store and found some cool landscaping items.

I decided to use these large moss rocks to put around this dollhouse.

I also found some tall grasses for the side wall and the flowers for the flower boxes. I know the flowers are a larger scale than what would be use for one inch scale dollhouses but I liked the colors and decided, since the dollhouse is for me, that I wasn't bothered by the scale.

A good way to keep your flowers in your flower boxes is to put cotton in the boxes and then stick the flowers into the cotton with some glue. That way the flowers stay put but you can still pull them out later if you want to change your exterior decor.

As you can see, I had some furniture for this dollhouse but I can still use more.

Browse through this dollhouses gallery here.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 26

2011-12-14T07:00:00.000-05:00

I am very excited to have finally finished the secret room of this dollhouse. I installed the doorknobs to the interior of the French doors. I continued my floor planks in the same direction as they are in the rest of the dollhouse. I know that some people do not mind for floor planks to go in different directions in different rooms. It's all a matter of preference.

This dollhouse has a lot of nooks and crannies so you will want to make sure you finished them all properly. I had to use a mirror for the secret room, just to make sure I got all of the areas correctly.

I want to mention the second floor staircase again. If you wallpaper your dollhouse and you do not want to stain your staircase unit in it's entirety, you might want to go ahead and use cardboard or thin wood to create a backing for this staircase. That way you can actually wallpaper the back of it instead of leaving it exposed.

Now comes all of the touch ups, especially along the thatched roof. I will need to make sure that I got every inch of this roof looking properly. I also have some paint touch ups to do here and there. I want to buy some flowers for the flower boxes too.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 25

2011-12-13T07:00:00.000-05:00

I finished installing all of the flooring and baseboards. I also double checked the staircase and touched up anything I found before I installed the windows. Installing these windows takes patience because each trim has to be installed individually. That leaves a lot of room for uneven, unsquare window trim. I installed all of the sides first as flush to the window opening as possible and then I installed the tops and bottoms.

Notice the kitchen floor. I did not use the vinyl strips in here but rather the wood tiles. I then stained them using the same brown as I did for all of the interior trim. I think they came out looking pretty good. Wooden tiles are very verstile and can be painted or stained to match many different styles of decor. After the stain dried, I varnished them with clear gloss varnish. It gives them a nice sheen. If you want them to be glossier, then apply up to three coats of varnish, allowing for each coat to dry in between applications. I only used one coat because I still want this dollhouse to have the rustic appearance of a medieval house.

Now, back edge trims. I trimmed all of my back edges. On a completely stucco dollhouse, applying trim to the back edges of your walls and floors is not necessary since the dollhouse is rough all over. You don't really need smooth back edges for this type of finish. Back edge trim is not only good for nice smooth edges but it also helps in other ways. For one, it hides any curvature of the back walls and floors. Remember, no matter how straight you buld your die-cut dollhouse, the wood sheets are very thin and tend to slope down (warp) in the middle of the room, especially the floors. This is especially true of there is a partition in the room, like a staircase. The staircase will left the floor straight but the room next to the staircase, will have slight curve of the floor when you look at the back edge. Applying trim will staighten that out and make it unnoticeable. It also gives the back edges a little bit more support. If you leave a slight overhang of your back edge floor trim on the top edge, you can keep miniature furniture from sliding out of your dollhouse as well. So always use back edge trim using basswood strips, whenever possible, regardless of finish.

Now the second floor staircase stairwell has a little bit of floor exposure to it. I had to fit my big old hand in there to cover it with the vinyl strips. Vinyl strip flooring is very forgiving. Always place the edges you cut towards the walls so that the floor joints are completely straight when they butt together. As you can see, you can use the same strips as baseboards for a more uniform look.

I used brown trim all around these pesky stairail walls.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 24

2011-12-08T09:32:00.001-05:00

I painted the risers and steps of the staircases but used stucco on the rest. You can just paint or stain the whole assembly but I really like the stucco look on it. It makes it seem like the staircase was built out of the wall. The second floor staircase does not have any backing to it so the stucco hides all of the gaps or imperfections on the backside of the steps and risers.

I installed the first floor staircase over the flooring and the second floor staircase before the flooring. I cut the flooring around that one. I decided to do it this way because of the first floor staircase closet. It was going to be a hassle to try and get my hand inside of it to apply flooring after the staircase was in place, not to mention the hassle it would cause for the installation of the hinged door. The second floor staircase has a stairwell under it so I didn't need to struggle with flooring there.

This hinged door is working wonderfully. No hinges have pulled out so far and lets all pray that they do not, since it will be impossible to reinstall them at this angle. They appear to be very tightly on there though so I don't expect problems. In order to have the most success with this doorway, do not apply glue to the underside of the staircase, where it meets the floor. Only glue the side where it meets with the wall and the top where it meets with the ceiling. That way you leave some leeway for your door to open and close properly. If you glue the bottom of the staircase to the floor, it will make your staircase very rigid and when wood expands and contracts, you might have a problem with your door sticking or swinging open and not staying closed. It's better for there to be some flexibility around the door.

A little side note about tab and slot, die cut dollhouses. They can be very tricky to finish. You have to do a lot of creative thinking in order to make them look right after assembly. Tab and slot dollhouses will not give you success easily. Not only do you have to struggle to assemble them but the finishing is always the biggest challenge of all. To make things look right you have to improvise, hide, blend and make decisions ahead of time on how to solve certain unaviodable issues.

I had mentioned this before but here is a refresh. This dollhouse does not bring any interior trim except for the windows and the front door. All other doors do not have trim. You have to make the trim yourself from basswood strips of the same thickness as the wood in the kit, which is 1/8" inch. I made the trim for the two doors on the second floor. You will not get a nice finished look unless you add the trim.

This dollhouse has a staircase railing with handrails for the third floor stairwell but there are no handrails for the second and first floors. I might be wrong since there are still a lot of pieces left for me to install but as far as I can see, by the sizes of the unused pieces, there are no handrails. You can make them out of the same basswood strips you use for the doorways but I haven't gotten to that yet.

Speaking of staircase railing, notice the opposite walls to the staircases. They have railing which is part of the wall partitions. This dollhouse only has railing for one side of the staircase. You will have really make your mind work on how to make these railings look good on these walls. I used a piece of basswood trim glued right under the railings, at an angle, to seperate where the railings ends and the walls begins. I used wall paint under the trim and brown paint over it. I have to give it a second coat but you can see the idea of what I tried to do in the pictures. You have to line up your trims to match the staircases on the other side.

Do not install any windows on your dollhouse until you are 100% done with the staircases and the bays. This pertains to the bay windows on the rooms to the right side of the dollhouse. There are certain walls and areas on the front of the staircases that can only be accessed through the window openings. You want to make sure they are all finished before you install your acetate windows and close off your access.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 23

2011-11-16T07:00:00.000-05:00

I installed all of the interior window trim for the first room. This dollhouse kit brings mountains of interior and exterior window trim. It can be very confusing to figure it all out since they are basically bunches of sticks that all look the same.

When I punched out the parts from their sheets, I did label all of my window trim but at the end of the day, the labeling was useless. Especially since it all has to be painted before you can install them. The best way to end the confusion is to just dry fit each trim to each side of the window and the size of each stick will let you know where it goes.

I decided to work on the upstairs "bedroom". This is the large room right next to the small "bathroom" I finished last time.

I was able to put in flooring nearly completing it before I ran out. At least I was able to install the stairwell railing and the window trim.

A big surprise I had not noticed before about this kit is that it does not bring door trim so you will have to use basswood strips in order to make your own since you will not achieve a nice finished look unless your doors are trimmed.

I installed the door to the "secret room" because it had to be in place so I could apply the flooring. Remember, since none of these doors are working doors, I decided to install them before the floors.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 22

2011-10-25T07:00:00.000-04:00

Today I hinged the door of the staircase closet. The hinges I bought seem to work with this door. This door does not have any laminated layers of wood. It is plain and thin so I was not expecting any hassles with the miniature hinges.

Hinging die-cut doors is very difficult when they are ornate because the ornamentation is made by laminating wood together which makes the door very thick and very heavy. The bigger the hinges, the better is those cases.

The secret to hinging success is to sand the door as much as possible so that it fits semi-loosely into it's casing. This will ensure that it does not snag when it moves which can put too much stress on your tiny hinges and eventually pull them out. The doors "casing" will usually have to be it's trim. You can try and hinge the door to the dollhouse wall and then apply trim over it but it will impede with the movement of the door. It will also be quite difficult to do since the dollhouse wall is vertical and you really need to hinge with all the pieces laying flat in front of you.

Unfortunaly, the only way you can hinge die cut doors will usually cause for the hinges to be visible. I personally like the way the tiny hinges look but you can put them on the other side of the door so they are not visible or if your door is thick enough, you might be able to put them like they would go on a real life door. It is up to you where you place them but how you place them must always be the same.

You have to mark where your hinge will go and make starter holes with a nail. It only takes a little tiny hole. Do not open the hole too large or your hinge will fit loosely and come out. The tiniest of starter holes is all that's needed. Then use glue on your hinge and pins and insert them. You will need to tap them in with a nail set and hammer. Do one side at a time. Do not rush. It is best to let the pins dry over night before you begin the other side so you do not put any pressure on them.

Remember hinging die cut doors is not always something that can end in success. Sometimes the wood is very brittle and will delaminate when you try to make the starter hole or it will crumble right under your hinge. Sometimes the wood is so dense that it will not allow for your hinge pins to enter, bending them constantly. Sometimes the opening of the door itself can be a hinderance or make it impossible to make the door work. It all really depends on the wood of the dollhouse kit you get, which is always different. You can always purchase pre-hung doors but keep in mind that those type of doors are usually thicker than 1/8" and are larger than the usual opening of a die cut dollhouse. You might also be unusable if the door opening has an unusual shape to it.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 21

2011-10-23T07:00:00.000-04:00

Today I worked on the bathroom of the dollhouse. This room is small and I was able to stucco it but again the ceiling will have to be done later. It's been kind of fun to work on the dollhouse in segments like this for some reason. I like to see the outcome of each room as its finished.

I painted the room walls and primed the floor with the dark brown paint just like I did before.

I put in the door before I put down the floor covering. Obviously, this can not be done if you plan on hinging your interior doors so they work. Since I am not hinging this door, I decided it was best to do it this way and avoid having to cut the door down so it would fit.

You must install the flooring around the roof support. If you do not, you will have a strange, unfinished area on the front edge of the floor that you will not be able to blend in with the rest of your flooring.

You can blend in any areas of your stucco that cracks or sinks with spackle. Just fill in the areas, texture it to match and then paint. It will look just like the surrounding stucco. I had to do it around the chimney slot. The stucco kind of sunk around it and I had to fill it in with the spackle.

I noticed something interesting which I will not try out on this dollhouse but it's something to think about for future builds. One of the setbacks of applying a pre-finished floor cover to your floors, other than carpet, is that your staircases usually do not match and you can not apply the same covering to the staircase. Well, I had some left over shelf liner paper in a dark wood grain and when I put it side by side to the flooring, they are pretty much identical. The photos show a slight difference but in real life, they are the same. You can certainly cover your staircase with this type of cover so they match better with the rest of your floors. This shelf liner comes in dark and light wood colors.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 20

2011-10-15T07:00:00.000-04:00

The first room I was able to completely stucco was the living room where the front door is. I did not have enough stucco for the ceiling but I can always do that later. It is always best to finish your ceilings before you do the walls but since this dollhouse has a stucco interior rather than wallpaper, it shouldn't be too difficult to finish it later.

I painted the staircase railing wall and the front door.

I painted the stucco after it was dry because I find it doesn't crack if you paint it afterwards rather than mixing the paint in with it.

I primed the floor with dark brown paint so the vinyl flooring blends in well. You don't want to see raw wood between planks or where the planks meet the walls. Always start from the end of the floor closest to you and work your way to the wall furthest from you. Stagger the joints and always butt the joints that you did not cut to size so they are completely flush together. Cutting the floor planks around the rounded bay is a little tricky but not too bad. They do not have to be precisely perfect since there will be baseboards covering the edges.

I used the vinyl flooring planks to make the baseboards. This is optional. It depends on the look your going for. If you decided to have white trim in your dollhouse, you might not want to do it like this.

I am painting all of my interior trim dark brown to match the outside half timber trim. I like how it looks against the light stucco. I decided to not use stain on the interior trim because of the flooring. The stain would have never matched up to the flooring. This is one of the things that can be quite a hassle with die-cut dollhouses. Staining the original wood will cause a lot of hue variations between staircases, flooring and all of the interior trim. These dollhouse kits are usually comprised of a lot of different wood grains and hues. You can get lucky and have a kit with even wood but don't count on it. What you decide to do is entirely up to what you like and has nothing to do with technique.

I installed the windows in this room.

I also painted and installed the doorknobs on the interior doors. You want to always make a starter hole with a nail so you can insert your doorknobs without bending them in the process. Add a little bit of glue to the starter hole. The doors of a die cut dollhouse are thin so you will not be able to insert the doorknobs on both sides of the door in the same place. They will push each other out if you do. Insert each a little away from each other to the side. The height of the doorknob is more important than anything else so make sure they are the same height on both sides of the door.

I have to hinge the staircase closet door to its frame next time. I used a pull instead of a regular doorknob for it.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 19

2011-08-01T07:00:00.000-04:00

I installed all of the gingerbread trim and exterior doors today. I also finished all of the roof edges, including the panel that opens.

I need to buy more doorknobs since I only had enough for the balcony doors.

I am very pleased with the wall color now that I see the dollhouse coming along. I'm glad I chose it instead of the stark white. It makes a very nice contrast with the pebbles.

On the Aster Cottage I put "mortar" between the pebbles but on this dollhouse, I really like the way they look as they do now so I am leaving them without the "mortar"

I am getting ready to begin work on the interior of the dollhouse. This dollhouse has several interior partitions, two of which are moveable. I decided to leave them all out. I will have more decorating space without all of the extra walls. This dollhouse is large and has plenty of rooms as it is, I don't want to take away from their roomy space with a bunch of partitions getting in the way.

The partition that I like least is the one that goes perpendicular to the first floor staircase, blocking the front door. Even though it is not one of the moveable partitions, it is not necessary to use it so I omitted it on my dollhouse.

I really like the way the dollhouse looks without any partitions, like in this picture.

It is important for you to make a decision about which partitions you want out and which ones you want to keep before you begin work on the interior.

I have to order more dollhouse stucco before I can begin my interior so as soon as the materials arrive, I will continue.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 18

2011-07-30T07:00:00.000-04:00

I went over all of the thatch with acryllic varnish. You can use a mattee or gloss finish, it doesn't matter because the fur will not pick up any sheen from the varnish regardless of what finish it has so you can use whatever is on hand.

I can tell you that the varnish makes the fur look awful when it is first applied. Wet varnish on fur looks grayish/white and just plain aweful. Allow it to dry so that it turns clear and makes the fur look like thatch.

Some fur will lay very flat on your roof and other fur will have natural wrinkles and waves to it. Sometimes the same fur remnant will have several different finishes to it. It just all depends on what type of fur is available at the fabric store. They always carry different styles. Sometimes you get lucky with wonderful fur and other times you get fur that is a little more difficult to work with.

When you are thatching a dollhouse roof, you will have to accept the fact that you may have some very flat looking roof panels and other roof panels with some texture to them. This is just the nature of some types of faux fur and you can comb until you take off all of the fur from the backing and it will make no difference in the outcome. It all has to do with the way the fur was applied to the backing at the textile mill, quality of the fibers and type of fur. This is beyond your control. Just like in a real life size thatched houses, you will have natural inconsistencies in your thatch work per panel.

After you varnish you may have some overhang of fur going over the edges of your roof, cut them flush to the roof edge with small, sharp scissors or leave them if you like the look of them. It's all a matter of preference. I cut mines flush.

I attached the chimney. I had to let it dry overnight and I had to use masking tape to give it a little bit more support as it dried. This is a very heavy chimney because of the pebbles.

I went over all of the roof eave edges with brown paint. I know I had first thought to leave them the color of the dollhouse but after seeing the thatch put on, I realized that I didnt like the way they looked. They clashed too much with the thatch so painting them brown to match, makes a much more seamless finish along the roof edges.

I didn't have enough varnish for the top flat roof but I'll get some more today.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 17

2011-07-28T07:00:00.000-04:00

Now that my foundation is finished, I went ahead and began putting on the "thatch" for this dollhouse.

You will be better off making templates on paper of your roof panels BEFORE installation but I forgot so I had to make the templates after. I just pressed paper on each panel and creased it along the edges so I would know where to cut. It would have been easier if the panels were laying flat but thankfully this dollhouse has pretty simple roof panels with a lot of a straight lines. It was not too difficult.

Use the paper templates to cut your fabric with. Always do each individual roof panel. Do not try to cut a big long piece to wrap around rounded roofs, like the tower or bay roofs, for example. It will not come out right. Making it one continious wrapped around piece of fur will really reduce the details and lines of your roof. It looks more realistic if you do each individual panel and butt the edges of each panel together.

I'm using the same dark brown faux fur that I used on the Aster Cottage. I really like how realistic this fur makes the thatch appear. I was lucky that I was able to find it again. Many fabrics are discontinued after a while so chances are that you will not be able to find the same fabric again. Some fur "thatches" better than others. I find that the shorter the hair on the fur, the more realistic the thatch but you are really limited to whatever the fabric store has on hand. The good thing is that dark and light brown fur, which is normally the colors chosen for thatch, is usually always available.

Make sure you buy actual faux fur and not felt or flannel. Faux fur is furry with an actual "hairy" texture. You can see each individual "hair" fiber on it. Sometimes the fabric store will keep both types of fabrics together and you can easily mistake faux fur for thick flannel. I have no idea how felt or flannel will thatch so use them at your own risk.

I bought one yard of faux fur for this dollhouse and I had enough to cover it all. Keep in mind that when your buying fabric like faux fur which is one sided, the fabric store will give you a front and back for each yard. That means that you actually are getting two yards of fabric for the price of one. Faux fur can be expensive.

Always make sure you get enough. Remember these fabrics can become discontinued and you do not want to run out of fabric in the middle of your project. You might not be able to find it again and your dollhouse can end up looking like a patched fur coat.

Cut your thatch a little larger that your roof panel and then cut to size when glued on. That is the best way to always get the perfect fit. Always make sure that you cut your panels with the fur grain running downwards so can comb it down with varnish later.

Thatching is the same as wallpapering. Cover your far panels first and then your side panels last so that the corner seams will be invisible.

Your porch hip roof will be delicate so try to use a light paper to make your templates with rather than the thicker and heavier postal paper. The thicker the paper, the harder it will be make the creases along the edges of the roof and you don't want to apply too much pressure on your porch roof. Remember, nothing is truly holding it up except the thin line of glue on the back edge against the dollhouse wall. I was able to hide the gap on the corner, between the butted joints of the porch roof with the fur.

The side roof panel that is hinged will be the hardest to do. You have to make sure you trim very flush to the roof edges around the roof panel so that the moveable panel is not obstructed. I suggest you leave the panel for last and do the rest of the roof around it first. Make sure that you do not apply glue directly to your chamois strip. It might leak into the joint and glue your panel together. As you can see the chamois strip will be completely hidden under the faux fur. The same goes for metal hinges.

You also have to leave a hole on the fur where your chimney will go. You can't cut it too large or you will see bare wood around your chimney but you cant cut it too small or your chimney will not adhere to the wood.

My chimney is extra heavy because it is covered in the same pebbles as the foundation so I have to make sure that it rests on the wood so that the glue adheres well. I have not completed the flue area of the chimney yet.

Butt all of the joints in your faux fur together as close as possible so there are no gaps.

Once you get the hang of thatching a dollhouse roof, it is much quicker and easier to do than shingling.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 16

2011-07-26T07:00:00.000-04:00

I began putting the river pebbles on the dollhouses foundation. Make sure you paint your foundation first in the base color you would like to show through between your pebbles. I used the same dark brown as in the rest of the dollhouse so that it blends invisibly between the pebbles.

Use tacky glue and turn the dollhouse on it's sides as you work your way around the foundation. It's actually faster than having to put these pebbles one by one with hot glue. Also, the dollhouse is much lighter than it looks so there should be no damage in positioning it on it's sides right now. I was able to lift and turn the dollhouse all by myself and I have a bad back. It's extremely light weight despite it's size.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 15

2011-07-24T07:00:00.002-04:00

Today I installed all of the exterior window trim. There are two ways to do this and they are based on personal preference only.

You can do it like on the dollhouse box photo where the white edges of the dollhouse wall are visible between the interior and exterior window trims. This is usually how I do all of my dollhouses because it makes the windows really pop. Or you can paint the edges of the wall between the interior and exterior window trims to match them.

On this dollhouse, I decided to paint the edges to match the trim and the reason for this was that leaving them the same color as the dollhouse walls caused the dollhouse to look "striped". There is just too much half timber trim on this dollhouse to leave white edges around the windows. All you could see from every angle was white and dark brown stripes everywhere.

You can see an example on the pictures below of the comparison between white edges showing around the window trim and edges painted to match the window trim.

Painting your wall edges is best done after the exterior window trim has been installed and before you install the interior window trim. Remember your window panes will have to go on first when you do your interior window so that will make it nearly impossible to paint those edges to match.

White Edges Of Walls Between Window Trim

Wall Edges Painted To Match Window Trim

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 14

2011-07-22T07:00:00.002-04:00

I continued installing half timber trim on the exterior of the dollhouse.

When your dealing with half timber trim that is put together by many pieces of vertical and horizontal trim, you may experience that some of the trim is either too long or too short.

On this dollhouse, you might find that the vertical trim on the tower or bays might be too long, depending on your tower and/or bay roof fit. You might also discover that the horizontal trim that goes between the vertical trim, on these same walls, might be too short to butt up against the vertical trim correctly, causing a gap.

If the trim is too long, simply cut to fit.

If the trim is too short, then you have several options you can choose from to fix it.

1. (Recommended) Buy basswood strips at your local craft store of the same width and thickness as the dollhouses trim and use it instead. Cut it to the length needed.

2. Use the trim as is and fill in the gap with spackle or wood filler. Wait for the spackle or filler to dry completely before attempting to sand it to match the trim.

3. Use the trim as is and fill in the gap with another piece of trim and then sand and spackle the joint to make it look like one continious trim piece.

4. Use the trim as is and paint the gap to match the trim, creating an optical illusion like there is no gap at all.

I used method #4 for now but depending on how I feel it is truly hiding the problem, I might change it later. So far though, so good. I am having trouble trying to find where the gaps are so that's a good sign.

I suggest you apply your vertical trim first and then your horizontal. That way its less confusing because your installing all of the trim marked #13, for example, and so there's less room for error. When intalling the vertical trim around the bay and tower areas, install the horizontal trim before the glue of your vertical trim dries. That way you can shift the vertical trim to better fit your horizontal trim between them.

I installed some of the window trim and shutters.

I also installed the balcony floor and the stucco completely sealed up my slots for the floors tabs. I had to cut off the tabs and glue the edge of the floor straight onto the bottom edge of the door opening. Thats okay though because the floor is supported by two brackets anyways, which I also installed.

You may notice some differences between the half timber trim on the dollhouse box photo and the illustration. This dollhouse no longer comes with trim for the bottom of the front bay and the bottom of the left tower wall. You can make your own with basswood strips or leave it as is. I might go ahead and make my own but if I decide to, I will leave it for later.

Always remember that when you plan on adding your own trim to your dollhouse, always do it last because some trim can affect the way parts will fit on your dollhouse.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 13

2011-07-20T07:00:00.001-04:00

Today I began installing some of the exterior half timber trim and the hip roof, which is the porch roof.

You have to use the bottom edge of the front half timber trim assembly in order to draw a pencil line all the way around your dollhouse so you can install the trim needed so your hip roof will go on straight. You really have to make sure that your line is completely straight all the way around.

Do not use the bottom of the window openings as a guide for this line like the instructions suggest because the bottom edge of your front timber trim assembly will not be exactly level to the bottom of the window openings due to the way the bays fit, the roof and the added stucco. There is going to be a slight difference on every dollhouse as to just where the bottom edge of the front timber trim assembly will be. I suggest you use the bottom edge of the timber trim assembly to make your line around the dollhouse. That way you know it will be straight and the hip roof will match up all the way around.

Once your lines are drawn, you have to paint and glue on your trim pieces. Let me them dry for a few hours before you attempt to install the hip roof. Make sure you paint the underside of your roof before installation.

The difficult part of this hip roof is that it is basically not being held up by anything. The downwards slant it creates as it leans against the dollhouse is the only thing that will keep it together. This means you have to clamp the roof correctly so that the glue has time to dry on the top edge of the roof. Make sure you get enough glue under your half timber trims so that the hip roof stays put. Once your clamps are taken off, this edge of glue is basically the only thing that will be holding this roof up.

Your main priority is to make sure the roof is straight all the way around the dollhouse. That is vital for the dollhouse to look correct. You do not want your side hip roof to sit lower or higher than the front and you don't want either roofs to be lop sided. You must have it sit straight and if you drew your pencil lines correctly, then your roof should be straight.

The only problem you may enounter is that the roofs may not butt together where they are suppose to join at the corner. Do not attempt to force them to join together if they do not because you will end up lifting the hip roof from the wall of the dollhouse and you don't want that. If you don't want this hip roof to fall off later on, then you have to sit it tightly against your dollhouse wall.

This problem can happen for a number of reasons but it seems like the main one is how the bay walls sit. I noticed that trim piece #3 was cut slightly short so I think that the front hip roof was cut short as well because the side hip roof seems to have enough length to join correctly. It could also be the layer of stucco that is affecting this joint. This is a problem that may happen to you or may not. I am not concerned about this because the thatch will hide this gap. If you experience the same thing with your dollhouse, you can cut your shingles to hide this joint as well if your not using thatch. The joint is not as important as the straightness of the roof because the joint can be hidden. You just have to make sure that the hip roof sits against your dollhouse wall as tightly as possible and that it is straight.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 12

2011-07-18T07:00:00.000-04:00

Today I painted and installed the front timber trim assembly.

You will have to use a combination of glue sticks, plastic clamps and masking tape to keep the bottom part of the trim down. Wrap the masking tape on the windows and door opening to give it more strength. The top part of the trim can be kept down with binder clips at the window openings.

As you can see the plastic clamps an glue sticks are basically to provide weight to the masking tape for clamping. They are useless without the masking tape because there are no areas to clamp to.

Because this piece of under pressure, it is best to let it dry for 24 hours before removing the clamps. Check your clamps every once in a while to make sure they havent slipped out of place or loosened.

If your stucco becomes damaged during this process and you don't have any more stucco mix, you can use spackle as a repair. Spackle can be swirled and textured just like dollhouse stucco and when dry, it is just as hard. You can then paint it to match the rest of your walls.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 11

2011-07-16T07:00:00.000-04:00

Today I began finishing the exterior of the dollhouse. I first primed the entire exterior with the same color paint I want to use on it. Because this dollhouse is so large, I didn't want to use stark white for my stucco. I wanted to use a linen color which is semi white. I used this same color on the second Glencroft Dollhouse and I really liked the way it stood out behind the dark brown timber trim.

I then mixed my stucco with water and and applied to the entire exterior. Mix the water into your dollhouse stucco very slowly and in small amounts. If you accidentally put in too much, your stucco mixture will be watery and ruined. you will not be able to fix it. Your dollhouse stucco should end up with the same consistency as thick cake icing. That way you can spread it and create texture on your walls. The best way to create the texture is by swirling your brush on the stucco.

I will then paint the stucco with the same paint that I used for priming. You can paint your stucco after application like I am doing but you can also mix paint into your stucco. I have done it that way before and the reason I opted out of doing it this time is because I have noticed that when you mix the paint with your stucco, it tends to dry blotchy and you will have to go over your walls with paint again in order to even them out.

Now you have to decide what color you want your roof eaves. You can paint them to match your walls or your thatch. I am going to paint them to match the walls. It will make the vergeboards stand out more.

You will also notice the gaps between the bay and tower walls. Do not bother trying to fill them in. All of these will be covered with half timber trim.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 10

2011-07-09T07:00:00.000-04:00

Once you have your hinged panel, actually hinged, you can go ahead and install the last roof panel to the dollhouse and begin your stucco. I plan on doing the stucco to the exterior first and then work on the interior later.

I let my chamois hinge strip dry over night. Always apply the chamois strip to the exterior of the roof panel so it opens without a problem, upwards. So far, everything is accessible for the stucco. If you want to wallpaper this dollhouse, remember that it has to be done before the roof goes up. Though the areas are accessible for stucco or paint, they are not accessible for wallpapering after the roof is on.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 09

2011-07-07T10:03:00.002-04:00

The hinges I bought seem very small so I do not believe they will work for the roof panel. You might want to go the actual hardware store and find some hinges for your panel that are not too large but not as small as miniature ones. I am not sure how that will work though on this thin plywood. I decided to revert back to my original idea of hinging this panel with trusty chamois.

The way this panel opens on the roof will work perfectly with the chamois and it will be seamless. Once I apply the faux fur to the outside of the roof as thatch, the chamois underneath will be invisible. I am using a chamois that is as close to the thatch color as possible anyways.

The miniature hinges I bought, I will use on the staircase closet door and I might hinge some other door as well as the assembly progresses.

When you are installing your hinges for the roof panel, whether you went with real hinges or the chamois type, you should hinge from the exterior side of the roof. This allows your panel to open upwards so you can view the room inside.

Chamois strips are very easy to use. I glued mines using tacky glue, first one side and then the other. You might want to protect the other side with masking tape while the glue dries on one so you don't glue the joint of the opening panel to the roof. If you do, you won't be able to move the panel later. You can apply another strip of masking tape on the lower part of the panel to prevent it from opening or moving while the chamois strip glue dries.

You can apply a weight or just use masking tape in order to hold down the chamois while it dries. Do not try to glue both sides at the same time because it can cause glue to seep into the panel joint or your chamois can shift. Use a large strip that will go over the entire top part of the panel especially on the corners.

If you use hinges, remember to use some tacky glue in your starter holes so the hinge nails are more secure. Apply your hinges to each side of the panel top but no too close to the corner. There is a good illustration of where they should go in the dollhouses instructions.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 08

2011-06-21T07:00:00.000-04:00

Today I worked on the tower and bay roofs.

Notice the inner supports of the tower roof and how they go together.

Usually it is very difficult to assemble a tower roof using the tape method described in the instructions but for this dollhouse, it actually worked very well and I recommend it.

Join your roof panels by applying masking tape on the butted undersides and then turn the structure right side up and glue it to your tower and bay tops. Make sure it's straight and even all the way around.

At this time assembly has to stop in order to tie some loose ends together before I am able to continue. One of them is the hinged panel, which I will be working on next.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 07

2011-06-19T07:00:00.001-04:00

I began assembling the roof today. Since this entire dollhouse will be covered in stucco, I wanted to make sure that I got the roof eaves and the ceilings assembled so I went ahead and assembled the roof in its entirety except for the panel that has the removeable piece. That piece will have to be hinged together away from the dollhouse so I have to wait to assemble it later.

When using stucco as an interior or exterior finish, always try to assemble as much as the dollhouse as possible so you can cover as much areas with the stucco as you can. It makes for a cleaner finish and it also adds a little more strength to the structure. Remember, glue adheres best when its used on raw wood rather than finished pieces.

Notice the position of the roof supports and gussets.

Again, I experienced no problems whatsoever with the assembly of this roof. Follow instructions on the sequence of steps so that you do not end up with a panel that can not be fitted.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 06

2011-06-17T07:00:00.000-04:00

I continued putting up walls by adding the tower and bays to the structure. This process is very simple.

The main thing you need to keep in mind with these bays are which are the top and bottom parts. Refer to the schematics to verify this but an easy way to remember is that the top of the bay wall is narrower in the are between the window and the tabbed edges.

I went ahead and assembled the window seats as well because I am planning on using the stucco on them too.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 05

2011-06-11T07:00:00.001-04:00

Today I began the basic shell. You will be surprised at just how easily this dollhouse comes together.

Just follow the instructions step by step and you will see that this dollhouse will just come together on its own. It is rare for a dollhouse to come together so easily. You will not struggle on any part of it.

This kit is designed so that the floors are set up to go in before side walls are in place and that is a big help.

I assembled the floors and the walls so far. I stopped at this point and I went over all joints with wood glue. If you are planning to wallpaper the interior, you have to keep a close eye out on inaccessible areas as you put walls up. You might have to finish certain parts before you continue. So far, everything is accessible up to this point in the assembly but because the interior does not have any partitions put up yet, it might be difficult to determine which room is which right now. You might want to wait a little until the assembly is further along before you begin wallpapering.

The Harrison Dollhouse Day 04

2011-06-09T07:00:00.000-04:00

This dollhouse has several components that can be assembled away from the basic shell so I went ahead and got those done today.

I assembled the chimney, window boxes and staircases.

All of these assemblies are pretty straight forward and simple. The instructions are excellent in showing exactly which edges are glued to what.

You will encounter a little difficulty with the staircases but not much. Though these are simple staircases, when the assembly requires for the risers to go between the sides, it can make the process a little more difficult. I suggest you install the first bottom riser and the last top riser first. Clamp and let dry. Then you can turn the staircase structure on its side and install the rest of the risers.

If you plan on having a two tone staircase, then you must finish the parts before assembly. Otherwise, it can be finishied afterwards. I plan on staining mines all one color.

You might not want to invest too much time and money on your staircases because they will be facing the front of the dollhouse, away from you, so they pretty much are not visible unless you hinge the front door.