Fireplaces and kitchen hood

I love fireplaces! When I designed this dollhouse I made sure I had a fireplace in every room. I try to make my miniatures look as realistic as possible and one important detail many people overlook are the dimensions of fireplaces. I made sure that every fireplace was at least 1 and 1/2 inchs deep to realistically accomodate logs. As I posted earlier, I made all the fireboxes, earths and surrounds in double thick poster board.

To make each firebox I cut 3 pieces out of the posterboard: 1 for the top, 1 for the bottom, and 1 long piece for the back and sides. To fold the back piece, I first drew the lines where the piece would be folded, then I scored it about 3/4 of the depth of the posterboard with a sharp utility knife. I glued the pieces together with carpenter's glue and a few dots of gel super glue and held the pieces in place with some masking tape.

When dry, I painted it the color of the mortar, then used the magic brick system to create the bricks. I then stippled on black paint using an old fat round brush to look like soot. When all was dry I varnished the firebox with matt varnish.

The earths and most of the surrounds are painted posterboard to look like marble. The one exception is the dining room fireplace. I had a book with pictures of palace furniture. One picture was of a "Pietra Dura" (cut stone) panel from a dresser. I cut up the sections of the picture, glued them onto the posterboard surround with spray adhesive, and then put on 3 coates of glaze. I think it looks great with the painted mantel.



In the kitchen, I wanted a copper hood for the stove. I could only find one size of copper sheet. It was very thick and I had a difficult time cutting and bending it. I had to use metal cutters and made a jig to get accurate folds. I had a piece of molding that had a good shape for the hood, so I glued the copper over it with The Ultimate Glue and finished folding in the sides.

When the piece was dry, I glued on brass strips with The Ultimate glue and gel super glue. I added the brass for 2 reasons: it looked good and it covered up any imperfect cuts or folds. I then cut wood brackets out of full size trim I had left over. It looks like they are supporting the hood and I used them to hold 2 copper cooking utensil bars. When the time came to glue the pieces into place. I first glued in the brackets because the hood was rather heavy and these would help hold it in place. As usual the Ultimate glue and gel super glue worked great. I liked the brackets very much, so I made more to hold a shelf that goes around most of the kitchen.

Crown molding, Ogees and Frieze

All the rooms got crown molding or ogees. This enabled me to hide the gap between the ceiling paper and the wallpaper. I painted all the molding strips I needed with the same paint as the ceilings, except for the Library moldings which were finished to look like mahogany. 2 coats was sufficient.

I attached the molding with the Crafter's Pick Ultimate glue and drops of gel super glue every 4 or 5 inches. I applied glue to the top part of the molding (glued to ceiling) and the back of molding (glued to wall). I pressed each piece in place for about 30 seconds. Again, the super glue held them in place while the Ultimate glue dried.

In the Dining Room, because the paper was not quite high enough, I purchased Rococo Frieze molding made by The Lawbre Company. Before the crown molding went up I added a strip of wood 1/8 in thick and 1" high all around the top of the room to act as a spacer for the frieze.
 I painted the frieze with 2 coats of my ceiling paint, regular latex paint from the hardware store, and then I painted all the detail with Ceramcoat Metallic Gold paint and the finest brush I could get at the art supply store. I used a different bruch on each piece as the bristles got used. This step took about 4 hours per 18 inch molding strip, but it was worth it!

When the pieces were dry I cut them with a razar saw blade and miter box and attached them with the Ultimate glue and super glue.  I then added a smaller ogee molding under it. When the glue was dry I used acrylic gesso to fill in the gaps at the joints and touched up the paint.

The other room that got a special molding finish is the Music Room. I purchased plaster moldings from Sue Cook in England. I finished it the same way as the Dining Room frieze, 2 coats of ceiling paint and detailing in Gold paint. I turned the section of the house upside down and glued them on with gap filling adhesive applied with a caulking gun. After touch ups I was very happy!

Ceilings, Wallpaper and Kitchen Tiles.

I don't like painting! When the time came to finish the walls and ceilings I decided everything would get wallpaper for the following reasons
-Wallpaper covers imperfections
-I hate painting, I can never get it as smooth as I want.

I looked at many websites and purchased all my ceiling papers on Ebay. All my wallpaper came from Les Chinoiseries in spain. Of all he dollhouse wallpaper I've seen, Les Chinoiseries is the best! The colors are strong and vibrant, the patterns bold and period appropriate, and the quality of the print is very high and they use good, thick paper. It was a pleasure to work with.

Every miniaturist has their favorite way of applying paper to walls. I went with regular good quality wallpaper paste from my hardware store. The paste is slippery which helps position the paper and adjust it. I applied the paste to the back of the paper with an inexpensive sponge brush, apply it to the wall and smooth it down using a sponge roller brush and my clean hands.
I started with the ceilings. I put the house upside down and the textured paper went onto the primed surface easily.

The next day I painted all the ceilings using a small sponge paint roller except for the library which had a gold colored paper. 2 coates was sufficient.I put the house back right side up and tackled the wallpaper. I applied it exactly the same way as the ceiling, being just a bit more careful not to get any paste on the good side of the paper (since the ceiling was getting paint I wasen't as fussy). I cut the paper to the right height, applied it, waited about 10 minutes, then cut out the window and door openings. Many of the rooms are getting wood paneling, so I left the bottom half uncovered.

The only room I had a problem with was the Girl's Bedroom. It is the only paper that ran when a bit too much paste got on the good side. In the end I can camouflage the imperfections or hide them with furniture and molding, I onle had to re-do one wall.

The kitchen is 14" high so I only tiled the bottom half. I purchased 3d laminated cardboard tile sheets. I applied them just like wallpaper. I was a bit more careful when pressin them down because the sheet is textured and if you push to hard you would damage the tile effect.

Grand Staircase

I had a very specific idea about how I wanted the staircase to look. In order to assemble it and be able to paint in comfortably, I glued the bottom floor, back wall and side wall first, assembled the bottom half of the staircase, finished the the other walls and ceiling, then finished the second half of the staircase.

I started by cutting about 30 pieces of 1/2 inch Mdf  4" wide by 1" deep. I then had a dry run to make sure I liked the look of the staircase

When I was satisfied I glued everything down using carpenter's glue and a spacer I cut out of Mdf to make sure the depth of each step was identical. Once the lower half of the steps were solid, I added molding to create the nosing on each step.

Next, I glued the corner posts in place, added the banister, then glued 2 balusters on each step using a little carpenters glue and a drop of gel super glue. I used primed double thick posterboard to create the wall sections under the steps. When dry I painted the whole staircase with my antique gold base paint

The next step was faux walnut finishing the first half of the staircase. Again, I used oil paints mixed with liquin. A week later, just to make sure the oil paint was completely dry, I added basewood strips I had allready faux finished using Crafter's Pick "The Ultimate" glue. This is a rather thick glue which is easy to use and dries clear. I apply the glue to the back of each strip, but also add a drop of gel super glue at each end and in the center. The super glue keeps the pieces in place while the other glue sets.

Next, I finished assembling the dollhouse wall sections, glued on the last section of the staircase, corner posts, banisters and balusters, faux finished and added the remaining wood strips for the panneling. The effect is exactly what I had hoped for..and only took about 45 hours of work.

Carved Fireplace

When the shell was complete, I decided to tackle the fireplaces for the great room. I wanted the Great room to be very Tudor in style. So I drew up plans for arched fireplaces with carved figures.

The base for the fireplace is a piece of Mdf  7" wide by 14"high (the main floor is 14 inches high and the 2nd floor is 11 1/2 inches high) . After I cut out the opening for the fire box, I did some research and played around with basewood molding. I wanted the fireplaces to look very massive and imposing.

I never sculpted before in my life, but I figured I'd give it a go. I've always liked the myth of the Three graces. I purchased some air-dry clay and sculpted figures using sewing needles and a few carving tools and jeweler's screw drivers. I let them dry for a week and attached them to the MDF base using gel Super Glue. I then cut out a fireplace surround in double thick poster board but didn't glue it into place.

I then covered both fireplaces (I made 2 which will face each other in the Great Room) with acrylic gesso. Gesso is a thick primer which gives a great base for painting and fills in many small cracks and imperfections.

When the gesso was dry, it was time to faux-finish the fireplaces to look like walnut. I used a technique by Ray Whitledge and Scott Burgess I read about in a miniature magazine. I applied a coat of Delta Ceramcoat ( I used Antique Gold color) and let it dry 1 hour. I then used oil paints mixed with liquine and an old paint brush to create the wood grain.

The last step was to make the fireplace surrounds look like marble. I used a thin basewood molding strip to add some detail to the posterboard. Next, Icovered the 2 sides of the piece with 2 coats of acrylic qesso. I then used Delta Ceramcoat water based paints (2 shades of gray, black and white) and a sea sponge to texture the surface, making sure each color dried before the next was applied. I used a toothpick to create vains and when all was dry I put on 3 coats of spray gloss. Finally, I rubbed the surface with 0000 steel whool to tone down the glossy shine and it was ready.

The picture is before the steel whool rubbing.

For the firebox, I used double thick posterboard and some glue to make the box. I then covered it in gesso, painted it in gray (color of the mortar) and applied the magic brick system to create bricks.

Basically you apply a tape with the bricks cut out, then moisten the red powder included to the consistency of frosting, then apply it over the firebox, remove the tape after 5 minutes and let it dry. I finished it with some black paint to make the fireplace look used. Here it is in the room.

Whitledge-Burgess, The Little Dollhouse Company, Mulvany and Rogers

I wanted to take a moment and talk about the people who helped me with this project, my teachers and friends. I live in an area where the dollhouse hobby is not very popular, so I go online and purchased a lot of books and magazines. Every person has different techniques and opinions for making miniatures. Here are the 3 which I chose to follow.

For the construction of the dollhouse and most of my purchases, I turn to THE LITTLE DOLLHOUSE COMPANY in Toronto.

 Maria and John have always been good to me. They sell a  booklet called Dollhouse Details Tips and Tricks with step by step instructions and hints on construction, wallpapering, trim....that I have consulted and followed carefully. I have called them often with questions. John is always helpfull with construction and Maria always goes out of her way to get anything I need. Their friendship has been wonderful.


For interior finishing techniques, I could not have done much of anything without the help of Ray Whitledge and Scott Burgess of WHITLEDGE-BURGESS

In 2006 they wrote a magnificent 4 part article in Miniature Collector magazine on how to build a Panneled Library. Their step by step instruction on faux-finishing, applying moldings, which materials to use and many other techniques proved to be the most important I have learned and I think every miniaturist could benefit from their knowledge. I have contacted them with questions several times and they were always so kind, helpful and willing to share what they know with me.

My favorite miniature book is Magnificent Miniatures from MULVANY AND ROGERS.

 The book has great pictues of the most beautiful miniature reproductions ever built. It is packed with information, techniques and stories that can help anybody build beautiful room. I always carry the book with me and take it out weekly, just to stay inspired and motivated. It is wonderful to look at and gives a lot of  good information.
Links:
http://www.thelittledollhousecompany.com/
http://whitledgeburgess.com/studio/
http://www.mulvanyandrogers.co.uk/

Plans and assembly

The first thing I did was take out all the pieces of furniture I've collected over the years and create rooms that would fit everything. I did a lot of research and made a list of the rooms I wanted. After many variations, the rooms are as follow:

1st floor:
Kitchen                        20" x 24"
Dining Room                16" x 20"
Great Room                 31" x 30"
Entrance and Staircase 12"x 34"
Music Room                20" x 36"

2nd floor:
Dressing Room            20" x 24"
Master Bedroom         16" x 20"
Girl's Bedroom            14" x 17"
Boy's Bedroom           17" x 14"
Bedroom Hall              15" x 31"
Gallery                        12" x 20"
Library                        20" x 36"

The 3d floor dimensions are not finalised yet, but there will be a Nursery, Housekeeper's Room, Bathroom and Sewing room... at least.

The plans were, to put it mildly, overwhelming. I decided to build the structure in 5 sections. Since I wanted to use MDF I knew it would be extremely heavy and I also needed to be able to fit the pieces through doors and my staircase.
I'm lucky enough to have a great father-in-law, Tom, who is always ready to help, encourage and find solutions to my problems. Well, he was patient and listened to all my concerns, and in the end he became the best accomplice I could ask for.

We brought the plans to our hardware store and asked that they cut the pieces in 1/2"Mdf.. By the time I got the pieces, checked them, and had a dry run, I realized they had cut all 87 pieces in 5/8" MDF instead of 1/2". After a mild panic attack, I looked over the plans, did some measuring, and went back to the hardware store. I didn't want to bring back all the pieces, so I had them re-cut about 12 in 1/2 inch Mdf ...the rest I could work around.
 I then drew all the door, window and fireplace openings onto the Mdf and cut them out using a Dremel with a multipurpose cutting guide and  #561 Multipurpose Bits. I made sure I used metal rulers held in place with clamps to get perfect cuts. the dremel worked great!
The final preperation was making channels for wiring. I decided to use the hard wire system. In the past I've used tape wire and it was more trouble then it was worth. I'll discuss wiring later on. I used the dremel with the same multipurpose bit, this time adjusting the cutting guide so the channel would be 1/4" deep. All electric channels go to the back of the house and the power bars will be in a section of the attic

To assemble the shell, I first glued the pieces together using Yellow carpenter's glue. I waited a week and drilled 1/4"holes and added 1 1/4" wood dowels to make sure the structure was solid. The next step was priming the whole structure with Behr Premium Plus Primer and Sealer.