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Nine different views on building the Coventry Cottage

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Almost finished

I still need to glue on the shingles,that will have to wait a little while. I glue them on and 24 hours later the glue is still not dry, and they shift and look crooked. I took off what little I did glue on and will re do it when there is a little less numidity in the house. I also still need to build the furniture, will use in another house. When looking into the bay window from outside you can see dressed maniquins on display. This is a view of inside

darrellandmelissa

darrellandmelissa

Entry way

Once the roof was on, the next step was making the lattice work enclosure for the front porch. On the porch, there will be a house shrine for Buddha as well as a formal gong. I used bamboo skewers to make the lattice work. I cut them to size first with my EZ Cutter and then used the EZ Cutter to "bite" down gently and give the bamboo a full turn to score the joints into the bamboo. After the joints were scored in, I put the markings on the bamboo by running each piece back and

Deb

Deb

Thatched roof--fun with fur

Time for the roof! I wasn't quite sure exactly how I was going to thatch the roof. Raffia or coconut fiber was the most likely choice, but I wasn't really happy with the look of raffia. To me, it wasn't quite to scale and it just had a rough look that didn't please me. Then Carol came to my rescue! She told me about a Derek Rowbottom technique of using fake fur and varnish for a thatched roof. Obviously, my first reaction was, "Will my japanese house look like it's wearing a russian hat?".

Deb

Deb

4/3/06, foundation, roof & kitchen sink

I finished spreading spackle around the foundations pieces and carving the blocks. I wasn't overjoyed with the prospect of paint, I want it to look like bare concrete block, so I tried my India ink & isopropyl alcohol mixture. Better, probably won't show up in the picture. I'm finishing up trimming the edges of the roof openings with foil. When I made my Belfast sink for the pub I had all this nice thin, flat clay for the bowl, so I made extra and also the plumbing. This t

havanaholly

havanaholly

4/2/06, fiddling with the foundation

I finished installing the foundation pieces and then I masked off areas I didn't want to prime and primed them. I masked a couple of more places and began to apply the spackling compound to make a "concrete block" foundation. This tub of spackle has developed the "dry fluffs" that afflicted my spackle tub building the Glencroft, but I have another tub in reserve if this one quits on me before I finish. I spackled the foundation across the back and after I got the excess off I took a roun

havanaholly

havanaholly

3/31/06, the porch is on!

I painted the shutters last night and installed them this morning. They look alright. I like the effect of the foil over the roof seams so well I think I want to use it on the edges of the open roof areas, as well; I have a test strip drying. I installed the screen porch. It finally fit! I cut 1/4" round dowel for sink legs, I'm going with another Belfast sink (since I made THREE!) so I began painting the spigot handles. I

havanaholly

havanaholly

Exterior woodwork

Before adding the woodwork, I applied the stucco to the exterior walls. That was so much fun! I'd never used stucco before, but I'm a firm believer in it now. It's such a nice treatment and it really helps cover the seams where the walls were bashed. I stained skinny sticks and used them for the planks on the porch. There will be lattice work added around the edges of the porch to create an entry way so I left off the end stick till I decided how I'll want to mount the enclosure.

Deb

Deb

3/30/06, roofing

I sprayed the corrugated cardboard pieces with aluminum paint and then I assembled the roof. I'm not using the gingerbread or the finials, so I lopped off the curvy rounded thingies at the gable peaks. I had to perform minor surgery on the divider wall. Then I glued each currogated cardboard piece onto its roof section. I had gapping at the ridgelines, so I made ridgecaps from strips of heavy-duty aluminum foil. 

havanaholly

havanaholly

Wallpaper

I finally repaired all of my paint damage. Since I'm not going to electrify this house, I thought I would wallpaper before assembly. Last year while working on the Lily, I was fortunate enough to go into a local paint store and picked up for free several sample wallpaper books (about 10). So I spent time going through the various books to figure out what was small enough in scale to use. I still hope to make this a dance studio, so the long first floor room will ser

Peggi

Peggi

3/29/06, front bay windows & curtains & exterior

I finished painting the interior trim for the front bay windows white and made the curtains. I installed the acetate inserts and then installed the windows in the bay. I had some 2"+ wide whitish trimming lace with an alternating pattern of roses & leaves and I cut 1/8" dowel into two sections per window the length of the interior width of the interior window trim and painted the pieces lightly with gold glittery nail enamel. I cut the lace into four

havanaholly

havanaholly

3/26/06, kitchen windows

I painted the inside trim for the kitchen bay windows blue. DH had an old blue & white striped shirt I've dressed a few dolls from and I liberated another piece of sleeve to make window shades. First I cut a "skinny" craft stick the width of the inside of the frame. I also cut two toothpicks the same width. Then I cut the craft stick in half lengthwise. Since the shirt fabric likes to ravel a tad, I cut it 1/4" wider than the outer width of the frame, which gave me a hem allowanc

havanaholly

havanaholly

Starting on the inside

I put in a floor with siding stained it and added a curtain and baseboards to the main shop area. Crown moulding will have to wait until I get some. The dressing room has a few things in it now, Curtains, baseboard, crown moulding, curtains on the window and dressing room. A few dresses hanging in bags waiting for the cutsomers to pick up their orders. This room seems too dark. Darrell is going to build me a battery light box, so I can put a lamp in there to brighten

darrellandmelissa

darrellandmelissa

Slow but sure Progress

Last weekend, about the only thing accomplished was Riley got the foam board floor cut and cut the wall so that it will fit. I got a little sanding done with some help from 6 yr. old Rebecca. She wanted to help, so I handed her an emory board and let her work on some tabs. She loved it. At one time she did have the sanding block, and did a fair job of following the grain except when she decided another spot needed sanding and zip across the grain she went--luckily

Peggi

Peggi

3/24/06, curtains for curved windows

You may wonder why it took me ALL DAY to make curtains for two little windows with curved tops. Well, I've never made this type of curtain before and I handsew everything. First I cut four toothpicks the length of the window widths at the beginning of the arched tops. Then I rooted through my lace stash and found the colors I thought would look good. I had some seambinding lace the color I wanted for the bathroom. I cut four pieces the same length to make two

havanaholly

havanaholly

3/23/06, interior, upstairs

I installed the baseboards I'd painted white in the living/ diningroom. I used scrapbook borders I had left over to make baseboard trim in the kitchen. I use some other leftovers to trim the bathroom's two walls. Then I cut and painted the bedroom's baseboards. I painted the interior of the roof white. Next I installed the bathroom floor with wallpaper paste (well, it IS wallpaper, after all ). Then I got carried away with the white glue and smeared it all ov

havanaholly

havanaholly

3/22/06, trimming the bay & porch roofs, and more

I painted the trims for the porch & bay roofs. I cut the felt and applied it to the bay & porch roofs with white glue and then I installed the trim with wood glue. Today I painted the downstairs ceilings and primed the inside of the roof pieces. Later I'll paint them. I cut the marbled wallpaper I shall use for the bathroom floor, as well as some waleless rust-colored upholstry corduroy I found in a bag of remnants I b

havanaholly

havanaholly

3/21/06, the siding is on

Two coats of my bug juice turned the siding the basic color I wanted and then I painted it with a wash; I dipped the tip end of the brush into the primer & then into water & brushed it on. The finished result is a well-weathered exterior that looks like it has sat through a few S GA summers (& autumns, & winters...). I hung the front door and glued on some of the anaglypta wallpaper border I found in a thrift shop, and when everything is nice & dr

havanaholly

havanaholly

Bashed roof

I was a little nervous about putting on the roof after I'd bashed it so much and created a couple of new pieces for the roof top. I think I dry fit it at least a dozen times before I got the courage to actually glue it. I put the sides/corners on the back of the house first since back of the roof connects to them. Once they were in place, I was ready to add the roof pieces in stages. I put the large pieces on the front of the roof first: Then the pieces on the sides:

Deb

Deb

Putting up the walls

Now that all the "construction" work was done in whacking off pieces and creating others, I was ready to start the "R&P" part of the build. I wanted a light and airy look to the house, so instead of wallpaper, I'm using an ivory colored card stock that has a bamboo style texturing. The window woodwork is stained in golden pecan. The exterior color is a very light tan and there will be two shades of brown for the accent colors. I painted the exteriors first and then papered the interio

Deb

Deb

The Samurai's Summer House

When I first saw the Coventry Cottage, the first thing that impacted me was the open airy look of the floorplan and I began to see it as a Japanese summer house. Considering that it is a victorian cottage, that's quite a stretch, but the potential was there. I've bashed a little bit on some other kits, but mostly individual features, not an entire house. This little house has so much potential to be anything the builder wants it to be that I had the courage to start a major bash. The roo

Deb

Deb

Not a Tower But a Roof?

Over the weekend we were looking at house by the lake. Of course I did not have my camera but I saw a house very similar to the Coventry (Maybe I saw it before which is why the both look so similar now). I have decided to add a roof to the added room that I made where the porch is originally. I am not sure if this is what I will keep which why I only used foam board for now. If I keep this one I will make the roof parts out of wood and cover the enitire house with clay. Please tell

Minis On The Edge

Minis On The Edge

3/20/06, the siding is on!

I finished putting on the exterior siding. To give it a more "rustic" feel I didn't draw parallel horizontal lines, I "eyeballed" it. Then I began painting on the "bug juice". I'm using the rubbing alcohol + India ink mixture and I'll do a few more coats, then I'll "wash" on the primer for a worn look. In between sections of siding I got the porch glued back together. I'll finish sanding the front door and doorframe whilst I'm getting the exterior siding "aged". I t

havanaholly

havanaholly

3/19/06, siding, excitement & the porch revisited

I put the siding on the front porch walls and painted it, now I'm putting the rest of the siding on the exterior. I did the walls on either side of the kitchen bay and the upstairs wall (bathroom) above it, and then both the back wall pieces. I'm not going to put siding on the window part of the bay, but the flat wall below it looks nekkid without SOMETHING, so I put siding on it to see how I liked it, and I like it very much. I am using the EZ Cutter to cut the s

havanaholly

havanaholly

Moving right along

I am a bit farther along then these pictures show, but have to take some more pics. This house is turning out better then I had imagined it. I added all the siding and outside trim. I had decided on bright yellow to make it cheerful. Not sure why I picked that color, as I am not fond of yellow. I chose a complimentry cheerful wallpaper design for the main shop area. For the dressing room. I will add a partition for a dressing room.

darrellandmelissa

darrellandmelissa

3/17/06, still working on downstairs

I cut one of the kitchen door frames into three sections and glued them to the back of the Houseworks door, trimmed the overhang flush with the door frame & installed it & it fits PERFECTLY. I "beadboarded"/ vertically sided both sides of the foamboard divider wall I made and have begun to paint it. I want to make the bedroom walls almond and I'm thinking yellow for the bathroom, with white trim for the interior windows. I haven't done anything with "fixing" the porch yet, b

havanaholly

havanaholly

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