SW Ohio DH Preservation Society

[UVsaturated]

Okay, so the DH preservation society does not really exist as far as I know officially, but here in my town I feel like I saved a future gem from the trash can.

So let me tell you about my Garfield. She is a little worse for wear. Her joints creak and her wood has that aged brown appearance, because her owners only lived there if for a short while. She was left isolated and alone for a few years while she was neglected.

She'll be dismantled soon, but not at the business end of an excavator or wrecking ball. I got this house on my makeshift project table and will soon be taking her down and putting her back again.

I have a lot of ideas, so stay tuned and look for updates.

Check out my gallery:

(I know it isn't much yet - just a record of a Garfield rehab)

[uppitycats]

Actually, she started out life that aged brown!

When you get to putting her back together, you'll want to pay attention to all the little "blind corners" and "funny angles" of the roof that become ceiling on the underside, and the third floor rooms - all that will be impossible to reach easily once all the walls are glued in place! You'll want to think about how you're going to decorate (or wire, if you're going "electric") BEFORE you open the first bottle of glue!

My Garfield build is documented -- probably with more pics than you'll ever want to see -- in my gallery. She's a lovely house when she's put together. My Lady Garfield was my first build (actually my only start-to-finish build..the others, so far, have been rehabs). A challenge, to be sure, but a lovely house when she's done!

[UVsaturated]

Actually, she started out life that aged brown!

When you get to putting her back together, you'll want to pay attention to all the little "blind corners" and "funny angles" of the roof that become ceiling on the underside, and the third floor rooms - all that will be impossible to reach easily once all the walls are glued in place! You'll want to think about how you're going to decorate (or wire, if you're going "electric") BEFORE you open the first bottle of glue!

Funny you should mention that. I have been mulling over that very issue. I want this house to be detailed well and fully functional for play for little hands. It isn't going to be just to look at, so I noticed all the impossible spaces on the 3rd floor. My intentions are to bash the kit somewhat so that the back roof is removable as well as the minor wing. My problem right now is that I am still shooting for an epiphany of how to do it. The structure is designed to only support itself the way it is. Any hacking and sawing will require adding additional support, so that is something I will ponder until I come up with something decent.

The reason I want the right hand (looking from the inside) wing to come off is for handling and moving. It is in my basement now, which will be where it stays until I someday move. The stairs themselves are tight, check this out:

For me, it was still a challenge to get half the house down there. I know that the house will have to be in two halves and another section of a board to mount it to.

So far as the wiring, I have a lighting kit that was included with this house, but I am not going to use it. The idea of wire tape and exposed wiring does not suit me. I am tossing ideas of how to either embed the wires into grooves in the wall and then fill it, or create a double-thick wall in which to run wire - not sure yet which way I will go.

My Garfield build is documented -- probably with more pics than you'll ever want to see -- in my gallery. She's a lovely house when she's put together. My Lady Garfield was my first build (actually my only start-to-finish build..the others, so far, have been rehabs). A challenge, to be sure, but a lovely house when she's done!

I will check out your gallery. I think I probably already did as I found a huge archive of pics of a Garfield on here already. Probably yours.

Thanks for the comments. Keep in touch.

[uppitycats]

Another awkward place is the kitchen entryway..and the wall that angles there, and is the wall of the dining room on the other side (or sitting room -- the inner room next to the kitchen. I didn't think about that when I built mine, and ended up having to paint it rather than wallpaper, as my hands are too big and clumsy to get in there to paper, after construction.

I left off the back dormers on my Garfield, and the inside wall that walls off the staircase. I think if you get the foundation really secure and the walls in place, you'd be able to keep it in two sections. It really is a big house..it's now the focus of my living room.

[UVsaturated]

Another problem with separating it is that on the right side, there is no uniform seam where the interior walls line up with a roof line on the outside. The inside walls extend in an inch or so, where the outside is and I would hate to create a seam across the porch or roof.

I think my solution may be to stretch the width by an inch or so and create a common seam - that's an idea.

[havanaholly]

how to either embed the wires into grooves in the wall and then fill it, or create a double-thick wall in which to run wire

Ben, Baseboards come with a groove to accommodate the round wire. Floor and wall templates (or wainscots or chairrails) can cover any vertical runs you might need to make. Just suggestions.

I have read somewhere (here or another forum) that someone did build the Garfield in sections for transportability.