Need A Liil Walk Thru.

[Co0kiie]

Ok. Well Im an art major in school

Ive alwayz been into art.

Nd Makiing thiingz.

Ive alwayz wanted 2 make a dollhouse ever since my mom made 1. ((she never rlly finished)) wen i waz little.

I picked which 1z i like.

The Orchid.

Nd Buttercup.

I rlly dont know which 1 2 pick. Cuz im stuck in the middle. But im guessiing i should pick the buttercup cuz i guess itz eziier. Nd i shouldnt go takiing bigger steps then i can ((I tend 2 do that alot))

ive read sum alot of the forum thingiiez last night.

I understand most.

But sum of it sonfusses me.

But i guess thatll get all cleared up AFTER i actually have the house.

So I have sum questionz so I can get started.

1. Honestly which 1 should i get.

2. Paint. Can i rlly use house paint?

3. The floorz. how duz that werk?

4. Wat r the main thiingz i need 2 buy first?

I guess thatz it 4 now...... :lol:

[Peggi]

Welcome to the forum. Both the Buttercup and the Orchid are pretty straight forward builds. So go for the one you like the looks of best.

You will need some good wood or tacky glue, even though the instructions call for hot glue--only use that for shingles. Yes, you can use regular house paint.

The floors come with the kit and can be stained or you can make wood floors from craft sticks, use dollhouse carpet, tiles any number of finishes.

Be sure and let us know which house you decide on.

[texasbuilder]

Making a doll house may be your life achievement if you don't learn to write and spell correctly. This is not a forum for texting.

Edited January 22, 2008 by texasbuilder

[Co0kiie]

wow.

um.

rude much?

:lol:

[Shy Spirit]

Hello, and welcome to the forum! :lol:

There are lots of good tips in the different threads and topics here. Please keep reading them - you can do searches to find specific information. Ask lots of questions, too. As Holly (you'll meet her soon, I'm sure) always says - there's no such thing as a dumb question! If you need to ask it, there are probably others who also want to know the answer. It helps everyone!

1) I like the Orchid - but then, I like all the dollhouses!

2) House paint works fine, so does craft acrylics.

3) The floors can be done so many ways - it depends on the look you want.

4) An exacto blade, sandpaper, steel ruler (preferably with a no-slip cork backing), masking tape, foam brushes for a smooth finish. I like wood glue or tacky glue for building.

Have you checked out the blogs here? Lots of pics and info. to soak up!

There are also some pinned info - I have to go look for it.

Here's the Forum FAQ page:

http://www.greenleafdollhouses.com/forum/i...hp?showforum=55

[Stenty]

1. Honestly which 1 should i get.

2. Paint. Can i rlly use house paint?

3. The floorz. how duz that werk?

4. Wat r the main thiingz i need 2 buy first?

I guess thatz it 4 now...... :lol:

Hi Courtney,

1. Buy the one you like best.

2. Yes, you can use house paint. Go to the home improvement store and you will find inexpensive high quality paint that is discounted because it wasn't quite the right color. I'm using an interior satin finish.

3. It depends on what kind of floor you want. Do you want wood, carpet, stone, or something else?

4. You will probably need glue, masking tape, Xacto knife, and sandpaper.

Good luck!

[Co0kiie]

Thankz.

((2 The Nice Pple))

I apprecitate the help.

Um.

I Think Imma stick with the buttercup.

I forgot 2 ask about stucko && siding.

I would like to put siding on my house.

My mom said itz hard tho.....

But I would like to know how it works.

Um az far az the floorz go.

I know i want mostly wood floorz.

and i want black and white checker tiles in the kitchen.

and sum kind of tiles in the bathroom.

It just soundz right that way.

:lol:

[Shy Spirit]

I like your ideas, Courtney! Stucco and siding .... I want to try that too! I've read what some people here have done, and it seems "do-able". Try searching the blogs for details. No doubt, some members will post links and tips right here in this thread for you. I know Greenleaf sells dollhouse stucco, so you might want to consider ordering that when you order a dollhouse. Just a thought.

[Peggi]

The Greenleaf stucco is real easy to work with. I used it recently on the Magnolia. Siding is also sold by Greenleaf and it is not hard but can be time consuming.

[BlueUni47]

Hello and welcome

[heidiiiii]

Hello and Welcome!

You said you are an art major..are you taking AP Art in school now? If you are, congrats and I hope you get a great score on your final projects at the end of the year.

Siding is not super hard to do. Measure twice, cut once. If you look in the galleries and blogs you can see how other people have done it.

If you go online you can find colored tiles for the flooring..I have done a black and white checkered floor. As for wood flooring, there are many ways to do it. You can use popscicle sticks, skinny sticks (found in walmart and Ac moore), wooden coffee stirrers, you can score the existing wood floor to look like wood flooring too.

Glad you found us! :lol:

Heidi

[havanaholly]

...Well Im an art major in school ...So I have sum questionz so I can get started.

1. Honestly which 1 should i get.

2. Paint. Can i rlly use house paint?

3. The floorz. how duz that werk?

4. Wat r the main thiingz i need 2 buy first?

Welcome to the forum, but please don't think because many people don't read text messaging that they are being rude for commenting on it.

1) I have built both the Orchid and the Buttercup. The Buttercup has two rooms, no stairs and no interior trim for all the windows & doorway, I make my own. The Orchid has four rooms if you choose to use the interior divider walls, and stairs, and all the interior and exterior trims for door & windows. The builds are really straighforward for both houses.

2) You can use whatever paint you want to. I would stay away from oil-based enamel paint only because of the smell and clean up is more of a bear. Interior latex paint washes up with soap & water and can be mixed with acrylic paint.

3) There are all kinds of ways to finish floors. I use the back corner of a utility knife and a steel straight-edge/ ruler and scribe "boards" directly into the plywood floor piece, both lengthwise and crosswise and then go back with a small awl/ punch to make nailholes in the ends of the boards (I didn't try the nailholes in my 1:24 floorboards, though). When I stain the floors I let the stain "sit" for a few minutes before wiping it off with a rag, and this lets the stain pick out the scribed lines & punched holes. I have also used self-adhesive vinyl shelf covering, regular vinyl tile (Tracy shows Rik Pierce's trick with vinyl tile to make it look like stone flooring), the flooring that comes with Dura-Craft kits, split siding like comes with the Greenleaf kits, scraps of full-sized upholstery fabric for carpet, rugs I've stitched in miniature, and painted & decoupaged treatments. I haven't tried the craft sticks because I use so many other methods I like as well, but they also make very lovely floors.

Tiling floors is easier if you make a template of the floor first, although I've been known to go ahead and tile the floor after the dry fit and before assembly with glue. I prime the floor to be tiled first, if I use paper tiles the primer ends up being "grout". You can use paper, paintchip samples, ceramic tiles, adhesive vinyl tile (such as is sold in the Greenleaf store), tile-patterned vinyl shelf-liner, paperclay or make your own tiles from polymer or other clay.

4) What to buy first? Well, the kit, obviously. What supplies do you already have?

a good craft or utility knife with lots of blades (as an art student you may have already learned about not ever using an old, dull blade)is nice

lots of masking tape

carpenter's wood glue

a cork-backed steel ruler, even if you don't choose to scribe your floorboards

sandpaper, a sanding block, emery boards

clamps (spring-type, bar clamps, right-angle pony clamp is handy but not crucial)

I use spackling compound for stucco (also stonework, plaster, filler, pargets... not bricks, however, as I use tiny bits of sandpaper cut into scale brick shapes). Siding, like shingles, is time-consuming and a bit tedious, but I enjoy tedium because my mind goes wandering off into "The Zone" where I problem-solve & plan decor, bashes or the next build.

Questions you might want to think about:

1) what does the kit tell you it wants to be/ look like?

2) will it be easier to decorate as you go, or after the shell's together?

3) what do you want to change or add to it?

I love everything about minis, from building kits to making the little people who will live in them. I'm so glad to see another young miniaturist join in, as you get into building and decorating and problem-solving you'll bring a lot of new ideas, too. A lot of different answers to your questions are available with the "search" feature, too; but sometimes hard to find, so we're happy to answer questions. Building dollhouses is lots of fun.

[New Day]

:lol: Courtney!

[CJEP]

Hi and :lol:, Courtney!! The most important thing to remember is to relax and enjoy building your house.

[TinyJudi]

Hi and welcome.

[Hallowell]

:lol: Welcome

[Minis On The Edge]

Hello & Welcome to the Neighborhood!!

[Co0kiie]

UGH!

Im So UGH!

Thankz For The help guyz.

Rlly.

But I Cant choose what house i want.

Im rlly into both the buttercup and the orchid.

I dont want my house to be overly elaborate.

But I do want it to b nice.

&& Somthiing I Can B Proud Of.

I dont need to put soooo much furniture in it.

Just enough so that i can put my own touch on it.

I want a bedroom. kitchen. bathroom. and living room.

thatz it.

but i dont know if thatll fit in the buttercup.

with the buttercup i know the living room and kitchen will b 1 great room on the 1st floor ((if itll fit))

and ill need 2 fing a divider so i can fit a tiny bathroom upstairs.

i know itll all definatlly fit in the orchid.

but i dont want to get something too big for me.

i know itz small.

but ive never done thiz b4.

i need sum1 2 tell me.

orchid.

or buttercup.

im doiing this all on my own.

&& im trying to teach myself.

i just need sum help guyz :lol:

also.

i want to put sum brick.

therez 2 wayz i thiink i can do it.

can sum1 tell me if im right?

I herd that there iz textured wallpaper?

and um.

can i just take sum air dry clay like the crayola one.

put in a brick pattern and paint it?

or do i need a diff clay/diff process?

[heidiiiii]

Which house sings to you?

Which one out of the two do you keep going back to? that is the one then..and if you become hopelessly addicted to dhs like the rest of us..you can always build the one you didnt choose in the first place.

I have done an Orchid and it is a nice build. Lots of room..very versatile.

[uppitycats]

(I don't suppose we should introduce her to "bashing" just yet...like, combining the two houses into one BIGGER house... :lol: )

[Cricket]

Hello and :lol: Courtney!

Choosing which house to build is really a personal preferance. Ask yourself, what is it about each of the 2 that you really like? Which one do you find you go back to look at more? And, which one fits your vision best? Space is not much of an issue since neither the Buttercup nor the Orchid are very large. Personally? I like the Orchid better, but that doesn't mean YOU should choose it over the Buttercup.

Whichever one you decide on, we'll be here to help you along and answer your questions. Good luck!

[Shy Spirit]

Here's a tutorial on making bricks with egg cartons. You can see many examples of these bricks in the galleries of some of our talented members!

http://www.miniland.ca/BRICK1.html

There are lots of different ways to make bricks - sandpaper, printed paper, painted on with stencils, "MagikBrik" (sp?), cardboard .... the more you look around this place, the more you will find!

Why not move to the General Mini Talk section to post more questions? That way, perhaps more members will see the question and have an answer for you - or, they might want to know more about the very thing you're asking about. They'll follow along with your thread, to gather all the help and advice that you'll be receiving. :lol:

[havanaholly]

Courtney, you can make extra walls from foamcore and prime both sides and paint or wallpaper them and install them in your little house. Take a deep breath and "listen" to both houses; the one that "speaks" to you is probably the one to begin with.

How beautifully your house turns out is the direct result of the time and careful work you put into it, not how much money you spend and surely not how fast you can put it together.

I make "bricks" from sandpaper, and here's how. I glue them on one by one, as described here. This is the first house I used the sandpaper bricks on:

There are many other ways to do bricks, or any other treatments you want to try. I always make a sample to try out a technique, and if I like how the sample looks I try it on my house; and sometimes I like the sample fine but I don't like it on the house, and take it all off and start over.

[Wolfie]

Hello and welcome Cookie! You'll have lots of fun here, I can tell!