What's everyone working on?

[havanaholly]

11 hours ago, stickyfingers said:

Oh, and has anyone used the Greenleaf vinyl tiles? What do they really look like? Marble? Ceramic tile? The tile might be a possibility for the kitchen, bath, or living room.

Ahem.  Greenleaf vinyl tiles:

1:12:

1:24

Note, the black floor is a piece of vinyl tile I bought a box of at Family Dollar donkey's years ago, and I used the Greenleaf tiles to make the border.  The "terra cotta" tiles are painted paper.

[KathieB]

The photos don't really tell the story. In Holly's, I'd be hard to pick out what's tile and what's paper. That's the good part of the smoke and mirrors we deal with. I think Linda wants a pronouncement as to how the finished floor "reads" to the viewer --- does it look sort of satiny, like vinyl tile, or shinier, like ceramic?

[kathi17]

I've had a really busy summer, but I'm finally getting a chance to get back into my minis now. I've been using a small battery powered LED kit I bought a while back to wire my ryokan. I need to get more lights and things before I can finish it, but I am loving making lights! I'm also getting more accessories done for it, and cutting styrofoam insulation to do some landscaping. It's really good to be back working on it!

[havanaholly]

3 hours ago, KathieB said:

The photos don't really tell the story. In Holly's, I'd be hard to pick out what's tile and what's paper. That's the good part of the smoke and mirrors we deal with. I think Linda wants a pronouncement as to how the finished floor "reads" to the viewer --- does it look sort of satiny, like vinyl tile, or shinier, like ceramic?

The Greenleaf tiles are cut down from RL top-quality self-adhesive vinyl tiles, so how they finish would depend on the way you finish them.  I don't put anything of them, as I don't care for gloss in mini.

[Soapz]

21 hours ago, stickyfingers said:

I'm going with the spackle, only because there are smears and blobs of what seems to be spackle on it from the prior owner, and it's so securely on there, I'm having to scrape it off with a craft knife. This is going to be a tricky repair, because I have to try and match the profile of the rest of the trim, but can't carve or sand too vigorously, because it's kind of delicate. And hollow. I'm a few days of work away from getting to it, so I'll keep you posted. I also thought of using the Testers putty (made for plastic models) but don't know how well it would do on these larger areas.   

Did you think of trying Bondo? I did some detailed repair and restoration work with it. I mixed small amounts and then used pottery and dental tools to sculpt. The good - it will never come off, it reinforces existing material; the bad: you got 10 minutes until it dries, it will never come off......

I would also consider air dry clay as a foundation, when dry, give it a enough spackle to cover and then sculpt/sand it - I would probably try this for the trim first. 

[Anna]

Did a little finishing touches of the faux wicker baby cot I have been fiddling with, found perfect fabrics for the bedding;

[havanaholly]

Oh, Anna!  It's so dainty and baby girly!  All you need now is for  wee mobile to hang, and a fat, happy little baby.

[Sable]

3 hours ago, Anna said:

Did a little finishing touches of the faux wicker baby cot I have been fiddling with, found perfect fabrics for the bedding;

Absolutely adorable! 

[Anna]

Thank you Holly and Sable, it is soooo much fun weaving and adaptions according to the Idea of shapes and colour panterns etc. Contemplating another version of the baby cot, or rather a Mose's basket on a stand with a sheer curtain around the top part... We'll see. 

Hugs 

[MaryKate]

Anna, that is incredible. So sweet!

You all will probably laugh at me, and that's okay: today I got an Easy Cutter for the first time. Five minutes into working with it I was asking it where it had been all my life! I have a great miter box and a miter saw, but this thing--THIS THING. Holy cumquats. In no time, and with very little waste, I had cut all the pieces I needed to make new windows for my Orchid, and they went together beautifully because the cuts were so accurate. All the window pieces and frames are already drying under stacks of books. Consider me a convert.

[kathi17]

That is so beautiful Anna. Your wicker keeps getting more and more beautiful all the time!

[kathi17]

2 hours ago, MaryKate said:

You all will probably laugh at me, and that's okay: today I got an Easy Cutter for the first time. Five minutes into working with it I was asking it where it had been all my life! I have a great miter box and a miter saw, but this thing--THIS THING. Holy cumquats. In no time, and with very little waste, I had cut all the pieces I needed to make new windows for my Orchid, and they went together beautifully because the cuts were so accurate. All the window pieces and frames are already drying under stacks of books. Consider me a convert.

I know what you mean about the Easy Cutter. I lost mine for a few years, and just found it again this summer. They are really wonderful!

I'm sort of glad I lost mine though, because I missed it so much that last November my mother was going to get me a new one for my birthday. They didn't have any left at the store, so she got me a Chopper 2 instead. Now that I have found the Easy Cutter again, I have both. Each tool is wonderful, and they both are better at some things than the other, so now I have the best of both worlds!

[nuttiwebgal]

I have the nieces wedding items all packed and ready to go out Friday...

took the haunted house down off the shelf and have scrubbed it clean and removed its moss roof...most of it came off with no issues...had to loose the going through the wall ghost...his clothing was much too dingy for my liking but I will replace him before Halloween...all electrical s are removed not sure how most of the wires got cut but its all out of there for now...I like the idea of the strip lighting hidden away from sight...   I do not plan much in way of remodel it is after all a Haunted house...but it lost its perch so a base will be added and some landscaping in a way that it can sit with Madame Bo'ney's travel trailer.  I have to make a trip around to see what kind of Moss  will replace what I used before...we now know that kind turns an orange red shade after 10 yrs...could be from storage cuz the travel trailer's roof does not look like that.....

so while I waited to see what the disinfectant washing would do to the interior of the haunted house I spent an hour painting the Queen....there is no turning back now...it is going to be white....all white until the next color and step are firmly in my mind...its very scary to take paint to a perfectly painted item...well it wasnt perfect and no way could I match the colors so might as well go crazy!  the door is an off white that is begging to be painted RED! and idea what color the rails want to be?....sigh... it is here I would take any ideas about a porch floor....it is now white but Im thinking a gray? 

my daughter informed me at her birthday dinner to get prepared for her company every weekend in Oct....I have already moved the sewing machine out to the dinning room table and have all my flower arranging items in a basket on same (7ft) table...I am ready...bring it!

and that was yesterdays post....lol...

today spent more time working on the Queen...I have it taped off now so I can get into the nitty gritty of the detailing...

gathered more flower arranging items to the bin on the table...the less I have to buy cuz I found it in my stash the better! 

chaos reigns supreme!

[madtex1967]

I have been working steady on the Victoriana!  I have the porch finished and am painting the trim pieces to cover the end of the walls and floors.  Once they are dry and ready to go, I will finish up on trimming it out.  I will only have to finish the roof assembly and securing all the electrical.  I am so close.  I am ready to start the new project that kept me awake all night . . . 

[minikelli]

Been working on some minis that aren't going in any of my houses, but enjoying the fun of something different... Anyways, in regards to what I've been working on for my own builds -- my MacKenzie Childs inspired build has been completely primed on the interior and exterior pieces. Got my shingles picked out as well, will be the first build I use asphalt shingles on. Hoping tomorrow if it doesn't rain, that I'll be able to finish decoupaging my courtly check tissue paper on the outside. 

Today I also managed to have some fun working on the Brownstone -- got my quoin stones done! Yea!!! However, have to admit getting in touch with my inner child with the stained glass windows and finger painting glass paint -- more fun than I'm sure I should have had... but hey I enjoyed it, and the way they're drying I'm thinking I'll have to remember that little trick! 

 

[havanaholly]

Aren't hobbies the way we let our inner child out to play?

[rodentraiser]

What inner child? When I'm doing my hobbies, that's the real me - I never grew up. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

[thresadep]

I need an Easy Cutter.  Keep reading about it. Seems amazing.  Also need a miter box.  I have been using the paper miter template that came with my dollhouse.   I really want to make a list of tools needed. Then I can check off as I get them and it won't seem overwhelming.

Not done any doll house for a week. Did go buy some more scrapbook paper for wallpaper and some strips of balsa wood for backup trim.  Think I may go out in the morning before work to see what I can get into. I do need to paint lots of window trim.   

[Sable]

Cleaned up my work area today since I have two club members coming over so we can finish the tapewire for their Primrose projects. Last night I experimented making sidewalks for the club's village with self drying clay. This morning they were dry enough to move and they cracked into mega pieces. That's when I realized this clay was not paperclay. Ugh!  Remade the sidewalks using premixed sanded grout.  

[MaryKate]

Thresa, I used a 40% off coupon for the Easy Cutter and got it for $17. I was hesitant at $35-40, but for the price I got it I took the leap and it's totally worth it.

Spent a lot of today painting pieces for the Backyard Bungalow/Barn I'm making for my nephew (ye gourds and little fishes, that MDF soaks up paint!) and cutting new trim for the Orchid. For the most part it's going well, but for the life of me I can't get the porch rails to come out right. It's that repeating pattern of arches. If I try it on 1/16" basswood, it's too thin and breaks, and I can't get two together that are alike enough that I can laminate them together and sand. I tried using mat board and simplified the pattern a bit, but the cutouts didn't look right. Can't even go back and do the sanding/filling/sanding routine with the original pieces because both of them are crumbling apart. 

I love the carpenter gothic look of that railing, but I'm going to have to find some other way to achieve it (some way that doesn't involve purchasing a laser cut substitute that costs almost as much as the whole Orchid kit). Weirdly, so far the gable trims are coming out great. It's just that railing giving me fits. Time to take a step back and consider some alternatives.

[minikelli]

Today, still having fun with the stained glass. Have several parts that I chose to peel off and re-do as I didn't like how they turned out -- but still enjoying the learning curve of them. Valid point in regards to the fun we should have with our hobbies, just seems I tend to be a perfectionist and not enjoy as much as I should. Really trying to adjust that about myself and how I approach things! Other point of work on my Brownstone today, I've been slowly but surely applying all of my brick stencils to the front. Hoping tomorrow to apply the stencil to the sections on the back that need additional brick. Slowly but surely this is finally getting closer to the finish line of being done! 

[havanaholly]

I feel like a stuck record, but for all you perfectionists out there, the real world isn't perfect!  If you spent half the time going for realism instead of "perfection" you'd be happier and have a lot more fun!

[KathieB]

3 hours ago, havanaholly said:

I feel like a stuck record, but for all you perfectionists out there, the real world isn't perfect!  If you spent half the time going for realism instead of "perfection" you'd be happier and have a lot more fun!

True, Holly, but some folks are hard wired for perfection or something darn' near it. Sloppy craftsmanship bugs me and is unacceptable.  For me, working through the process, trying new techniques -- that's the fun part. That's what makes me happy. I like the challenge of aiming as near to perfection as I can, tempered with a goodly dose of realization that I'm not often going to hit the bullseye.I take the middle ground, me. In the end, I'm happy to settle for something that resembles perfection.  

[MaryKate]

Oh, trust me (and I'm speaking only for myself here), if my efforts at those porch posts had even approached realism, I might have been satisfied. The only way those poor sad babies were realistic is if realism="these look like the house carpenter gave saws to a pack of five-year-olds and let them go at it." ;)

Which isn't to say I'm not a perfectionist, because that would be a total lie (I'm totally Angelica Schuyler: "I will never be satisfied!"). You should see how many drafts my writing goes through! But with hobbies like this, I agree with Kathie; it's the trying and failing and trying again to make something that comes close to the picture I have in my head that's the fun part. I love the process, and I love that after years of learning how the process works for me, I know now that if I'm not satisfied, I need to walk away, rant for a bit, and then let my back brain process new approaches until I come up with a solution that works for me. And when it works I do my Happy Dance. 

[havanaholly]

5 hours ago, MaryKate said:

Oh, trust me (and I'm speaking only for myself here), if my efforts at those porch posts had even approached realism, I might have been satisfied. The only way those poor sad babies were realistic is if realism="these look like the house carpenter gave saws to a pack of five-year-olds and let them go at it." ;)

Which isn't to say I'm not a perfectionist, because that would be a total lie (I'm totally Angelica Schuyler: "I will never be satisfied!"). You should see how many drafts my writing goes through! But with hobbies like this, I agree with Kathie; it's the trying and failing and trying again to make something that comes close to the picture I have in my head that's the fun part. I love the process, and I love that after years of learning how the process works for me, I know now that if I'm not satisfied, I need to walk away, rant for a bit, and then let my back brain process new approaches until I come up with a solution that works for me. And when it works I do my Happy Dance. 

And IMO that is one of the joys of a hobby.