kat57 Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 Well,I've changed my mind again! First,apologies to anyone who offered help when I was considering a board and batten exterior. But,researching that finish actually led me to decide for sure that I'm doing "The Cool Breeze" (Dura-Craft Ashley) exterior in a corrugated tin siding finish! I have been looking at a number of dollhouse cottages done with this look,as well as looking at charming real life examples online in Google images. It has the cozy effect I wanted and I have no problem getting the corrugated cardboard I'll need. At least I assume that's what these other dollhouses were sided in...? There's an Orchid in our member's gallery that looks really good in this finish,but I'm not sure if she used cardboard,or if there's a 12 scale corrugated product that gives the effect...anyone else know if there is? The exterior will be painted white with green trim and I was thinking I would coat the bare cardboard with Mod Podge first,to stiffen it somewhat. (Thoughts?) I plan to run the 'tin' vertically,but I also saw photos of it used on real life builds running horizontally,which is kinda cool,too. I mean,this was always meant to be a 'little' bit shabby chic,anyway-just with more color added! I guess the fact that I got sidetracked from doing any mini-ing this weekend with yard work,and the resulting pain (yikes!) was a good thing... ^_^ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HelenV Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 Oooh sounds lovely ... can't wait to see photo's .Love the colours you've chosen. Sorry can't help with the corrugated question except to say the advice I was given for my roof was to use corrugated cardboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravenswing Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 Kat, the corregated cardboard is one way to go, the cardboard can sometimes be found for free but adding the mod podge will add a little bit of cost to it but is necessary to stiffen it up. Have to be careful though because it is basically paper and too much podge may make it collapse on itself long before it stffens. I found this site for you that sells the corregated siding in plastic 7x12 inch sheets in varying widths. (they sell it in aluminum too but right now only have one sheet in stock) It's down at the bottom of the page and is reasonably priced. http://www.virtualdollhouse.net/VDSTORE/Quarter-Builing%20supplies.htm here's a close-up: http://www.virtualdollhouse.net/images/VD%20The%20Store/MBS%20photos/Finishing%20Sheets/plastic%20metal.jpg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kat57 Posted October 29, 2013 Author Share Posted October 29, 2013 Thanx for the link,Judith. I plan to go ahead with cardboard,but that plastic stuff looks very real! I'm a Mod Podge nut,because it's so versatile,so it's one item I don't mind spending the money on and I have a big jar on hand. Yeah,I'll be sure to experiment to get it right without ruining the cardboard-and it's free anyway! Thanx,Helen! I had forgotten that corrugated cardboard was recently discussed for your roof,until I was 'searching' and saw those posts. Although there's a good bit in the archives about using C.C. on roofs,nobody really says anything about siding. But,I have heard back from a member I PM'd who used it on her beautiful Orchid(Jannika),and I am sure now I can make it work for my house,too. ^_^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacey6163 Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 Sounds like the Cool Breeze is going to be AWESOME!! I love this siding , and I agree with you on the mod podge - it is great ! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dalesq Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 I think it will be fun with that siding! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morgansmith Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 Kat I love aged tin corrugated roofs. I use scrapbook paper from Michael's and it works excellent. I do 2 light layers of sealer (brush or spray) then 3 light layers of dark grey, 2 layers of silver/aluminum/etc. metallic then I 'rust' it with burnt or raw sienna, whichever looks rusty, I forget and my bottle is hiding Also, I peel the back off and do underdneath where the edges will show. Good luck! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roxxie2 Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 Judith I was just going to write the same thing! I have had to use cardboard to make new parts for some of my village and I over sprayed with Modge Podge and it made the cardboard paper soggy. A light spray, let it dry, repeat a couple of times made it perfect and easy to work with. I used the corrugated cardboard for roofing also, Kat. It paints quite well over the modge podge too! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kat57 Posted October 30, 2013 Author Share Posted October 30, 2013 (edited) I'm very excited about this siding idea for my Cool Breeze cottage/Dura-Craft Ashley! If you get a chance,go look at the gallery of member "alovestory" (aka Jannika),scroll down to her "Neglected Orchid"-that lovely house is anything but neglected!LOL I won't be copying her whole style,as I couldn't anyway,but I loooove the exterior siding! Although the aged finish is pretty,mine will just be white-I've seen a couple online in pure white that were gorgeous. This siding look is just so cool to me! I know I'll have to be careful to not 'wilt' the cardboard and ruin the look of painted tin I'm going for. But,that's the beauty of it-it won't cost me anything to replace mistakes! I am assuming I should seal and paint it before I glue it to the house-otherwise,what a mess to take off if it sogs up! Thanx for the advice and I know I will be asking more questions later!! ^_^ Edited October 30, 2013 by kat57 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kat57 Posted October 31, 2013 Author Share Posted October 31, 2013 I am happy,happy:Tonight while Googling I unexpectedly lucked up on a tutorial for applying corrugated cardboard (c.c.) to a dollhouse as siding,from Cinderella Moments. She is a true dollhouse artist! Mine is not going to be anywhere near as nice,but she is one of my inspirations-along with our Jannika's Neglected Orchid,as I mentioned earlier. I also found advice on a blog called Maria's Minis: "How To Make A Corrugated Metal Roof". Now,I am NOT making a tin roof on this house,but a lot of her advice will be helpful when applying the siding. She coats the c.c. with spackle thinned a bit with water-not runny-but just enough to coat the c.c. and make it hard. Since I have spackle on hand,I'll experiment with it and with Mod Podge to see which of them I want to proceed with. Was just so happy to luck up on hints from these two sources! I don't do links,but if you want to see either tut,I'll give more info so you can find them...happy,happy.... ^_^ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 When I use corrugated cardboard to simulate tin I take the piece and pass it under the shower and then carefully peel off the wet layer of flat craft paper and let the rest dry really well. When I cut to shape I make sure to use a very sharp new blade, I use aerosol enamel in a tin color to paint the cardboard once it's bone-dry and it holds up very well. You might try a base coat of gesso to give it body, if you want, rather than Mod Podge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kat57 Posted November 3, 2013 Author Share Posted November 3, 2013 I know everyone is still excited about the Spring Fling 2013 eye candy-me too;so many great builds! Wow! But I finally had some uninterrupted 'mini' time today,so I experimented with using water thinned spackle to stiffen corrugated cardboard,as suggested on Maria's Minis Blog(which I mentioned here the other day). I first dampened the outer layer of paper at my kitchen sink-mostly using a washcloth to wet it down,instead of showering it,(the c.c. layer still got pretty moist this way-ironic,since I'm trying to not get a soggy finish! ) and carefully peeled away the top layer of paper. I used a thin dowel to run up and down each 'rut' in the corrugated cardboard,to clear away any stray paper scraps left. I laid the c.c. aside to dry. I then put some DAP spackle into a container and dribbled water into it and stirred until it was of a consistency I thought looked 'paintable',for lack of a better word. I applied one thin coat to a scrap of c.c. After it dried it was good and stiff,so I tried some flat finish acrylic craft paint on it,which is the kind of paint I will be using on the house build,and let it dry thoroughly. No wilting,no sogging! I will probably do 2 light coats of paint,just to be safe. I plan to do a test piece with Mod Podge brushed on raw c.c. as a base coat,but having used it for various projects over the years, I'm pretty certain it would work,too. In any event,I plan a top/sealing coat with matte finish Mod Podge. Next,I need to decide if I want to cover over the corner trim/posts that are a major part of the Dura-Craft Ashley's construction,or to abut the faux corrugated tin(c.c.) to these corner posts....I'm not using all the semi-Tudor style wall trim that is the original design of the Ashley. But the corner posts are the framework that holds it all together. On Jannika's Orchid,it looks like the 'tin' is wrapped around the corners. On other dollhouses,it looks like the siding pieces meet at the corners,but there are no corner posts on those houses(Or on the Orchid). I need to go study some more real life houses with tin siding,I guess. Meanwhile if anyone with time would volunteer to post a photo for me of an original Dura-Craft Ashley-as on the box,I mean-it might help anyone interested to see what house I am talking about...I would if I could. Thanx for letting me ramble on about all this! I am so proud to be a tiny part of this forum,looking at all the fantastic artisans we are seeing in the gallery today! ^_^ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dalesq Posted November 3, 2013 Share Posted November 3, 2013 Ashley box front cover 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kat57 Posted November 3, 2013 Author Share Posted November 3, 2013 Thanx,Debora! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HelenV Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 Kat I'm so pleased I checked this thread again for 2 reasons ... 1) because it's so neat to hear your plans for your Ashley and catch your vision and excitement and 2) because I hadn't even thought about needing to stiffen the cc when I do my Magnolia's roof ... now I just need to work out the equivalent products in NZ. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kat57 Posted November 4, 2013 Author Share Posted November 4, 2013 Yes,try it,Helen! I have been prepping my corrugated cardboard siding this weekend by 'painting' slightly watered down spackle onto it-using a narrow bristled brush to apply it vertically with the ridges,I mean. I think spackle is also known as polyfilla in other countries...? So far,the spackle is going well,although I may have been a just little heavy handed at the end-trying to get finished tonight. I still have a few more pieces to get to,so that was just dumb. The corrugated cardboard siding pieces curved or 'warped' a tiny bit toward the solid card side (the back),which won't matter when that side is attached to the kit walls,and the 2 layers didn't separate and the ridges or corrugations(?) are still full and ridged as desired,so it's all good for now! ^_^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 Helen, if y'all don't call it spackle where you are, go for polyfilla. You can also get nice stiffening effects for the cardboard with gesso. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kat57 Posted November 6, 2013 Author Share Posted November 6, 2013 Helen,I'm having good results with the spackle (I mentioned that I believe it's also called polyfilla in my above post) and my little tub of it was quite a bit cheaper than the gesso I've seen,so far. I wonder why that stuff is so pricey? Anyway,Helen,you will most likely want to experiment to find what works best for you and your budget. Since the thinned down spackle works for me and fits my budget a-n-d I already had it on hand,I'm using it this time. I still plan to experiment with Mod Podge as a stiffener,because I hope to do more houses with c.c. siding. On another topic Lene posted photos of some adorable,colorful real life houses sided (and roofed) with corrugated tin. What fun! ^_^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 Different products go for different prices in different parts of the world; don't know about kiwi pricing for art supplies. Paint itself gives the corrugated cardboard a LOT of body, in my own experience, and I imagine Mod Podge would work, as well; why not try some different product on smaller scraps of the corrugated cardboard to see what works best, Kat? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HelenV Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 Thanks Kat and Holly - yes I think it is polyfilla here just got to work out which one as there seem to be lot's of different types ...will experiment with what we have on hand and go from there.Have never heard of Gesso and go figure I can't find Modge Podge either... Thankfully Google is sometimes my friend and I can find equivalents ... guess that'll be tomorrow's mission Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 Do you have clear laquer? You could try that on a small piece... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kat57 Posted November 6, 2013 Author Share Posted November 6, 2013 I don't have laquer,myself,and doesn't it have a chemical smell,fumes and what not? I am happy with the spackle,personally. Before,I probably would have just used paint,too. I didn't come up with this idea-it's suggested on a C.C. tin roof tutorial on a website I came across-see my earlier mention. I'm going to experiment with Mod Podge just because I have it and it was my first thought,before I saw the spackle tut. But,I really think spackle is going to be just dandy for this project! ^_^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 IMO whatever works is the way to go... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kat57 Posted November 7, 2013 Author Share Posted November 7, 2013 Helen,I got so side-tracked and distracted I had to go back to your earlier post here and see which house you are thinking of doing a tin roof on. The Magnolia,right? Judith/Ravenswing gave a great link here earlier to some corrugated plastic that looks very realistic in the photos. I can't go that way this time money wise,plus I have windows and a door to deal with instead of a solid roof. (I don't do/don't want to do cutting anything with power tools yet!) But,you might want to check it out. I got a couple of cardboard sandwich containers at Arby's yesterday that are made of the sweetest little corrugated cardboard. (I notice it everywhere,now!lol) I'm saving it to see if I can use it somehow as a decorative accent inside the cottage. If you Google corrugated metal,you'd be surprised how it's being used in nice modern homes as interior wallcoverings and such-Love it!! ^_^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HelenV Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 Hey Kat, yes it is for my magnolia ... I saw that link but as I just got a huge box that Miss T's cat tree came in I'm planning on soaking the top layer off and using that. Also like you I need to watch my money - often for me it's the problem of postage costs. Yeah there are some amazing things being done with corrugated iron aye? I love the shapes and animals that people make out of it - we have a town in NZ called Tirau that is known for corrugated creations; here's a couple of links for you to check it out http://www.tirauinfo.co.nz/ , http://www.corrugatedcreations.co.nz/. I'm going to check out the inside stuff you were talking about and then I might stop day dreaming and actually do some more work on my Magnolia. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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