beachpeach Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 well, its true... you learn something new everyday! i got my first house just after xmas... its a Garfield. my base is complete, stairs are complete and i've punched all of the wall pieces.... here's my dilemma.... i'm lookin at all of the trim sheets (about 5 billion parts!) should i prime/paint the sides of the house and the window bits as i assemble the sides or should i wait and do it after the house is glued together??? i know people go both ways and i know how i am... if i have to do the Ford assemble-line thing i may never finish! i want to tape wire and how does that work if the walls are already primed? does it stick ok? as you can tell i dont know much about painting or house building, so any help would be greatly appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heidiiiii Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 Hello Sharon and welcome to the forum! I prime all of the pieces of the houses body (not the trim) b4 I glue it together. The tapewire will stick fine to the primed walls. Check out Darrell`s tutorial on wiring in the gallery. It is a big help! Trim...I hate trim. It is so tedious and monotonous. I usually sit down in front of the tv with a drink and just do it all at the same time. I dont glue the trim on until the very last of working on the exterior, and I dont put the window trim on the inside until I have tapewired and wallpapered. No matter what the instructions tell you..Do not put the windows and window trim on until you have wallpapered (or painted) the interior. You will save yourself alot of grief and swearing! LOL Same goes for the doors! Congrats on the great Garf xmas present! Heidi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beachpeach Posted February 10, 2007 Author Share Posted February 10, 2007 thanks so much! i really dont look forward to all of that trim, but i'm tryin not to let it overwhelm me. prehaps at this point i'll just concentrate on priming the walls and gettin those glued together. and about the wallpaper... i dont even want to go there! i know it looks nice but i think paintin the interior would be easier. and how does paint look over the tape wire? is the tape thin enough to be hidden under paint or do i need to really consider wallpaper or maybe a textured paint finish? and i love the garfield but i was sick about the splintering of the wood on the stairs. i so wanted to stain them but i had to use so much wood fill that idea was out the window! i wanted to cry! now i've got to paint the stairs. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blondie Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 Deep breaths...in through the nose, out through the mouth. In. Out. In. Out. When I opened my BH and started, I thought I was going to freak OUT and throw the whole thing in the garbage. It just looked so overwhelming. I was worried about flooring and wallpaper and painting, too. But then I stepped back and said, "Wait...this is supposed to be FUN!" So I decided to just do one step at a time and figure out the rest later. I highly recommend this. Just take the base and the walls and get the basic structure going. You'll get into a groove. Forget about decorating until you are further into it. The inspiration will come, and the panic will leave. The trim can wait. It comes last. But trust me, I know all about panic!!! ;) Good luck! I'm sure you house is going to be gorgeous!!!!!!!!!!!!! ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uppitycats Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 The Garfield is a lovely house. She was my first build, too. And it did seem overwhelming, especially since I'd never done anything like this before..but mine turned out fine, and yours will, too! I put together the main structure first, before dealing with the trim. But you really should think carefully about the wallpaper/no wallpaper issue, and what to paint/not paint, as there will be rooms in the Garfield that you won't be able to get back in to, if you put the walls together "naked" without having something done to them. I didn't electrify mine, so can't help there, but can speak from experience that there are areas of my Garfield that -- had I known just how the roof beams angled down into them -- would have been papered differently! Basically I primed everything that I knew I would be painting or papering...but again, started with just the walls and major structural pieces. If I wasn't certain that I'd want a piece primed or stained later, I just used it "raw" and then went back and "treated" it accordingly. The trim was done last. You can always go back and prime or stain or paint later -- but do plan for some of those walls and the inside of the tower, for example! ;) And yes remember, this is supposed to be FUN. When it stops being FUN, set it aside and go back later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heidiiiii Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 Oh yes! Listen to them! LOL This is fun! This is fun! You know when your kitchen looks like a dirty bomb was let off, or your laundry room looks like it is filled with every single piece of clothing in the house and you get so overwhelmed you want to scream? You have to step back and go step by step.. The trim is like that big ole encrusted turkey pan. You can let it soak and get to it latter before the mold sets up shop.. Dont even think about decorating and furnishings etc right now until you get the basics done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beachpeach Posted February 10, 2007 Author Share Posted February 10, 2007 thanks again! you're right....first things first! i guess i'll prime all of the walls and dry fit them.... then i'll stain the first floors before i glue the walls up... i was gonna just stain the entire base until i realized that i've got porches involved. didn't want to stain those! geez! this whole thing makes me admire general contractors! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiniDoxLuvr Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 WELCOME! I suggest looking up some of the recent threads on here about spray painting trim - it will save much aggravation! there are gobs of tips here on this topic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nuttiwebgal Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 congrats on the Garfield I have issues with trim also....I do it in sessions and only when I have to. like when its all painted and decorated inside and out. I put my music on lay out the spagehetti and start staining/painting laying the peices on the dry spagehetti keeps them from sticking to other surfaces. it can be a tedious job but totally needed to make your house the showplace you want it to be. I do not think that paint will cover the tape wire but have you considered hard wire? or round wire...same item. you can hide first floor ceiling light wires under flooring on the 2nd floor or you could use wainscoating around in the rooms and hide the wire with that. lots of things to do... I recomend that you dry fit as you go.....in dry fit look at house criticly ...and ask can I get my hand in there? 2 hands? in the areas you think not...those need to be decorated before you glue it together. staircases, foyers, and towers are some of the areas to watch. plzzzz do not feel like you are alone in feeling overwhelmed. every time I open a new kit I still get a little "OH my" when I look at all the sheets. when it isnt fun....walk away....find other things to do. even if that takes several hour,days,weeks or months. when you go back to the project with a fresh attitude you will see it go together and wonder what is was that made you quit. and than of course there is always this forum to fall back on and to ask questions. Happy Building nutti ;) ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beachpeach Posted February 10, 2007 Author Share Posted February 10, 2007 thanks to everyone for the great tips, encouragement and support! i let myself get bogged down in the details and forget that i got this house for the fun of it. virgo tendencies i suppose... i just have to remind myself not to split hairs over splintered wood, and to breathe in, breath out, and look at the big picture for a change! ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 But trust me, I know all about panic!!!Believe her! I wasn't sure she'd ever get started! hard wire? or round wire...same item. you can hide first floor ceiling light wires under flooring on the 2nd floor or you could use wainscoating around in the rooms and hide the wire with that.Baseboards come with a routed groove the perfect size to carry the round wire into a corner. You can also make cardboard templates of each wall and paint or prime and paper them to cover your tapewire. not to split hairs over splintered woodToo late if you've used woodfiller, but for future reference I just run a dab of wood glue on the splintered part and stick the splintered parts back on & clamp them (use a damp cloth to wipe off the excess glue that may leak out) and stain away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiniDoxLuvr Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 I put my music on lay out the spagehetti and start staining/painting laying the peices on the dry spagehetti keeps them from sticking to other surfaces. What a neat idea nuttiwebgal! I always get little strips of paint on my coffee table (which I now have to replace because of this DOH! But its all good, i need that coffee table in my craft room, good excuse to get a new one for the living room!). Spaghetti. Who would have thunk it. LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blondie Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 Yes, I've learned how to stop the panic. I just look at the house and think FUN FUN FUN FUN!!!! ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ilovecats Posted February 12, 2007 Share Posted February 12, 2007 and i love the garfield but i was sick about the splintering of the wood on the stairs. i so wanted to stain them but i had to use so much wood fill that idea was out the window! i wanted to cry! now i've got to paint the stairs. :welcome: Hi beachpeach! If the splintering isn't too bad, i don't see why you can't still stain!...you don't really see the stairs anyway. The stain actually downplays the splintered areas (from experience i say this)...and if you put a carpet runner on the stairs it will hide some of the problem areas! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corwin Posted February 13, 2007 Share Posted February 13, 2007 If you like the shape of the stairs you could do what i did. I cut off the railng, painted it white and cut treds out of balsa. (you could stain it too)It is white and dark wood. Iam trying to find spindles to match the ones i have. No luck yet. The floor i made from bamboo place mats. They were like thin strips of wood & bamboo skewers i cut them appart, i still have a lot of skewers, but the strips tured out great as floors, i still have to prime wire, paint, ect. But the floors are done and the stairs are half done, i just half to find athe right coulor of stain to use. What i am doing with doors since i am painting them is attaching card boar pannels and painting it white. Just some ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IAK Posted February 13, 2007 Share Posted February 13, 2007 Yep The Garf was my first build also. I got it last Christmas and it sat in the box until April. That's when I got the courage to open it and when I did I was to say the least very intimidated. That's how I found this forum, looking for answers to which I found them plus so much more, (I'm still here almost a year later) Did I tell you I am addicted to this hobby now, just a warning. Like the others mentioned make sure you "decorate" the kitchen wall by the side door and the area at the foot of the staircases on the first, second and third floor before glueing together. It's almost impossible to do once it's glued. I didn't plan very well when it came to the electric because I just didn't know how to do it so after I had already wallpapered and painted everything I decided to have some lights so I used the round wire which like Holly said you can hide under baseboards and floors. I wish I knew what I know now because I would have done things different but that's for my next house the BH. I've learned so much from here. Just have fun and don't rush it. The more you plan before you proceed will surely make everything go more smoothly and less ripping your hair out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doogster Posted February 13, 2007 Share Posted February 13, 2007 Trim...I hate trim. It is so tedious and monotonous. I usually sit down in front of the tv with a drink and just do it all at the same time. Heidi I'm thinking airbrush for trim.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.