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Day three was another 10 hour day. Here we see a great technique for electrical wiring through foam core. The foam
core is dug out to allow the wire to move freely inside of the channel and the hole through the wall is made with
a Dremel and 5/64th inch bit.. The excess wire is rolled up and taped to the bottom of the dollhouse to keep it
out of the way.
I've chosen to have four interior lighting points and one exterior for the carriage lamp. There will also be a
wire leading out of the fireplace for glowing embers. |
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Here is the wiring hanging out on the inside wall for a small wall sconce. Note the very small *loose* knot to
help the wire from accidentally being pulled back into the channel. |
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The final stage in the wiring for now is to use heavy paper to seal up the channel. If the edges curl up, use tape
to keep them down. It will all be covered with paperclay "stucco" very soon. |
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I finally got a chance to sneak back and finish the upper part of the stonework (chimney section) and not a moment
too soon - it needs to dry because later today we'll be painting the stonework. |
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The exterior chimney frame is glued into place. This is very simple and made up of a few hodge-podge pieces to
block out the form. |
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Here's a good tip for centering your chimney. Draw a vertical line down the center of the chimney frame and then
align the point of the roof line with it. |
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More gluing. Progress is quick and easy. Things are starting to take some real shape. |
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Now we've painted our wattle to look more like aged wood or willow. A combination of Brown Iron Oxide and Black
in a thin wash to get this shade. I needed to apply it three times (allowing dry time in-between) to get this shade
as well as get into the nooks and crannies.
I use my digital Olympus 490-Z in MACRO mode to get these close up shots. Ever wonder about the difference in picture
quality of miniatures if I forget to switch to the MACRO mode? |
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Here's the first round of painting the stonework. I'm still letting the newer (wet) vertical brickwork dry and
will paint that next. I also need to darken/blacken the inner hearth area as well. |
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Here is the base to attach the cottage to as well as house the electrical wires and equipment. Insulated foam is
used as a landscaping base. |
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Here is a shot of the very bottom of the base. Note the holes drilled (3/8 inch bit) through the foam and plywood
to allow the electric wires to be threaded through. |
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A shot of the house on its new foundation. The brickwork has been painted and the inner hearth darkened as well. |
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Cutting away of the foundation to lay down steps, pathways.
The drill bit size for the hole through the wooden piece (angled for ease of threading as well as pulling) was
1/8th of an inch. |
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End of day. I'm totally beat. I wish I had energy to keep working but I'm really tired! I'm now very glad the class
structure was set up over two separate weekends!
Classes 4, 5 and 6 will resume in two more weeks, starting June 15th. Until then, we have HOMEWORK before we return
to class. I need to score, peg and stain the second floor; stucco the entire outside of the house, create a foundation/landscape
around the entire perimeter of the house as well as sidewalk and steps, and try tackling the outside fireplace
chimney! Not to mention touching up the paint job, odds and end whittling and frantically shopping online for great
Tudor lighting for my new little cottage... |
