This is my first attempt at making a philodendron. I used many of the tips I've learned from Jayne at Tallulah Belle Originals but it is far from her standards. I used two sizes of heart punches to make the leaves and they are punched from a coffee filter painted one shade of green on one side and a lighter shade on the other. Each leaf was shaped individually and then glued onto a small stem. The stems were bent so that the leaves bend down like a real philodendron and then each of the little stems were glued onto a longer vine. The darker side of the leaves was edged with some of the lighter paint. All of the branches were planted in some clay with tea soil glued to the top.
Here's the mostly finished kitchen. I still need to add accessories and food. I think I'd like an ivy plant on top of the top cabinets.
The bathroom is now finished, I think. Today I added the soap dish by the sink, the hamper under the window and the red shelf to the right of the window. The hamper is just a film canister that's been cut down a bit shorter and then wrapped with jewelry cording to look like wicker. The shelf is the shelf that comes with the Real Life Miniatures kitchen kit. I had to make it narrower to fit the space but it works well for holding all of those bathroom essentials. I still have room to add more later, too.
The bedroom has pretty billowy white 
curtains with a ruffled valance and the nightstand has an embroidered doily. 
I really hate doing shingles. So I borrowed an idea from Casey and made a pattern in the shingles. That kept if from being too boring. I did not, however, cut my shingles into quarters! Tessie's Cottage looks amazing but I am not that dedicated! I used another of Casey's tips and dry brushed a lighter shade of the shingle color on the edges of the shingles.The photos don't really show it all that well but it looks really nice in real life. Thank you, Casey, for all of the tips you post on your blog.
The kitchen now has a table and chairs and a few accessories. It looked too empty when the other rooms are already furnished. I used the punch out kits that came with the house but I cut off the little Mickey Mouse ear looking things on the top of the chair backs and then completely upholstered the chairs. The table is covered with a beautiful handmade tablecloth I received in a Small World swap. I can't post closer pictures yet because one member still hasn't received her package. Soon I'll post pics of all of the amazing things I got for my mini kitchen.
Here are the finished steps. I used thinned gray paint and dripped it into the grout lines. Then I brushed pastel colors into each individual brick. I finished the whole thing with a coat of matte Mod Podge to seal it.
This is a spackle/glue/paint mixture. Once it is dry I will highlight the grout lines and dry brush color onto the bricks.
I decided to name my little house, or at least give it an address. Magnolia Way is for the magnolias in the bathroom and 509 is for May 2009 when I received the gift.
I decided not to use any of the lacey gingerbread. It just doesn't seem to suit this house. Instead I used the flat trim in the peaks and I did use the little peak trim pieces. I just didn't punch the hearts out. I also added more of the flat trim in patterns around the house. I really like how it turned out. I just have shingles and painting the steps to do then the exterior is finished!
I put a piece of paper inside the window so you can see the "stained glass" detail. The other upstairs windows have half of this design in a half circle pattern.
The exterior is nearly finished but I need some opionions. First, should I use the shutters and, if so, what color should they be? I'm leaning towards leaving them off and just using the window boxes. Also, what color should the porch steps be? I've considered concrete (gray with sand mixed in), brick or just stained like the trim (but that seems like too much of a good thing, lol). The shingles will be stained the same color as the trim, I think. There is also some gingerbread trim with the kit. I'm not using the ridge trim but I will probably use the dormer edging.
I need to make some sort of surround so that the mini people don't fall down the stairs on their way to the bathroom at night. I'm also debating whether to do curtains (from the stained glass line down) or roman shades in here. The "carpet" is made from a wallpaper scrap.
All that's left to do in here are the little finishing details - toilet paper holder, towel rack, trash can, etc. And I need to make some sort of shade for the big window in here, too.
The glue isn't dry on the stair rail yet but I love how this turned out. One of those ugly open-backed stair kits came with the house. I did use that but I turned it upside down and used those steps as risers and made my own treads. The spindles are fancy toothpicks painted gold and pinched together at the top. I put a cardboard back on the staircase and covered it with the striped wallpaper. It looks so much nicer than the way it was meant to look.
I made my own stained glass windows instead of the toy looking ones that came with the kit. The upstairs arches coordinate with the rectangular bathroom window and the downstairs arches coordinate with the door window. I downloaded pictures from a catalog website and sized them in Adobe Photoshop before printing them on overhead transparencies.
I think the bed turned out really well. I used the punch out kit that came with the house and dressed it up with some embossed stickers. I made the bedding from some scraps in my fabric drawer. Under the bedspread is full set of sheets.
I decided to add the glazes to the kitchen walls - I like it. Once the cabinets are in place, much of the walls will be hidden and there will be just the right amount showing. I think it looks more like plaster walls now with a sort of "Old World" feel. Fits with the French style furniture in the living room. 
I really need to decide what I am doing with the exterior. I have some ideas but I'm just not sure yet.
I love the living room! I need to build the staircase and trim the windows, etc. but it's coming along very nicely.
I think there's enough room in the kitchen for the cabinets along the left wall, the appliances on the right wall and the dining table in front of the windows. I haven't decided if I'm leaving the walls as they are right now or if I want to stipple some darker and lighter shades of olive over the top of the paper.
I think the bedroom is very elegant. I'm going to use the dresser from Brenda and pretend the owner of the house set up her still life there for painting. I plan to use the bed kit that came with the house. I'll stain it to match Brenda's dresser and dress it up somehow. I'm still thinking about what to do with this floor, too. The wood has a fairly deep gouge that goes the whole length of it so I don't want to just paint or stain it.
There's not quite enough room on either side of the mirror for both sconces so I'm going to use one over the mirror and the other over the tub. I'll put the crystal chandelier in the bedroom. I really like the way the bath and bedrooms coordinate. The marble floor in here is a wallpaper sample.
Wallpaper and floors are finished in the kitchen and living room. I do still need to varnish the kitchen floor. The back edge trim is also in place in this photo.
Living room border in place. I went with the pointing up option. The discoloration in the middle of the wall is not there in real life.
Light olive kitchen walls with the fruit border.
A dry fit of the roof.
The tub was all originally the same red as the exterior. I've textured it a bit though and added the magnolias. The toilet was bright blue and had embossed hearts on the tank and lid. I sanded those off, painted the tub interior and toilet with a metallic pearl and then decoupaged magnolias on the tub, tank and lid. I used a silver paint pen to put a chrome finish on the hardware and feet of the tub.
