What was I thinking?

As always, when I start on a mini project before it has all come together in my mind, I ended up making changes to the dollhouse porch. The brick planter didn't feel as if it was built in because it wasn't the whole width of the porch. So I did a little cosmetic surgery today and now I am satisfied.

Brick by brick

Well, not really since I am using brick sheets sold for Christmas villages, LOL. I've got a good start and I've done the hardest bit, I think. I will add other colors to the brick and I'll be adding trim around the bay window but I think I like the overall look.

Just getting started  - and why did I not think to paint the underside of the roof before I started the brick work?

It's moving along fairly quickly. I'm learning as I go. Perhaps I should have started with a side first...

I still have the area over the porch to do. 

Once all the brick is on I will add paint to give the bricks some variation. The paint will also cut some of the shine, although it doesn't look as shiny in real light as it does in the photos. I really like the fishscale peak shingles.They came with the house my friend Susan found at the thrift store. That one became the French Country house. This house was a gift from another friend, Norene. I am truly blessed to have non mini friends who understand my passion. :-)

I started it! I did, I did!

 No brickwork yet but I got a good start on the prep work. The porch is mostly finished. The wood was so damaged that I panelled over the old wood. I also built the porch foundation and added "wrought iron" porch supports to replace the damaged original posts.

 The door and shutters may become solid blue but I want to see how they look against the brick first. Some of the shutters didn't survive the original demolition so neither of the bays will have them.

 The trim is painted for all of the windows but not put in place yet. The bay windows will be white at the top and brick from the window sills down.

The iron and I both got a little older

 First, the iron - I added patina to the wrought iron on the French country railings and trim. I found a great close up photo on the internet, dug out bottles of sterling silver and burnt sienna paints, and a couple of stiff bristled paint brushes and slowly added minute amounts of paint dry brushed on. In this situation a little paint goes a long way. Fortunately, it was easy to stipple on some black to blend any areas that I got paint happy with. :-)

 I didn't have to add much paint to give the railings a much more realistic look that adds so much to the look of the whole house.

 I also added beams at each end of the bedroom ceiling. There was a significant gap at the back right roof joint. I'm pretty confident that Joe and Joy don't want holes in the ceiling. The new beams cured the gap problem and made the ceiling look more polished at the same time. Win, win.

I spent a couple more hours on the roof tonight, too. The finished roof is going to be perfect...but it won't be finished any time soon. Roofing is one of my least favorite parts of a build anyway and there are a few more steps involved with this roof. It's going to be worth it, though, based on the progress photos.

Oh, and I got a little older on Monday. I had a wonderful day with my family. Daughter #1 made dinner, Son made a surprise trip home, Daughter #2 and family sent a fun card and called - complete with a Happy Birthday serenade from my granddaughters. DH was home for the day after a few days in the hospital for a bronchial infection that just didn't want to clear up. He's on the mend and back at work. Two of my classes at the elementary school where I work sang to me, too. Year 52 is off to a great start.

Hubby and I get a weekend alone which doesn't happen all that often even with all the kids living on their own. We'll enjoy a dinner date tomorrow to celebrate Valentine's Day - our 37th one together. We started dating when I was fourteen and he was sixteen. I was blessed then and I still am.

Wishing all of you a Happy Valentine's Day and a wonderful weekend!

A Whole Day to Play Leads to Major Progress

 I used diluted acrylic stain to age the plaster and then, instead of the included exterior trim, I used mini tiles (a gift from my very thoughtful husband) to trim the doors and windows.

 The doors are all blue - French Blue to be exact. How appropriate!

 The previous owner of this kit had purchased all of the plastic "wrought iron." I painted all the white pieces black to give my house the look I wanted. The bay window roof is copper with a patina.

 All that's left on the outside is the chimney and roof. What a difference a day makes!

I know that a lot of miniaturists do not put dolls/figures in their scenes because it takes away from the illusion. I fall strongly in the other camp. Almost all of my houses have people - most made by me but some from other artists and a few resin or other manufactured dolls. These are Houseworks dolls. As soon as I saw Joy, the pregnant mama here, I knew I had to have her. She and Joe, little Jamie, and soon to be sibling, look quite happy that their home is nearing completion. It's hard enough to get their toddler to nap on a good day but the construction has really disrupted her schedule. :-)