Wear and tear

Last night I was looking through photos of Johnson's Boarding House and one thing popped out at me - everything looked too shiny and new for a post war boarding house. So I got out the sandpaper and started adding some wear and tear. The floors especially were too new looking but the sandpaper helped solve that problem. I also added some chips to the enamel cabinet that Harriet is working at.
The living room tables got the sandpaper treatment, too. I didn't want them to look beat up, just well used. I left the dining set alone, though, on the presumption that the family ate in the kitchen when the children were young so the dining room has only been really used since the boarding house opened.
The foyer floor and the newel post show some use now.
I even sanded the leather wing chair at the head, seat and arms.
This isn't wear and tear but Harriet got a new (and final!) bedspread. I think this fabric looks like chenille so I had to use it. :) I made the linens from an old lace edged hankie.

I just made subtle changes but they made a big difference in telling the "story" of the house.

Off to find a new project! Have a great day!

Now this is cool

I figured out how to make realistic looking African violets tonight. The boarding house really needed a few - this is my favorite on the kitchen table.
My MIL has had African violets for as long as I've known her so I'm excited to put one in the dining room.

I used a small heart punch for the leaves. I lightly coated the tops with glue and patted on a miniscule amount of beige flocking. The blossoms are punched with my new punch out of purple paper. I added a dot of yellow paint in the center of each blossom. The blossoms are each on a tiny little stem. It was surprisingly easy to get a beautiful African violet. The only thing I would change is to use a thinner paper for the flowers in the future but I am very pleased with my results. Go ahead, give it a try! :)

A little more work in the boarding house

Harriet has chores to do in the kitchen so I gave her a bucket of soapy water. This is a really easy project. I painted a wood bucket and then filled it with clear dimensional liquid. I added some iridescent beads in several sizes, stirred them up a little and added a cloth hanging over the edge of the bucket. I first moistened the cloth with the dimensional stuff and I used a toothpick to tuck the edge under the "bubbles" to make it look as though the cloth is wet and partially immersed in the water.
I also made a single shelf to fill in the gap between the hanging cabinet and the base. It looks much better now. You can just see the bucket on the floor next to the sink.

This type of little project is the proof that a dollhouse is never really finished. :)

Thank you, Peggy!

My blog giveaway gifts arrived from Peggy today but first I'll show you some of today's projects. I've never been happy with my fabric choice for the skirt in Harriet's boarding house kitchen and the cabinet to the left of the sink had large bead feet that looked very out of scale. I took care of both issues today. I added the pipes under the sink and stained the wood frame and decided to leave the skirt completely off. I like the streamlined look very much. I also ripped off the beads and added a simple black frame under the cabinet instead of feet. The height is elevated but nothing looks bulky or over scaled.
I added a cream print wing chair, an end table and a tray of candles to the living room set. I think I will also include the "rug" which I think is a wallpaper sample. It looks like a braid rug. I've fallen in love with this set but I do hope it sells. BTW, the end table base was made from a champagne cage. I colored it black with a permanent marker, leaving some of the base metal color showing, then I added a top made from a square woodsie that I stained a dark, rich brown. The candle tray used to be an earring and the candles are made from pencil erasers.
And the best part of the whole day was opening this wonderful package of goodies from Peggy. Each little item was wrapped in the floral wrapping paper and carefully packed in the beautiful box. Even the card is pretty. Thank you so much, Peggy. You made my day! I think most items will end up in Magnolia Way as it's my "elegant" dollhouse and your gifts will be absolutely perfect inside. I didn't get to open the package until late this evening but it was a wonderful way to end a not so wonderful day. Thanks again! :)

Harriet's been busy!

She's been working on the Christmas decorations for the boarding house. They are very simple in 1946 - there just isn't much money to spare. Outside she's hung evergreen wreaths on each section of porch rail and on the upper story windows.
Each hall banister has an evergreen cluster tied with a bow and a glass ball ornament.
The living room has an evergreen swag decorating the mantel and a small table top tree decorated with simple glass ball ornaments and bead garland. The boarding house looks festive and ready for Christmas.

Another small update

I thought the living room needed something more so I made this chair. It's truly a combination of odds and ends from the wood box. The legs are small clothes pin halves. The arms I think were supposed to be the side rails on a child's rocker. I had to make some adjustments but they worked well for the chair arms. The top of the back is a piece of gingerbread and the bottom of the back is a piece of baseboard. The trim between the front legs was on a hutch that had one broken leg so I had to remove the trim.
Here it is in the living room with the other furniture. Looks like George is going to do some reading before dinner.