Monday, September 19, 2016

An almost done doll house

I should wait until it is finished to take glamour shots but I'm not going to do that. I probably shouldn't put this on my blog because the blog name would suggest that I made this, but I didn't and obviously, I am blogging the story.

This is the handiwork of my sweet hubby. He has always been able to fix things, but until retirement almost 6 years ago, he never made anything from scratch with wood. First project, if I recall correctly, was a bird house. That bird house was visible through the window near the changing table (actually, a counter in my craft room) and delighted our grandson when birds visited.

Hubby and oldest son put up walls in the basement, made shelving units and reworked niches in our son's house that first winter. Next he made a headboard for a twin bed in our home, turning it from just a bed on a frame to something very nice. His skills improved and he made a book case headboard for another twin bed, this one going to son #2's house.
Same son needed an odd size cabinet to fit between refrigerator and stove....Dad to the rescue! His drop leaf kitchen table had seen better days when given to him and one day, the weight of a friend's elbow finished off the leaf which damaged the main table top as it broke. Hubby made a new top that looked better than the original had looked when new!
When we couldn't find an entertainment center to fit our living room wall and hold the new flat screen TV, Hubby dismantled our former entertainment center (which we still liked) and created something that worked. The before version was almost twice as tall with a square opening for the old TV.  The only cost to this project was having the glass in those door cut down to size ($2 each).
When our granddaughter was born and I started talking dolls, a doll cradle was made.
All of this led to the building of a doll house. With the work and love poured into this, I should re-type that as DOLL HOUSE.

While researching plans, a friend said she had plans she never go around to using. It was just the style Hubby was considering. Many of the supplies were already on hand, and we haven't kept track of additional expenses because it might make us woozy. Just kidding....every penny and every hour spent has been worth it.

Now that I've written all that background, here is the DOLL HOUSE as she stands today.
Doll house, open, front view without porch attached

One side of the house with half of the front standing open

The other side

Back which will remain uncovered

A peek into the rooms

Hubby built the railing and the stairs

A piano hinge allows the room to open below the peak for access to the attic's 3 rooms

He didn't want to build a 2nd set of stairs so the attic has a trap door. The hinge is from a kitchen cabinet in my childhood home. Sweet bit of history that our granddaughter will have something from her great-grandparents in this house. 

The only finished items purchased were the door, door knobs on both sides of the door, the uprights on the porch (but the rails and spindles were hand made) and over 2 bags of individual roof shingles

The shingles were glued one row at a time and clamped to dry.

Here is the front, closed, without the porch attached.

You can see enough of Hubby to get an idea of the size of this DOLL HOUSE

My only contribution so far has been to say "oooh!" quite often and to paint the rock foundation.

There are some moldings to be added to the interior, a few paint touch ups and the porch will be permanently attached before this is officially done. 

This will be a house to be played with. We have furniture and people from Toys R Us that are of a size and style meant for little hands. If our grand-daughter loves this beyond a few childhood years and wants to upscale the interior, that will come later. 

The house is pretty heavy. For the time being and maybe longer (limited space for this at son #1's house) it will sit on top of a green mat on a table in our family room. It just might need some Halloween and Christmas decorations so I'd better get busy. 

Friday, September 16, 2016

Some of us should not use super glue....

New posts have been scarce here due to LBC (life beyond crafts) getting in the way. I'm still coloring, knitting, cutting and yes, gluing.

I rarely spill anything on myself or my work area. I don't have paint spattered clothes. I don't have nail polish stained carpets. My sister-in-law marvels that my paperback books never look like they've been read as the spines never have creases. Oh yeah....this is me....the Princess of Pristine Perfection. Until super glue is involved.

My husband is making a gorgeous doll house that he thinks is for our grand daughter. Actually, everyone in the family but me thinks it is for her but I'm a greedy Princess of Pristine Perfection. She is still too young to play with this so it is staying here for a while once it is done. Hubby is nearing completion on his end of things. I have to paint the foundation to resemble a rock wall (as opposed to cement blocks) but my task before this was to glue two small door knobs and their plates to both sides of the entrance door.

Uh oh.

First off, what glue to use to adhere metal to wood? The consensus was some form of super glue. I bought a package of small tubes of this. Has anyone used super glue and successfully sealed it for use on another day more than a week away?

I have the door knobs on and drying, clipped to the door with spring clothes pins. I don't think I got the glue on my hands during application, it more likely happened when aligning things and a bit of glue squeezed out the would-be keyholes. My right middle finger, index finger and both thumbs have a bit of super glue on them. This is no surprise. I think I can look at an unopened package and get glue on myself.

Oh we suffer for our art, but it could be worse according to this cartoon. Yikes!

Friday, September 9, 2016

Why do we craft?

The answer probably varies a bit from person to person, but I think there is a common reason for why we do what we do.
We make things out of love for the recipient.
We make things to be unique.
We make things to save money. Okay, sometimes that is a joke....refusing to spend $4.99 on a greeting card while spending $24.99 on a set of stamps and a die might not be ample justification.
We make things because we enjoy making them.
Anniversary card for hubby (41 years!) Image is from Art Impressions, Love Thing.

Sometimes we make things because we just have to, period.
 
Balloon is from Stampin' Up's Celebrate today die set. Inside, also from SU is Party Pop-Up 

I don't think my knitting, sewing, card making or painting reflects my moods. Unlike Picasso, if I have a blue period, it is because I really like the color or maybe the type of yarn or fabric was only available in that color. I don't pick a color because it consciously reflects my mood. I'm either not very deep or so deep that I come close to the surface on the other side. I like light. I like bright. I like whimsy. And I like to ramble but I'm reeling myself in...
Cupcake stamp and die Sprinkles of Life by Stampin' Up

I'm not taking classes right now due to other commitments and conflicts in schedules but it turns out, there is a lesson to be learned in not taking lessons! Don't misunderstand me...I love taking classes and always learn something, but I've realized that I was so busy with classes and ongoing social events (book club for example isn't a class) that almost everything I was making and reading was to meet a deadline.
What's Up? stamp set by Avery Elle

Since unexpected events disrupted my scheduled events, I've been knitting, reading, painting and making cards for no reason other than doing so feels good. My instructors and circles of friends in these various activities certainly don't put pressure on me, it was the student of long, long ago that stood up within me and told me to get things done and get them done right!
Flowers cut with Stampin' Up's Botanical Builder dies after paper was randomly painted with water colors. Background Stitched Lattice is a die by Kaisercraft.  

I shut her up with Washi tape and if that doesn't hold, I have needle and thread ready.
 
Gopher It! by Gerda Steiner Designs 

I'd show you my knitting but it is a confusing mess while on the needles. I would say it is getting close to completion but I don't want to jinx myself.  Meanwhile, one last design that I really, really like:
Pegboard Coverup and Tool Time, both by Die-Namics

Wherever you are in life, have some fun. Smile at others. You might make them feel better and you will definitely look better and begin to feel better if you think and act positive. If you have the creative bug, go ahead...feed it and play with it.