Let there be light...

Hi again,

I'm having my midweek lull- also known as I'm too tired to do much, roll on the weekend!



I did however put the the lights in the Modern Witches Cottage. They are battery lights and, I must admit, are not as bright as I expected. They do however look pretty good and add some decorative interest.



I tried to place them so they had maximum impact, one by the living area and one by the bed.



I am very happy with how they fit with the look of a cottage. I wanted something subtle but stylish and they are just right.



Finally tonight, here are the two canvas pictures for the wall above the side table by the bed.



Until next time
Gillian

Painting day

Hi again,

The thing with painting is you need to do it, then let it dry. This is the bit I get impatient with. So I try to start early in the day, then go off to do other things.

Today I sanded the rough bits and put another coat of paint on the Rangers Cabin outer walls. I also bought some wallpaper border adhesive ( ready mixed in a tube for ease) so I could put the tile paper on the roof of the Modern Witches Cottage. Then I had to leave them to dry...as I'd completely covered our kitchen table, I had to stop crafting for a while... At least I had some ironing to keep me occupied!!!!




After the tile paper dried I trimmed it and then spent a few tense minutes wood gluing the two halves together before placing it on the cottage to dry in the correct position. It looks good, just a little bit of touching up to do (when I trimmed the roof paper I sort of scraped some of the paint off the eaves-oops!).

Thalia and the dogs quickly moved back in... From the gloom inside it's clear I must put the lights in next- I have some battery lamps as I didn't want to commit the cottage to always being in one place next to the electrical socket.




Whilst I had the wood glue out, I stuck the roof on the Steampunk Observatory (bandstand). A quick fixit I thought- unfortunately it wasn't a clean fit and a couple of bits had to be sanded to get the roof to go on properly- no one will know from looking at it, but it was awkward to put together.




Then it was back to the Rangers Cabin, touching up the outer walls and putting two coats of brown/mocha on the woodwork frame and window frames.




To the right of this photo is the roof trim for the cottage- painted to match the doors and windows.



Ok, so I know that's lots of projects on the go, but whole days when you can have time to paint are few and far between... midweek crafting has to be cleaner and tidier, and be a lot quicker to clear away! I do love all day Sunday crafting days!!!

Until next time
Gillian

Another view

Hi again,

No crafting today, after school art club and physio for Sean meant that we just ran out of time (and energy!).

So instead I've stared at the cottage wistfully. I keep looking at it from different views to see what it needs next. Then I just thought, why not show it to you too?

So here it is...











I wish I could get better light for the photos- how often do I say that? I must try bringing down an office lamp to see if helps next time.

I have just bought two battery wall lights so that will help too, but I'm not sticking them in until I have decided what wall pictures and shelves I'm going to put in.

A funny thing keeps happening... Whenever I come down in the morning, I find the animals have moved around again; this morning one dog was on the rocking chair, one was on the sideboard and the cat was on the cooker! My children may have had a hand in these strange nocturnal relocations... But really, the cooker?

Until next time
Gillian

Ok, so too much pink didn't work...

Hi again,

A bit more repainting today (not much, it was a work day!)...

The platform I painted pink didn't look right. Well, I bet you're not surprised-it was a little out of place. I really need to work on looking at the big picture when I choose colours. So, it is now shabby chic'd to match the furniture- and it looks a whole lot better.




It all tones together now. Although quite pale I think it is finally right.




Thalia, Maia and Liam quickly came to check it all out.




All looks well, but I think I need to get a move on with the soft furnishings. I've chosen some rich coloured velvets, so I think they will add some warmth to the overall feel of the place.




Until next time
Gillian

Shabby chic and a new visitor

Hi again,

I love Sundays- a day off and loads of time to craft!

I painted over plenty of furniture today, using white, a light real green and various mixed shades of white and teal.




Most go in the Modern Witches Cottage, with the chairs in the foreground for the Steampunk Observatory. It was fun just adding layers of different shades so that the paint coat ended up looking quite casual... aka shabby.

After a few hours drying it all went back in the house.




The girls were just admiring the revamped furniture when there was a knock at the door.




Thalia was so pleased she has a new neighbour. He introduced himself as Liam, and he is actually looking for somewhere to stay at the moment...(we'll have to work on that some other time).




Thalia and Maia took to him straight away and they look like they are well on the way to becoming firm friends... bless. Even the dogs and cats got along well...




Until next time
Gillian

I need to make a list

I really want to make some dolls house progress this week. Somebody told me the best way to get things done is to make a list so you are clear what has to be done. So here it is...

Tile the roof of the witches cottage

Glue the roof together

Shabby chic the side board and shelves for the witches house

Shabby chic/ tone down the rocking chairs- currently very bright pink and needing to be subdued

Shabby chic the platform

"Enhance" the wash stand- don't know how yet!

Sew up the cushions and quilts -all I need to do is hand sew the open edge - shouldn't take too long each, but I do need good light and patience!

Paint a canvas for the wall... Abstract will do... It just needs an injection of colour.

... As you might have worked out, I'm starting to sway towards a more shabby chic effect for the furniture as it would bring together the overall feel in the cottage.

Today I painted the top of the Aga black all over- I just didn't like the yucky blue it was originally. I had tried several paints over the week, from emulsions to acrylics to enamel paints and all were dreadful. In the end one coat of nearly dried up black Games Workshop paint did the trick.


I have to make some ring covers soon... And I will, but maybe my list for this week is quite long enough for the moment!

Until next time
Gillian

Painting the platform

Hi again,
I've painted the upper platform in the modern witches cottage. I chose a pale pink... I don't know why- I just felt like it! I'm not sure whether I'll change it yet... I wonder if I shouldn't have gone for something more neutral... But then again, why should I? I may not be totally conventional in my choices, but I usually have a good eye for colours that go well together.




I put the ladder against it and decided to leave that unpainted at the moment.
My next little job is to look into how I can get a shabby chic look for some furniture through crackle paint effects. Google, here I come...
Until next time
Gillian

Ladder

Hi, Happy New Year,
I saw a 1/12 scale ladder on ebay recently and wanted it for the cottage to reach the platform I made. Unfortunately the bidding was way out of my league.

So I decided I would make one myself. I was going to use some obeche strips I have to make a modern looking ladder but ended with two skewers and some craft match sticks in front of me and so I started dabbling. After cutting the pointy end of the skewers off I lay them out and simply glued the matchsticks across them to make foot steps. Quick and easy and a bit more rustic than I planned.




I am really pleased with the result. It is actually surprisingly sturdy and has just the right look for the cottage.

Until next time
Gillian

Different furniture

Hi again,
I've been rearranging the furniture in the cottage, trying out other pieces. I haven't glued the front on yet, I really want to hinge it but just can't work out how. The front is rebated to fit the sides and I can't get a hinge to fit. So, in the meantime, the front is lose and tends to fall flat a lot if nudged...

However, I am really pleased with the brick effect. I ended up using acrylic paints to touch up some of the bricks so that they were a little less regular. I've noticed real brick houses are uneven in colour and so I think it looks better now. (The photo makes it all look a lot more yellow than it really is- I cannot get better lighting for photos at the moment, it is so rainy and gloomy we have the electric light on all the time and it makes for awful photo colouring.)




I have changed the cupboards around , I want to put some jars on the shelves and they fit better on these ones, though I think they are not quite so impressive to look at... Well that's the good thing about these houses, I can change the furniture as I please.




Until next time
Gillian

Painting the furniture

Hello again,
I've started putting some base paint colour on the bare wood furniture I bought. I'm using some left over wood stain from when we painted our garden planters. It went on well though I feel I need to do something else just to lift the final result. I also used some basic acrylic paints. These look good too, and give a deeper finish. More work is needed on both, but I like the effect of coloured furniture in the house.

Here is Thalia looking over her new furniture. I keep rearranging it at the moment but it now feels more like a proper little cottage fit for a young modern witch.



Until next time
Gillian

My little people

Hello again,
So the question is, who will live in cottage?
I found two pleasing little people who needed a new home.
This is Thalia- don't you love her name. It's from a character in a Rick Riordan book, the Heroes of Olympus, and it suited her straight away.




This is Maia, Thalia's best friend.



In the meantime I've also papered the floor with a tile effect finish. Then I cut a platform for upstairs and placed a dowel support at the corner, so now we have a small platform above where the bed will go. Maybe as a potions store, or as a place for an extra bedroom space with lots of cushion- I haven't really decided yet.

This is another try out photo...


Until next time
Gillian

Making brick walls

Hi again,
The next step for my cottage was deciding how to do the exterior walls. I wanted a textural effect so a paper finish wasn't for me. A quick google search led me to Bromley Craft Products and their realistic brick effect. Basically you apply the brick texture through a stencil to give a brick finish. My photo is a bit jaundiced (its difficult to get decent light for photos in an English winter) but I hope you get the idea. It looks much better in reality.








Over the past few weeks I've been collecting bits and pieces of furniture from Ebay. A couple just because they are brilliant as they are, and a few more as job-lots so I don't spend too much and don't have to feel guilty when I chop and paint them!
I still keep trying out the furniture. Not all will be going in this house... Some will be for other projects further down the line.
Until next time
Gillian