Finishing work on the gutters and downspouts.

The original kit intended for only the left side to have a downspout yet there would be gutters all around the front.  :\  Well, that wouldn't do!  Water would be pouring over the sides all over the entryway and porch.

The middle gutter required a diverted end to move away from the house and empty into the splash block.

I found a website with a flat bent downspout to help me figure out the shape I needed.

The last gutter required some demolition.  The cellar doors had to be moved over about 3/4" closer to the chimney.  There was room, but it was a pain prying the assembly off the base.  I built things securely.  Haaaaaa!  Anyway, I took no photos of the process since I worked fast to put it all back together.  I glued some new dirt cover over the bare spots and then needed to wait for that glue to dry.  I still have landscaping to finish besides, so it's not much of a big deal, just a speed bump.

With the cellar doors moved, the final side downspout could be finished without looking like a wet noodle stuck to the wall.  :]

To make the end caps for the gutters, I added pieces of cardstock cut to shape.

I sanded the edges and turns of the downspouts to be more rounded.

To give them a bit of age, I first painted some spots Terra Cotta by Americana, followed by crackle medium.  The rest of the pieces were painted black.  They look like coral snakes!  :D

When I painted white over the assemblies, the black paint toned down the brightness of the white overall, and the paint flaked where there was crackle medium.

With a slight Terra Cotta and brown wash, it became rusted flaked paint.  :D

I added an aging wash to the whole thing and then dirtied up the inner track since these are old gutters.  I painted some scraps of paper with the leftover paint washes and let them dry.

I punched as many maple leaves as I could from the scraps.

I smushed the leaves and glued them into the track, some sticking out over the top edge.

I glued in some moss material besides.

I then added a final brown wash.  Voilà!  Good and dirty gutters.  :D

I glued the assemblies to the house, and the downspouts helped hold the gutters in place while the glue dried.  At least there was none of this going on during the process.

The bottom ends of the downspouts aren't easily seen, but I did paint them black to give the illusion of being hollow.

I painted the splash blocks to look like concrete.

The straps are cardstock.  I cut them long so I would be able to work with them during the final fitting.

I painted the paper with a grey wash and then glued them in place.  The nails are just painted dots.  The straps are mostly decorative since the downspouts are glued in place.

It really adds that little something, no?

Grandma has no leaf screens, so looks like she'll need some yearly help getting these cleaned up.  :D

Left assembly.

Middle assembly.

Right assembly.

Almost done with the exterior!  Hooray!  :D

When you're working on a house that sits on a turntable, you need a little help.  Whoa, Heritage!  Now if I could just train Sydney to do this....

The Heritage kit included gutters and downspout materials.  One length of gutter-shaped wood and one long dowel.  These were acceptable, but I went with different parts.

I bought gutter shaped wood from All Small Miniatures the day I went there for the asphalt shingles for The Artist's Studio.  It's shaped differently and it is lighter in weight.  Considering there will be very little surface area for gluing, I thought the lighter weight material would work better in the end.

I cut the lengths I would need using my scroll saw.  The corner joins weren't the cleanest fit mainly because this house is so rickety.  :D  But, I was able to sand them to fit well enough.  A little spackling here and there, and it won't be an issue in the end.  The ends will also be capped before painting.

I had to forego putting gutters on either side of the dormer, because the area between the main roof and the left side of the dormer didn't allow for a full turn.  Putting it on the right side only would have brought more attention to the problem.

I formed the downspouts by cutting 1/8" x 1/4" wood.  These will be sanded to shape before painting.

I thought this was a more realistic approximation than round downspouts.

The splash blocks are balsa, shaped by sanding.  (How great is this, though?  :D  Tiny railroad scale house?  Hmm....future project.)  I had to cut away some of the landscaping to get them to sit flat on the ground.

To be continued...

When I bought Ophelia from *Reve*, there was a photo in the listing that I loved.  I asked the artist if I could use the photo, and she graciously said yes.  I edited it in PhotoShop and printed a teeny tiny copy for a vintage looking frame I had.

This photo of Ophelia is one I took.

I loved it so much I decided to print it for framing as well.  This one is a little larger to keep the details visible.

The bedroom is hard to decorate with its odd angled corner walls, so this is the perfect size for the space.

After repairing the bubble in the bedroom wallpaper, I needed a photo to fill the oval frame that would mask the repair seam.  I thought a 1920s wedding photo would be perfect, but I didn't have any in my own family to use.  I searched online and found this wonderful photo from Rick Zolla, who granted me permission to use it for the Heritage.  :D  I edited it in PhotoShop - adding some background to the left of the man and at the top of the photo, then feathering the border into an oval shape.

It fits perfectly with the ambiance of the room.

I love the relaxed pose and setting...such a great image!  Thank you, Rick!

I finished painting the second nightstand, and they are a pretty close match to one another.

I opted for doing mirror image painting so they would look more like a planned set than two of the same table.

There's not much room on them for anything besides the lamps, but it all seems to work well together.

With these completed, this room is almost finished!  :D

Of course, it hasn't been fully accessorized yet, so stay tuned!

If you recall from a previous post, I noticed that the Heritage bedroom paper had buckled in a few places on the long wall after using Yes paste.  After posting a question on the Greenleaf forum for suggestions, I received two great ideas.

Note: I no longer recommend Yes paste - I use Wallpaper Mucilage instead.  Yes paste has problems with longevity.

One suggestion for fixing the paper involved using a glue syringe.  I would cut a small slit in the paper, lift the edge and inject glue under the paper.  I would use a credit card or similar flat edge to distribute the glue and even out the paper.  To disguise the slit in the paper, I would just hang a framed photograph or small painting.  The other suggestion was to form a curtain behind the bed.  I've seen fancy valances and partial canopies that fasten to the wall and have draped fabric hanging down to the floor.

Tonight, I worked on repairing the one large bubble between the bed and the door.  I used a bright light to make sure I was getting the right spot.

I kept my oval frame in place to show where the cut would need to be.  I used a brand new blade to make a clean cut in the paper about 1/2" long.

The dot above the cut is the mini hold wax I used to hold the frame in place.  I left it to make sure I put the frame back in the same spot after the repair.

I put some Aleene's Quick Dry glue into my syringe.

I lifted the edge of the paper and inserted the syringe tip.  I squeezed out a good amount of glue into the bubble.

Using a plastic giftcard, I smushed (technical term there) the glue around inside the upper portion of the bubble.  I then repeated the process for the lower portion.

I used the back of my fingernail and rubbed the surface in circles to even out the texture.  It's not perfect by any means, but it looks so much better than it did.  There was one spot where there was something under the paper, so it marred the front just a little.  The tall lamp covers that without a problem.  The seam will be behind the oval frame and hidden.  I just need something for the frame...I'm thinking a 1920s wedding photo.  :D

Success!

For the larger vertical bubble and the small one right next to it, I used the wall curtain idea.  First, I made a paper mockup of the curtain panel and tried out a small oval frame I had in my stash.  Both worked well.

I then made the wall panel a few days ago using the Millie August Magic Mini pleating tool.  I made the pleats with the tool and then sprayed them with Aleene's Stiffen Quik to set my final arrangement.

I made a pelmet for the top of the curtain, smaller than the one I made for the parlor.

I painted it white and then covered it with the same fabric I used for the accent pillow on the bed.  I hadn't needed to paint the pelmet in the parlor since the fabric was darker.  I glued the curtain inside the pelmet.

I used mini hold wax to attach the pelmet to the wall.  If I ever need to remove it for cleaning or replacement, I won't risk damaging the delicate paper on the wall.

The bubbles are covered, and the panel adds a wonderful design element.  I would never have done this without the wallpaper problem, so I suppose it's another one of those happy accidents.  :D