Master bath progress, part 2

by brae  

The traveling sink moves again!  :D  Keli suggested I move the sink closer to the open back for better viewing, and I thought that was a fantastic idea!


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To finish the low wall around the bath, I used a clear plastic sheet embossed with 1/4-inch square tiles from miniatures.com.  You paint the underside, and the top side shows as shiny tiles.  I like that the surface has a little bit of texture the way real tiles would.

I cut the clear sheet to fit around the wood base, trying to line up the tiles on the top with those on the sides.  I've never done tile work, but it seems neater to align the tiles.

I tried a few different painting treatments on some small scraps to determine which color tiles I wanted.  In the end, I decide all white was the way to go.  It's a very clean, classic design.  I painted the wood base all white with acrylics but used Krylon gloss white spray paint on the back of the tile sheets; it was faster, cleaner and left no brush marks on the tiles.  I used regular tacky glue to adhere the tiles to the wood base.

I've removed the gold twin faucets from the tub and put a painted cap on the holes for now.  I am still working on faucet options.  If anyone ever decides to make better miniature faucets, I will be first in line!  :D

The whole assembly is removable at the moment, just sits flush against the corner walls.  Once the wallpaper is in permanently, I will glue it in place and finish the bottom edges where it meets the floor.

I modified this light from The Dolls House Emporium.  It originally had a faceted bead, and I replaced it with a clock face I bought at the Bishop Show in April.  I had no purpose for the clock face when I bought it; I just liked it.  :D

Master bedroom linens

by brae  

In a previous post, I wrote about making the box spring for the Daisy House double bed kit I built.  Tonight, I started dressing the bed.  Using the same process as I had for the guest bed, I made a fitted sheet and flat sheet to cover the mattress.  This time, I used the same fabric as I had for the box spring.

The pillows are made from white cotton sateen and filled with seed beads.  Here they are uncovered.


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The fitted sheet is glued in place, but the top sheet is only taped down.  I am still deciding on bedding materials, so I need it to be removable for now.


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I made the pillow cases a little larger this time around.  I like the way they're a little baggier than the one on the guest bed.


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Anyone else feel suddenly sleepy?  ;]

Hallway

by brae  

Just because it's not really a room is no reason to ignore the hallway!  In fact, I wanted to do something special with this space, and it was all due to this photo I found online at Coastal Living.  This is likely an entryway, but I think it lends itself well to the hallway space in the Newport.

Flipping the first floor stairs meant the second floor stairs would have to face the back wall, but it was more the mirror and wainscoting with the art shelf that drew me in.

For the walls, I used the same scrapbook paper as the garage: Swan by Martha Stewart.  It's a very pale green and allows for just enough contrast with the white wood trim.  It's also one of the few papers I've found that is larger than 12 inches square; that means no seaming!  :D  Ah, it's the little things...  But, the store where I got it no longer carries that size.  :(

I used scraps of the Handley House wood flooring sheets for the hallway.  It runs the opposite direction of the wood floor on the first floor, but I wanted to use up the leftovers from the first floor so they wouldn't go to waste.  :]  I sealed it with Minwax Water-Based Polycrylic protective finish in clear semi-gloss before installation.

I created the picture rail using 3/8" corner trim and gluing crown molding into the groove.

After centering the mirror on the left side, I did some math to figure out the best width for the vertical boards and the spacing between them.  I first cut full pieces of cardboard the size of the "openings" on either side of the door.  I used that template to cut pieces of paper and did my calculations and drawings on those.

Once I had an acceptable layout, I used the paper pattern to cut a piece of basswood to use for the trim.  In real life, this treatment would like be done with planks instead of one continuous piece, but I wanted to eliminate the possibility of seams showing between the pieces.

I thought the mirror would be the hardest part to recreate, but I found many potential mirrors online.  I ended up going with the House of Miniatures Chippendale Pier Glass kit, omitting the small table as shown in the inspiration photo since there wasn't enough room at the top of the stairs to add it.

Assembly was a bit of a pain since I had to miter the corners myself, but I've had plenty of experience with that!  I replaced the glass mirror and cardboard supplied with the kit with plastic mirror sheet backed with balsa.  I like the lighter weight without the glass.

I painted the frame Robin's Egg Blue by JoAnn Craft Essentials and then dry brushed it with white for accent.

Having worked on multiple prints of the same size before (the bird prints in the dining area), I knew replicating the art prints would be time consuming.  Each frame has to be as precise as possible since size discrepancies show so easily in a setup like this.

The four pieces of artwork I used are all by Hazel Barker: Casa Girasole, Le Jardin Rouge Provence, Champs de Lavande, and Hill Town Provence.  I changed the aspect ratio of two of them to make them all square.  During a big sale at Michael's, I bought two paper punches: a one inch square and one slightly smaller square.  This made for super easy mat cutting!  :D

I glued the mats around the artwork before cutting them out.

I am undecided if I need frames around them.  I rather like the prints just the way they are.

And, here's my nearly finished hallway.  The railings are not glued in place just yet, and I still need to finish the back stairs and the ceiling and install an overhead light or two for the space.  I love the way it turned out...no more boring hallway!  :D

Thrifting in mini

by brae  

I've officially decided I love House of Miniatures kits!  :D  If you finish an antique piece in a more modern color scheme and update the hardware, you end up with something that works well in a contemporary setting.  It's like thrifting in mini!

Here's the box image for the master bedroom dresser.  Very traditional.

And, here is the kit after finishing.  I used black paint followed by a satin varnish and wooden knobs painted silver for the hardware.  The flowers are part of the Bonnie Lavish dahlias I made last week.

A perfect match for the Daisy House bed I built previously.


click image to enlarge

Guest Bed

by brae  

I had originally planned to follow the same method that I used for the Baslow Ranch single bed but decided to make the mattress with foam core board as I had done with the box springs.  I tried dressing the mattress I made for Baslow Ranch as a mockup for the guest room, but it didn't look right.  There needed to be more structure under the bed coverings, and foam core board provided that.  It also allowed me to use up some of the scraps I had laying around.

I cut three layers of foam core board slightly smaller than the box springs to allow for fabric coverings.

Using the thin batting I had used to stuff the Baslow Ranch bed, I covered the top and sides of the foam core board to give the mattress a softer appearance.

I pinned a scrap of white cotton sateen over the covered mattress and then sewed the corners to make a fitted sheet.

I turned it right side out, stretched it over the mattress and then glued the excess under the mattress.

Using the same fabric, I made a flat sheet, turning the edge under near the head of the bed.  I didn't sew the corners on this sheet.  Instead, I folded the corners and glued the excess under the mattress.

I made a blanket for the bed using two coordinating cotton prints that came in a set from Joann Fabrics.  I didn't use any batting since the double thickness seemed to have enough weight.  I pressed it into shape on the bed and dabbed a tiny bit of glue where needed to keep the blanket flat on the bed.

I made a pillow for the bed using the white sateen, filling it with seed beads.  I then sewed a pillowcase out of the same fabric and squeezed the stuffed pillow into it.  I like the way the pillow is bowed inside the crisp pillowcase; I think it adds a bit of realism.

My first dressed bed!  Hurray!

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