Category: "Greenleaf 2011 Spring Fling - Baxter Pointe Villa"

Old World Tile review

by brae  

I've seen this brand of flooring online, but it is very pricey.  The various descriptions state the tile sheets come with a stylus for detailing the grout lines and end up looking very realistic.  I've not seen any photos of it installed in a dollhouse or roombox, though.  I think perhaps the retail price of $25 per sheet (plus shipping) is a bit steep to buy it without knowing how it will work out.

Well, I ended up finding an unfinished sheet on eBay for a fraction of the cost, though it didn't come with the stylus indicated.  I figured it was worth a try.

It's a very high quality printed paper that you adhere to an included white board with spray adhesive.  The grout lines are raised on the print.

The instructions are very precise, including exactly which products to use for the assembly and finishing of the flooring.  I cut my board to my room size and used scraps to try out the sealing process.

The manufacturer suggests up to five coats of Delta Ceramcoat Gloss sealer applied with a brush.  Here is the sample I did following those instructions.

I also covered a sample by brushing on one coat of Triple Thick Gloss Glaze by Americana.  Here is the sample with that product.

I think I'd need more coats of the first sealer to equal the results I got with the one coat of Triple Thick Gloss Glaze...and there are no brush lines with the Triple Thick.  It evens out as it settles and dries.  I rather like that it looks like sheet linoleum, too!  :]

You are then supposed to use the stylus to lightly score along the lines, indenting the finish but not the paper to create the look of recessed grout lines.  I tried the scoring process with my own stylus but found it didn't really work for me.  It marred the finish even though I wasn't pressing hard at all.

I thought perhaps I hadn't let the finish dry long enough so I tried it again the following night.  It worked without lifting the sealer but I honestly didn't think it added anything so fabulous to merit the amount of work it would take to trace all of those tiny lines.  And, any mistakes would be irreversible.  So, I am opting for the Triple Thick finish without the scored lines.

With this particular sheet, I was able to do one room of flooring with enough left to do a tiny room for another project...or perhaps a backsplash, counter or serving tray.

It really is a beautifully made and realistic flooring, but I still think $25 per sheet is too much regardless of including a stylus that could just as well be sold separately.  You really wouldn't need a new one included each time you bought a piece of flooring from this product line.  The high quality wood flooring sheets on the market are priced exactly what they should be for the quality and ease of use...roughly $12-15 per sheet.  I think the Old World Tile sheets would be better if priced about the same as those...just my two cents.  :]

Spring Fling chimney, part 2

by brae  

Have I mentioned I love egg carton bricks?  :D  Yes, they are a lot of work and very time-consuming, but they just give such an awesome result.

I had to cut away the roof to make room for the chimney.

I then cut two additional pieces of foam core board to finish the chimney on top of the roof.

Getting level and complete coverage of bricks around this top section was challenging but so worth it.  :]

When you see it next it will have on its Sunday best...painted, sealed, grouted and a finished top.

Spring Fling chimney

by brae  

Where there's a fireplace, there must be a chimney!  This is my first time building one of these, and so far it hasn't been bad...just time-consuming.

I built the base from foam core board layers glued together and loosely taped to hold the shape while the glue dried.  This is actually the second base I built for this project, and the final one.  The first one was a bit too narrow and more of a mockup to see how it would look in general.

Previously, I had altered the photos to keep most of the house secret, but I've put in the real ones now so you can see it in relation to the rest of the build.

It has a hole built to fit around the firebox.  The skinny channel in the middle is to disguise later electrical wiring for the upstairs rooms.


click image to enlarge

And sits behind it like so....


click image to enlarge

I'm using egg carton bricks for this as well, though I've cut them a tad smaller than I did for the firebox (1/4" x 11/16").  I actually did some math on the final foam core base before cutting it out so I would have the right dimensions for my bricks.  The bottom is equal to six complete miniature bricks across the bottom edge.

I cut longer egg carton pieces to wrap around the edges to give the appearance of three dimensional brick.

Once they are all in place, I'll paint, seal and grout.  :]

Spring Fling fireplace

by brae  

There are a few Spring Fling sneak peeks lurking about, so here is mine.  This is the fireplace for the firebox I made.  I've done a lot of work on the build since this...but none of it can be shown just yet.  :D

The fireplace itself is made from foam core and scrap wood, like the one in the living room of the Newport.  The facade is made from vinyl Greenleaf tiles leftover from the kitchen floor in the Newport.  I still need to make a hearth for it.


click image to enlarge

Here's the overall view...and no, these aren't the finishes for the room where the fireplace will be.  ;]  The basket is from Glenda of Peppercorn Minis.  She does marvelous work!


click image to enlarge

The two side bookcases are half scale Houseworks bookcases with every other shelf removed.  I did one of these for the Newport as well.  I popped it into the microwave to loosen the glue, removed every other shelf  and then painted it.

The whole structure is one solid unit all glued together, connected by the wood mantel.  The deep brown color is Bittersweet Chocolate paint by Americana...one of my favorite color finishes.

I bought this little globe on eBay because I loved the coloration of it.  Ann at Amazing Miniatures had one similar that I thought was marvelous, too.  Not sure it will find a permanent home in the Spring Fling...but it was close by when I was setting up the photo shoot.

Two more months left to work...seems like so much needs to be done.

Egg carton brick firebox

by brae  

I started working on a firebox yesterday and finished bricking it today using egg carton bricks cut 5/32" tall by 3/4" wide.  This is about all I can show you of the work I did this past week during my minifest vacation.  I got a lot accomplished this week off from work.  :D

Here it is after painting, sealing and grouting.  I'll add some soot shading later on.

Egg carton bricks are just about my favorite trash-to-treasure material.  I used them on the Newport foundation.

And, I used them to make the study and living room fireplaces in the Newport.

Those are Greenleaf vinyl tiles on the outside and hearth here.

So, now you know I have a fireplace in the Spring Fling build.  Hmm...I hope I haven't given too much away.

1 2 ...3 4 6 7