The Garfield Manor by Kathy Calhoun

Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T07:56:00.000-08:00

Bless this house, oh Lord, we pray, make it safe by night and day.

Pay It Forward/Backward The End

2009-11-01T06:09:00.000-08:00

It's been a week or so that I sent out my "Pay It Forward" minis, plus the "Backward" to Jody, Tiffany and Maia. I want to say great things about Ann Vanture's "Cut and Glue" kits which each received pieces, plus I made some plants from fimo. Duh, I didn't take photos. It was fun, Ladies!!!!

Now, I keep saying, I'll go back to work on Garfield. Wait!! It was about this time last year that I stopped to work on Holidays and the house. In all that time, the stuff in this spare room has mounted to the point I need to really clean the room first. Bought 2 boxes at Wally World that are too big to stash this stuff. If I fill them, there's no good place to accommodate the size of the boxes.

Please, someone tell me that I'm not alone when I stand at the doorway to this room, lean up on the wall, and ask themselves what to do with all this "stuff"- lots of other words to call it. I have small bottles that I want to save because I may need them, spare wood, new tools, spackle, shingles, rocks, scrapbooking supplies, 2 other dollhouses, empty space bags, boxes I can use to mail Christmas in, the beginnings of Christmas gifts, decor, cards, blah, blah, blah..................If only someone could know without a doubt what my intentions are and come in here and do it for me. WAIT!! That's me.....get off my butt and do it!!

I will do what everyone says..."you can do anything for 15 minutes". And so, I prepare to begin to start to get to fixing to be ready to work for 15 minutes. Now, where did I stash that timer?

Pay It Forward...Part Two

2009-09-12T14:46:00.000-07:00

I am working my l'il fingers on my "Pay It Forward" items. No, I'm not saying what I'm doing, Jodi and Tiffany. You are my only 2 players right now and I can take 3 more, if other bloggers want to play. See my August 1st blog for the instructions. I'm making enough to send to several people. I guess it's my own fault, since I've not been writing much ( or working much. ) Working these things up has me also working on the Garfield too, but it's just siding and nothing to get excited about. I'll take 3 more people until 9/30. After that, I'll split it all between the 2 ladies I have now.

A New Challenge=A Happy Memory

2009-08-05T08:53:00.000-07:00

I've come to realize that crafty people are always up to something. Today, it's Tiffany, at http://www.minimischief.blogspot.com/. She's chosen me and some other bloggers to a photo challenge. I'm supposed to take the 4th photo from the 4th file in my computer, show it, say something about, then pass the challenge to four different bloggers. This one is a joy to do.

The photo is an old, old chair...older than I am...60 plus I don't know how many years. The old chair currently sits in my sister's livingroom. This old chair has been recovered a few times but I always see it's original covering...a green vinyl that had seen better days. This old chair first belonged to my parents. As children, my sisters and I rode this as a horse and it went by different horsey names, took us for miles of rides across our imagination, both as a saddlehorse and hitched to a wagon. We used it as a gymnastic horse and jumped our way winning in the Olympics. If it was placed just right with other pieces of furniture, we could jump from furniture to furniture and never touch the floor. I also remember sitting a few timeouts in it, only they weren't called "timeouts", they were "sit there and don't say a word until you think about it"......"it" was any stupid thing I did wrong.

The name of the file that this old chair's photo is "Furniture inspirations". I intend on making a replica of this old chair, just as I did the twin beds my sisters and I slept in and a humidor chest that had been my Granny's.

So, that's the tale of the old chair. Now it is my turn to pass it on and, as usual, I can't seem to manage that...you see, after checking a few blogs to see if they've "been there, done that", I see that they have in one form or another, and hitting them again takes the fun away and it becomes more work, for them and for me. So, Tiffany, I've failed on my challenge but had so many happy thoughts about the old chair.

WHOA! Nellie!

Pay It Forward

2009-08-01T07:06:00.000-07:00

Several months ago, I responded to a fun game in Maia Bisson's delightful blog ( http://maiastwinkleminiatures.blogspot.com/ ) called Pay It Forward. The object is to send a mini-something to the first five people who respond to the offer written in their own blogs. Then, those five people make the same offer in their blog and on and on and on.

I think I was the first one to respond to Maia's offer, by a lucky chance. From her, I received a "cross stitch" book mark and a photo album. At present, they are in my Alison Jr., but are intended for the Garfield when I get it completed.It is now my turn to make the offer.

This is how it works:
For the first five people who respond to this post, I will make a small gift and send it to you. This will be a 1/12 scale miniature gift which I will attempt to tailor, in some way, to the people who respond.
There are a few limitations:
1. Until it arrives at your doorstep you will not know what it is.
2. They will arrive by the middle of October.
3. I will make something lightweight and not bulky to facilitate packaging and mailing. Where’s the catch? You must make the same offer on your blog."

Simple, yes? The rules were cut and pasted from Maia's offer. The only change is the month. The hardest part is the wait, wondering what it'll be and when will it arrive.

So, folks....want to play?

New Award Plus A Shopping Mania

2009-06-25T05:37:00.000-07:00

I have been "Illuminated" by Tiffany at www.minimischief.blogspot.com/ . How sweet, Tiffany!! I thank you so much. I do have some guilt accepting the award, since I haven't done all that much on The Garfield Manor in the last couple of months. My garden continues to scream bloody murder for me to work on it and my husband is literally falling down and needs more attention lately. I will humbly accept the award and will "illuminate" ALL others as I have in the past. I cannot pick just one, or four, or however many it is I should illuminate.....they are ALL my favorites; I find myself reading from one to another in no particular order, enjoying each one in it's own right. I have never been so fascinated with so much talent as I have after discovering blogging. Please, everyone, give yourselves big pats on the backs and sing "This Little Light Of Mine" over and over.

SHOPPING MANIA..............I do hope everyone knows that Hobby Lobby has miniature everything 1/2 off. If you're just now learning, you still have 3 days. Hopefully, you won't have people like me, waiting in the parking lot first thing this past Monday morning, for the doors to open. Since there has been no real sighting here in Grand Junction of other miniaturists, I feel no guilt in the 2 large bags of things. I bought 3 packs of small corner trim, 10 pair louvered shutters, 2 Tiffany table lamps, 3 packs books that I'll add titles to later, 2 3- candle sconces, 4 pairs Victorian doorknobs/keys, 2 tulip chandeliers, 3 tulip ceiling light, 2 tulip wall sconces, 2 round hanging ceiling lamps, more baseboard, plank flooring, and a floor globe. All of that feels like a great BIG, happy bargain at $150 ( normally $300 ). WWWHHHEEEEEE.

PSST! Don't tell my husband!!! I want him to know that Spam and wieners are gourmet foods.

I am going back tomorrow to see if anything is left that I want to bring home or will need sometime in the next few months. I had left some books, more trim, a few chandeliers and lamps, more candles, and an old looking Singer sewing machine that I think I want. Maybe, having all this will be the kick in the butt I need to pay more attention to Garfield. Well, the temps have made it into the 90's now and I won't be going out to sweat in the lily patch as frequently, so I'll have time to build on my dream.

Tiffany, again, thank you. You've sent me smiles and I truly appreciate it.

Dilly Dally

2009-05-06T06:47:00.000-07:00

What we have here...is a failure to communicate!!! 'My bad!!!!!!! Every once in a while, I don't write to those I should...people think I've dropped off the surface of the Earth. I don't e-mail, snail mail, send cards, write in my diaries....I have three....personal, garden, and dollhouse.....I don't call people very often either. No reason, just closed mouth....which my family would say "that's a good thing", since I can be a motormouth at times.

So, to the Garfield. My silence has not meant I'm not working on it, but the work is pretty slow. The life size garden has the priority right now and, boy, does it need hands on in there.

Since seeing what Gina ( More Minis. blogspot.com ) did to the 3rd floor gazebo instead of a tower room, I have wanted to do something very different to the house. Since most of the structure is done, I had to find some place to create a new look. I've chosen the porch roof. To be more specific, there will be NO porch roof, at least, the way it was intended. In the Greenleaf directions, the porch roof is slanted. In the photos above, you see a triangular piece of wood slanted down from the side of the front porch. It is to hold the roof in place. Well, I cut it off...flat against the walls. I am not going to have a slanted roof on the porch...it will be flat, with railing all around the perimeter of the porch. It will resemble a "Widow's Walk", though it is too low to be have that purpose.

I have taken the wood pieces to the roof and filled in the tabs with spackle and sanded them flat. I will paint the top of that wood the same brown I am using in the trim pieces and the underside ceiling of the porch a creamy color, yet to be picked out. In fact, all my basic house colors need to be picked out.

I have a "what to do first?" list:

1. Finish the siding

2. Paint the exterior

3. Paint the porch floor, ceiling, roof

4. Prepare the porch trim pieces-sanding, dry fitting, painting

5. Install the 3 doors- the front door, the side door, and the 2nd floor doors

6. Get the exterior windows ready

7. Place the stone on the tower-I'm practicing on a scrap piece of wood and I still need more practice

8. Prepare corner trim pieces and trim to go under the roof of the porch ( like a cornice, but a flat piece )

9. I KNOW I've missed something

I'll try to be more talkative from now on...kick me if I take too long.

OOPS, I Forgot

2009-03-22T05:40:00.000-07:00

Susan, from the Maharajah's Palace, gave me the "Sisterhood" award for my blog. I thank you so very much for this. I am still surprised when I realize that people other than family and friends read my blog and I actually have "followers". It honestly gives me incentive to do more work on the house. I'm passing it on to EVERYONE who is working on their own blog, as we all need that boost from time to time and to choose just a few is not only confusing, but not fair to the ones not mentioned. I think that anyone who takes the time to share their thoughts with others is just as welcome as those that call and ask how you are doing. It's wonderful that computers bring us all together no matter how far away we really are from each other.

The Kiss of the Sun

2009-03-22T05:12:00.000-07:00

I have Spring Fever and the weather is perfect for it, at least, until tomorrow, when it's supposed to change. I've spent the better part of my time cleaning and uncovering tiny little sprouts that hide under Winter's junk. The crocus and mini-daffodils are flowering now and signs of others are following. I get all goo-goo when my flowers start to show from their long Winter's nap.

The Kiss of the Sun for Pardon,
The Song of the birds for Mirth,
One is Nearer God's Heart in a Garden,
Than Any Place Else on Earth.

I've not completely ignored The Garfield, but it's only with monotony. Sanding a new stack of shingles, cutting and gluing them on to the house. Surely you don't need to see the same photo, just on the other side of the house. Boring!

I am guessing it will take a while to get to the point where a photo will be of any real interest. Sorry about that. I'm eager myself, but life comes before it's imitation. The change in the weather that's coming is supposed to be here tomorrow and hang out for a few days, so maybe I'll get something done then - I hope.

Until then, I'll be in the garden if you need me.

A Little More Siding

2009-03-14T03:41:00.000-07:00

Putting up the siding is an easy task, but not the least bit exciting. The photo is of the front porch, front door, and tower. The height it's at right now is as high as I can go before I put on the porch roof. I'm only halfway finished, then will turn my attention to the porch, adding a plank floor, and on the tower, stonework all the way up My heart says I'll be done with the siding this weekend: my fingers ask "Who am I kidding?" I need to rummage around in my box of "Gonna Do's" and find my front trim, the planks, the riverstones. Good grief! I thought I said I was organized!!! I love this house! I'm so sad that lately is been a big sigh instead of something more enthusiastic.

ANSWERING MY E-MAIL

Oh, my goodness..all the positive re-enforcement a girl could need. More than a dozen of you have said such sweet things. Thank you so much. Your nudge has done the trick. And, the weather, Springlike, but not quite there, is perking me up some. My crocus are blooming, the mini daffies are in bloom, and the standard daffies are almost there.

Well, HiHo, HiHo.

My Apologies

2009-03-09T08:04:00.000-07:00

Well over a month ago, Doreen Playter pass the blogging award back to me. Thank you so much, Doreen and I apologize for doing nothing about it until now. I really do have better manners than that.What's kept me is just cabin fever, my own personal funk, a 1,400 page book, and all around procrastination. In other words, no good reason at all.

I also have the problem of passing it on to others and I just have a mental block there. My reading of others' blogs is a random method, bouncing from one blog to another, and I've already passed it once to my most favorites. This is not to say that there are not other great ones that I read, but that, for the most part, I haven't spent a whole lot of time reading many blogs. Those that I've spent any real time reading, I have already passed it on to them or they have already received it from others multiple times.

As for my dear baby? Garfield, it too have suffered my lack or attention and I only have a few more pieces of siding up, nothing spectacular right now, but on the verge of being show off again. I have, just a few days ago, picked up level and exacto knife and am back on track. It shouldn't be too long now for me to do show and tell. Please accept my apologies for being so lazy.

Progress !! One Wall of Siding Finished!!

2009-02-04T04:12:00.000-08:00

It's taken longer than I expected to do one wall of siding, but I haven't worked any long periods of time on the wall. I'd glue a piece on and walk away for a while, come back, slap a piece up, and walk away again.

It took about 1/2 package of the siding to do this wall. It is the outer side of the Parlor. I didn't measure the distances of each piece, just simply glued it slightly over the top edge of the piece below. I DID use a level to make sure it was straight.....I seemed to have a good eye about that; usually, I was dead on level. This wall was really very simple to do, even working around the windows. Slowly, the side was covered and I am pleased with it. Eventually, when all the siding is complete, I will paint it a tan color, not chosen yet. As there are fireplaces on the other side of this wall, I will build a chimney of the same riverstone that I'm going to use for the foundation and the tower.

I will turn the house today facing front and do some thinking before I start that wall. I will need to work around the tower, one window, and the front door, plus I'll have to be sure to allow for the porch roof openings. I need to be sure of my plan for the wall. I'm thinking- first, siding all around, come back, lay the front porch floor planking, do the stonework until I reach the porch roof, add the roof, then finish going up the tower wall. I need to be sure before I make a move. I hate having to undo something and undoing any of these things would be messy and very frustrating. I won't start for a few days on the front...I have a list of real life to work on before I make a move, which will give me time to think of my plans.

Siding Going Up

2009-01-29T15:02:00.000-08:00

This is the exterior right side wall.....the Parlor is on the other side of the wall. It is going to be the easiest of the walls to put the siding on, since I only have the windows to work around. The other walls will have the porch roof, both front and side, the tower, and 3 bay windows.

I first started with Elmer's glue..KNOWING full well it would warp and curl...but it was worth a shot, just to see how it'd act. Trashed that piece. Next, I tried Aileen's Tacky Glue and it did the same thing. Trashed that, too. Now, I'm using contact cement, a Dap product, and it's a water cleanup and easy to work with. I'm very happy with that.

On the part where there's no window, it takes 1 full piece and about 2" of a second piece. I glued the first pieces even with the bottom of the house. The second piece I put on, you can't see from this photo and I forgot about it until I started typing. It is on the front, touching down on the porch floor, to give me a guideline of how to keep the rest of the siding straight going around the house. So, the third piece is on the side, even with the piece I put on the front porch. ( Am I making sense? ) From there, it's just straight up the wall. I am barely overlapping the pieces, not measuring the distance, but using a tiny level ( the little black thingie at the corner of the house )

to make sure that it looks, well, level. I tape each piece down once it's up there and go do something for at least 15-20 minutes for it to set, then come back and do another.

I've got to tell you, it's going to be amazing when I'm done; I can tell that already, but it's not a fun thing to do..tedious ( my sister's word and I agree ). Good thing I'm in no hurry. If I was in a bigger room, I could work on different areas around the house, but I only can reach one side at a time.

The next wall to do will be the very front and I may have to do some other things first...I want to do the floor in the wood planking and I have the porch roof and railings to deal with.....the roof is the part that concerns me first. I'm going to let it surprise me.

Take the Good With the Bad ( News )

2009-01-14T10:31:00.000-08:00

My siding arrived last night!! Hoorah!!! and the walls of Garfield are almost complete with the prep-sanding and wiping them down. I ordered all I should need, plus extra, in one pop...560 strips in all, ready to cover the exterior of my house, EXCEPT...always an "except", they need sanding. All of the edges are feathered and rough and, being a neat freak, that's not good enough. I want the siding to be smoother than it is, so I'll sand some, glue them on, sand some more, glue them on. Everything about this baby has pretty much needed sanding. I resigned myself to that fact a long time ago. In the next few days, during my favorite TV shows and old movies, I'll be running an emery board across the edges. The actual broad sides are fine. I will be sanding for a few days before I start on the right Parlor wall.

In the same shipment is my newest experiment-corner guards, an architectural detail in so many Victorian homes. These are 4 3/4 inch long posts, described by Harry at Miniatures.com to be precisely 1/8" plus a hair wide. Size wise, they are perfect for the need, but I'll need to tweak them in some way to make them snuggle into the outer corners of the walls, to prevent injury to them when bumped into by the tea cart. I am in no way disappointed with these at all and I hope they restock them as I'll be wanting more, both for The Garfield, but also for The Alison, Jr.

I am so delighted being able to get back to my hobby, even though it does begin with the inevitable sanding.

Getting My Act ( Back ) Together

2009-01-09T07:32:00.000-08:00

Finally, finally, finally, the last of Christmas has been crammed into it's boxes, everything back where it's supposed to be, and I've done the last of the cleanup and Christmas vacuuming!!! I absolutely am nuts about Christmas, but procrastinate about putting it back in it's boxes. Anyway, I can go back to work on The Garfield Manor, but first........................

I have to get the big table out from under the bed, move the house to it, so that I can use the smaller table to work on in the "spare" room. I have to get out my tools and other supplies and set up my working area all over again. Oh, how I wish I had a little world where I didn't have to put things up and hide them for neatness sake! And, I need to move the Alison, Jr. ( on a wheeled cart ) back into the dining room for the extra space in here.

According to the directions, it's time to put the small tower room together and, then, the roof, but, instead, I'm going to put on the siding, as it'll be so much easier and neater if the roof isn't in my way. I have a shipment of siding to arrive early next week and I want to be ready for it as soon as it gets here. I L-O-V-E how Gina ( http://www.moreminis.com ) just did a recap on applying siding and I've gone over it a few times and I feel like I'm ready.

Over the next few days, I'll be sanding down the tabs and slots, making sure that all the surfaces are as flat as possible and wipe them down, so there'll be no dust or debris to prevent the glue from holding properly.

Don't laugh....I am actually quivering with excitement about getting back to work on this baby. It's been almost 2 months since I last did anything other than show her off or sit and dream about the plans I have for her. I have truly, truly missed working on The Garfield and have felt that something was missing from my life.

WOW!!!!!! An Award...Twice!!!

2009-01-05T13:20:00.000-08:00

I am delighted that 2 of my fellow bloggers have passed on this blogging award. It was truly unexpected...actually unheard of, until it came my way-twice. I thank you, Jodi ( http://minileapsandbounds.blogspot.com/) and Gina (moreminis@blogspot.com) and am passing it on. Now, I'm not really sure how this works, though I did read "the directions"-always important-which said I could pass it on to up to 15 people. Well, if I read that many blogs, I wouldn't have the time to do very much at all, but I do have a few favorites that I try to stop in on at least every week.

First, I'd like Sumaiya ( http://thegarfieldblog.blogspot.com/) to share in this and I think she's already received it from someone, but I would be remiss in overlooking her. Sumaiya has walked me through the steps of blogging, kindly holding my hand and encouraging me all the way. It was watching her own Garfield building that took me to her.

Next, I passing it right back to Gina,( http://moreminis@blogspot.com ) whose site I've been to so many times, since it is full of helpful hints and tips that have never crossed my mind. And her Victorian sites have filled my head with ideas for my Garfield.

I'm also passing it right back to Jodi, ( http://minileapsandbounds.blogspot.com/ )who also admits to being "obsessed" with minatures and whose site is so full of information.

Next comes Larry Marshall (http://woodnbits.com/blog/ ) who will most likely laugh that I think his head is so full of information and I would like to crack it open like a coconut so I could get to it.

For Doreen ( http://doreensminiatures.blogspot.com/ ) who actually just started her blog recently, but is already a favorite from e-mails at MCC.

And, Tiffany (http://minimischief.blogspot.com/ ) who gets her fingers into anything she sees and seems to make everything in her life fun.

I could go on and on, but golly, there's not enough hours in the day. I think it's important to note that, I'm sure, all of us started out with " Who's gonna read what I have to say?" and have been surprised when we find out there are many folks out there supporting us, not just our families, who are obligated to read our thoughts. I have days when blogging feels like homework and others where I can't shut up, but it took me a while to realize that I really did have some folks following my words and I feel honored, especially when I had to be talked in to it by Sumaiya, who went so far as to set it up for me, thank you, dear. I still am surprised by the support from others and this ( not so little, to me ) award just encourages me.

Well, pass it on, ya'll, and keep up the great work, as I always am needing your advice, entertainment, and encouragement.

And, about the Garfield, which is, after all, what this blog is all about, I have an order in for siding that should be delivered about the time I get Christmas all packed back up in it's boxes, and the fun will continue in the blog in just a few days.

Getting the Itch Back

2008-12-30T04:53:00.000-08:00

As you know, I've taken the Holidays off and concentrated on my big house. Now that Christmas is over, I'm wanting to get back into my Garfield and work/play with it, but I have to put up Christmas and that'll take another week or so.

Hobby ( Lobby ) wise, I made out like a bandit with over $100 in gift cards from family and friends that I plan to use only for the Garfield, though, if something comes up, I'll use it for non-dollhouse purchases. Many mini thanks to Sue, Angie, Cindy, Sean, and my darling hubby, Ed for making my Christmas merry for my miniature world. And, my friend, Lexie, gave me several pots and pans for a kitchen, though none of my houses have one. It's fine, though, and just confirms my thoughts of building the now unseen part of the Garfield in the future......my mind has it all planned, in fact, and there will be plenty of room in the future addition.

I have used one gift card already, but for my Alison, Jr. and not the Garfield. I needed a better diningroom set and found a nice one at HL that has made me smile more than the one I had made for it in the beginning. The chairs are what made me buy it....gold upholstered with the regal curl on the back. They'll tuck up very neatly under the trestle table. There is a tallboy cabinet to go with it.

The past few days, I've been just sitting next to Garfield, trying to decide what I want to do next. I should be putting on the roof, according to directions, but since I want to place siding on the exterior and make the tower have a fieldstone look, I need to do that first, so I guess a mail order is in order ( snicker ).

I hope you've all had a Merry Christmas and I wish you a Happy New year, full of all the many good things everyone deserves. I'll let you know when I've actually returned to work on Garfield. For right now, I'm just babbling.

Back to Hobby Lobby

2008-11-29T04:51:00.000-08:00

I made a second run on minis at Hobby Lobby on Thursday. It seemed like no one else had been there since my first visit on Monday. I bought all the little books, with intentions of changing their jackets to become "classics", grabbed some more baseboard and crown mouldings, and the last of the candle sticks.

Today, being Saturday, is the last day of their minis on sale and I'll make one more stop and grab everything left that striles my fancy. I'm hoping that last pack of wood floor planking is still there and some of the wall sconces.

Where are the mini people in my area?? Certainly not at Hobby Lobby. Today, when I make my final sweep through the minis, I will be greedy. I can't pass up such a good deal. Hobby Lobby doesn't offer sales on minis all that often, so, while everyone else is buying Christmas items, I'll be in the mini section cleaning them out. I'm ruthless............

Fun At Hobby Lobby

2008-11-24T14:04:00.000-08:00

Hobby Lobby is having 50% off dollhouse miniatures this week and I was at the door at 0900 ready to get as much as I could. There were no other customers in the miniatures department or I might have shared, but, since I was alone, I went nuts.

I bought several different light fixtures, some trim pieces, spindles, candles, wall sconces, books, the white china ( I'll paint designs on those ), floor planking, cakes, mirrors, and I can't remember it all. Total was $75 at the discounted price.

But, since I'm not working on the house right now and all my toys and tools are put up, I had to just leave them in the bag and will open after New Year's.

So, today, instead of working in the dollhouse, I'm making pumpkin bread...working on loaves 5 and 6 right now.

I may go back later in the week and see if they restocked....hope so.

Tons ? of Trim!!!

2008-11-16T08:33:00.000-08:00

I've spent the last few weeks on trim, trim, and trim. I had to wait a couple of weeks for Hobby Lobby to restock their baseboard and all they stocked were 2 packs, which I scarfed up.

There is so much work to do still, plus some fixes of things gone wrong. Somehow, water dripped down the Parlor wall, a "printie" which now I have to remove and repaper. Lots of those nasty words said there. It's hard to believe that with all that's been done on The Garfield, I am only halfway there. I plan on a stone look on the exterior tower with siding everywhere else. There is, of course, roofing and porch to do. I want plank flooring for the porch and stone look around the foundation.

Most of the crown moulding has to wait until the roof is added and fills in those gaps. I need to add trim around the ceiling of the staircase openings to give a cleaner look. I want, I want, I want.

But it's all going to have to wait now until after Christmas. That's right...I'm packing it up so that I can have some room to work during the holidays. I have all those things everyone has at Christmas to do and the dollhouse hours would eat that away. I'll be throwing a light sheet over the house to keep out the dust. I do have a small box of wood that I can work on if I like..sanding, mostly. I also have a list of "quick fix me" things that won't take a lot of time or attention if the bug hits me.Everything else is sorted out, reorganized and packed up until I finish with the Holiday.

I am loving this house so very much and every day is a new adventure. I have pages and pages of want to do's that grows and grows whenever I look at it. I still count my lucky stars for finding this jewel at Goodwill for only $40.

I doubt there'll be much to talk about while the house is "on Holiday", but I will add to the blog if something pops up. I'll let you know if there's anything worthy of being said and, of course, when I get back to work on it in January.

Until then, enjoy the Holidays with all your hearts. Act like a kid again and play with your toys and read Holiday stories.

The 2nd Bedroom

2008-10-29T12:57:00.000-07:00

This door leads into the 2nd bedroom and the trim in the hallway is not done yet, as you can plainly see. I just wanted to show some progress here, though I feel like I've worked and worked and gotten nowhere.

I added a small piece of wood over the door where a transom window would have been. As I've said, the Houseworks door is taller and it leaves little room for a window.

The bay is removable and, while you can't tell from the inside, you sure can from the outside, but I think a decorative trim piece will fix that. We'll see later on down the line. I have only this piece of trim in the hall and will be finishing that up in the next few days. I'm on hold as Hobby Lobby ran out of baseboard and I need to wait for them to restock and they're not too quick about those things.

Give me a few days and I'll have more to show. There is MUCH to do in this hallway!!!

Little things

2008-10-28T05:00:00.000-07:00

Nope..no photos. Nothing looks any different in the house; all the work has been on the work table, except for a little painting in the Master bedroom.

I started on what was to be the transom windows and had to change the plan. The Houseworks doors are bigger/taller than the original doors. Allowing for the higher size and the frame of transom windows, I would have been left with too small an area for a window, so it's becoming just wall. I've finished the painting of the blue side and, today, will work on the other sides' colors, maybe get them fitted into the space.

Yesterday, I bought the last pack of baseboard at Hobby Lobby; will go back today for either the fireplace or crown moulding. Clear vellum was 1/2 off and that's what I'm going to use for "stained glass" in the French doors and oval windows. I need fresh ink cartridges for the printer, which is fine. I have plenty of time and I'll need it still for researching. Someone told me about doing this and I am spending a lot of time looking for the right look.

I'm dragging in the Garfield, working more in other areas of my big house, but I am getting piles of trim pieces stained, varnished, and ready to install. I like to let it pile up and then just have a day with installing.

While it's still in the future, I'm thinking about this tower that is in the front of this house. I think I want it to have a fieldstone look on the entire outside of the tower and in the interior of the third floor, so I'm cruising the supplies needed for that. If I'm going to do it, I need to before I work inside it, which is not all that far away, plus I should do it before I add the siding, which IS a while away.

To be continued........................

Optical Illusions

2008-10-27T05:23:00.000-07:00

It is NOT crooked!! Okay, I admit that I cut it a bit crooked, but I have 1/2" trim pieces, top and bottom, that will cover that and it'll work. I have checked with one of those trims and the little gold medallion like thingie on the paper lines up perfectly!! It just LOOKS crooked. However, on Saturday, it really was crooked and I had to pull off the piece of wallpaper from the both walls and replace it. Lucky for me, since this was a printie, I had printed out extra paper, just in case, so I had enough to replace what I removed.( If I'd needed to reprint, I'd have had to install new ink cartridges. )

There I was, one arm through the hallway bay window, the other arm though the French doors, wetting and removing the printie wallpaper. I had used "Zinsser" border adhesive to get them up there and they were a piece of cake to remove them. ( I love Zinsser products. ) Got the wall cleaned up and started over. I measured all the way through the process and realized it's the printie that is crooked....sorry, Jennifer's printables. Once I realized it was not me, I felt so much better and quit cussing.

Because of this little snafu, I had to change my plans of putting up the trim in the hallway and, instead, started painting in the bedrooms. I papered the 2nd bedroom first. This paintable wallpaper dries quicker than the printie wallpaper and I was able to paint almost right away. I had only the inner wall to do and the paint went on easily....True Value's 4oz jar of tester paint. I'm glad I chose this happy yellow, Bee Pollen, as it really does brighten up the room. See where the opening is? Where the room light shines through? That's where part of the roof goes and I'll have to wait until the roof is done to do the crown work. In this room, I have to install the door, transom window ( which I'm working on ), the fireplace, baseboard, and, lastly, the crown moulding. FYI, the door to the very right leads into the library.

Next, I worked on the Master bedroom. This has a 1/2 wall of the paintable wallpaper ( Thanks always, Kim ) The paper takes less paint than the wood, but it's all done now and I can move on to the trim. This paint is also True Value's tester paint, "Nana". The order for this is the door and transom window, the window seat in the tower area, the fireplace..which I'm going to buy instead of build...the baseboard, the chair rail, and the crown moulding. Again, in some places, I'll have to get the roof on first.

I am delighted to be this far and, for the next few days, will be staining, varnishing, and gluing. I have a lot of shopping to do, as I have only small pieces of trim and need the new fireplace. I'm going to attempt the stained glass look in the transom windows and the little oval window in the 2nd bedroom and have some research to do. I'm making the windows from scratch, because of my kit bashing. While I fumble my way though a stained glass look, I'll work on the other trim too.

It's coupon week at Hobby Lobby!! YEAH!!!!!!!!! I'll go get something each morning and send Ed each afternoon. I need a LOT of trim. I'm slow, installing trim, making it as right as I can, especially the crown moulding, but I think this is where being precise really counts and most of what makes the room look so real.

And, while I work on this floor, making it look like a home, I'll be thinking about the 3rd floor, the attic, and trying to figure out how to make it work. I also have to accept that soon, because of the holidays approaching, I'll have to clean and put up for a while, as this little spare room is the only place I have to work with for Christmas boxes. BooHoo.....but I'm a Christmas freak, so the reason is okay with me. I'll use that time down for sanding the millions of trim pieces and roofing that will go on the house.

Suddenly, It Looks Like a House

2008-10-24T14:49:00.000-07:00

What a difference a floor makes! It looks like a house now. Note that when I edit the photos and change the balance, the colors change a bit. The Master bedroom is coral, not orange, and the second bedroom is a true yellow.

There are a million things to do here, as expected. I need to spackle some rough edges, fill in some gaps, add another small wall between the 2 bedrooms, and lots of trim. I'm letting it sit glued as you see it until tomorrow to insure the the glue holds fast, then to work I go.

Oh, I think it look so beautiful and, again, I find myself just sitting there looking and writing down chores and notes so I won't forget my ideas.

I will first complete the hallway. I need to finish the wallpaper, install the French doors, the bay window, 2 doors and transoms, and add the crown and baseboard.There will be "L" trim pieces at the base of the center walls that will overlap onto the ceiling below. It'll clean up the transition look.

In the Master, add the partition between it and the other bedroom, more papering and painting, the window seat, the fireplace, and the crown and baseboard. There's also a small spot on the floor that needs satin......I'd removed the wall there and haven't filled it in yet. And, in the second bedroom, there is more papering and painting, the fireplace, and the crown, and baseboard.

As I've said all along, I've felt like I've build this from the inside out. There have been so many tricky spots, corners, nooks, curves, and hidden places that building the whole house as designed and then decorating would have been terribly frustrating. Those of you who've built ahead of me know what I mean and those behind me, be warned. It's a puzzle to say it lightly.

I'm leaving the blog until Monday when I'm sure I'll have had tons of things completed by then. There's a pile of trim on my worktable I'm sanding and about to stain and a long list of "to do's". So, I'll turn this chair around 180 degrees and get to work.

Second Floor Progress

2008-10-23T13:50:00.000-07:00

The "progress" is v-e-r-y slow. All I've done today is paint the walls, paint the walls, and, then, paint the walls. That's it, except......

I found all the pieces needed to make the window seat, the 3 tower windows, 1 wide window,a fireplace for the Master Bedroom, and the small oval window. The window seat is supposed to have little pieces with decorative tabs punched out. All I can find is one piece so I'll use leftover beadboard for the sides of the window seats. I lucked out, found one already stained and varnished, just have to cut it to size and touch it up. I already have a fireplace that I bought from a friend of mine (Thanks, Mary Jo ) . It's the one we can buy with the green marble. I love the marble and I'm going to clean up/rough up and repaint the mantle and sides and do something different with it.

Tomorrow, once the paint and painted wallpaper are all dry, I'll add the ceiling/3rd story floor and the inner walls to the bedrooms. THAT'S the part that excites me.

Just a Mess on the Second Floor

2008-10-22T15:52:00.000-07:00

Oh, everything is all a mess and looks confusing. On the right is the number 2 bedroom with stripe embossed paper on in, floor to ceiling, with 2 coats of "Bee Pollen" paint. On the left is the master bedroom with only one coat of paint in the tower area..it will all be paint in the tower...and the white paper is embossed fleur de lis with no paint papered just to chair rail line. The entire wall, paper and wood will be painted "Nana" and then the chair rail in between. The chair rail will be decorative, but I haven't picked it out. In the middle, is the hallway. See where "Peanuts" in the funny paper is? That's where the inner walls will be. This'll take me another few days to finish up, but I wanted to show you something. Sorry, it's a mess, but...well, you know.

Everything is drying off right now..sticking or the paint drying and I'll just leave it until tomorrow. I have nothing planned for my day, so I should get a lot accomplished. Until later.

2nd Floor Interior Work

2008-10-21T05:02:00.000-07:00

It's not exciting to look at spackle and paint, so I'll save you that here. I have the wall corners spackled and sanded and wiped down on all junctions of the 2nd floor interior. All is smooth and ready for paint or wallpaper.

The ceiling was divided into the 3 areas..hallway, Master bedroom, and second bedroom and are all painted. The hallway is painted a very lightened coordinating blue "Expressionist", the Master bedroom is painted a lightened shade of "Nana", and the second bedroom, a lightened shade of "Bee Pollen". All of these paints are from True Value's collection of "Color Made Simple" which are actually test colors...4 oz jars of paint to use to see if you like a color before you buy a gallon or so for a larger space. They are perfect for the miniature house. They go on easily, dry quickly, and are enough for the 2-3 coats that are usually required. I lightened them with white paint and then, thinned them a bit with water, so not to make them too thick and you really can tell the difference.

Coming up next will be to paper the walls with the paintable wallpaper that Kim Hammond sent me ( Thanks, again, Kimi!!) The second bedroom will go first using a textured striped paper. I have more than enough of this and will get it on the walls, allow for drying time, and then paint the paper. I'm going to hit a snag here and will have to be careful with a gap that is made by the slope of the not yet installed roofing. The bizarre construction areas of the Garfield will strike again. This is a photo of ANOTHER house and you can see the odd area at the top of the wall that I'll have to fill in the wallpaper to match. How fun will that be?

On the far right of this room, right where the photo ends, is the door into the library. On the far left, where the photo ends, is supposed to be a door leading into the Master bedroom. I have filled that doorway in and there will be no door at all. Doing so will give me added wall space. A fireplace will go in this room, also.

The Master bedroom will have another paintable paper with fleur de lis on it. I need to fix up the window seat for the tower and either make or buy a fireplace for it.

Each Houseworks doorway has been adapted to fit into the altered doorway ( they were way too small) and I have the basic transom windows ready, but both will need some tweaking. I also have French doors for the hallway to stain on the inside and paint on the outside, not to mention the windows and their trim, some stained, some painted.

All this work should keep me busy for several days...through the weekend, I'm guessing. I don't want to show any of the spaces until I'm done...call me odd ( my sister does ) but I prefer not to show off the ugly, only the completed pretty.

This is an area that I am thoroughly enjoying, in spite of the cat and the problems with the ceiling. And it seems, considering how I'm going to go about it all, that everything will fall into place at the same time. I love it when that happens.

I have looked at just about every photo of the Garfield there is online-many of them your's, dear reader, and have scrutinized each room and technique, some of which I've borrowed. Every one is different, really no two the same, which has made building this so interesting. Once I get this floor done, my move to the third floor will, again, prove to have many quirks, which will take some heavy thinking about how to approach it. I know of a few of the pitfalls, but if you'd be so kind as to warn me of what's to come, I'd appreciate it. No need to tell me how to fix it, just what to look out for. Forewarned is forearmed.

Thank you for being here. I so enjoy your visits and comments. Your advice always gives me courage.

2nd Floor This and That Construction

2008-10-19T09:26:00.000-07:00

There's no need for photos here..nothing exciting or pretty.

There's always something to do before I can do what I want to do. In this case, I want to do the Hallway, but there are things that MUST be done in the 2 bedrooms first, doggone it. I figured that out when I was having one of those moments where I just sit and stare at the house, at what I've done, at what I want to do, and, then, at what I need to do. They are good moments, but often become frustrating when I find all kinds of things that MUST be done.

I've decided the color of the bedroom next to the library will be yellow. There's only a small oval window in the room, so it'll need brighter colors. While I haven't picked out the paint yet, I have found some scrapbooking trims that I want to use in there. They'll give the room a touch of daisies, always a cheerful thing. This room needs some patchwork...tabs sticking out need sanding down and spackled, slots need spackle and there's a few rough edges that need sanding and spackling, all to be done before I paint. One of the hallway walls backs into this room and I need to paint that too, before I can put it up.

I still have no idea what to do with the master bedroom and since another of the hallway walls backs into it, I need to paint that also before I put it up. I'll be thinking on that while I work on the 2nd bedroom. The master bedroom also needs some cleanup, patching, and sanding, so there's plenty of time.

Both rooms will get a fireplace...in fact, EVERY room on the 1st and 2nd floors will have a fireplace and I hope to have some on 3rd floor, though they could end up being wood burning stoves.

While I'm working on the 2nd floor, I have to think ahead to the 3rd floor. I hear there's lots of "iffie's" and confusing concerns up there and I need to keep them in mind while I'm in the floor below.

All the above work will take several days and I don't know if I'll write about them or not on a daily basis. "We'll see" ( I hate those words ). Until I know more...............................

The 2nd Floor Hallway

2008-10-18T10:01:00.000-07:00

This is a shot of the bay window in the 2nd floor hallway. It's not finished, no trim or anything, and it's just sitting there, not glued it. It's supposed to be left removable; I'm considering making it permanent. That decision is down the road.

The inside of the bay is painted the same "Expressions" blue as the walls. The wooden trim pieces on the bottom are punched out pieces from the railing and will carry the design in the staircase through the hall. There will be a cushion there for comfort.

I did have the ceiling/3rd story floor ready, but my cat, Aimee, used it as a scratching post and ruined the ceiling. Yes, she's still alive, but I haven't seen her close to me for a while. She knows she's in trouble. I've decided, instead of trying the paintable paper again that I'd just spray it with a textured paint and that's complete. In doing do, some of the paint got underneath and damaged the completed 3rd story floor. BIG SIGH HERE. So, I cleaned it off with denatured alcohol, added another coat of the Cabernet stain, and 2 more coats of the varnish mix..50/50 denatured alcohol/Bullseye shellac. So, keep laughing, some of the stain seeped through to the ceiling side and I'll have to touch that up...actually, that doesn't bother me, since I'm going to section the ceiling into the room sizes, each having a complimentary color ceiling for that particular room. Flip, Flop, what a lot of work.

That's where I sit and will stay until tomorrow or maybe even until Monday to be positive the varnish is dried solid and nothing else nasty happens. I think I'd break down and cry if one more thing happens to the piece of wood.

It gives me time to come up with color ideas for the 2 bedrooms off this hallway...I have no idea what I want and I should decide soon, if I'm going to do the ceiling. I hate painting upside down.

Until my mind's made up, the door to the room will be kept closed...no cats allowed.

Done In The Dining Room...Finally

2008-10-14T15:09:00.000-07:00

Oh, this room took so very long..I am glad it's done!!!! The window trim in the bay was near impossible to attach and I'm not all that happy with the job. I hope draperies will cover what makes me mad. I had to use a mirror to get the trim in and that can be so confusing. Left is right and right was tough. I will be putting either a cushion there to sit on or using it for plants.

The back door is not glued in yet. There's work to be done on the exterior around there, plus I want to put in a stained glass instead of just plain glass. The fireplace is one that came with the kit with a few additions to it.

After all the time spent in here, I'm at a loss of words to say now. Just tired, I guess. I should have more to say, but am ending this here for today.

Next, the hallway on the second floor, but it'll be a few days before I pick up where I left off. I have other things to do and, honestly, just need to get out of the house for a while. I'll go back in on the weekend.

Dining Room recap

2008-10-13T15:57:00.000-07:00

I know, I said there'd be photos, but the paint's not dry on the trim and I can't glue it wet. I'm working on the trim in the Dining room...baseboard and windows. I'm also diddling around with the stupid back door.

You know, I didn't like the original door, so I bashed the wall to allow for a Houseworks door, which does fit, but the door drags. I'd also added the thin mahogony veneer on that beautiful floor and I need to sand the bottom of the door until it stops dragging. Sand a little, place it in the spot, open the door, say something rude, take it out, sand a little, put it in, open the door, say something rude, on and on. I haven't got it right yet, but it'll be done before bedtime.

I also have a snafu with the "crown moulding". I used a 1" fabric trim, which overlaps where the top of the window trim and bay window trim are and I have to whittle them down to fit in and look nice. It'll work, it'll just take some fussing.

This is the aggravating part of building this beauty...having to tweak things until it works, whether it's bashed or not. You can't get too aggressive with it or it'll be all wrong; it just takes time and....I begin to hate this word...patience.... a virtue not very high up on my ladder. It's such a good feeling when a thing works, but getting there is not always the fun part. Yeah, yeah, memories are made of this, I know, but it just is so time consuming.

The tweaking is where people who don't "mini" don't get it. Too many think that you just glue it on and there you go, but it's more often than not a long process until it's right. So, until tomorrow, when I can just glue it on and there you go..............................

After The Punch and a Touch of Excitement

2008-10-12T14:29:00.000-07:00

The many, many pieces of parts that I punched yesterday are now sorted in plastic baggies, waiting for their turn in the house. Would you believe I have 4 more pieces of plywood to punch and will work on those later this evening. ( There are 39 total, plus the 4 acrylic pages) I ran out of patience and baggies yesterday and had to go buy more. Found the baggies, but couldn't find what aisle the patience was on.

I did buy one of those cabinets from Michael's at the garage sale. I don't know what I'll do with it. It's more appropriate for a kitchen, so I may just bash it for parts to something. And I bought a few knick knacks with plans to send them to some friends, but nothing more in the mini line.

But, EXCITEMENT happened. When I asked the lady having the garage sale about the dollhouse, I was disappointed that the house had gone to an "early bird". She told me about another lady who was interested in having a show of miniatures. Oh, I was thrilled, since I have looked and looked for someone in town that does miniatures and have found no one. She gave me the lady's name and I called her when I got home. She told me there IS a group of ladies in some semblance of a miniaturist's club here in Grand Junction and will get one of the ladies to call me. And, she was serious about a show and I offered to help...a place to have it is the problem. I know nothing about organizing one, but I know of a small shopping center with empty stalls that may allow such an event. Tomorrow, I'm going to try and find some places that would be practical. I'm so excited about it, I could pop!!!

I have no one to talk mini to except for you wonderful people on line, but we all know that face to face can have more to it and I look forward to having "play dates" with people here in Grand Junction. I feel like I may be walking into a new world.

Today on my Garfield, I haven't done very much. I painted the window cutout section and glued on the acrylic to the windows in the Dining room. After the Denver/Jacksonville football game, I'll work on the trim pieces for the windows and baseboard. I'm not sure if I'll paint them or use the Cabernet stain. I'm leaning towards the paint, but will hold up examples of each and ponder about it before I take a glue brush to it.

It's getting colder ( freeze warning for tonight ) and the arthritis is digging in...I can only work short times at the Garfield before it starts to bother me, my back and right sided joints especially. This condition will never go away, darn it, and I never did find what aisle the patience was on...could be a long winter.

Tomorrow, I promise some photos...it's been a while and it's time to show and not just tell.

One More Session of Punch

2008-10-11T05:23:00.000-07:00

Would you believe I STILL have some pieces to punch out??? Well, they're going to get it today...I need the room. These final pieces are of the roof, the porch, and the millions of trim pieces for the porch and roof. I am keeping count of the pieces...at the end of the building, I'll tell you how many pieces...I'm thinking close to 7oo. Anyone else out there know? Mine will have many not used..remember I had to order extra plywood sheets since some were missing, so there'll be some pieces floating around that'll end up in my scrap wood bucket. Once I get them punched, I'll do a simple sand, just to rid them of the nasty splinters, and then put them in labeled bags.

Besides doing the punch, I'm painting the interior/exterior of the 2nd floor hall bay. I've changed my mind about leaving the bay removable. I don't like the look of the seams where it meets the house, so I'll end up gluing it to the house and use the French doors at the balcony for access. It's not like I'm moving big pieces of furniture in the hallway. I will want to get whatever window treatment I choose in place before I do the final gluing. I'm also following the plans and having a window seat there for my lady and the cat to sit and read a book.

There is, of course, a little roof that goes on this bay window, but I'm going to wait until it's attached to the house and the final coat of paint before I install it. My hopes are to have siding on the house, but I've not made that final decision yet, so those pieces will go in a bag labeled "Still to do".

Sometimes, I make great plans of what I'm going to do on a day...I even write it down do I'll have the right order. I get started, do a little, and end up just sitting there looking at the house or room and make new plans, move things around, try out a piece of furniture, or, lazily, just stare at it, doing nothing. I've had a lot of those days lately, sitting there, fantasizing what I'm wanting, or even making up a little story about it.( I keep saying I'm going to write that little story down, but I never do. My friend, Kim, has done that and she's inspired me some, but not to the point where I've put it to paper.) Other days, I can just rip it out and get more work done than I ever imagined.

I found another dollhouse ad in "garage sales" today and am going there...NOT for another house, but in hopes of neat stuff to put in the Garfield. A couple other errands and then it's punching time!!!

See ya later, alligator

Bits and Pieces plus the Bay

2008-10-10T14:30:00.000-07:00

I went to the new Habitat For Humanity store here in Grand Junction. It's a big improvement from the dive they used to have. I found an old bottle of stinky perfume that I threw away, but kept the cap. It'll make a great ceiling lamp fixture for someplece. I haven't decided yet, just put it in the box of things I'm going to use sometime.

I had ordered the laser cut room dividers from Miniatures.com. Oh, I loved them so!!! but could find no place to put them, so I returned them in exchange for some more French doors, some doorknobs...the Opryland knobs...and a few other things.

I've got the bay for the 2nd floor hall complete and sanded the edges well and spackled the seams so they won't show. Oh, how I love spackling stuff!!!! It should be dry in the morning and I'll sand and paint the inside and out.

My other time spent with the house today was housekeeping. It gets so dusty and I'm trying to keep it and me neat. Easier said than done. That's it for today.

My garden looks good, but I still have good planting time, so I divided some more plants and plan on doing more. It's hard to devide my time between all the things I love to do.

The Hallway Bay

2008-10-09T14:15:00.000-07:00

I'm putting the puzzle of the bay window piece by piece in the hallway.This is supposed to be a removable assembly, in order to easily access the hall area. We'll see if that proves practical or not when it's finished.

I had previously sanded all the parts to this-10 not counting the windows. I had to square up the tabs some to assure a tight fit; no big deal. Then I started gluing the pieces to their designated spots and used masking tape for keeping them together. And, so I wait, and wait, and wait. ( In the meantime, I'm writing this and printing off some of the photos on my camera's disc to put into my scrapbook, then deleting from the disc. I still have then saved in my Kodak program online. )

This is a photo of the hallway so far..it's a little dark, but I think it's just the lighting in the room and I didn't use a flash.I think it's going to be real nice when it's all done. Lots to go, but making headway with great excitement. Building this house makes me so happy.

Still In The Hallway

2008-10-08T17:35:00.000-07:00

I'll have some photos tomorrow of what I've done today, but I need to get new batteries first. Sorry. I have the 4 walls painted the blue...so nice and clean looking...and I cleaned up the corners at the tabs to make sure everything fit snugly. I measured and cut the wallpaper and got it up on 2 of the walls. I can't do anything more on the walls until I get the ceiling put in, as it holds up the 2 inner walls.

The doors and trim have been stained and, tomorrow, I'll work on the transom windows. That's about it for the day. I had several things to keep me away from the work on the house today, darn it. I'm loving the ideas I have in my head and can't wait to see them working.

Sorry there's not much more to entertain you today. I should be able to get more done later.

The Second Floor Hallway

2008-10-07T14:42:00.000-07:00

This hallway really started several "chapters" ago with "Walls, Doors, and Walls"..parts 1 and 2. I fought with trimming the ceiling, the doors, the walls, and even the staircase getting everything to fit. It's all been in the dry fit stage while I did the library. Today, I took all the doors, walls, and ceiling out and what you see here is the area with a newspaper drop cloth, taped to the floors.

I'm sure you remember me sweating over my paint and ( printie ) wallpaper and I've made my choices with the wallpaper I showed you and the darker blue paint. I've sealed the wood with a light coat of Bullseye spray shellac and applied the first coat of paint to the 4 walls. It did bring out the grain of the wood some, so I sanded it smooth, painted again, and sanded one more time. I've since done 2 more coats, a total of 4 coats of paint and it looks good enough to move on to putting on the wallpaper. ( I'll start that tomorrow.)

The walls are about 8 1/2" high, so I'll put the paper on the bottom of the wall going up about 4 1/2" high. Where the walls and paper meet, I'm adding a 1/2" stained flat strip of wood. Nothing fancy. Where the opening of the stairwell is......1st floor ceiling meeting the 2nd story floor, I'll add stained corner guard, which will cover up the confused look of the 2 surfaces, giving it a nice clean cut look.

Once I'm finished with all that, I'll stain the doors and make the transom windows that will go over each door, then I'll work on the ceiling. ( I'm waiting on an angel friend to send me some paintable wallpaper to be able to finish the ceiling ) I want to add some sort of design to each of the transom windows for a crafted look.

This hallway has both a balcony with French doors and a bay window, which can be made to be removable for easier access. I'm going to leave it removable, unless it looks badly and will then glue it. I need to see how it'll look.

I've been looking forward to doing this area. I think it'll have a delightful effect on the center of the house since I'm carrying the same blue ( but with different shades ) up the center of the house.

Back To Work On The Garfield

2008-10-06T04:32:00.000-07:00

Before I tell you about my work on the house, I want to tell you about 2 yard sales I went to on Saturday. The first advertised dollhouses and there were 3...1 was like a fort for the backyard, the second for a Barbie, and the 3rd, made from plans by the child's Daddy, was a huge 8? room house with stairs and balconies, hallways and doors. "Daddy" did a great job, but it stopped there. No decorations were done except for one room done in life size wallpaper, overwhelming the room with huge polka dots. They were asking only $30 and, if I'd have had the room in the birdhouse I live in, I'd have scarfed it up in a heartbeat. It could have become a true beauty. It reminded me of my very first house built 30 years ago from plans, The Dogwood Plantation. Miss Scarlet would have been happy there. I bought some of it's furniture, well beaten, colored on with crayons, hardware missing, and some without legs. They can all be easily fixed according to my imagination. For $5, I got a high head/foot board brass bed, 2 upholstered sofas, 4 upholstered chairs, 2 chests of drawers, 1 dresser with mirror, and an end table. With my purchase, a little girl gave me a free cup of hot chocolate, too. The second yard sale provided another interesting piece for a ceiling medallion...an old brass belt buckle in a circle with flowers and leaves on it. Since flowers and leaves are on the library walls, I'm thinking the medallion will go in there.

Well, I told you about what I did in the garden and I won't repeat myself, though I do have that habit. I didn't completely ignore the garden, working in little bits in the library. When we last were together in the library, I'd had the walls covered with blue rosed fabric ( tan background ). I'd turned the closets into bookcases on both sides of the French doors, and was creating a small staircase and landing. The plans called for 2 dinky steps to come from the room in front of the library down into the room. It seemed rather meek and ugly, not to mention unsafe with no railing. ( No offense, Greenleaf ) I wanted something with more style so I built a small landing, 2 1/2' X 3 1/2", with 2 steps down on the side. The wall to the landing and the spindles are painted the same linen color with the floor, banister, and steps stained in Cabernet. I was wanting a fireplace on that wall to share the chimney, but it was too crowed, so I put the chimney across the room and will just create a new chimney. These houses were built oddly with chimneys everywhere anyway.

I get all confused with placing the pictures. I wish Sumaiya would come to Colorado and teach me. Anyway, the 2 black and white photos are what Greenleaf wanted the room to look like..see the dinky steps. The other photo is what I've made it look like. The other photos came out too dark, but at least I got one good one in there. There green/white curtains are NOT in the dollhouse, but on my windows in my room. I don't know where the purplish glow comes from; perhaps a poltergeist is in there. To the left of the French doors is where the niche is that's so very difficult to get my hand into and decorate. It's about 2" wide in there. Can't even turn my hand over. Holding molding was a pickle. Check out that belt buckle ceiling medallion!!!

Trimming this room was a real pain in it, especially in the far deep corner. I'm afraid the pieces don't fit perfectly, but they were installed using no eyes, just hands. No way could I put the trim piece in there and look at the same time. The only way I can see them is if I peek into the window across the room from them AFTER I did the work. ( Another Greenleaf design quirk )

Note to Greenleaf-please don't consider these things I call "quirks" as bad things. These old Victorians were full of quirks, so, none of them do I consider bad quirks, except for the fireplace on the stairwell. I'll never understand where you thought the smoke would go.

The crown moulding was another awkward piece to do. I used plain flat trim instead of actual moulding, because the door casing took up some of the crown room and I couldn't figure out anything else that would work. Too small for a transom, a decorative panel would have looked silly, so I just used what would work. Even using the easiest piece of wood, with no need for proper edges, just flat against each other, it was hard to do since I couldn't watch what I was doing, even with a mirror. I was in more positions than a magician.

I think the room has turned out beautifully, with the feeling hat I wanted. I bought some cheap books for the heck of it to test the look, but plan on making some in the future with highbrow literary tastes. I am so doggoned proud of this room and am fighting off the urges to rummage around in my boxes of furniture and put some in there. No, now, don't even try to talk me in to it. I'm going to wait a long time till it's done. I don't want it to be in the way and maybe mess something up.

I will try to get better photos to you though.

The Past Week Off

2008-10-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

My week off from the dollhouse and working in the garden has come to an end. Tomorrow, I get back into high gear in the Garfield. It's been pretty good timing, too. We're starting to get rain and that would keep me inside anyway.

I've got a lot of work done out there..lots of daffodils planted, some pentstemon, a butterfly bush, transplanted some things, cleaned out the garden shed, threw down dirt into the stepping stone path, cleaned all the hummer feeders, scrubbed the garden ornaments, cleaned and oiled my tools, blah,blah, blah.

I haven't been completely idle with the dollhouse and have some nice things to show you tomorrow when I start back "officially". I'm rather proud of myself.

My sincerest sympathies to Wanna, who lost her sister, and Judy, who lost her Zebadiah, her 13 yr old friendly? feline. Both losses are tremendous to your hearts and I know the pain you must feel. I will not tell you how it will get easier, but I will say I know they still love you and they never go away. Bless your hearts.

The aspens are yellow yellow against the dark green of the pines. Colorado is beautiful this time of year and I'm going out for a drive in it, even in the sprinkling rain. Cedarfest is up the mountain and I plan on buying some apples.

Tomorrow, I'll be back at home in The Garfield.

Gardening Vs. Dollhouse

2008-09-30T11:20:00.000-07:00

Yes, I really have been spending a lot of time in the garden and it does show. I've cut back those plants that will do no more and are showing signs of nighty-night. I've transplanted a good many plants and planted bulbs, especially on my poor lost kitty, Tweedles, grave, who died last year ago Monday of a heart attack while she was at the vet's getting a haircut. Tweedles got new daffodils.

I've taken down the humming bird feeders and sterilized them and put them away, as the hummers have left for their winter vacation in Buenos Aires, lucky birds. I've cleaned out the garden shed and prepared the tools for next year's use.

My husband, Ed, and I have put out an Autumn display of straw, pumpkins, scarecrows, witches, and black cats. The neighborhood children love to see what's new and we add something everyday for them to find.

There is still much to do, including restocking soil on the stepping stones so they won't stick up so much we'll trip over them.

But, of course, you know, I've not ignored the Garfield completely. My new French doors for the 2nd floor balcony has arrived and I've prepped that and it's ready to paint. I need to cut it's interior trim myself. I've been working on a landing for the library. Initially, you'd enter from the bedroom in front of it and walk down 2 dinky steps. I'm still using the steps, but am fashioning a small landing with rails and banisters to look a bit grander. Right now, I have spindles stuck in some florist foam to hold them straight and am painting them. I have the newel posts stained and varnished. Once I finish the spindles, I will cut the banisters and stain them and put them all together.

The door that comes from the bedroom into the library is a standard Houseworks door, but was too tall to fit the spot. I had to take 3/4 inch off the door and the trimwork That was pretty tricky, having to cut a bit off the top and the bottom because of the panels inside the door, but it made it. Then, I stained one side and painted the other...the line that separates the paint and varnish was tricky to keep straight, but was managed with a lot of work.

I am trying to sell my little 4 room farmhouse and The Alison, Jr, so I am cleaning them, packing up the furniture and making them ready for Open House. The ad came out in today's paper. I hate to see them go, but, since I live in a birdhouse, I have no room for them all.

I'll get back to you again later this week to tell you of my progress. In the meantime, may you have a happy day.

A Week Off

2008-09-27T05:37:00.000-07:00

This will be a tough one, but I've decided I need to take a week off from the Garfield Manor to do some work around the house and garden. This is the perfect time for me to cut back some plants, divide and transplant, and to purchase and plant new things. I need to amend the soil from the good compost pile and remove completely some things that just don't work. The garden centers are having sales and good deals are everywhere, plus, my buddy, Melissa, has a bundle of things to pass on to me. I can't play house and happy gardener at the same time....either one, I'll get carried away and will ignore the other. I don't understand or practice "moderation". As Annie Oakley says, " With me, it's all or nuttin' ".

Oh, I know, I'll sneak in here at night and diddle around with something about the dollhouse, but, it won't be worth discussing. I won't say that I'll avoid posting anything here either, but don't expect too much.

It's going to be difficult for me, I know, as I so love working on this beauty and don't want her to feel neglected. But, I love my garden and it DOES feel neglected, so I need to make up for that.

Bear with me, please, it won't be long.

The Steps in the Library

2008-09-26T07:55:00.000-07:00

Wow, I forgot to post yesterday. Oh, well, there wasn't much done anyway.

Today, I'm working on another adaption to the original plans. In the library, there are to be two steps coming from the room in front of it...two dinky little things that don't have much class and don't look all that pretty or safe. I want to change that. What I'd like to do is to have you come through that door to a platform with railing on two sides of it and then step down the two steps into the library. I've drawn a picture of what I want it to look like and I'm pretty sure I understand what it is I'm going to do, but there's going to be some playing around with it. I haven't decided if I want it to be a straight walk down the stairs into the room, or if I want to turn left on the platform to go down the stairs. If I turn it, I'll need to reposition a fireplace that I wanted on the inner wall to across the room to the outer wall. That is probably what I'll end up doing. I like the fireplace on the inner wall best, but I like the turn of the platform better. Confused yet? Maybe by tomorrow, I can show you.

Nothing Done, But I Bought a Few Things

2008-09-24T16:41:00.000-07:00

I had a dentist appointment this morning, first thing. UGH!!! They're prepping for a crown and it ruined my whole morning. All I managed to get done was clean up my worktable, so I can mess it up again.

This afternoon, I spent some time at my friend, Mary Jo's. She has an old Beacon Hill for sale. She started building it many years ago and life made her stop. It sits in her garage half finished, has all the pieces neatly stored in bags, and she doesn't want to continue with it. If you seriously would like to discuss it, I'll have her get in touch with you.

She had a trunk full of furniture and accessories too. I picked out a lot of them and bought some really nice things...a bed, lamps, chandeliers, knick knack and vases, tons of picture frames, carpet, fireplace accessories, and I can't remember what all.

It was a lovely afternoon, productive for my collection, and I got some great cookies to munch on. Tomorrow, I'll get back to the Garfield.

I've Been Lazy Today

2008-09-23T13:29:00.000-07:00

I've not spent much time with Garfield today. Just taking a small break. I was able to install the window seat with no trouble and I did get on the third side to the Dining Room bay window and spackled inside and out at the joints. The spackling has been sanded and painted and it all looks great. I still have the fabric trim to put on the crown area...will probably do that tonight. It was even more difficult getting my hand inside to spackle, sand, and paint. Again, I was doing tricks with mirrors backwards.

I read a hint from Larry Marshall about diluting wood filler with denatured alcohol, so I practiced that, making it into a paintable substance and using it to fill in those tiny holes and notches that are left from punching pieces out of plywood. What a wonderful trick!!! and I plan on going all around Garfield and cleaning up those window edges and repainting. Thanks, again, Larry.

That's where I've stopped. I'm tired, the back is hurting, the meds aren't working, and there's no sense working on it if I'm not up to par, so I'm watching old movies and living in the past. Back to life tomorrow.

Tons of Garfield Fun and Photos

2008-09-22T05:10:00.000-07:00

Wow, how 'bout some pictures, folks ! I'm trying to cover 3 subjects here..

First is working on the Dining Room Bay Window. I have 2 of the walls to the bay up, spackled, and sanded. I'm going to paint them in a little while. After the paint is dried, I'll start the crown moulding trim, which is fabric, and leave extra just hanging there for when I get that last wall up . Talk about a pain sanding, I had to do the interior sanding with a mirror sitting in the middle of the room, reflecting backwards and my hand stuck in the empty wall space. NOT fun, but, certainly entertaining. I have the window seat ready to install. I used the seat platform intended for the tower window seat and trimmed it down some to fit this bay. It's painted green, the same as the walls in the bay. Instead of using the same side wall panels provided, I just made some new ones, plain wood, nothing fancy, painted green. It dry fits like a glove. I've made a pattern of it's shape and, later, I'll put a cushion on it...or, leave it to "grow" plants inside. I think a hanging fern in the window would be pretty. It's not time to worry about that right now.

The next few photos are by request of the different sides of the house. I repeated one photo, but can't figure out how to delete it, so am just leaving it. Looking at these photos, I am overwhelmed by what a big baby this house really is!!!

And the last 2 photos are of the color project board for the 2nd story hallway. I misled some people with the blue color, making it sound like a lighter blue than it is. I'd thought I'd tested more colors, but ????? So, what's here is a darker, richer ( complimentary ) tint of the blue downstairs in the Parlor on the far left. Next is a tan, then terra cotta, and last, on the far right, bronze. I'm still leaning towards the blue. In real life, I think it looks much better than the other choices used. Te terra cotta's not bad, but the carpet is where the baby blue will be, so blue it will probably be.

I thank every one of you for answering and caring about helping me. Bless your hearts, the response to my cry for help was tremendous and so very useful. Ideas galore and none taken lightly, I assure you. It humbles me that you are following the progress of my Garfield. Proud? That too, I confess. ( It also made me realize that, if I were ill, you'd have sent a casserole too. ;) )

It's early yet and I don't know what I'm getting into today yet. I will try to finish up the Dining Room bay and then move back upstairs to the hallway. It's time to stop talking about it and getting to work. Thanks, ya'll.

The Dining Room Bay Plus Stuff

2008-09-21T05:11:00.000-07:00

This is the printie wallpaper I am tossing around in my head to use for the 2nd floor hallway. I'm considering having it cover the bottom half of the wall with the fairly dark tone of the baby blue used in the Parlor tower on the top half of the wall. There would be a 1/2 " wide chair rail between it and the paint line. Remember that I have a baby blue carpet runner on the staircase and it will run the 2nd floor hallway, too. PLEASE tell me what you think. I want it, I really, really do, but I have still not convinced myself that it'll work. You won't make me mad if you don't like it.

No need for other photos...nothing exciting to see. I have one side and the center of the bay window glued in and spackled. I'll sand and paint those after the spackle dries well, inside and out, and will start a bit of the fabric trim. I'm working on the pieces for the window seat that I'll install and then add the final side piece to the bay. Not putting that last side in until last will give me some room to maneuver around in there. The space is smaller than my hand and, as I've said before, quite awkward.

While I had the spackling out, I also filled in the holes where the floors meet the walls on the exterior to assure a smooth outside wall. It's not necessary inside, as the trim pieces will cover those gaps. And, while I am waiting for the spackle to dry...I wait longer than I think necessary sometimes to be sure... I'm working on those never ending pieces of trim in the Dining Room and Library.

The library has 2 steps down from the room before it. In the company's master plan, they are simple steps. Since I've not let anything be simple up to this point and am always changing something, I've decided that these steps need to be a bit more elaborate that provided. I'm going to fashion a small landing with railing and banister, so when you come from that front room, you'll take 1 small step down onto the landing, hang a short left and come down another step. I think it'll add a bit of grace to the entrance into the room and won't look as hazardous as the simple steps appear.

Not much else going on in there. I have some new plants I must get it that I bought on my day with Melissa and some bulbs to plant on a kitty grave. There are some other outdoor chores that must!!! be done now. Autumn is moving in and there's no time left to procrastinate. Today is "Color Sunday" in the mountains of Colorado. While not in full color yet, the aspens are turning their golden yellow and it's something to be marveled over, even if by only a photo.

The Dining Room Bay Window

2008-09-20T12:00:00.000-07:00

Today, I begin what I believe will be a battle with The Dining Room Bay. It will be painted with the Wedgewood green paint and the crown moulding will be the same fabric trim that I used in the room. There will be a window seat in the bay, also. The parts are being painted inside and out....several coats have already been done on the interior side with a couple of sandings in between to insure smoothness....the grain tends to rise at first. I'm doing a couple of coats on the exterior, but the final painting will really happen before exterior trims and maybe even the roof...we'll see.

The battle will be because of accessing the bay from the inside for the final painting, crown moulding, and window seat. There is limited space to get in there and work on it. After I get the parts glued on to the house, I'll need to spackle at the joints ( inside and out ), sand that spackling, and then paint over it. It's gonna be tough getting to it and doing the best job I can and it'll probably be a blind application of the fabric trim. I'm actually looking forward to tackling it, just to see if I can.

I will be able to reach in only from the open back side and from the window on the side of the house, but that's not going to make the area easy to see and do at the same time. This is where we all wish we were Munchkins to get some of the work done.

I'll keep you posted.

Not Much Here

2008-09-19T04:31:00.000-07:00

Oh, I've only been sanding, painting, and staining. How many times can one make that sound interesting? I've got a big pile of parts, I'm cleaning them up, sticking them in their spots to see how it'll look and either staining or painting the part, and placing it in a little tray until it's time to glue them in...there you go. It'll stay that way until tomorrow.

Today, my good friend, Melissa, is taking me on a birthday adventure. My day was August 31st and our schedules haven't worked together until today. I have no idea where we're going, how long I'll be gone, what we'll be doing, or anything else. I was told to wear comfortable shoes and nothing else. I am so very curious about what's to happen. The best I can say is that any time I am with Melissa and anything she has ever done for me has always been fun and heartfelt. She's a special lady to me and it's gonna be good. I'll let you know.

Scrapping and Journaling

2008-09-18T03:59:00.000-07:00

I spent the better part of yesterday at my friend, Angie's, house, working on my scrapbook for the Garfield. I got four pages done, with journaling, and am almost current with my progress in building the house.

In my idle time before and after going there, I sanded and sanded trim pieces that will go into the Dining Room and Library...44 all total. Each window has 4 pieces, each door 3, and there are 2 doors that need sanding. Even though the store bought doors come pretty clean, there are always some rough spots, especially on the inset panels. There are also kitchen bay pieces and tower pieces.

The kitchen bay is to be assembled directly on the house and it'll be at such an angle that getting into it to decorate will be terribly awkward, both reaching and seeing. I had wanted to cover the walls with the same fabric, but realize that will be harder than I want to mess with, so I've found a matching paint and will get her done that way, needing only touch up once it's assembled. Even that will be a pain. I've chosen an acrylic called "Wedgewood Green" and have started the painting of the section that'll need it on the body of the house and the bay sides pieces.

Today, I'll do more staining and then varnishing. I hope to have a nice pile of trim ready and spend a day just installing it.

Back to the journaling part...a member of one of the online forums had asked if anyone kept a journal. I have the scrapbook, which I do "wallpaper" the pages, but I don't do any fancy details. I use the little journaling cards and document the photos. I've also been keeping a notebook that has pages of this blog that I print out every so often. I need to kind of catch up on that actually. And I have a notebook/inventory of each house I have built with a running cost of the construction and then the furniture and accessories. My very first house, 30 years ago, the journaling was started in an already bound book. I ended up with 3 volumes of books..."The Dogwood Plantation" trilogy. HA.

The End Wall

2008-09-17T05:11:00.000-07:00

I have not committed to the wall coverings in the 2nd story hallway, though I have printed out the "wallpaper". Since it takes so much ink, I'm pretty sure that I'll use it, but am waiting for me to think more positively about it. In the meantime, I'm doing other things that can be done.

I've added the end wall to The Garfield....it closes up the Dining Room and the Library..and I finished covering the walls to both rooms. I'll root around and find the trim pieces or use whatever trim components that will be extra and get them cut, stained, varnished, and installed.

We all know how many mini things there are that often get overlooked or need re-doing, how many thoughts of something we'd like to try, and how many ideas pop up while we're doing something else. Like many people, I keep a running list of "things to do" on my work table, a 8x10 legal pad, and it is full of those thoughts. At this point, there are 3 pages of "things to do" and I guess it's time to do some of them, while I'm waiting for my mind to make itself up about the walls in the hall. I could probably fill up a month's time doing the little things.

Yesterday, my husband started on his annual Autumn yard display. He gets some hay bales and decorates around them for Halloween/Thanksgiving/Autumn. The neighborhood kids and cats love them. While he was doing that, I got out the "around the house" decorations and started putting them out. It involves packing up knick knacks out right now that'll be in the way and too cluttered. They won't be seen again until after Christmas. CHRISTMAS!!!! Not all that far away and it's all made me realize that I'm going to have to completely put up things in this spare room to make room for Christmas boxes of decorations, presents, supplies...you know how it is. It means that I'll have to put away most of my dollhouse tools and supplies because they'll just be in my way. Like I said...tiny house...and, for me, Christmas takes priority over anything.

Well, I certainly can't put away Garfield...I couldn't even get it out of this room without major pains, so it'll remain on it's 4 ft. long table and I'll pack up it's supplies and toys and store them under that table. I'll have to move The Alison, Jr. out of the dining area and into the spare room to make room around the diningroom table. I have another 2 months before it's absolutely necessary. I now have a card table up. I use that for my working space, spreading out parts for staining and painting, cutting and assembly. Once it's put up, my working on the house will be limited until January, when everything Christmas gets packed up and stored for another year.

So, back to Garfield, the next few days will be small chores and nothing very exciting, but, I'm sure, will have lovely effects on the house. I'm going to ty my hand a plaster casting, using the pin I found in the antique store. As Holly has pointed out, the dining room will look good with 2 of those and the casts will be easier to work with, but I do need to learn a few things about it first.

Today's a scrapbooking day...I'll be updating my Garfield book with photos and journaling. Isn't it amazing how many things we have to learn to "play house"? Wish I could get paid for all this knowledge and expertise.

Walls, Doors, Walls, Part 2

2008-09-16T04:53:00.000-07:00

I have succeeded in ripping this Garfield new ones....walls and door frames, that is. The original doors were about 2" wide, not enough for any good sized resident to get through comfortably. They now are Houseworks door suitable, after doing a lot of trimming. I did have to trim some of the casings too, to make it all work, but it'll look just fine. I don't know if you can tell, but in the 4th photo, the light shines on a wall that is behind the door. That's the wall in the master bedroom I was telling you about that gets walked slap into when you go in the door. It's about 1 1/2" behind that door and you'd have had to make an immediate left turn to enter into the bedroom proper. The wall extends up into the 3rd floor tower and is essential up there, but not for the second floor. I will have to assure good glue contact between it on the 3rd floor to maintain the structure of the tower. .....it'll be out of there as soon as Ed wakes up and I can make a lot of noise sawing. ( It's only 6am and he's in the room next door. SSSHHH ) Yes, there is a space empty over each door. I will make frames for transom windows there for each, though the plans only called for one.

I am now free to stain those doors, after a little more cleanup sanding, and paper those walls. I have to decide which paper I want.....one is a printie, the other is paintable wallpaper that Kim Hammond sent me. I will be complimenting the baby blue carpet runner on the stairs and what is yet unlaid on the hallway floors with whatever my choices become.

Oh, there WILL be a trim around the rims of the stairwells, both on the ceilings and the floors to cover up the rough/mixed colored/material edges. That's still a long way from now. I've got to get it right first before I decide what needs to be hidden.

Doing these walls was very frustrating and hard work, but I am so-o-o pleased that I made those changes. The originals just didn't make sense to me. I've tried to look at it from the prospective that real people live there and need to be comfortable. Leaving the Master bedroom as it was originally planned would have many a person say a few unkind words and maybe even cause an injury. It's all safe and logical now.

Walls, Doors, and Walls

2008-09-15T17:55:00.000-07:00

I have spent the day trying to get the walls for the 2nd floor to work right, but am doing things that are NOT part of the directions. To get to the walls, I had to first make sure the floor fit correctly, which took some whittling and trimming. Finally, after lots of whittling, the floor fit perfectly. On to the walls, which took more and more whittling and trimming. I'm moving a wall and had to trim some of the top of the staircase newel and banister that presses up against the master bedroom wall. Bought a door from Hobby Lobby and it'll have to have the casings trimmed some to fit, but it'll go. The wall to the second bedroom was tougher. It was crooked, tabs WAY too big, the doorway was too small to fit a store bought door and, when I trimmed the wall and attempted to fit it into the stairwell, the doorway and transom window ( both held on by only a small piece of wood ) broke off. Oh, well, I can fit a piece in there, but I don't know now about the transom. Finally, I got the wall to fit perfectly in it's spot and with the master bedroom wall connection. Now, I'm fitting the doors to fit the spaces, removing only enough casing to make it work.

Now all that sounds quick enough, but it took hours, not just the work, but life continued along with it. Tomorrow, I'll have the doors finished and can move on to painting and wallpapering. I'm still days from gluing those wall to the house.

Boy, is it fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Newel Caps and other Miscelleny

2008-09-14T04:56:00.000-07:00

This is the first floor landing. Sumaiya asked about the newel caps and I promised her better photos of them. The flat square was provided with the Garfield kit. I found the brass jewelry "whatever you call them" and the wooden mushroom looking caps at Hobby Lobby...a bunch in a baggie for a dollar or so. ( It's obvious I don't do photos well; there's a lot of glare showing little white flecks that aren't really there. ) I will, of course, do the same thing for the 2nd floor staircase. The bead mats I found came in real handy for this...I had to add the brass thingie to the wooden cap first and then top the square piece. The mat kept things from rolling around.

I've started sanding the second floor partitions. I don't like the door arrangements, so I'm going to do some destruction before I do the construction.

First, to enter into what appears to be the main bedroom to the left of the staircase, you get off the stairs and turn left immediately into the skinny doorway. If you go through that door, you instantly face a wall for the tower, which is absolutely necessary, if only for the 3rd floor. I'm going to whack that wall off, at least to the point where I can fit a standard Housework's door into the spot, though I'll have to trim down the door casing some. It'll mean I'll have to build a 3" wide wall section to connect it to the stairway partition, but that's no problem. It all looks easy enough and worth the shot at doing it.

Next, is the entry into the other bedroom, which is also though a skinny door. I'll do surgery on that door frame, too, to allow for a Houseworks door to be used, again needing to trim some of the door casing. There is a transom window that'll need some adjustment or maybe completely covering up, though I sure like and want to keep it. I need to get there to make that decision.

Neither of these adaptions are going to be tough, but they'll take some time and patience. The master bedroom wall that I'm trimming is attached already, so cutting it will be in a limited space, fitting the tools and my arm in there will be awkward, and I'll probably have to stand on a chair to reach it ( or put the whole house on the floor, which would certainly be safer for me, but open game for Aimee, the cat. The other 3 will leave it alone, I'm sure )

Then, again, I must decorate the hallway walls before I install them and I keep changing my mind with what to do. I'll pop up with the final answer while I'm tearing all the walls apart. The hallway has both a french door and a removable bay. Unlike the first floor entry bay, I'm going to keep this bay removable. It's not in the same order of the directions, but I'll work on those while I'm working on the hallway, so I can keep my thoughts all together. Besides, building this baby hasn't been completely by the directions to this point. Why start now?

I've realized that I've not always explained what I was doing, which was the point to the blog in the first place, so I'm going to try posting every day, even if some of what's been done is minor and not worth a hoot. I love, I love this Garfield house. I hope that you are enjoying watching it go up. I sure am.

Looking Down From The Second Floor

2008-09-13T07:14:00.000-07:00

All three views are looking down from the 2nd floor. The photos looking up were fairly dark and you couldn't see much. The carpet runner is a simple flannel, cut to 1 3/4" wide with a satin ribbon on each edge. The color matches the blues on the 1st floor and the walls in the hallway on the 2nd floor ( but they're not yet painted. ) I did add newel post caps, except on the 2nd floor itself. I'm waiting to add the walls first. I know I'll knock them off if I don't wait. In one of the photos, you can barely see a brass ornament between the stair and the post cap. I'll take better photos of the 2nd floor staircase and hope they'll show up.

One of the 2nd story floors ( the part over the Dining room is done and ready to install. I had some problems with the ceiling of the 1st floor side and had to do it twice. I'm waiting until I get the main floor section done and installed before I show the photos. It won't be long.

I've been pretty busy with other things that indirectly affect the Garfield. I cleaned up my dust bunny covered computer area and installed USB pots so that I can connect both the photo printer and the camera. The dust bunnies were the hard part. Some of them could have carried off my cat! After doing that, I realized I need to be brutal and clear out some spare wood parts and other things around my work area.

I'm also getting out my winter clothes and putting up summer...it's snowed in some parts of Colorado and it's getting down in the 40's at night, so it's time.( How that affects the Garfield is easy. The clothes are in storage boxes under the twin bed in this room and I had to move supplies that are blocking the way to get under the bed.....I told you, it's a small house. )

One day this week, I'm going to a scrapping party at my friend, Angie's, house and my Garfield scrapbook will get caught up. I've printed out many photos and I want to get it up to date or it'll get carried away from me. Plus, I need to print out some pages from this fun blog and keep that up to date too. When I die, whoever gets Garfield will get these books telling it's story. ( While he's way too young right now, I'm secretly hoping my grandson, Mark, will one day have a little girl and it can be hers. )

Something else that I must do, but has nothing to do with Garfield, is to cut down some foliage in the garden and I'd best do it now!!! It's a mess and I need to clean it up so the Autumn plants will look better, so I'm putting the Garfield work aside for a few days. ( I can't play dollhouse ALL the time, though I wish .............................)

Well, off to act like I'm doing all those things.

From All Sides

2008-09-09T05:25:00.000-07:00

My work area was a mess, so it was time to clean it up, put everything back in it's place, dust the Garfield, and start fresh. These are shots from each side of the house; exterior doors are NOT glued in place; fabric is hanging, waiting for the back wall; the upstairs fireplace is not stationary, waiting to see if I'll further decorate it. I removed the staircase and partition from the Parlor. I'm carpeting the stairs right now and finally adding the decorative parts to the newel posts.

I'm also working on the ceilings of the second story/floors for the third story.The directions have me installing those when complete and then the walls that separate the stairs/ bedrooms. I've not decided if I'll need to decorate them before I install them, but I'm pretty sure I'll have to, to make it easier reaching inside this baby. This house has such awkward angles that decorating would be so difficult if I completed the building before I painted/papered it. I have not followed the directions to the letter, obviously. It won't let me.

In the photograph that shows the front of the house..the one where you can see both exterior doors... you also see a good 1/4 of this room. It shows how much space I ( don't ) have to work with in this small 2 bedroom house. The Garfield dangles over the twin bed that's in here and to the front of the table it sits on is a card table that I use to work on, with boxes under both tables holding wood, parts, tools, and whatever. In front of that card table is where I am right now, at my desk, typing away. On the wall to the side is a cabinet full of all my crafting supplies and my own personal closet. Thank goodness I'm the only one that uses this room or the chaos would be much greater.

Today, I'll finish the staircases and the ceiling/floors and maybe sort more of the supplies and spare wood. I'm usually an organized person, but I've let that get away from me this past month. (My husband is pretty much recuperated from his accident and I don't need to ignore my own needs as much.) I want the house to sit around and talk to me, too. I need to learn where it wants to go from here, what to make the rooms do, and what they want to look like. I want to think about the lady who lives here-her name is Novella-and how she spends her time. And, of all things, I need to read the directions and do some dry fitting.

Thank you for your visit. I always enjoy it when you stop by.

We'll Call It The Library For Now

2008-09-07T10:27:00.000-07:00

So, here I sit with 2 rooms half finished and they'll be staying that way for a while. The directions are sending me to work on the 3rd floor floorings/2nd floor ceilings...2 different sections that need to be prepared.

The blue flowered room will be the library. The shelves were closets in the plans, but I liked the idea of bookshelves, so there you go. The fireplace is one purchased from Hobby Lobby. It's really the same tan color of the bookshelves, but shows up white. It cries for some decoration and I'm waiting to decide what that will be before I glue it in ( IF I glue it in. ) The trim work will all be the Cabernet stain. I am going to buy the French doors rather than use those provided and there will be casing around the bookshelves.

As you've already seen, the room below is the Dining Room The post is just to keep the floor level until I can install the end wall, which is a long time from now. The fireplace is one that came with the kit, with some modifications. The "marble" is a photograph of rose colored Tennessee marble. ( Appropriate, since I was born in Tennessee. ) There will be wood trim around the base of the hearth.

I have to get those floors done. Since the floors will be for the third floor, ones not very important to the "living areas" of the house, they will be nothing too fancy. I have a lot of sanding to do and I think I'll be marking them with lines for planks and staining/shellacing them. In between waiting for the stain or shellac to dry, I'll work on the baseboards, crown moulding, and steps for those 2 rooms.Once the floors are complete, I'll flip them over and work on the ceilings that will be for the 2nd floor. Kim Hammond sent me some "paintable wallpaper" that I plan on trying, using that which looks like plaster. She couldn't have sent it at a better time and the wood that will be covered is not very nice looking, so the paper is going to cover a multitude of ugly spots. Thanks, Kim!!!!

I'm in the process of carpeting the staircases, but will save that for a later time, just in case I change my mind about what's happening there. I can't seem to commit myself to what I want yet; you know how that goes.

As I've said repeatedly, I am thoroughly enjoying myself building this beauty. I'm spending several hours every day on it, but not all at once. I paint, go do something, glue, go do something, on and on. And, I spend a lot of time thinking about it, not adding paint or glue until I'm positive it's what will work. I've realized that there are many people following the construction of the Garfield and your comments make me very proud. I truly appreciate it and welcome your thoughts and ideas. ( Got any for that fireplace??? )

Thank you for visiting.

Dining Room Update...

2008-09-01T17:22:00.000-07:00

I'm on hold again...the directions for the house are sending me to the second floor for a while. I did have to get what you see here decorated before I add on the back wall.....I have things to do upstairs before that happens.

The "wallpaper" in the Dining room is a material I found at Wal-Mart, as is the coordinating trim. ( Looking at the photo, I see a crooked spot that I'll correct...can't have that in Ms. Picky's house! ) It's not my original plan. Staring at the room for hours caused me to change my mind several times. I am almost finished with the fireplace that will go on the wall you see here. The doorway on the far right is not the original. I didn't care for that door and have a Houseworks door ready to go in, but that'll be quite some time, after the exterior is finished being painted. I plan on continuing with the Cabernet stain on all the trim and will also be working on that this coming week.

The gold pin is something I found in an antique/whatever store. I'm hoping someone can tell me something about it. There is the word "agnew" in small letters on the back....no other identification. There is a small bolt in the very center. I'm hoping that I can fit a chandelier through the center and it'll hang in the center of the dining room.

Directly overhead on the second floor, I am back to sanding, and preparing pieces. I have to install 2 closets, again cover walls, and prepare the french doors, even if I don't install them yet. I must get into those small spaces before I put on the end wall, so I'm working in many areas at once. I need a bigger table, room, house, world to do all these things at once.

I am having a ball..........the ideas keep popping in my head and I need to write them down as fast as I think of them before they fly out again. As I've said repeatedly, I'm very serious about this construction as never before. I plan on making the features in this house as exquisite as it's would have been 100 years ago.

A Discovery and Some Ponderings

2008-08-31T07:50:00.000-07:00

Nope, no photos today, but soon. I'm working in the Dining Room, getting some things done before I have to attach the back wall and won't be able to reach inside, just as I had to do with the Parlor. I'm building the fireplace that will go on the inner wall and I'm actually using the one provided with the Garfield kit, though I'm adapting it to fit my whims. One of those whims was to find a marble printie to match the colors already in the trim on the floor. I found a beautiful Tennessee rose marble and, since I was born in Tennessee on this very day 59 years ago, I thought it would be appropriate. ( Yeah, yeah, it's my birthday, but that's not what this is about. ) I printed out the photo and was not happy with it. Since I just installed the photo printer to my computer, I sent the photo to that and got a picture that looks just like marble should, with the glossy look that is very lifelike. I feel like I just opened a new world for myself. Who knew??!! Anyway, that will be seen very soon here and, believe me, I'm pretty excited about it. Try it!! You'll like it.

The ponderings come from a friend of mine, who found a little chair at the Dollar Store and brought it to me to use. I hated to hurt her feelings, but it was only 2" high...in real life, just 2 ' and not the right scale for my house, since there will be no child things in it. She did understand, but commented on how "picky" I can get about this Garfield. She's right, I AM picky, but I want it to be as close to perfect as it can be. I spend extra time on things like sanding, to assure no splinters; I don't install anything until I've looked at it long and hard; I'm a stickler for proportion; I worry over seams and cracks.

I've watched too many people hurry through building something, even saying it "only took a short time" to finish it. Usually, it shows, because their speed made it look a bit sloppy. Roughness in wood does show, no matter what's used to cover it, paint or stain. Using something not in scale makes the article look unreal and out of place. This marble I found has a vein that I'll have to avoid, as it's too large for 1:12 scale. Crown moulding and I have fights every time at the mitre point and I've wasted plenty a crown by it not looking neat.

Sorry, I don't mean to go off the wall there, but I'm pouring my heart into the Garfield and I am taking my time so that she will look the fine lady she's intended to be....Victorian Grace.

One more thing.........it's raining here, a gentle and soaking rain that is restoring life to many things outdoors. It's literally saving a few lives in my own garden. But, it makes me think of those in the Gulf area and I pray that disaster is escaped with this Hurricane Gustav that threatens the area. I have family in Florida and Alabama and am so thankful they are safe from the horrors, though they will get some rain and wind. The misery of Katrina should never have to be repeated. ( As a side and happier note to that, my grandson, Mark, earned his Boy Scout Eagle Badge at the age of just 14 by helping families rebuild their households from that awful event. ) I hope all will be safe.

Enough........thank you for humoring me today and allowing me to think at you.

My Dining Room Floor...Finally

2008-08-27T05:19:00.000-07:00

After false starts, bad moves, poor results, tears, and a bit of swearing, I received some wonderful advice from Larry Marshall of "Woodnbits", whom I "met" through the Miniature Collectors Club, I have a beautiful floor for my Dining Room. It is not glued to the base as yet...much work to do before I make that important step, but I had to show it off and send kudos to Larry.

The floor is a mahogany veneer that I cut to shape, sanded clean, and stained with 3 coats of my favorite stain, Cabernet by Varathane. ( This stain will be prominent all through this house ) The border design and "medallion"are from my scrapbook supply...peel and stick trim. I love it's look..in fact, I used it as crown moulding in my Alison, Jr. house. I had the problem, on the first attempt, of the Bullseye varnish drying with streaks and clots, bubbles and ridges. Pure T ugly and, after complaining about it through MCC, Larry suggested that I dilute the shellac with denatured alcohol in a 50-50 proportion. I mixed up the concoction and practiced on a scrap piece of wood and was delighted !! I was so cautious when I applied it to my already pretty floor, knowing, if it turned out wrong, I'd have a bad behavior. I knew immediately that I had a good thing happening. I quit at 2 coats. I was afraid to press my luck. I think it's perfect!

As you can see, this is another cranky spot in the Garfield Manor and I'll need to decorate the already attached wall around that awkward corner before I erect the outer walls. The small 3" edge leading to the side porch has a door I don't really care for, so I bought the Houseworks door with the 4 pane transom from my local Hobby Lobby and am altering that wall and the trim to the door to make it fit. It's going to take a few days to finagle it all, but I have all the supplies I'll need to get it adapted correctly and decorate the area.

I've also been working on the ceiling to the Dining Room and the floor to the 2nd story room above it.( not shown ) The floor is the store bought plank flooring, stained and beautifully shellaced with the same great results. The ceiling was another pistol. I wanted it to have the rough texture of plaster ( tiny orange peel look ) and bought some stuff at the hardware store that was a total bust. After cleaning off the wood and returning the product, I purchased Rust-oleum's multicolored textured paint...mixed tans...and sprayed on 3 coats. Awesome !!! and, again, I'm happy. Lots of work to do before it's ready for Show and Tell. I (underestimate ) a week before the room is finished.

As I've said several times before, the Garfield Manor has me fascinated and I hold myself captive in my spare room every chance I get, often ignoring chores and garden. The house seems to speak to me and tell me what it hopes I'll do with it. I have file folders full of ideas and hopes to turn this into the fine Victorian home it is meant to be. Many of you have sent me compliments and great words of encouragement and that just spurs me on to do this house justice. I do thank you for all your kind thoughts and, as always, am open to suggestions.

Until later............................

The Garfield Manor's Dining Room

2008-08-23T04:32:00.001-07:00

Sorry...no photo today, but there's not much to see at this point. It's still in my mini-brain. After some thought on how to approach the Dining Room and putting a plan of action down on paper, subject to change, I'm sure, I've begun work on the Dining Room. In the plans, Greenleaf labeled this the Kitchen, but I prefer to ignore a Kitchen in this house, placing it in an unseen area, and am making this a Dining Room. It has an odd shape, just as the Parlor did, and will need to be decorated as it is built. There's an angle and small area in a corner that will be tough to get to if I put up all the walls first. I dislike the door provided and have purchased another with a window and transom above it that does not fit in the space provided.....I WAS aware of that at the time of purchase. I'll be playing with that wall to make it work.

But first, I'm tackling the floor. Initially, I sanded and stained the base flooring provided to see what it would look like and I hated it, which I kind of suspected I would, so went out and bought a sheet of 1/8" maghogny veneer. After looking at the grain, I felt it was too large to look real in the house, so I flipped it over to a smaller grain look. I made a pattern of the odd shaped floor, traced it on to the veneer, and cut her out. I've sanded it down to a fine smooth feel, dry fitted to the base and walls and am ready to stain it today. The dry fit caused some trimming to be done, especially at the tower area, needing the slots of the wall it slips into to be enlarged somewhat. It'll work and I am excited all over again!!!!

Tomorrow, probably, after I get the floor stained and glued down, I'll start back with the photos, making sure you can see the odd angles I have to play with in this room. I have so many ideas for this Dining Room and I'm looking forward to sharing them with you.

Come Into My Parlor

2008-08-21T03:51:00.000-07:00

I have finally finished my Parlor in the Garfield Manor ( almost ;) ) The design will stay as it is...left to do are tiny ( ha ) things, such as adding the carpet runner and post caps on the stairs, lighting, ceiling medallions. Those will be done much later, as I decorate.

The first photo shows the added fireplace in what the company called the dining room, but it is an extention of my Parlor. The door to the right of the fireplace is not glued in yet. It leads into what will be my dining room ( what the company called the kitchen ).

The second view is a broad shot, showing the stairs and partition, which are not glued in just yet, in case I need to get behind them still. Barely seen is beading across the top of the window seat/bay.

The third photo is just inside the front door, where you can see the window seat/entry bay and the understair closet. I plan on upholstering a cushion for the seat. There are a couple of little ribbon roses that will be pillows resting there.

Number four is the tower area which had called for window seats, but I chose to keep that as room area and placed window seats in the entry bay instead. The posts and fretwork were not part of the original plans.

And, the last photo is of the added fireplace, where a window had originally been. Remember, the company had a too small fireplace at the base of the stairs with no flue for the smoke to rise. I think it looks more practical.

I have never approached the building of a house like this...completing a room before the house itself. The entry area had to be completed first or I could not have accessed that area with the stairs in the way. I got carried away and did the entire room. I can see that same principle will be needed in a few other areas. I've, also, been more demanding of myself in this room, wanting the "out of ordinary" home. The Victorians loved an ornate decor and I want that to show here.

I'm ready to move on to the next step in building this beautiful Garfield, but I do not know what that step will be yet. I'm going to clean up my mess, re-organize my tool box, check my supplies, read the directions, and think, think, think. I am scrapbooking this house and want to update it to show the Parlor progress.

I am so delighted in the building of The Garfield Manor, thanking my luck finding this steal at the Goodwill store for $40. Currently, it's cost is about $175, including trim pieces and moulding, addition flooring and ceiling....half the cost of the house kit if bought brand new.

As always, I welcome your comments and suggestions, some of which are already incorporated in the design of the Parlor. To those of you who have already built the Garfield, or are in the process now, please let me see your photos or hear your own stories. Every little bit helps. I thank you for all your support so far. The fun will continue............

The Front Wall Interior

2008-08-11T08:44:00.000-07:00

After being away from my worktable and blog for two weeks, it's good to put the mind to creative use. ( For those who don't already know, my husband was walking in a parking lot and struck by a 95 yr old woman...fractured collarbone, multiple bruises and scrapes, but there will be no lasting effects..Thank goodness. Needless to say, I was busy for a while ).

This is the front interior wall to my little house. The tower section calls for window seats, but I've chosen not to install those there. I made the fretwork divider from spare pieces of wood and posts in the wood box. I'd like to try and duplicate the look in the bay window that'll be to the right of this photo, which is what I'm working on now. I am still ( forever ) working on trim pieces, but I'm so delighted with this wall that I just wanted to share it with you today.

I am working slower than I usually do, wanting everything to be perfect. I hope you like it.

Kitty has joined my staff as model. I hope you like her, too.

Cuddle Up By A Fire

2008-07-26T09:32:00.000-07:00

These two little darlings are going in the Parlor...the larger will go on the outside left wall ( where I'm blocking up a window ) and the other on the inside wall between the Parlor and the Dining room. I made both from scrap pieces of wood. I'm also working on hearths for them to sit on, but have just started those and it'll be a few days. The concrete fireboxes are printies and the tile is tilepaper glued to wood backing. I will be varnishing both before I attach the hearths to them, but I'm still waiting for the paints and stain to completely dry. The colors are all in the wallpaper and they seem to compliment the room well. Give me a few days and the entire Parlor should be done and ready for a visitor.

Come In The Front Door !!!!

2008-07-23T13:22:00.000-07:00

Be careful, the front door is not glued in yet, just resting in the opening. I had to take the tops of the door cutouts and trim them to fit the Palladian door. The frame is painted a "Java Bean" by True Value's 'Colors Made Simple" sample paints; the door is an acrylic "Victorian Blue" and the sun is gold leaf. The glass insert, doorknob, house numbers, mail slot, and kickplate are, of course, all extras.

The plastic window replacements have been ordered and are on their way from Greenleaf. Nice people there..........

COME ON IN !!!!!!

Cupboard Installed

2008-07-22T06:47:00.000-07:00

Well, as you can see, I've got the cupboard installed and I'm quite pleased with it. I like how I got the doves to peek through the slots..it's like they were made for it.

I'm experiencing some frustrations. I have the trim ready for the windows, but with the wainscoting up, there's a gap above the paneling and I have to fill it in with wood so it will be level and not show the gap.....a pain, but easily done. Plus, and this is the biggie, my plastic windows are all scuffed up and not suitable to hang. You may remember that I bought this kit at Goodwill for only $40...I'm sure paying for it, as now I have to order new window sheets from the company. I'm waiting to hear from them now for the cost.

As Rosannadanna says, "It's always something!"

Remove and Prepare.....Sanding, Sanding

2008-07-17T19:07:00.000-07:00

I still have many, many pieces not punched from the plywood, so I'm going to spend this weekend getting them punched and sanded, organized and ready for whatever the next phases call for in the directions. I need to stop and clean up, organize, and make some lists again, something I haven't done in the past few weeks.

I've received my order from Miniatures.com...The Palladian door and insert, which I have to figure out how to do the glass, and the wainscoting trim, which I'll cut, stain, and finish.

Hopefully, by Monday, I'll have something new to show......in the meantime, I'l be sanding the days away.

What An Oversight !!!!!

2008-07-16T06:58:00.000-07:00

There I was, trying to fit these 2 pieces of wood together and realized they don't match. I had thought they both were the partition and they would fit back to back for strength, but one is actually a cupboard ! Cool !!! but how did I miss it ? I know I really did read all the instructions though as I was getting started, but, obviously, this cupboard didn't register in my brain.

Well, there it is, propped up in it's designated spot during it's dry fit and certainly needs work done ( as does the partition in the foreground ). Since it's a surprise, I have some rearranging to do in this part of the parlor, as I had planned on a fireplace on that wall.....actually, I still do, just different from the one that was almost ready to be installed. I will finish it just as I have all the other trim work, with the Cabernet stain and shellac. There are 4 shelves and I will add more beadboard to the wall and that will be the backing to the shelves. All that's not a problem and, I think, will look great. I just need a different size fireplace, which will be no problem, either. It'll just take me a little longer to make another, but since it's seems as if it'll take forever anyway, one more day won't hurt.

What DOES surprise me is, in every photo of this house I've seen on the internet ( and believe me, there are plenty ), no one has a photo with this architectual detail in it. Why did no one install it ? It's beautiful !! and will add a lot to the corner of this room. I see it displaying beautiful and delicate objects. It's not too big, extending only about 1" from the corner of the wall. Well, your loss and I'm excited about it....surprised, but excited.

My delivery of wainscoting trim and the Palladian door is expected tomorrow. I have several other details ready to be installed and, in just a few more days, I should be finishing up the Parlor ( except for the windowseat area...there's other construction before I come back to that ). I see it all so clearly in my mind and I hope you, too, will find it beautiful.

Just Thinking Out Loud

2008-07-12T06:55:00.000-07:00

Here are some shots of the main room in Garfield, minus the staircase. I am working on the crown molding, which will hide the white line on top of the wallpaper and also the baseboards. I am waiting on delivery of wainscoting trim and Palladian front door, which will have the same stain. I also need to work on the interior windows, which will be stained. I've bought the standard door for the dining room wall that too needs to be stained. All trim will go up last, before I install the staircase. I don't plan on gluing down the staircase. It fits neatly, very snug in it's little grooves. With the baseboard on it, you'll never see the grooves or any gaps. I'll be able to move it out if need be, I think.

This area is called the entry, living room, and dining room in the actual plans. I am going to make it all "Entry and Parlor" and use what is called the kitchen as the dining room. There will be a kitchen in my imagination, but not where anyone else will see. On the wall between the Parlor and Dining room, I am putting a fireplace ( The actual plans called for a fireplace on the side of the staircase, but that didn't look too practical...no chimney !!! Where did they think the smoke would go???) and another fireplace between the windows on the unseen left wall. I've seen someone else try that and it looked like it worked fairly well. We'll see soon enough after I finish the first one. I need them installed before I do the baseboards and wainscoting trim.

I still have the left wall to put up, plus the wallpaper and wainscoting all on the left side. The tower area needs spackling and repainting....it will be all the baby blue that you see. When it comes time for the window seat at the foot of the stairs, it'll be painted the blue...no wallpaper...and the woodwork stained. I love, love, love this woodwork. It is "Cabernet" stain with Bullseye shellac on it. It has such a rich, luxurious look and feel to it...it is so smooth, no little bumpy marks.

I'm filling in the gaps on the front side with spackle........everyone raise your hands if you love spackle!!! It's a good thing!!!!! So, of course, I'll need to touch up the paint out there. Eventually, I'm hoping to put up siding, but that's a "we'll see". If I do, then it'd have to have a primer anyway, so it works out. That's so-o-o far in the future, it's not worth talking about right now.

Oh, what a good time I am having and YES, I'm excited about this experience...more so than I have ever been with other houses. Garfield has become more than just building a miniature house....adding the blog has opened up a new aspect to it and I'm even creating a story for the house and the Victorian Lady who lives there, which I hope to share with you as time goes by.

Thank you for being here with me and for telling me how you feel about my little (?) house.

Garfield's floor, wallpaper, many mini etc.'s

2008-07-08T10:18:00.000-07:00

So much encouragement !!!! I thank you all !!!

I have done so many different things for Garfield these past few days....a lot of it hardly seems worth talking about, but it's always the little things that make a house a home. I have the 2nd floor holding on by masking tape and the wall tabs..no glue yet...to help me align the wallpaper. I'm sure you'll remember the wallpaper is a "printie" and I printed it all out, including "just in case" extras at one sitting, to assure color consistency..I did this immediately after installing new ink cartridges. (It's amazing how much ink it took. The printer told me right away I needed more ink soon.) I've also started gluing up the bead board, which I'll cap with trim ( note:time to make up a new order from my fav.."Ernie" @ Miniatures.com ) This part of the wall needs to be decorated ahead of time or I won't be able to reach inside easily.The walls on the right of the photos are also NOT glued in yet, just there for support.

It's here I have to stop decorating on the walls and, yes, place that order which will include the Palladian door and insert, prepare some windows, glue the tower extension floor to the main flooring, then glue the entire floor up, prepare some crown molding and baseboards, prepare the staircase post toppers, glue those walls that are loose right now, and then go back to wallpapering. WHEW ! It's as confusing at times as it sounds and easy to get off track.

I am normally a very organized person, but building Garfield has chucked that out the window. The lack of space IS most people's with dollhouses complaint, and I'm no exception. I'm in a small house's spare bedroom with bed, computer desk, storage cabinet, file cabinet and 2 other dollhouses....The Alison, Jr ( with additions on either side) and a smaller farmhouse of unknown name. I HAVE to stop every so often and clean up, put things back where they belong, and take out the trash.

Since I don't work and have only my dear Ed ( 4 cats, 2 dogs, no kids ) to care for, my working on the house is off and on all day. "Lucky me" I say.

Garfield's 1st floor ceiling Part 2

2008-07-04T09:27:00.000-07:00

The photo doesn't do the finished look justice. There are 3 coats of the pearly white paint on the plastic small circles ceiling sheet. I watered the paint down just a touch. It truly has the slight shimmer promised and looks like the tin ceiling tiles of Victorian days. I have, once again, tested to make sure that the tabs all fit...perfectly, after a bit more sanding in a few areas.

This is one of those many moments I get when I'm pleased with my work...I just stare and grin at the how nice it all looks.

The 1st Floor's Ceiling for The Garfield

2008-07-03T08:37:00.000-07:00

I am working hard at NOT getting confused. The directions for The Garfield do not allow for decorating as I am doing. The term "R&P", remove and prepare, to me means removing the piece from the plywood sheets, sanding, painting, staining, wallpapering, gluing the ceiling to the plywood, adding bead board, etc. So, I am lost in the "R&P" process.

Today, I've begun the ceiling work, as this part of the house must be ready during the wallpapering process, since sections of the wall need this part for structural support. Sounds confusing, but I've got all the steps I need to do written down as best as I can.

Like the wood flooring, the ceiling needs to pieced together, trimmed in the right spots, glued, then painted. I have but just the first piece of ceiling glued and am waiting for it to dry, will trim it, and move on to the next piece. Looks like it'll take me a few days altogether to complete the ceiling tiles ( sheets ). I will then paint it with Folk Art's Metallic Pearl White acrylic paint and, voila!, it should look like the tin ceilings of Victorian days.

The Walls Are Going Up !!!!!

2008-06-29T13:59:00.000-07:00

For me, one of the most exciting parts of building a new dollhouse, other than the actual acquiring the house in the first place, is putting up the first of the walls. Today, I erected 2 walls, the front wall with the main door and, around the corner, the front left wall. I did take a photo, but will post that at a later date; it's just not all that pretty right now, not that that really matters.

I'm going to stop with the walls at this point and decorate the first floor section of these two before I move on...I'm ready to wallpaper here and put on the bead board: it'll be easiest if nothing else is in my way. I have my wallpaper cut..remember the printie I showed earlier?, but have a few more pieces of the bead board to stain and varnish. ( I DID go back to Hobby Lobby to catch the last of the 1/2 off sale, purchasing more trim and bead board. There wasn't much left of anything.)

My sheets of small circle ceiling arrived earlier than I expected, plus Fed Ex made a shipping error and delivered a package from Miniatures.com that belongs to a dollhouse enthusiast in Honolulu...got to get that straightened out ASAP. Kathleen, I promise it'll get there!!!! I need to pick out the paint I'll be using for the ceiling after I get the ceiling glued to the underside of the 2nd story flooring. I don't care for a stark white, but will find an off-white that'll work soon.

I'm so tickled about having the 2 walls up....it just isn't as much fun until I get to that point for me. I like to think I have patience, but not always. From now on, I'll be spending a lot of time just standing there and staring...letting the imagination run wild.

The Garfield Manor's 2nd Story Floor

2008-06-26T17:01:00.000-07:00

The second story floor to Garfield sits wet from varnish on the work table, looking beautiful, however, unfinished. After piecing together the flooring sheets, I glued them all to the wood provided in the kit, taking care that the tabs and holes were not covered. ( Lots of sanding, cutting, and whittling away to make that happen.) I dry fitted all the slots to make sure of proper fit and then sanded it all well, cleaning the dust by vacumning, air blowing, and wiping off with a damp cloth, then brushed on 2 coats of the Cabernet stain, matching the staircase. I have but one coat of the varnish on at this point, but will lightly sand, clean, and apply one more coat. The floor has a deep rich color to it and a shine that glistens, but does not glare. After letting it sit for several days to completely dry, I will flip it and work on the ceiling for the first floor. That will end up with the ceiling sheets of small circles, which are ordered and on their way to me. While I am waiting for delivery, I think I will start with the wallpaper for the walls in the main room on the first floor. I am still a long, long way from fitting the pieces together to make it look like a house.

Planning Ahead, Buying Ahead

2008-06-24T05:09:00.000-07:00

I just love a good sale and Hobby Lobby is having one on dollhouse miniatures and accessories, all half off !! My local store does not stock very many different things and few of what is available. I was able to stock up on trim pieces...crown molding, baseboard, bead board, and hardware. I, also, picked up 1 small circle ceiling sheet and 3 of the wood flooring. A good solid $50 was spent, providing a savings of a good solid $50. When it comes to building a dollhouse, we all know that it's a pricey hobby and every penny saved helps.

Almost everything was sorted out and stored for later, except for the flooring. I decided to use the wood flooring for the 2nd story. Originally, I was just going to score lines in the floor and, then, stain it. Using the sheet of floor saves me a lot of time and aggravation ( a fact I have learned from the past ). I have cut down the 3 sheets to fit the floor and am about to dry fit to the walls to assure a neat joining. I do know already there will be some trimming/sanding down for the floor and walls to fit precisely.

I will go back to Hobby Lobby in a few days, just in case they restock their shelves, but I'm doubting they will. In the meantime, I will prepare an order for more of the ceiling sheets that I will use for the first floor and work on the flooring to get it ready to stain and glue...something still days away.

The Garfield Dollhouse Walls

2008-06-19T17:29:00.000-07:00

After over a month of working on my real house, I am able to return to work on the Garfield. The first step was reorganize, as I had moved things around so much in my spare room that I felt lost.

I am at the point on the Garfield to install the walls, but wait.......there are many "must do's" before I reach for the glue. The front left corner ( the entry area ) on the main floor of the house will be very difficult to reach if all the walls and flooring are assembled. I must do a lot of the interior decoration first, THEN assemble the walls. On top of that, I wanted to paint the exterior before assembly, in order to assure complete coverage. So now, I will confuse you, as I have confused myself. This is not as simple as following the directions of construction, but I will try to keep things in some semblance of order.

The interior of the entryway, the living room, and the room, called in the plans "dining room", will all end up as one large room with like design. I have chosen a wallpaper from a "printables" site, an art nouveau print with doves on it in mixed colors of blue ( shown here ). I want the top third of the walls to be the wallpaper with the bottom two-thirds a stained beadboard and trim . Just in case there are gaps in the beadboard, I stained the walls that will be behind the beadboard the "Cabernet" stain, so the gaps will not show too much. After that dried, I flipped the walls over and painted the exterior of the house a dark tan color ( "Executive" from True Value ), putting on two coats.

That is where I am sitting right now and, before I move on, will do a bit of cleanup on the walls, removing the paint from the edges and slots so they'll fit smoothly, and sand any spots that may need a bit....I know there are a few, since I painted outside and got a few cottonwood seeds stuck in the paint.

Still to do before trying to put things together, think and think.......I know I must wallpaper at this point, but I also must prepare the 1st floor ceiling and the 2nd story flooring before assembling. This is where it seems to be so much to think about...the "which comes first" for Garfield. Well, no hurry. While I read somewhere it only takes 20 hours to build this house, the painting, etc. was not included in that time......just finding the right plan of action takes a long time. Perhaps those of you that have built the Garfield before me will offer some hints, as my mini-friend, Sumaiya, has done......you are more than welcome to, please and thank you.

Trim piece prep

2008-05-02T05:31:00.000-07:00

When I first purchased the Garfield, from Goodwill, it was obvious that someone had attempted to build it and stopped, dismantled what had been put together with hot glue, and crammed it back in the box. Many of the pieces had already been punched out, but not marked. It took me some time to take an inventory of what I had available and order what was missing. I did not have the luxury of all the pieces being on their numbered sheets. I now have everything arranged in some semblance of order. Once each sheet was identified, I lightly sanded all of them on both sides. This removed most of the tiny splinters.

Building the foundation was pretty confusing. Not only did I have to find all the right pieces, I had to clean off the hot glue from most of them, sand each piece and then assemble. After finishing the foundation, I glued the floor paper for the entry, parlor, and dining room. I will be doing something different for the kitchen. I then worked on the first and second floor staircases. Each piece was sanded and stained first and, then, glued together according to the directions in step B. After assembly was complete, I stained one last coat ( Cabaret by Varathane ) and applied 3 coats of varnish. I have not added the newel post caps yet. I am waiting until it is time to install the staircase. I plan on using some ornamental touch. I will, also, be adding a baseboard around the staincase and a final varnish of the staircase after installation.

Right now, I am stopped from assembling any parts, due to my own home redecorating. My building space is full of boxes and other things from the lifesize living room. I am able to do prep work, though, and only require a small area for the parts.

After labeling each part, I carefully punched out the pieces from sheets 1,8,9,10,11,12,13,14, and 18, according to the directions in part C. These pieces are the walls and partitions of The Garfield. I am now in the process of sanding each of the many, many pieces. I first use a coarse sandpaper and then a finer sandpaper for a neater finish. It's long and tedious work, but it's something that can be done while watching a favorite show/movie. Once the walls and partition pieces are sanded and cleaned of dust, I will move on the door and window trim.

I must THINK ahead here. The rooms have to be planned, at least those that will be difficult to reach in the depths of the house; colors, stains, and designs have to be decided. I will have to decorate some parts before assembly or not be able to reach them after the staircase is installed. There is plenty of time to do that thinking as I continue to work on the sanding.

Any comments, questions, ideas, and hints are more than welcome. This is truly a think as you go project and I will not apply glue until I am sure it is time.

A Little Background

2008-04-30T04:03:00.000-07:00

I bought this great house from my local Goodwill for $45...what a steal. Once opened, I learned that some of the instructions and diagrams were missing, but Greenleaf Dollhouses was so kind to supply them for me. OOPS! Now I learn I am missing parts and, again, Greenleaf supplied them for me, but this time at a price of $95, still a bargain, at half the retail price.

I am delighted at the invitation to brag about my work. What is already shown is about 1 month's worth of mostly sanding and sanding. The next stage is all about doors, windows, and walls, which will be many more hours of sanding. Progress is at a pause while I remove a million splinters.

The First Level Floor

2008-04-29T19:55:00.000-07:00

Hi, there are only 3 photos that would be of interest and even those are not so exciting...I omitted those of the house in the box and pieces lying out being stained...those will be going into a scrapbook. Anyway, this is the progress so far. No, the stairway is not attached yet, just testing. The floor is a herringbone patterned paper that was varnished with 4 coats for a high sheen. Now mine sits on hold, as I'm working in my real living room, cleaning, packing, getting ready for my floors to be sanded and varnished and the walls to be painted. It'll be at least a month before I return to Garfield. Kathy

The Garfield Kit

2008-04-29T19:46:00.000-07:00

The Garfield is the largest model that Greenlea f makes and is surely one of the most impressive dollhouses to be found anywhere. This mansion has seven peaks, as well as a full wrap-around porch, two balconies, and two bay windows. It flaunts ten large rooms; in addition to the corner opening there is a removable roof section and a lift-off turret atop the secret tower chamber. With its wonderful gingerbread trim and lovely detail, the Garfield is magnificent!