Kitchen construction -- first phase

I finished my cut outs this morning and then I helped David put the basic box together.

From the first project (the Great Hall), David chose a method of construction which is simple and very, very strong.  On the back wall I first put the horizontal member that will support the back of the roof.  Then David put lengths of pine off cuts, roughly .75" square in section, running from just under the horizontal supports, down to the bottom of the back wall.  These vertical supports look just fine for this sort of dolls house, and mean that the sides are being nailed to something very sturdy. 

The side walls are then glued and pinned to the vertical supports (David uses a nail gun, because we happen to have one, but you could just as well use a hammer and nails) and then the whole thing is turned upside down and the base is glued and nailed to the back and sides.  This is the only part of the project where we nail into end grain, which helps make it very sturdy -- when this piece is done, you can sit on it, which is great if it's a building being played with by kids.

You could certainly do this sort of project with just an electric drill and jig saw.  For smoother cuts of the plywood (we used 1/2" for the base and 3/8" for the back and walls) just ask your local building supply centre to make the cuts for you -- they'll usually do this for only a few dollars a cut.  If you don't mind a purely rectangular building, it's an inexpensive and easy way to put it together.  I figure we'll use about $30 worth of plywood in this hall, with the floor and the roof and the dividing walls.

The photo above will give you a better idea of what I meant when I said that the ovens on the back wall would be cut out of 2" thick lumber (actually I laminated two pieces of maple together, because that's what I had on hand.)  It's not really very deep, but I think it will be deep enough.  I might build out the surround with some egg carton stones worked around the fireplace and oven openings.