Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Lighting, front and back :)

 I know I've mentioned before how much I love miniature lights.  For me, they're one of the best parts of building a dolls house.  Here's how the WAMH looks this grey, overcast morning!


Do you notice how rarely we show each other the "bad" side of our projects?  The side with all the working gubbins?  I would LOVE to see the backsides of people's dolls houses -- how do you hide the electrics?  What do you do with all the wires?

Until about 10 minutes ago, this is what my power strip looked like :)  Yes, it's balanced on a paint can!


Because I'm not going to finish the backside of this house (it will never be seen, as it's a front opening one), I don't HAVE to hide wires (except from the windows), so I glued on my power strip and taped the wires more neatly to the house, mostly to keep my cats from playing with them.  (They've learned they can get quite a reaction from me by even making a gesture towards them!)

Seriously, I'd love to see your electrical stuff!

8 comments:

  1. Mine looks a lot like yours, Nina! LOL!
    I love the photo with the lights on!
    Hugs

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ewa, that is SO reassuring. Seriously, I picture all of you talented folks with impeccably finished electrical boxes (I'm sure many of you DO have i.f.e.b., though :)) I'm just curious about the nuts and bolts of things ...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nina, even though you won't see the back, you could put up a hollow chimney and hide most of the electrics there.

    I made all the floors and walls in the warehouse/art gallery hollow and the wires (if I ever get back to it) will hide there.

    In my old Tudor House/shops, the main ceiling beam was hollow and held up by magnets. All the spotlights and wiring will be on/in that beam. Then the wires go out through the back wall and get hidden in the chimney.

    I use rechargeable battery packs for lighting and the are easy to hide in a wood pile, a clothes cupboard, a blanket chest etc.

    A few ideas for you.

    Cheers,

    Tom

    ReplyDelete
  4. Those are fabulous ideas, Tom! I know that there are more options now for battery pack and LEDs and so forth -- how exciting :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've got to remember this post when I be ready to equip the Georgian house of electrical system ...
    I hate cables and wires, even when you do not see! I hate knowing that they crawl, and are filled with dust, in places inaccessible!
    No one has yet invented an electrical system wirless for dollhouses?!
    Seriously, it's great to see you again at work.
    A warm embrace,
    Flora

    ReplyDelete
  6. Mine look much like yours. One day when everything is finished I will think about hiding it all behind false walls and outhouses but not yet a while!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Nina, another thing to remember ... If you have 12 volt led lights and only feed them 9 volts or 6 volts, it makes them dimmer and it is an easy way to create some "mood" lighting ... it all doesn't have to be super bright. You can also get "warm" white led's and colored ones as well.

    Cheers,

    Tom

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi Nina! I'm pretty much right where you are! I have done SOME hiding of the wires for my Castle... I did a "Bare the Backside" post quite recently... in late November I think it was... Titled "Not A Pretty Picture" if you want to look for it! I have not COMPLETED the wiring for ANY of my houses... and I'm thinking about how to hide everything yet keep it accessible... ALL the Time! High on my list of things to do is FINISH the Wiring for The Folly... but it has impossibly thin walls and I'm not using wallpaper.... so I'm trying to run the wires along behind the baseboards! I still have to decide how to hide the plug strip..... in the landscaping....?
    I agree COMPLETELY about the Magic of the Lights!

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts with Thumbnails