WAMH kitchen fireplace and doors!

Well, I made good use of the time I had yesterday, and got a lot of work done on the kitchen, namely the plastering (but not the painting) and the kitchen fireplace mantle.

I cut out the opening in the foam, and backed it with a bit of cardboard.  The mantle itself is made from carved balsa wood, stained Mission Oak.  I just need to make a couple of brackets and attach them under the mantle shelf (and touch up the stain) and the surround is done.  Then I need to line the interior with brick and add a hearth.  But I'm quite pleased!

I also plastered the two foam walls of the kitchen, using PolyFilla mixed with white glue (because I wasn't at all sure that PolyFilla on its own would stick to the polystyrene).  Incredibly messy and strangely satisfying, and it worked just fine -- now I need to paint them so they're not so stark white :)

And I got a lovely package full of doors yesterday -- five interior doors and the big front door for the house!  I've never made a proper house before (the Castle is really just a series of giant room boxes) so I've never had real doors, and it's quite exciting :)

Update on WAMH

I haven't had much time for the William and Mary House today, because I've been trying to finish off my swap gifts for Caterina's Holiday Swap :)

But after messing with the tiles yesterday, I'm now at this point:

That's not the real kitchen fireplace, of course, it's the dining room fireplace, just put in these photos as a visual placeholder to help me visualize proportions better.

And here it is in its true home in the dining room.  You really have to use your imagination for this one :) Imagine panelling and scenic wallpaper in here ... I really like Kris's settee here, too -- I may have to get her to make me a different one for the parlour!  This is an old-fashioned dining table for 1697-1710, but I'm imagining that the owners of the house are a tad eccentric!

Ground floor foam walls

I'm on a roll!  I just can't stop cutting foam!

Here's the back wall in place --about 47" long and 11 inches high:

Now for the tricky one:  the gable end of the kitchen.  Because the kitchen is just a one storey extension to the main building, the kitchen end of the house needs to be angled to take the roof (which will be non opening).  I decided to add part of the chimney, too.  Because the front edge of the foam is set back 3/4 of an inch from the front edge of the model, so that a wooden facing strip can be put on it, I have to take that into account when designing my roof.

Right angles are good for the up and down bits ...

45 degree angles for the roof line:

Here's the gable end all drawn out:

And here it is propped in place!  You can see that when the 3/4 inch facing strip is put along the front edge of the foam, everything should line up neatly (I fervently hope).

You can also see that I should have changed my blade near the end :)

But it's actually starting to look like a house!  Woo hoo!

And I've used less than $8.00 worth of foam :)

I've ordered some yummy things for the house -- flooring for the front hall, lots of wallpaper and a few light fixtures, but there're many things I can work on to get the model to the next step while I'm waiting for my purchases to arrive.

First I have to mark where the interior walls hit that back wall, so I can start marking in the rear window openings and the back door ...  Then I can make the staircase unit for the hall, the back door for the kitchen and the kitchen fireplace.

Staining floorboards

I just got back from a fruitful trip to Bridgewater, our nearest shopping Mecca :) I bought a small can of Minwax PolyShades in Mission Oak to try out, and a nice brick of terra cotta coloured air dry clay (that's for the kitchen floor).

I LOVE the Mission Oak colour.  I didn't want the woodwork in this house to be too dark (it wouldn't have had time to really darken too much), and was going back and forth on what colour to pick.   I wanted a darker oak shade, and the colour sample looked pretty good in the store.  Here's the dining room floor after I rubbed on one coat of stain:

I really, really like it.  It's a big load off my mind to know what the basic wood colour is going to be for the house, which will have a lot of woodwork in it.

Yummy!

I'll do the parlour's floor the same way, and then I'll start playing with air dry clay and my Malcolm's Miniatures impress stamps for the kitchen floor!

It's so refreshing to have a new project to work on -- do other people feel that, too, when you launch into something new?

Starting on the William and Mary House!

I've been planning like a fiend and sketching madly for the last couple of days, and I have my plans pretty well worked out for the W&M House.  Yesterday we finally went to the lumberyard to get the first lot of materials!

I'm following Derek Rowbottom's basic plans and techniques for the country house in his excellent book, Making Georgian Dolls' Houses, but I'll be making a few alterations.

His original plans make a two storey plus attic building 38" long  and 16" deep, with six main rooms and four attic rooms.  I'm modifying it to make a 48" long building with seven main rooms and three attic rooms -- I'm adding a single storey addition on the ground floor for a kitchen, so that I can have a separate entrance hall (in Rowbottom's original, the front door comes right into the dining room :)


From left to right on the ground floor:  kitchen, dining room, entrance hall, parlour
From left to right on the first floor:  bedroom, library, blue and white room
From left to right in the attic:  servants' bedroom, hall, children's bedroom

I bought a 4' x 2' piece of good one side birch plywood, 3/8" thick.  I also bought two 2' x 8' sheets of 1 inch thick medium density polystyrene foam, since it's the material Rowbottom recommends for side and back walls.  I'm very curious to see what it's like working with this material, because everything I've built so far has been plywood all the way.  If nothing else, it should make the model lighter!

David cut the plywood to size this morning for the base:

We then made an underframe from .75" square pine and glued and clamped it in place on the underside of the base.

Here's the base on the dining room table so I can mark out the different flooring types that I'll need.  The kitchen is going to be tiled, the dining room wood (I'll scribe and stain this nice plywood), the entrance hall will be marble and the parlour wood.

Here's two short lengths of the builders' foam (we had to break each 8' length into two bits to fit it in the car :))

It's got a very useful rabbet on each edge which will mean that I'll be able to get a nice join on the base:

It's not as pretty as flowers, but I've finally started this project and I couldn't be more excited!

My William and Mary room :)

I've collected so many things circa 1670 - 1710 for the William and Mary house that I'm using the ground floor room in the Castle tower for them.  They seem to be happier all together, and I like looking at them and imagining the building we're going to make for them!

Every miniature has a story or a meaning, now.  When I look at this scene, I see the settee by Kris Compass, the blue and white delft-ware that Ewa sent me from Poland, the silver decanter that Flora gave me and the dummy board that Susanne made, as well as the clock kit that one of the girls made at Knit Wits, the chinoiserie secretary I painted, the needlework I stitched, the hydrangeas I made .... It's so full of memories, and I've only been at this such a short time!  I can only imagine how layered with meaning are the mini- scenes and houses of those of you who've been doing this for decades :)

My favourite artist has always been Holbein the Younger. I love portaits more than any other artistic genre, and I feel that Holbein's technical mastery and his insight into human beings made him able to show me real people, bridging the centuries between their world and our own.  I remember the first time I went to the National Portrait Gallery in London, and saw some of his work in the flesh, as it were -- I went to swoon over the anonymous portrait of Richard III (did anyone else have crushes on historical figures? :)) and eventually came face to face with Christina of Denmark and The Ambassadors.  Amazing.

Anyway, when I saw this miniature version of Lady with a Squirrel and a Starling by Euro Minis I had to order her (from eBay) -- and I had just the right frame for her in my frame collection! (Sorry the focus is on the dresser and not the foreground, but I like the fact that Gentleman with a Cane is peeking around the corner at Lady with a Squirrel and a Starling ... :)

Great Links for William and Mary / Queen Anne / Early Georgian miniatures

Here are some links to artisans, inspiration and books concerning late 17th century and early 18th century 1:12 scale dolls house miniatures.  While the years between 1680 and 1715 are usually called the late Jacobean or Stuart, Queen Anne or Early Georgian period, it may be more commonly called the early Colonial period in the United States.

Artisans

Kris Compas is an American artisan who makes upholstered furniture, including Queen Anne settees and sofas and wing chairs (one pictured, below) .  She's happy to collaborate on custom pieces.

Colin Bird is a UK furniture maker who offers pieces that would work for this period, including this simple cupboard:

James Parker is a UK furniture maker who offers some pieces that would be perfect for this period as well, including both single and double manual harpsichords.

Iulia Chin Lee is a US furniture miniaturist who makes stunning pieces suitable for this period. IGMA Artisan.

Herdwick Landscapes -- makers of 1:24 scale houses, also 1:12 and 1:24 scale fires, grates, lighting fixtures and furniture.  Some great pieces for this period, including hob grates :)

Small Time Miniatures (UK): miniature clock makers who also make other lovely pieces in both 1:12 and 1:24 scale, including furniture and scientific instruments suitable for this period.

George Pennell (US): miniature furniture maker.  Mostly Shaker pieces, but some Queen Anne era pieces, including a very elegant chair.  IGMA Artisan.

Pear Tree Miniatures (UK): makers of medieval, Tudor, Jacobean and Stuart furniture (the Carolean daybed pictured below, for example.)  Beautiful stuff.

Avon Miniatures (UK): a fine array of fine English china in 1:12 scale.  Just about everything is available in either white or Willow pattern (plus some more Victorian patterns), making it perfect for Georgian dolls houses. IGMA Artisans.

Braxton Payne (US): Fireplaces, mantels, firebacks, pots, fireplace accessories, many available in smaller scales.  IGMA Artisan.

UK Artisan Tony Hooper makes many pieces suitable for this period, including an early Georgian kitchen range and tons of great hardware.

Town and Country Planner (UK) sells a wide range of roof and floor tiles as well as garden pavers and hanging signs -- lovely looking work.  

Ray Storey, Lighting:  UK artisan Ray Storey makes perfect period lighting, including some lovely (and hard to find) black chandeliers and lanterns.  Also brass chandeliers.  Highly recommended.

Len Lewis (UK) builds extraordinary dolls houses, many of them Georgian, and you can see his work on his website at Classic Houses.

Sally Meekins Miniature Ceramics (UK) hand made and painted.  Particularly useful for this period is the range of extremely charming blue and white ware.

Stokesay Ware (UK)  Exquisitely fine, perfectly in scale, Stokesay Ware offers quite a few blue and white pieces, and will custom make a Willow pattern teaset for you without handles, perfect for the early Georgian period! IGMA Artisan.

Old Bell Pottery, another UK site selling beautiful china and pottery for many eras.  Hand painted.

Arlette's Miniatures, a UK furniture maker specializing in upholstered furniture perfect for this period, including Knole settees, a personal favourite of mine :)

Bubba's Minis:  A US furniture maker who offers all sorts of early American furniture, some of which would be very suitable for an early 18th century Colonial home.

John J. and Sue Hodgson (UK):  master miniature furniture makers with a particular focus on the later part of this period, and on Rococo pieces more suitable for Louis XIV and XV.  These pieces are truly works of art.

Teresa Thompson (UK) maker of extraordinary 1:12 dolls costumed for a wide range of historical periods.  Please do check out her site, Costume Cavalcade, even if only for the inspiration!

Pete Acquisto, famous US silversmith, works in  dollhouse scale.  Many, many period pieces, appropriate for this era.

Mike Sparrow (UK): maker of miniature silver, offers both Queen Anne and Georgian pieces.

JS Miniatures (UK): maker of Georgian fireplace surrounds and fireplace kits.

Tarbena Miniatures (UK):  furniture from 17th century.  Expensive, beautiful pieces.

Lee-Ann Chellis Wessel:  stunning miniature ceramics, including blue and white Chinese patterns, suitable for this period. IGMA Artisan.

The Linen Press (UK) maker of miniature embroidered textiles, including those suitable for 17th and 18th centuries.

Sussex Crafts:  (UK) 1:12 scale ironmongery with fabulous pieces for this period. 

Turnings in Miniature:  Thomas Saunders makes wonderful turned bowls, vases and stands out of wood and stone and sells them through his Etsy shop!

Nantasy Fantasy (US): fabulous assortment of unusual instruments (both musical and scientific) accessories and specialist items for quite a few periods.  I love this place!  IGMA Artisans.

Masters Miniatures (UK): makers of period furniture, including the charming spinet, pictured below.

Retailers

New England Miniatures carries a full line of JBM Miniatures, which include many pieces of good quality wooden furniture suitable for this period.

Itsy Bitsy Minis -- carries an extraordinary range of wallpapers and coordinating fabrics -- many damasks and Jacobean patterns perfect for this period.

Les Chinoiseries:  1:12 scale fabric and wallpaper -- a Spanish e-tailer with gorgeous yard goods for every period.

Janet Granger (UK) sells a wonderful array of kits for miniature needlework, many of which would be perfect for this period, including cushions, cabriole leg stools and rugs.

Micro Stitchery (US)  carries a full line of Bonnie Schoonmaker's miniature needlepoint kits on silk gauze, including patterns suitable for Jacobean, William and Mary and Georgian projects. (see the Oriental bench, below).

Miniature Needlepoint (UK) sells Carolyn Waldron's kits for a huge range of carpets, wall hangings and cushions.

Mini Stitches (US) carries a wonderful range of kits for historical samplers on silk gauze, ranging from 1690 to 1822.

Dovetails (UK) makes miniature fireplace surrounds, ceiling roses and other plasterwork for different periods, including the very hard to find classic Tudor fireplace and lots of Georgian options.  Reasonable prices, too.

Inspiration and Advice

How to achieve a genuine Georgian house style - a useful little article on period detail, including the early Georgian period.

Carol-Anne-Dolls Georgian Dolls' House -- great inspiration here!

Lesley's Garden -- List of Historical Plants:  very useful list of what plants are appropriate for what periods.  Lesley also makes wonderful kits!

Books


Miniature embroidery for the Georgian dolls' house by Pamela Warner.  40 period-appropriate projects.


Making Georgian dolls' houses by Derek Rowbottom.  This is perhaps my favourite book on Georgian dolls houses -- both inspirational and very, very practical, with lots of projects and plans.

The authentic Georgian dolls' house by Brian Long.  An excellent companion for the above, Long's book has a great deal of research on individual features and fewer actual projects.