In the large group of magazines gifted to me recently, there are numerous articles on how to make more from a kit than what is presented in the instructions. I’ve modified kits before, but some of these are truly remarkable and have opened my eyes to even greater possibilities. I bought this Chrysnbon kitchen hutch kit at a local mini show.
In the November 2000 issue of Dollhouse Miniatures magazine, there are instructions for converting this hutch into a desk (and a shelving unit if you want to use all of the pieces). I think the vintage style is perfect.
I sorted the parts and have a nice bunch left over for later projects. I don’t know that I’ll make the wall cabinet from the spare parts, but you never know.
The instructions indicate to use the base back piece, but it has some issues with injection marks and you are to remove the ribs with a knife. These would not be highly visible under the desk, but they would be unsightly enough to bother me.
I could turn the piece around, but then the back would be rather ragged. Granted, the back the desk isn’t visible when in the room, but why bother with these issues at all when there’s a large piece in the leftovers that has wood texture on both sides?
I cut the large piece to minimize the injection marks. Much better. :]
After gluing the top to the sides and back using Testors plastic cement, I went my own direction using the magazine instructions as a general guide. Since I didn’t care about making the top cabinet, I used the spare parts as needed. It simplified things for me. I built a box for the side drawer and door.
I cut the original skirt as meant in the bash, but I made a solid piece for the right side.
Instead of using the remaining small drawers, I cut a new one from the spare parts.
I sanded the back of the door smooth so it would sit more in line with the new drawer. The one on the left shows what it looked like before the sanding.
That left the holes and imperfections on the left inner panel.
I thought it would be more difficult to fill with putty and get a good result, so I cut a board to cover the entire lower portion. Once painted, it will be less obvious.
More to come….
