Heritage – First floor windows, not happening

Even with the success I had getting two out of three windows working for the front bay window, the two regular first floor windows are just … errrmmm … garbage. The wood is beyond bad and the pieces just don’t fit at all. I’d be better off cutting new ones from scratch than even attempting to reshape and repair. And, if I am going to go through that sort of hassle, why not just get some ready-made components?

Enter the Houseworks traditional working window and double working window. Since these components have more depth to them than the original wall thickness, I’ll need to build up the outer frame and pad the interior walls but that’s easy to do.

For the parlor, to get the traditional single window to work, I had to make the hole off the front porch narrower. This was made easier since I had leftover siding pieces from eliminating the side bay window. I took the original wall apart, cut new pieces from the side wall leftovers and put the wall back together. Since these pieces were already painted and aged, they didn’t need any finishing other than a few touchups.

I think it looks like it belongs. :D

This component required a depth greater than the wall. You can see how it doesn’t fit as is.

I padded the front parlor wall. This will offer support for the parlor ceiling. The gaps you see here are for potential wiring.

This window required some extra wood on the outer frame. I actually think this added thickness looks more realistic than the way the window looks out of the package.

For the kitchen, to get the double working window to fit, I had to make the existing hole larger.

I think this was perhaps meant to be since the pieces I had removed from the front wall were the exact width I needed to get the window to fit. So, I took this wall apart, took out the existing pieces and replaced them with the narrower ones. I’ll keep the originals in my stash of spares.

This new window matches so much better with the working casement window I already added to this wall than the original would have.

It’s a rather large window, but I remember the windows in my childhood house being large, too. I think it works, and there’s enough room for the kitchen appliances even with the added window width.

I padded the side kitchen wall for the new double working window. This will offer support for the kitchen ceiling as well as make up part of the difference in depth between the original wall and the added window. Adding this extra padding in both rooms eliminates the need for floor supports that would have otherwise shown in a very unrealistic manner.

On the outer frame, I added strip wood to make up the rest of the difference.

Categories: The Haunted Heritage
September 28, 2011 | 0 comments

Heritage – stone steps, part 2

I’ve painted the stone steps in a mixture of grey and black acrylic paints to take down the shine of the original pavers and painted the purchased pillars to match. I also cut toppers for the side walls out of balsa wood.

I grouted the steps, though I didn’t seal the grey paint before grouting. I wanted to make sure I didn’t have any shine on the steps. I used a sewing pin to define the grout lines since a toothpick would have been too thick to get between the pavers.

A pair of pedestals from Carol’s Bloomers finish off the front steps. The pillars needed another coat of paint to match seamlessly.

I glued the sides to the steps but the whole assembly won’t be attached permanently to the foundation until after the house is mounted to its baseboard. I painted the balsa toppers to match as well, but it took a lot of layers to remove the wood grain. I even used some grouting material to add some texture to the paint, though most of it was sanded down in the process.

I gave the steps, sides and pedestals a quick wash of black-brown paint diluted in water to take down the brightness of the grouting. It also gives the illusion of leftover mud from a recent rain. :D

There will be some plant matter and moss added during the landscaping phase, too. I really like the visual weight of them. :D

Aging and adding moss here.

Categories: The Haunted Heritage
September 27, 2011 | 0 comments

Heritage – cellar doors

I might end up putting in a flickering unit for the cellar lights and fireplaces, so I needed to plan ahead for an accessible place to hide the circuit board just in case. :D I figured a set of working cellar doors that allow access to the unit would be just the thing. And, who doesn’t think old cellar doors are creepy?

My inspiration comes from Jeremy Paul. I studied his design for the beautiful Tudor he is currently building, though I built mine out of foam core board, wood scraps and egg carton bricks.

I started with a 1/4″ thick foam core board to get the general shape and size I wanted. I used 1/2″ thick foam core board for the front support and scrap wood from the Heritage kit for the back.

The back piece has a slight angle cut into it.

I glued more plywood scraps to the inside and outside for added stability.

I covered the exterior with egg carton bricks painted and grouted to match the foundation. I sealed the interior wood with black paint.

I covered the tops with plywood scraps to cover the exposed foam core centers.

The doors are made from waste wood from the Heritage kit, scored to look like planks. It’s actually a positive that the wood is a little shoddy in this case! :D I did beat them up a bit more with an awl, though, to wear them out a bit more.

I painted and aged the wood in the same manner as the rest of the house. After fitting the doors in place, I glued another scrap of plywood to either side to hold the smaller end of the working hinges.

I used hinges by Dijon International and the latch is leftover from my Baslow Ranch supplies since I had built a custom wood latch for the barn door and didn’t end up using this latch. I sprayed them with Rustoleum brown paint but dabbed most of it off to keep it from binding the working parts. As it dried, I kept moving the hinges to make sure they would remain working. The paint gives it a nice rusted and corroded appearance.

To attach the hinges, I drilled pilot holes.

I then pushed in the nails as far as they would go by hand and followed up with a nail setter tapped with a rubber mallet.

Even though the doors are made from a single board scored to look like planks, I added cross bars on the inner portion for added realism when the doors are open. I did this after all the pieces were assembled to make sure it wouldn’t interfere with the operation of the doors. I used balsa since it was easy to press over the nails sticking out on the underside of the doors.

The hinges come with bright brass nails, though, so I dabbed paint on them after assembly. I added a rusty paint wash around the hardware to age the wood. I love the effect of the textured paint on the hardware. :D

I’ll age the bricks and add moss later in the landscaping phase. I like that the doors ended up a little warped.

The whole assembly will be attached to the baseboard when I get to that part but for now is still removable. I’ll attach it after the chimney to make sure there’s no interference between the two.

I added old rusty nails.

I later added a handle as well.

Categories: The Haunted Heritage
September 26, 2011 | 0 comments

Griffins

Continuing work on the fireplace. I’ve had this pin for quite a long time. It’s one of my favorite pieces of jewelry. I haven’t worn it in some time, so it needs to be cleaned!

When I made the parlor fireplace, I left the two flat panels open for added designs. I really wanted to cast griffins for the areas, but as you can see, my griffin faces only one way.

I figured I might be able to find griffin earrings or pendants in mirror image in a style I liked well enough, but I never though I’d find the same griffins! They are larger than my original pin, though.

The only issue with the griffins was the fact that the wings were too big, so I planned to clip the long ends on my cast pieces. I didn’t think it would detract from the design.

Using EasyMold silicone putty, I made molds of the griffins after carefully removing the earring wires. EasyMold is a two-part putty that you mix together. I tell you, this stuff feels weird! (As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.)

You press your original item into the mixed putty, which hardens in about 20 minutes, to make the mold. I pressed the griffins in with a board since they are thin and flat in areas. It made for a more uniform placement in the putty.

I then had to let the mold cure for 24 hours before making casts using DAP plaster of paris. Plaster is one of the few materials that requires you wait to use the mold. I had doubts that this was the proper material since the griffins are so delicate, but I gave it a try anyway. I wiped away the excess and let them set the required time. (Note: this was before I had experience with casting resin.)

While I was waiting, I noticed something amiss…a tiny spider in my fireplace. Apparently I’m not working on the fireplace fast enough. :D Do you suppose in 1:12 scale, it’d be like a giant wolf spider hanging in there?! =shudder=

Once the time was up, I released them from the molds to find my suspicions were correct. The griffins are just too thin and fine for the plaster to work. The pieces broke, but it was nice to see the amount of detail the silicone mold had captured.

My second material was Pardo jewelry clay – pretty much just metallic polymer clay – in Tiger’s Eye, a coppery brown. I used this mainly because it was soft and the project I originally bought it for never came to fruition.

I pressed the clay into the mold and had planned to bake the clay while still in the molds. You can do that with these silicone molds, which I think is awesome. I put a bit of powder on the flat back and rolled with a rolling pin. One of the griffins came out of the mold during this process, and it was so well formed that I decided to just bake it out of the mold. I thought about cutting away the excess while the clay was pliable but I didn’t want to risk marring the design.

They turned out well.

But, then I had to cut the excess off with an X-Acto knife. This was not easy, and I did end up with a few breaks.

I think they turned out remarkably well, though, and I plan to use these as is.

One griffin doesn’t have the same fine detail as the other (a flaw of the original silver pieces), so they do look a bit different from one another.

Once the whole thing is assembled and painted, I doubt these minor issues will even show anymore.  Besides, a couple of imperfections on an old fireplace would hardly be out of the norm.

Nothing says spooky like adding a pair of mystical creatures!

Accessories include griffin candlesticks by Don Henry, The Chair by Kris at 1 Inch Minis and the Phoenix parlour hob grate I put together and painted.

Categories: The Haunted Heritage
September 23, 2011 | 0 comments

Repairing shoddy wood

I’m guessing there are other ways to do this, but this is the method that works for me. The die-cut kit parts for the Heritage are mostly good, though a few are just plain awful. They are both dried up and poorly cut…stamped more than die-cut, actually. They are splintered and brittle.

I first cut them out from the frames with a blade trying to limit the splinters and uneven edges. I then sand them lightly to remove the obvious imperfections. I use 320 grit sandpaper since I mainly want to remove the top layers and not reshape the pieces.

As you can see, the wood is still pretty lousy – especially on the edges.

I paint one coat of acrylic, keeping the layer even and thin. I also paint in the direction of the grain instead of across it. Yes, it looks worse before it gets better. :\

I let it dry completely, even overnight before doing the next bit of sanding. The paint bonds to the wood fibers and makes it easier to achieve a smooth finish. I end up taking quite a bit of this first layer of paint off with sanding. It already looks better, even with those two bad places still needing repair.

I then spackle any imperfections along the edges, applying the compound with my fingers. It’s easier than trying to use a large tool for application and the main objective is to push the spackling into the tiny gaps in the wood. Other than repairing obvious or larger flaws, I keep the spackling only on the edges. I don’t want to take away the wood grain by filling in the face of the frame.

When it builds up in the angles or corners, I clear out the excess with an old painting palette knife that’s seen better days…but it’s one of the most valuable tools in my miniature making toolbox! :D

After this has dried completely, I sand again. If there are any more obvious imperfections, I spackle those and wait for it to dry again.

I wipe down the piece to remove as much dust as possible and paint, again keeping with the grain of the wood. The key is to work with light layers and use long brushstrokes. The leftover dust will make the paint gum up a bit if it’s applied too heavily or overworked.

And, here we are…painted wood with a nice finish. :D

I don’t always use a sealer – depends on the type of finish I want. For interior trims, I leave them unsealed for a perfect matte finish.

This is a part freshly cut from the frame compared to my new finished piece.

Categories: The Haunted Heritage
September 20, 2011 | 0 comments