A Tale Of Two Ceilings...

Recently I posted about getting a Cricut Explore Air electronic cutting machine as an early birthday present. I promised a report of my experience getting to know it and how it could be helpful in miniature related projects. I also posted a teaser about a couple fun secret mini projects I am starting. I am happy to report that I can report on both in one post! ;OP

I have to confess that my first real project using the machine was not mini related. It just so happened that my uncle Ted was having his 70th birthday - what an auspicious occasion to make a birthday card with the Cricut! I designed my own in their Design Space software (free) using multiple (5) different layers that I would assemble once the cardstock was run through the machine and cut/scored.

It was very straightforward but if I had gotten stuck there are a multitude of How-To Videos on their site. There are also many great hack videos on YouTube that show you how to "trick" your machine to do cool things like embossing! I am like the VW Bug driver who suddenly gets a Porsche - it's going to take me several months to understand the power I have at my command! So far, I'm really digging it!

Since the secret projects are both starting from a chipboard kit, I wanted to make sure that there were no "tricks" I needed to know - preferably before I wasted good materials. I noticed when I removed the kit pieces from the packaging that I had a black, powdery residue all over my hands. It must have been a byproduct from where it was laser cut. I did not want it to end up on my pretty scrapbook papers, so I did some research about how chipboard needs to be prepped for crafts. Although this is not the retailer I ordered my chipboard kits from, this site gives some great information on prepping and finishing. Learn about chipboard. Basically, I needed to sand a bit and prime to contain the ash. I also painted around the inside edge and actual edge where there will be no paper covering.

The Sweet Mint green paint will get toned
down with antiquing medium later

In both secret projects I wanted a vintage feel to them. I decided on a copper ceiling for one and a tin ceiling (painted over) for the other. Again, an auspicious occasion to use the Cricut! I knew that to recreate the punched metal look I would need to build several layers of cardstock. I do have and could have used my own chipboard instead of cardstock, but for that I would have had to change to the deep cutting blade then change print settings and cutting depth. I need to be in the mood to fail and waste material, and this adventure is just above my current pay grade. Patience young padawan...

I created the design and layers using basic shapes available in Design space. It is too complex to fully explain in my post, and frankly you'll get clearer instructions from Cricut so let's just replace 1000 words with this:

I used the square shape with the center
removed to create the ceiling grid.

Resized, Grouped, Synched and Layered.

After printing, I eliminated two of the layers in my design - the ceiling just didn't need them. The basic structure went: backer layer (cut to the exact size of my chipboard ceiling piece), grid, lg rounded off square shape, sm rounded off square shape, and finally the propeller shape. The ones I eliminated are the two blue shapes on the right - their detailed doily design didn't translate to the eye in this scale, and were really unnecessary.

For the grid, to make it have good depth, I glued four layers on top of one another. The rest of the shapes were glued down in single layers. This gave it what I think is a good dimensional tin ceiling kind of look.

I used colored cardstock so that you could better see the layers. It would have meant less gesso and paint if I had used cardstock that was close to the end color that I was trying to achieve.

After two coats of Gesso

After two coats of base color. I chose burnt sienna
because it is close to copper in color.

After final base coat

For the metal finish, all I happened to have was a bronze metallic acrylic paint. After the first coat of that I was happy with the metallic look, but not the color. It seemed a little too light.

I decided to try mixing both paints together to see what I'd get. It worked perfectly! A copper color with a slightly metallic finish!

Top two rows with the new paint mix, bottom row original bronze.

Now that I know that neat trick, I'll be doing some more metal finish testing! And, I see more Cricut ceilings in my future! Actually, I see many, many mini projects that Cricut will help make happen. Just the perfectly accurate cuts alone will save time and frustration!

While things were drying I cut and pasted another piece of cardstock for the flooring. I added several coats of gloss Mod Podge. For the pale yellow ceiling, I added a coat of satin varnish. It came out way too shiny, so I overcoated it with matte Mod Podge. Much better!

I finished up the day's crafting by adhering the scrapbook papers (Kiss The Cook Collection) to the chipboard pieces. I really like where this is going! Next up I'll get the walls, floor and ceiling into a 3D state of being, then, begin all of the fun little projects that will go inside. It feels very vintage and all of the accessories I have planned will enhance that feeling!

Whew! That shiny floor is blinding at this angle!

If you're wondering where the copper ceiling will go, I'm afraid that is going to have to wait a bit. I only ordered the supplies last week. More to come on the second project...

Hope you found great bargains all weekend and that your holiday lists are looking good!

Take care,
Jodi

The Impossible Dream

At last, dear friends, I have finished the Powder Room! I really didn't mean to leave it for last, I just couldn't make a decision on what to do. At only 2-7/8" wide and 4-3/8" deep, it was a challenging space. Getting both a fireplace and a powder room under a staircase might sound crazy, but trust me - it's not impossible! Tiny, minute, fun size, petit, cozy, compact, efficient, pint-sized, itty bitty - no matter what you call it, it functions! With a little ingenuity, I knew I could make it work.

The Beachside Bungalow kit by Real Good Toys allows you to place the first floor's dividing wall wherever you'd like. When I cracked mine open, I'd never seen one with a powder room fit underneath the stairs. Challenge accepted! I determined to leave the bulk of the space "open concept" and use my wall to separate the staircase. And to make it even more challenging, I added a fireplace and a powder room under the stairs, too!

I was engaged in finding a solution before I put the project aside for the holidays (and then the flower shops), but I just wasn't sold on any of my ideas. Here is one of my first iterations of a space saving sink and toilet. Created to utilize the corners, they were designed in Tinkercad and printed with the 3D printer.

Roxanne thought that the toilet was kinda neat. Modern, easy to clean and totally functional. The sink, however, she didn't care for. She thought it was too cold for such a warm and cozy beach house. She encouraged me to try again with something more cottage-y.

I found loads of inspiration for under stair bathrooms, but nothing captured my imagination until last week. That's when I suddenly had an idea for a vanity that involved the Cricut instead of the 3D printer. I got out my graph paper to draw the dimensions of the room. It really helps me to see the space right before my eyes as opposed to looking into a room. Now I was able to envision a vanity that would be unique, a perfect fit and utilize all the space available. I drew it within the confines of the space on the graph paper to make sure it would fit.

I cut out the shape to see it in the space. So far, so good. There was still room to get a body in and access the toilet.

My design has a curvy shape, and I am not the best cutter with an Xacto knife. That is why the Cricut Maker is so perfect. I scanned my graph paper sketch into the computer, then uploaded it into Cricut's Design Space program as an svg file. Now the Cricut Maker could cut my vanity pieces out of chipboard.

Vanity Top

I also made up the support pieces and an outer and inner frame for the mirror.

Once the pieces were cut I began to assemble.

Top with sink hole, back, back, side, side and bottom.

I painted the top in preparation for the countertop finish. To add support for the rounded front of the cabinet, I used a toilet paper roll. Guess where I was when I came up with that idea, lol! It just seemed so apropos.

I cut the roll down the center so that I could wrap it around itself to get the right circumference.

Then I cut it to the right height.

Then I held it in place under the sink to get a good fitting. The paperclip held it to the size I needed until I could get the glue and clamps handy.

But first I had to install the sink. In this case, a miniature aluminum bowl. It will be a small sink but this is a teeny powder room.

I glued it really, really well, using wood glue to weld it to the underside of the countertop. Don't want the sink falling out!

Then finally I could glue and clamp the TP roll support under the counter.

Once the rounded support was installed, I could add the last two support pieces.

Now it was time for the cabinet front. Using Cricut kraft cardstock, I came up with an idea to attach the curved section separately from the side pieces to allow it to form better to the curve. I measured from support to support, then added the depth of each side support to the length, I made folds that were the same depth as the supports and glued them to the outside of the supports. Make sense? That gave me a natural rounded front.

For the sides, I did the same, only these would be flat because there was no rounded TP roll behind them. The small gaps on either side where the sections met were filled with my wood glue caulking method. I lined up the bottom piece with the back of the vanity along both sides then traced the final shape of the front onto it. I cut this by hand to get the perfect fit. You can see that photo below after I added the legs.

To make the faux doors, drawers and trim I used the same kraft cardstock and had the Cricut Maker cut them, too. They are comprised of two solid layers and two frame layers for each, gluing the layers on top of on another to get the right thickness.

I forgot to take an in progress photo of applying the cabinet fronts, but to get the center drawer and door to curve, I gently forced it around an acrylic paint bottle. Here is the vanity after I have glued on all the fronts. The legs were 3D printed extras I had left over from the sofa and chair recovering project. I added a scrap wood layer under each leg because I didn't quite have the height I needed to get above the baseboard in the powder room.

And here I have added a Dresden bead detail around the bottom to cover the chipwood raw edge. I added a ship's wheel brad to the center cabinet door for a little nautical whimsey.

Everything always looks better with a coat of paint on it! I went with the faux stone countertop method just like with the ensuite bathroom's vanity top to give the house some consistency.

Taps and drain added...

Installed in the powder room with a paper tile backsplash and corner mirror to give the illusion of more space. The vanity was still just a tad too short to stand over the baseboard, so I added silver spacer beads to the bottoms of each leg.

The toilet is the third or fourth 3D printed iteration for this tiny room. Each version got a slight adjustment. Since all of the other 3D printed things in the house were left in natural PLA white, I left the toilet natural, as well. I did try to paint one toilet with porcelain repair paint, but it is not at all forgiving. If it does not go on perfectly, it looks terrible. It is about four times as thick as old nail polish, and applied with a stiffly bristled brush. There must be a great glossy spray paint in existence for PLA and I am determined one day to find it!

The girls had harbored doubts about the powder room's feasibility from the start, though they didn't want to hurt my confidence. They were so pleasantly surprised at how functional the space really was that they wanted me to get a photo of them together in the room! If you're not shy, one can even "go" while the other washes her hands at the same time! You see, where there is a will to have an extra bathroom in a dollhouse there is a way!

With the powder room done, that completes the interior of this little beachside bungalow! 

First Floor

Second Floor

Now all that is left is to finish is the back opening trim and then to decorate the front porch. I have some ideas, but am open to wherever this creative current is carrying me.

But first, there's going to be some serious partying going on tonight! Five years is a long time to wait for a home, and Kairi is ecstatic!

I hope to be back soon and report that this Beachside Bungalow project is officially, totally completed!

xo xo,

Jodi