Showing posts with label DIY Dollhouse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DIY Dollhouse. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

Winter amusements? What I have been doing for 7 WEEKS!

 Ad-Free Blog

What have I been doing for 7 weeks????---playing in my craft room and remodeling two dollhouses. Honestly, I could have remodeled my own house in that time. 

Here is the results---enjoy, and if you are into dolls or know someone who is, please direct them to my other blog: barbieoldnewgreenredo

This is one of the latest posts. Everything has been reconstructed or refurbished, and it started out like this:


I had redone this dollhouse 5 years ago for playing with my granddaughter, and now I wanted to do it for my doll stories and eradicate the pink--somehow and expand some areas, update the lighting and hide that elevator, since I can't spray paint outdoors right now. 
So here is the result!

Getting ready for listing!

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Richelle: Hi, Lara, sorry to call so late, but I just texted you some photos of the townhouse...we just finished staging the townhouse!

Lara: Great...so I'm waiting for them...! I'll get Ian over there tomorrow. How about the Mansion...where are we there?

Richelle: Waiting on the chair delivery and Trish...with the plants, otherwise everyone can be out for the open house. Mulan and Belle are staying with Barbie at the rental.
barbieoldnewgreenredo


Lara: The yard looks nice....we need to pull those cans out for the listing photos!

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Richelle: Can we please, never do two locations at the same time again?

Lara: For sure, we are all ragged. I'll send Vanessa over tomorrow to help you at the Manse. 

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Lara: The  office area looks great. Amazing rehab on that equipment.

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Richelle: LOL, well, no one will walk off with a 40# ancient monitor and a dummy keyboard.

Lara: By the way, the sofas look fab, love the pillows!

barbieoldnewgreenredo

...table looks great...and the kitchen...
(sure, beats  MAGENTA???)

barbieoldnewgreenredo

...I love the shelving unit...looks perfect for a family...

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Totally love the accessories...nice homage to the buildings age.

barbieoldnewgreenredo

...What's the story on the painting?

Richelle: It's a watercolor we had resized of the Chicago River. I didn't like the photographs---too contemporary,
...and I wanted to bring something  more personal and historical in with the steamboat.

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Lara: Since we couldn't get historical status, that's a nice way to add history! 1889 is a long time to be a home.

barbieoldnewgreenredo

...I really love the washed oak floors..and with the contemporary fabrics on the second floor, very cool.

barbieoldnewgreenredo

...closet looks good... and the doorwall.

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Richelle: I know the purple and greens are a little unexpected...but I'm sick of grays and neutrals---everywhere! Nothing is permanent that has color.

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Lara: Everything should appeal to the demographic we are going for. 

barbieoldnewgreenredo

...Love the drape wall with the glass in the bathroom.

barbieoldnewgreenredo

I see it just fits up to the tub corner...great I was wondering what you were going to do!

barbieoldnewgreenredo

...nice installation..., Richelle. This really is your calling!
...Are the furnishings for sale?

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Richelle: Sure and thanks, and we came in under budget by using many pieces from the house, before! I can make up a rough list for you on the furnishings.

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Lara: Great and I love the Juliet window, and the shutters close for privacy!

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Richelle: The second floor sitting room was a challenge. The lounge chair was so big..but it can be used for an extra bed. I had 'Woofie' along because I knew it was going to be a very long day! He was so good!

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Lara: Love that little work area, outside of the bathroom. Perfect---very cool wall unit! 

barbieoldnewgreenredo

...the third floor work area works well, and I see you filled the closet! Plenty of storage.

barbieoldnewgreenredo

...I think I like this room the best...the view is fab of the park, and love that rug set!

barbieoldnewgreenredo

Richelle: Just a few plants come tomorrow and I'll finish up the Mansion by three, but I need to get some sleep, now.

Lara: BMR, Ltd. thanks you, Richelle, you did a fab job! And thanks to Ryan, too. I'm sure he helped also! Get me an invoice of your expenses so I can cut you a check immediately!

Richelle: Sure, will do tomorrow, I really need some food, too. Looking at the table makes me hungry!

(Tomorrow  VICTORIAN MANSION)

If you enjoyed this post(s), please join me by email- at 
FOLLOW IT---upper right hand corner.

I have not been paid or reimbursed in anyway for my opinions or products shown, or from where I shop. 

Please Join me at these Fine Blog Parties!
Wonderful Wednesday




 Please do not use my photos without linking back to this blog without my permission. 







Posted by at 10 comments:
Labels: , , , , , , , ,

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

DIY BarbieDollhouse:Wk#5 Final Lighting

This is the second half of last week's post. Last week just got away from me. So....you will see some inconsistencies in continuity here.

Point is, this post is about lighting our NEW DIY Barbie dollhouse. After searching online, I saw Christmas lights dangling from inside cardboard houses (shudder)---battery candle lights dimly lighting cubbyholes of rooms, and rooms conventially lit with dollhouse lighting totally in the wrong scale of 1:12 instead of double that, or 1:6 for Barbie. What should we use?

Christmas lights and sockets, with little wires sticking out,  was out of the question for a three-year old.

Convential dollhouse lighting would run over $100.00 with this size dollhouse and would involve metallic tape, wall sockets, tiny wiring and still having to secure/hide it. Light fixtures were all over the place in price and would be scaled too small. So we started another search.

oldnewgreenredo

Looking online, I found rope lighting and LED under cabinet lighting. Our china cabinet lights (round) LED's would be too bright. They were designed to light up an entire cabinets. So I looked for something softer and scaled smaller.

IKEA had some LED strip lights (set 4) that could be hooked together or installed individually. They gave softer light then other things we saw. Price was good---19.99 for a set of 4--we bought two sets and used 6 light panels-one for each room, so actual cost was 29.99.

oldnewgreenredo

Hubby began by drilling holes in the back large enough to run the wires through. Because we wanted everything enclosed, we made plans to encase the wires in the 'magic' plastic molding and then cover with ceiling trim afterward. The LED's strips came with ample cord, more than enough cord for the 4'x4' size of this dollhouse.

From the back Hubby ran the cords along the divider walls, along the center beam, across the front to the fixture strips.

oldnewgreenredo

Here you can see the slack wires hanging in each room and the actual lights showing at the front of the rooms. By lighting from the front, the lights cast light all over the rooms. We planned on scalloped molding trim to cover the lights, making the light shine into the house.


oldnewgreenredo

On the upper right room, you can see the pieces of 'magic' plastic channel molding I used in the last post,  Wk#5 Landings and Stairs getting ready to secure the wires. Hubby glued the plastic channel directly to the walls and beam with Gorilla Super Gel Glue.
oldnewgreenredo
 Here is a fuzzy closeup of the plastic channel molding. Very inexpensive, cuts with an exacto knife or a scissors. Also flexible so easy to work with.

oldnewgreenredo

Here is a light strip attatched to the ceiling. These lights are attatched to screwed in clips. Nothing is exposed. and the channel covers the wires in the front and along the dividing room walls.


oldnewgreenredo

Sorry for the tilt--getting these pics was tricky. Here you can see the pink wall with the molding installed over the plastic channel all the way to the back.

oldnewgreenredo

In the back the light wires were pushed into these little junction boxes which will be covered by a fake box/chimney, which we will show when completed with the rest of the exterior completion.


oldnewgreenredo

 This picture is taken of the kitchen area with some furniture just set in place...that rug has to go. No flash, RL lights, so the light looks perfect. Kitchen plans are still not final, but the table will become a drop leaf---and painted either green or white? What do you think? The pink is going on the appliances, they will be white with stainless steel..look--and we have to build the stove and counters.

oldnewgreenredo
This room was also lit with only the dollhouse lights. The master bedroom furniture temporarily laid out so we can see what we need to do. All the ceiling moldings are installed and the lighting is complete. The matress is on the floor, bed still needs to be delivered, but of course Ken is napping, again!

oldnewgreenredo

The bathroom roughly laid out. One piece of floor molding still needed to be installed, but all the touch-up was done. The strips of white are more bits of trimmed plastic channel from the landings, simply glued on the walls. Looks like a tile edge.


oldnewgreenredo
Here's the garage area with its gray painted floor and the garbage can---which was a pencil container in school promo from Walmart, for 1.99...and the perfect size, lid opens and has little wheels, tooo adorable...and GREEN.

oldnewgreenredo

 Completed stairway from the man cave to the second floor.  Temporary furniture arrangement in the background.
oldnewgreenredo

Close up of the moldings/trim all painted and Ken's closet/cabinet installed under the wierd windows. My daughter-in-law commented it was a custom fit, lol. The shower on the back left still needs to be painted and installed...you always have to wait for plumbers!

oldnewgreenredo
Hubby did take this picture with a flash...but you have seen how great the LED lights work. We have opted not to have any lit fixtures or lamps. There may be a couple of battery lights...but the rooms are nice and bright with the LED strips.  However, this post is not a recommendation of- or for- any products or use of products as safe for children. Please follow all manufacturer's suggestions and installation recommendations.

Now to get to working on all these furnishings--and make them not so retro, crazy colors. Everything begged, borrowed and thrifted needs to morph into some assemblence of a tastefully decorated home. More to follow on Barbie's thrifty and thrifted furnishings. I did buy the to toilets and Refrigerator new, and the green table and dining chairs. My daughter-in-law is constructing the hanging chandeliers and lamps...which will be for show and she will work on many of the miniature food, magazines, books, etc, things for th house.


Thanks for stopping by, and I will be happy to answer any questions or comments.



All the opinions and photographs in this blog are my own or I am in possesion of the originals, 
I have not been paid or reimbursed in anyway for my opinions, posts or products used. 
Please do not use my photos without linking back to this blog without my permission. 
Thank you for your cooperation, Sandi Magle 
Sharing at these fine parties this week, 
 Sandi
Posted by at 15 comments:
Labels: , , , , , , , , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)