It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!!!
A MINI Cooper S.
I think I'm falling for white...and the extra horses.
The last time I mentioned about my building the Tamarack kit was on October 8th. Fast forward to close to two later...and the exterior is finally complete.
Despite the lack of pictures in the directions, the build was straight forward. So long as items were carefully measured, and installed using a T-Square as a guide, the walls and roof were quickly assembled. The only part I really did not enjoy was applying the shingles on the roof. JC asked me how that went, and I told her it took 1500 pieces to complete the roof. Of that amount, about 150 pieces I had to custom cut with a blade to make it fit at the weird angles. Sure it looks great in the end, but....shoot, my fingers and wrists are still aching!
BK was impressed when he saw the dollhouse. Though I might ask his dad (who's a professional carpenter/contractor) for feedback. There's gotta be a better way to make a roof look seamless (and a better method of installing them). I want to build another kit, but not sure if I'm up for another round of shingles you know?
Finally posted the pics up: what do you think?
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| Tamarack Dollhouse |
I haven't touched the interior yet -- one of the room partitions on the second floor needs another sanding and a coat of paint before I permanently do an installation of sorts.so will see how that goes. Besides, I haven't decided on the wall colors yet....
Still working on the Tamarack for Alicia and Marcus, but guess it’s safe to say that I’m close to 75% complete. The main shell is up and the remaining parts need a final sand and coat of paint before I assemble/attach the roof. From there, it should be smooth sailing in terms of decorating the interior. If I can get the Campbells moved in, that’d be awesome – the first family in their new home in my new home. Good lord, that’s confusing.
The last entry I mentioned about upping my search for Trent and George’s new house. I really meant that statement, except that…well, I got distracted with the following:
- Been checking Craigslist for anyone selling/giving away their old dollhouses. But in a listing from someone close to Baltimore, he was selling an assembled Federal dollhouse from Real Good Toys. A three hour drive, a gas station trip, and $65 less = I came home victorious. There’s about 9 rooms in the house, so figured this will suit the Eocháins quite well.
- Still mourning that the Mini Modern blog will no longer have new posts (*sigh* where am I going to get more inspiration??), I found the Greenleaf online community and joined. There are a lot of dedicated, experienced enthusiasts here when it comes to construction. Ah, this apprentice must learn!
Will have to focus on the second point above because as I explored the forums, a couple of the entries mentioned a dollhouse from Greenleaf/Corona called the Gloucester. So when I did a search…
[insert choirs of angels singing hymns of praise]
Granted, I don’t know much about this kit (or the company that manufactures it), but it’s super cute! And it opens in the front! And…and it’s under $150 (with free shipping)!!
I’m seeing this at work right now, and I’m gonna admit, I’m salivating. I really really like it. Much to the point that I want it. True, each floor only has two rooms. But it’s very European in flavor, and I can easily see Isolde and Avery feeling at home to this arrangement. Plus, the Greenleaf Community site has some neat photos of how it looks when assembled. (See Gallery I and Gallery II for ideas).
But Crazy Dollhouse Girl, you ask, what about your dollhouses at home? Do you honestly want to incur the wrath of BK of yet another kit taking up space? He’s already upset that you two can’t use the dining room thanks to a half built Tamarack on the table, remember?
Dammit, hate it when Rational Dollhouse girl does that. “Cuz she’s freakin’ right.
Guess I’ll have to wait until I finish the other dollhouses. But unless I find something else, I think this might be “the one” for the Tremaines.
Or mooch my family to have this as a Christmas gift. Maybe.
My friend JC told me about the National Equality March in Washington DC that was taking place on October 10th. Naturally BK and I agreed to attend to show our support, considering this is an issue we both hold dear. For me, since my two best friends are of the LGBT community, I want to show my support and frankly, my puzzlement of why some groups are fussing about this issue.
Of course, it didn’t occur to me that Trent and George might have wanted to join in the march. After all, they’ve been together for so long, and despite their long history (and raising two kids to boot), they do find it distressing that they can’t make their partnership legal in most parts of the country. So imagine my surprise when I caught them inspecting my sign the night before the march (then again, the entire doll cast came out to show their support). And the following morning, finding them comfortably settled into my jacket pocket, ready for the trip to Washington DC.
Luckily, BK, JC (and her girlfriend AG) and MC were not only delighted to see Trent and George join in the march, but apparently other marchers as well. From the minute we got to the starting point to the march up to Capitol Hill (about 2-maybe 2.5 miles), about 20 people stopped me to take pics of Trent and George. The duo even managed to snag a sticker to put in their pocket/balcony to prove their point.
As for the march, I think it went well – plenty of supporters on the streets, a few folks expressed distaste (which was expected), but overall, I hope it generated the needed response.
So George and Trent – thanks you two for coming along. In exchange for your participation, I’ll up my search for a new house for you and the kids ok?
Given that my last post reported the status of the homes, I knew I had to start getting everyone's homes set up. At least before the year ended. Besides, you have no idea how guilty I feel each night knowing that my dolls are spending another miserable night in their travel rubbermaid container.
So today, I pulled out the kit I won on eBay -- the Tamarack Dollhouse by Real Good Toys. They released this model in 1995 and sad to say, RGT no longer produces this model. Which is too bad, since the design is very cute -- reminds me of the Craftsman style houses I see in neighborhoods not far from where BK and I now live.
After reading the instructions (yes folks, I do read the manual before I start doing anything), I began constructing the first level. Thank god it was straightforward -- the only time consuming part was just painting the exterior parts. Am so happy that now, Home Depot and Lowes sell the sample size of their paints -- so now I can buy the colors I want for around $3.00 per 8 oz sample canister. Way cheaper than the paints sold at the miniature shops, and in more colors as well.
Once the paint dried, sanded, and repainted the parts, I started gluing the walls together before gluing it to the base. I deviated from the manual about assembling the base and decided to glue the constructed walls onto a slab of MDF board I had lying around. It was stable, and sturdy, and best of all, the surfaces were completely smooth -- perfect when it's time to install hardwood flooring (yes folks, the house will have hardwood flooring throughout).
The instructions advised that once the walls were installed to the base, I should go ahead and attach the second floor and begin assembly of the second floor walls/roof. But I might again deviated from that path, and go ahead and start wallpapering the first floor before I install the walls -- just to make it easier on myself.
BK saw the progress and asked the million dollar question: who's going to be living in the new house once it's done? Oddly enough, I'm not sure yet. I might make it the Campbells' new residence, but then again, I can see Avery and Isolde living here with Selene. Then again, there's a chance that Selene might get a new sibling soon. So maybe it should go to my resident newly weds for the time being...
georgia cyclone.
i feel hurty.
hot
damn.
...realized it's been awhile since I posted an entry. Sad to say, between the last post and now, it's been a whirlwind of drama, stress, and frankly, just plain damn annoyance.
After much deliberation and long endless nights of number crunching, I made the decision to put my studio apartment up for sale. It was becoming too much, and with the economy the way it is, figured this is the best choice in the long run. Luckily BK, my family and friends have been supportive in my decision -- which is always a plus. Plus, BK made a good argument that after being together for two years, and enjoying each other's company -- it was high time we got a place for us to live in. Along with five adorable pet rats, his growing collection of model ships, and of course, my dollhouses and miniatures.
So as of August 22nd, I officially moved from my apartment in Maryland, and moved down to Virginia. Alexandria/Old Towne Virginia to be exact. Found a large one bedroom apartment just south of Old Town and it's within reasonable distance to our creature comforts. Of course, this now means my commute to work has jumped from 15 minutes to an hour. But it's worth it.
As for the dolls, I have some good news and bad news:
Good News
- The Eocháins, the Tremaines, the Campbells, and the Johnson-Valentine households managed to survive the move, and are safe and sound.
- Their furniture and other belongings, luckily, survived. Many thanks to BK, best friends JC & MC, and others for transporting the rubbermaid containers of their things safely!
- I got last July the miniatures that Doris Nathanson of Mini Modernista send them. I know this is a late message Doris, but - THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! If you're reading this blog, this is an official edict from me -- I am ready to order beginning late October.
- Another cool beans piece of news: Doris is also selling her stuff on eBay as well. Yes -- something to look at when I'm bored and work (and furiously contemplating what to cut out of my budget).
- Having a bigger apartment = more space to display the houses. Assuming BK and I finish unpacking the rest of our crap.
Bad News
- The Tremaines, the Campbells, and the Johnson-Valentine families lost their homes. That's right folks, they moved to their new area sans their houses. I had no choice but to sell the houses to help offset some of the moving costs. Avery and Isolde were luckily understanding, as well as Marcus, Alicia, and George. But Trent's understandly upset with me since he put some much thought in how their townhouse was to look.
- The Eocháins still do not have a home either.
- Everyone -- and their stuff -- are still in the rubbermaid containers, currently stashed in the new coat closet. I would have put them in the bedroom, but BK was getting tired of tripping over boxes and containers whenever we had to get up from bed.
- I found an assembled Dixville dollhouse at a local thrift shop in MD. Though it's fully assembled, it's missing some partitions. Luckily, the folks at Earth and Tree Miniatures were willing to sell me partitions. Planning to convert this into the townhouses seen in Old Towne for Avery, Isolde, and Selene.
- Depending on how I convert the above dollhouse, planning to purchase another Dixville to make into another townhouse. Which means new dollhouse = new dolls (hope Sandy doesn't mind me putting new orders...)
- I received the Tamarack Dollhouse kit from Real Good Toys as a housewarming gift/eBay victory to myself. Decided to assign this to the Campbells since it's similar to the houses I see in the neighborhoods near my new place.
- [As for 10/1/2009] Found on Craigslist a colonial dollhouse kit from Duracraft that's on sale for $25. Definitely using that for the Johnson-Valentine household. Will post pics once I pick it up.
Update: Picked up the kit and tried to assemble it. The kit was old, and the parts were not in great condition. With great reluctance, I simply dissembled it and put the parts up for recycling. :(
That's basically it. Not sure if anyone's following my blog, but for those I know who do, thanks for your patience!
