Monday 28 December 2009

Not so Grand Box opening !

Finally I managed to claim the dining room table as my "work bench" and today I opened the box ! My initial excitement was instantly replaced by a daunting sight................... The supplier of my kit had opened all the packets to check everything was there and then packaged it all together. This was the box as I opened it with pieces everywhere and three damaged parts of my shop front.

Not one to be deterred I put the damaged strips aside and sorted the contents ...............








As you can see after half an hour I had a lovely neatly set out table of bits, I think they are all there but as the packages of trims were opened and everything had fallen out I am not sure really whats what with the smaller bits so fingers crossed !

Another half hour spent reading the instructions ( 19 pages ! ) and I'm almost ready to start.

First though for the repairs, the damaged parts were split but as I am planning to paint them and they are decorative parts I think they will fix just fine. I used a little wood glue and have placed a weight on top of them as they dry, hopefully they will be good as new.

Top Tip !

The first step with this kit is to attach the doors with the hinges provided. In my experience its always been best to paint the doors before attaching them . Its the only way for a neat finish without ending up with hinges covered in paint. It also means you can test the painted doors for fit and sand as necessary, thus avoiding "sticky" doors.

So work is halted for today as I dither over paint colours ! ( Burgundy is the firm favourite so far ............)

julie xxx









10 comments:

Whittaker's Miniatures said...

Oh my goodness you have a job and a half there Julie. one thing Ive never done is put a kit house together,. i always cheat and buy ready made! I bought the Empire stores on ebay but when it came it had virtually fallen to pieces as they hadnt glued anything together so I had to virtually put it together from fresh. But I was lucky to have the doors and trim etc already painted in a deep green I would have chosen anyway . GOOD LUCK!!!!! Kate xxx

julie campbell said...

I almost chose deep green too Kate but am off paint shopping soon and pretty sure it will be burgundy and cream :0)
Mine came from an online dolls house shop, not directly from Sid Cooke. Luckily my repairs to the damaged parts worked like a dream and I've just assembled the shop window .........more later when I get my paint on the doors.........
The kit was very daunting at first but I'm starting to have fun now ! (remind of me that later when it starts getting tricky LOL )
julie xxx

Michelle said...

The kit does look daunting, but I think 'all' good kits that contain a lot of detailed parts do.:o) My shop is cream and deep green, very Victorian! I think burgundy would look just a good, if not better! :o)) I agree, doors are better painted and finished before attaching! I treat all tricky and small parts this way!

Michelle xx

Cheryl said...

Hi Julie. I am a new follower and looking forward to your project. I have just embarked on the street of shops and will check back often!
Cheryl

julie campbell said...

Cream and deep green sounds lovely Michelle.
I finally settled on aubergine hobby paint which is sort of a muted shade, perfect for the toyshop and will look lovely with cream.
LOL have to agree on the kits, good ones are very daunting when first unpacked. Once you start following the steps though it all starts to make sense :0)
julie xxx

julie campbell said...

Hello Cheryl, nice to meet you :0)
I just love shops especially a street.
I've had a few houses before but the perfect combination for me is a shop with living accomodation upstairs,it just ticks all the right boxes !
julie xxx

Julie said...

Oh eck and more thats a very scary box....mind I don't own a house yet...built or kit.
I love the cream and burgandy idea too...think i will be begining with a room box myself though....lol.
I know your going to make this look wonderful but will wish you good luck with all the little bits!!!
hugs
Julie
xxxxxx

Christel said...

This is such a GREAT idea!!1 I am so looking forward to following this blog, and watching the Emporium come to life! I am imagining many sweet dolls I could create for such a store! Thanks for the inspiration!Best of luck with each new endeavor at the Emporium! xxoxxo Christel

julie campbell said...

LOL julie, honestly its not too scary once you get started, just looks very daunting to start with.You might want to try one yourself when you see this taking shape :0)

Hello Christel
Hope you enjoy following my progress here :0)
I plan to weave many stories around the little people who will inhabit this shop and cant wait to start making them, more of that later !
julie xxx

June said...

I will say from experience that a bought kit has pieces that fit together perfectly and no hand made one will have that claim. All mine are just "near enough" but I wouldn't dream of saying so. I always use 2 parts PVA glue to 5 parts water as a sealer and then sand afterwards as it raises the grain again.
Steel wool is a good second choice for sandpaper haters.
I am going to enjoy seeing the fruit of your labours Julie as I know how well you do everything. Thanks for giving this computer illerate the link to come here.