Tiles for the roof

I’ve pondered for months, literally, over what to do about tiling the roof. It looks so impressive but can be so expensive. And not to mention the decision of whether to use texture sheeting, tiles or stencils? And do you go for terracotta, maroon, light or dark grey? So many choices!

But another decision was made after seeing so many of these options first hand at the dollhouse show. I’m a little sad to say that price did end up playing a role in my decision making process, but it was always going to really, I have way too much roof to cover!

I chose a terracotta clay square tile, some of which are weathered in appearance to give an authentic feel.
I’m a little worried that I didn’t actually buy enough to cover the whole area though…

 

I painstakingly hand glued each tile individually. Placing each row in the gap of the previous.

I haven’t finished yet as I need to find a way to cut out all the tricky shaped pieces. But here is an idea of the finish so far, and the amount of time it took me!

 

A manakin for the craft room

The craft room is my favourite room in the house, not surprising really! And I’m happy to say that I finally got myself a manakin and have begun to decorate it too!

I couldn’t decide whether to use paper or fabric to cover the body but in the end I settled for a spare free wallpaper sample I had lying around.

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And here it is, pride of place!

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Also, for those of you who are beady eyed, you may have noticed I’ve got a new light in this room. Another dollhouse show bargain at £3!

 

Time for the garden

So as you’ll probably have guessed by now I love a bargain and better still a freebie!

For the outside of my house (beyond the nicely tiled porch area) I have been hunting for, and not wanting to buy, some grass. I ordered some artificial grass free samples but alas they were too large (and not to mention incredibly messy once you started snipping away at them!)

Since I began with this project I have tried to avoid some of the crazy expenses which can often be associated with decoration such as wallpaper sheets, tiles and other cute but expensive items. And up til now, grass had been in this category too!

The sheet I bought was a green/yellow shade of grass, more realistic than others I had seen and only cost £3 for a sheet 19″ x 15″. I could be wrong, but I didn’t think that was too bad. I also treated myself to some chickens whilst I was there, just what every garden needs!

 

But just a heads up, it’s still a messy process…

 

Finally got my chandelier!

So yesterday at Miniatura the dollhouse show in Birmingham I finally took the plunge and purchased the chandelier for my ballroom.

I was so lucky and actually managed to get it for less than half price as it had been used as a show model. Not content with just accepting this cheapness I decided to invest in a few accessories to personalise it. (It would have been rude not to, right?)

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It was pretty convenient that I had the chandelier with me when I bought the accessories, it meant I could ‘try on’ the different pieces for size. Handy as my size estimation isn’t great.

The went for some ‘cuffs’ for each of the candle arms and some sparkles for the top. I’m pretty pleased with the results, simple but effective! And I managed the whole thing for just £10!

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Miniatura – The 62nd International Dollhouse Show

Yesterday I went to Miniatura at the NEC Birmingham (England) it’s the biggest miniature dollhouse exhibition of its kind in the UK and potentially Europe (although don’t hold me to that one). It’s the first time I’ve ever been and I wasn’t disappointed.

It gave me tonnes of ideas and techniques to try. Some truly inspirational houses and decorative pieces. I’m still amazed when I see some of the intricate tiny pieces people manage to make. It’s definitely a skill level I aim to achieve, eventually. Very eventually…

Here are a few of the pieces I treated myself to. If money had been no object I’m sure I’d have come home with the entire exhibition hall!