Monday 11 October 2021

Furniture shop; Walls & Floor

 With the first two boxes build and the exterior 'rendered', I couldn't resist testing the door to the smaller shop. It fits perfectly and the light shining through the stained glass is just as I have hoped. 


I decided to start with the smaller box because I think it is the simpler of the two. I am going to be building up the thickness of some walls. I like deep-set windows and doors and want to try and create the illusion of lined stone walls. 


Starting with the back wall, I cut strips of foam core. I only have 6mm (1/4"), so I doubled these to get a 12mm (1/2") thickness. 
The strings running along the channel on the left will be used to guide wires through to the base of the house later. I am already worried that I might be creating headache for myself later on by having all the wiring complete concealed within the wall space...!? I might try and think up a solution for a couple of access points - we'll see.


I added a full sheet of foam core on top and couldn't help myself to test how it will look once the window goes in. It is certainly getting the depth I was hoping for. 


I repeated the process on the side wall that will house the door. This time though, only adding one layer of strips for the depth.


When I build the door, I had made the frame to fit two layers of foam core + the plywood shell - only I didn't measure my foam core because( I thought) I knew it was 5mm thick - Turns out is is 6mm so the door frame is too thin by 2mm (1/16")  (NOTE TO SELF: Always measure and double check!)


I am not planning on having an architrave around this door anyway so instead of building up the door frame, I cut the edge of the foam core to slightly round it off. 


I have 'plastered' the walls with the same mix as on the outside and painted them in a sandy-beige colour. (Jo Sonia 'Smoked pearl'). I have only given them one coat and done a pretty patchy job. I am still pondering that I might give them a very light sand to smooth them down just a bit and wear down the paintwork even more.
Between the walls drying, I made a start om the floor. 

I used craft sticks glued onto a card template of the floor. Last time I did this, I had terrible trouble with them warping. This time I was extra careful when gluing them down and sure each had an even smear of glue to the very edges and put heavy weights onto everything right away. They dried nicely overnight. 


Then multiple thin layers of stain (watered down acrylic paint) to build up colour with sanding between. For the first two layers of stain, I dried the floor straight away with my hairdryer. It all worked and there is no warping this time. This is a good old worn floor so craft sticks are perfect for the look. They are not always completely straight, but for this old floor I have deliberately not filled it in the gaps but instead pushed a bit of very brown paint into them; just think in years to come, when someone decides to renovate this old house and put in a new floor, they might find old coins, bits of paper, buttons and other tiny treasures that has fallen down into those crack.

I have glued the floor in place in the box - as I write it is drying weighted down by a heavy library of books. Fingers crossed it sticks down nicely. 

Keep well everyone.
Anna X

 






11 comments:

  1. Excellent progress, Anna! I love the wall thickness and the character it adds, and the door looks wonderful! The light effect from the stained glass window is magical! The floors look great, as does the wall texture and color! Both amazing background layers for the future treasures this space will house!

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    1. Thanks Jodi, I am starting to wonder if it is going to end up a little too dark and moody once the ceiling goes in? I guess time will tell.

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  2. It’s great progress Anna. I agree that the thicker walls add a lot of character and will really add to the realism. I just painted a roombox with that Jo Sonja smoked pearl and it took about four coats for a full coverage. Terrible. But anyway, it is now done. I look forward to the next installment!

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    1. Four coats - yikes! Lucky I was going for the 'worn, washed down' look. After a light sand and a bit more colour in some places it is now looking lovely and patchy ;)

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  3. I think the door is very nicely done, handy that you work double-walled well to get rid of all the cords

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    1. Thanks, I do worry that I might have trouble getting to the wires later if something goes wrong.

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  4. Hi Anna! You are cracking right along with this project! The floor looks wonderfully old and the walls are suitably aged as well! I would never have guessed they were foam core! The thick walls technique is admirable.... I just can't ever bring myself to shrink the interior dimensions of my builds! :)

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  5. Thanks for stopping by Betsy - I might live to regret those walls once I start filling the room ;)

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  6. I love watching builds where you do every little thing from scratch. This being a great example. Thank you for sharing - great way to learn stuff.

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    1. If it wasn't for all the fabulous hints and tips from great builders, like yourself I would not be doing this. There is so much to learn, but I am enjoying every minute of it.

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  7. Yay, thickening up the walls! :-) It adds realism and therefore I like it a lot. But as Betsy says, it eats up (a bit) of floorspace. You can take that into account when sketching the floorplan. For me it ment that Huis ter Swinnendael had to grow a bit more to keep the dimensions of the room the way I wanted them to be.

    I like the way the room is looking right now. And I especialy love the look of the floor you have made. That looks like a well tread floor.

    Huibrecht

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