The Fairfield: Exterior Trim Finished?

I dragged the Haunted Fairfield out of storage again when inspiration hit.  It's been sitting on my dining table - where I can see it each day - and I've been plugging away at it, little by little.  I think I finally have the exterior trim finally finished?  Apart from gluing on the railing that is, I don't want to do that until after I paint the decking.

I kind of don't want to paint it all now, it looks so clean and nice LOL.  The perfectionist in me is terrified I'm going to wreck it - even though I'm going to be distressing it!

 

I cannot for the life of me decide on a colour for the roof shingles.  I feel like black is all too much, even though I have seen many pictures of black Victorian rooves.  I suspect I will go with a charcoal grey?  I'm also deeply undecided about the colour of the porch decking.  Stained?  Weathered grey? Black?  The porch posts and railings will be black.

I allowed the tiles to deliberately warp to add to the distressing and I will add moss and lichen to them after I paint. Probably some autumn or dead leaves in the gutters too.

Now I need to cross my fingers that the paint colour I choose will look OK!

The Fairfield: A Roof at Long Last

I finally dragged The Haunted Fairfield out of semi-retirement to finish off attaching the roof and applying floorboards to the porch.  I had lost one of the roof pieces so when I found it (whilst looking for semething else of course), I decided to just glue it all together.

I also decided not to use the original pieces that came with the tower and use kraft board instead so that I could bend it into the slight curve it has while gluing it more easily.

I then reinforced the edges and joins with paper tape.

And undercoated it in black.

I was going to move onto the porch but I discovered that I've lost a porch post so I will have to order more.  I can't deal with shingling just yet, so this will probably be put away for another couple of months until I am more motivated lol.

The Fairfield: Attic and balconies

I grouted the chimney today after sealing it yesterday. I tinted it with a little grey paint and it doesn't look too bad, although I need to give it another clean with a damp sponge to remove the rest of the spackle from the stones now that I look at it more closely!

The I moved onto the balconies. I added trimming strips and painted them, and the plastic railing (to take the gloss off the plastic).  I'm still not a all thrilled with the style of the railing, but beggars can't be choosers, so I'm stuck with it for the moment. Using the trim strips means it isn't glued in, so perhaps I can upgrade it in the future if I ever find anything nice in 1:24 scale.

Front (bedroom) balcony

Just for fun I then glued some eave brackets onto the front balcony to see how they looked.  I'm unsure if I want to add more across the front or not?  Either way, I have ordered more, so I should have more than enough when they arrive.

Side (library) balcony

I decided I didn't like the brown paint on the attic end walls when it had dried, so I figured I would make up extra grout and use it as plaster instead, the same as in the kitchen.  I added extra grey paint to the grout (spackle mix) I used for the chimney and painted it on. It looks rather Tudor now against the timber, lol. I will age it with some paint washes later, and it suits the Gothic window, so I am happy with it.

Front wall

Back wall

It all looks very clean for a supposedly old, haunted attic, ha ha.

I also grabbed the porch posts which were sitting on top of a box of bits and pieces, and cut them to size for the verandah.

That let me take the measurements for porch brackets. Since I had to order more eave brackets, I decided to buy some porch brackets and gable ends as well. I would have liked longer brackets to make them stretch from one post to the next, but the ones I have ordered should look OK. I tried to tie them in with the balcony railing, although it will be interesting to see how they look!  In contrast, they look nothing like the gable ends I ordered! Ha, I had the choice of one adjustable or one end of the correct size and pitch, so I ordered three of the latter. Meh.  Half scale is convenient size-wise BUT it is difficult to source components that are as nice as those in regular scale.

Speaking if which, I need to do something about the railing on the top of the porch. The plastic rail I have for the balconies is way too big, I need something about half that size.  At this point I am just tempted to put the kit roof on it!

And I haven't decided how to finish the porch floor. More thought required.

The Fairfield: Attic Work

Today I sealed the chimney with Mod Podge, and added strips of basswood to the rear of the attic roof and stained them.  I am debating whether to add horizontal strips as well? I think I like it as it is at the moment - I can always add them later.

I'm going to have to address this piece of wall where I has to prize the cladding off. It's painted so I can't stain it to match the roof without sanding the paint off - which would be a pain in the proverbial. I might have to insert a small strip of 1mm basswood and stain it to match. I have small sections of stripwood to glue onto it to match into the roof strips.

I then started to trim bits off the wall cladding to make the roof pieces fit together tightly - an issue when the roof pieces are a little warped by now. There is a big gap between the bottom of the two rear roof pieces (rear when you are looking at the back of the house). The gap in the photo looks bigger than it is because I haven't pushed the top piece as close as it can get.  I *really* don't know what I am going to do about that because the walls are stained!  I guess a piece of 90' corner angle will cover it up? And then stain it to match the wall...

I then went over the scored lines on the library ceiling with black marker to make them more pronounced, which worked reasonably well. I also stained the eaves to darken the scored "board" edges and take away the raw wood look I was worried about yesterday. Much better!

I sanded the wood putty on the balconies and painted the end walls of the attic Burnt Umber (over the black undercoat). I'm not sure how it will look when it is dry but I can't stain them like the rear wall as I had previously undercoated them in black. I thought maybe the brown would tie them into the rear section if I add strips over the top?

The Fairfield: Plugging Away

I spent another couple of hours plugging away at the little things again today.  I finished the first couple of coats of paint on the chimney, which is good. I'm not totally happy with how it is going so far, but then, more paint is likely to fix it up!  I am waiting for this coat to dry before I seal it tomorrow, and then grout it.  I am trying to get a lighter colour for the stones which are inside the attic, and a darker, more weathered tone for the exterior stones. I'm not sure that it's working, but I plan to add some black "soot" around the top anyway, and most likely some moss as well.

After the painting, I had a look at the corbels I ordered last year.  Unfortunately the larger ones are WAY too big for this project, and I don't have enough of the smaller ones to do the whole house, which is annoying.  I had a quick look back at the Heritage Laserworks website and they have a couple of new gable trims which actually might fit my house, so ordering another couple of bags of corbels might not be so bad if I can get some gable trim too.

After checking the corbel size, I knew that the balconies have to be larger, so I added 1/4" basswood strips to the outer edges and then puttied the gaps.

 I have been deliberating for ages on what surface the balconies should have, but I think I will just go for a weathered, stained concrete look. Not period-appropriate, but easy, and you won't see much of it once the railing is installed. I think I will run a small strip of trim just inside the outer edge to keep the railing in place.

After that I went to town on the eaves with a wire brush and chisel to enhance the aged timber planks look. I can't decide whether to paint them with crackle glaze or leave them as is? The exposed timber looks too fresh so I am deliberating on aging it somehow - maybe a grey paint wash? Or maybe crackle glaze and then a grey top coat?

I am pretty keen to get the trim finished, so I ended up placing an order for a couple more pieces of angle trim from a local supplier (with expensive post - annoying). I grabbed a laser-cut fireplace kit which looks vaguely Art Deco, and a dining table kit which will serve as the meeting table. They also had some tiny laser-cut dentil trim which I may add to the cornices.

The Fairfield: Chimney

So today I finished the egg carton stonework on the chimney - it's FAR from perfect, but I have decided that there is no point in being stuck on this project for fear of making a mistake, because the first time for everything is always a learning experience.  I am considering a couple of small chimney pots for the top?

The glue is drying and next time I work on it, I will get the base coats of paint done so that I can concentrate on getting the roof on.

There is so much to do in terms of little fiddly things, so I worked pretty consistently for a couple of hours on a few things.  I glued the trim to the third gable edges, fixed and puttied the tower wall where I had to prise the siding off because I had forgotten it is part of the attic wall.

I also puttied the edges of the roof pieces and around the attic windows, scored the boards that will show under the eaves and applied black wax to those edges to fill in the raw wood colour of the marks from being scored. I also tried the black wax on the attic roof, but it didn't work as well as I had hoped. It filled in every grain line, instead of just the scored marks so I've lost the "boards" on that section - I left it as it in the library roof section. It still looks OK, so I am not worried.

Just to see what it looks like, I popped out the internal frame pieces of the tower roof and inserted them into the roof floor. Ideally I would still like it to be higher, but for now, I just want to get the rest of the roof on.

So, the plan at the moment is:

1. Paint the chimney.
2. Glue the roof on.
3. Guttering.
4. Add the corbels.
5. Tile the roof.

The Fairfield: Time Flies...

Whoosh! There goes more than half a year, without working on my dollhouse. I ran out of the creative spark to start with, and then my craft table got hijacked for other purposes and the house was packed away.

It's been so long I actually have almost no idea where I was up to, let alone what my plans were! I know I was adding lots of exterior trim, and evidently, I did end up ordering two different sized corbels from Heritage Laserworks for the gutter trim detail. I think that all arrived some time after I had stopped working on it, so it was stuck on the back burner.

Now I'm not really sure where to start back up on it again! I guess finishing off the chimney would be a good start, because I can't get the roof on until it's done. I think I stopped because I really didn't like the way the faux stone was coming along, and I didn't know if switching to faux brick would contrast too much with the stone foundations? Plus, prising the egg carton off didn't seem like much fun... Ah well, it's worth the pain if I am not going to be happy with the end result if I persist!

Later:
Indeed, prising off the egg carton was going to be a royal pain in the proverbial, so I continued with the stone work. I've added a small bump-out to the top of the chimney, and I'll probably add a chimney pot later (or maybe a gargoyle?). I've got probably one third of the gluing to go, and then I will start with the paint washes before I put the roof on.

The Fairfield: Just Keep Trimming, Just Keep Trimming...

Sunday: Added heaps more trim to the house. I finished the trim on the inside corners, and started on the outside corners, but then I ran out!! I have enough to do the tower corners, but there is still one long wall outside the kitchen to do. The cost of shipping to order one more piece is not worth it so I will have to bodgy something up with balsa wood.

In the process of putting the moulding on, I decided not to add the partial walls - the corner moulding looks good enough by itself, I think.






Whilst I was waiting for the trim to dry, I glued in the kitchen flooring and sealed it with Mod Podge.  I managed to mostly repair the hole I ripped in it too, whilst I was gluing which was good!

It was roughly at that point that I discovered I'd been too enthusiastic with the siding and had forgotten about the bits of the tower sides which are part of the attic walls, so I had to prise it off - that was Not Fun! I had resigned myself some time ago to the fact that this house is just a practice run for the "real" thing, lol, which is just as well, because it is a steep learning curve.

After that I got out the paints and stained the underside of the attic roof, and painted the underside of the tower roof piece.

Monday: Today I scored the underside of the attic roof on one section, with the intention for it to resemble planks. I then added a black wash to try and make the scoring stand out, although it wasn't terribly effectively. I re-scored the grooves with a tiny pointed scrap-booking chisel, which was more effective. It needs another black wash now, and then the balsa wood vertical beams cut and glued in place.

Tuesday: More trim! I finished the tower corners, so now all the corners are done except for the kitchen wall which I will have to make myself when I get some more 1mm balsa planks.

I trimmed all the tabs and holes on the roof pieces and fitted them, then trimmed off the remaining over hangs. Most pieces are warped to various extents which makes fitting problematic, but I am hoping that it will all add to the rustic, aged effect I am going for - which is why I didn't try too hard to prevent warping when I was painting them.

I then started experimenting with the gutters using 3mm balsa wood.

As you can see, there is still a LOT of work to do in the painting department! I still haven't decided whether to leave ALL the trim black, only some of it, or paint it all red!  I've been looking for examples on the internet, but there isn't much to see in this colour scheme, lol. Oh well, no need to decide right now.

The Fairfield: Construction Step 8 - Attic Floor in Place

Goodness, how long has it been since I completed the last step of the "official" (as according to the instruction sheet) construction process?!

I installed the ceiling of the bedroom and study some time ago. I cut the floor into two pieces for ease of handling, and have been contemplating the other half of the floor, which constitutes the library ceiling.  I would have liked to cut it back to be in line with the original wall placement, however I really want to put the double bookshelf I bought along the back, and sadly, it was just a bit too wide.

Therefore I added a small extension to the back wall, and stole some space from the hallway to make the library bigger. I worried that the teeny tiny occupants have to squeeze past the banister to get to the bedroom, but oh well, I'm a bit over fiddling with it!

When fiddling with it I cut too much off it, so I had to then re-glue two pieces back onto the floor, and then fill with wood filler and sand it back - and then repaint the ceiling section - BUT it is finally actually installed.

As you can see, I have the back wall of the tower installed too.

I think all that is left in terms of construction (i.e. anything that is not decorating the house shell) is installing the library wall, attaching the roof and building and installing the tower roof. Oh, and gluing in the porch roof.

Onwards and upwards!

The Fairfield: A bit of this, a bit of that...

Whilst waiting for bits of glue to dry, I finally finished the last of the papering inside the house - the last tiny bit in the bedroom, and back wall of the tower room, and I cut and fitted the flooring in the kitchen.  It doesn't actually look too bad. Maybe when I seal it and add some washes to age the room it will blend in reasonably well.  It all looks too clean and bright at the moment!

Yes, I did manage to tear the paper in front of the basement door, but I should be able to fix it when it is glued in.

Today, I undercoated the rest of the siding, and got the first two coats of Tuscan Red paint on. When it is dry tomorrow, I hope to be able to apply the crackle glaze and the final coat of red.

I also started playing around with the trim...

... and started trimming the overhang off the roof. I will add some more trim around the gutters, and I don't like the way the overhang interferes with the tower and partially obscures the gothic window.

Much better. Now I need to design a gable trim and have a go at making it.

The Fairfied: Almost the Last of the Siding

Whilst waiting for the siding I ordered to arrive, I undercoated the roof, the three partial walls and the exterior corner mouldings, and painted the remaining windows and door black, but then ran out of motivation.  Well, the siding arrived at last this week, and this being a long weekend, I could get stuck into finishing off the exterior of the house.  It's all done now, except for the little partial walls, which I am still debating whether I will add siding to or not.

I then began with the trim, adding tiny pieces of balsa to the inner corners to cover the siding seams. I fitted the porch roof too, to make sure it still fit OK.

I also put in an order for some corbel brackets for the roof a couple of days ago, which was a big decision. I just couldn't find any I liked in the right size, and that were actually affordable in the quantity I need.  I hope they look OK when they arrive! I am now agonising over gable trim - once again, I just can't find any which are suitable!  The gable pitch seems to be 60' and most ready-made trim are 45' or other. I've found several adjustable trims but I don't like them, AND they are really expensive.  I am coming to the conclusion that I am going to have to make something myself, which is a scary prospect.  What I really want is similar to these, including Otterine's Haunted Heritage, and of course, my muse, the Knox Mansion.

From Otterine.com

I found a tutorial for making your own gable trim in 1/144 scale, which I think would work OK upsizing to 1/24, so I may have to work up the courage and have a go.

The Fairfield: Exterior Paint II

Early this morning I applied the crackle medium to the house siding, and now I have painted the final coat of Tuscan Red over the top. I don't think it is cracking very effectively, probably because the paint seems very thin. You can see where the thicker strokes of paint are and that is where fine cracks are forming. There is still a lot of the black undercoat showing through, although that doesn't bother me, as I think it looks more worn and creepy that way :-)

In reality it isn't as bright as in the photos. I wish I wasn't waiting on the siding, I would love to have all the siding finished! Oh well, at least I can now install the French doors and a few of the windows.

Half the siding finished and painted. I will wait until it is all done before weathering.

Only minor cracking is evident after applying the crackle glaze. I suspect the paint is too thin to get a better result.

I've also been plugging away at the rocks on the chimney, but it's such a boring job that I can only glue a few pieces at a time before I feel guilty about the housework and leave.

The Fairfield: Exterior Paint & Chimney

Well, I got to the craft store on the weekend and although the usual brand of paint I buy didn't have any shades of suitable reds in stock (nearly all the reds were gone, how odd), I did find a Semco Tuscan Red which I thought might be acceptable.

After one thin coat over the black undercoat, I was a bit worried as it looked a little too bright for my liking, but once it had dried I was sold! It dried to a nice barn red, which I think will look great with the black trim.  I've used a mini chisel to go over the first coat and weather it lightly (sandpaper seems to just sand out the bumps of the siding planks). Later, I will paint it with crackle glaze medium and paint the final coat of red. It is quite a thin acrylic paint so I don't envisage the final coat completely covering the black undercoat, but I think that will look OK. I plan on adding lots of (dead?) ivy over the house, and some brown (dirt) washes, moss etc too, which will cover up a fair bit of it anyway.

First coat of red paint. Crackle glaze & a second coat to come.

Also, I finally decided to add rock to the chimney, rather than bricks. Cutting tiny 24th scale bricks seemed tedious, and I doubt my ability to lay them straight anyway, plus I figured rock would look more sinister in dark the attic. I started gluing the egg carton "rocks" on this morning. 

The Fairfield: Mood Board Exterior

As I mentioned in my previous post, I am torn about my original choice of distressed white for the siding.  My muse is this house:

But now I am wondering if something like this wouldn't be more imposing and scary-looking:

I love the black trim against the dark, Gothic red! I don't know if I would go really red, but maybe a faded red over the crackle glaze. Or a really deep, deep red.

I am also considering a Mansard roof instead of a whole new room on the tower, with one or more of the Victorian windows I abandoned early on in construction - they are similar to the ones in the roof of this house.

And, as you can see, I've been fiddling with the Juliet balcony railings again. Meh. I might have to try making something myself.

The Fairfield: Today I...

* Finished re-fitting the windows into the walls which have had siding added to them. I used a craft knife to carefully shave away excess siding around the holes.

* Undercoated the siding with matte black acrylic paint. I'm half-tempted to leave it that way, ha! I'm still not 100% sold on the white top coat over the crackle glaze. I like the crackle effect, and I've bought antique white paint to use, but still... I'd like something a little more sinister.

* Fixed the plaster around the kitchen door.

* Fixed the broken French door. For future reference, I cut the pin part off a push-pin and threaded it through the hole where the hinge fell out. It is slightly larger than the hinge pin so it shouldn't fall out again.

* Trimmed the end off the coach lamp for the front door and threaded the wire up through the hole in the floor I made yesterday, proving that the hole is big enough, yay. I coloured the white wire with a black texta where it runs up the inside wall of the entrance, so it shouldn't be too noticeable against the black wallpaper.

* Started staining the components for the stair case railing. I ordered two sets of rails - hand rails and bottom rails - but the dog has gotten to them and chewed them though the plastic packet :( He broke one set and has left teeth marks in the other, but hopefully I can work around it and the marks will just add character! I also can't find two of the three sets of down pipe kits I bought from Petite Properties - I think someone has knocked them onto the floor and he's eaten them too :(