Goodbye, rules!

I really wanted to stick to my guidelines about using only objects found around the house. It was a trip to the craft store that did it. I'm a creator, not a builder. I'm not the weirdo killer in The Lovely Bones. It's just that Michael's Crafts had so many cool little cupboards with drawers and such. What I'm still having trouble with is constructing the bathroom. I may have a tub (a metal pencil box) and some vague notion about a sink but how in the world do I make a toilet from scratch? Any ideas? 

The Preparations Are Underway!

The houses have arrived! I'm excited and ready to get my project off the ground but there's a problem. You see, the townhouse I had as a girl was the 1979 model. The floors were made from masoniite which gave quite a bit of support for the weight of the doll furniture. The 1979 models were just too expensive and I found out why the 1973 models were available at low prices. Basically they're a load of crap. The floors are made of brittle plastic that did not age well. Think of the way one of those recycled bottles of water feels only these floors actually crumble. I'm reminded of the part in The HItchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy  where Ford and Zaphod find the space port full of old ships, "just rust and wreckage." They comment (loosely, mind you) that those old ships would fall apart if you even looked at them.

Because of this structural setback, my project will be put on hold for the time being. I need to experiment with ways to reinforce the plastic. My first thought is to use pieces of the mat used for framing pictures.. About 20 years or so my mother took a picture framing class and saved a huge bag full of that heavy paper matting. I thoughjt of using the posterboard I'd wound up with rom school. 

I just don't know. This might be trickier than I originally planned. FWIF I' want to add a few photos for posterity. 

These are the room backgrounds. I dom't have to fall in love with them because I'm painting the entire backdrop white and paint each room so I can match its color scheme. 

I've snapped a few photos of that damn crumbly plastic floor. Please try not to judge me too harshly. I have an entire classroom that somehow was dropped on my house. Yikes.  That last photo scares me. 

I get to play architect/flooring installer

I've been thinking quite a bit about flooring. Yes, let's operate on the assumption that this is what I do in the evenings. It beats drinking.  So, yes...flooring. I'm thinking that wood flooring would be a nice touch. My stain of choice is Minwax Polyshades in classic oak. It's my go-to stain for refinishing Heywood Wakefield furniture and it has the varnish built in. I used the large craft sticks and once they dry, I'm going to see how they look. 

I'm also really wanting to do a mosaic tile floor. You can see the tiles in the photo below. I have an entire set of dishes with that pattern. I smashed up the teacups to make these shards. Nobody uses teacups anyway. (note: the butter dish with this pattern was one of the first vintage/antiques I ever purchased back in 1992). 

The last picture shows the template I'm tracing of the floor so I can reinforce it. Trust me....it's a lot trickier than it looks..