Dollhouse windows

Hello! Okay here we go. I have managed to get the Kinfeld windows figured out and will share how it all happened.

Keep in mind I tend to only use what I have on hand so you may prefer other materials.

I cut the windows all the same size when I constructed the dollhouse.

First, I trimmed out all the holes with a sharp blade so they were even.

Then I glued in strips of card stock to get a clean edge.

When I went to buy the acetate from the craft store I had asked the framing guy where it was and he showed me. I then asked if he had anything thicker. He inquired what I was using it for and I proudly said for dollhouse windows and waited for his response. As we all know there is always a look of confusion when we admit our mini addiction. Haha

So he paused, smiled and asked if my dollhouse was expecting hurricane weather. I was impressed with that come-back and we had a good laugh. 

I thought I would need it thicker to fill the window depth, but as it turned out it was perfect as is.

So I cut it with a utility knife and snapped it apart easily. Then framed it with mat board strips and Tacky Glue.

I used that piece of square balsa to be sure things were even. The heavy sharpening stones are great weights to be sure things dry even. I have so many great tools left behind from my father and those are some of them.

I used spackle to smooth out the corners and sanded them.

Then I painted just the tops of the frames with white paint. Because I used mat board that was once actual framing mats they were already white on the inside. I had a large stock of these so they came in handy.

I glued a strip of card stock to the top of one and bottom of the other and painted that as well.

For the window locks I punched four 1/8" holes and glued them together. Then I cut a long thin strip and cut it up for the base. Then I cut triangular pieces and glued them on top for the latch handles. This was a really quick process that gave the illusion of a window latch!

Next I framed each window hole with painted matt board trim.

To make the corbels, first I drew out the shape I wanted on mat board and cut it out.

I then traced that pattern over and over on very heavy watercolor paper. 

Then I cut strips of balsa wood to the length and height of the corbels. 

The first corbel above is the wood and paper.

The middle is after the spackle has been applied and smoothed by running the pallet knife on its side along the corbel to outline the shape of the paper.

Once fully dry, I sanded it and painted them. This one is shown right before sanding.

To workout any final rough spots I used plastic wood paste over the corbels with my palette knife. 

This stuff is nice. I have always use wood putty, but recently I grabbed this by accident. I was going to exchange it because it looked too runny, but realized it was nice to work with. I scooped out some and made a pile on scrap paper and in just a few moments it became like putty. I smoothed it over the corbels that had imperfections. Let it dry and sanded it.

After I painted them I gave them all one last sanding.

Then I cut window sills for all the windows from mat board.

After gluing up the corbels and caps I touched up with more paint.

I tend to multi task and work in short intervals which is great when you have to wait for so many things to dry anyway.

So far so good I am really liking how this is coming together. My goal is to have the house move in ready by Thanksgiving but we shall see!