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Basic Techniques For Making Dolls House Accessories
Cutting Wood
The wood grain should run in line with the sides with the longest measurement. (This means you are cutting against the grain as little as possible.) Sand, polish paint or stain wood in line with the grain. Stain wood before gluing as glue will not absorb stain and you will be left with a natural coloured patch.
Wood can be cut with a saw, craft knife or mitre cutters.
Mitring
Mitring means cutting the ends of two pieces of wood to angles of 45 degrees. When they are put together they form a right angle. Mitring can be done using mitre cutters or a mitre block.
Chamfering
Chamfering means cutting the end of a piece of wood to an angle, to create the edge of a roof for example. To chamfer, hold the wood upright and a the required angle. Use a sheet of fine grade sandpaper on the edge to be chamfered. Sand along the edge with a broad sweeping motion.
Templates
Templates should be photocopied for accuracy and drawn onto the wood in pencil with a metal ruler. Cut the pieces fractionally over the drawn line and plane or sand down to the line for smoothness and accuracy.
Painting
Acrylic and water based paints can be applied with a fine paintbrush. Spray painting is the quickest and lightest way to cover a large surface area. If painting wood, always follow the grain. Some people like to use artists brushes, others buy a box of cheap disposable brushes and throw away after each use. The choice of which brushes are most appropriate really depends on the nature of the dolls house project you are taking on.
Emulsion can be painted straight onto a sanded and clean surface. Small sample pots can be purchased for a couple of pounds and the vintage paint companies produce all the authentic shades and colours in small volume.
Papers
Lining and Wallpapers are applied with wallpaper paste. The paste is painted onto the wall first and allowed to dry. When the paper is cut to size, apply a layer of paste to the paper and hang it. There are man miniature papers available now and wrapping paper of small scale, full sized papers can work equally well.
Wood Stain
Apply wood stain with a soft cloth before the piece is assembled. Too much stain will cause thin wood to warp.
Shoe Polish
Apply shoe polish using fine wire wool. This can then be buffed to a sheen with a cloth.
When constructing larger pieces, such as vignettes or room boxes, connect wooden pieces with wood glue and 1 inch veneer or panel pins, tapped every three or four inches
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