Tuesday, June 5, 2018

Plan A, B, C and D...

Ta-da!  The right hand wall of the Del Prado dollhouse hallway is finished. 
Here's the colour reveal you've been waiting for months to see.  I'm continuing with Chiffon Blue on the upper part of the walls, white above the picture rail and the dark blue on the bottom part is called Dutch Blue.  The hallway is going to look suitably formal, just the way the Victorians liked it.  The colours work well together.

I've been reading with amazement and admiration how some dollhouse builders make something, change their mind and do it over, then change their mind and do it over again.  The hallway is going a bit like that for me.  But I'm starting to realize that it's worth working one's way down the alphabet starting at Plan A, till you find that thing that works best.  Here's how the hallway developed so far:
You will remember that right in the beginning the walls were grey.  I hated it.  Looks like a prison corridor.

The first big change came with Plan B, when I switched to blue, which is a much softer colour.
I decided to divide the wall into panels.  But it looked incomplete.  It wanted something more, like a decoration inside each panel.
My first brilliant plan was to use my Cuttlebug (die cutting machine) to cut out medals to glue in place.  I even had a die that was the  perfect size and shape.
But I found the solid white centre part too overwhelming.  Then I had a not so brilliant plan - cutting out only the edges and the flower detail and sticking the pieces down individually.  After hours of untidy cutting and strips that broke and tore, I gave up on that plan, and all the bits of paper went sailing into the dustbin.  So much for Plan C.
Next, I rummaged in my costume jewelry stash and found this silver pendant.  I like the design and it has lots of texture, but it had some drawbacks.  I have only one, which would mean making a mould so that I could replicate it.  Even then, it's a little bit too small.  I would have to rethink the entire layout of the wall.  So I coshed that.  But I'm keeping the pendant in mind, it might feature somewhere else in the dollhouse later.
Finally, I found these pressed metal decorations in the bead drawer.  They fit perfectly!  And best of all, I have a whole handful of them.
Several layers of white paint later the wall is perfect.
Even with several coats of paint, there is lots of fine detail on the metal pressings. 

So this is where I'm at right now.  I really can't put off working on the staircase any longer.  That will have to be the next thing I do.

P.S.  Blogger is misbehaving when it comes to leaving comments on my blog.  For some reason I'm not receiving notification emails when there are new comments on my posts.  When Blogger ignored my request for help, I went into settings to try and fix it myself, and all of a sudden everything went G+.  When I finally got rid of that, a whole lot of comments that I had seen, but not replied to, just evaporated into thin air.  If you haven't been able to comment, or your comment disappeared, my sincere apologies!  I hope that the problem is resolved soon.  If anyone has had a similar problem, and know how to fix it, I would love to hear from you.












 

24 comments:

  1. I love the color combination you've settled on for hallway, and the panels and decorative pieces add a very special touch! I am glad you were able to keep playing until you found the perfect fit. It's such a great feeling to find something in the stash that works!
    I am having the same issue with comment email notifications, and my research brought nothing up to fix it either. Since the problem has come about just as the privacy notifications are being implemented, it seems like it's a blogger bug for sure. I hope they fix it soon, but until them, we'll be checking our own blogs for new comments. Bummer...

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    1. Thank you Jodi. I am SO enjoying working on this house. Whenever I manage to make time to do one little thing, I wish that I could just continue playing and not put it away. Sheila and Fribble's solution to the comment problem seems to work.

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  2. On one blog I saw a suggestion to post a comment yourself and then indicate that you wanted replies emailed to you. I'm not a blogger, so just passing on what I remember reading.

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    1. Thank you Fribble, such a brilliant and simple solution!

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  3. Hi Megan! I love the hallway. Redoing it until you get it the way you want is so worth it.

    To get the email comments on your blog just click on comment and the space at the bottom that says 'Notify Me' and it'll send you email notifications. It did it to me too. Blogger changed one of its default settings. You don't have to actually send a comment, just click the space and everything afterwards will go to your email.

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    1. Thanks Sheila! I hope it works for me, too! :O)

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    2. Thanks, Sheila! I've tried it and it seems to work. I know people often complain about Blogger, but I hardly ever have a problem. I hope they fix this soon so we can have automatic notifications again.

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  4. I like the hall‘s new look! After several versions you found a pleasant solution ��
    Now I wait to see your stairs. I took the original Del Prado out, because it was oversized and now I’m putting in a wall that will hide it in the back, but I’m going on very slow �� especially now that summer is approaching and the temperature in my little studio is rising

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    1. Thank you for liking the hall, Ersilia! I'm very pleased with the way it is turning out. Now if only the staircase would become easy too...
      I've also considered putting a false wall to the back of my house, but it is standing on top of a very narrow cupboard and if I make the house any deeper it won't fit anymore. I can't wait to see how yours turns out!

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  5. Well, what it´s important in the end are the results. Don´t you think? We all have been there with a plan after another one, I think it´s part of the fun although sometimes is a bit frustrating. I love the results of your plan D, your wall looks fantastic!

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    1. One just knows when something is finally right, Alexandra! I'm only happy that I don't have to do through these issues on a life size house, I would be bankrupt with all my mind changes, ha ha.
      Thank you for liking my wall too!

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  6. I love the colour and the decoration in the corridor, it's beautiful!

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  7. Hi Megan, let's see if my comment will go to you and will not again get solved in the air ;O!
    I do love the hall like it looks now, and not just because I'm a huge fan of the color blue ;)! Great find of your metal embellishment, they gave you the most lovely decoration, it looks really great!
    I too have been seeing with amazement the most far-reaching changes some bloggers make at their dollhouses, and most of the time they end up with super results, amazing!! This way we can learn from each other, isn't it!?
    Hug, Ilona

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    1. Your comment made it on to the blog Ilona, sigh of relief. I did not receive a notification email though. But it looks as though today that is fixed, I started receiving them again this morning.
      I'm so excited about the way the hall is developing, I can't wait to continue working on it. Unfortunately, for the next several days I will have lots of RL work to do!

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  8. The wall, divided and decorated looks great. I think the comments problem has been solved.
    Hugs, Drora

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    1. Thank you, Dora! I can confirm that the comment notifications are working again as of today, I finally started receiving them again. Let's hope for a long uneventful period with Blogger now!

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  9. Hello Megan! The Right Color ALWAYS makes a enormous difference when setting the mood and so I understand you changing your mind regarding the original "prison grey", for the hall. :D
    I Love Blue too and think that your carrying the chiffon blue and white into the entry was a Really Good idea as it looks very fresh and visually opens up the entry!
    Your final solution regarding your carved inserts is Spot On because the metal is Exactly the right size and shape for within each panel. I'm wondering though, if you have given any thought about your artwork for above the paneling yet? I find that choosing it in advance really helps to steer the story as it fleshes out "those in residence". :)

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    1. I'm definitely a blue person. And green. And sometimes autumn colours... that's what makes commiting to any colour so difficult, but I think the blue was a good choice here.
      I've been thinking about the artwork that's going to hang above the paneling. Initially I saved a lot of photos of RL walls where a clutter of small paintings are hung together. I like the effect, and hunting for suitable frames and images would be fun. But now I'm starting to wonder whether one large painting by an old master would not be better. The hallway starts leaning towards sparse and formal in my imagination. Once I have that darned stairway assembled, and a large mirror on the back wall, I think I will know what to put above the paneling.

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  10. Hi, Megan - I really like the color combination you chose for the hallway - especially the Dutch Blue. Perfect! I'm so glad that you came across those pressed metal decorative pieces. Don't you love the satisfaction you feel when you find just the thing that you need, even though you didn't know what you were looking for? I'm looking forward to seeing your progress on the hallway. Good luck as you begin work on the (groan) staircase. I understand your reluctance!
    Marjorie

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    1. Thank you Marjorie, I wish that I could shrink myself so that I can runn down that hallway, trailing my hand along the wall :-) I guess that means that I've made the right colour choices. The staircase continues to be a headache. I need some balustrade pieces that I don't have in my stash, and can't find locally. I'm experimenting with beads strung on a wire, but not quite happy with the effect yet.

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  11. This is what I like so much about blogging… it's always great to see that it's not only me who starts with a clear vision for the project and ends up with something very different. Although it was quite a way for you through your plans from A via B and C to D I must say this way was worth every single step from prison corridor to paper scrap. The metal embellishments are perfect for this job and I really like this elegant colour combination of this Dutch blue with the white. Wonderful work.

    Hugs
    Birgit

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    1. Isn't it wonderful how fellow bloggers become like our family, Birgit? I live so far away from other craft people, and actually far away from any other people here outside the city, that I sometimes miss talking to someone. My blog nicely fills that gap. Reading so many blogs, I also find lots of inspiration and interesting little stories from everyone.

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  12. Que siempre hay que estar dispuesta a pasar de un plan a otro,cuando lo hecho no te convence,está claro,sobre todo cuando logras,como tú lo has hecho,la fórmula perfecta!! Que diferencia del gris inicial tan triste a ese azul tan elegante y la bisutería de los paneles es preciosa,gran trabajo!!!
    Feliz fin de semana.
    Besos

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    1. Thank you so much! I am loving the way the hall is turning out. Sad that I have to work this weekend, but soon I will have time to continue with the dollhouse again.

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