Mini canvas artwork

I have a fabulous painting in my front room done by my very talented little brother! I thought the colours matched perfectly in the from room of Fairbanks. I took a photo which was not as easy as its sounds as however I did it I just couldn't get completely rid of the reflection but my Dad is up next week and has a super duper camera with all the bells and whistles on so will get him to take a better one for me! I then resized it and printed it onto to some printable canvas sheets so it actually does look like a real mini canvas. The colours haven't printed quite as bright as the original but I think it suits the room and its nice to have in in there. I may try printing onto photo paper instead as it would prob be a better colour match but kinda like how it looks like canvas so undecided on that one! I like to have something a little personal in my houses!

Decorated the lounge and I love my postman!

My second post today but couldn't resist showing my lounge now its all done! I Got my DHE order today amazing service as always only took a day!! Good as I hate waiting lol. Really pleased with everything except the modern dining set the fabric is yellow so doesn't match my room I thought from the pic is was cream and burgundy. not to worry though as I have a plan B!

Finally got my wallpaper up and I am really pleased with it! Has a nice modern feel and looks great with the sofa and chair. I went for the modern tables, mirrors and the chrome lamp and think they are perfect and look as good as I hoped they would so I am really pleased! Just need the all important cushions and a blind and prob a tv! Its looking very neat but a little bare for me!

 Got a hall table and some mirrors to liven the upstairs hallway up!

A mirror with hooks for the hallway......

I also got a few Ebay items. Some white bedroom furniture which is ok I did think the tall unit was a mirrored wardrobe but can easy make it into that but I do quite like the glass. I recovered a little ottoman I had just to fill the space at the end of the bed.

I couldn't resist the little pink tutu and its very cute!

I got some kitchen accessories like the HOME letters and remembered a little pan of baked beans I got from the DH fair.

I  also got some fab things for the kitchen! I always think kitchen white goods are the hardest thing to get looking fairly realistic but I found these Miele mini toy ones and they look fab! I could only get the dishwasher and oven from one seller and I ordered a washing machine elsewhere today so hopefully that will come shortly. There is also a fridge but I had one I could use so for now I resisted!

The dishwasher makes a gurgling watery noise..........

 
 I already had the microwave..............

And the cooker lights up inside and on the hobs. They are so cool I love them!!!

Finished front door and lots oif Ebay goodies!

Well it got the better of me and I knew it would I had to do that bit of wallpaper again lol! I decided it looked better with the joins going downwards as they were much less obvious!

I had a few deliveries from Ebay yesterday unfortunately Bethany is now on study leave for her exams and beat me to the door when the postie came and I got a bit of a lecture when she handed me 6 parcels ha ha!! Anyway had to show you my goodies as I am so pleased with them all! I got the wall unit, stools, computer desk and filing cabinet, which I will customise to make it look better, plus the little bin bowl and drainer set all from one seller which makes a nice saving on postage. Its sometimes the littlest of things we love the most and thats so true. The bin set was £1.20 for all 3 and I just love it!!! 

The sofa and chair were also Ebay saving over £7 on a new set which all helps! I walked through my real house this morning and noticed the sofa and footstool in the snug are almost the same as this and the shelving I have ordered from DHE is also similar very to all the bookshelves in there, Its funny how our miniature worlds sometimes mirror our real ones without us even realising!

The little shelf unit was from Hong Kong and has taken an age to arrive but it was worth the wait.

I also got a high chair to match my wicker nursery furniture and as always its lovely she also sent me the little dog bed as a gift and its just fab what a lovely lady!

I decided to take my nursery furniture out of the baby shop and put them in this house. They were a bit hidden and I wanted to show them off a bit better. Ideally I would have done a complete nursery but theres not an extra room and the other rooms are big enough that the items fit into them anyway. The gorgeous little patchwork cushion was also Ebay. they are £2 each and so beautifully made. I have a few now and thought this one matched the decor just right!

This was my first wicker purchase the ones that got me hooked! Such wonderful attention to detail in the seat cushion and the little basket on the side. I'm so glad they will be on show better now!

The changing unit goes well in the bathroom as it was lemon and it makes a bit of a boring room a bit more interesting! I love my wicker things they really are so beautifully made!!

I finally finished the front door! I gave it a couple of coats so it was really nice and glossy. I did do it red to start with but it didn't look right so it was rubbed down and done again! I really like the blue I think it looks much better than just white and makes it a lot brighter. I also added some flooring tile paper in the porch which finishes it off. The pots are just some I already had I will try and get some more realistic and lighter ones so I can glue them in place as these have been on the floor twice already I keep forgetting to take them out when I open it! duh me!!!

Wallpapering is actually quite good fun!

Lol my words when I got this house was it will take me years to fill! I think I was kidding myself lol although in my defence it was funds that prompted that statement but I have just done a rather large DHE order but using the payment plan means I will get lots but not have to kill myself paying for it so thats the only reason it will be full so quickly!! it really makes more sense than buying the bits all individually on other sites as the postage is so high now!! I have got a few other odd bits I needed from Ebay for a reasonable amount just need to have a wardrobe raid lol!!

I seemed to get loads done on the house yesterday! I think its because its in the lounge rather than upstairs. So where I would normally go up to Dollyland for a couple of hours then come down I can work on it all night as I'm just in the room with everyone else!

Last night I decided to paper the door. After seeing a pic one one that had been done it looked so much nicer than just painted. It took me hours lol it was soooo fiddly! It does make such a difference though it really makes the outside part of the inside. Its still not perfect which bugs me no end! :-D I didn't have enough of the dining room paper left to cover such a big area so used a very similar pattern and colour. It actually doesn't really notice that much I bet anyone looking would spot it if I didn't say lol. I just wanted to use the paper I had that came with the house rather than spend money on more sheets. But how great I got all the spare bits though or I could never have done it! It was the kitchen one giving me the most nitemares! Whatever I do I can't hide the joins in the wood effect part, (although seeing a close up pic it looks not quite matched so that will be done again today!!)   I may end up redoing the whole room at some point but for now its ok. Its a shame as the green goes really well with the units so may do a full wall in that instead. But not now as my Mums here next Sunday and cant wait for her to see it. I know my Dad will really like it too he likes the REAL style houses!

I actually really enjoy doing the papering I have never done any before and it is quite good fun! Just need to get my order now so I can door the flagstone bit round the edge, the garden wall and the lounge. I am on a roll lol!!!

Painting, painting and more painting!

Boring things to show you today lol but things that had to be done! I spent the whole day on Monday repainting all the doors and windows in a nice white gloss which has made them look a whole lot better. I papered the chimney and re-papered the brickwork on the front as it was a little faded. I would have done the left side too but I only had a bit of spare paper that came with it. But will need some more to do the garden wall so will have enough then.

I also put some paving stone paper in the garden area. I decided just to go with just a patio with lots of pots and a nice patio set and will have a go at making a rotary dryer. Quite pleased at the effect it gives. Todays jobs were to give the front door another coat of paint I went with a nice bright blue to brighten it up a bit and I also got some tester pots for 50p yesterday for  the outside which I have painted today although you prob wouldn't even notice but I do lol.

I did it in a similar colour as I liked the yellow I thought it suited it just did it a shade or 2 darker to brighten it up a little. I took a pic when I had done half the front so you can see the difference! Really pleased its really made a difference as the were a few little tears in the paper and white paint round the windows and its covered all of that. It was a very satisfying job although did panic at the end I might run out of paint as I just mixed 2 tester pots but I just about had enough!

Also got a nice little patio set from Ebay today. Wasn't overly cheap but its the only one I have found with a brolly and thought it looked nice. Added the little base at the bottom as it was a bit wobbly with just the pole but I think it looks like a nice family dining area! Just needs some nice comfy cushions and a bbq! I see them all the time on Ebay but now I want one can I find one on there!

Working on Fairbanks

I have been a bit obsessed the past few days working on my new Fairbanks. I have been having so much fun and I fall a little bit more in love with it everyday!

It really didn't need to much doing to it so I have just tidied it up a bit for now and will maybe redo some of the rooms to my own taste in the future. It just seemed a shame to strip walls that were nicely done and that looked fine anyway! I will def need to add skirting boards at some point. Its funny how bare it looks without them!

In the bathroom I just tidied up a few rough edges and laid the floor properly.

The bedroom had a fresh coat of paint on the ceiling, doors and the window. The wallpaper was just tidied a little and the carpet was relayed a little neater. It probably wouldn't be my first choice of colour but it looks nice and clean and fresh so seems a shame to change it just yet! I have some nice white furniture to come from Ebay to go with the bed which will fill the room up nicely.

In the kitchen I lay some wooden flooring I already had and that was all really as the walls are fine and match the units nicely but I may change the wallpaper at a  later date.

The hallway just needed a little trimming and tidying up I will leave that as it is for now.

The lounge was a bit old fashioned so I removed the pink carpet and the wallpaper and will be redoing it in browns and creams just need to wait for the new carpet and paper to arrive so I can finish it.

The dining room had plain cream walls which just looked like lining paper to me! So I stripped that off and re-papered with some of the spare paper that came with the house. I gave the windows and door a coat of white paint. I then fixed the light up properly and laid a parquet effect floor tile from Poundland! It was my 1st attempt at papering so I was really chuffed with how it turned out.

The children's room is so sweet I love it! In here I re-papered the back wall as it had lots of glue marks the rest was fine so again will leave that as it is for now. I also found some blue carpet I had left over from doing the stairs in Barnacle cottage so that saved a bit of money. I was going to put cream carpet in but actually like the blue and much more practical in a kids room! The furniture came with another house I had and decided to go with twins with one being a tomboy that likes blue just like Bethany used to be!!!

I still can't believe I was so lucky to find this house I really do love it so much and I can't wait for my niece to see it when shes up in 2 weeks! I know she will have a ball with it. It won't be a show home this one it will be one to be loved rather than just looked at!

I must be mad!! just bought Fairbanks and its huge!

Today I have been a very bad girl!! I saw a Fairbanks DHE dolls house for sale very close to where I live which is a miracle in itself! I spoke to a very nice man and I agreed to buy and have picked it up already! so here it is in all its glory!! and yes it is BIG!! no idea where its going yet lol. Its not in bad condition it just hasn't been done by an DH enthusiast just by someone who wanted a dolls house so the attention to detail on the paint work etc isn't perfect but thats easily rectified. Where some of the windows are glued in you can see the glue but curtains would cover that. The windows need a good clean from paint smudges again easy to do and there are 2 cracked panes of acetate. So overall its pretty good just needs a good tidy up and a bit of TLC. 

The wallpaper is not bad at all and most of the carpets aren't stuck down just placed in which is great so I can choose my own. I was a bit worried there were no chimney pots or door handles but they were all in the box with the furniture so that was a bonus!

Its about 12 years old the man selling thought, it belonged to his MIL and his FIL was a joiner who built it and his son was an electrician who did the lighting. It is the copper tape method which I'm not familiar with but theres not even so much as a bulb out so not something I have to worry about just yet! The lights are all really nice too all quite fancy ones! There are also extra sockets dotted around and they and the lights just need sticking properly as we all know the sticky pads don't last 5 mins anyway!

It came with a huge stack of floor and wallpapers there must be 30 there at least!

It also came with quite a lot of furniture some will def get used like the green DHE kitchen I have always loved that, although I will need  to find the matching cooker lol! There are a few other quite good bits,  the dining set is very nice.

 He also had the turntable which I def wasn't expecting so that was great!

This is going to be a huge project and is going to take me years to finish and fill but that is why I went for it. I love Julies cottages but they are perfect when they arrive so it will be nice to have something I can make perfect over time! My OH was shocked by the size but he really likes it! I still can't believe I got all this for less that half the price of just the bare kit!! I would have been rude not to buy it!