Conservatory Windows and Roof Glazing

I discovered a bit more about the mysterious Titania today...
 
She was the original owner’s much adored and doted upon youngest child and only daughter.There were two brothers, considerably older and out of the house when she came along. She died at age 22 during a Spanish Flu epidemic, according to the family bible (kindy delivered to my studio by Hester). And her father followed not long after. I didn’t see anything  about her two brothers. Or the current DeBellows…. Hester had “things to do” so I got no further information and I returned, even more curious, to my work...
 

I took a break from the Conservatory walls, mainly because I couldn’t decide what to do about the lower panels on the inside but also because I was disappointed in the way the walls were resistant stain in many places, due to sloppy gluing at the factory.

I had removed all the windows… and they were just laying there whining, “Me next! Me next!”… What choice did I have??

I wanted to achieve a leaded glass look and initially thought to do away with the grids altogether and use lead or copper tape directly on the Plexi. However, that proved to be a little dicey for a number of reasons. The biggest concern was the loss of the stability of the frame. After several false starts, I chose to use the suggestion in the magazine article I referenced at the beginning and cut out only certain parts of the mullions.

The author of that tutorial used a craft knife to do the job but I stumbled upon something I’ve had around for a while. It’s the coolest little saw blade that fits into an Exacto handle.

Worked like silk off a spool! Only required a bit of touch up sanding. One of the things that happened when I tried the craft knife was that the pressure required to make the cut usually pushed the mullion right out of the frame at one attachment point or another, causing splintering.

I had copper tape left from an old stained glass project, so I tried wrapping the mullions and frames with it, in an effort to get that leaded glass look.

However, I quickly realized that the “time cost” required to cover each tiny bit and then age the copper was not equal to the outcome. In other words, it wasn’t going to look any better than if I painted them…as I had done to the roof assemblage.

If you ever make this kit, I have one word of advice concerning the windows. Before you remove them, mark where each came from. Saves a lot of time refitting because even though they might look the same…they are not.

I gave each window (including all four sides of each and every mullion…) a watered down coat of a terra cotta craft paint, except on the sides which will be glued to the inside recess of the window openings in the walls. I think the terra cotta made a good base for the faux finish.

After that coat dried thoroughly, I re-sanded each and every little mullion. Fussy, but necessary for a smooth appearance. I have this wonderful set of sanding sticks/detailers I picked up at a local woodworking shop, WoodCrafters. It is a chain store. Four different grits with replaceable belts. Great tool for miniaturists who work with wood.

After the sanding, I turned my attention to the exterior side of the window. The Plexi sets into the recess and covers this surface, so technically, it is not exposed. Yet, it would still darken over time. Except for the outer edges which are covered by the exteriors walls, all window exteriors were given a wash of metallic copper which was then dulled slightly with a heavier wash of burnt sienna, followed by a light sanding when dry.

Then I concentrated on the more time consuming interior portion of the frames.

This surface, though exposed to the warmth and humidity of the Conservatory, was lovingly cared for while Titania was alive so it did not age in the way the exterior “copper” surfaces did.

(As with many victims of the Spanish Flu epidemic, she was alive and healthy one morning and dead by the next day. Her grief stricken father ordered the Conservatory sealed, just as she had left it. And so it stayed until after Aloysius’ death several years later. Livy re-opened it and the copper windows were cleaned. Unfortunately, Hester is stretched too thin to keep up with it these days and Sir Kendrick can’t be bothered.)

When copper sheeting ages, it first loses the shine, then it darkens in an uneven pattern and only after much exposure does the green patina begin to form. This also does not occur in an even way and is often quite streaky.

Several years ago, I had the opportunity to watch a natural copper roof age on the new Science bldg at the local community college. Because of our high humidity and salt air, it didn’t take long for the roof to darken and the patina to form.

The interior of the windows took six layers of finish. First a general terra cotta wash, then a darker burnt sienna “over-wash”, some burnt sienna “low lights” (patches of darker color), a wash of the green patina color and then areas of darker patina.

I wanted a final layer with just a hint of the original luster so I used mica powders in copper and green. These are meant for use on raw polymer clay or stamping but by applying the “perfect medium” first, included with the powders, it will stick to almost any surface. When it was dry, a light buffing with a soft cloth brought out the warm glow.

The window on the left is treated with the mica powders.  The one on the right is not.

This will need a spray of clear coat to become permanent.

The glazing beams for the roof received a coat of metallic copper, a heavy wash of burnt sienna and several heavy washes of the patina. They are totally exposed and would have aged naturally. I am thinking of using some of the green patina mica powder on these beams also. One board was turned over so you can see the first step in the process.

The next time you see all these roofing pieces they will be assembled into the roof structure. The instructions in the kit call for leaving this as a cover which can be removed for access. Based on my dry fit, I am not sure how this can be accomplished….

Later...

Tabitha

Moving right along....

As I mentioned in the previous post, I wanted some aged looking finishes on this Conservatory but I didn’t especially want to paint it. So I tried my own concoction of stain.

  

 I took 4 parts of Minwax Pickled Oak and ½ part of Ebony and brushed the grayish mixture on the inside and outside of the pre-fab walls of the building, after removing the doors and windows. I didn’t apply it to the MDF panels. I will use some sort of stucco effect on the outside and I am not yet sure what I’ll try for the inside.

I think the Pickling stain is meant to be wiped off but I left it to soak in. The mixture made more of a bluer gray than I wanted so I think I’ll have to go over it all with a greenish wash of some sort. Also, the pre-fab walls had some glue smoosh that I was not aware of so didn’t go on evenly in some spots. You might be able to see that in the photos…



Since it is meant to be a rather neglected looking building, I will probably cover many of those areas with moss and/or vines but I won’t be able to get away with that indoors. I may have to paint inside after all….

I did not stain any of the roof assemblage because I am planning to somehow "copperize" that all.  Covering ot with copper foiling, such as is used for satined glass work is an option but I think I will probably go with a faux finish for those.

For those of you interested in what a finished product might look like, Jo Bevilacque of Spencer’s Nook has a three part article in Dollhouse Miniatures staring in Nov/Dec 09 issue. She shows both a painted one and a stained one in her very unique style. I will use some of her suggestions but I don’t care for a lot of the embellishments. She has some good information on process when building from a kit, though, so it is worth taking a look if you have access to the magazines.

For example, I like the large base for the Conservatory.  She used it to hide the electrical. I will need to raise mine up some to meld it properly with the house so I will also be building a base, though I will not use 2”x4” lumber. I think that will be too heavy for my purposes. I will used some sort of foam covered with … well, I’ve yet to decided what it will be covered with but the sides of the Conservatory base will match the sides of the base of the house. I never did finish that part. We’ll see.

While I was staining, Hester, the housekeeper, materialized. I swear that woman is like smoke…

“You know,” she said. “The conservatory was a special present to Titania…”
“Isn’t that a character from Midsummer Night’s Dream?” I asked, trying not to sound too inquisitive.
“Tis… they loved the theatre”.
“They?...” This was like getting information from a teen-ager.
“Aloysius and Livy. They often held performances in the ballroom..”

Ballroom??!! Where the heck was the ballroom…?? I’d have to look into that…later.

“ and Titania?” I asked.
“Why, their only daughter. I thought you knew….”

When I didn’t hear anything more for a few minutes, I looked up from my work. There was nothing left but a bit of misty haze where she had been standing…

Later…

Tabs

And so it begins...

…or at least that’s that plan…


Remember that rather larger dollhouse I posted a bit ago? The one that I’ve virtually ignored for years? Where the outside is sort of complete but the inside isn’t? The one I’ve decided to “make over” or “move out”?

Yea…that one…

After careful thought and consideration, I have created a story, and therefore, a new theme for the house. Someone had suggested a more Old European look. I was intrigued by that but no clue how or where to begin except that the outside had to change completely for the inside to work.

First, the back-story...

The owner of if the house is a gentleman…Sir Kendrick Aloysius DeBellows. I don’t yet know a lot about him. His age is uncertain, as is his occupation.

Though there are children in the house, they are not his. He is not married now nor has he ever been. It is unclear how he came to be the owner of the house but it is believed to be inherited.

The children (2) and house are cared by a somewhat batty housekeeper who seems to be “part” of the house. She has much knowledge of its history when she chooses to reveal it.

The house itself is a picture of shabby bygone elegance. There is no staff besides the housekeeper and DeBellows is too preoccupied to see the need for any.

..That’s all I know at the moment.

Back to the house. Before jumping right into a major …hugely major…redo, I thought I might try my ideas out on a bit smaller scale. Years ago, I purchased the Conservatory kit from Houseworks with the plan to add it to the side of the dollhouse. I even cut out the exiting window of the house for French doors to accommodate the addition.

Never happened. I almost brought it to the last miniature show to try and sell it off but left home without it.

I looked at today and said, “hey, why not?” The plan is to use the Conservatory as a sort of guinea pig, trying out the different ideas I have in mind for the house and see how it might all work out.

I opened the kit, sorted the pieces, read the directions, took some measurements and made some notes. I have seen these kits done up in so many different ways…even saw one example where two kits were attached back to back for a stunning result.

The architectural style of the original house kit is Italianate. I’m thinking stucco, stone and subtle grays, greens and verdigris/ copper.

I’ll keep you posted as things develop…

Later

Tabitha