...........in doing all those fiddly, frustrating and supposedly finishing touches. Ha! Ha! I have been really busy with the Emporium this week and the end is definitely within touching distance. However, I am fast running out of materials and I just know I am going to be slightly short of everything. The touching up will take longer than I have anticipated and I will never be able to match the paint. What do you do with all the edges, and interior doors, and the piece of wood that just won't fit, and the flagstones that crumble into pieces every time you try and cut them?????
Arrrrrgggg!! I could have been heard swearing all the way down the street today!
But, keep calm and take deep breaths, it really is nearly time to start unpacking all the wonderful things that I have ready to go inside. Yippee!
One product that I have used on the Emporium is this Stone Touch which has proved very useful. It is quick, easy to use and you can cover a lot in a short time. I think it would be fun to try on furniture too as it comes in lots of shades. I, of course, have been using grey!
Inside I have used it to cover the stairwall in false stone brick work. I undercoated the MDF and then laid out a grid using very thin tape.
I then cut the pieces off using a craft knife to create a brickwork. Then I sprayed the MDF and left to dry before removing the tape.
Once removed you are left with the grid.
The stone effect is gritty and has an interesting texture which I quite like. I will definitely use it again.
I have been looking at Ebay quite a lot lately because this is the time lots of Halloween items appear. As usual you have to be choosy but I have found a really nice seller from whom I have bought a number of small pieces that I am very pleased with. Have a look at both the Ebay and Etsy shop of The Cottage Kitty for lots of Halloween items. Or visit Julie on her blog where you can see her work. She is a very friendly and helpful lady who I am sure would love to hear your feedback.
Have a great weekend whatever the weather and whatever takes your fancy. I am watching lots of football and playing lots of tennis........and finishing the Emporium!!!!!
I feel for your frustration and nightmare flagstones! Have you got a tile cutter? All it is, is a metal scorer at one end and the tiles snap off (with piles for help). It's very cheap to buy. I will dig mine out and take a photo of it. Before I had that I sawed them with a fret saw (I think that's what it's called!).
ReplyDeleteThat looks like pressie ribbon for your lines? The type you curl? Good idea Janice as I wondered what you used to make your grout lines! :o))
I love the pumpkins in the box! :o))
No footie or tennis for me! lol If I watch any sport it's yacht racing or ice hockey! lol
Michelle xxx
Hi Michelle, I have used normal masking tape which I cut really thinly but this was a bit fiddly. Then I saw a roll of really thin double sided tape in Hobbyland which proved ideal and really easy to use.
ReplyDeleteThe flagstones have been a nightmare. I bought the Richard Stacey ones cos I found all the other stuff so easy to cut but these!!!! Never again. I expect the irregular ones that you grout would have been a better choice. A tile cutter sounds like just the thing.
Have a look at Julie's stuff. It is very reasonable for the quality and will make great room and shelf fillers while allowing us to splash out on those must have to die for pieces!!!
I play quite a lot of tennis but there are days when I pray for rain so I can play with my minis!!!
Thanks for the hints about the stone effect paint - it looks great!
ReplyDeleteI can't buy it online as spray cans don't post, and there's nowhere within an eight hour drive for any sort of decent craft supply shop :(
I'm thinking of trying just adding sand to paint, or sprinkling it on afterwards, could be fun . . .
Hi Glenda, I have used sand in normal emulsion paint and it works just fine. I have also tried out dried herbs, dried split lentils etc and as long as they are small enough to to bond with the paint you can create great textures.
ReplyDeleteLove your 'dragon teeth' you might not have a craft shop nearby but look at what you do have on your doorstep! What a wonderful place to live....
That paint looks so wonderful! It really looks like stonework! I look forward to seeing your Emporium filling up!
ReplyDeleteThat looks like alot of work! It will be so lovely to get all those fiddly bits done and onto the fun filling! Your new pumpkins are cool, I love any Halloween items! Have a great weekend , Kate xxx
ReplyDeleteThat stone-paint is great! I have use sand in paint once too. It gets the texture, but not the mixture of colours.
ReplyDeleteI see for a fact that I'm not the only one with miniature-work-frustrations (doors! AAAAARGGGGH! why do I want them to be able to open and close?). And I know the thing you wrote about in your comment on my blog: I'm like you: first I think I can do it by eye, than I measure it (wrong, and hopefully the third time is right).
Good luck with your finishing work!
Mart
Love seeing what you've done. I've been researching what to cover the outside of my 30's townhouse. This might work!
ReplyDelete