Raise the Roof!

After many long years, the Beacon Hill finally has a Mansard roof. I would never know that it's called that except that it's in the directions. I'm learning lots of new architectural words while dollhousing. I feelz I haz a smarter. The tower top is still missing, but it will come later. I have Very Exciting Plans for it. (That painting in the background is NOT finished by the way. Just sayin.')

The only problem with having my dollhouse in my own home is that whenever I go to get parts out of the box, this is happening:

Webster also lies on the box, but Gretchen is the only one who gets up on top of the whole house -- exactly when I'm trying to work on it:

She also likes to sit inside of it:

It doesn't bother me that she likes to interact with the house. However, finding little kitteh hairs all over it and stuck to the rough parts of the wood IS highly annoying. I figure there is no way to stop her and the more I stop her, the more she wants to do it, so I've given up. Whatevs. There's always a cat in my giant dollhouse. Bet you don't hear people say that everyday, do you?

Anyway, last night I decided to locate and punch out all of the pieces that go to the porch. Recently, Pa came over and moved the box under the table because it was taking up too much room, and I can't lift it right now. (Did I mention my back is still a horrible wreck? Sigh.) I sat down on the floor, and before I knew it, I was surrounded by sheets and splinters:

That little spot in the middle was where I was sitting. I did my best to "not twist" and be careful with myself, but I still somehow managed to slip while I was getting up and now my back hurts in a whole new location. YAY!

But at least that Mansard roof looks GREAT!

It's not glued on properly. It was REALLY hard to jam it in there and it was cracking and making horrible noises, so I cut off some of the tops of the sheets. Then it fit in perfectly!

Back on the floor, I was proud to be able to throw away these sheets. Yes, I do keep a lot of discards to make my own doodads, but this part could go. It felt AWESOME. It was a huge sign of progress (that large piece is a duplicate wall from when Greenleaf kindly replaced a wonky sheet for me):

Here is evidence of the gluing -- masking tape holds everything together:

I moved on to the porch posts. I spend a lot of time in my crafting life waiting for glue to dry:

The rest of the porch pieces are in little baggies waiting to be painted/assembled. It's a process:

By the time I went to bed, the box was much emptier. Sheets that only had a few pieces left in them were labeled, punched out, and put in plastic bags:

Yes, you can find dollhouse kits that are far less complicated. They are heavier, smoother, and don't have a bazillion pieces of gingerbread decorations. However, I am one of those miniaturists who finds the most joy in the actual construction. Knowing that I'm putting together every single little part of this house is extremely rewarding. (Remind me I said that when I'm working on the wee parts of the trim.)

And as promised, here is a photo of the finished Bunny Tales kit. SO FREAKIN' CUTE:

I lurve my minis.