A look inside my DIY house

Hello everyone! As viewers may know, I do like to make a house. This would have to be my third house now. I made the mole house for the Billabong Koalas, and the two apartments for my waddlington duck family and fresian grandparents.
This house has to be dedicated to the Periwinkles. Kate had her baby on Good Friday, a few days before easter- much to the towns joy. This is Bonnie!

now, this baby deterred the Periwinkles housing arrangement a tad. The Periwinkles lived in the old gypsy caravan- providing two beds. The extra baby meant there was 4 figures without a space to lay down! the family decided a move was best- but cornwood could provide little in housing arrangements. William took matters into his own hands, and with the help of Hornbull Fresian and Elma Mulberry- they got their hands dirty.
So, i did what i do best, and built a two story house.

Fortunately, i did take pictures of the construction process, but, i will admit i can produce some dodgy tutorials, so maybe its better to sit this one out and just observe. ;)

May Mulberry watching the designing and construction process

A Cardboard structure has been made.

the door has its separate little cubby hole.

I started out with a cardboard model- using two shoe boxes to construct a base. It was quite hard to decide what proportions to use- i just had to make sure the tallest figure- William Periwinkle (with his tall ears)- could stand up and move around in such a confined space.








I really think adding a cosy firplace reinforces the idea of a small, farmhouse family cottage.






Once i made the main structure, i added in details such as a fireplace, Mezzanine and stairs.
Next, I did paper mache. since this was a country cottage, uneven floors and ceilings added in a cosy touch. This was the longest part of the building process and was very tiring indeed.

The next step was to paint it. I decided (eventually) on a creme inside and pink outside, with a burgundy roof. It was here that i added an extension onto the second floor, poles to support the inside structure, and a chimney to add to its farm cottage image. The windows and stairs are a dark brown. For some reason, i struggled a lot to make the colour brown during the build. I know it seems ridiculous, considering brown is the easiest colour to accidentally make,  but i just kept making pink and blue blends for some reason. I had to result in getting a brown paint out of storage, but it turned out to gloss over the things i had painted- giving an unexpected sleek finish.

After the paint had set, i made it my mission to add touches such as ivy wrapped around the house. I used wire in some places to make a base- but in others I stuck the 'Oasis: Hobby Craft' moss onto the outside. I added in flowers in some places.

Now came wallpapering- i used actual wallpaper and stuck it in to give a more 'home-y' feel.

Then, i did the final touch of making sure the house was furnished for the new residents. I purchased the 'Cosy Living Room Set' to emphasise that this was a cutesy, country cottage. For Christmas, i was bestowed the gift of the 'Pink Nightlight Nursery Set' from my auntie and uncle. This was perfect, as it allowed two sleeping compartments for Nora and Bonnie Periwinkle.

Now, Kate and William needed a bed, as did Cherry and Peter- so instead of purchasing new beds, I made them.

The bunk bed was manufactured in a few easy manoeuvre's:
1) Cut two high arches and 2 rectangles the same width of the arch out of corrugated cardboard.
2) glue these together like i have in the picture shown.
3) glue foam board to it all to hide cardboard.
4) don with knitted bed spread: blanket and matching singular pillow for each bed space.

The rule was the same with the double bed- which fits perfectly in the mezzanine.

Once Hornbull, Elma, and William were finished, they revealed the surprise to Kate and the rest of the Periwinkle bunch- including newborn Bonnie, straight from Nutwood's hospital. Kate was ecstatic with joy.

The old gypsy caravan wasn't empty for very long. The Buttermilk Periwinkle Grandparents were eager to move out of their hobbit hut into the more spacious room with Camelia. This left Zafrina and Goaty Potter a place to rest.

Cherry and Peter enjoyed running around in a more open space, and playing board games by the wood burner, which sat (SNUGGLY, it was hard to get in) in the fireplace. Nora enjoyed her tea time set and her rocking horse, as well as her new, beautiful cot. William and Kate were happy to have a bed- they had too sleep on the floor in their old home. Bonnie slept silently in Kate's arms, as she rocked her to sleep to the sound of the calming radio and the creeks of their beautiful, hand carved rocking chair.

I hope you liked this update, I will be back again soon to fill you in on Cornwood's Easter Celebrations! 
Lots of Love, Emily xxxxxx