fov Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 My back-to-back Victorianna is getting to the point where I need to start thinking about how to paper the insides of the bay windows. It seems like a riddle with no answer. Once the tower walls are in, it's going to be really hard to get my hands in there to do wallpaper inside the bays. But, I can't paper them before assembly because there are huge gaps between the tower walls that will need to be filled in. I'd rather not put strip wood over the gaps on the inside since there will already be a ton of window trim going on in that space, and instead to have a continuous piece of wallpaper that goes around all the angles. I'd like to wrap the edges of this around the opening to the flat wall, so I'll have a clean transition from one wall to the other, but the bay area is taller than the opening so it would get funky up near the top. And what about the little area over the arched opening, inside the bay window - do I paper that? Do I try to put doorway trim on the inside part of the bay? I'm planning to square off the openings with trim on the outside, but don't see how I can do the same on the inside once the tower walls are already glued in. So do I paper and trim that interior area before I glue in the tower walls? But then, if trim is already glued in (if there's even space for it), how do I deal with the gap I'll end up with where the tower walls don't meet the exterior wall? This is driving me nuts! If you've built the McKinley or the Victorianna, how did you do it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparklepuppies Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 I remember stressing about all that myself. I'll look when I get home and see what I did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparklepuppies Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 I did paper the inside after assembly, but I have a McKinley, the Victorianna will be harder I would imagine. I did not bring it around to the outside of the wall, they joined together too weird. I did paper all the way to the top. I did not paper or paint the other part facing the window, and you don't notice unless you turn your head crazy and look way up, and even then it's hard to see because of the glare of the light on the window plastic. I also didn't put any trim there, because again, you can't see it. I didn't paint the ceilings either, which was goofy. It was my first house, so guess I just didn't think about it. The other thing that stressed me was doing the baseboard around that area. I think I put some pictures in my gallery of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kellyannmo Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Emily, if I remember right... I cut the wallpaper before the house was completely assembled.... I remember making a template.... (the paper will still need to be trimmed down a bit once the bay is in place)... and then installing it after the bay was attached. I remember stressing about it as well.... I did the same with the tower. I used lots of stucco on my Victorianna to fill in those gaps... I don't really care for the way the exterior on mine was finished... and I do have another in my stash that I will do something different with next time... those bays are tricky though... here is a pictures of my living room bay. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kellyannmo Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 I don't remember what I did to the part facing the window... but I am kinda weird about things being unfinished even if you can't see them... so I probably painted it... but truly don't remember... and this house has long since moved on to a new owner so I can't check for you... LOL... I just went through my pictures and it doesn't look like I took pictures either... I did paint the inside of the tower roof tho... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fov Posted July 7, 2015 Author Share Posted July 7, 2015 Thank you both! I started with the "select" Victorianna (the other one is regular die cut) and I don't know if it's my kit or what, but there are HUGE gaps on either side of the tower (the pieces that meet the flat wall). That's what I'm really scratching my head over. Besides wood filler I might need to add a piece of strip wood on each side just to close up the gap. I wish I could have just cut out the curved part completely so the bay opening went all the way to the ceiling, but I thought that would have messed up the stability of the structure too much. I was just craning my head to see how visible the inside top of the arch would be. Worst case scenario I'll just paint it before I assemble th tower, but I hate the way paint looks on the luan plywood. This might be a little ridiculous of me but I was thinking I could add corner brackets like these - I would glue them just above the arch, to the painted plywood - and then there would be some visual interest besides plain old paint. But it's so hard to see that area maybe that's overkill. I saw pics of one of Tracy's (Minis on the Edge) McKinleys - she built window seats into the bays - that would be a great way to remove some wallpaper from the equation (and baseboards!) but the Victorianna's windows go really low, I think the seat would end up being too close to the ground. Making a template for the wallpaper is a good idea. I'm also planning to do my own window trim instead using what came in the kit -- I want to trim it out like a real bay window, with a shared cap and sill for all three windows -- and I'm also not sure how I'm going to squeeze my hands in to do that, especially for the top pieces where the arch will be in the way. It would be so much easier if I could assemble the tower first, decorate it, and then glue it on, but I don't see any possible way to do that... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fov Posted July 7, 2015 Author Share Posted July 7, 2015 ps - Tracy, I was just looking at your album - I've always loved how you squeezed a laundry area into the hallway. I think that subconsciously inspired me to add the washer/dryer closet to my Victorianna's bathroom. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparklepuppies Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Thank you! Yay, I inspired some mini people to do laundry! And for the top part... Mines hanging on the wall, and I tried really hard and I could barely see where I didn't cover the wall. So maybe if you did just paint a matching color, you could at least avoid bare wood, but I'm not sure you be able to tell much of the texture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Here is the only picture I could find that shows the first floor bay: I'm reasonably sure I papered that puppy after I attached the tower. I used bamboo skewers to fill all the gap in the tower seams on the outside and spackled the seams after that, then did paper on the inside. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minigrandma10 Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 I made my Victorianna way back when you put it together, then wall-papered. I have learned the hard way that patterns of walls and papering before assembly are the way to go. I know you will come up with the right thing to do Emily and it will look great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suej Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 (edited) I'm just curious if you could apply wallpaper also to the stripwood you may use to fill in the large gaps, by cutting, measuring before you assemble and provide continuity. Not sure of how much drop/pattern your paper has. P.S. I would be the first to say I probably don't know what I'm talking about lol. Edited July 7, 2015 by suej Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dalesq Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 When I built the McKinley I painted the bays the same color as the wallpaper background and then papered them. I cut the piece that fit into the bay and laid it in right over the window openings. When the glue dried it tightened the paper across the windows and I used a sharp exacto blade to cut the paper out of the openings. This way the paper covered the joins. (I dont have pics of this but recall doing the same thing in the Big T.) For the White Rose I had a similar problem with the square bay and solved the problem similarly to how Suej suggests. I made paper strips to wrap the corners, matching up the wallpaper pattern. You might be able to do this in reverse if you don't want to try the other technique. http://www.greenleafdollhouses.com/forum/index.php?app=gallery&image=93475 My only complaint about the "paper over the windows and cut out openings after dry" technique is that you have to be careful when adding the trim to make sure you've covered the paper completely where it lines up with the window. It's much easier to do this when flat, but that's not really and option with your build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fov Posted July 7, 2015 Author Share Posted July 7, 2015 Thanks, all good ideas. Normally I would just leave a bit of paper at the edges and wrap it around the bay opening, but the archway is shorter than the height of the bay so I'm not sure I could do it neatly. I like the idea of gluing it on and then cutting the window openings, I hadn't thought of that. Another thought I had is to forgo wallpaper and completely cover the area with wood trim, like in this (life sized) house. But I'm not sure if I can glue all that trim in once the tower is assembled, and if I trim out the tower wall pieces before assembly I will have to account for the gaps in advance, I guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minis On The Edge Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 The first one I did, I just painted it. The second and third time, I wallpapered the walls before I assembled them and added trim afterwards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minis On The Edge Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Oh My Goshness!!! I LOVE that entire room Emily! Adding trim like that wild look Splendid! :wub: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fov Posted July 7, 2015 Author Share Posted July 7, 2015 I know, isn't that gorgeous?! I wouldn't do the crazy wallpaper in this house, but it's fun to look at. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madtex1967 Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Since my Victoriana was already built, I had the same problem! What has worked so far in the three bays (kitchen, parlor, & bedroom) is that I made a template of card stock of the areas above and below the windows. Since I replace the windows with Houseworks, There was no room between the windows for wallpaper - the window trim covers this area. Once I got the card stock to fit properly, I glued my wallpaper down with Grandmother Stover's glue. I did not try to paper the back interior wall of the bays. I have them painted the dark green of the exterior trim. I realized with the Victorianna that it would be very difficult to see these areas even looking in the windows from the outside. If I put in curtains, it certainly won't show. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fov Posted July 7, 2015 Author Share Posted July 7, 2015 Gluing the wallpaper to cardstock - that's a great idea! Seems like that would really help with the gap issue. I'm using the kit windows, but I'm planning to use wide enough trim so there won't be wallpaper visible between them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fov Posted March 7, 2016 Author Share Posted March 7, 2016 It's been a while, the Victorianna has been on hold while I moved to a new real house! I did the first two bay windows today and came up with what I think is a clever solution for the wallpaper - I took advantage of the gaps to slide the wallpaper into the bay through the gap between the tower wall and the front wall. The wallpaper had glue on it when I slid it in, so I just had to get it in the right position and then press it in with my fingers. Then I cut the window holes. More details on my blog: http://www.emilymorganti.com/blog/?p=9740 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 Aren't you clever! Well done, Emily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathieB Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 Very clever! Good to know those inevitable gaps can be useful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fov Posted March 13, 2016 Author Share Posted March 13, 2016 A few more pictures with the trim added. I added a header over the arch to square off the opening. I painted the back of the header that shows through the arch, as well as the back of the arch itself. It's a little sloppy if you go looking for it, but not something that's easy to see. And here's how it looks in context: More details are on my blog: http://www.emilymorganti.com/blog/?p=9752 My miter box and saw bit the dust so I have to wait for a new one to come in the mail before I finish the bay window downstairs... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dalesq Posted March 13, 2016 Share Posted March 13, 2016 Looks great Emily! I like that trim around the window opening. Nice touch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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