weathering

[santa12]

Hi Everyone;      I'm new to the dollhouse scene and wanted to do a haunted / run down  house. looking at acouple of kits on ebay and one is victorian style and wanted to see if someone  has done a house like this similar to  the pic i attached but more of a halloween feel and look. and wanted to do the inside to look like it has'nt been cleaned in awhile. I know this will take time to achieve to make it look as real as possible.

greatful for all the input and ideas

thanks

 

[havanaholly]

It makes me just a little sad to see some of these elegant, lovely kits such as this Beacon Hill done to look like this.  I do know several of our members who are great fans of Hallowe'en have done very nice haunted houses.  I suggest using "haunted house" and search the members' gallery for their pictures.

[otterine]

I believe this is Karin's Sea Hag Beacon Hill -- she's a member here.  I think she used drywall compound to obtain the look.
http://www.greenleafdollhouses.com/forum/?app=gallery&module=gallery&controller=view&id=89916

I've also done a weathered house, but I used the kit's siding done in a crackle finish.  I do have an album here on the forum, but here's a link to my blog with details on how I finished the house.
http://www.otterine.com/blog/blog1.php/the-haunted-heritage-exterior-details

[stickyfingers]

Some day I would love to do a house like this. For me, I think the whole point is that the house has fallen into decay, once beautiful and grand, but time and apathy have caused it to fade and chip and weather away. It's sort of sad and beautiful and interesting, and there's real-life examples of this all over the country. I don't have enough confidence in my own distressing abilities, though. I'm afraid if I did it, it would just look like it was dirty.  

[Sable]

Test some wood samples and try what some call "bug juice" to treat the wood to make it look weathered. Here is the recipe: 

Enough vinegar to cover a wad of fine steel wool in a glass jar, lightly covered. Let it sit for at least 12 hours. (I have also been told hydrogen peroxide and a steel nail will create the same affect).

Seep 4 teabags in 1 cup of water. 

Soak the wood in the tea for a few minutes, some people let it dry, I'm too impatient. Paint the wood with the treated vinegar. 

There are many different thoughts on this recipe but the outcome reveals a silvering gray and brown weathered wood affect. The chemical reaction is caused from the combination of  the rusty vinegar and the tannins in the tea.

[stickyfingers]

Otterine's Heritage is a fine example, and a house I look at often for inspiration. I has just enough decay and weathering to look really old and past it's prime, but not so overdone that it looks fake. I love Karin's Sea Hag, too. She nailed the look of a 100 years of paint and dirt and crust, but the house still reads as light and fresh and happy. It takes a good eye to get that kind of aged and downfallen look so nicely, without it looking dark and sad. And they're both great examples of the details that add such realism to the house.

I've done the "bug juice" recipe before, but never heard of soaking in tea, first. Will have to try that on the next piece. You can also get different effects if you use straight white vinegar, or apple cider vinegar.

[santa12]

thanks everyone for the great tips and blogs i can use for references

[havanaholly]

If you use the steel wool & vinegar recipe, poke a few holes into the jar lid.  I mix India ink with isopropyl alcohol for my bug juice.

[MLI Designs]

Also, dark wax can give a very realistic distressed look and feel

[Elsbeth]

I am no pro...but as a beginner, I used a store-bought weathering kit that involved a brown thin flat paint underneath an ivory paint - and then sanded/steel wooled the spots that would have been weathered and it worked great, imo. It inspired me to experiment with weathering more. I would like to try the crackle finish technique as it is an aged but not peeling crackle look. I prefer a flatter weathering look - less peeling and less bubbly/decaying. My ideal haunted house is worn out but not rotting...not entirely abandoned (the ghosts are there, after all).

 

I used this kit:

http://www.lifeandhome.com/american-accents-202867-distressed-finish-kit-12-oz-ivory.html?gclid=CLe_vPK31c4CFdKGfgodFVEALg

[Elsbeth]

I love Otterine's haunted heritage...I covet it:

Beautiful weathered wood:

 

http://www.otterine.com/blog/blog1.php/the-haunted-heritage-a-pictorial

[otterine]

Thank you!

I have hot-linking disabled on my website so you see the message above instead of the pic, but you can see all the photos directly on my blog.  

[stickyfingers]

Like I said, you and Karin nailed it. I've refinished a ton of real furniture, and never could get that shabby/distressed look down. Maybe I'll practice on some scrap wood, because I would love to do a crackle finish on some things.