Jump to content

I just have to get t a Fairfield. but ...


Thimble Hall

Recommended Posts

Sorry I didn't see these follow-up posts until now, but if I were to build another Fairfield here's what I would change:

-Replace stairs with Houseworks stairs. I really like the look of the stairs in the Tiny Distinction blog but the easiest thing to do would be to slightly enlarge the stair opening and use the Houseworks stairs without modifying them.

-Add stairs to the attic - either a staircase directly above the first staircase, or folding attic stairs. If you use a staircase and the ceiling height is shorter than the staircase (I'm not sure if it is or not), you can cut off one or two stairs to make them fit.

-Add a window to the entry.

-Maybe remove the wall between the entry and kitchen, and swap the direction of the stairs. I've seen houses where this was done and it makes the first floor seem much more spacious. I think I also saw one where someone left off the bathroom wall to create a larger second floor hallway area (I'm not sure if they had a bathroom elsewhere in the house or not).

-Add a balcony door. I am one of the people who changed the porch roof into a balcony, but I decided to do it late in the process so I only have windows.

Something I would *not* do is extend the tower walls so the tower is accessible from the rest of the third story. A lot of people do this but it changes the symmetry of the house and looks funny to me.

The Fairfield is great because there's *so much* you can do to this house to personalize it! If you look around online, a lot of people have blogged about the Fairfield and posted pictures of their modifications. Search the gallery here and you'll get more ideas. I even thought about building one as an apartment building with three separate units - the first floor, second floor, and attic would be three separate apartments, with a bump-out addition added to the back (the flat wall that doesn't have a bay window on it) to provide bathrooms for the first and second floor units and a rooftop deck with hottub for the attic unit. The room originally meant to be the bathroom would have been a communal laundry. It looked great in my head. :)

Oh, one other thing I might change would be to replace the oval windows with small windows that match the rest of the house, as in this scan from a Fairfield bash featured in Nutshell News: http://www.greenleafdollhouses.com/forum/uploads/1244582235/gallery_7_34_77977.jpg

I wanted to do this originally but didn't have the confidence to cut down the windows (small ones aren't sold in half scale, only the regular sized ones). I've since learned how to do it, it's not that hard!

 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fov..I am coming back later tonight to do through your lovely long post..in a raring rush right now have to go out but wanted to do the test I have been workinh oll day and that is to post a picture..any picture it is just a test

 

 

Fingers crossed XXXX

 

 

Well it worked my babies Florence and Maise, my Vistorias Farmhouse now striped of shingles and a wee picture of me..   I did it, you have no idea how proud I am and the tears are rolling but somehow I managed to learn the camera, get them on the computer amd post them  Yeahh!! Sorry about the typos no time to change them

P5040002.JPG

P1010050.JPG

Jeannine.png

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi again Emily, back now and can enjoy your lovely long message. We are on the same page with some things. I ordered two sets of  Houseworks stairs, one to replace and one for the attic.  I like the idea of a window at the entry, I had not thought of that. A balcony door I did think of and thought of a window there too. I haven't seen any pictures with the tower extended  , I will look but I think it would look a bit Gnomish Hall to me   ,if that makes sense. Removing walls scares me a bit but I think when it is in front of me I may be braver.

I do have some spare 1/2th windows, I even had a couple I cut down to a smaller size.I was going to use them on Grosvenor but changed my mind. I agree with all the others changed it would seem better to change the small ones  too.. I may have a quick look at the place I ordered from I would have time to e mail them and add.

There are some great ideas there and I intend printing some stuff off and keeping it by me. Today I actually went out to  buy a new computer, I had a real awful job figuring out how to do the pictures and think it may be easier with a new one, I bought the current laptop just 6 months ago and it has been trouble from day constantly freezing then cutting out  and my older  printer has been naughty for some time now so that was replaced today too, so with the new camera , new printer and new computer I should be on a roll in a couple of weeks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I did extend the tower walls in one of mine to make a utility room/ bathroom in the attic, but DS didn't take any pictures of it, nor very many photos of th exterior; he was more interested in what I did with the interior.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have another question about the Fairfield, where is the tower access?  It does not seem apparent when looking at photos.  I love the idea of the second story balcony.  I am going to have this thing all designed before I get it.  I would also like to see one or two windows on the front porch, it looks bland without any windows.  You guys are sucking me in and getting me excited!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Goldenrodfarm said:

I have another question about the Fairfield, where is the tower access?  It does not seem apparent when looking at photos...

Unless you make the roof removable there isn't any.  In one of my Fairfields I extended two of the tower walls to make an accessible utility bathroom in the attic.  In the other I removed the floors from the tower section and hung a Foucault's Pendulum from the roof that extends to what would be the foyer (and is, in the other Fairfield).

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It is unlikely I will start mine for quite a while as I have three out in my studio right now and each one is waiting for parts to come. I'll let you know when I am going to begin XX Jeannine

The tower in my child hood vicarage home could not be seen from inside, maybe originally  it had a pull up ladder as you went through a closed hatch. I used to go in by standing on steps then pulling them behind me. Neither of my parents could get up there so it was my special place. It was about maybe 6 feet square with a window on each wall..I loved it.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, Jeannine said:

The tower in my child hood vicarage home could not be seen from inside, maybe originally  it had a pull up ladder as you went through a closed hatch

Where were you when I was building my Fairfield?!?  :)  That would be such an easy modification.  You'd still need to leave the roof unglued if you wanted to look inside, but it would eliminate the problem of a room that is completely inaccessible to the tenants.  This would not require major restructuring or interfere with the roof line.  The half-inch attic stairs (scroll down just a bit) are a bit pricey, but I think I'd have sprung for them if I'd thought of it.  :doh:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I like the idea of the pull-up attic stairs, but I think they'd take up most of the floor space in the tower room?

I think someone built one with a ladder, but I can't find a picture. I might be confusing it with Dalesq's Rosedale.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

23 minutes ago, fov said:

I like the idea of the pull-up attic stairs, but I think they'd take up most of the floor space in the tower room?

I think someone built one with a ladder, but I can't find a picture. I might be confusing it with Dalesq's Rosedale.

That's why I extended the walls for the tower room I wanted to use.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, fov said:

I like the idea of the pull-up attic stairs, but I think they'd take up most of the floor space in the tower room?

Good point.I was thinking that with the trap door closed, it might be OK, but I guess it would make placing any kind of furniture difficult. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't think the pull up stairs in my childhood  tower were functioning, it was a long time ago and I can't recall how they worked, they were not attached to the hatch though, they could have been broken as my parents had said they had no means of getting up there.. I pulled the tall folding steps in to the room after I got up only so know one knew I was there. I loved my little hiding place. I shall make the tower in my Fairfield bring back the feelings I had about the real one at least I hope I can. Maybe I can make a little person to be me.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just as a point of interest. When I wnt back to the UK a few years ago and went to see the old city vicarage it had been re roofed and they had taken the tower off.I was gutted as I loved it and had no picture but it was a main road and so for the past week on and off I have been searching historical records on line to try to find a picture and I did . It was part of an old post card collection  of the general area and showed the main street where I lived and found it. it is hard to see but look close and you can see the tower in the back right

Beverley%20Road%20-%20010.jpg

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 years later...

 

On 8/3/2017 at 8:25 PM, havanaholly said:

Unless you make the roof removable there isn't any.  In one of my Fairfields I extended two of the tower walls to make an accessible utility bathroom in the attic.  In the other I removed the floors from the tower section and hung a Foucault's Pendulum from the roof that extends to what would be the foyer (and is, in the other Fairfield).

 

Hi there!  I'm working on my first house (a Fairfield) and am thinking I will remove the tower floor in the attic and hang a light up there from the bottom of the tower cap so that it shines through the small windows but is open to the 2nd floor.  It seems somewhat similar to what you did with your Pendulum, but I'm worried about integrity of the attic floor.  I would just be removing the small square off the attic floor that would have been the floor of the enclosed tower space.  Does this seem like it should work?   Thanks!  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...
On 8/1/2017 at 3:39 PM, Debsrand56 said:

I did not change the attic and tower windows.  I was going to change the tower windows to the Houseworks round windows, but it turns out the tower windows are oval.  I could have altered the openings by cutting and filling in as appropriate fit the round windows, but I did not. I used the original stairs from the first to the second floor (although I cut off the railings/banisters and used spindles and railings I purchased), and I built my own stairs to the third floor.  It's honestly not as hard as you might think.  Two nice places to look for external trims are Heritage Laserworks and Victorian Dollhouse Woodworks.

This is an old post but I have a question for Deb or anyone else that may know..

 

Does anyone know if the company Victorian Dollhouse Woodworks is still in business, I am pretty sure the other one is gone but the website for VDWW is taking orders . Problem is I have sent three e mails re their signmaking and have had no replies. I have a huge order in my basket too and I can't go through checkout till I hear from them. Sort of in a quandry now.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...