First Timer Shingle and Siding questions

[AshleyLNC]

Has anyone used roofing shingles on their dollhouse?  Would I be able to purchase just a couple shingles or would I need to buy a whole bundle?  Do I need a special glue or scissors?  Any other inexpensive, lightweight roofing options?

Also, what is a lightweight wood that I could use for the clapboard siding?  I don’t mind cutting it myself.  I’m a SAHM so I don’t have a large budget, but I’m starting to renovate my childhood dollhouse for my little girl.  Thanks so much!  

[Sable]

Welcome. What dollhouse is it? What style is it? You can use all kinds of materials for shingles but the style helps determine the type of shingle I would suggest. And you would probably need hundreds of them.

[AshleyLNC]

Not sure what style it is.  My mom found the dollhouse in my neighbor’s trash by the side of the road in 1995 and dragged it home for me.  It was handmade by my neighbor but by the time he finished it his daughter was too old. This is my first attempt at remodeling it, so I’m just trying to figure out my options for materials.  

[AshleyLNC]

It’s a mess but I think it could be really pretty.  I’ve already taken all the shingles, etc. off and cleaned it up.  

[jbnmini]

oh wow! That is awesome! And, oh my, it does need a lot of work- but the potential is there!    

Is the roof warped - or simply not attached any more?  Those windows all seem to be different sizes??  A small wood saw or Dremel could help you cut those to a more standard size.  Make your own windows from strip wood or purchase ready-made ones. 

Shingles could be as easy & cheap as sandpaper.    As for siding....I sure there would be a cheap alternative to that as well.  You could do individual pieces of strip wood from a craft store, but that might still be rather pricey.  Someone will surely come on this thread and give you a good idea.

In the meantime, have fun with the demolition part and we'll look forward to seeing your progress!

 

[AshleyLNC]

Thanks Jackie!  I love the sandpaper idea, especially since it’s already so heavy.  I might play around with that once I get the whole thing primed.  

It’s actually in amazing shape.  The roof isn’t warped, it’s just not attached right now.  But other than that, it is incredibly sturdy.  My mom protected it with her life over the past 20 years from my dad who wanted to toss it every time Spring cleaning rolled around!

I love reading everyone’s posts and getting ideas though!  There are some beautiful projects on this forum! 

 

[havanaholly]

Hi, Ashley.  Feel free to post an introduction in the Newcomers' Forum.  I'm a great believer in sandpaper shingles:

and I have ripped the top layer off of dampened corrugated cardboard and used that:

I glued strips of skinny strip wood vertically to simulate board & batten on the above house, and I have used joint compound for stucco on the first one.  If you must have clapboard and have a cheap source of cardboard (posterboard from the $ store or cereal boxes comes to mind) and patience you can cut your own strips.

[jbnmini]

@AshleyLNC - Wow- that house just gets cooler with every picture!  LOL  I just love the hip roof and it looks like it was VERY well made!  And with the inside being a blank canvas....well, the possibilities are endless!    Have fun!

[IndyCindy]

I know this isn't a creative suggestion, and probably not the most economical - but I love the look of shingles that are actually made for miniature houses. You get a huge bag of them, they are very lightweight, and the look (in my opinion) can't be beat! RGT has some on sale right now - 500 of them for $14.50. https://www.realgoodtoys.com/products/hand-split-wooden-octagonal-shingles-500

500 shingles will cover A LOT of roof. They sell shingle dye in various neutral colors (brown, grey, etc.) and the dying process is fun. . . you mix the powdered dye in a big bucket of water, then submerge the shingles in the dye, and lay them out to dry. If you go this route, you'll want to watch that the adhesive you use doesn't contain water because it can cause the shingles to warp. It's been years since I shingled my roof, but I recall using a thin bead of caulk and the end result was really clean and nice. 

If you live near Hobby Lobby, they usually have the shingle dye in stock and you can use a 40% coupon on it to save even more. You might even be able to find the bags of shingles there. 

Your "rescued" house has great bones! What a neat project! Good luck! 

[KathieB]

Greenleaf has a wide assortment of shingles. Go to  https://shop.greenleafdollhouses.com/  and search "shingles"

[AshleyLNC]

Thanks so much for the tips and ideas!  I’m going to look at the wood shingles Cynthia mentioned and also look at the ones Greenleaf has in stock.  I’ll keep y’all updated! :-D

[havanaholly]

I have used the Greenleaf shingles on two builds, the McKinley:

and the Laurel:

and on the Laurel I learned to stain the shingles BEFORE gluing them onto the roof.

[IndyCindy]

On 4/1/2019, 6:29:00, AshleyLNC said:

Thanks so much for the tips and ideas!  I’m going to look at the wood shingles Cynthia mentioned and also look at the ones Greenleaf has in stock.  I’ll keep y’all updated! :-D

I know not all Hobby Lobby's stock the same items, and you may not have one in your area. . . but if you do, I'd look there. I was looking at the minis last week and our local store has shingles by the bag! You probably couldn't find a better price than theirs with a 40% off coupon. 

[Small Passions]

I was going for a more modern look, so for siding, on my latest house (there have been many...LOL), I mixed play sand with paint and brushed & dabbed on as a final coat (after painting the entire house the same color without the sand mixture).  Looks great .... and resembles stucco. I couldn't be more pleased!

[havanaholly]

Mharti, did I miss your intro in the Newcomers' Forum?

[Small Passions]

Hey, Holly.......Nooooo, you didn't miss it...... nothing there, as yet.  I'm not much on formal intros and talking about myself.  Thanks for the reminder, though. 

BTW:  What part of Alabama are you in?  I was born and grew up in Gadsden.... now in Colorado.

 

[havanaholly]

We moved to Seminole, just over the Perdido River from Pensacola, FL, off of US90.

[Small Passions]

Good for you, Holly.  Hope you are enjoying it as much as I did. I still love and miss AL.

[Tinyroomartist]

Question about staining / dyeing shingles: I live in an apartment (no garage, yard or mud room to work with.) I bought Greenleaf wood shingles for one of my Washingtons and shingle dye from Real Good Toys. But the instructions on the dye is a bit intimidating in my situation. It says one can't use it "near food," so I can't go near my kitchen sink and it sounds as if my less than perfectly glazed bathtub will turn black if any of this stuff gets on it at all. Also, I have to wear a mask (which of course I have because of the pandemic) but my cat is here and I was not expecting that! I can open a window but now I am wondering whether I want to get involved with this at all.

Has anyone had good luck painting the shingles? I want to achieve a varied, dark grey color that looks weathered. The texture of the shingles is more important than the precise color. And, of course, there is the warping. I could definitely use advice! I realize the rest of you have better workshops and probably live in houses. I am in a tiny apartment and am doing all my work on a well protected antique wood table. It is not optimal but it is a privilege to be doing this work at all!

[havanaholly]

Watered down paint on Greenleaf wood shingles after gluing in place (NOTE:  you will want to keep a damp rag on hand and be quick and careful to wipe up any and all glue oozes, because watered down paint will not cover glue drips; on the other hand you can paint the shingles with regular paint and cover stray glue drips, then go back and dry brush your weathering and/ or brush and rub different colors of grated chalk pastels for the weathering effects):

[Kells]

Holly just covered a few of the points I was about to make, namely, make sure the shingles are glued down first. I have not done it on shingles, but I did use watered down paint on Greenleaf siding. I *think* Greenleaf uses the same material to make their shingles? At any rate, it should work just as well on shingles. The siding did not warp, but again it was glued on. That stuff definitely does warp if you paint it in loose strips, unless you weight it down.

My pics are garbage but you might be able to get an idea of the shading variations you can get from watered down paint. On shingles, I'd go all over with a lighter color first and then do a wash of a watered-down darker color afterwards for shading variations (I didn't do a darker wash on the farmhouse). Don't go exceptionally dark, just a few shades darker. On that darker coat, try mostly hitting the crevices between each shingle and where the rows meet. Shake shingles tend to age darkest in all those crevices.

 

[Mid-life madness]

3 hours ago, Tinyroomartist said:

Question about staining / dyeing shingles: I live in an apartment (no garage, yard or mud room to work with.) I bought Greenleaf wood shingles for one of my Washingtons and shingle dye from Real Good Toys. But the instructions on the dye is a bit intimidating in my situation. It says one can't use it "near food," so I can't go near my kitchen sink and it sounds as if my less than perfectly glazed bathtub will turn black if any of this stuff gets on it at all. Also, I have to wear a mask (which of course I have because of the pandemic) but my cat is here and I was not expecting that! I can open a window but now I am wondering whether I want to get involved with this at all.

Has anyone had good luck painting the shingles? I want to achieve a varied, dark grey color that looks weathered. The texture of the shingles is more important than the precise color. And, of course, there is the warping. I could definitely use advice! I realize the rest of you have better workshops and probably live in houses. I am in a tiny apartment and am doing all my work on a well protected antique wood table. It is not optimal but it is a privilege to be doing this work at all!

Jodi Hippler just did a Blog post on this very subject.  http://my-miniaturemadness.blogspot.com/

[Tinyroomartist]

Thanks! I think I am going to skip the dye - just too complicated - and glue the shingles onto the house, then paint them as Holly did. I think that will be just fine. I used asphalt shingles on the other house (everyone is sick and tired of hearing about that!) and they worked out well in the end. I liked the self stick ones better than the ones I had to glue on and I just hope they stay on. As luck would have it, I ran out of the first order (which was not self stick) and reordered. I received self stick although I did not ask for them and in a lighter color. So I alternated rows. I hope this will help everything stay on (one row glue, one row self stick) and it made a nice pattern on the porch roof. Will post photos soon.

I still can't believe that members here are kind enough to care about my project but I care about yours, so it makes sense!

[Tinyroomartist]

1 hour ago, Kells said:

Holly just covered a few of the points I was about to make, namely, make sure the shingles are glued down first. I have not done it on shingles, but I did use watered down paint on Greenleaf siding. I *think* Greenleaf uses the same material to make their shingles? At any rate, it should work just as well on shingles. The siding did not warp, but again it was glued on. That stuff definitely does warp if you paint it in loose strips, unless you weight it down.

My pics are garbage but you might be able to get an idea of the shading variations you can get from watered down paint. On shingles, I'd go all over with a lighter color first and then do a wash of a watered-down darker color afterwards for shading variations (I didn't do a darker wash on the farmhouse). Don't go exceptionally dark, just a few shades darker. On that darker coat, try mostly hitting the crevices between each shingle and where the rows meet. Shake shingles tend to age darkest in all those crevices.

 

That looks fantastic!

[KathieB]

3 hours ago, Tinyroomartist said:

I think I am going to skip the dye - just too complicated - and glue the shingles onto the house, then paint them

Hint: paint the roof with the shingle color before you glue the shingles on. It will save you trying to poke paint in the cracks between the shingles that are miniscule but blink like neon lights if left as raw wood.