Sugarplum Cottage to Monarch Cottage 04

 Working on the chimney wall with its timbering and plaster walls and stone chimney. 

(FYI--click on the photo to see a larger picture.)

The chimney wall has been painted with gesso, an acrylic primer that is used to prepare a substrate for painting in oils or acrylics. It dries to a matte finish and helps to seal the wood so the naturally occurring oils will not leach out to stain the surface treatment.

The timber templates have been traced and removed. The areas between the timbers will be painted to resemble the normal discoloration of aging.

Watercolors work well on the gesso base. All of the openings have been aged, although the bottom row may still be rendered in brick instead of plaster. 

The next step will be to dig out the cardboard egg cartons and start creating the field stones for the chimney. 

The timbers are still in dry fit. They can be easily removed to add in the bricks or if it is necessary to touch up the background. 

Sugarplum Cottage to Monarch Cottage 03

 The timbers are looking much better with the covering of contact paper.

They have more substance. 

The white cardboard has a brown backing. This view shows the front timbers stuck to the contact paper, which has a white backing. The utility knife is used to cut away the excess Contact paper.

This view shows all of the timbers plus the front door covered with the weathered wood Contact paper, and the main roof pieces are in place. The timbers are held in place by masking tape, another dry fit step. The instructions say to glue them in place, but they need to be removed so the walls behind them can be decorated.

This is the outer chimney wall. The timbering will be removed so the area behind can be painted with gesso to resemble plaster. The bottom row may be treated with Spackle and etched to resemble bricks. The chimney itself is asking to be fieldstone. Time to dig out the egg cartons!

Sugarplum Cottage to Monarch Cottage 02

 The main body of the cottage has been glued, and a bay window and chimney have been added to either end. 

The chimney is just a flat piece of wood added to one end. The two little slots near the top are where parts of the main roof will attach.

The bay window is on the other end piece. The base of the bay is glued. The roof is fitted but not glued. Another step has to happen before it is attached.

The kit comes with white cardboard "timbers". I had in mind to paint them a dark brown and fill the background with brick and/or stucco made from Spackle. I got to thinking that the paint may cause warping and would look tacky without a lot of detailing, so I went with Plan B.

I ordered a roll of weathered wood Contact paper from Amazon. Not only will it give the illusion of vintage timbers, but it will also strengthen the cardboard cutouts. 

These are the "timbers". They are punched out and ready to be laminated with the Contact Paper.

This is a sample of the distressed wood Contact Paper. 

While I wait for the Contact Paper to arrive, I will think about how to fill in the spaces between the timbers. Some near the top may be plain stucco painted white, while some near the middle may be brick, and the foundation area may be stone made from cardboard egg cartons. 

(Yes, I brought a stash of empty egg cartons with me when I moved. One never knows what one may need when a new project is launched.)

Using all three finishes may be a bit fussy for this tiny cottage. One advantage of working small is that the design can be modified or scrapped completely without a lot of effort.

I am also thinking about the roof. What do the kit and the butterflies want -- the shingles that came with the kit? Simply paint it or maybe use some sage green felt that came with me as packing material to resemble the green roof of an Irish cottage? Or work out some kind of thatching? This is the point where I hope the cottage will talk to me. I need to know what it wants.