The Alpine Farmhouse Begins

With the Lafayette finished (with only minor things left to do, actually), I began work on the Alpine Farm house. 

Let me tell you about this little house. The box aptly describes the two story two room house made out of mdf (manufactured wood), unlike the Lafayette made of very thin plywood. This house then is sturdier, heavier, but I think a bit easier to work with. I found it online, wanting a small house to assemble to learn how to work with the mdf wood and it has been a learning experience. Check the link to check out Real Good Toys  web site's description of the house. I especially like this company for the workmanship, quality, was of assembly, and especially that it is a made in America product.

The house measures 19Wx16Dx20H, making it nice size as a starter home. It has all of the features that teach us how to assemble larger homes. Be prepared for the weight of the house as the thick manufactured wood product is heavier.

Step 1: Carefully read the instructions. Sort out all of the pieces to familiarize yourself with them. Read the instructions again. Read them one more time. Read again. Unpack the kit, take an inventory of all of the pieces, making sure that they are all there to familiarize yourself with the kit pieces.

Step 2: Learn the pieces:  Dry fit the pieces together to get a feel for how the house will go together. I used blue painter's tape, but then realized that masking tape holds better.

Step 3: Painting:  Read instructions again. 

I wondered if I paint before or after assembling the house and opted for painting pieces before based on the trouble I had as I refurbished Heather's house. It is much easier to paint before all of the gingerbread and trims go on. So, while I didn't photograph the painting process, I painted the exterior with two coats of a satin enamel as the the can says. I was told at ACE Hardware that the paint was a semi-gloss latex. I trusted what they said. It worked, but instructions call for a good quality latex flat paint. In the research that I did as I questioned paint, one house builder said that a good paint job requires good sanding. The MDF does not need to be primed or sanded as the plywood does, but sanding in between coats does improve the second coat. I even gave the second coat a light sanding to make a nice smooth surface.  One caution to remind yourself is to be sure not to paint the surfaces where the glue will be applied because the paint will weaken the glue bond. This kit has nice notched edges that don't require taping off to paint the exterior surfaces. I used a light sandpaper 220 weight.

For the interior, if you already know how you will decorate the interior, you can paint prior to assembly for it will be much easier, or at least prime it. Do keep in mind that if you electrify your house using the copper tape, as I did, you will paint and paper after the tape has been installed which is done after the house is assembled. I painted the ceilings before assembling the house.

Step 4: Gluing. I was really quite nervous about gluing the house together. MDF absorbs moisture so you DO NOT want to get it wet, so choose carefully the products that you. House builders, how-to sites, and other instructions say to use white glue, i.e. Elmer's. I did not use Elmer's; instead, I used Sargent Art white glue that comes in a tube, acid free, non toxic, and had a nice pointed application top.   While it is water based, white glue must be used instead of the yellow wood glue that will turn yellow when it dries. 

As you apply glue, you want to do so carefully so that you do not have glue that seeps out of the cracks, even the white glue. I simply ran my finger along the joints where the glue seeped out to wipe it off. Keep in mind, too, that paint will not adhere to globs of glue.

Step 5: Clamping. You have to find some way to hold the pieces in place once glue has been applied because it will not hold together. On the very small wood pieces, I used rubber bands, but for the house I purchased regular wood clamps. They aren't cheap, running about $30 at ACE, but they do hold and I will use them again for the next house and I am sure that after the house building, they will be used for other projects. If you do not want to use clamps, follow the company directions using masking tape to secure the glued pieces together until the glue dries.

While the white glue does dry quickly, I gave the glue 24 hours to set.

And here is a preview. I have the house assembled, wired, papered, and all of the little trim pieces painted. At this point I have not yet glued the railing in place. You can see that I have made some modifications. 

You can see the changes that I have made: carved posts for the porch and adding two more, shutters for the windows, and I built window boxes that I will add instead of the kit's fake ones. 

When I began the Alpine house, I had no idea as to how to decorate it. I needed inspiration.

Regretfully, I a thrift shopper. My daughters and I love going to ARC and Goodwill looking for stuff. I have set some rules for myself, but I always look for dollhouse furniture which we rarely find, dolls, but only certain, special dolls. At Goodwill one day I found a bag of little dolls that had this cute little girl, a Madame Alexander doll that was a MacDonald's Happy Meal toy-- a ballerina. Boy did she get lucky because she will soon open her own ballet studio.  I sorted through the dolls and gave the grand daughters little dolls and keeping the ballerina for myself.  Both of the grand daughters have taken ballet, and little Lucy continues her lessons. I am so excited and I cannot wait to show you the finished house, but before then we have a lot more to do: painting little pieces, electrical wiring, wallpapering, flooring, gluing the front on, shingling the roof. 

Next time the trials and tribulations of an electrician. Stay tuned.

Thanks so much for visiting. I love your comments.