A New Project

 Well Hello. Life does tend to get in the way of the things we love to do. I've spent the las several weeks "teaching" my two older granddaughters who are now home schooled Ralph Waldo Emerson's essay, "Self Reliance" and as I read the essay and had discussions with them I learned so much about myself. It was indeed a rare experience that few grandmothers get with their grandchildren--to have meaningful discussions on religion, philosophy, self worth, and self designed. 

And then there were the days to day things: new carpeting in 3 rooms; garden work, and just stuff.  This weekend I had time to myself with the Mr. gone camping with the grandson, I began a new project. 

It's always nice to have some company while I work, but the dog boy Brody is not very supportive. He found me downstairs when the thunder storm began where he NEVER ventures unless it's movie night with pop corn or a in this case loud thunder, which we have had nearly every day and it terrifies him. He looks terrified, doesn't he. 

While the Bellingham Texas Farmhouse perpetually celebrates Independence Day and has a chicken coop and a hopefully a barn one day, the Manchester Country Home will have a greenhouse where the mistress can indulge in her passion for growing African violets and orchids--I was once told that if you can grow violets you can grow orchids. We will see how successful she will be with her orchids.

I ordered this kit from The Curated Dollhouse on Etsy. It is an easily assembled structure with good instructions. I've just put off assembling it because I really wanted to finish the Manchester before I started another project. More on that at the end.

We always do a dry fit to make sure we know where to glue and I trying to work out some sort of floor plan. I decided that a green house must have glass, so that's what I cut yesterday.

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Instead of actually glass I purchased three 14"x16" sheets of plexiglass for .99 cents each at Hobby Lobby. It's a thin sheet and is a nice alternative to repurposing clear packaging and it is actually very easy to work with. Let me show you.

I began by making paper templates of all the walls and two doors, using both computer paper and scrapbook paper. Tools are simple: a paper trimmer--I used two, my old Cricut trimmer then switched to the new one because it has a newer, sharper blade to score the plexiglass rather than cutting through the plexiglass. Use masking or painter tape to secure the plexiglass to the cutter, pencil to mark score lines, a craft blade to cut the protective covering, and a small pair of pliers to help break the score line for very narrow score lines.

I do a lot of work on my ironing board because of its height. 

I leave protective film in place to keep from scratching or smudging the plexiglass when I place the paper temple to make my score lines with a pencil. The film is on both sides.

Here you can see the pencil score lines.

I place the plexiglass in on the trimmer, lining the marked line with the blade line. On this piece I will cut the two doors so I make one long score line that will provide a piece that will be the length of each door.

The first score I made was on the old trimmer. This photo shows how I placed the plexiglass to cut on an angle, securing it with lots of tape. I've used this old trimmer often and now the blade is dull and I've not been able to find replacements, so I switched to my newer trimmer, which will have blade replacements. A sharp blade really makes a difference. 

Steps to use the trimmer:

• line plexiglass score mark with the grove that the blade will travel on
• use masking tape or painters tape to secure the plexiglass because it will scoot around
• start at the top of the trimmer; applying firm pressure, slowly make the score by pulling the blade downward to the bottom. I've made two runs and sometimes the lines don't match, so it is wise to use a sharp blade and make one score.
• leave the film in place. The blade will cut though it, but only score the plexiglass
• remove the tape and the plexiglass from the trimmer and gently bend first at one edge and if need be at the other edge, too. With the white trimmer and sharp blade, the score was perfect and the plexiglass separated easily.

While it is hard to see the first window piece fits nicely in place--and so will the other pieces. 

The doors look great, too. 

Next I will prime and paint and assemble this lovely greenhouse. 

And now for the Manchester. I've been determined not use shingles! So I'm creating a faux metal roof using 1/4"x1/8"x 24" basswood purchased from Hobby Lobby. I also purchased roof ridge molding from Miniatures.com, but I need one more piece. I had my husband measure and draw the lines for accurate placement.

An ugly mess at this point. I'll glue the ridge moulding in place then the strips. 

I am anxious to get this house finished. I like to think that I am being cautious and precise, but sometime I think I'm just procrastinating.

Thanks for dropping by. I hope my next post comes a little more quickly. 

Hey! The Nuggets won!