Cutting Corners.....

The Tower Stairs......

It was another one of those Busy Spring Weekends, Dear Readers, where the RL Garden was needing nearly all of my Time and energy, so Very Little was accomplished in my Mini Worlds. But in spite of all odds, I did make some real progress in the Guard Tower for the Cloud Palace! In the picture above, you can see the basic configuration of the Towers in relation to the Main Palace rooms, this time from the "Front" side of the Palace! The Guard Tower is going to be square and not as tall as the Spiral Tower. In theory this would make it easier to construct, but I am not sure it is working out that way! For one thing, it also needs to "notch" up against the corner of the Main Palace building. And for another, it is also requiring Stairs to the upper levels! If you have not already figured it out about me, I like my houses to have stairs to the upper floors! Even though the Fairy Bears can easily Fly up and down.... Visitors, like Peregrine, would need to use stairs! And Stairs almost Always use up a lot of Space! In the Guard Tower I am placing the first set of stairs in the interior of the Tower.... naturally this would make access a little more defensible

(If one really needed to worry about such things... 

but it is A Palace... so I am trying to be authentic!) 

as you can see here....

The entire Tower structure is going to be built from foam core 

with paper (Most likely egg carton) stones added to both sides. 

I am trying to keep the structure as light as possible... 

(it being a Palace in the Clouds... we want it to Float easily!)

The difficulty I was having was with the stairs upward 

from the next level to the Tower Roof.

If I placed them inside the Tower, 

it left almost no room for the Beds needed for the Guy Bears.

So I decided to make them go up the outside of the Tower from this floor on....

Here you can see the way the Tower "notches" against the Main Building.

The progress I made this weekend was that I finally Cut the Corner 

off the roof of the bay window so the Tower Front wall could be fit in!

(There is no turning back once the Corner is Cut!)

I also cut the floor of the Sleeping level,

Which I am calling the Barracks, Dear Readers,

(Otherwise know as the Bear Racks, 

because they will be bunk beds stacked three high!)

and you can see the floor here....

You can see what I mean about limited Space with the stairs coming up

and a door needed on the side to access the outer stairs to the Roof!

There will also be an interior wall along the side of the stairwell,

It defines the sleeping area and keeps the stairway safe.

And you can sort of see the beginnings of

 the exterior stairs through the door to the right....

And here you can see them from the "Front" side of the Tower.

I haven't made many steps yet.... 

but they will have to go around the Corner, Dear Readers!

It will require a whole different kind of 

"Cutting Corners" to get these stairs built!

 The stairs will need to climb up the outer wall,

much like the stairs for the Spiral Tower, 

to reach the Tower Roof.

But while we are waiting for me to Find More Time....

The Beary Gang is Happily having their Sunny Morning "Kaffeeklatch"!

So as you can see, Dear Readers,

It's only a Little bit of Progress.....

But I have been Cutting Corners

In order to build the Tower Stairs!