The Grand Nativity...

As Small As I Could.....

I Imagine you must be getting tired, Dear Readers, of seeing pictures on this blog of items so small you can barely see the parts I am mentioning as I describe my adventures in this Teeny-Tiny scale! Well, I hope you can bear with me a little while longer, and I also hope you are glad that I decided to keep the "Large" sized Nativity I had started last week. I wanted to be able to see the figures in the nativity, and I didn't think I could paint them any smaller! Above you can see my method. I simply painted the figures on a scrap of the card stock I had used to construct the stable. Hence the cutout outline of the stable could be my guide for the size of the figures. There was no point in trying to measure or sketch.... at this scale the pencil lines would be terribly thick! So I relied on the color to suggest the figures I was painting, and an occasional prop to emphasize the identity of the figure.

Then I needed to paint the stable itself... 

you can see it there on the plastic surface. 

It was quite challenging to hold it and paint it at the same time!

Then I had to cut out my tiny figures! 

I started with the ox and the ass as they would go at the back of the stable.

I used my sharp x-acto knife, very carefully 

slicing as close to the edges of the figures as I could, 

while not cutting off or leaving out necessary parts...!

 Can you see them there in the middle of my gray cutting mat? 

You really need to not take your eyes off them

 for even a second for fear of losing them!

I glued them into the stable right away. 

You can see how snugly they fit!

(You can imagine that by now I have given up on a smaller stable!)

 

And then I cut out the Holy Family figures and glued them in as well....

Yes, they completely hide the ox and the ass....

*sigh* But I know they are there!

By now we want to see how it looks with the hearth.....

It  is large... but not outrageously so....!

And how about  if we test it in the Parlor?

I think it looks lovely!

I do want to be able to see the figures after all...

But then You must understand that

 there are More figures needed for a Nativity...

At the very Least you need a shepherd with his flock of sheep......

 and an Angel... or two!

You can see I have painted them the same way I did the other figures.

And then because I start to worry that there won't be room 

for them all on the mantle With the candlesticks.... 

I decide it is time to glue the candlesticks on the mantle!

(There is only so much "testing" you can do with items this small...

they just don't stay put without the glue!)

And while I was adding the candles, 

I decided it was also time to attach the stockings...

 

 That way I could be sure the Nativity would fit around them and still be visible!

 And then we need to test it all in the parlor again....

(The Nativity is still not attached...)

I do think there is room for the shepherd and his sheep.....

which need to be assembled onto a tiny base of "grass"....

Can you see him? I have added the first two sheep on one side....

Here he is finished, surrounded by his flock!

(Right there next to the stable... 

please poke the pictures to see them larger!)

And then we have to see if they will all fit on the mantle....

I thought the tiny doll in the stocking would block them too much 

if they were on the right side of the stable.... 

But they don't look right at all in this arrangement....!

I think they look much better with the shepherd on the right side!

And here they are testing in the Parlor... yet again....!

I think that is the right arrangement... 

but we mustn't forget the Angels!

I carefully cut out the first one and attached it to the roof... 

as if it is just about to land....

Then we test it again...

I think it looks wonderful and "alive"!

But what about the other Angel...?

(You know there were more than One angel at the Nativity!)

I cut the second one out and glued it on the other side of the roof....

But the first attempt had it too close to the other Angel....

I moved it a little farther down the roof to give them space....

I think it looks more balanced now...

I wanted to be sure the figures are visible...

Can you see them here on my finger?

And shall we test them in the Parlor again...?

I do think they look Very Grand!

Even though they block the painting a bit... 

and when the chandelier is in place they might be harder to see....

In this Teeny-Tiny room in this Teeny-Tiny house....

Where there will also be all sorts of furniture

 and even a fully decorated Xmas Tree!

Lady Evelyn has come by to check on the decorations...

She is quite worried that so Little has been done!

Will it all get finished in time...?

Well, Dear Readers, that was all 

I accomplished over the weekend...

one Very Grand Nativity....

that was as Small as I could manage!

Framed.....

Windows, Doors and Pictures...

This Secret Christmas House kit has such wonderful windows, Dear Readers, I think they are the primary reason I bought this kit! To begin with, they have real tiny plexiglass panes! You can actually see through the windows and into the interior of the room.... if you can get your eyes close enough that is! And the frames themselves are composed of two layers of very thin laser cut wood so when they are glued together the frame has an ornate layered profile. This along with the lovely arched shapes.... such a European feature!.... makes the tiny house look so elegant and perfect..... even up close! But those window frames are a challenge to paint! The laser cutting leaves a residue of "burned" wood along all the cuts, and covering it requires several layers of paint! I only hope that I wasn't supposed to seal the wood with a varnish before painting it to prevent the burn from seeping through the paint over time. I started by applying a simple gesso primer to both sides of every window frame.

Of course, I forgot to take any pictures 

until I was well along in the painting. 

Above you can see the three frames on the upper left 

have only the gesso, 

while the others have been given a first coat of acrylic white paint.

You have to be very careful not to build up too much paint 

in the corners of each tiny pane, as the surface tension of the paint 

wants to accumulate in the corners!

Here you can see a little closer. 

The window frame on the bottom left shows the reverse

 or inside of the frame, which also needs to be painted 

because it shows when you look through the windows from the inside!

Here you can see the inside being painted on most of them.

And here is the view through the Library window from the inside. 

Yes, it definitely needed to be carefully painted too!

And while we are working on painting frames, 

I was also trying to add my own frames 

for the interior doors to these rooms!

If you recall, I had glued the library inside wallpaper in place 

before remembering that I wanted to make 

the door frames "three dimensional" 

rather than just the printed paper image.

So I started to paint tiny door frames too....

And forgot to take pictures until I was done.... 

but here you can see I have added a frame to the door in the Library!

It was so much trickier to add with the wallpaper already glued in!

And for the Parlor room above the Library, 

I wanted to add not only the door frame.... 

but I wanted the picture frames on the art to be "three dimensional" too!

Here you can see the completed frame 

glued onto the printed wallpaper 

prior to gluing it on the room walls!

And here it is glued in place, along with the interior window frame 

which is a piece that comes with the kit.

And then the Parlor door wall needed a frame around the door 

and a frame around the mirror!

Here you can see the paper is installed, along with the ones in the attic room.

And that room also had artwork which needed a frame!

I have to confess that it took me a while to realize

 it would be much easier to cut the frame in one piece 

rather than building it from four separate pieces as in RL!

The oval mirror frame for the Parlor taught me that!

So there is a reason the square frames appear lumpy and irregular!

(Sorry this shot is a little blurry... it is hard to get it in focus!)

But that is not all I managed to do this week, Dear Readers, 

I also made good progress on the larger rooms 

in the other wing of the house!

 

Starting with the other attic bedroom... 

a frame was needed for the artwork....

I know it seems silly, but I really wanted all the art to have "real" frames!

And the frames that had me most worried 

were the ornate ones for the Dining room walls.

There are two very elegant framed panels that look like Chinoiserie paintings... 

and the frames are delicate gold and not straight edged but gently curved.

I started by tracing the shapes and transferring them to the card stock.

Then I very carefully cut out the center portion first, 

testing it for fit on the artwork 

before cutting the outside edge of the frame.

 

 

I made two and painted them with several coats of the antique gold paint.

I paint on the plastic because they don't stick to it. 

The overflow of the paint can be cut away from 

the edge of the frame once it has dried. 

Here you can see I am testing one of the frames on the artwork.... 

the one on the left is just the printed frame.

Here you can see the wall paper with both the frames added. 

I am so pleased with the results of these frames! 

And so glad I practiced with all the other smaller ones first!

I think the frames make such a huge difference!

Of course it is difficult to get a good well-lit picture 

once they are glued into the rooms!

And there was still the door wall for this room...

With the door frame and the mirror frame....

And I also added the baseboards in this room and the Parlor.

And that is not all, Dear Readers! 

While I was working on all those window and door frames, 

I was also pondering the exterior front door.

It is such a beautiful and elegant front door!

But something about it was bothering me.

The door frame is gorgeous. 

But it is attached over the paper front of the house 

and the "windows" in the door look much too blank and lifeless to me.

Should I make the windows look more like windows?

Should I paint them in and make them part of the door as if it is solid?

Should I go all wild and crazy and add a sparkly glittery look?

Or use a slightly less sparkly paper that still has some glitter to it..... ?

Well this is the Secret Christmas House.... 

so I went with the slightly glittery paper...

Because when the light is right.... 

it almost looks like the house is lit up inside with Christmas lights!

I have been leaving the most challenging room for last,

hoping that by the time I get to it I will have figured out what I am doing!

 

 

The end walls with the kit supplied trim still need their wall papers. 

And the entire "Drawing Room" still needs it's artwork "framed" and the doors too.

And let us not mention that I am trying to figure out curtains....

Three dimensional ones rather than the flat paper ones that come with the kit!

 

 

So you can see Dear Readers, 

I have been making great progress on this Tiny house.

The windows, doors and pictures 

are Finally nearly all framed!