Finishing the Bedroom
Unfortunately, I lost all the original photos for this post, so I can only share the finished images.
This room has an unusual shape due to the attached hallway. While there are no inaccessible areas, completing the room is challenging because of the narrow hallway and L-shaped layout.
Before I can start on this room, I need to add a faux door partition for the bathroom. This custom partition is not included in the dollhouse kit, and since the bathroom lacks a door, I decided to create one for added privacy and realism. I used balsa wood because it is easy to cut. Make sure to choose balsa wood that is 1/8" thick, matching the thickness of the dollhouse kit.
Once you have cut out the partition from the balsa wood, use the walkway from the second-floor staircase room as a template for the door. Place the cut balsa wood against the walkway and lightly trace with a pencil to transfer the opening onto your partition extension. Since balsa wood is soft, be careful not to press too hard while tracing. Now, your faux door will match the size of the walkway, creating a symmetrical look that appears as if it was part of the original dollhouse design.
After cutting out the door shape, glue the partition in place. It doesn’t need to be perfect at the ceiling since any small gaps will be covered by wallpaper and ceiling trim. However, it should be flush at the bottom to avoid a wide gap between the door and floor. You will need to finish installing this faux door because part of the partition is wallpapered. Balsa wood is ideal for this project since you can insert doorknobs while the door is in place.
Once the partition is dry, it’s time to wallpaper. Start with the window wall, then move on to the long wall with the staircase walkway. Finally, wallpaper the L-shaped wall that extends into both the bedroom and hallway. Use one sheet of wallpaper and fold it over at the corner for a smooth finish when applying paste. Take a scrap piece of wallpaper and cover the faux door, joining it to the existing wallpaper piece with the seam facing toward the bedroom for better concealment.
Apply ceiling paper in a similar manner as with other rooms. Create a template and transfer it onto your ceiling paper for cutting. Be cautious since this ceiling is L-shaped, ensuring no glue gets on your wallpapered walls.
After finishing with wallpapering, you can lay down the flooring.
Once the flooring is in place, you can begin working on trim. Start by staining the faux door and then frame it with trim on both sides and at the top. This will make it look more like a real door. Next, apply trim to the staircase room's walkway. Once this trim is in place, you will see raw wood on the interior edge of the walkway between two trim pieces. Paint this edge with stain that matches your trim color to hide it effectively. Using homemade stain can be beneficial here; I used brown acrylic paint mixed for my stain to paint this edge. If you find it difficult to cover with regular wood stain, you may need to purchase trim that matches in width and cover up any raw edges. However, be cautious as trimming around an arched walkway can be tricky. Finally, apply trim along both floors and ceilings.
Taking pictures of certain areas can be challenging due to limited visibility. For instance, I trimmed around the opening into the bedroom on its inner edge; you can see where binder clips are holding everything in place. To properly trim this opening, use a handheld mirror to guide your work.
