This means that building the staircase should go fairly quickly because all I have to is sand the parts and begin putting them together. I will stain the whole thing later when it's completely assembled and the glue is dry. Keep in my mind that I’m using Aleene’s tacky glue to build this assembly because it dries clear. Wood glue will leave a yellowish tint on it. Only use wood glue for pieces you plan on painting over later.
This staircase is a bit complicated to build. You will find that it's hard to keep the pieces together and prevent other ones from falling apart. Clamp a lot and have patience. Sooner or later, the glue will hold and the pieces will stay together.
Once I had the frame of the staircase completely clamped up and drying, I began putting in the landings. I know the instructions tell you to go step by step and riser by riser in a numbered order, but the clamps will not let me work on much of those areas. I decided that putting in the landings will really help make the whole structure sturdier. I also assembled the steps and risers that go on the landings. I will reinforce it a little later on by adding more glue along the seams underneath the staircase to make sure that every little area was covered.
Keep in mind that this staircase has to be forced into the dollhouse. This usually is accompanied with a lot of pressure being put on your sub-assembly. You have to assume the staircase will have to be hammered into place so you want to make it very sturdy and able to take the pressure without falling apart. The more you can reinforce your dollhouse assemblies, the better.
I took a small glue bottle filled with wood glue and turned the staircase upside down, without removing any clamps. I began squeezing glue into all of the joints on its underside. If the glue bottle is too big to fit all the way in, let the glue slowly run down the joint by turning the staircase in a direction that will help it along. Be very generous. Remember this is the underside of the structure, so it won't be seen. After all the underside joints are covered in glue, set the staircase down on something it can drip on but not get glued to. A piece of parchment paper is fine. Leave it overnight.
