I went ahead and prepared the tin ceiling for the kitchen. I wanted the look of silver tin but it is not easy to get these plastic styrene sheets to take on paint, especially silver. You have to sand them a bit first, to roughen them up. This helps the paint adhere better. Even so, I had to give it three coats of paint, two gray and a top coat of the silver. It was the only way to keep the white from showing through. It doesn't show up on the camera photo but it actually has a slight, antique, blotchy look to it.
While that dried, I continued preparing the bedroom/hallway partition. It is already wallpapered but I had to remove a few tabs so it slides into place without destroying the finishes on it or around it.
I installed the second floor staircase first. It goes in without a problem while the bedroom/hallway partition is off. I then installed the bedroom/hallway partition. Keep in mind that these staircases are never square with the rest of the dollhouse, no matter how well you kept them straight during assembly. Even if you assembled your staircase with laser precision, it would be all for nothing, since the surrounding walls aren't completely square. Remember that this staircase will be covered with a back wall and only a small area of it will be visible from the bathroom closet, at an angle. This hides the fact that it looks slightly crooked when viewed from the back. When you look at the staircase from the front or through the top opening, it looks just fine.
I tried to come up with an ingenious way of viewing the winding, first floor staircase to no avail. There is nothing I can modify to make it more visible.
I went ahead and installed the ceiling trim in the foyer and stairwell. Not an easy thing to do. I also installed the second floor staircase railing. I still need to do some touch ups in this area but for the most part, it's complete. A good thing since it's becoming more and more inaccessible with time.
After the staircase and bedroom/hallway partition is installed, you can continue the flooring on the second floor. You can also apply the ceiling paper now. It will be difficult to get into all of the nooks and crannies up here, especially in the bathroom closet but again, the Greenleaf Vinyl Floor makes the job a lot easier. The flooring also hides any gaps around your staircase and staircase railing. I dry fit the bedrooms double doors so I can apply flooring around them since they will not be hinged and will not be moveable. For the bathroom doorway, the flooring must be continuous since this door will move.
The bathroom door is going to be hinged but I am hinging it on the trim that faces the upstairs hallway so that it opens outwards. This bathroom is too tiny for a door to open into it. So I am installing the door trim that faces into the bathroom first. That way I will be able to sand, spackle and paint the inside edge. Since the door opens, this edge will be visible and can not be finished with the door in the way. Binder clamps will give you a nice tight fit, not allowing any gaps.
You must hinge and install your bathroom door before you install the bedroom double doors. You will need this access point in order to reach into this hallway. All of your windows should also be open, with exterior trim installed only. The interior trim, with the acetate panes, should be left for last so that you have access points through the windows, throughout the dollhouse.
