The Partition
Usually with this dollhouse, the left side second floor room is used as a bathroom but if you have been following this assembly, you may have noticed that I made that room into a nursery. It is a very large room and unless you have a pretty full bathroom with large pieces, it can look a bit stark.
I decided to make my bathroom in the very small left side third floor room since I have very small bathroom furniture by Chrysnbon. But this room does not have a door. I had to bash it and create a partition wall with a faux door so it could be a bathroom.
You can add your partition wall before or after your ceiling paper has been applied. It will not interfere with it.
First, I cut a slab of balsa wood to the height of the ceiling. This balsa wood slab happens to be the right width for the area that I am trying to create the partition for so I did not have to trim anything from the sides. I recommend balsa wood because it is the right thickness and easy cut with scissors so it's friendly for people without power tools. You can also use foam core that is 1/8" thick.
I then placed an interior door from the dollhouse kit in the center of my partition wall cut out and traced it. I then dry fit what I had so far to the area that I want to cover. The balsa wood slab joins seamlessly to the existing wall.
As you can see from the photos, I have added length to the short, already existing wall in this area, closing off the small room.
I added a door knob to the "faux" door and I also added the stencil designs that all the other doors have. It's starting to look like a real door that came with the kit.
I glued the partition in place.
You have to cut your wallpaper around the faux door in order to wallpaper, on both sides.
The Floor
I decided to use a scrapbook paper sheet I had that happens to look like tile for the flooring of this bathroom. It is also the same color that is in the wallpaper I used.
You do not need a template for this square room. Just present your flooring paper and crease it on one of the sides so you know where to cut for the perfect fit, just like you would wallpaper on walls.
Then you can glue your flooring paper using the same glue you used for wallpaper.
After the paper was dry, I sealed it with gloss varnish for shine and protection. The varnish makes it look like tile. This was also the only sheet of scrapbook paper I had of this type and it is old so I doubt I will be able to find it again. I want to make sure it doesn't become damaged during the rest of the assembly and sealing it will allow for any stain to be cleaned up easily.
The Walls
I wasn't satisfied with just wallpaper in this room. I wanted to have at least one room in this dollhouse with bead board. I am quite partial to it.
They sell mini bead board but you can make your own from scratch at a fraction of the price.
I like using skinny sticks. Skinny sticks are different from the wood strips that you can use for baseboard or basic trim. They come in a bag, are smaller in length and have beveled sides. It's these bevels that create very nice beadboarding.
You can make your beadboard as high or as low as you want but I made mines three inches up the wall, the same measurement as door knobs have. Since this room has dormer windows, I wanted to make sure that the beadboard did not interrupt with their assembly.
You have to cut all of your skinny sticks to the right size and begin gluing them to the wall, one by one. Use a binder clip to hold the first one in place so it doesn't shift your pattern.
You will be tempted to paint your skinny sticks before installation and though it would be so much easier to do so, it will give you hassles in the long run. These skinny sticks are made of birch and the really warp when painted. You really don't want warped skinny sticks because there is no way to clamp them to the wall so they lay flat against it. I suggest you paint them later so they are as flat as possible during this installation. Glue does not warp the skinny sticks, thankfully.
Skinny sticks seem tough and not easily cut but they cut very easily with scissors lengthwise. This is useful for when you reach the corner of the wall. Though easily cut lengthwise, they aren't easily cut to height so I recommend the Easy Cutter.
Once you reach the door, you have to make your door trim, on both sides.
When the glue is dry, paint your beadboard being very careful to not ruin your floors. You can see how much I can appreciate sealing the flooring paper now. Best thing is, no warping.
I added baseboards on the bottom of the bead board and I have to add a trim to the top but I can not do it now since the dormer windows are not up yet.
Keep In Mind
You never want to add trim to anything before the kits parts are in place. Your trim could interfere with the assembly of certain components, so I will finish this beadboard once those windows are in place.
