I've never built a house from a kit before. The instructions look fairly clear and there are not too many pieces to the puzzle.
The siding is already milled in. That will save me tons of time. There are no shingles included so I'll need to decide what kind of roof I want.
The kit is made out of MDF, not plywood. What little I know about MDF is that it can warp and doesn't like water or water-based paint. There are also safety concerns when cutting and sanding this product. I will need to wear a mask and work outside to avoid inhaling the dust which contains formaldehyde. It's already sanded nicely, but I want to sand it some more.
It's almost like getting a new pet. I just want to hold it and pet it for a while before I do anything else. I'm afraid to do anything else! I don't want to ruin it. I want it to turn out exactly like the picture I have in my head. :D
I would really appreciate any advice you have for dealing with MDF wood. I've read some online but nothing specific about dollhouses. Do I need to seal the wood with something before I start painting?
Maybe I need to have a good old fashioned "garage raising?
3 comments:
Definitely seal it first. I have used various methods: 50:50 water/PVA solution, bog standard white emulsion, 50:50 water and emulsion and a specialist MDF primer paint.
They all worked fine for me the straight emulsion undercoat took the longest to apply.
It all depends what colour you are going to put on top as only the PVA mix will be clear. I have also sealed with a diluted mix of grey emulsion when I was decorating a house in grey stone, so you can seal with a colour to provide a base for the top coat.
Bit rambling but I hope this helps.
My first dollhouse was MDF and I did nothing special with it as I did not know your were supposed to. I bought ordinary house paint and used that. I never had any problem with warping but the only problem I had was trying to put electricity in the house. The wood was sooo hard that I just could not hammer those little brads in it.
You've described it perfect... the need to pet it and the fear to ruin it by doing anything... ;O) But away with the fear, you'll be doing it fine, no doubt!
Greetings
Birgit
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