velouriah

[velouriah]

“Sweet Cafe DIY Miniature Dollhouse Kit” Crafts&Co (Action, MyCuteBee) Part 2: the build!

Part 1, which shows what's in the kit and which tools and materials I used is here.

In the end, it took almost a month to build, and I did quite a bit of extra work on it. Very enjoyable little kit.

First, all the small bobs and bits.

Some of it was very fiddly, but it all came together nicely and the clay was a joy to use. The "tacky glue" was very useful, because it does not leave threads and shiny spots, and sticks right away.

The electrics are very simple, just one LED and a battery holder that fits in a compartment inside the counter. Not sure how they wanted me to tie the very thin electric wires together; in my experience there is only one reliable way to do that, and that is to solder them. While I was at it I also added a switch as the tiny switch on the battery holder is impossible to reach when everything is in place. I made a little box from offcuts to hide the switch in.

And this how it all goes together. I didn't like the wall and floor textures that came with the kit, as they were printed on a shiny type of paper. Also some walls did not even have a texture. So I replaced them. Most of the textures I used came from a little book called Craft Sensations Designpad "Textures".

I built a little deck from disposable bamboo coffee stirrers for the table and chairs to sit on, just to bring in a bit of depth.

The kit comes with plastic for the windows, and a template to cut the plastic with. But plastic scratches and warps easily and just does not have the transparancy glass has. It seemed to me that after all this work I might as well do it right, and I used real glass (from a very cheap picture frame) for the large window in the front, and the one in the roof.

So that's all for the “ Crafts & Co DIY miniatuurhuisje“ from Action for €9.99. It's pretty darn good, but it takes a bit of time and effort. Much recommended!

[velouriah]

“Sweet Cafe DIY Miniature Dollhouse Kit” Crafts&Co  (Action, MyCuteBee)

! Part 2 which shows the build is here

Action, a discounter active in the Netherlands and Belgium had this little model kit available under the name “ Crafts & Co DIY miniatuurhuisje“ for a rediculous price (under 10 euros!) and I always wanted to build one of these cute Chinese dollhouse kits, so I had to try it. But for that price, how good can it be?

I found out later that exactly the same kit is sold by other outlets, like MyCuteBee, Robotime and Amazon for a much higher price. An extremely similar but not the same kit is sold under the name “Rolife DIY Miniature Dollhouse kit DG146 Flowery Sweets & Teas “. Who copied who?

The kit is quite good actually, and also quite challenging. it says 14+  on the box, and they are not kidding. This is not a toy to keep the kids busy for an afternoon. This takes skill and patience. I’m a week in and still enjoying building it, so for now I’m just posting the contents of the box and the tools I used.

so, what’s in the box?

Air drying colored clay. It’s pretty good! I wish I could buy this stuff seperately. Works just like FIMO but without all the baking. I recommend putting the clay in small, seperate ziploc bags immediately after opening. It can be blended and is perfect for making small sweet treats. The white paint is not great, I decided on using Vallejo acrylic paints instead. I laughed when I saw the brush, but actually, it’s not that bad for painting larger surfaces.

1 LED, battery holder (battery not included. It takes 2 cr2032 batteries). a bit of sandpaper, a bit of sticky plastic, 3 heat shrink tubes.

various parts for making the accessoiries

all the printed parts. These are nice and detailed, but printed on shiny paper, which did not work well for the walls. I decided to use different textures on the walls and floor. Manual is concise, but clear enough. For me, it was helpful to find a few pictures online of what the finished product should look like.

All the lasercut parts. They are many and very well made; the parts came out of their frames easily, none broke, and they fit together great. Some are already painted. I recommend an x-acto knife with straight chisel type blade for getting the parts out.

There are lasercut paper parts as well. Again, very well made. And there is a transparent sheet for the windows that comes with a printed paper guide to help you cut the windows just right.

So on to the tools needed to build this. All of the items in this picture were bought at Action. I  used the glue spray for large surfaces like walls, and tacky glue for almost everything else. “Tacky glue” is brilliant stuff for small fiddly work!

I used their version of an x-acto knife with various blades, and a boxcutter, tweezers, and they had these bamboo stirring sticks that I used to add some extra detail. As I said, I did not care for the shiny wall and floor textures that came with the set, and some walls have no texture and are supposed to be painted. So I used textures from the little books “Textures” and “Vintage Flowers” instead.

And from specialized modelling retailers I got miniature plyers, miniature two sided tape, yellow masking tape for modellers (Tamiya), paint for modellers (Vallejo). A cutting mat and a good ruler are also needed of course. A large needle, or bamboo stick will do for applying glue.

I had this box of miniature fruit slices in my drawer somewhere and I think these are sold as nail decorations. They are just perfect for adding a bit of extra detail. Also, I used a few miniature eyelets.

Part 2: the build!

[velouriah]

I like your Iroh beard and why are you putting yourself down?! I think what you put out so far looks good!

because I’m the sort of person that won’t commit. Always fluttering around like a butterfly, but never investing enough to become truly good at something.

[velouriah]

[velouriah]

Hi! I really love your avatar cc for the sims! Are you planning on making any more?

I’ve made a few things I think were not good enough to publish, like Iroh’s beard, and I started on a series of wall flags but I didn’t think there was much use for those... Anything in particular you would like? I’m not a very good creator, mind you.

[velouriah]

[velouriah]

[velouriah]

[velouriah]

[velouriah]

[velouriah]

Smith Smithson of Wootton Major by Velouriah

[velouriah]

#thesims #s4s #sims4cc #s4cc #ts4CAS #ts4 male #realm of magic

[velouriah]

Escape from the Thangorodrim by Velouriah

[velouriah]

Escape from the Thangorodrim by Velouriah

[velouriah]

Feanor the Gemsmith. For Feanorianweek 2020 by Velouriah

[velouriah]

Maglor's regrets - for Feanorianweek 2020! by Velouriah

[velouriah]

Roac son of Carc and the Thrush by Velouriah