Sadie’s Fancy Tiny House

What a super-cute house kit; I could not resist buying this final one. When it came to making it, though, I dragged my feet on and off for three months, and then I heard that my friend’s niece might want it, and I finished it up in just two days. Now that I know a child might enjoy it, I wish I’d taken more care earlier. Still, I bet she’ll peer in and imagine the tiny inhabitants, if only for a few minutes of delight.

Rooftop Art Studio

This is the funky area I bought the kit to make.

Maybe these tiny people live by the ocean and do gardening up here in between feeling inspired by the view to paint.

This is my first real success making realistic roses. So tiny!

Intricate Lamps and Windows

Making chandeliers is my favorite tiny house activity. I cut each wire and bend it just so, gather the clear beads and glue them on, then hold the chandelier until the glue dries. I have to stick the whole thing to the ceiling before I attach it while it’s upside down, so I can glue the lighting wires so they’re out of the way. It’s only when I turn the ceiling right side up that I know if the whole thing has survived wiring and is in the right place above the room.

The second chandelier ended up much droopier than I’d like, but maybe it’s a Hotel California model.

These stained glass windows and privacy screen are lovely touches. They’re really thin stickers I cut out and adhered to the frames.

Living Spaces

Check out the details in the bedroom.

Soft curtains behind the wardrobe glass. An anachronistic (but cute!) feather quill on the desk.

This is the sitting room off the bedroom, before I had to rearrange it to fit in the ladder to go to the rooftop studio. Think Sadie will like how the candlestick looks like the one in Beauty and the Beast?

The living area gets an old-fashioned telephone and a gramophone, both hard to see here, but I bet she will find them.

After I finished and had taken photos and was writing Sadie a note, I realized I’d never put a cake on the cake plate in the kitchen. I had saved tiny rolls of cupcakes, so I sliced them and arranged them as a centerpiece for her. The fruit on the counter was a last-minute addition, too.

Process

I was looking forward to making the sofa and taking pictures along the way, but it’s not as neat a product as I’d like. Still, you can see the process here. I cut the leather and the stuffing for each tiny section and made each cushion and seat and the back and arms.

The leather isn’t as seamless as I’d like, but once it’s in place with contrasting pillows and a table in front of it, the illusion is stronger. If I could get back there now, I’d glue on more of the gold beads around the arms as trim.

Tiny Details

The plates on display in the kitchen have different designs for each center. The yellow balls as flowers are so light I had a hard time keeping them from floating away before I could apply glue. The chairs had to be assembled one stick at a time.

And those scissors! Tinier even than the tea set. Each piece had to be measured, cut, assembled, and glued.

Glass Piano

These pieces came in a sheet of plastic; I punched them out, peeled off sticky paper that was protecting them, and glued them together best I could. I hope Sadie lights this up at night on her bedroom dresser and imagines Elton John signing her to sleep.

Here’s a shot from in the bathroom, kinda dark.

And, you can see the size of the house here as I’m working on it with a drink on the porch). That’s before the rooftop garden or any of the stairs or handrails.

It sure is tiny!

I especially enjoy that I did most of the work a few days before before she arrives for her special family vacation in this very house. I’m leaving it for her on the kitchen table with my note. Happy Tiny House, Sadie!