Flooring as Wainscoting: seems like leftover flooring would work well for wainscoting. Use some small picture frame molding or Houseworks or other brand decorative wall molding as a chair rail topper -- that will provide decorative detailing. Minimize the resemblance to the floor by using a different wood finish or painting the wainscot, and trim the wall woodwork so the seams between boards do not align exactly with the flooring seams.

Loretta.Sniarowski

Flooring as Wainscoting: Wainscoting usually has beveled edges, while flooring does not. I would take an icepick/awl, and run it over the joints between floorboards to make the edges slightly less sharp. Do this by sticking the point in the joint, and pulling the handle to drag the point while exerting some pressure in the joint. Don't push in the direction of the point, or you can gouge the wood. I hope this is clear... Since the wood floor is probably oak or cherry, and the baseboard and chair rail moldings are probably basswood, you should stain them separately. The basswood will take the stain differently than the flooring, so you should experiment with the staining. Maybe the moldings will need an extra coat or one less coat of stain, or you might have to try a mixing the stain with a different color to match the flooring/wainscoting. Of course, if you will be painting, color matching isn't a problem.

Jonathan in Israel

Wainscoting: I wonder if those sticks for stirring coffee would work for wainscoting. They are flat, thin and with the pens for staining could be stained easily before applying. If you are working in 1 inch scale they'd be about 3-4 inches wide, about 6 inches in half scale. Here in the states you can get a box of about 1000 for very little money - sometimes even in the dollar store.

Callie

Wainscoting: I have done wainscoting from mat board. I was very pleased with the results. I cut long strips the length of the wall and added smaller pieces to look like panels. I used off-white and stained it with an oil based stain to match the floor. Topped with wooden molding.

Martha Simpson

Spray Gesso for Furniture: Yes, the spray gesso is wonderful for furniture. Remember to spray in short spurts. Turn your can upside down for the final spray to clear the nuzzle. Light applications are the key. Continue until the flaws are hidden and the surface well prepped.

Becky

I now have a Harry Potter home in our living room, it is an old t.v case, wooden with a large plexi glass front, and one room is Professor Snape with his potions, the middle is the castle, and the end is Hermione and Ron and Harry doing mischief in a cauldron! I got a large mirror like a secret door into another world for my birthday from Julia, on this list, and it has steps up into the mirror and Harry and Hermione and Ron may be led off into there after working up their potion by the looks of it! Things keep moving around in there and there is plexi glass as I said so it isn't the cats and dogs moving them. just magic!!!!!

Robbie Roo Pink Cyberfaery

Dremel: Home Depot gives Dremel lessons. They will even do a group class for your mini club; just call them if there's one near you. Or, try their website: http://www.dremel.com/html/started/started.html

Stacey Torres

Dremel: If you visit their web site http://www.dremel.com/html/home_fr.html you will find a wealth of information there. If you go to the Customer Service page, Literature request, you can order a product catalog and a copy of Projects for the Imagination Uses Guide for Rotary Tools for free. They also have an owners' club and hundreds of projects on their Project Finder page, complete with photo instructions and a list of everything you need to do the project. It is probably one of the best web sites I have ever run across

David

Dremel: I could not work without my Dremel - I use it for practically everything. If I could only have one bit I think a fiber cut off wheel might be the choice because I could use it to saw and sand. Of course I wouldn't give up any of my bits and I have tons - from diamond to router bits - - I NEED them all. if you are chipping wood or gouging it, you may be putting too much pressure. I was taught a long time ago to always use gentle pressure with any cutting tool (Sanders included) to allow the tool to do the work. Otherwise you will wear out the tool and the bits rather than sand or cut your work piece. Don't give up on that tool though - it is probably the most valuable one you have!

Jacqui in Hilo, Goddess of Chaos

The bucking Dremel (not a Western tale): Any rotating bit will buck when it is applied to a surface when it rotating at too high a speed. If you are going to use the rotating bit at a high speed to start with (you will have to let me know which bit it was) then you must very slowly apply it to the surface it is going to work on. Occasionally I also will have a bit buck on me and I immediately move it off the surface it is bucking on and gently place it back on the surface I also may slow down the speed. Sanding drums will hardly buck, the bits hat mostly will buck are the ones that bite into the wood. The are the ones that work by removing very small chunks of the wood while a sanding wheel or drum abrades the wood. If you are using a side cutting bit and this is the one that is bucking or stuttering (that is the phrase used) sometimes you just have to hold the drill tighter and put more pressure onto the bit until it is removing those tiny chunks of wood. The wood that is being worked on has to be firmly held in place. This loose wood will also cause the stuttering (sorry but it is also referred to as chattering. [ both stuttering and chattering are very descriptive words for what we are discussing.)

The loose stock is also a good example of why the wood in a scroll saw has to be firmly held against the table of the saw. The teeth of the saw blade in the scroll saw must always face down so they are pulling the wood to be cut down against the table. If the wood is not held firmly, it will be lifted up by the up stroke of the blade and slammed down on the down stroke, considering the speed of the scroll saw the wood chatters. Like every thing else; experience and hands on practice smooth out the problems attendant with any new procedure or tool experience.

Bob