1/4 Scale Teapot Walls: I think if you really want to wallpaper the inside of your teapot then you should at least give it a try.

Karon

1/4 Scale Teapot Walls: Jane, what about painting the walls instead of using wallpaper in your 1/4" teapot? If you want some design, maybe if you cut a narrow strip for a border, you could more easily glue that around the "room". I made a 1/4" scene in a paper mache teapot. Didn't like the way some of it looked when just painted or collaged, so I covered the outside with stucco, making it as smooth as possible when applying it. Then I sanded it down after it dried completely. Wanting it to look like a "china teapot," I wanted flowers on it, and instead of trying to paint it myself, I bought some of the rub-on floral pages and I was very pleased with the outcome. I used gloss varnish on it after all the flowers were in place. For the inside, I painted the walls with a stucco look, or light textured look by tearing up pieces of Kleenex in little pieces, painting a spot on the wall, picking up the Kleenex piece with my brush and laying it over the wet paint. You have to work with it a little, but after a few times, you will get the knack of it. It hid all the blemishes the paper mache had and I was pleased with the look when done.

Marjorie in CA

1/4 Scale Teapot Walls: If you HAVE to wallpaper, I suggest building a 3 sided box that will fit inside and square things up. Ceramic is NOT good to wallpaper. Measure depth and width inside pot. Cut one long piece of cardboard or fiberboard, score at measured depths, wallpaper it. Then bend it and place inside

LadyBug, Sue Thwaite

1/4 Scale Teapot Walls: The only way I know to paper a curved surface would be to cut small slices in the paper, fit it, and then cut out the overlap so it will lay flat. You might just want to paint the inside and then use an eraser to print a design.

Jacqui in Hilo, HI

1/4 Scale Teapot Walls: I like Loretta's idea for a wallpaper border at chair rail height for the curved walls of your teapot. You could paint the wall first, leave the top part above the border a plain color, then maybe use several colors to "rag" or sponge on the bottom. Choose one of the colors from the border, and then go several shades lighter so it won't be too bright.

Marilyn - Wisconsin

1/4 Scale Teapot Walls: Suggest pre-painting and then apply whimsical decals? Model railroad stores and a few mini shops have a solvent that makes decals more flexible than usual so they may conform to the interesting back shape. If you build false walls, don't lose the in-between space entirely. Paint and "plant" a backdrop on the pot wall and include a window or two in your false wall. Plan ahead so windows align with point of greatest "exterior" depth.

Mel in Vegas

1/4 Scale Teapot Walls: Why not just use strips or squares of patterned tissue paper or paper napkins and decoupage them on the teapot walls. The paper is thin and more forgiving than the thicker true wallpaper and would allow you to follow the curves better.It won't be an even, neat lining up like true wallpaper and you will still have wrinkles, but they will be less obvious and it will add some color and a semblance of wallpaper.

Parisa

Floors, ceilings and walls: After reading some of the suggestions on wallpaper I thought I would make my contribution for those of you looking for something a bit different and not too expensive.

FLOORS:: I like to 'decorate floors' in different ways. I have used thin pieces of cork in a room that has a beach theme. Just give it a coat of sealer. Looks great. I have also used mat board bought at Michael's out on their sidewalk sale. A black marble look with a sealer makes a good looking floor and the cost of the mat board was .25 to 1.00 for a small to a very large piece.

On the floor of my oriental room I am using handmade paper with a texture to it. This I purchased at a paper specialty store for $3.50 for a sheet. Enough to do a floor and a ceiling in a 12" by 20" room.

CEILING:: As I mentioned above I have used handmade paper. For another textured look I have painted the ceiling white and then torn pieces of white tissue paper and using 'Mod Podge'. I cover a small area and lay the tissue down and wrinkle it a bit to make the texture. I repeat this overlapping the edges until ceiling is covered. You can paint over it white or another color if you wish. Makes an interesting ceiling. I have also used "Paint'N Tex which gives a sand texture look. You put it into any paint mixture and paint it on. The brand name I used is "HOMAX" The last is using Wallboard Joint Compound. Spread on an area and then use a sponge and dab at it. This makes the textured look I use for the Southwestern look.

WALLS:: Here you can use the Joint Compound, the Paint 'N Tex method, the handmade paper which I used again in my Oriental Room, and something I am now trying is using brown wrapping paper. You tear the paper into pieces, wet them and spread out to dry. Using "Mod Podge" glue them down overlapping the edges. Then paint. It is very like the tissue paper method but heavier. You could do this for the ceiling too.

I have also used cloth by ironing onto a piece of heavy cardboard or mat board with "stitch witchery" or "wonder under" then gluing the board on to the wall. I have also made wainscoting using cloth.

Making Southwestern room walls I have used Styrofoam and covered it with Joint compound and the sponge method. If using foam core for this method you will have to coat the back as well with a layer of compound.

NOTE:: I do not remember where I got the cork pieces but have seen cork in Ben Franklin.

The paper Specialty store is "Paper Paper Paper" and I don't know if it is just local but I'm sure there are others.

Any questions? Write me. HoyleHH@aol.com

Ethel in Tucson

checkerboard pattern. Look in Wal-Mart and the crafts stores' stencil - scrapbooking sections for the rub-on paint transfers. Several include checkerboard patterns mixed with florals or all by themselves in blue, red, green and white. Very easy to use and look nice. The small patterns are a gift to those of us who are painting-impaired and want that hand-decorated look on our mini hutches and other pieces.

Loretta.Sniarowski

Japanese items, There is a relatively new name out there and we have seen her work. It is not only wonderful, it is very authentic. The packaging even includes information on how thing are displayed and done in Japan and tips to make everything all the more authentic. Contact her at: Tchrismore@yahoo.com

Rick Maranville

Flock wallpaper: Flock wallpaper has a raised pattern that has a "suede" like feel to it.It first became popular in the mid - late 18th century at a time whenelaborate wallpaper designs were used to cover wide expanses of bare wall (not everyone could afford paintings). Its popularity went on into the Victorian period and enjoyed a short revival in the 1970's. It is now morecommonly found in pubs, restaurants and hotels than private homes. I sell a miniature version through my website if you want to take a look.

http://www.littlebylittle.co.uk

Karon

Suede papers: If you want flocked or suede paper and don't live near a scrapbook store, you can find and order it on line at these two sites. I have ordered from the second one and been very happy with the service and the product.

http://www.wintechint.com/html/suedecolors_crafts.html

http://www.paper-paper.com/fuzzy-paper.html

Vickie in Wisconsin

Wallpaper: I used regular wallpaper in all my rooms. There are hundreds of patterns available with very tiny prints or stripes that work perfectly well. I also don't use special wallpaper pastes, etc. I get pre-pasted paper and moisten the back with a soft sponge. Then I spread ready-to-use wallpaper paste on the back (lightly), and wait about five minutes for the paste to "activate." A paper hanger I know said paste is important even if the paper is pre-pasted, since there are often "bare or uneven spots" when the paper comes from the factory. You can go to some of the large paper stores that have huge inventory, often a large sample is enough to do a room.

Jan in Charlotte

Decorating with Real Wallpaper: If you have a Home Depot in your area I have found they will give you a big enough sample piece for most rooms and especially ceilings. They have one great white paper with the raised pattern that simulates the fancy old ceilings. I use this often. (There are several so be sure to really look at them only the one works well. In 144th you can use a lot of these by thinking in parts and pieces more then the full pattern. Example: part of a stripe might make great wainscoting or a thin stripe of gold may be cut out as a trim piece or part of one stripe and part of the adjoining one may be the wainscot and wallpaper above it all in one. A finely marbled piece makes fireplace fronts, hearths and bathroom, entry or hall floors. A lot of ways you can go to get the look you want. I do a lot of hand painting of paper pattern on walls in my 144th but that is just another option.

Anita McNary-Haynes

Hanging Pictures: I have used both miniwax and rubber cement and found that the Miniwax a: stains the wallpaper over a long period of time and b: melts in hot weather and allows stuff to fall. It is messy to remove as well. Rubber cement holds better but also stains over time. My best solution so far is to hang things the way you would real pictures, with tiny nails for the frames or a picture wire to hang on. It isn't always practical. If the picture will stay on the wall permanently, I just use tacky glue, but if you want to remove it later.....well, you get the idea.

Bonnie GIbson -Tucson, Arizona

Victorian kitchens: The book (Victorian Dollhouses, by Nick Forder, 1996) was written in England, so I don't know if all the information is accurate for America, but here's some of the information from the chapter on kitchens.

It says the kitchen was a place of work, often the domain of servants, and therefore not decorated or ornamented. [I think that would be true even in the US in quite humble homes where we wouldn't expect servants. There would still be the hired help who'd do most of the kitchen work.] In larger homes there would be a scullery for household chores and pantries for the storage of china, equipment, and foods. By the 1870s some households had gas and running water. Also, the later in the era your house is set, the more likely that the lady of the house would have to be doing more of the work and things would be more comfortable in the kitchen.

As for finishes, the walls were painted in neutral colors of beige, cream, or gray. The lower part of the wall often had a wainscoting, painted the same color as the rest of the walls and the ceiling. Sometimes wallpaper might be hung above the wainscoting and varnished in order to be cleaned easily. Floors were often of oiled and varnished hardwood with a hard, fireproof base inset for the stove. Rag rugs, carpet pieces, or decorated oilcloths might soften the floors.

Once linoleum was invented [it doesn't say when that was, but it sounds like the latter part of the 19th century], that was very popular for kitchens.

By the 1850s ornamented cast-iron stoves with bright nickel-plated decoration were fashionable. Wooden iceboxes and pie safes were still in use. The main pieces of furniture in the room were a big central table (with drawers for utensils), plumbed-in sink (could even have faucets by the end of the era, instead of a pump), reliable stove, side tables to facilitate work routines, and adequate shelf space, either in shelves hung on the wall or in free-standing cupboards.

The book also has some description specifically about the American kitchen: it says that the aftermath of the Civil War brought more rapid changes in America than in England. The American kitchen of the 1890s showed early signs of a style we recognize today. There was now room for hospitality as well as work, since the lady of the house was in the room more of the day and might use the kitchen as a place to visit over a cup of tea. Chinaware was displayed and grocery store items were stored within easy reach. Manufacturers by the end of the century designed appealing packaging so the housewife would display their products on open shelves along with the preserved foods and crockery. The really well equipped kitchen could have shelves all around the walls.

Some equipment to remember: teapot, mixing bowls, butter churn, storage jars of ceramic, bread dough crock, flatirons, clothes drying rack, spice cabinet, broom, coffee grinder, fly swatter, kitchen clock, dishcloths, drain board. You'd always find a pastry board and cutters, rolling pin, mincing or grinding machine, scales, iron or copper pots, kettles, knives and choppers, and that latest item, the jelly mold.

The text doesn't mention lighting, but there are pictures of some dollhouse kitchens, and they show ceiling light fixtures of simple hanging glass lamps. I suppose they would have been gas fixtures in the real kitchens of the 19th century, though my great-uncle remembered his family home being electrified around the turn of the century through an ingenious system of batteries kept down in the basement. I guess it depends on how modern our Victorians are and whether they're American or British.

Kay Dreher

Basement: I have a basement in my big house that has a front and back facade and open on the sides so I could have a central hall with rooms on both sides. The basement is 10" tall and that area on the front and back was built up with storeroom until it was nearly to the from and back door levels. I left enough space between the Styrofoam and doors for a small porch area at the front door and a step into the back door. So there I was with this large white Styrofoam vertical area in the front and back. The sides were angled down so it looked like you were looking through the cut area of the earth to see into the basement. I glued strips of newspaper to the Styrofoam as a base for my "rocks". After this had dried, I used strips of newspaper and the paper mache method. I wadded up the newspaper strips into stuck them to the newspaper base until I was satisfied with this rocky appearance. I left the horizontal area flat that for the front and back lawn. The vertical area in the front and back and all the side areas, I painted gray and then with a black wash to fill the crevices.

Fay

Stucco: You need facial tissue, a stiff bristle brush (1/2 inch wide or so) and paint in the color you want the stucco to be. Lots of people use this method, (not my invention) very realistic and not as messy as the real stucco. This is not a sandy looking stucco, it is like the thick plaster type stucco.

1. If two ply tissue, separate into single ply and roll into as tight a ball as you can. Then carefully open up completely but don't smooth out the wrinkles. If you're doing a large area have several tissue balls ready. Use plain white tissue, no oils or perfumes.

2. Put a thick coat of paint on a small area and lay the tissue over the painted area.

3. Using a stenciling technique (but not a stencil brush-too fat), stipple paint over top of the tissue with the stiff bristle brush. Don't use as much paint here as underneath the tissue, and don't use brush strokes as this will tear the tissue. You should be dabbing the paint on with the tip of the brush.

And remember, the tissue will not stick to a surface if there is no paint underneath or if the paint underneath has dried.

Mary Kay

Fabric for Wallpaper: Saw some instructions on applying fabric as wallpaper the other day. They suggested using carpet tape. Why don't you use the sticky backed foam board you mount needlework onto? Just cut it the size you want for the walls and paper it w/o being inside your dh. Don't forget to leave an overlap on the first wall so when you put the next one on, it will show joined and not showing a crack.

Lisa

Wallpaper? NO, PAINT!

For all of you out there who are having so many problems with wallpaper, didn't you ever think of painting? I've done several projects where I wanted the pattern in fabric and other things instead of on the walls and you can get a textured look on the walls without stucco. Just cut poster board to the size of your walls (I think the kind that is kind of glazed on one side works better because it doesn't absorb the paint). Then paint on a base coat and start sponging all over with different colors. One project I did started out with the walls painted a Pepto-Bismol pink. Then I sponged on burgundy, maroon, red, brown, etc. When it was finished it had depth and slightly resembled old leather. There wasn't even a hint of that pink peeking through, but all the different layers gave it the depth I wanted. Used it for the walls of a Victorian antique shop. Use the Ceramcoat or similar acrylic paints and a makeup sponge. Don't just sponge it here and there, but all over and overlapping a little. I think you could also get a stucco look using this same method and very light-colored paints. If you want a slight sheen, finish it off with some matte acrylic spray. And if you mess it up, just go over it with another coat of paint. It not only solves the wallpaper problem, but it's really fun to do!

Sandy