Winging It

I went and looked at the Orrery this morning and hated it. It's the wooden post in the center and the fact that none of the planets or whatever they are, are orbiting the center orb. I went and did some research and I am starting over.........Tomorrow. I don't feel like making a trip to the hardware store this morning. They open late on Sundays.

Sooooo. What to do? I decided that it was about time that I got the kitchen wing put on the Clockwork Cottage. I need to be able to ascertain what all I can cram into the secret room and the kitchen.

I had the floors and the end wall cut. I needed the front wall and the roof pieces. Forget the roof pieces for now. I won't need them til later and I am going to have to do some weird angles the way that part of the house is going to be shaped.

I got out my trusty keyhole saw and drill for cutting windows. I didn't have those cut in the end piece. Marked, but not cut.

Here you can finally get a good look at what I am talking about when I say "keyhole saw". This one is about 25 years old and still going strong. The newer ones have fancier handles, but work the same.

First I used the drill to cut a few holes in opposite corners of the part that I wanted to cut out. Then I simply started sawing where the holes were towards the corner between the two holes. The keyhole saw will cut a curve if you use the tip. Then when you get to the straight line you can use the length of the saw and let it do the work.

In case you are wondering about the corners where the holes are, you start at the straight line and work back towards the corners there.

The reason I use a keyhole saw instead of either a utility knife or the Dremel jigsaw is, the knife is very hard on the hands and the jigsaw has to have it's blade removed and shoved through that tiny hole and reset. You have to do the resetting of the blade as if you were blindfolded. It's not fun. So, the keyhole is my weapon of choice.

After I finished cutting out the windows in that section I proceeded to draw out the front wall of that section. It is complete with tabs on the side to match the ones on the end piece. I cut the outer lines of that piece with the Dremel. Then I used the keyhole saw for the windows.

I decided on a pitched roof on the front piece so that the secret room would have more head space.

If I did it with the same cut off as the end piece, it would only be 6" under the eaves. Steampunk man is going to be at least that tall. I don't want him bumping his head.

I did a dry fit with very shaky masking tape holding it together. Tessie is in the doorway inspecting the job. She is already complaining that the floor is slanted and the gap in the corner is going to be all drafty. I have the floor sitting on a small thread box and the walls taped. What does she expect?

After I came in here to write, I heard a loud crash. I expect that it was the masking tape letting go. I heard a yelp and a lot of bad witch words coming from the family room. I know Tessie is OK if she is cursing the walls. I will go check on her when I finish here.

One last thing before I go. I found this the other day on U tube. I don't have the room for it or I would want one. Go see. It is amazing.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKgwfYiSLWk I put it in the comment page on Cappuccino Express, but I was afraid that someone would miss it. Go look.

See you tomorrow.