Jealousy Abounds!

I got up, ate breakfast, drank coffee and started plastering. I decided that I wanted to see what at least part of the outside of the house was going to look like when I finished. I am using the old tried and true Spackle to cover the sides.

I got about half way down the wall and had the feeling that I was being watched. I looked up and there was Zar, leaning over the corner of the wall. Beau was staring at me through the window opening.

Zar, very politely, asked if he could have a word when I finished the wall. I knew that something was up. I said "Yes." and finished plastering.

When I got down to the bottom, I made some random stonework. I want the Clockwork Cottage to look like a Voisey Arts and Crafts house. I am not putting on the usual half timber that comes with the kit. As I went, I pretty much decided that I like the white. I think that it will look good with the river rock as a foundation and some dark shingling on the roof.

Here you can see some of the rocks. I simply put a heavier coat of Spackle at the base and carved the rock into it before the compound was dry. I used my handy dandy stencil brush for the texture on the rest of the wall.

Anyway, when I finished, I went in to talk to Zar. It seems that he and Beau had a call from Tessie to come and see Spike's new bed. You know it was just to make him jealous. It worked. He is not demanding like Tessie, but knows how to wheedle with the best of them....."Poor Beau doesn't have a place to sleep. He is just as deserving as Spike. You have never made anything for him." Guilty as charged. Then he specified that he didn't want one of those namby pamby doggy beds. "Beau is a manly beast and he should have a masculine dog bed." He wanted leather and plaid. No girly canopies!

I rummaged around and found an oval top to a paper mache craft box. I cut a strip of suede from an old jacket that April gave me that was long enough to fit around and about 3 times the width of the height of the rim. I glued the center of the strip to the outside of the rim. Then I put glue on the inside and folded the piece down over to cover that. With the last third, I cut Vs in the edge and glued them around to the bottom. I covered the bottom with another piece of suede and trimmed it to the edge.

I then took a piece of the checker board pattern and cut it twice as wide as I wanted the finished side lining. I folded it lengthwise with glue inside.

I glued that into the box.

Then I made a pad with a piece of foam core, batting and fabric like the bed from yesterday. I tufted it and glued it in place. Zar also specified "No fancy feet." So I left them off.

Beau and Zar both seem pleased. At least there is one piece of furniture in the secret room now. I am going to go back to the real world now and do grown up stuff. Bah Humbug!

See you tomorrow.