Chapter 6 ANOTHER DOLL-HOUSE AND A STABLE

Photographs of another style of doll-house are shown in Figs. 96 and 97. This house was built by the author for a little relative some ten years ago, and is still in perfect condition, as the photographs show.

Packing-cases were used for its construction, with cut-up cigar-boxes for window-casings, door-jambs, finished floors, etc., and small mouldings for the outside trimmings.

The inside arrangement and the general construction of the house is so nearly like the design in the preceding chapter, that most of the details and the mode of construction may be followed in building it. If boxes are used, the dimensions will have to be figured out to suit, unless the boxes are pulled apart and the boards cut to the sizes shown in the illustrations of this chapter.

The Floor Plans, which will be found in Figs. 98, 99, and 100, give the sizes of the rooms, and the patterns for the making of

The Partitions are shown in Figs. 101 and 102. In cutting out the second-floor partitions (Fig. 102), mitre one edge of E and F to allow for the bedroom door opening, shown upon the plan, and mitre the edges of G to fit between them above the door. The mitring is shown in the drawings (Fig. 102).

Besides cutting a stair opening in the second floor, make an opening three by five inches in the second and third floors for

The Elevator-shaft. Care must be taken to have these openings exactly over one another. Make the opening in the second floor six by eight inches in the place indicated upon the plan. This will allow for the elevator shaft and stairway. No stairway has been built to the third story, as the elevator serves the purpose, and one would take up too much of the ball-room space.

The Side Walls should measure nineteen inches wide by twenty-four inches high, and the other two walls thirty inches wide by twenty-four inches high. That portion of

The Rear Wall enclosing the kitchen and bath-room is hinged to open (see Fig. 98), and

The Front Wall is made in two sections, each hinged to a strip of wood an inch and one-half wide nailed to the two edges of the house, as shown in Fig. 96.

The Windows are four by five inches, so four-by-five camera plates can be used for the glass.

Figs. 98-102.-Plans of Doll-house and Patterns for Partitions.

The Roof had best be made in two sections, each measuring twenty-eight inches long by twenty-four inches wide. Fasten the boards together with battens on the under side and, after mitring the upper edge of each, nail them to the house so that the ridge is fifteen inches above the third floor. Then nail a board nineteen inches long by ten inches wide in the peak of the roof (D in Fig. 104), and a narrow strip three inches from each side wall (K and L in Fig. 100). These cut off the triangular shape of the ball-room and give it a better appearance.

Fig. 103.

The Chimney is made the same as those for the other house, with the exception of the cap, which is built up of strips of cigar-boxes to represent corbelled brick (see Fig. 103). These strips should be three-sixteenths of an inch wide, and fastened in place by means of small brads.

An Elevator is something which is found in but few doll-houses. It was built in this house, thinking it might please the young mistress, and proved such a success that the scheme has been worked out carefully in Figs. 104, 105, 106, 107, and 108, that you may include it in the house you build.

The cutting of the elevator-shaft has already been described. For material, procure two small pulleys, such as are shown in Fig. 106, four feet of brass chain, six feet of No. 12 wire, half a dozen double-pointed tacks or very small screw-eyes, a short piece of lead pipe, and a cigar-box. Make

The Car out of the cigar-box, cutting it down to two and one-quarter inches wide, three and three-quarters inches deep, and seven inches high (see Fig. 107). Place two of the double-pointed tacks or screw-eyes in each side of the car for the guide-wires to run through and another in the centre of the top from which to attach the brass chain.

The Guide-wires are made of very heavy wire that will not easily bend. Cut two of a length to reach from the first floor to the ball-room ceiling, and after running them through the tacks in the sides of the car, stick their ends into small holes bored at E, F, G, and H (Fig. 104). The upper holes should be bored through the ball-room ceiling, while the lower ones need be bored but part way through the first floor. Care must be taken to have these holes in the correct position, so the elevator will run up and down upon the wires without striking the sides of the shaft. The easiest way of fastening the wires in place is to run the upper ends through the holes, until the lower ends can be set into their sockets, and then drive two double-pointed tacks over the top of each wire, as shown at E and F in Fig. 104.

Figs. 104-108.-Details of the Elevator.

Now run the elevator up to the top of the shaft, and mark upon the ceiling where the screw-eye in the top of the car strikes. At this point bore a hole through the ceiling and two inches back of it bore another hole, through which to run the weight-chain. When this has been done, cut a short block of wood to fit the peak of the roof and

Screw the Pulleys to it two inches apart (Fig. 105). Fit the block in the peak of the roof, centring the front pulley over the top of the car as nearly as possible, and drive a couple of nails through the roof boards into it to hold it in place temporarily. Then

Attach the Chain to the tack in the top of the car, slip a piece of lead pipe about an inch long over the chain, allowing it to set on the top of the car to make the latter heavier (Fig. 107), and run the chain up through the first hole in the ceiling, over the pulleys, and down through the second hole. To the end of the chain attach a piece of lead pipe for

The Elevator-weight (see Fig. 108).-This should be just heavy enough to make a perfect balance between it and the car, which can be obtained by whittling off the end of the pipe until the weight of the two is the same. Make the chain of sufficient length so the weight will rest upon the first floor when the car is at the third floor. You can now tell whether or not the pulleys are in the right positions. When they have been adjusted properly, nail the block firmly in place.

The Gable-ends.-The front gable-end consists of four pieces (A, B, C, and D, in Fig. 109), the dimensions for the cutting of which are given in the illustration. After preparing these, nail A, B, and C in their proper positions in the gable of the roof, and trim the edges of D, if they need be, to fit between. To prevent the movable section from pushing in too far, it will be necessary to nail a narrow strip of wood to the roof and third floor just inside of it. The rear gable is made in one piece, and is fastened in place permanently.

Fig. 109.-The Front Gable-end.

The movable gable and all hinged portions should have

Spring-catches with which to shut up and lock the house (see the illustrations).

Figs. 110-113.-Details of Stairs.

The Stairway is shown in Fig. 104, and the details for its construction will be found in Figs. 110, 111, 112, 113. This stairway is made in two parts, with a platform between. Cut a block of wood the shape and size shown in Fig. 110 for the platform, with notches at A and B for the tops of the lower stringers to fit in. Then

Prepare Two Stringers of thirteen risers similar to Fig. 111 and two stringers of five risers similar to Fig. 112, laying them off as described in the preceding chapter by means of a pitch-board similar to Fig. 113. After cutting out these pieces, fasten the tops of the lower stringers in the notches A and B in the platform, and nail the platform in its proper position in the corner of the hall. When this has been done, nail the bottoms of the upper stringers (E in Fig. 112) to the sides of the platform at C and D, and set the tops in notches cut in the edge of the second floor.

The Treads and Risers are made the same as in Fig. 74 (Chap. V), except that the depth of the risers is increased to five-eighths of an inch. Cut another platform from a cigar-box to fit over the rough one.

Build a Balustrade up the side of the stairs and around the elevator enclosures, using the scheme shown in Chapter V (Figs. 71 and 75).

All Other Details not mentioned here will be the same as described in Chapter V, including the painting and finishing of the house.

How to make the Stable

Fig. 114.-Exterior of Stable.

The stable shown in Figs. 114 and 115, and in the background of Fig. 96, will go nicely with the house described in this or the preceding chapter. Its construction is very simple. The dimensions are twenty-four inches wide, twelve inches deep, and twenty-two inches high, and the barn contains five stalls on the ground floor and a hay-loft above.

Fig. 115.-Interior of Stable.

To build the stable according to the drawings, a box ten by twelve by twenty-four inches should be procured for

The First Story.-If you have a box of different proportions it will be a simple matter to make such alterations in the details as it will require.

The Roof is made in two sections, each fifteen by eighteen inches, and is fastened to the top of the box so that the peak is twenty-two inches above the bottom.

The Gable-end is made in four pieces, as shown in Fig. 116, A, B, and C, to be nailed in place, and D to be movable as in the case of the doll-house. Make a three-by-five-inch window in the centre of D, and fasten the glass in place with strips cut as described in Chapter V. Strips should be nailed to the roof just inside of the movable section to prevent the latter from setting in too far, and a spring catch fastened to C and D as shown, to hold the movable section in place.

Fig. 116.-Front Gable-end.

Figure 117 gives the patterns and measurements for

The Stall Partitions, four of which should be cut out and fastened to the floor of the stable four inches apart, or so they will divide the inside width into five equal stalls.

Fig. 117.-Stall Partitions.

The Feed-troughs are made out of two strips of cigar-boxes fitted between the stalls, as shown in Figs. 115 and 117, and are fastened in place by means of brads and glue. Above the stalls cut

Small Windows an inch and one-half square in the rear wall. These are the ventilating windows for the stalls, and may be left open.

Fig. 118.-Ladder to Hay-loft.

Figure 118 shows the construction of

A Ladder to the hay-loft. This is made out of two sticks twelve inches long, with strips of cigar-boxes two inches long glued to them half an inch apart, as shown in the drawing. Cut away a section of the hay-loft floor two inches square and stick the end of the ladder up through the opening, fastening the uprights to the edge of the floor (see Fig. 118).

A stick about three inches long, with a very small pulley attached near the end, should be fastened in the peak of the roof for a

Feed-hoist (see Fig. 114).

The first story has

A Drop-front, as shown in Figs. 114 and 115. This is made from the box-cover. Fasten the boards together with battens placed upon the inside, and hinge it to the bottom of the stable. Nail two cleats to the under side of the floor (see Fig. 114) to lift it off the ground, just enough to allow the front to drop without springing its hinges.

When the front is down it forms an incline upon which to run the horses into the stable. For this reason it is not advisable to cut an opening in it, but merely

Represent a Stable Door on the outside (see Fig. 114). This is done with paint and a fine brush. First paint a green panel in the centre of the front, and then mark off a couple of panels within this space with black paint, and stripe them diagonally to represent beaded-boards.

With strips of wood half an inch wide make

A Simple Trim around the door, the sides of the stable, and around the gable, as shown in the illustration.

When the carpenter work has been finished,

Paint the Inside of the stable white, and the outside the same colors as used for the doll-houses (see description on page 90, Chap. V).

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