to cheat or not to cheat?

not back yet, I just remembered an idea I was very enthousiastic about months ago (still am) and had not thought of showing yet, until now. 'Cause when I ordered the EL-light at Microstru for my laptop in January, I also ordered one of their kits for an amazing 1:144 scale house. Because every selfrespecting antique/old stuff shop should have an antique dollhouse right? And besides that it's a house I kind a fell in love with, it also seemed a very doable and realistic kit.

This lovely kit comes from Microstru - Millers Engineering

it's a closed house, so no inside stuff needed either. Which is good, since I never ambitioned anything as small as 1:144, I just admire everyone who works in this crazy scale ;). This kit however - because of it's solid structure and high level of detail & realism - is an exeption I was willing to make, at least housewise.
but when I received the kit soon after, the ambition, ideas and even urge to want to make 1:144 things got flowing. The parts are só detailed and perfect (with very clear instructions that even I can comprehend, not being my strong suit at all!) that I started thinking it would be so much fun if you would be able to look inside and see an interior, instead of painting the inside black as suggested. I did decide I will only do one room though (the biggest one), being two floors high (with a landing).

but to make that interior, I didn't feel like spending too much time and energy on it. Mostly because it would only be visible from the outside anyway, but I still wanted to have something nice and realistic, so it would be able to pass as a high-end antique dollshouse. Well: I can only love the modern times we live in! Soon after I got the kit I started 'making' parts for an interior on my laptop by browsing the internet for pictures of what I liked and was photographed in a way that it was usable. Then modifying them digitally to actually be used (and being able to fold as 3D furniture for example) and finally had it uploaded & printed as a postcard in a postcardwebshop. The cheapest and easiest way to achieve very detailed and crisp printing on a single piece of card. I will build things up in two layers, to make it more realistic and give it depth. Like the paintings will be the painting and on top of that the frame with an opening cut out. Some - or maybe many - would say this printed stuff all won't have the charm of handmade things, which of course is very true and I respect people not wanting things this way. But I do like it, a lot!

all the extra items are for cuttingfailures that will be enivitable

but is this cheating? Oh, I'm sure it is! But since all is fair in love and war, I figured that because I really, really LOVE miniatures, this would still be sort of fair ;), haha!

and in my defense: I am going to make a tiny spiral staircase - of very thin metals - that will probably make my head spin... And also a table, one or two chairs (besides the ones from card), the floor (that will be over 500 tiny wooden floorboards), a porchlantern and a chandelier with working lights, a floorcandelabra with 3 working 'candles' with ridiculously small leds, and 'real' curtains. So a bit more time and energy I will put into this after all, but because I really want to.

so I will make up a bit for all the corner cutting, at least I think so (feel free to disagree). And it will be fabulous, in my head it will anyway. But I must admit, I keep forgetting how extremely small everything needs to be in this scale... But hey, I definitely like the challenge!

and with all that, I (of course) thought it would be a shame to only be able to view it from the outside... ;) So I decided I'm going to make the room seperate so I can take it out, instead of dressing the inside walls before assembly as I initially planned. And to be able to put the longside walls flat (one at a time) so you can see one corner of two walls well from the side, as opposed to the whole room not so well from above. I did consider and wanted an opening side of the house, like dollshouses usually have, but I think that will weaken the structure of the house.

in time we'll see how all of that will turn out, looking forward to start this fun little project! (yes, yes, áfter the laptop ;)