Furniture: a day bed fit for a diva! The upholstery.

Hello my friends,

Part two about the making of this day bed. You can find the first post on the day bed via this link.

Choosing a fabric to upholster this with was not so easy. I wanted it to be silk but I do not have a lot of silk lying around. Most of the fabrics I have collected for miniature projects so far are made of cotton.

In this post you will encounter the word "glue" an awful lot! please bear with me. I wish that I had learned to sew when I grew up. It would have come in handy here. I will look for a beginners course or something like that in the neighbourhood soon. I can't keep glueing my way through everey upholstery project, now can I! 

Of the silks that I do have only two colours were interesting to me. This olive green and this cool pink. Since there are a lot of greens in this room already, I did not want go with the green but opted for the cool pink. But only after changing my mind, and second guessing my decisions on this subjects a few times. 

It is not easy to see on the photo's but both silks are changeants. I believe that the term 'shot silk' is more comon in england and america than the french term for it. Shot (or changeant) silk is a fabric which is made up of silk woven from warp and weft yarns of two different colours producing an iridescent appearance. The pink silk I have here is mixed with blue threads, giving it this cool appearance. The weft of the green silk consist of black threads. 

The pink may not be an obvious choice but goes quite well (in my opninion) with the cream and crimson colours of the woodwork. Together with the occasional table this day bed will/should stand out against the other furniture in the room and against the room itself. Stand out, but hopefully in a complimentary way. 

Well, so far the theory. When I tested it in the room itself ... I did nót like it! Even the added carpet with pink and blue did not help to tie it all together. So I dropped the pink silk for this piece of furniture resorted to the green silk after all.

Time to stop debating the right colour silk to use and really get to work. First I need to cover the frame. When that is done I need to make and cover the back rest (and fix it onto the frame) of the day bed. finally I will have to make the bolster pillow.

I cut out a few pieces of card stock and glued them together to thicken it up a bit and to give the card more rigidity. Next were the  pieces needed for the sides of the back rest and after this I cut out two rectangular pieces to tie the side pieces together. All of these are made of the double layer of card stock. For the top curve this card stock would not work. Therefore I strenghtened it with a wooden dowel of the right thickness, cut to fit. 

Why make it out of card stock instead of wood, like the rest of the frame for this day bed? I have chosen to use cardboard here because essentially this is a trial piece. I might change it again in the future for a wooden structure. But if not, it should be strong enough to remain in tact for the coming years. 

When the glue was drying on the back rest I cut a piece of silk for the main seat. I glued the silk on on the underside of the card stock so that any glue bleeding through the silk would not be visible, and keep the visible side clean at the same time. When the fabrik was fastened to the card and the top sife was indeed not spoiled by seeped through glue, I glued it onto the wooden frame of the day bed

To  support the silk on the curvatious backrest I glued on a piece of card cut from a thin and flexible kitchen towel roll. This card should act as a lining to control the position of the silk when covering the back rest with it. It should make it easier to stick the silk onto the frame of the back rest.

Getting the silk on with glue without that glue bleeding through, was quite an ordeal. More so because I have not yet worked a lot with fabrics. So there is still a lot to learn here for me. After a few tries I have the backrest covered with clean silk on the front and back. 

The sides of the back rest were the trickiest for me to do. I cut small triangles out of the excess silk and glued the little flaps onto sides of the back rest as you can see in the picture below. Then, I cut out two more side panels and covered them both with silk. You will have guessed already that both sides with the glued on silk are then stuck together. This is neccesary ofcourse to hide the cut and glued silk from view, and gives the upholstery a clean look.

And when the covered panel is glued onto the side of the back rest you end up with something like you can see in the picture below. The side of the backrest on the left side, here hidden from view, is not yet finished here. I accidentally made two right sides by gluing both pieces of card same side up onto the silk before cutting out. 

I should have made one for each side instead by not letting them face the same direction. No problem however, I made a third one. While waiting for the glue to dry on the first side panel, I added a stippled border in crimson around the top of the day bed. I did this because I found it looking a bit bare in comparison to the decoration on the legs and stretchers of the day bed. 

But somehow I have turned the template the other way round again, because I glued it onto the silk the same side up as the other two... Grrr!!!  So three side panels facing right with silk glued on. But still not one panel to finish off the left side!

Before I would start throwing things at walls, it was time to stop and take the dogs for a relaxing long walk. That helped. Lol. That last piece, together with the bolster pillow will have to wait until after said relaxing walk!

After the walk with the dogs, which had taken me well over an hour. I tried again and was this third time lucky! looking at the daybed at this stage I am glad that I changed my plan and switched from the cool pink tot the dark green silk. 

Once the left facing side panel was in place it was time to work on the bolster pillow. There are many ways to make miniature (bolster pillows) I chose a quick and easy way I found in the book 'upholstered furniture in 1:12th scale', written by Janet Storey. This may not be the most realistic looking bolster possible, but it looks the part. We'll just have to imagine that it has been freshly filled with sheeps wool or goose down.

As pillow I simply used a piece of wooden dowel, cut to length. I rounded the corners with a file to make them less sharp. the downside of using a dowel is that the pillow is totally rigid. I want to make bolster cushions out of silk that I can fill with sand or a similar stuffing that will allow me to shape it as if it has been used a lot. But that will be for a future project. 

I glued on a piece of green silk on both ends and let them overlap the softened corners. When the glue was dry I cut away the excess. 

Once the excess material was cut away I took a piece of silk and turned back the material on the long side to get a clean line on the outside without the danger of fraying. once that had dried, I simply glued the fabric onto and around the dowel and fixed it in place with rubber bands to let the glue dry. When all had dried I ended up with a simple but adequate looking bolster pillow. 

I am not yet sure If I will make a soft matrass to put on top of the day bed. I may do so but am as yet still undecided on the matter. Because I quite like it as it is, but such a type of matress was often added so I think I should make one. Plenty of silk left over so that won't be the problem when I do decide to make a matress.

However, for now the day bed is complete. And in the picture below you can see how the set has turned out. Belle has left the book she is reading on the occasional table I see. I wonder what book it is that she is reading...

Huibrecht

Miniatures: Two wig stands (for the price of one) and a powder mask from scratch

Hello my friends, 

The green dressingroom room and the adjacent pink wig room need accessories to get that lived in feel that all great miniature rooms have. To this end I need several everyday (for 1806) miniatures to put into these rooms. These rooms should not be furnished too formaly. 

I made two stands for holding wigs. Although to be fair, I planned on making just one wig stand. I was looking for an apropriate base to put the beehive type of bead on. Together they would form a wig stand. I found the base I needed in a baluster for making a dollhouse balcony.

In Dutch we call these wig stands a 'pruikenbol'. Which Litterally translates as a wig bulb or wig orb... Wig stands that have survived to this day are often made of a tropical hardwood, glass, porcelain or glazed earthenware. Just look at the pretty examples in the pictures above and below.

As I said I made the base for the intended wig stand by cutting off one end of the baluster shaped balcony spindle you see in the picture above. After I had cut it off I realised that the remainder of the baluster in itself looked somewhat like a wig stand too. So I decided to turn that into a wigstand too. I sanded the saw marks smooth on both pieces with sanding paper and cut away some of the thick square ends. 

I stained the 'bonus' wig stand with an ebony coloured water based stain. The other one was to be painted white. When dry, I sanded them booth smooth and stained/ painted them a second time.

When the second coat of stain/ paint had dried, I sanded it again en varnished the ebonised wig stand with a high gloss varnish. This is meant to give the ebony wig stand a polished sheen.

The 'porcelain' pruikenbol needed a few coats of paint and sandpapering before it was ready for some blue decorations and varnishing. Using the high gloss varnish  hopefully gives this the look of porcelain. The beehive shaped bead is pretty but its ribbled shape does not help to paint a nice Asian scene onto it. So a fantasy decoration it will be.

For the blue I used a porcelain marker I bought years ago to use on the Delft planter urns I made back in 2017. To enhance the fat blue striping, making it a bit more delicate, I used white gelly rol pens. The first time I tried them but they work like a charm here in decorating the pruikenbol.

Since lady Belle will be wearing a wig, one stand on the table of the powder room must remain empty, or where will she put it when she undresses to go to bed? I want to try to make some miniature wigs myself though. And when I do I will need to make (or buy) more wig stands. (Jippy!)

But a stand for the wig is not enough. In the little wig room wigs need to be powdered from time to time. Not only to make them look white, grey or purple (whatever is in fashion) but also to kill lice and other little critters that can find refuge in between the curls and folds. 

As you can see in the picture above this means that I need a mask for lady belle to wear while her maids powders her wig. It is a simple paper affair which I based on the picture above. 

It is just a shape drawn and cut out from printer paper. Lightly stained in green tea. I did not want the paper to get real dark, just to have the fresh white colour taken off. It is not meant to look as an antique in 1806, mind you, just an 'ordinary' household item for a house like this which will be replaced as soon as needed. 

I gave it some simple scroll decorations around the eyes and along the border to make it look less plain. I used a black fineliner for this. I have no historical reference for this decoration on powdering masks.  It is just my fancy.  I think it adds some charm to a simple utalitarian object.

I cut a little piece from a gauze gift bag that came with a miniature I have bought and saved in my stash. The mesh is so fine that you almost can't see it. But in this picture you can see it is there. Using some kind of gauze to line the eye holes was indeed used in these masks. It gave the wearer the possibility to see in the mirror what was done and how it looked without risk getting powder in ones eyes. 

Another accessory needed is an apron or sheet to cover the expensive dresses and waistcoats. We do want to protect them from the powder too. For this I will cut a piece out of an old worn cotton and drape it over a chair. And I also need to make a powder bag, and a powder puff like the coiffeur is holding in the drawing. But those  three items will have to wait for another day and post.

With these two wig stands and the powder mask I  am half way the necessary accessories needed for the (wig) powderroom. The apron, bag and puff are soon to come. 

Take care,

Huibrecht 

Visiting grand houses: A pavilion by the sea.

Hello my friends,

I do not have a grand country house or royal palace this time to show you. But a former royal pavilion. Once, in the early 1800's it stood alone in the dunes. Like you can see in the watercolour below. Nowadays it is built in on all three (land) sides by the urban sprawl of Scheveningen. A former  independant fishing village but since over a century annexed by The Hague and acts as its seaside resort. 

But when the pavilion was built in 1827, it was still surrounded by dunes. Why was it built? King William I (son of stadhouder William V who fled for the revolutionaries) ordered it built as a birthday present for his wife (Wilhelmina). The Queen needed the benefits of fresh sea air for her health and used the pavilion to draw and paint, or take walks on the beach and in the dunes. 

At the start of the 20th century it was in danger of being demolished. But it was acquired by Sociëteit De Witte (founded in 1782. Could CarelPolyanderhave been a member?), a private members club which, up to today, use the pavilion in the summer months to welcome their members to the building and the terraces. 

In the Netherlands some people say it is better to have friends with a boat than to own a boat yourselves. In my case it is good to have friends who are a member of De Witte than to be a member myself. Lol! 

A good friend of mine invited me for a lunch in the pavilion last week. Usually we don't pose or take pictures on these premises. It is actualy not done, but sometimes allowances must be made. To whom may be interested, I am the one on the right. Male members and their guests are expected to wear a jacket and a tie at all times. So we follow protocol even though it was a scorcher with 32 degrees Celsius ( 89,6 degrees fahrenheit) in the shade. Luckily there was a mild sea breeze. (Straw) hats are optional but basebal caps are strictly forbidden. 

To be honest, our picture could be a still from Hercule Poirot and the "Murder on the Nile" (either film with David Suchet or Peter Ustinov, nót that Brannagh version) Don't you think? My role would probably be that of that charming but clueless booby, Captain Hastings. "I say, Poirot!"😅

Because of my member friends I can enjoy all the luxuries and amenities of De Witte when they invite me as a guest. So I have been here several times before, and the club building in the old city center of The Hague is also very grand and beautiful. But today is about the pavilion.

This lunch was a great opportunity to take some pictures for you guys. Because as luck would have it, although there were a lot of members present at that moment, they were all outside on the terraces on the sea side. Leaving the octogonal diningroom empty for me to photograph. 

This is the main room of the three rooms on this floor (the downstairs floor houses the kitchen, toilets and other rooms). When the queen came here to rest and benefit from the clean sea air, this 6 meter (almost 20 feet) high diningroom was the salon. 

The neo-classical stucco decor is stunning! It has a nautical theme as you can see. Sea horses, dolphins, shells, tridents and corals are all around.

The 'pilasters' dividing the walls into sections for instance are composed out of many different kinds of shells, cockles, barnacles, pieces of coral and starfish. All playfully arranged. 

The stucco medallion shows the 12 signs of the zodiac. They are surrounded by more stucco shells and corals. The bronze colour of the background on the walls and the signs of the zodiac sets of the stucco decorations very well. I do not think is the original background colour. Somewhere in the light blue's would be more likely perhaps, but I do not know. 

On the side of the marble front hall two large 4 meter high niches open up the wall. These are now filled with large vases with (silk) flower arrangements. Would there have stood statues here? These niches are marbled just likte the door surrounds. 

The two identical rooms left and right of the hall and the octogonal salon are quite plain in contrast. These side rooms are used as a private diningroom for larger parties or for the overflow of dining guests from the main room on one side, and a bar on the other side. This room was also deserted as you can see. everyone, like us, was on the sunny terrace. And since the pavilion is built on top of a dune, you have great and unobstructed view on the boulevard, the beach and the North Sea below. 

It was a lovely lunch! I leave you with this period picture of the pavilion where a family strolling the dunes, watches the queen stepping into the waiting carriage to bring her back to the palace in The Hague after a day at the beach.

Needles to say no horse drawn carriage was waiting for us. We just drove back by car. Since this pavilion is from 1827 it is not a direct ispiration for Huis ter Swinnendael since I want to locate it in 1806. However the nea classical decor is not particularly 19th century in style. Most symbols used were also fashionable in the late 1800's. So this may be the inspiration for one of the modernised interiors. 

This does not change the fact however that this is a pretty building none the less. 

Huibrecht