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Monday, October 7, 2013

Cladding Tips.

 Hello Followers,
Today I thought I would write down one or two tips I discovered whilst attaching the cedar cladding to my Victorian Dollhouse. Remember you are using cutting equipment so be incredibly careful. Safety First!!!!









Things You will need:
- Cladding (and lots of it...more than you think you need!)
- PVA (wood glue)
-Small brush (not your best...but not your worst either)
- Metal ruler
-Easy Cutter (honestly the best tool I have ever purchased...definitely got my money's worth)
- Stanley knife
-Small cutting board
-Pencil
-Masking tape

Step 1:
Start at the bottom of your house and line up your piece so that it is level with the base of the house. I would stay away from too much overlap as I can see future accidents occurring with it, it could easily be ripped off.

TIP: If you can place your house face up it is easier to clad!

Step 2:
I started from the left side of my house and move across to the right of my house with the cladding. If your piece is not long enough. Don't stress. Start your new piece and cut when necessary. I place the new piece on (dry fit) and place a small pencil line on where it needs to be cut.

TIP: I used a small brush to place the glue on each piece, I do not place glue on the rebate! Too much glue will stop the rebate keeping your cladding straight.


You will have joins. But as long as both pieces are straight you will get a tight join.


TIP: Make sure your joins are staggered and that you don't have a join above a join!

 This picture shows the indent in the cladding, it faces towards the house and down. It will help to accurately place your next piece above.
TIP: Use the easy cutter with the claddings rebate away from you. (This tip may work for you as I found with 90% of my cuts, it stopped the cladding from cracking.)

TIP: Masking tape is your friend...you will use it heaps! It allows you to secure your cladding and keep it flush against your house. 
TIP: When cutting the cladding try to avoid cutting anything under an inch...in some cases this is unavoidable but most of my smaller cuts split the cladding. (Sometimes...turning the cladding over and cutting from the rebate side is worth a try on pieces prone to splitting)
Step 3:
Window openings require a little maths, but nothing too hard. I place the new piece across the window.

Step 4:
Mark where the piece crosses the window on the actual house first. Then place a small mark on cladding to show spot where window starts.


Step 5:
Remove the piece and measure on your house how far it is from the window mark to the bottom of the window sill. Transfer this measurement to the top of your cladding piece and cut. I use the easy cutter for the vertical cuts and a Stanley knife for the horizontal. Use your metal ruler as a guide...but be careful !!!! (Don't forget that these pictures show what to do with the bottom of a window but you use the same sort of method for the top)

TIP: The rebate is great, make sure you have no gaps between it and your next piece. It only takes one piece being crooked for the whole lot to be wonky. (trust me....I had this happen a couple of times)
Step 6:
Glue and tape.
 Step 7:
If your lucky you wont have many splits but if you do. Place a small amount of glue in the crack, wipe it gently and tape ensuring it is straight first.

Step 8:
Continue cladding until your reach the top!

TIP: Some kits come with corner covers (not quite sure what their actual name is.) I would still encourage cladding to the corners. It would be extremely frustrating to find at the end that your corners didn't quite cover.

TIP: I'm planning on painting the house before attaching the corner components as it will be tricky to get a nice finish.


Here is a shot of the tower...notice all the tape? It is extremely useful for those teeny pieces that just won't sit. I used painters tape and found it was very easily removed.

So friends...be prepared. What I have done so far has taken hours (really probably days) and I still haven't finished. Take your time and if you are tired, stop!!!!!! A tired crafter is an accident waiting to happen! I managed to cut my hand on a drill that was not working....just sitting on the bench!

I'd love to hear from you about your experiences with cladding....any tips or trick you would like to share would be great!

IndyPoppy

30 comments:

  1. It looks like a big job but will look amazing when you are finished. Thanks for the tips they may come in handy in future.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Margaret,
      It is a much bigger project than I first thought. But it will be worth the effort.

      Delete
  2. Hi Indy! Your progress on the house is great, you've done a great job! I am afraid I can't help you: I have built my own canal house years ago and it has bricks, no cladding like yours.
    Hugs, Ilona

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I might have to ask you for some tips for bricks soon.

      Delete
  3. Your house is looking great. Thanks for all the great tips.
    Hugs Maria

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Maria, I thought i'd share as I did learn a fair bit through trial and error...lots of errors!!!

      Delete
  4. Hello Indy,
    Thanks for the great tips. I cannot wait to see the house come to life. In the pictures it looks like you did an incredible job.
    big hug,
    Giac

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Giac,
      I was amazed about how it did start to come to life with the cladding. Huge difference.

      Delete
  5. Bueno, creo que te las estás arreglanado muy bién. Esa torre va a quedar preciosa

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Isabel, I love the tower....I was so excited when I found it had one.

      Delete
  6. Очень интересный пост! Спасибо за советы!
    Татьяна

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks for the tips.
    This is a great work.
    Hug, Faby

    ReplyDelete
  8. Nice tutorial! All of your work will pay off in the end. Your house is going to be gorgeous! xo Jennifer

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Jennifer, It is a huge project. It's my own fault....I keep adding things.

      Delete
  9. It looks like a gigantic job. Good luck.
    Hugs
    Wyrna

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I will need lots of luck Wyrna....so much to do.

      Delete
  10. The siding really adds a lot to your house. Phew! What a job on such a huge house!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The house size kinda got away from me...I thought it wouldn't be too big...but it is a monster now.

      Delete
  11. thank you very much for all the tips, I was very excited watching you cut the cladding and then put it on the house, you are right when you are tired you should just stop

    again thanks for the tips :)

    Hugs
    Marisa

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've managed to injure myself a couple of times...nothing major but it was always when I was tired...but thought I'd just do a little more.

      Delete
  12. Hi Indy-Poppy! Thanks for the tips! Your tower is looking good and now that it is nearly there have you given thought to the color(s) that you think it should be or are you going to wait until the entire house is done?

    elizabeth

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Elizabeth, Ive started thinking about colours and I have ruled a few out. I'd love it to be a victorian colour. I have found a couple of blueish greys that I really like...maybe with white windows. Have you got any suggestions. I'd love some ideas.

      Delete
  13. Thanks for the tip! I haven't decided about my facade yet, but this looks great, have to consider this technique =)
    Hannah

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I was so glad that the kit came with cladding so I didn't have to make a decision....I'm terrible with decisions...

      Delete
    2. Hi! Did you see this post: http://hannahsminiatyrer.blogspot.se/2013/10/the-winner-is.html about the winner of my giveaway =) Please contact me with your address =)
      Hannah

      Delete
  14. Estas haciendo un gran trabajo en esa preciosa torre.
    Gracias por compatir tus avances.
    besitos ascension

    ReplyDelete
  15. has resultado ganadora de mi Rose Garden, por favor envíame tu dirección postal para hacértelo llegar

    ReplyDelete