Shingle Patterns

Earlier this month I held a Halloween House class at a local store. One of the participants was making my new Sparrow House and wanted to add shingles. There isn’t time during the class, but I referred them to my website and told them they could find shingle patterns there and cut them by hand and add them at home. Once I got home, I realized that while I had included shingle patterns in several of my house patterns, they weren’t that easy to find. I decided that I needed one post that included all of my shingle patterns.

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Make Your Own Sparrow House

I had a bit of a challenge in deciding on a Halloween building for this year. I am teaching another class locally in October, so I wanted to design a building simple enough that a beginner could finish it in 3 hours. I also wanted to make a building that could be used for multiple seasons. Since I like basing many of my patterns on actual buildings I tried a Google search and decided on the Jack Sparrow House in Helston, Cornwall. This cottage is one of Airbnb’s most wish-listed properties in the UK. With seasonal decorations it could be a witch’s cottage, a fairy house, or a building that could fit into Whoville.

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Make Your Own Stacked Stone Wall Stencil

I just finished my pattern for the Village Pub, based on the Gus O’Connor’s Pub in Doolin, Ireland. Since the pub had a stacked stone wall front, I decided I wanted one too. There were several ways I could make the stones, using either my texture folders like I showed you when I made Villa Torre, or using a debossing tip, as I did with Hiorne Tower. I really love the look of stenciled stones made with grit paste, however, so I decided it was time that I make and share a new stencil pattern.

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Make Your Own Village Pub

This month I decided to make SVGs in Inkscape of one of the early buildings I originally designed in Cricut Design Space. This building is based on Gus O’Connor’s Pub in Doolin, Ireland. From TheJournal.ie: “SINCE 1832, GUS O’Connor’s has been a fixture in Doolin, Co Clare. Over the years, it has garnered a reputation as one of the best regarded traditional music pubs in Ireland.”

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Make Your Own Retro Ice Cream Stand

For a while now I have been receiving requests to make more buildings that would fit in with my Mid-Century Modern House. The house tends to be one of my most popular downloads as well as a best selling DIY kit. There are other places to find free Mid-Century Modern house patterns, however. It is clear the dearth of patterns is for shops for your Retro Village. With how hot it has been outside, a Retro Ice Cream Stand seemed perfect.

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Make Your Own Barn with Stables

I had plans for a different design this month, but my friend Lucy Foxworth emailed me while I was on vacation to ask if I would make a barn pattern for her June Challenge. Of course I didn’t realize that I would be so busy on my vacation that I wouldn’t find a minute to design, but I have been working on it since I got home. Like with my pattern for my Detached Garage, I wanted operable barn doors.

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Make Your Own Detached Garage

I received a request to make a garage, and due to this being a very busy month for me, decided a small building like a garage would fit into my schedule nicely. I may well end up making more than one garage pattern, but for the first garage I decided on a detached single car garage with a side covered walkway.

I decided that I also wanted to make the garage door operable, so that you could have the garage door open or closed depending upon whether you want to show off a car in your garage.

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3D Beach Accessories

I finally made a few 3D beach accessories to go with the Beach House pattern I published last August. I began by thinking about what items I would take with me if I was to go hang out at the beach. A towel, sunscreen, and my phone loaded with an audiobook is probably all I would need, though I would search out a palm tree to sit under as I burn easily. The audiobook isn’t really necessary as the sound of the waves at the beach always lull me to sleep within minutes. Ack, that wasn’t enough, so I threw in a beach chair for my husband, a beach umbrella in case there weren’t any palm trees to sit under, and then a couple of surf boards just because I knew they would look good leaning against the Beach House platform, not because I have ever surfed. I am sure if I had ever tried I would have needed the life preserver.

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How to Carve a Foam Base

I have been wanting to carve a foam base for one of my models for a long time, but I have been very intimidated. I bought an electric foam carving kit over a year ago and hadn’t even opened the package. Recently one of my subscribers sent me a picture of a base she had carved and when I asked her what she used to carve it she explained that she uses only a pencil and craft knife to carve her bases. Well, I can do that!

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