Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Brinca Gaga (or how it took three grown woman plus one Electrician/ Engineer far too long to build a house) Part 1

Once upon a time (well, actually, last November) in a Kingdom far far away City just up the freeway...

OK, so the fairy tale doesn't work. Which is just as well, as this story isn't a fairy tale (although it does have a happy ending)

Last November the wonderfully talented M1K1 treated herself to a
Brinca Dada Emerson dolls house and matching furniture. The putting together of the house did not go well and I suggested she could drive south with the half built house, I could drive north and we could rendezvous at the also wonderfully talented Div's house for a weekend of building.

Like all good things, this took time but, finally we managed to get together this weekend just past. Saturday was filled with op shopping, dolls house shop visiting and lunching by the sea but Sunday morning we set to work to sort the house out...

(WARNING: Picture heavy posts ahead)

The half-built house as it arrived with M1K1:
After a fabulous multi-course breakfast, we started work at 10am.Our first plan of action was to dismantle what M1K1 had already done so as to be able to start from scratch.We laid all the pieces out in the order that the instructions said we would need them. The house comes in two parts so we tucked the "2" pieces aside and concentrated on the "1"s... Step One and so far, so good:Because side one of the house had already been put together we needed to work out what had been done to the electrics. The shoe lace is in case the wires slip back inside the chimney.
We add the mezzanine floor:And parts 1G and H (I think) (Yep, we're still having fun) A few more bits of perspex. And wood. And we're feeling confident.On a high, we stop for Elevenses(And check what's next) (Do you think there was too much sugar involved in Elevenses?) This is about when things start to go a little screwy. A millimetre out here, a millimetre out there adds up to a bit of an issue right about now. It's OK: we were expecting this as this is about the point that M1K1 (building on her own, mind) became derailed. We push on through (literally, on some steps), feeling lucky that there are three of us and a table which means we can turn the house this way and that...
OK, the frustration is starting to show, but we did just manage to put Part One together. Wee hee!

We lay out the parts needed for the second half of the house:The instructions warn us that this is the harder part of the structure. We think we're prepared. But it would seem that the notches for the chimney have been cut in the wrong place. And we finally admit defeat and bring in Mr Div (Engineer and Electrician) Show him what the problem is, and, after we practice looking suitably pathetic, he decides to head down to his shed and sort our chimney problem out for us.While he's gone we take the opportunity to try out some of the furniture in the half-house we've put together:and then decide the only thing to do is have lunch while we wait his return...(to be continued...)

3 comments :

Makeminemidcentury said...

How exciting.

That's disappointing that there's something inherently wrong with the chimney. Those houses aren't cheap.

I'd love one, however.

Can't wait for the next instalment!

Anonymous said...

I put my house together a number of months ago....my hair on one side of my head is still growing back and my screaming voice has returned. But it is still a cool house. Melissa

Anonymous said...

you guys should see my comments on brinca dada's youtube videos!