More filler... then onto props!

Last week I spent slathering the walls of each set with poly-filler to add a bit of texture, and to prevent the grain of the wood showing through the final coat of paint. Some walls look really nice, but some bits (including the steps) I was a bit heavy handed with the filler so they will need sanding down more then maybe adding another layer before painting all the walls with a special white primer will give them a nice finish.

Whilst the walls were drying, I could move on to the bit I've been most excited about... making props! :D I thought I would tackle making the bed frame first because it looked like it was going to be a tad bit fiddly and infuriating! (I was right... it was a nightmare!)Before I could start making the bed, I gathered some measurements based on the size of the bedroom in George's 3D bedroom model, and then drew out a really rough plan of how it was going to look. Once I knew the measurements, I could get cracking on the construction! To make the basic structure of the bed, I wound together three sections of aluminium wire to make a strong skeleton, and cut this wire into the different lengths measured from my plan. Once all the lengths were cut, I began glueing the pieces together following a basic bed frame structure. This was easier said than done, as every type of glue imaginable (even bloomin' araldite) refused to set leaving me with glued-together fingers and a falling apart bed frame.




Eventually after a lot of cursing and sore fingers I managed to meld the pieces together, and by adding wooden lolly sticks onto the base the basic bed frame was much more sturdy. To ensure that the bed was strong enough to hold a puppet's weight, I then added a thin layer of milliput over the frame, and during this time I also added sections of wire into the head board and base of the bed stuck straight into the drying milliput which gave the structure added support.







Once the milliput had fully dried I sanded down the rough sections to give the frame a smoother appearance, and then applied a base coat of first white paint then black over the frame. Once this layer had dried, I sanded paint away from certain sections to give the bed a scruffier look, and then dry-brushed reddish brown paint onto these sanded sections to create a 'rust' effect.




Now that the frame was complete, I could move on to making a mattress and pillow out of a large sponge. To do this I cut away the sponge piece by piece until it fitted into the bed frame, and then made a pillow that was to scale. The next step is to add bed sheets!