My World in Miniature - Gamer Room!

While the kids were away, Mom will play! Okay, not really. But I had some fun moments while the kids were gone. And I have been trying to complete some of the started projects since then. Finding the will to want to has been hit or miss, but I like to think I've made great progress. 

What I started with

I started with creating a Barbie room. This is a space that I can rearrange and take photos in. I wanted to make it more gamer themed. But I had to do some repairs. Starting with the back wall. This was an old entertainment center my husband had before we got married. We didn't need it for that purpose anymore, so I decided to make it for the dolls. I glued paper to two of the walls that made it look like it was covered in bricks. This was a free printable from My Froggy Stuff. The Backgrounds, Nature, Windows, Room Stuff is the link you want to click for the walls. The flooring is contact paper from Dollar Tree. I repaired the back wall by inserting a foamboard piece from Walmart. I found they are only .98 in their craft section while Dollar Tree is, of course, $1.25 now. I also cut strips of the foamboard to create baseboards. This gives it cleaner seams. 

Finding supplies: Dollar Tree has great supplies. But don't despair if you don't find what you are looking for there. Check out the craft stores, especially in the scrap booking section for stickers and paper to do walls, floors or ceilings with.

Contact paper makes for amazing walls and floors! As do things like place mats. Which can be found at thrift stores and yard sales. 

Cleaner seams

But there are cracks that you can see between the sides and back. So I decided that since this is going to be a gamer room, I'd create some shelves to put in the corners that would cover up the seams. The red one is for my DC figures that are so tiny, they are perfect for Barbie to have her own nerdy dolls or figures.

I used triangles cut from left over foamboard to make the shelves. And yes, I went ahead and glued the figures to the shelves to keep them solidly in place. 

One wasn't enough to cover just one corner, so I made a yellow one too with Mario themed decorations from cardboard packaging. This one has more of a variety of figures on it. Including a handmade Demogorgon my daughter made me from Stranger Things. Another dragon guards the corner under the shelves. I'm still trying to decide how to do something like this for the opposite wall corner. 

Now for the walls! 

Walls aren't meant to be blank. I really believe that. So I made this tiny framed poster. I usually find these little frames at thrift stores or yard sales, but I know the Dollar Tree typically has some too. The quote comes from the Portal game. The second one, I think. And I hung an X-wing as though it is flying from the wall. 

At first, I thought I would leave the back wall white and not glued in. I had the thought that I might want to change things up from time to time. However, I started to change my view after arranging things. So, I painted. But when I painted the wall red, I found that it bowed inward. So then I had to try to attach it and keep it upright in the back. I also learned that this is not simple when the wall was kept in place by the bordering pieces that I forgot were attached at the baseboard level. So... yeah.  

As you can see, I had these shelf-like pieces that had come as supports to a 3D print job I did. I didn't want to throw them out. And now I'm glad I saved them! They were the perfect additions to the main wall. Now, I can start adding more fun finds there. 

And a Harley Quinn poster.... I have some ideas to even make a smaller sized shadow box next. Yes, another Froggy idea! This time on a much smaller scale to fit inside the doll room. But to hold the Doorables figure still. I'll post about it next if it works out.

Furniture

Every room has furniture, yes? Mine is no different. The DVD shelf was made by my husband. He even designed the file so I could 3D print it, using dimensions from the DVD's I made!  

But you know what I'm most proud of?? The gamer chair! I have these capsules from Mini Brands. And I hate to just toss them out. After seeing a video by My Froggy Stuff on making chairs with them, I was inspired. But my husband really made it better for me. He designed the file so I could 3D print the base. You have to prime the the capsule before painting, tilt and attach to the base. Inside is where you can cover a piece of cardboard with material to make the seat.  

Using pieces from a wood kit that I got from Dollar Tree, I have made an entertainment center too. I took pieces from headphones that didn't work to make the built-in speakers. As for the game consoles, they were tiny boxes. I either painted them or covered them with black construction paper. Then added details. I have been thinking to 3D print some in the future so I can have better shapes and more of a variety. But these work well for now.

You know those little boxes with a slide-on glass lid? Well, I turned that into a shelf. I meant to make it a curio cabinet, but one of the shelves was a little too wide. The wood for the shelves came from those Dollar Tree kits too.

But it's all good. Because! I'm adding nerdy things little by little as I find them. Or make them. Curious about my knickknacks? The horse was a chess piece. Next to that is a triangular dice I found. The head? A Transformer pencil topper. I had 3D printed a weird shaped thing that didn't work out well, so I added a dice bead to make a sculpture. On the next shelf we have another thing I attempted to 3D print and then added a clear marble to. Just looked cool. The Minecraft pickaxe came from a toy set my kids had. The little jar with a pink ball inside is Navi, the fairy I made, for you lovers of Legend of Zelda. The R2-D2 came from a board game. The other bottle has a tiny treasure map. It is a charm from the craft store. And finally, the lamp. This was 3D printed! I can't wait to find other things to add. 

Time to add some windows!

A room with no door or windows comes off strange. Now, while I haven't decided about the door, I knew I needed some windows. I chose a beautiful fall scene and printed some window frames.  You can get the file HERE. I resized to 134.8% of the original file.

I printed out a lovely fall scene, added some clear plastic from toy packaging, and you have the finished look of beautiful windows! 

Not finished! 

This is where I end the posting on the blog. But it is not where I end the room. Little by little, I'll add more things as they are found. And maybe I'll let you know about it. I just hope you got some ideas for your own creations. Which - I would love to see if you ever want to share!