Friday, May 30, 2014

Faux wood flooring in the Lekman

Follow up for questions on the last post... the flooring is sample contact paper from DesignYourWall.com. A few years ago I bought several samples, but have only used the wood grain one. From left to right the samples I ordered are: Natural Fabric, Alessa Silver, Brushed Silver, White glossy, and Mahogany strip parquet.

The samples are $5.99 each for about a 17" x 22" sheet folded in quarters to fit in a 10" x 13" envelope with free shipping. It's a bit pricey considering many hardware/kitchen stores or home good stores sell a whole roll of contact paper for under $10. Plus, folding it adds lots of flaws and wrinkles. :( Ordering online is tricky because you can't tell if the scale will work, so I prefer to buy in person and on the roll, although there are way more styles available online. The first two I showed, Natural Fabric and Alessa Silver, were from the woven linen collection and were the wrong scale and looked weird so I won't be using those. The Brushed Silver and White glossy will work, I just have to find a use for them. Besides the rough spots/bumps/creases I couldn't get out in the Mahogany one, it really looks good and fits 1:12 scale well. I try to cover the flaws with furniture and rugs if I can.

Unfortunately, it looks like the Mahogany contact paper has been discontinued. "Mahogany strip parquet self stick wood grain wall contact paper" was the listing name. I searched online and other stores are also sold out of it.
I did find one company that is selling this Oak version of what I'm using for $8.99 per roll. BerlinWallpaper.com, scroll to the bottom of the page for the listing "Strip Parquet Oak Wood Grain". A roll is around 17 inches by 6 feet, so you will have PLENTY to last for numerous projects.

(ACK! They only ship to the U.S.! I just ordered some, if anyone outside the U.S. wants some let me know and we can work something out.)

The Lekman box from IKEA makes a great roombox if you want to get started in modern miniatures. IKEA sells the Lekman box in red, grey and white for $12.99 but it often goes down to $9.99 on sale. It is 13 x 14 1/2 x 13" so it's a little big for 1:12 scale, but I think the high ceilings make it feel like a converted warehouse or industrial space which bodes well for modern designs.

2 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing! This is still an economical option compared to buying the sheets of the 1:12 scale hardwood flooring. Usually for those I have to either scour ebay for someone selling them, or waiting for a sale happening at an online shop (or at my local miniature shop).

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  2. It still looks good...bumps and all!

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