Note from Editor: This project is another in our Tribute to Tinplate(tm)" series, a tribute to the tinplate villages that were served by tinplate trains in the early 1900s.

Like the original Building Tinplate Storefronts project, this project was inspired by a series of candy containers that were made in the early-to-mid 1900s by West Brothers. Each container included a glass full of candy that you could see through the house's "windows." A photo of the one of the original tins is at the left. To create the lithographic-style graphics, I worked from photographs of the originals as much as possible to reproduce the architectural details and the fake 3-D entrances. However, I increased the size of the buildings, to look right with Christmas villages and O and On30 trains. I also added a few extra details to keep the buildings from looking too plain at the larger sizes.

Note: This is Paul - Howard was out of town when I came up with the graphics in this article, but I wanted to get them published in time to give people a chance to build these for Halloween. So I "borrowed" his instructions from a similar project. I hope you don't mind.

If you sign up for our Trains-N-Towns(tm) newsletter, we'll let you know when we create and upload more storefronts or other projects you might find helpful.

Build Halloween-Themed, Tinplate-Inspired Storefronts

What You Will Need

• Clean solid cardboard, such as from cereal boxes or posterboard. I especially like to use a thick cardboard, like the back of a writing tablet.
• Thick, clean cardboard or foam core for the base and roof
• Corrogated cardboard or foam core board for the foundation
• A sharp mat knife or Xacto knife
• Elmer's white Glue-All or similar white craft glue that dries clear. A glue stick would also come in handy.
• Several sheets of acid-free white bond paper
• Light card stock for printing the graphics (optional)
• Gray paint for the base
• Acrylic paint or markers for the exposed edges of the cardboard
• Access to the Internet and a color printer.
• Clear glossy acrylic finish to help give a metallic appearance and protect the graphics when you are finished.

A Note about Scale

New for 2014 - Paul has added graphics that will work with Large Scale (garden trains), which makes them ideal for any outdoor Halloween-themed setups you want to do. We haven't upsized the plans, but if you print one of the Large Scale versions on a B&W printer to save toner, you should be able to use that to size your structures. Pay attention to the fold lines, though. Everything beyond those are there to provide a tad more graphic in case your structure isn't quite the right size or isn't quite square.

Print the Patterns

Note: For this project, we have provided the patterns in S scale, the scale we used for this project.

You may print the structure pattern on any sort of paper, since you're simply using this to transfer the plan to your cardboard medium. However the "lithograph" graphic should be printed on acid-free heavy paper or card stock. Note that Plans 1a and 1b are meant to be spliced together before you transfer the pattern to the cardboard.

For Optimum Printing - For the lithographic "wrap," we have used professional "vector" graphics when possible, to make certain that you get the highest resolution graphic, whatever scale you use. In most cases, you can get the best result by right-clicking on the name of the graphic you need, then saving the pdf file to your hard drive. (That way if you accidentally print them at the wrong size, which is very easy to do on some printers, you don't have to download them again.)

Then navigate to the folder where you saved the files and click on the file name. Adobe Acrobat Reader should open up. Make certain that the graphic is set to print at 100% ("scale to fit" or "fit to page" should not be checked).

Structure Patterns

Store Front Graphics

Download the S Scale Graphics	Download the S Scale Graphics	Download the S Scale Graphics
Download the Large Scale Graphics	Download the Large Scale Graphics	Download the Large Scale Graphics

Tar Paper/Flat Roof

S Scale Roof	S Scale Roof, Varigated	S Scale Roof, Varigated, Staggered Pattern
Large Scale Roof	Large Scale Roof, Varigated	Large Scale Roof, Varigated, Staggered Pattern

If you can't get the graphics to work the way you need them to, contact Paul and ask him for help - that's his department. :-) A note about Copyright - However you use these plans and graphics for your personal use, please keep in mind that the lithograph-style graphics are copyright 2013 by Paul Race and are not to be copied, re-used, republished, or repurposed without prior permission and appropriate credit. Commercial use without prior permission is illegal and expressly forbidden.
Halloween Trains(tm) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Paul likes making resources like this available to hobbyists, but they are expensive and time-consuming to produce and publish, and it's frustrating to see other folks profiteering off his hard work. In other words, if you like having this kind of resource available and you'd like to see more, please respect the creators' rights.

Building a "Mockup"

Remember, when you score and fold the frame pieces, the "fold lines" of the graphics should be a tad wider in each direction than the pieces you cut out, because you need to compensate for the thickness of the cardboard you are using. Paul's wall graphics also extend the wall pattern beyond the fold lines to compensate for any minor differences.

The best way to be sure you have plans in the same scale as your graphics is to fold the graphics along the fold lines, then cut them out and hold up to the frame pieces. Again, the frame should be slightly smaller, especially horizontally. If it isn't, adjust the size when you transfer the plans to the card stock.

Cutting and Scoring the Frame Pieces

Now it's time to temporarily fold the B&W graphics around the walls as a "sanity" check. If it helps you to actually put one together this way, go for it. Engineers have a saying "build one to throw away, you will anyhow."

The photo to the right shows the four walls glued together.

Building the Base

I made the base by laminating two pieces of the thin corrugated cardboard from Express Mail packages. You could laminate "matte" cardboard as well.

The foundation should fit loosely inside the four sides of the building once it is assembled. Eventually, it will give you more surface for gluing the building down to the base reliably. That said, you don't want to glue the foundation to anything until the building is complete and you have checked the fit one last time.

Building the Crest and Support

By making three of these at the same time, I could work on one while the other one was drying, and so on. Let the building frames dry at least overnight before you start applying the graphics - the last thing you need is a joint popping or the frame getting wobbly while you're trying to be precise with the graphic.

Applying the Graphics

Then I carefully applied the graphic wraps to one wall at a time.

Note: For the following illustrations, we are supplying photos of another building project that uses the same basic patterns. Please don't let the different colors and signage on the graphics confuse you.

I started on the sides, then did the back and front. I could have started with the back just as easily, but the front definitely has to come last.

At my insistence, each of Paul's graphics includes a little bit of extra material at the edges to take up any "slack" in case your measurements are an eighth of an inch off or something. Before you cut off the fold lines, hold the wrap up to the wall it is going onto and see how close the fold lines are to the actual corners. If they're close, fold the first wrap (a back or side) along one fold line, then hold it against the wall you will be using it on. Then, if it is necessary, you can adjust the other fold. When you're certain your fold lines are where they need to be, crease them sharply and cut the white parts off of the graphic.

Spread a thin layer of glue over the entire wall to be glued, and along the edges where the extra bits will wrap around the corner. Then fasten the graphic down carefully.

Consider using clothespins or the like to make certain the wrap doesn't shift during the drying process.

Once the first "wall" has dried, you add the next wall, except that one of your "fold lines" on the next wall should actually be a "cut line" if your graphic pages are fitting where they need to be.

On the last wall (probably the front), both "fold lines" should be cut lines, but make certain both cuts align perfectly with the corners of the building.

Because I didn't cut the crest's shape out ahead of time, the building's crest looks a little funny at first. I could have cut it out, I suppose, but then I'd have an extra variable while trying to align the graphic for the store front with the left and right edge. Or worse yet, I'd discover that I had cut the crest shape wrong and have to start a building all over again.

Trimming the Crest

To finish the inside edge of the walls, I mixed a color matching the walls, painted strips of cardboard, and installed them all the way around the inside.

Applying the Roof

Touch Up the Cut Lines

Assemble the Structure

Finish

Wait until the graphics, paint, and glue are thoroughly dry (at least overnight, if not 48 hours), then spray the structure(s) with several light coats of a clear glossy indoor/outdoor acrylic finish. This protects the surfaces from moisture and dust and also helps reduce fading. In addition, it makes the lithography pattern "pop." Do not spray such a heavy coat in one pass that you cause any streaks, runs, or drips, though, or you'll have to start all over.

Of course the structures will really come to life when you add accessories and put them into some sort of setting, even a simple one.

Conclusion

• Spook Hill Projects - In the traditon of the Japanese cardboard Christmas ("putz") houses that graced so many American homes between 1929 and 1964, "Putz house" designer Howard Lamey has designed several Halloween-themed structures to help you get an early start on your Holiday Village. Each project provides free, downloadable graphics and plans, as well as detailed instructions.

• Building TinPlate-Syle Store Fronts - If this project looks familiar, it's because it was our first project based on the West Brothers tinplate candy boxes from the early 1900. They saved money by using one plan with multiple sets of graphics to get maximum use out of their pattern expense. Lots of these eventually found their way to Christmas villages and early "model" railroads over the years. This project is inspired by three of the West Brother's most popular buildings.

• Building a Vintage "Lithograph" Station Our first "Tribute to Tinplate" article pays tribute to the lithographed stations of a century ago. Free downloadable commercial-grade graphics and instructions are available in several scales. The photo to the right shows a version with the Halloween-themed graphics that we added since this project was originally published.

• Building a Vintage Tin-Style CottageThis project was originally inspired by a popular pre-war tinplate house that was made to go with Lionel trains. The photo to the right shows a version using Halloween-themed graphics that we added later. Both versions use our free, downloadable, commercial-quality graphics and instructions, as well as Howard Lamey's plans and assembly details. Many other options are available as well.

• Tinplate Diner Project with Halloween Graphics - We've also added a special set of Halloween-themed graphics to Howard Lamey's tinplate-inspired diner project. Christmas and year-round graphics are also provided, but we're showing the Halloween graphics to get you excited about your October crafting possibilities. As always, plans and graphics are free downloads.

• Building a Tinplate-Inspired Lamp Post The ideal accessory for the Lewis Park Station, or any station or city hall on your railroad or holiday village. No, they don't actually light, but they are cheap and easy to build and add a great deal of vintage interest to any setting. Free downloadable plans are available in several scales.

• Building a Tinplate-Inspired Railroad Crossing Sign This is the ideal accessory for the Watchman's Shanty project. Based on a series of products that are now available only as expensive collector's items, this easy and almost-free project will add texture, interest, and period to any model railroad or holiday village.

• Build a Vintage-Style Barn and Silo - This building project uses downloadable graphics to put realistic shingles and siding on an old barn and silo. Readers have built this to work both with Christmas and Halloween villages.

Other Articles about cardboard houses include:

• Building a Glitterhouse - A detailed primer on building your own vintage Christmas cardboard houses.

• LittleGlitterHouses.com, Howard Lamey's own site about glittered cardboard Christmas houses, featuring many he designed himself.

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