Staining the Hardwood Floors on My Dollhouse Attic Level

The attic level of my Vermont Farmhouse Jr. has been waiting patiently for some love, and I finally got to one of my favorite parts of any room, the floors. There is something about laying down hardwood and watching the stain pull all of that grain to life that makes a space feel like a real home. This one came with a few surprises (and one messy mistake I am going to be honest with you about), so let me walk you through the whole thing.

Materials Needed

• Mayberry pine flooring sheets from Hobby Lobby (note: mine did not have a self-adhesive backing, and I used multiple sheets)
• Heavy duty scissors to cut the pine sheets
• Aleene’s Tacky Glue to glue the sheets to the floor
• 3M sanding blocks
• Minwax Special Walnut stain
• Miniature wainscoting from Hobby Lobby (for an accent wall)
• 1/4 inch balsa wood sticks (for ceiling beams)
• Polyurethane matte top coat to seal

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Laying the Hardwood Floors

I started with the Mayberry pine flooring sheets from Hobby Lobby. One thing worth knowing going in is that mine did not come with a self-adhesive backing or at least the ones I got did not, so plan on gluing them down yourself. I also needed multiple sheets to cover the attic level, so make sure to calculate the correct amount based on the size of your floors.

To cut the sheets down to size, I used a pair of heavy duty scissors, which made quick work of the pine. Then I glued each sheet directly to the floor using Aleene’s Tacky Glue, working in sections so I could keep the planks lined up and tight against each other.

The Mistake I Made (So You Do Not Have To)

Here is where I have to be honest with you. I saw a video on YouTube where someone mixed sawdust from sanding with Gorilla wood glue to make a putty for filling the little gaps between planks. It looked so smart, so I tried it. When I went to stain, the spots I had filled with that putty would not take the stain at all. They just sat there looking blotchy and wrong while the rest of the floor soaked up the color beautifully.

So I had to wait for the stain to dry, carry my fifty pound dollhouse outside, sand down every problem area, then haul it back inside, up the stairs, and into my office. After that I reapplied the stain to the sanded spots, and thankfully it blended in wonderfully. Lesson learned, but if you have made that glue and sawdust putty work, I would genuinely love to know your secret.

Choosing the Stain

For the stain, I went with Minwax Special Walnut, which, fun fact, was not what everyone online chose. When I polled my social media followers about which stain to use, the majority actually voted for Early American by Minwax. I went with my gut and picked the lighter of the two, figuring that starting lighter would be easier to adjust if I ever decided I wanted to go darker.

Well, here is the funny part. The way I applied it, with a foam brush instead of lightly wiping it on with a rag, let more stain soak into the wood, so it came out darker than expected. So even though I technically chose the lighter stain, it ended up looking just like the Early American swatch I had made. So I guess we all win!

Staining the Extras

While I had the stain out, I also stained a few pieces I will be using around the attic level. I stained miniature wainscoting from Hobby Lobby that I plan to use as wood slats on an accent wall, and I stained some 1/4 inch balsa wood sticks that will become beams in the outer two rooms. Doing these at the same time as the floor kept everything looking cohesive.

Sealing It All In

Once all of the stain was completely dry, I sealed everything with a polyurethane matte top coat. The matte finish keeps that natural, lived-in look without any plasticky shine, which is exactly the farmhouse feel I am going for.

The floors really set the tone for this whole level, and even with the detour outside to fix my putty mistake, I am so happy with how they turned out. Up next, painting!