Building Your House

• First, open Google SketchUp. You will see when it opens that there is a small 2D human figure standing in the middle of the scene. This figure is there to help judge the size of your structure as compared to a human being. You can reposition this figure as you work to help to create doors and windows.
  
  To start layout of the basic shape of your house, select the "Line" tool and begin drawing the outline of the house on the ground surface. Use the line guides you will see to help you align your lines to the three axises. Once you have the basic shape laid out, select the "Push/Pull" tool and use it to extrude the floor up top the height you want the house to be (minus the roof). Now use the "Line" tool to draw a line across the top of your house where the roof line will be. select the "Move" tool and raise the line until the slope of the roof is where you want it. You now have the basic shape of your house.
  
  Create a copy of the house and use the "Scale" tool to make it slightly smaller than the original. Now use the "Boolean" function to subtract the inner structure from the outer. Now move your camera view inside the house by zooming in. Use the line tool to draw in lines for interior walls and floors. Then use the Push/Pull" tool to extrude these.
  
  

Adding Props

• You now need to add fixtures (windows, doors, awnings) to your house, as well as other items like bathtubs, sofas, and chandeliers. To do this, click on the 3D warehouse button you will find at the top under the menu. This will open a new dialog that will give you access to thousands of pre-made props you can add to your house model. Browse through the categories for the item you need. Then click on it to place it in the scene. Re-size these items and position them where you want them in the house.
  
  

Textures

• Now you will want to add textures to your house. Select the "Paint Bucket" icon. A new dialog will open that presents you with several categories of materials you can use. For instance, if you want to apply a material to the roof, you can select from several different styles of roofing tile. For your interior walls you can choose wood, wallpaper, or flat colors. Simply select material you want to use and click on the part of your house you want to apply it to.