This originally appeared on Blogger on Nov 23, 2012 "Look at me! Look at me! Look at me Now! It's fun to have fun but you have to know how" Just like the Cat in the Hat has his own FUN-IN-A-BOX, which in case you may have forgotten houses Thing1 and Thing2. They, of course, represent pure, unadulterated, carefree mayhem, my idea of that would be something miniature. (Because this is a blog about miniatures and if you love them then you KNOW). I have had for years a small plain wooden box that measures 8 X 10, 4 inches deep purchased at a miniature shop. I moved it around a thousand times from pile to pile until I found a drawing by Anton Pieck and transcribed that into the box using Creative Paperclay, some wood and a print of a garden. It has a recessed window, ceiling beams and 'leaded' glass windows with one open showing a garden scene. "And this mess is so big and so deep and so tall..." So it sat around for quite some time longer because I was unclear what to do with it. I moved it around again and again from pile to pile. Finally I took it out to play and realized what a great piece it turned out to be because it can be anything. I went to my stash of collected things and arranged several settings you can see here. FUN NUMBER ONE Doll by Carole McBride, bunny by Kerri Pajutee, blocks by Terre Fernandez, flowers by Barb Plevan, plate by Rosey Duck, painting by Linda McBreen. More rooting around in the stash and I got this FUN NUMBER TWO Chair by Bernhard Originals, Pug by Gudrun Kolenda, Rug by Classic Carpets, Birdcage by Ursual Dyrbye-Skovsted, Plants by Kyoki , Plates by Dominique Levy, Stag head and horse pull toy by Linda Master. So pull all that apart, dig through boxes and bins and yet another lovely little vignette, FUN NUMBER THREE Chair by Betty Valentine, Book case by Ernie Levy, Mandolin by Ken Manning, Vintage bird cage, Bowl by Debby McKnight, Cat by Liz McInnis, Painting by Linda McBreen, Saki Set by Ligia, Celadon Bowl by Joan Westphal.
I am truly impressed with the versatility of a small wooden box. Who knew? Really, more of these would be even more fun. Maybe a class one day? I have a frame for it too and just need to slap that on and there's an enchanting little piece to show off a collection. Let me know what you think.
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How do you think miniatures become an addiction? Where does it start might I ask? Maybe we're born with it. Maybe it gets imprinted like a baby duck to the first thing it sees. So maybe we saw something tiny, were enthralled and sought out more minuscule things. Could it be that toys are in a way miniatures anyway and we just keep that fascination forever? I guess the question really is "what makes me so different?". Because my friends and most people I meet think I'm weird. I bet you get that too. (mini lovers reading this, that is) See this photo? This is the kind of thing that set me off on a never ending obsession with anything tiny and perfect. Even though looking at this I do see not-perfect. This tiny tea set is like many I have owned in my childhood. Many because I kept losing pieces and started crying. My mother used to bring me small toys like this because she had to go back to work when I was 4 and felt guilty. I got other stuff too like crayons and jump ropes and jacks (remember those???). But the tiny tea sets became a fixation. And no one cared about choking hazards. I just now took a tour around Google and by surprise found this: Which I also owned. More crazy making miniature stuff to fuel my diminutive desires. Well, the desire was NOT small. (And oh, look, the apple set was made by Shackman. A company that also made scale minis for the dollhouse - Small world, pun not intended) Meet my newest desire. (By Faberge. Property of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. But does she really need it? I think not.) So tell me. What possesses or obsesses you?
"Every leaf speaks Bliss to me fluttering from the Autumn Trees" ~ Emily Bronte There is something about Summer ending and the big spiders that come out that makes me feel alive again. I am not a Summer person. But along with those spiders and cooler days and nights comes the fun holiday season and the best of all is Halloween! Halloween in miniature is the most fun if miniatures are your passion. I do eat, live and breathe miniatures and hope you do too. And I do know that all of you are not crazy for witches and ghosts and things that go bump in the night, miniature or not. But regardless, there is CANDY... So, in honor of the best holiday, here are some of my Halloween creations, this year. AND I have a new tutorial for you DIYers. Yes, it's witchy, BUT the same techniques work for normal miniatures. Be creative!! "I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers!" ~ L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables. So, what's your favorite thing about October? Or maybe just your favorite candy. Cause you can't beat Halloween candy! Tell me below.
Happy Haunting! PS. Fun and fabulous giveaway coming SOON - Make sure you are signed up for my Newsletter. And if this is not your cup of brew, share it with someone you know loves Halloween! "If you love what you do, it isn't your job, it is your love affair." Debasish Mridha I suppose that says everything about me and miniatures, I make them, I collect them and I hunt them down. So hunting at the IGMA show is an annual affair of the heart for me. And yes, miniatures is my job. (updating this site is part of that job too, so be patient, it looks a little wonky now). There were lots of wonderful and exceptional dealers there and you can check the list on the IGMA website. Wonderful to see them all and check in with friends, both dealers and collectors. So here's what came home with me. It's always wonderful to see Mary McGrath at a show but it's always very difficult to make a choice. Thankfully, I was able to pick one - this glorious pair of nesting blue buntings in a wooden garden box. One of my favorite dealers, it seems is Karon Cunningham She always always has something wonderful on her table from many artisans and from all over the world. So this collection, including the 18thC wig, doll clothes and shell display seems odd but ya love what ya love. These mounted creatures came from the talented hands of Jessica Wiesel. For my antique shop, I think, full of antiques because no one needs to hunt these animals these days. This darling little spill vase came from Mary Catherine Johnson and was made by Sally Meekins. I do love elephants so couldn't resist. This bear, as big as a minute is fully jointed and made by Japanese artisan Masayuki Kunimoto. His head moves too! And last but not least, this adorable but messy little boy by Two's Company, Jennifer Ellis If you enjoyed this, pass it along and if you haven't done so yet, sign up for my email and get my free book kit.
This was originally written on my Blogger blog on 1/18/13 " A mistake is always forgivable, rarely excusable and always unacceptable." Robert Frip $50,000. Because that's how far I got. It took years and years. A collection of glorious, wonderful miniatures and I SOLD THEM. That would be the mistake. Great. Big. Huge. No, I did not have money to burn. It's just that I was not buying expensive handbags and shoes. I was collecting 1:12 scale miniature collectibles. Little by little, year after year. Something wonderful here, something magical there... Still life by Paul Salterelli - I had several of his early, and in my opinion, superior works. One is better than none. It started at a flea market where I was thrilled to discover a table selling miniature bliss. It brought me right back to a happy childhood playing with tiny tea sets, rearranging diminutive furniture in a doll house and then later dressing Barbie in her shoes and handbags. (If you are not familiar with miniatures, sadly for you, there is a whole tiny world of things reduced to miniature that might make you believe you could just put them in your house and use them yourself, they are so perfect as to deceive. Thus my reason for photographing them with 'big' things.) Hand Painted Charger by Le Chateau Interiors - this was originally mine and I bought it again. I bought a bunch. Put them in a typesetter's tray. Found a miniature catalog advertised in a woman's magazine and bought more. Found out about a miniature show locally. Went there and found people making very serious hand crafted artisan pieces in miniature. Anything you could think of that existed in real life was right there. A paragon of miniature wonder. I was hooked. I SOLD THE COLLECTION !!! They say you don't regret the things you did but rather the things you did not do. Not true "Stupidity is a talent for misconception." ~ Edgar Allan Poe I had new babies, needed money and figured, hey, I am never going to be able to collect miniatures again. Who has the time when there are diapers to be changed and college funds to think about? Duh. Babies grow up. Ruby Glass Decanter Set by Francis Whitmore, Sterling Tray by Gugliemo Cini Anyway, I am now on the lookout for things I gave up. In truth some of them really did not matter so who cares now? BUT...there are those perfect, thrilling, masterful creations that just haunt my soul. From time to time I come across one and do my best to make it mine AGAIN. Pictured here are some of my lost then founds. "Just think how happy you would be if you lost everything you have right now, and then got it back again." Frances Rodman Lute by Ken Manning. Ebay. In the end we just can't take this stuff with us. But letting it go is just not an option. Not for me. Not again. A word to the wise... Chair by Barbara Logan - found again in a miniature shop Samurai Sword by Cliff Fleltrope - my original was black with a dragon head. This will have to do. I sincerely hope you have spared yourself my agony. And learned from my mistake. I hope you'll share your thoughts below. (Oh, and if $50,000 is shocking to you, get out your receipts and just add them up.)
"If you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning." Catherine Aird |