Updates on Miniatures

I have been working pretty steadily on my two current projects, and here are the results:



The Mossy Glen is complete, I think... The glue is dry and I've added a few more odds and ends to the vegetation. Here it is in its jar on the end table. I'm really pleased with this, especially since it was my very first attempt ever. There are things I'd do differently next time, but overall I'm quite happy with it.

The Hobby Room is coming along. It's not quite finished, but nearly. I've got everything placed where I think I want it. A few things need painting or finishing, and I'm still contemplating a few more items. The stripy rug is a small sample we made for Sheep to Shawl '03, I think. It represents that hobby, since I couldn't think how to make a loom. :-)



Here's my planted aquarium. I couldn't get a good picture because it's so small, but really this is my favorite thing in here. I made the aquarium, added a base of sand and then set it up just like a real planted aquarium, with some wood for structure and different layers of plant materials. Those fish were the single most difficult thing in the whole room so far.



Here's my knitting - there's a niddy-noddy full of yarn, a skein and a ball, representing all the steps in between spinning and knitting. The knitting itself is on two straight sewing pins. I did actually knit it on them, which was a pain not so much because of size as because they were too sharp and kept splitting the yarn. I made the chair, the box, and the niddy-noddy.



Here's the sewing table. The machine was purchased of course, and no I don't really use that kind. Everything else I made. The vase is a replica of a real one I received as a gift and have always loved. The bolt of fabric is some linen that I recently made a medieval gown from. The thread on the spool came from the same fabric as I was finding the grain. I love that spool. The tiny details are the most gratifying for some reason.



Here's my distaff and spindle with flax. It's actually some cashmere/silk blend, but it just looks perfect for flax. I whittled the tiny spindle and actually used it to spin the thread that's on it. I made the basket too. It's cardboard covered with a coarse yarn that to me looks kind of like grapevine.



And that's that so far! Hope you like it as much as I do!

Mini Obsession

Well I've been working pretty much non-stop on this new addiction - er - hobby - of mine.

Here are some more pictures of the Mossy Glen as the glue dries. I know that sounds really stupid, watching glue dry, but you see it gets clearer as it dries, so it looks more and more like actual water. *sigh* Anyway, here they are:



In the meantime, since even I cannot simply sit and watch glue dry, I have started another: The Hobby Room. Here are the first pictures:




The box (from Hobby Lobby) represents the room. The theme of course is all of my hobbies - or at least, as many as I can fit in this room box. I bought the little books, sewing machine and cat-in-basket. The spinning wheel (hard to see in back) is actually a pencil sharpener. I made the furniture and the vase. The flowers were cut down from the stem on the left of the picture.

There's still a lot to be done, but I thought this time it would be good to take pictures in progress.

Like a Hole in the Head....

...do I need a new hobby. And yet, here I go, embarking anyway. I hope you'll understand why when you see the pictures. It was all inspired by this:



You can see the whole thing, complete with story and detail shots here.

After exploring the website of this prolific miniaturist, I decided to make my own, using her instructions for the Mossy Glen.

I found the suggested dome too expensive so I picked up this jar instead. Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures of the process as I was so absorbed in it. Nevertheless, here's what I have so far:


The glue will be clear when dry, and will hopefully look like water. The tree is a root of something-or-other I pulled up a while back; I found it out in the yard. It was too tall for the jar, so I broke off the tip, and that became the log on the ground. I may paint the tree's foliage green later - I haven't decided yet. The ferns are made from the individual fronds of a faux fern from Hobby Lobby. I used an Exacto knife to cut the little fronds into them, then glued them to a pin to form a plant.

The flower I love. I wanted to make a lady slipper, but I didn't know how I would form the flower. The leaves came from the same fern, cut down, wired, and bent. The flower stalk is from some dried heather I had. It's not exactly a lady slipper - more like something between that and a foxglove, but I think it looks lovely.

I'll take more pics when the water is dry and after any more changes.

Cool, huh?

Sheep to Shawl '08

Yep, got talked into it again. It was a month ago, so not much to say at this point but pictures were promised so here you go:




We got second place for the shawl, but won the new People's Choice award by a landslide.