Itty Bitty Adventures

Miniature Monday: 2 Lovely Ladies

2012-01-30T20:44:00.002-05:00

I purchased these two lovely ladies at a local show in New Jersey many years ago. I can't remember the very talented artist, but all of the work on her table was amazing.

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday: For the Kitchen

2012-01-23T13:49:00.000-05:00

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday: 2011 Hallmark Ornaments

2012-01-16T19:05:00.000-05:00

These are my favorite Hallmark 2011 Ornaments purchased to use in my miniature settings:

I actually purchased these in November because I knew they would go fast! The train set is a Lionel Santa Fe Super Chief. I will most likely put this in my toy store, but I've been thinking about making a mini train layout with its table for my dollhouse. The yellow and blue house is a Fisher Price Farmhouse. It's even got a car and driver. The book display is a page and character from "Where The Wild Things Are". I'm going to use this in my bookstore. The house is part of a series with the year on the front stoop.

I've taken a few pictures with resin dolls so that you can see how terrific the scale is:

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T21:59:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year everyone! I wish you all a healthy, happy and love filled 2012. Thank you so much for your support and for sharing this first year of miniature adventures with me.

Ketsia

Miniature Monday: Black Wicker

2011-10-03T15:50:00.000-04:00

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday: Knitting Corner

2011-09-26T12:24:00.000-04:00

If you are a Miniaturist, you quickly discover that miniatures take up a lot of space (I know that's funny.) I often enjoy making tiny scenes to tell a little story. If you don't have much space or supplies for miniature's, this post will hopefully inspire to create with what you have.

This itty bitty display was created in a 4" acrylic cube.

The chair was a Christmas ornament from Restoration Hardware. I clipped off the ornament hook with my heavy clippers, and sanded the metal down to remove some of the shine. The stone floor was a piece of scrap flooring tile that I had from a previous project. I rolled up balls of thread to put into the basket and I actually knit that quarter inch onto those tiny knitting needles:

The kitty and plant were both purchases.

The tiny 1/12th scale vignette tells a sweet story and always makes me smile!

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday Project: My Witch and Her Castle - Part 4 Final!

2011-09-12T16:13:00.000-04:00

The next part of my process was to patina the roof. Although the color was fine, I wanted to give it a little something. I used Americana acrylic paint in Asphaltum, Sophisticated Finishes - Copper Metallic Surfacer and Patina Geen Antiquing Solution. You can find these at your craft or art stores.

The dark acrylic paint served as my base coat.

I then layered two coats of the Copper Metallic Surfacer.

While the second coat is tacky, I lightly brushed on the Patina Green Antiquing Solution. This is what the roof looks like before the solution has completed "antiquing":

And this is the completed effect a few hours after it's dry:

Here is the structure. I have to add something over the fireplace, and I'm going to hang a fire breathing dragon from the inside of the dome.

I made this table out of wood strips, used Anita's Crackle Finish then aged it with burnt umber acrylic wash. I made most of the items in the room and on the table from found objects, beads, bits of wood. The candles are made from polymer clay. The stacked books are leather bound and created by my friend, Marilyn Crockett.

That's a baby dragon peering into the fireplace!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Thank you so much for looking!

Miniature Monday Project: My Witch and Her Castle - Part 3

2011-08-29T21:20:00.000-04:00

I hope you've been enjoying these project posts. This is the point where I lose total focus with painting and move on to something else for my project. The next step would have been to show you how I painted the roof, but I’m completely distracted by my partially assembled room.

I pulled out all sorts of miniatures from my collection. Things I’ve made and purchased. My work table looks like this (YIKES!)

I’ve put everything where I think it would go and always find that I have too much stuff! I'll ultimately decide what I will use and what will go back into the stash, but that could take days of playing and moving. In the meantime, I put together these two amazing kits from Cat Wingler, a wonderful miniature doll artist who at one point created kits to go with her dolls.

Both kits are laser cut wood. The first is a tall standing candelabra and the second is a book stand. I’ve been holding onto them for ages and am thrilled to finally have a place to use them. The above pictures are what the kits looked like out of the package.

Here are the assembled projects:

I don’t think I’m going to do anything else to them just yet.

Next post I’ll cover faux painting the roof to look like old copper, show you the accessories selected and the finished project.

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday Project: My Witch and Her Castle - Part 2

2011-08-22T14:53:00.000-04:00

My castle room is progressing nicely! Part 1 of this project can be found HERE. I painted the foam to look like stone by using a series of color washes and sponged layers.

I wanted to make sure that there was no blue showing through. My first step was to use a thin wash of burnt umber. I concentrated on each of the stone separations and any cracks I created.

I did another coat of the wash to make sure I had complete coverage. Once that dried completely, I painted both pieces in burnt umber. It is important to let your work dry in between coats so that the colors are blended properly. You will be tempted to fuss with it, but don't.

Next I used a regular kitchen sponge cut into small pieces to layer my gray from dark to light. I used Delta Ceramcoat in Dark Gray, Hammered Iron, Quaker Gray, Mudstone, and Sandstone. Sponging randomly and allowing each coat to dry.

The floor has had a layer of lighter paint sponged on. I snapped this photo so you could see the difference each layer makes. I'm including a fireplace in my scene. I applied the same paints and techniques to a resin fireplace I had in my stash. Using the x-acto knife, I carved a niche out of the wall base and painted that with the hammered iron.

Once I was satisfied with the wall and fireplace, I used tacky glue and my clamps to adhere the fireplace to the wall.

Join me next week for Part 3.

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday Project: My Witch and Her Castle - Part 1

2011-08-15T18:25:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, I attended the NYC Miniature Doll List Convention. I took two classes that weekend. The doll workshop was taught by Helena from Belgium http://www.dollsinminiature.com/. Her work is amazing!

She came with beautifully prepared porcelain dolls and all of the materials needed to finish lovely witches. This one is mine, dressed and wigged with Helena’s careful guidance:

My doll was complete in class and once I got home, I couldn’t think of anything but creating a scene for her.

The first thing to decide on was the structure. I have an obsession with glassed in terrariums and giant candle holders so I had the perfect one in mind for my witch!

It opens at the top, and the panels are sealed with glass. I decided I would be using blue builder’s foam for the wall and floor. Since I would be working outside of the structure, I first drew a pattern of the floor and wall panel, then cut that out of the builder’s foam. This is what the foam looks like before I started the treatment:

Using an X-Acto knife and ruler, I carefully cut two inch wide by 1 inch tall blocks on the wall, and a more random pattern on the floor. Once those were cut, I went in with a stylus to define the stones a bit more:

Join me for part 2 of this project – painting the foam to look like stones.

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday: That Ornament is Not For My Tree! Baby in a High Chair

2011-08-08T17:08:00.000-04:00

Miniaturists are always on the lookout for innovative ways to use ordinary products. Christmas time is especially exciting because we scour the stores for scale tree ornaments; YES ornaments!

Last December, I came across a wonderful ornament of a bear in a high chair, “Baby’s First Christmas”, in my local drugstore.

Made out of sturdy but soft enough to cut plastic, the ornament was perfect 1/12^th scale with amazing details. I carefully removed the bear and his toys from the high chair with my X-Acto knife. I then painted over “Baby’s First Christmas” with 2 coats of white acrylic paint. I wasn’t worried about any rough spots I caused since the new miniature baby’s bowl and snacks would cover the imperfections.

The result is a perfect high chair for my beautiful doll house baby. The baby is hand sculpted from polymer clay and measures about 2 ½”. The high chair is about 4” tall.

I purchased the baby from Miniature Artist Alicia Singleton. You can find her on EBAY at http://myworld.ebay.com/alliebeandolls/ or on ETSY at http://www.etsy.com/shop/alliebeandolls. I absolutely love the detail in her work!

So keep a lookout for those unusual miniatures and thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday; Grandpa's Study

2011-07-25T19:00:00.000-04:00

These lovely dolls are waiting for Granpa to tell them a story. They are by talented doll artist Bonnie Justice. You can find her here: http://bonniejustice.blogspot.com/

The room box measure 14" tall by 11" wide by 9" deep. The walls are made from strips of wood cut to create the panels and then stained. The windows are super thin strips of leading that were cut and placed individually on a piece of acetate to make the window panes. The old glass look is made from carefully dabbing clear stained glass paint in between the lead strips.

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday

2011-06-13T22:35:00.000-04:00

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday - A Quiet Place

2011-05-23T16:35:00.000-04:00

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday - Wooden Vase Shop

2011-05-16T17:29:00.000-04:00

This shop is 1/12th scale and measures 12"wide by 11"high by 9" deep. All of the tiny vases are hand turned out of a variety of wood. I purchase them everywhere I go.

The beautiful doll is made by IGMA Artist Gisele Hanson. The lovely painting in the background was hand done (with itty bitty brushes and acrylic paint) by my friend Heidi Gordon.

YES, that cat has fur! His name is Fred, and he's the store's guard cat. He was sculpted and painted by Linda, an amazing miniature artist that I purchase from on EBAY. Check her out - her seller's ID is linda060060. I wove those baskets with waxed linen thread and stained them walnut.

The potted plant on the shelf was a purchase from Grapevine Miniatures.

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday - Let's go Dutch!

2011-05-02T20:03:00.000-04:00

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday - Private Chapel

2011-04-25T17:20:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, my family and I celebrated Easter. That made me think about today's project, a diorama made a while back when I was practicing "stone making." It's a private chapel in a castle, just for the Lord and Lady.

The box is constructed from 1/4" plywood. I made the walls and floor by covering them with spackle, and once dry, I carved out each stone. I then painted and distressed them to look like stone.

The altar is wood and cardstock painted to look like stone. The candles on the altar are made from polymer clay. I made each prie dieu (kneelers) with balsa wood stained walnut and a bit of scrapbooking velvet for the upholstery. I must have made 5 of them before I was pleased with the result!

The mural is a printout. I framed it with wood and painted the wood to look like stone.

The finished piece is closed with an 11X14 purchased frame.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Thanks so much for looking!

Miniature Monday - Two's Company Dolls

2011-04-04T21:13:00.000-04:00

Last Fall I happened upon a wonderful Mother/ Daughter team of doll artists; Jennifer and Elizabeth Yankowski. Their official name is Two's Company and you can find their blog here.

Their attention to detail is incredible. Tiny folds, tiny accessories, I fell in love.

The way the dolls are dressed and posed tell a story:

The boy is wearing leather boots that are laced up perfectly. He came with the rooster and the handmade cage.
These two ladies have snuck out for a drink:

Though sold separately, I couldn't resist pairing them. The smiling maid came with her own bottle and a beautifully made duster. The other so good as the "lookout".

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday - Venetian Palazzo!

2011-03-21T22:18:00.000-04:00

Welcome to Miniature Monday! Today's feature is another favorite of mine. I attended Molly Cromwell's Sturbridge Miniature Festival. I had a blast shopping and I signed up for the 4 day Venetian Palazzo with Bluette.

The furniture is all made by Bespaq. They are beautifully detailed pieces. I used painting techniques to make the table tops look like marble and the furniture is painted gold with Ceramcoat Metallics. The amazing flower arrangements are handcrafted by Paula Gilhooley.

The hallway, 2nd floor landing and terrace give the illusion that the space continues. The chandelier and wrought iron on the landing are both made by Miniature Artist J. Getzan. I was having a hard time deciding on more accessories, so I've left the scene alone. As I travel to different miniature shows, I often find pieces that work and I add them.

Thanks for looking!

First Blog Giveaway Winner!

2011-03-18T16:57:00.000-04:00

Hello everyone and THANK YOU for participating. All of the lovely comments truly made my heart soar.

As directed by my wonderful Ustream viewers, I went to Random.org, plugged everyone's name that left a comment into a list and hit ENTER. Here are the results:

Congratulations to GodsMixedMediaGirl, You are the WINNER!!!!!

Please e-mail me your information and I will send you your prize:

Again, thank you all for participating. This was so much fun, I will be doing it again.

As always, thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday - The Farmer and his Wife

2011-03-08T00:03:00.000-05:00

THANK YOU for all of your wonderful comments on my FIRST blog giveaway. I am so very grateful for the encouragement and I'm super excited to see who wins next week!

Today's miniature scene features a very talented Doll Artisan, Marcia Backstrom. I was lucky enough to win this work of art at an auction.

The Farmer and his Wife. Still in love after all these years, surrounded by nature. Looking at them makes me so happy. I know, I'm a romantic fool!

Marcia's dolls are amazing. The age lines in their faces, realistic features, fingers and the tiny details in the clothing.

The scene is 1/12th scale. To give you an idea of the size, that's my hand next to the dolls. Amazing isn't it?

Check out Marcia's Website and let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday and My First BLOG GIVEAWAY!!

2011-02-28T18:43:00.000-05:00

Last week, I was able to do my first Ustream show instructing other artists on how to create a simple miniature scene. It was a thrilling experience. I had a very supportive and energetic bunch cheering me on, including my 8 year old son/assistant! Artists are so willing to learn new techniques. Most of my viewers were not miniaturists, but I hope I changed that!

The project, a faux book box that I picked up from Michael’s, was altered on the inside to include a 1/12^th scale miniature scene. I demonstrated how to cut a false wall, create a window with foamcore and strips of wood, lay a wooden floor, install wallpaper, baseboard and crown moulding. The background behind the window is a magazine image of a peaceful garden.

We also discussed using materials from sources other than Dollhouse Miniatures. The chandelier is from an ephemera pack purchased in the scrapbook section of my craft store. I glued gold beads where the flames should be. The wallpaper is actually 2 sheets from a Mariposa paper pack. The little girl is a paper doll that I cut out and used Glossy Accents to give dimension to her hair, eyes, lips and shoes. Almost every person I’ve watched streaming has a black cat, so I’ve included one in this scene.

The table and vase of roses were from my collection. I glued the lace cloth and accessories on the table; a cup of coffee/tea, a leather bound art journal, a book on creating still life art and a framed picture. I also included framed pictures of victorian children on the walls (so cute!)

The general theme of February Ustream shows were “Love and Kindness.” I tried to do my part by streaming to entertain all the wonderful artists who entertain me! The other thing I’m doing is GIVING AWAY this wonderful project. Everyone needs a miniature scene in their life!

If you are interested in being entered in the drawing, please leave a comment on this post. Everyone is eligible to enter! In 3 weeks on 3/18/11, I will close the drawing and select a random winner from the pool of comments. The winner announced will need to provide me with an address where I can ship the project.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Thanks for looking and good luck!

Ketsia

Miniature Monday - The Potting Shed

2011-02-21T21:55:00.000-05:00

The other day, my Husband warned me that there was a bit of a catastrophe in the living room. I walked in to find one of my shadow boxes in pieces, doll parts everywhere! He'd done an admirable job of picking up everything he saw, but couldn't tell me how it happened...it's another miniature mystery.

Here are photos of the the pieces:

I had to sort the parts and glue everything back together. Fortunately, living with 3 boys, 2 dogs and 2 cats, I'm really handy with glue. Here's the fixed shadow box - almost like new, and I didn't cry:

This shadow box can hang on the wall or sit on a shelf. It measures 14" wide X 10" high X 6" deep. The setting is the outside of a potting shed. The instructions for this project came from The Miniature Collector Magazine.

The little girl mixing mud in the pot was made by Bonnie Justice. The two baby boys were from KutiBabies, an Ebay vendor that hasn't sold anything in a while. I put Grandma together in a workshop taught by Ellen's World at our NYC Club, Big Apple Miniaturists.

I made most of the flowers from punched paper and the little birdhouse from scrap wood. I also made the pigeons at Grandma's feet from polymer clay (that was an adventure!)

If you have any questions, please let me know. Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday - Witch in the Attic

2011-02-08T00:05:00.000-05:00

My sleepy Witch has her "craft" room in the attic of her otherwise normal house. She was having an afternoon with her wolf friend, and fell asleep with her favorite kitty. That's my story and I'm sticking with it!

I enjoyed making this little fantasy scene. There's a lot to look at. My favorite piece is the little werewolf. He's sculpted by very talented artist Aleah Klay. Her amazing creations can be found here: http://aleahklay.com/

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday - Half Scale Chateau!

2011-01-31T16:13:00.000-05:00

Wouldn’t I love to live in my ½” scale chateau!

I made this structure in a 4 day workshop with Bill Lankford. Here’s a link for more information about him: Bill Lankford Designs

He was an incredible instructor and had a way of using the most unusual materials to create art. I took almost every workshop he offered in the NYC area. So glad I did because in 2008, he officially retired from teaching classes. You can still catch him at Miniature Shows with his detailed structures and his line of landscaping items.

Although it is ½” scale, the cliffs are made from dental plaster, and this structure is super heavy. I needed a truck and two strong boys to carry it home. It’s cleverly designed to open in the middle. I finished the inside with wallpaper, flooring, curtains and furniture. The landscaping materials are mostly from the model railroad store and Bill.

There’s a “secret” opening under the house, between the cliffs. It goes from the water, up the stairs to the lowest level which I made into a wine cellar. The resident’s have a boat there for a quick escape. The water is made from 2 part resin.

A few years ago, the Daily News had a full page article featuring a picture of this mini chateau and a few of my other pieces. They also featured the only remaining dollhouse store in Manhattan. You can read the article in their archives here: NYC Daily News Article The funniest thing about the experience was my oldest brother, who reads the paper every day, telling me that he saw a lady that kind of looked like me in the paper who also did miniatures. (He was serious!) He hadn’t read the article and had not seen that it was actually me, DUH!

My friend, Anna, also took the workshop. She finished hers as a haunted house, complete with dusty furniture and a cemetery:

I’ve had some questions about miniature scale and thought I could answer them today with this post. Miniaturists are all about getting things “just right.” It’s often an insane love affair with the ruler.

Scale is the proportion that a model is to the real thing that it represents. A proportion of 1/12th scale (1:12) means that 1 inch the model equals 12 inches in the real world piece, where 12 inches is understood to be the real world size. If a person measures 5 feet 5 inches tall in the real world, their miniature version in 1/12th scale would be 5 ½ inches tall. This scale is the most popular in the miniature world and when a dollhouse is referred to in general conversation this is the scale most often and usually assumed to be the scale of the discussion.

Scales commonly used in Dollhouses, Ship, Plane and Railroad Models are:

Scale		Number of inches to the foot	Scale Name
1” Scale	1/12^th	1 inch = 1 foot	1 inch scale
½” Scale	1/24^th	½ inch = 1 foot	G Scale
¼” Scale	1/48^th	¼ inch = 1 foot	O Scale
1/8” Scale	1/87^th	1/8 inch=1 foot	HO Scale
144^th Scale	1/144^th	1 inch = 12 Feet (Trust me it’s easier this way!)	Insanity

I’ve completed two 1/144th scale projects and was fortunate that I didn’t end up in the looney bin. I donated one to our club raffle fundraiser, and the other is put away because I don’t want to lose it! This scale is considered a dollhouse’s dollhouse! If you’d like to see lovely examples of this work (NOT mine - LOL) click here: http://nell-miniminis.blogspot.com/

If you have any questions, please let me know and thanks for looking!

Ketsia

Inkwell Studios Workshop: Iris Watercolor

2011-01-29T13:00:00.000-05:00

Every Wednesday and Thursday at 9am EST, it's "Coffee and Art in the Morning" with Dede on Ustream!

This past week, she taught a FABULOUS watercolor class. She drew and posted a sketch of an iris so that we, the viewers, could print it out and paint along.

I had a blast and here is the result:

I printed the image from my home inkjet printer onto 140lb hot press water color paper that I cut down to 8.5 X 11". Dede instructed us to print it out onto plain cardstock if we didn't have anything else available. I'm not sure what I will do with my iris, but I'm thinking of cutting it out and incorporating it into my art journal.

Besides providing us with the amazing sketch, Dede was patient and encouraging as we worked through the techniques using watercolor paints and pencils. She is a wonderful artist!

If you would like to try your hand at watercolor painting, visit her blog: Inkwell Studios
The recorded show is available at: Inkwell Studios Ustream Videos

Thanks for looking!

Ketsia

Art and Sole: 52 Pages

2011-01-28T19:58:00.000-05:00

My lovely and very talented friend from the UK, Darcy, started 2011 by creating weekly prompts for art journaling. Check out her blog, Art-and-Sole and feel free to participate.

I'm new to the art journaling world, and of course I'm giving it a go!

My page for the Week 1 Prompt - "Regenerate"

My page for the Week 2 Prompt - "Filter"

Thanks for looking!

Ketsia

Miniature Monday - Artist's Lofts!

2011-01-24T20:27:00.000-05:00

I've got TWO 1/12th scale artist's spaces to show you. The first is a fantasy loft located on 22nd and Broadway in NYC. (My mini artist isn't starving!) Years ago, I worked in a huge space there, and took pictures of the view outside so that I could use it in my mini artist's loft. I printed the image on 11x17" paper that covered the back wall.

The box is made to fit inside an 11x14 frame. The original artist's loft was made and donated to my friend's charity for auction. My Miniature group loved it so much; we re-did it as a yearlong project. Yes, imagine me on the porch, with my table saw, cutting 150 pieces of wood. I was a sight to behold! The window wall is made from foamcore and strips of wood. I made the easel, stool, tables and the spiral staircase. Some of the accessories were made, some were purchased.

The painting was done by my son; he was 4 at the time, and insisted on contributing a masterpiece!

The next artist's studio fits inside a basketball display case. It depicts art class in progress. The beautiful fairy model is made out of polymer clay.

It's amazing what you can do with bits of wood and paper!

If you have any questions, please let me know. Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday - Shop

2011-01-17T23:37:00.000-05:00

I've got to give all of the bloggers I follow who post daily tons and tons of credit. I'm trying to post twice a week and those days sneak up quickly!

I had this little store built but empty lying around in my workshop for years. One day, I finally decided to dust it, glue whatever parts broke off, and give it some attention. I can't say it's really "finished" because I'd like to add a sidewalk, a few more things on the shelves and walls and perhaps a doll. Miniaturists often shop from their own tiny stores, so things may be shifted around completely. The result so far is this pretty little store:

The 1/12th scale store measures 10" high by 12" wide by 10" deep. This is a place where someone (really tiny) can come to purchase perfume, lotion and fancy soap. They can also take a breather on the round couch while their purchase is being wrapped.

The miniature owner of the store has a cat, whose always getting tangled up in silk ribbon, and a pretty little dog. The cat is made by talented artist Sue Veeder. The dog I got at an auction. The tiny bottles and jars I made from beads and other jewelry findings. I printed labels on the computer and cut small pictures from magazines to finish off the look of the beads.

The tiny soaps in the case are made from polymer clay and the boxes they are in from cardstock. The beautiful flower arrangement is made by Bloomin Minis. They exhibit and sell their work at The Lehigh Valley Miniature Show . My friends and I make the trek from Brooklyn to Pennsylvania every year for that show.

If you have any questions on any of my projects please let me know.

Thanks for looking!

Art Journal Every Day

2011-01-12T20:35:00.000-05:00

Julie Balzer is encouraging everyone to spend at least 10 minutes a day making art in or for your Art Journal. You can join any time! Click here for her website

For the past 2 weeks, I’ve been carving out those 10 minutes, and sometimes more, every day! I painted backgrounds, cut up collage elements and photos, started a mini album during a virtual crop – kept it totally low stress and no pressure.

I love Julie’s workshops, she’s an amazing instructor. A few months ago, I attended one at The Ink Pad . We created an altered book and I am hooked. This was the first time I got to hack up an old book and it was an experience. I can still hear Julie’s voice, “Don’t be scared, just rip those pages out!”

I recently purchased goodies to finish my cover, but for some reason, I feel stuck! Here are pictures of what I got, and my “in progress” altered journal:

I enjoyed the process and I’m trying to get used to the idea that I don’t have to call my book finished. I have it on my work table and do something to the inside almost every day. In the next few weeks, I really really really want to complete the cover!

Thanks for looking!

Miniature Monday - Victorian Chocolate Shop!

2011-01-10T22:31:00.000-05:00

For some, birthdays aren’t as exciting as when we were children. In my family birthdays are a big deal, and we always celebrate in one way or another. One year for my birthday, I was lucky enough to get a workshop with my favorite Miniature Artisan, Bluette Meloney (click here for her website .)

The workshop, a 1/12^th scale Victorian era Chocolate Shop, was hosted by the Tee Ridder Museum on Long Island. Five glorious days of non-stop building and technique learning. I was exhausted, but it was sooooooo worth it!

The structure itself began life as pieces of wood, foam core, bits of plastic and cardstock. The outside is faux-finished to look like marble. The stones are made from air dry clay. The removable roof was wood covered with a three step patina technique. All of the wood trim was stained and aged.

Bluette’s projects always capture the tiniest details. The stained glass windows took me three weeks to complete, but I wanted to take my time and get it done right! I purchased the delicate door handles at the IGMA show.

The beautiful display windows feature parquet floors and yummy chocolate made from polymer clay. The interior and exterior floors are mosaic tile. Step inside the shop – the furniture is from Bespaq except for the display counter which was made by a very talented English artist whose name I can’t remember (YIKES!)

The back of the shop has a false wall to give the illusion of an office on the left of the shelf, and the kitchen to the right of the shelf. I created a “chocolate making in progress butcher block” that sits just inside the doorway. Above the butcher block is a pot rack with gorgeous copper pots by J.Getzan ( click here for his website .) I love the way it looks like the chef just stepped away!

The chocolate goodies are a combination of ones that I made, were gifted to me, or I purchased. The coffee and tea sets on the tables are made by Carolyn Eiche from Carolyn’s Creations here in NY.

A few of the dolls are inexpensive resin figures. The two serving ladies are finely made hand painted and dressed porcelain dolls by English Artisan Clara Cribb (I found her on EBAY.)

Hope you enjoyed the tour!

Thanks for looking,

Ketsia

Miniature Monday - Sabine's Cafe

2011-01-03T18:16:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone!

On Monday’s, I will be posting pictures from my miniature collection.

Today's project was a special one for me. It's a French Cafe in 1/12th scale named, "Sabine", in honor of my darling older sister. Once completed, I donated "Sabine's Cafe" to the National Association of Miniature Enthusiasts for their National Fundraiser.

I made the box to fit an 11 X 14 picture frame that would keep the dust out. It is electrified so that the inside and outside are illuminated. The scene outside the cafe is from a Parisian street scene wallpaper border increased in size to fit to fit the back wall. The inside walls are made from illustration board and the trim/molding from strips of wood stained walnut. I printed and cut out the tiny menus and the various signs around the cafe. The chairs were Christmas ornaments from Restoration Hardware - I cut off the hooks and sanded them down. The tables are altered chess pieces with a round woodsy on top, spray painted black gloss. The counter was made from illustration board, wood and thin plexi-glass. The plexi was a chore to cut because of the angles, but the results were well worth it! I made some of the food and purchased some in my travels.

I created flower boxes outside with red geraniums and white daisies. I loved making those paper flowers, petal by petal, tedious and beautiful! The floor is made from standard home floor tiles with a tiny pattern which I then scored at 1" intervals to make the equivalent of 12" square floor tiles in miniature. The red coffee cups started out as grommets that I attached a tiny wire to then spray painted glossy.

The wine bottle is actually glass, with a cork. The magazine rack is made of wood strips and has French newspapers and magazines scaled down to size. The posters on the wall are also French. I left the bulletin board empty so that the person who won the box could add their own touches.

I hope you enjoyed this little tour. If you have any questions, I would be happy to answer them.

Thanks for looking!
Ketsia

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T22:48:00.000-05:00

New Year and my FIRST blog post ever! With the encouragement of my Internet and Ustream friends, I'm hoping to share my art; Miniatures, Mixed Media and Journals.

This is a true adventure for me, one I'm really looking forward to. I hope you'll join me!