Saturday, October 29, 2016

And BOO To You!



Welcome.  Please come in.  We'd like to play.






Casting spells can be a lot of fun.......





.......unless you're babysitting your undead baby sister






And you thought your pre teens room had a lot of interesting stuff in it? Think again













Finally, the reality of having a mum that loves Halloween....Miss Kitty loves Halloween (and the zombie sisters)







HAPPY HALLOWEEN!


Tuesday, October 25, 2016

MET Show....A Mini Bonanza




On October 15th I took a little trip to the Miniature Enthusiasts of Toronto (MET) Show. This being the second year I attended, I knew what I wanted, who was there and who took credit cards. Very important as some people are just cash and you have to ration.  And in a stroke of genius, I remembered to grab business cards with my purchases so I could recall what came from whom.  In the words of Homer Simpson, I am S-M-R-T.

I started off at Martha McLean Miniatures. I got my handbags!! Last year I got the black Birken bag, so my hopes were high and Martha didn't disappoint. The handbags are made by a South Korean artist, but she forgot the name.




Then I ran over to Small Scale Showcase who sells MiniFanaberia. Much easier (and no shipping) when you don't have to order on Etsy. I got my toaster!




Janice Crawley Miniatures was the next table over. I found a few pieces in her "dollar" bins and grabbed the little honey pot and the red fiesta wear jug. Her pieces are just beautiful.




I had seen Keenderson Miniatures on Facebook, and never made the connection until recently. Glen makes amazing pieces with such fine carpentry. I would buy it all! But I just grabbed the little acrylic stool because it was so cute.




Tremeers Treasures always has gorgeous rugs and stitched pieces. While the large rugs aren't in my price range (but very reasonable given they are 40 count and done in wool or silk), the small woven rug called to me along with the pillows. I also snagged a bowl Harvey Tremeer turned himself. 




Off to Grandpas Dollhouse I went and did restrain myself. I grabbed a few small items....my favourite being the squirrel and frog made by IGMA artisan.  Liz said she would look up the artist for me as she purchased a large number of pieces from the artist at the Chicago show recently.




Adrian Cooper of Eclectica does beautiful stained glass.  But I fell in love with her koi ponds. One for now and one went into the "Christmas gift for me" bag for family.




Out Of The Ordinary has lots of fun small items. They have bins and bins divided by categories. And filled with so many interesting things. I was taken by all the booze bottles. And since I dislike my printers mini book printing results (and I can be lazy) I purchased a few books.




The best deals (and finely crafted pieces) came direct from the MET table, made by MET members. The kitchen hutch was made by Alberto Gozzi. The coffee and end tables were made by Gerry Brockhurst. I was just going to buy the end tables, but knew I would regret not getting the coffee table.....so I caved and got it. No regrets now!

Hutch by Albert Gozzi
Tables by Gerry Brockhurst




The candle holder (box) was made by Judith Carlson.  The knitting bag and afghan were made by Margaret Taylor.  The Christmas socks were made by Judi Surridge.




I found a few other bits and pieces, like 2 more ghost chairs to give me a set of 4. And some generic bar stools for my new build.



I left no stone unturned and got everything on my list. And just a little bit more. Thankfully this is a once a year thing....or I'd be in trouble. But, I might try to venture to the Brampton show this year too.




Thursday, October 06, 2016

The Rug Won't Bite





........and PETA won't freak out.  It's just an 18 count stitched Tiger rug kit from Janet Granger. I stitched while drinking my morning coffee, as dinner cooked, every evening and every spare minute for a week. It wasn`t difficult, but wool takes longer, though the results are worth it!


Monday, October 03, 2016

And so this happened. IKEA






Well, this happened. The IKEA project.

I bought this little number after seeing it on The Shopping Sherpa blog. But then I assembled it and while not huge, it was 2 stories. And if I want to continue with this hobby, I need to be space conscious. Or start to tossing Miss Kitty's toys. And she might object.

The original IKEA Flisat dollhouse
Photo Credit: Ikea Canada - ikea.ca

So I hacked it apart on my table saw. It's now a single story living room and kitchen combo. With a mid century yet modern flare.

Did you know that I`ve never really BUILT a dollhouse before....seriously.  So, minus the room boxes I did in the past, this is my first half build...because its kinda a dollhouse and kinda a room box.  

And my prolonged blogging absence over the summer....well, lets blame life.  Keeping up the garden in this punishing heat and amusing a toddler took up lots of time.  And now Miss Kitty has started school, which should have left me with more time, but I feel like I have less and a more ridged schedule.  

The Plan


Well, its either poop or get off the pot, so I`m going to try my hand at wiring this bad boy.  Enough of the `gonna woulda shoulda` so its going to happen!

I purchased a number of LED items off of ebay.  That means a good month between me and wiring some elements, but whatever.  I don`t want to spend a ton of this project.....even though I know I will (and kinda have).  Pepper`s tutorial on LED soldering refreshed my confidence in my lighting abilities. 

I purchased a few pre wired LEDs from Evan Designs,  Even with the Canadian dollar and very reasonable shipping, it was actually more then affordable!!  I was beyond excited because that sort of thing seldom happens.  I have 2 ceiling light kits, a wire switch kit and the flickering fireplace kit ordered.

Then I jumped over to Grandpa`s Doll House.....holy smokes, if you`re Canadian, grab some of their wood narrow plank flooring sheets.  Only $10!!!  Yes, I still have a large roll of veneer in my basement (not to mention a life time supply of various sized stir sticks), but sometimes you don`t want to kill yourself laying a floor!  

Then I headed over to The Little Dollhouse Company.  Big mistake.  I go in for plexi glass.  I come out with:

  • a chair kit
  • Houseworks metal stove front
  • Steel hob kit
  • Side table kit
  • door knocker
  • 1 clearance lamp
  • an amazing plastic wall hang sink (its clear, you just paint it! They have skylights, big tubs, big sinks, etc., just have to paint it.  Amaze-balls).
  • various small items from the sales drawers that no one else wanted.

The oven, hob and door knocker are for the project.  But I really did restrain myself.  I tried.




The Design


Because of the A-frame look of the building, I want to make it a current take on mid century modern.  As if you purchased grandmas house and then made it modern, but still enjoyed its unique vintage elements.

As you can see with the cardboard on the front, I`m blocking a bit of the front opening so I can have space on the kitchen side that isn`t visible via the window.  And in the name of symmetry, I`m doing it on the living room side too.  The fire place will be brick (the center small dividing wall) and its kitchen side will have a breakfast bar.  

The kitchen will be the far right wall.  A small under counter fridge along with the oven.  Just the sink and hob will be on the top.  Frankly, there isn`t much more space!  Then there will be a run of upper cabinets with LEDs lighting the counter.

The front will have the centered door and be flanked by 2 large windows.  Above the door (and the span of the house) will be a large triangular window broke into 2 windows.  

The ceiling will have beams running to the peak.  This is within the look and era of the home along with hiding the wiring for the pendant light.  The fireplace design is to be finalized.  And I think I will go with lighter floors this time.  I`ve already done grey and chocolate, so this will be a nice change.  




So, now I wait until my mail box is flooded with goodies.  I think my mail carrier must have been in withdrawal over the summer.  No major deliveries to my house!  I also need one more trip to Credit Valley Railway Company to get some tiny styrene quarter round to hold my windows in place.  Miss Kitty looooooooves to watch the train sets there.  Me too!