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Please go there and read it. I will adore you for it.
Even more if you leave a comment.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year.

My HALLOWEEN BLOG is up on my website. So if you come here and don't ever go there, Go THERE NOW!

Here's a taste. 

And, I am having a GIVEAWAY

It's on Facebook and it's for a loaded 

Potion Prep Board.

That is all...

Taking myself, my miniatures and my blog and moving.

When your past calls, don't answer, it has nothing new to say. Unknown.

YOU CAN  READ IT HERE.

I have been changing. They way I do business anyway. And market myself. I have been learning a lot about internet marketing and trying to put those lessons into practice. One of them calls for leaving this blog behind. 

Not that this wasn't a great place to connect.

 And I think Blogger is fun to use too. It has just run its course for me. So from now on, I'll be blogging on my website. I hope you'll join me there. If you are on my newsletter list, you will be notified of a new blog. So you might want to subscribe. I am not pushy, salesy and I will never bombard your inbox. If anything, I am a negligent blogger. I have so much more fun creating things. 

Every New Beginning Comes From Some Other Beginning's End.

One of the latest will be a new tutorial for making realistic potion bottles. Or any kind of bottles and jars to fill up your pantry whether for a witch or wizard or just a housewife from one of the square states.

  If you think you might want it - sign on to the Newsletter !! and get a head's up once its available.

Other than that, I am gearing up for Halloween with some new treats for sale,  some new projects and orders, of course. Here's a few of the newest.

 And I am going to learn to sculpt a cat. Kerri Pajutee will teach me how. Fingers crossed.

Finally, Fall is beginning to show its face. I am seeing my spider friends again!!
I am finished with the heat and looking forward to what I consider to be the beginning of MY new year. How about you?

I am leaving this one here because there's some good stuff, fun stuff, growth stuff and important stuff. I did move a few of my most popular blogs over but the rest of that - a new beginning. 

I hope you will come with Me To the New BLOG
Got any new beginnings to share? You can still tell me below.

The Heart of the Miniature MATTER.

"Fix your eyes on perfection and you make almost everything speed towards it. William Ellery Channing

I want to introduce you to a long gone miniaturist who obviously was obsessed with perfection. At least that is what shows up in his work.

His name is Frank Matter and he passed away in 1977.  During his lifetime he made the most incredible miniatures. Everyday things, copied exactly, working, and of course, without the use of computer graphics. 

I first read about Frank in the old Nutshell News. I lot of his items were in the collection of John and Ellen Blauer. In that article was a description of a fountain pen made exactly like a real fountain pen. Rubber bladder and all. Can you even imagine?

Anyway, I was aware that Adell Venus collected miniatures as far back as the 1950's. (she was a customer of mine, became my friend and also told me she had that fountain pen so I knew she had a lot of Frank's things)  I was luck enough to get just a very FEW things of Frank's from Adell's auction and below is one.

Looks like a very nice bathroom scale, right? But, guess what? When you press on it the dial actually moves. So a dollhouse inhabitant might very well check her weight each morning. (The scale is metal)

I managed to learn a good bit about Frank from Bill Robertson who happens to be an incredible miniature artisan himself. Just have a peek see at some of his amazing work .

One of his stories about Frank involves "the world's smallest pipe" that Frank advertised in magazines. Luckily I got one out of Adell's collection. He sold things in those gelatin capsules and I am probably the first person to touch this pipe when I removed it for photographing. Pretty sure Adell left things as she got them and just put them away. It is in point of fact a working pipe.

   
According to Bill, the Kansas City Museum  has a large collection of Frank Matter's creations. I have not yet been but if you get there make sure you get to see these miniature miracles. (And if you have seen them, tell me about them in the comments. Please.)

Here are a few other bits I managed to acquire.

 Just as an FYI, remember that Frank was working long before computers and printers and these tiny bars of soap are HAND PAINTED. Same goes for the cigarettes.

 You do tend to see lots of sewing things about all over in miniatures. But none so perfect. Looks like to me Frank used ivorine or celluloid to make the thread cards.

The little thread storage piece turns to let the spools out. Clever.

 There is much more to Frank Matter. These tiny little scraps that I am so lucky to own are just a minuscule example of what he was capable of.  He worked in wood, silver, paint, ivory, and included furniture, games, musical instruments, toys, clocks and more.  He also made a 1:48 scale house and created nearly every item in the house, including working clocks, paintings and a tiny silver tea service. 

There is very little about Frank anywhere on the 'net and I am happy to bring him to your attention. 

So what do ya think?

Making Minis with Idris Elba

 

 PSYCH !!!!

Sorry for that, but in a way, kinda true. I watch/listen to Netflix while working and my latest was watching/listening to the British drama series, Luther  While I worked Idris was right there with me. So I wasn't lying actually.

Here's what came out:

 

 I put together this Paleontologist's paraphernalia. Cute little Mastodon skeleton model right? Books, fossils too. If you'd like to own it here ya go.

 While I am not an animal maker, I do give it a shot now and again. This sculpted Afgan Hound is furred with Alpaca fibers. This was a hit and miss project that took more than several episodes of Luther.

I have done one of these before and this one is a bit different. The original is one of my most popular pins on Pinterest. So, another one.

I got this industrial barrel in an auction lot of stuff I wanted and this was extraneous to my needs. I thought it needed some toxic waste.

And some bird houses. Don't like the roof on the first one, so have since ripped it off. But now I have run out of Idris... 

Most of this will be on my Ebay.

Signed up for my Newsletter?  Do and you will get a nice surprise. For free.

A Day in The Life - A Miniature Life.

"The reinvention of daily life means marching off the edge of our maps." Bob Black

I have a feeling if you are like me, you march off the edge of your map daily.  By that I mean, we start off with one project and by the end of the day are way off the trail.  A long way from where we started.

I wake up thinking about miniatures and pretty much go to bed the same way. This usually entails what I plan for the day and then what I never got to that day.

I was working on some chairs recently that I wanted to reupholster and had all of that spread out on one work table.

 

Choosing fabrics for several pieces had me stumped so I looked for a distraction.Then some tea sets I had ordered caught my eye. These were meant to be made up into magically pouring tea sets like this:

Oh, and there's some finished chairs. Here's another one:

*The customer who won this on eBay said she was disappointed with the "quality of the chair" (Bespaq) because "it's light weight and cheap and small (again, Bespaq) and not worth what I paid for it. "I thought it would be oversized and not so cheap looking" (once again perfectly scaled Bespaq).  I told her to return it for a full refund. Never heard from her again. When this happens I have to think they were trying to either get  a partial refund or a full refund and then get to keep the piece. Not. But I digress and am off the path again, as you can see.

So there are the tea sets:

They are commercial pieces that I bought online or on eBay and the quality varies widely with one set being much too big for 1:12 scale. I have an order for a magical set but couldn't decide which to start with and ended up not starting.

BUT. Someone had inquired about a dormouse in a tea pot and I had just gotten this new modeling compound called Bees Putty from Germany. I sculpted this mouse in the too big tea pot because sometimes too big is just right. And the Bees Putty is pretty neat stuff.

"Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?"
"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to", said the Cat. Alice  

I looked back at the tea sets, thought the silver tray was too big and thought maybe it should be painted to go with some Italian pottery I had done recently:

 Actually these were another wandering when I came across some turned wooden pots and some larger terracotta pots I got in a lot on eBay. Because I wanted the strawberry planter in the lot.  (Which I broke as soon as it arrived.) I came across them many a time and finally came up with something to do with them while trolling Pinterest.

So the tray got a coat of gesso. Black gesso. I do love the black stuff. 

I never went further with the tray because I got distracted again. I put away the fabric and tea sets - getting pretty crowded on all 3 of my work desks - and decided to clean up the whole lot. I probably don't have to tell you that once you start that 25 other projects present themselves. 
 Please tell my I'm not alone. Post your wanderings below.  

Step by Step.

 "There is no one giant step that does it, it's a lot of little steps". Peter A. Cohen

I have never done a work in progress like you see on blogs a lot. Step by painful step.
But might as well do one for the record.

This is a Trompe L'oeil called Le Pate after Jean Baptiste Oudry. I had done this one years and years ago but this was a request so did it again. Have to admit I have not painted in a few years so, something different. Keeps the old brain from getting tics, hopefully...

This one below was done long ago and I found it  on Google. Not the best lighting. For sure, it was not that yellow. I would love to see them side by side. See how close I came each time...

Let me know what you think. 
AND I would love for you to sign up for my NEWSLETTER - don't worry, I won't bombard your inbox. I am about as good at newsletters as I am at blogging. But...I have surprises up my sleeve so I would not want you to miss anything.

Mini Love,

WHY ?

"He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how"  Friedrich Nietzsche

I'm in a bad mood today so I'm really glad I have miniatures.  Mention just about anything and it will piss me off.  Right now I am thinking about those dismissive people who think miniatures are toys for little girls.  And right now I can see their eyes glaze over. Or roll. And right now I'd like to see their eyes rolling under my desk.

Simon Sinek says, "People don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it."

I make miniatures (and sell them) because I get up in the morning and can't wait to get into my studio and create something. I love the creative process. I love designing a miniature and going bit by bit through the process taking the twists and turns until something that pleases me comes out.  And thankfully my customers are pleased as well. I love taking a blah piece and transforming it into something beautiful and unique.  I consider what I do making art. And miniatures are my medium.

Right now Halloween is on the way. So right now I am transforming my stash of commercial, yes, commercial, 1:12 scale chairs into something spooky in honor of the season. Which is by the way, one of my favorites.

So inspired by my favorite holiday and my love of creepy things I express myself through my art. How is that any different than any other more 'lofty' art?  No different.

 

I am also discovering new abilities and improving on old ones in trying to wrangle fabrics to lay believably on the tiny chairs, unearthing new mediums for sculpting, improving my sculpting, and maneuvering images in my photo software into images that will work in 1:12 scale and give the impression of 'eerie'.  I have yet to tackle Photoshop but its on my bucket list. 

Am I expert at any of this?  I am not. There are far better sculptors, far, far better upholstery geniuses and far better digital artists.  Will you see my original one of a kind pieces coming and going? You will not.  Am I having fun? You bet your ass.

This is art. It is MY art. And only one aspect of it. It is miniature and you can put it in a doll house. And you don't have to like it. But don't you dare turn your nose up.

So, what do you do and why do you do it?  Do you think miniatures can be considered ART?  Put your thoughts below.

And oh, by the way, if you like this blog, please share it.
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An Adventure in the Search for Miniature Treasure

"I ransack public libraries, and find them full of sunk treasure." Virginia Woolf

I have recently been ransacking myself.  Not in a library, but rather at the IGMA Show held annually in August in Teaneck NJ.  And not in a search for books but in my constant quest for the best miniatures.  And lo and behold they there were.

But I am not talking about the show exactly - which is in fact a treasure trove of exceptional miniatures crafted by the very best artisans. I am talking about the silent auction that has been held at the show for years and years. The problem was I always ignored it because I could not allow myself to miss the treasures in the show room.  

It was only at last years show that I meandered around the silent auction table and put down a few bids. The thrill of discovering the riches lying there got my heart fluttering. And winning, well, even more thrilling.  And more fluttering. So back I went this year and here are some my fabulous finds.

Dont be jealous. You could have been there too.

Wonderful Wash Tub, obviously artisan make, maker unknown.

Copper cooking pot with stand for fireplace cooking with copper and brass spoon.

Lovely and delicate turned wooden bowl, beautiful

Hand Carved wooden Utensils

Brass moveable Colonial candle stand

Leather covered canteen. Well done!

Look! the cap comes off.

Backgammon Game.

Comes in a beautiful wooden case.

Gorgeous  multi-leveled  sewing box

Sewing box opened. And partially filled with some sewing supplies.

These are all original artisan pieces can't you tell? Totally amazing and gotten for a song. I am perfectly thrilled with myself. The worst part is I missed so many opportunities in the past. I'll just have to console myself with my treasures here and now.  One other thing, the only signed piece here was the cooper cooking pot, signed with an S. So I have no idea who might have made any of this. Such a shame because the makers are lost to history now. (Sign your work!!)

How about you? Find anything awesome unexpectedly? Tell me about it in the comments below.

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