And So To Bed........

I have spent quite a lot of time on this room considering the bed was already dressed and ready to go. I kept standing back and looking at it all trying to get the right look. I find it really difficult to do messy, dusty or untidy so my witch will have to be a very particular character or perhaps she has a lot of magical creatures to do it for her.

I started with the trunk which has been crackled underneath all the stuff. Them I just lined the edges with different pieces of ribbon and material adding some socks, books, boots, a lovely wicker bag by Kat the Hat Lady and a parasol from The Little Hatter. I think it has just a hint of chaos which is good for me!

A cracked dressing table and stool. Lots of bead perfume bottles, an interested rat and a few bits and pieces. Two skull candle holders at the bag that Ira sent me. I have not stuck everything down as I will be looking for a few extra bits and ideas at Kensington. I'd like a boa to drape, a little bit of glamour perhaps.

These were the first pieces I bought, before the house, before everything... made by Ebay seller Dollshouse Delights I have simply added a few extra pieces like: books from Treefeathers and Jenny Kelm, witch toffee jar by Nikki Rowe, plus a few pieces of fabric to make the drawers look used. Even two years on I still love this bed.

This is the room in its mostly finished state. Just needs a bit of tweaking and bats added to the roof trusses. I am sure you can spot Kat's hat and Jenny's 'Three Sisters' portrait.

So I am walking away from it now and leaving it alone - no tweaking until I find the bits I want! I do think my new vampire bats are going in this room now it will be a little crowded with the furry ones but so it should!

It's The Postman.....

I just love it when I look on the mat and instead of a 'While You Were Out Card' - where was I? In the garden? In the shower? Watching you disappear out of the window? but I was most definitely not out - there are lots of mini parcels. Armed with sugar puffs, cup of tea and a pair of scissors I begin my day in the best way. Husband was out too which meant I could open my packages guilt free, funny how I have swapped hiding another black pair LKBennett shoes for distressing ink and another Ebay must have!!

My first package was from the indefatigable Ira of Merry Jingle. A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to win Ira's giveaway and here are my gifts. Cup cakes for my bakery, red and white items for my modern emporium, some flowers,soap and chocolate plus some super multi coloured skull beads. What a generous and thoughtful gift. I absolutely love the skulls and three have already found a place in my witch house. They are all sitting on a beautiful blanket/throw.

Thank you so much Ira.

 

This was my second package. Isn't he wonderful? I won him on Ebay and he is by the talented Ann Galvin I have placed him in my witch's potting area. I will probably add some corn or something to the urn.

 And just look at these........wrapped hanging vampire bats, how cool are they. Made by one of my favourite Ebay sellers Jenny and Mike Kelm. These will definitely be hung from the roof of the potting area I love them.
I should have started dressing the kitchen today but I have struggled with inspiration. Plus I am off to Kensington on the 14th so I may wait to see what interesting items I find there. Nikki of Witch and Wizard Miniatures is debuting and I now she will have many items of interest both to buy and inspire.
Before I go to a big exhibition I like to sort through what I have to hand so that I know what I need to buy and what is on my wish list. Strangely enough my wish list is far longer than my 'need' list. So this will be a rummage week where I get everything out, see what is of definite use in current and future projects. Then I pack it all away again - ahhh a morning well spent.

Fantastic Giveaway!!!

Jayne of Tullulah Belle Originals has come up with a great idea for her giveaway. Check out her blog to find out the details. Since entering Blogland I have been amazed and heartened by the generosity of many miniaturists with the whole giveaway thing, it seems to me that this idea is a great way to repay such kindness. Please take the time to sign up and pledge your 2$.

Thank you Jayne for taking the time to set up such a great giveaway idea.

Chippendale I Am Not but.......

My new best friend is balsa wood, it may not be fit for a classic piece of Georgian architecture but it is working a treat for me at the moment. I love that I can just pick up all shapes and sizes from my local Hobbycraft, that it is so easy to cut, sand and glue, but mostly cos I end up with lots of off-cuts that I can make furniture with. Then they are really free - aren't they?!

Here are my first attempts at making pieces, as they are for the potting area of my witch's house they are supposed to look rustic - which is just as well I hear you cry! Made from bits of balsa and pieces of bannister that I did not use in my house kit. I am well chuffed.

Naked....

and dressed.

Then while I was basking in my glory I came across this site My Hand Made Hobbit House and went to bed dreaming of underground houses. Have a peek it is absolutely awesome.

The Sitting Room has Landed......

Two rooms more or less completed this week and the house is really beginning to feel right. It's a good feeling when all the plans and ideas you have had start pulling together and I feel much more confident now about the dressing of the house. I have carried the lesson through though, leave a space if you don't have the right piece in your stash!

The furniture has come from a number of sources: The chair and sofa came with my bakery and I re-covered the cushions and crackled it. The lovely cushions are from Bear Cabin Miniatures, who sell lovely hand stitched pieces and furniture. The tall plant stand was from Masters Miniatures who sell a really wide range of furniture for all periods. The pumpkins were both Ebay buys, the character candle holder is by Wendy who has a real spooky website that I have just discovered. The little dragon side table is Jenny Kelm's.

The birdcage has been crackled and made ready for the fruit fairy I hope to find at the Kensington Festival. I have decorated it with fruit sticks and flowers to make her feel at home.

The display unit contains a whole mixture of items from all my favourite sellers: J.Dunn's raven, Jenny Kelm's books, Nikki Rowe's scrolls and various Ebay sellers.

You might notice the big gap in the centre of the room. I have tried everywhere to find an unfinished coffee table that I can crackle but have failed miserably. As I am going to paint it I don't really want to spend loads, so with my new 'best friend' Miss Balsa Wood I am going to have a go at making my own. I love balsa, it is so cheap and easy to work with plus if you have a disaster you can use the pieces for something else and not feel you have wasted lots of money.

This house kit had flat windows but I changed the windows to accomodate a square bay in all the rooms. I liked the shape they gave the outside but I was also under the mis apprehension that I had over bought and would need all these extra shelves for display....Ha!Ha!

So here I am with all these extra ledges. This is the sitting room window displaying one of Kat the Hat's wonderful creations, fabulous pumpkin porcelain by Sally Meekin whose work I love, cactus plants by The Flower Lady and more bits and bobs from my Ebay job lot.

Getting there bit by bit.

Welcome to my new followers I hope you enjoy peeking into my miniature world and please feel free to leave a comment I would love to hear from you.

The Sitting Room

Light headed with the relief of filling the study I made a start on the sitting room. The large bookcase needed books and I seemed to have used practically every mini book I owned on the study. How did this happen? I realised that I had made a very silly mistake by using the lovely books from Treefeathers on shelves where they could not really be seen. So i did not want to use the ones I had left on the sitting room bookshelf, this meant I had to make my own and lots of them....

These are what I made from what I had at home. I used off cuts of balsa wood that I cut to size, sanded and painted. I then gathered together all the odds and ends of craft paper, cut to size and glued them to the balsa shapes. I have also been collecting vintage pictures for my potion bottles etc so i cut some of these down to highlight the spines. Finished of with a coat of varnish.

And the best thing is it feels like they were free because I already had all the bits and I managed to stay clear of Hobbyland!

This isn't quite finished but I like the look so far I just need to tweak it a bit. A couple more scrolls maybe, some spiders perhaps? Mmmmmm...but I do like the books!

The pink and lavender books with the candle are by Jenny Kelm, the gorgeous cherry basket is from Mouse House Miniatures, the potion bottles which I have filled are from My Tiny World and the little plate of quinces was an Ebay buy.

I had recently asked Debie of Piskies and Poppets to make me some hats for my next project to place beside the hats I already have from Kat the Hat Lady and Unique Minis. I received them this week and they are exactly what I hoped for. In fact I had to add one to my study straight away. Thank you Debie. 

Horrible rainy Bank Holiday Sunday here, hopefully it will be a lot nicer tomorrow as I want to sand down the 101 pieces that make up my Empire Stores as my better half has promised to help me put it together. I want to sand in the garden because of the dust.

Been Busy.....

This week seems to have flown past but I have been busy dressing my witch house. Thanks to all of you who left such lovely messages, they gave the push to get down to work. Here is the study furniture mostly finished.

This is a DHE bookcase which I crackled and then edged in gold rub 'n buff. The books are either Ebay buys or from the job lot of goodies I also got on Ebay. I have left a little gap at the bottom because I am not sure what to fill it with yet and I have learnt that when in doubt leave it alone and come back to it.

I used the same crackle on this whitewood piece from Miniatura. Most of the books come from either Treefeathers or are made from a kit by hilda7391. Can you see the fab rat by Pear Tree Miniatures, the tail is like an elastic band and it wobbles!

Another fireplace by Dollshouse Delights which came partly dressed. I have added the scrolls and plant, the gorgeous wobble witch I bought at the last Kensington fair from Susan Lee, and the beautiful lidded urn from the talented Brian Taylor of Grandad's Miniatures.

This desk came ready made from IckleBits on Ebay and I added various pieces like the raven by NickyCC, the skull, some scrolls by Nikki, a potion bottle by Jenny Kelm and one of my mandrakes. In fact it was this table that first made me think I could have a go myself at putting together different pieces but I still think it is a great piece to start with.

Put it all together and this is what I got....Still a few thing to tidy up, like the side window and there is a mirror to go above the fireplace. I have one of Debie's hats Piskies and Poppets on the chair looking really at home, a toppling pile of Jenny Kelm's books plus one of her hands holding the place under the desk. At my first visit to Kensington two years ago I bought the tree lectern from a seller who had lots of different pieces, I don't know who made it, any ideas? One of my favourite things is the original painting of the rabbit by barbplevan who has some great things in her Etsy store including miniature plates that I would definitely buy if Kensington wasn't looming.

So one room down four to go! The worrying thing is I have been collecting for this house for over two years now and it has become very clear that I have nowhere near enough pieces to fill it! It really will have to be a steep learning curve for me so that I can make more of the pieces myself. Can you get a mortgage on a dolls house?