An Unwelcome Visitor......

I was collecting unpainted flower pots from the step of Witch E.T. Grubb's Emporium and glancing through the middle floor window I noticed a couple of hat stands had fallen over. I opened up the front door and saw rather more of a mess than expected.

 My display of shoes looked rather the worse for wear.

 With a tattered shoe left alone on the shelf.

 It's partner had been dragged to the other side of the shop next to a toppled light stand.

 My gorgeous steam punk hat by Kat also looked slightly awry....I am sure that pipe went somewhere! 

 Downstairs there was the same sort of chaos but little or no damage.

Certain clues on the hidden staircase confirmed my growing suspicions. You would have thought the witchs' cats would have been a little more effective!

Time to see if this little shopper had decided to head down the high street in search of more appetising nibbles.

The modern emporium only had a couple of poops, all that chrome and white china I expect. 

The florist shop showed signs of interest but surprisingly only a scattering of items.

The cake and bread shop.......

 A whole single cake display chew scattered and chewed, right under the nose of this kitty!

 Lots of bread and rolls seem to have been the object of interest. These fimo pieces have been mixed with almonds, semolina, poppy seeds etc. so they may have tasted slightly better than the cakes.

 Another useless cat watches on....

 I hope the cafe's customers were not too terrified!

 The peaceful roof terrace looks as if it has been hit by a whirlwind.

Lots of tidying up to do and the main question is of course.....Where is the bloody mouse now?

So Nice To Be Back!......And My First EHag.....

Oh what a lovely afternoon I have had today. Finally got back in my workroom after 6 weeks of puppies, vets, hospitals and children. Yippee!!

The first thing I did was prime these two little items that I found at a coffee morning a few weeks ago. A small framed room box and one of these little house displays.

Not 100% sure what I will do with them yet although the room box will make a great 'light box' for photographing!! I have a bit of a yearning to do a small shabby chic display using up various bits I have lying around. Hmmmmm, will have to think.

As a way of keeping my projects short and sweet at the moment, I sorted out some of my fabulous Braxton Payne clay flower pots and began painting them for The Leaky Cauldron. This US seller has the best range of clay pots I have come across but I would love to be able to find a European supplier. 

Ah, so relaxing sitting with my paints and who cares about the rain.

 I also dug out some pieces of china I have had sitting doing nothing, with a couple of coats of acrylic paint they will make perfect planters.

I have chosen various shades of brown, gold and black for all the pots and am going to have a little play. 

 I have also fallen in love......my very first piece by Shelia Bentley of Primdolly. A truly marvellous artisan whose work I have been drooling over for about two years now. 

 This is one of her EHags and she sits about 7 inches tall. So not a dolls house miniature which is one of the reasons I have not tried to buy one of her pieces before now.

 But I just couldn't resist for any longer when I saw a whole range of these on Ebay. 

 The expressions of her characters are simply fabulous. 

Having my own piece of Shelia's work makes me feel so lucky. 

A day to be happy, I hope you have all had a good day too.

A Few of My Favourite Things..........Part 4, Lory Tonetti

In my real grown up life I have always collected china pieces of all types which usually sit in the cupboard and come out as and when my colour schemes change. This liking has become part of my miniature world too as you could tell from my collection of Jacqueline Dunn pieces.

Lory Tonetti is also one of my absolute favourite artisans and although the first piece I ever bought was a basket made from a super large acorn cap.. 

 ......her work had the feel of the type I was used to collecting in my real world.

So this piece was the start of this little collection of Lory's wonderful work. 

 More teapots, although strangely I would never buy a collectible teapot for my real home!

 The delicate detail of her work is truly wonderful. Each teapot is about the size of my thumbnail.

 A small selection of her toadstools....

 .......in tiny little acorn caps.....

.......and of course some mushrooms. I also have some loose toadstools for baskets complete with dirt from the wood.

Tea for one? How gorgeous is this?! I think I will put this in The Cauldron Shop as a treat for my hard working witch who has to haul around all those Hogwarts starter cauldrons. 

 The cookie jar should also be at hand to settle the nerves of any anxious parent.

 The perfect place for pumpkin biscuits.

 This beautiful shelf is from the kitchen of my witch house (still to be named....)

 This witch likes a brew or two, or even three.....

 Every detail is simple but perfect.

A scrumptious tray of woodland cupcakes destined for the shopping baskets of Diagon's witches and wizards.

 Lastly, this yummy selection of Halloween cupcakes for my Hogwarts girlie still to be found napping in her Leaky Cauldron bedroom.

Hope you have enjoyed looking at my collection, Lory's work can be seen in her Etsy Shop or on the CDHM site.

An update too on how my most time consuming mini project is getting on...

....yep, we really should have called her Gizmo! 

Feeling a Bit Caged?.......

With a big project on the go I am always on the look out for all those little pieces that are needed but never to hand when you actually want them.

With this in mind I recently discovered these fabulous brass cages on Etsy. 

 This seller is based in China and sells a whole range of beads and charms. The delivery was a little slow but as I am not in any hurry this did not bother me at all.

 The sizes are perfect for 1/12th scale and I decided to order them all in the antique finish. I especially liked the fact that most of them can be opened up for the addition of magical birds.......eventually!!

 These are the best range I have seen too. Lots of interesting shapes and wire work. They will definitely look right in Diagon Alley's Magical Menagerie.

 I also liked the look of these smaller charms which seem pretty useful too. In fact once I remove the ring on the top they will look quite cute as a little curio.

 They could hold a special potion, or jewel, or magic dust? I am sure they will find a home.

Lastly are these tiny cages perhaps for candles? Or a single very dangerous flower? They will need rusting and distressing before they find their home I think.

Have had a great day today despite the non-stop rain, 'Flaming June' indeed!! I spent the whole day at home pottering about and spending lots of time with Lily and my two sons. No rushing about all over the place, no frantic phone calls........Just a day at home. Ahhhhhh, that's better!!

A Few of My Favourite Things..........Part 3, Jacqueline Dunn

I have been collecting pieces by Scottish miniaturist Jacqueline Dunn for a long while now. I usually try and include at least one of her pieces in each of my projects.

The tiny bunny teapot was the first of her pieces I managed to win and it sits on the counter in my florist and gift shop. 

 I have a few witchy pieces including this tiny tuxedo cat pumpkin container. The lid is removable and so tiny. It sits in the fireplace of my witch house.

 On the mantlepiece is this wonderful Halloween cake tea pot. All Jacqueline's pieces are all hand made from clay and are so beautifully detailed.

 I couldn't resist this wonderful witch in the box. It is going with my Hogwart's girlie along with all her other goodies and will be displayed in the bedroom of The Leaky Cauldron

I have only ever seen her pieces on Ebay and they are extremely popular. Each piece comes with its own  hand painted box.

Jacqueline's work is extremely popular and some of her pieces reach very high prices. I have had to learn to be very patient in building up my collection.

 This box contained.......

 ......the tiniest little raven perched on his own teeny pumpkin.

 An Easter box........

 .......for the prettiest white bunny teapot.

 The pansy box was home to.....

 ......an English cottage teapot,

 complete with its own shingled roof.

 A tuxedo cat....

 .......peeks from within a beautiful rosy teapot.

 A rather darker box....

 .......for a wizard's pitcher. A piece destined for the Leaky Cauldron of course.

 A cute house.....

.......and a delightful toadstool cottage teapot.

My long term intention is to collect enough pieces for a shadow box display as well as including some favourite pieces within my projects.

I now set myself a price I am prepared to pay for each piece and leave the auction to run its course. Then it is always a nice surprise when I get lucky and I never worry about the hundreds that go above my budget.

See I am learning to be patient.

Pop over to have a look at her work. My photos do not do them justice at all. It is amazing that each piece averages at about 5/8ths of an inch!

Nice to be back posting again. Dad out of hospital and recovering well following a slightly worrying time that end up with him being transferred to a coronary ward. Puppy did not react well to my many absences and it feels like we have taken quite a few steps backwards, so time for a deep breath and start again! The cat will have his six very dashing stitches taken out on Monday so that should be the end of that saga. My son has had his first A2 exam, so that's one down two to go!!

Who knows I might even get time to make something next week!!!

Hope the rain doesn't ruin your Sunday wherever you are.