Take a Bow, I Have Finished a Whole Room....The Leaky Cauldron

Today I have put in the last finishing touches to the bar of The Leaky Cauldron and tacky waxed in everything. This is it the room is officially done. There will be no more tweaking, primping or procrastinating, I promise to leave it alone.

The bar is open for business.

Three changes since yesterday: the blackboard showing all the Leaky's Specials, a very un-PC goblin head by Debbie Lyons and one of Sarah Hendry's wonderful cat sculptures.

This room has taken shape after two years of collecting and planning so I hope you will enjoy my walk through of all the different areas and perhaps discover a new miniature artisan.

These three raucous hags are all by Jain Squires, I adore Jain's work as it is so quirky and each doll is beautifully dressed. 

They are celebrating a birthday and have certainly taken full advantage of all the the Cauldron's hospitality. The poor cat, from Miss Sally World,  is exhausted by them. 

 I always find it really hard to begin piecing together each little scene as it will mean 'spoiling' a piece of furniture that it may have taken a while to source. So I thought long and hard  about my celebration table and asked the extremely talented Linda Cummings to create a Hag's Birthday Cake as my centrepiece. Linda is a real artist and we had lots of email discussions about size and design using photographs from the internet.

 As you can see Linda has created an absolute masterpiece that stands proudly above all those empty bottles!! The top of the cake has a crash landed witch with her red slippers and broom with actual bristles!! There are striped candles and flying bats as well as mushrooms and grisly fingers. Wow!! It is a total work of art and I am so glad I approached her at the Kensington Festival. Lin is a very talented lady who is so enthusiastic about her work and I feel truly honoured to own such a unique piece. Many, many thanks Lin.

 I have spent a lot of time trying to source bottles for this project and ended up buying quite a few off Ebay.com simply because of their shape, then I went to the Alexandra Palace Fair and was able to find quite a few there for a fraction of the cost!!

 I have also bought some gorgeous handblown miniature glass pieces from Glasscraft at various fairs. Although do check the size of the decanters necks if you are a solid water beginner like me. All the glass can be coloured with glass paints and I opted for this method too.

Ray Storey not only makes fabulous lights but also a range of very intersesting hand blown glass and I have used a number of shapes and colours, brown and green have worked really well.
My Tiny World also has a quite a varied range of glass, mostly jars, in all sizes which are of a lovely quality. 

 As my witches are more than a little tipsy they have spilt quite a few of their drinks. For these spills I decided to use Scenic Water from DeLuxe Materials. This is a very easy product as you simply, and carefully, heat the amount you need in the microwave. I used a little plastic tub with a jelly cube amount at a time, about the size of my thumb, in the microwave for 15 to 20 seconds but do be careful it gets very hot!!!!

Scenic Water can be coloured with water based paints, the specialist colours sold by Deluxe or even food colourings ( although I have read that these can fade ). Add tiny amounts until you get the colour you want. Scenic water sets quite quickly but it can be re-melted in the micro wave for a couple of seconds to make it runny again.

I simply spilt it on the table a bit at a time and then helped the drips stay in place using cocktail sticks. Scenic Water does not harden in the same way as Solid Water which is why food miniaturists use it for jellies but because it sets quite quickly it is good for spills.
Gosh I haven't got very far tonight but I am so pleased with this room I want to take my time sharing it.
One room down, nine more to go!!!

New Residents for Diagon Alley........

Of course I could not go to KDF and not visit the stand of my favourite doll makers Julie Campbell and Jain Squires.

 They did not disappoint and I was drawn immediately to Julie's absolutely fantastic flying witch.

 The photographs have come out appallingly but I am sure you can see what a original piece she is and perfect for Diagon Alley.

 The dress flows beautifully and she looks like she has had a very successful visit to the Alley.

 I love all the little details like the cameo.....

 .......and fingerless gloves. I can't wait to display her on the roof of one of my finished shops. One day!

 On Jain's stand I noticed this little character straight away. I have quite a few witches now so I knew this little chap was a must buy.

 Jain's people always have so much character. This goblin just ooozes naughtiness...

 Perhaps he lost that eye when Harry freed the dragon in Gringott's Bank?

I adore his star buttons and cheeky feather in his hat.

Both Jain and Julie are putting a few of their pieces into their Etsy shops over the next few weeks so do have a look at more of their wonderful work.

Last, but certainly not least, my next stop was to see Sarah Hendry of Pocket People whose cats I adore. This time I went for a Persian for my collection. He is looking very happy in his new home outside the Apothecary.

Such treasures will need a perfect back drop, so on with the building and construction work!

A Little Bit of Interior Planning.......

A few years ago I went to my first Miniatura and discovered just how many talented miniaturists there are and became totally hooked on this wonderful hobby. The Spring show is in a couple of weeks and being a list person I thought I would get the contents of The Leaky Cauldron together for a 'dress rehearsal'.

Then I would know what to look out for when I attend the show.

 The ground floor bar area looks busy! All my fabulous characters are by the wonderful Jain Squires and they look very comfortable.

 Mad Eyed Moody is enjoying his retirement propping up the bar.

 Ladies that Lunch? They certainly have a full spread with tasty treats from Mags Magnificent Miniatures, Linsminis and Kiva. 

 I hope to have a few baskets of groceries and fresh produce eventually for my Diagon Alley shoppers. This basket of apples is by After Dark Miniatures as is the produce board on the pub counter.

 I have tried the shelves out for size with some of the bottles I have collected. Not sure if I will use Nikki's coloured bottles here, maybe have one shelf full. I also want to have a small collection of pewter plates and bowls ( Miniatura List! ) on the shelves plus a few more tankards.

 These bottles are from Le Petit Monde d'Oiseau. They are perfectly scaled and come in a range of colours and shaped. I have also been collecting other glass bottles and flasks from Ray Storey which are hand blown and beautifully made. I will have another go with the scenic water and see what concoctions I can come up with.....

 In the bedroom my Hogwarts student is quietly dreaming of Gilderoy Lockhart! Exhausted after a day's shopping. This lovely piece was made by Julie of Bellabella Dolls and as soon as I saw her I knew she was perfect for this scene.

 I have a passion for the cats of Sarah Hendry and this little family are on their way to Hogwarts despite the one pet rule.

 The books are made by a company called A Novel Idea and they do a whole range of fabulous book sets. I bought these from a company in the US but for the life of me I can't remember what they were called. I will try and look them up and add the link later.

 Ahhhh! So sweet.

And like all good Hogwarts pupils she has been shopping for goodies to take back with her to school. A witch in the box by J.Dunn, sweeties by the lovely Silke and a tin of Halloween biscuits from Alliesminis.

There are quite a few things still needed for in here. All the kit for a Hogwarts student, a bookcase maybe, a wash stand or cupboard, a Hogwarts cloak and scarf, few bits of clothes etc, etc, etc!!!

A long list, but if I don't have a good idea of what I need when I go I get a bit "headless" and end up buying things willy nilly.....attic of the Cauldron springs to mind!