Happy New Year 2018!

I have a new toy! Mr. Meeseeks is from the Rick and Morty show. It’s a funny albeit crass show that isn’t for everyone, but I love it! Mr. Meeseeks is my favorite character so far. He comes with a gun and a golf club (makes sense if you’ve seen the show), but here he is about to enjoy some wine after completing his work.  :D

Categories: Miniatures
January 8, 2018 | 0 comments

Wee “c” Miniatures Show 2017

Tonight, I headed to the annual Wee “c” Miniatures Show.  It’s a smaller show but there are always wonderful finds to be discovered.  The show is open again tomorrow if you are in the area.  :]

There’s always a bargain table in the lobby with the raffle prizes.  I was able to score a few sheets of vintage wallpaper.  I was having a hard time choosing something for the mill, and I think the pale yellow diamond pattern on the right will be lovely in the upper room.

A Little More in Miniatures – Boston fern leaves to make your own plants.

The Garden Path – a lovely purple bowl by Jason Feltrope.

Fabrics, including an amazing brown houndstooth.

Cea’s Unique Finds – this vendor had a lot of what I am guessing were estate pieces.  A had good luck at this table starting with a tiny quarter scale hot plate.  Guess who is going to have to build a quarter scale house now.  :D

This was a mockup by Donna Bahls for tiny working rubber stamps.

There is only one true working stamp as the rest are just the mockup display, but I couldn’t pass it up.  Even if only the tea cup truly works, the others will make for great accessories in a scene.

This corner cabinet is marked Lanny Gregg 79.

It’s such an unusual piece and in remarkable condition.  The drawers do open.  :]

The final mini of the night was this marvelous bird marked J. Holmes 82.  I love all things New England, and this is so indicative of that style.

Categories: Miniature Shows and Shops
November 10, 2017 | 0 comments

Watson Mill – building progress

The Ray Storey floor lamp wire runs on the outside, up to the bedroom wall channel. I had made the channels for the wires previously. To install the floor lamp, I made one of my usual faux wall outlets from copper card stock. I have only one more lamp requiring an outlet, but I made four to have matching decorative outlets as well.

I finished the wire with a false plug, added a receptacle cut from stickers, and ran the wire up the outside.

I glued the ceiling board in place. To help with stability, I added strip wood on the upper floor where the wiring space will be.

I installed the two ceiling lamps from the first floor and ran the wires into the attic space. These are new old stock ceiling light kits by Illinois Hobbycraft. I spray painted the metal rings Krylon Antique Bronze.

Since I put the wallpaper in prior to putting in the ceiling board, I needed some small crown molding to finish the upper edges. I stained this Minwax Driftwood to coordinate with the other finishes.

I checked the fit of the upper flooring and cut the holes for the two openings before gluing it in place. I had previously stained the red oak flooring with Minwax Dark Walnut, sealing with two coats of Delta Ceramcoat Matte Varnish. Next up was installing the small side wall to complete the bedroom space.

Here you can see the wiring from the floor lamp running through the bedroom channel. I put a few small pieces of tape over the interior wiring channel to make a pocket for the wires while still allowing for movement. The bedroom sconce wires still need to be added to this channel. A whole strip of tape would stick to the wires too much and make it difficult to pull them through.

I stabilized the wall with pieces of mdf. As you can see, the attic space will provide good access to the wiring.

Categories: Watson Mill
October 10, 2017 | 0 comments

Watson Mill – door and windows, part 3

Continuing work on the door and windows. I spray painted four doorknobs and two keyholes in antique bronze since the area for door handles was so narrow. I had to put the knobs a little off center from one another due to the draft strip down the middle.

I love the way it turned out, though.  :D

Right now, I have the outer trim held on with putty since I’ll need to use the curve to mark the shingles as I round the top. I tried to fix the bad sanding job on the curved portion, but I’m still not happy with it. (I found another of these vintage windows, so I can replace the outer trim.)

The threshold for the door was painted Neutral Grey after a good sanding to droop the middle as though it has been worn over the years. I’ll add some subtle aging once I do the landscaping.

The window I bought from Hobby Lobby would not go back together correctly, even though I was careful to keep the parts in the right order. I won’t put a wonky window in a build I’ve been so carefully planning. I painted a Houseworks window in replacement, using stained trim for the interior. The corner joins are somewhat pronounced from the stain, but it won’t matter with the window coverings and furniture placement.

I had to pad the exterior frame with strip wood since the thickness of the wall is 3/8″ but these are meant for 1/2″ thick walls.

As noted previously, I had to repair the window opening for the round upper window due to a wandering Dremel. I cut strips of cardboard and lined the hole until I had a suitable diameter to hold the window in place. This fix will be covered by wallpaper on the interior and wood shingles on the exterior.

While I love the 2 1/4″ Simplicity Window from Heritage Laser Works, the front wall is 3/8″ thick. Each window comes with one 1/8″ thick center mullion piece and two 1/32 thick outer trim pieces. I bought three windows to have the parts needed to address the thicker wall. I will use two center mullions, one on each side of an acrylic window. I cut the cross bars from the third mullion piece to finish out the required thickness.

I glued three of the outer trim pieces together to make a thicker exterior trim piece then glued the two remaining outer trim pieces together to make the interior trim piece.

For the 1 1/8″ Simplicity Window from Heritage Laser Works, a little more work will be involved since the pieces aren’t as thick. But, to start, as with the larger round window, I glued four of the outer trim pieces together to make the exterior trim piece then glued the two remaining outer trim pieces together to make the interior trim piece.

I glued the outer trims to one mullion piece for each window. I won’t glue the windows in just yet since I want to use them as guides for cutting the shingles to fit. I painted these Americana White Birch in satin.

The interior trim is stained Minwax Driftwood.

I think I am ready to get the ceiling installed, then lighting, then back to the dumbwaiter and the ladder.

Categories: Watson Mill
September 27, 2017 | 0 comments

Bishop Show Chicago Fall 2017

It’s mini show time again!  I headed to the Bishop Show – Chicago Fall 2017 event tonight and came home with a few goodies.  I also saw the classes for next year’s Bishop International Show, so I have some things to consider.  :]

All About Miniatures.  A beautiful JBM Miniatures upholstered stool.

Iklectic Kollectibles.  This beautiful tiny doll is by Ethel Hicks.

The Little Dollhouse Company.  I am a sucker for white ceramics.  :D

Sir Thomas Thumb.  I did not buy these, but they were amazing to see.  Yes, those power tools work!

While I’m at it, I will share the birthday goodies from Debora.  Always in need of small accent tables, and HoM kits are perfect for that!

This delightful box has working hardware by Ron Stetkewicz Miniatures.

Rustic piggy.

Working padlock!!!!  :O  I haven’t take it out to try it yet.

Owl cane.  The insert reads, “From an owl cane hand-sculpted by Linda Parr (1941-1985).”

Hardware from The Dolls House Mall and Olde Mountain Miniatures.

Hand crafted hammer.

Thanks so much, Debora!  :D

Categories: Miniature Shows and Shops
August 25, 2017 | 0 comments