Monday, August 31, 2009

From trash to treasure

So, this project started when I noticed that the cap to my toothpaste was divided like a relish tray. I sliced it down and spent some time making mini veggies. Then I remembered my friend Judy's beautiful meat and cheese board that I received in a Small World swap. That led me to think of a wedding banquet table and this is the result. I made everything except for Judy's board and most of it was from "trash."

You've seen the wedding cake before. The plates are made from milk carton seals. The forks are the pins I pulled out of the pushpins that I used for punch glasses. The punch bowl is a clear plastic lid I cut down, a pushpin and a button - it's filled with glass paint for the punch. The ladle, knife and server are cut from thin metal. The lettuce for the tossed salad is plastic snow that I colored with food coloring. The table itself is made from pieces from my wood scrap box and it's covered with a layer of white paper and then some packing sheet foam that's shiny and kind of elegant looking as a tablecloth.

This was my first attempt at some of the vegetables I made for the relish tray. There are celery sticks, baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, cauliflower and broccoli, dill pickle spears and bread and butter pickle slices (the glue isn't completely dry - I'm too impatient to wait, lol). The dip in the middle was made with white dimensional paint and some polymer clay shavings for the spices. I used those vegetables, plus some cucumber and radish canes I made another time, for the salad.




Welcome!


Please help me welcome Victoria. Thank you so much for stopping by!

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Time for a change

The kids are back in school and the temperature is cooler in the evening - autumn is coming. It's already here in blogland, :-). The banner photos are all autumn themed contest entries. Henry the dog is trying to be a scarecrow but he isn't having much success scaring them away, lol. Henry won second place in the American Miniaturist contest. The other scenes didn't win any prizes but I enjoyed making them. Autumn is one of my favorite times of the year. The fact that it's football season is a definite plus (Go Green Bay!)

Tomorrow we move DD#2 back to college. It was already going to be a chore but now I'm sick and K's roommate's parents won't be coming so we're going to stay long enough to get her settled in, too. It will all be good in the end and I always feel better about leaving them if I know their dorm rooms are as cozy as possible. Hubby gets to do the heavy lifting and I get to do the making it cozy part. I definitely get the better deal. :-)

Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend!

Friday, August 28, 2009

Mini Suitcases

I made and listed three new suitcases for my etsy shop today. The child's suitcase on the left was packed with everything a little boy needs for a trip to Grandma's.
These little cases are so easy to make from little mint tins. I discovered today that real wallpaper samples work quite well to line the insides and I don't have to worry about glue showing through. I also have a large selection of samples from which to choose.
We've had a rough start to the school year. My son had been coughing and not feeling well so I took him to the doctor thinking it would be bronchitis or a cold. However, the doctor suspects pertussis (whooping cough). The results from the test take a minimum of 4 days and he can't be at school until the test confirms that he doesn't have it. It's highly contagious. If the test comes back positive he'll be home for awhile. I don't know what that means for the daughter who's moving to college on Sunday. At least she's had a recent booster shot for pertussis.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Today's project

This is my newest etsy listing - a gray leather memory trunk. It's filled with old photos, love letters, an old quilt, a wedding veil, a christening gown and a baby bonnet. This was surprisingly easy to construct. The base is a pattern from www.printmini.com. I designed the tray and all of the hardware.






Wednesday, August 26, 2009

I'm back...I hope!

Well the internet usage level is back down so I should be able to blog more regularly again. I've missed you all!

I've been dealing with some health stuff in the family and have not felt much like mini-ing. I'm hoping to get back on track this week. I just sold the last mini suitcase in my etsy shop so I need to make some more. I've also got an attic swap coming up. I've got a good idea for it. Now I just have to figure out how to execute the idea...

Thank you for hanging in there with me while I've been less available than usual. I appreciate you all so much!

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Welcome!

Please welcome Katy to my followers. Thank you for stopping by! Her mini blog has a beautiful table and chair set featured right now with photos to show how she antiqued it. Stop by and say hi!

Thank you for following my blog!


Please welcome Eva, my 80th follower! She has a couple of blogs and if you click on her name it will take you to one of them.
I am still amazed that so many people find my blog interesting enough to follow. You are all amazing and I have learned so much from each of you. Thank you!

Sunday, August 23, 2009

79 Followers!


Welcome Tonyina! Her blog is http://minitonyina.blogspot.com/ and she has some wonderful mini food. Just looking at her Oreos and milk made me hungry, lol. Please stop by her blog and say "Hi!"

Thursday, August 20, 2009

A new follower


Please help me welcome Julie Old Crow ( http://yummyminiaturefoods.blogspot.com/). She has beautiful mini food on one of her blogs. Thanks for stopping by Julie!

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

I'm back... but not at home

I'm "borrowing" internet service at the church so I can check in with all of you. I feel so lost when I can't just pop online to visit, :-(.

I started making some inhabitants for the diner yesterday. Meet De and Buzz, owners/operators of De's Diners. De doesn't look anything like me but Buzz is so named because he bears an uncanny likeness to my Uncle Danny, nicknamed Buzzy. One of the customers is completed as well. I decided to dress the dolls in polymer clay so that I can get the draping the way I want it and so that the customers will sit well in the booths. It's much more difficult to make the dolls this way!

Saturday, August 15, 2009

A booth update

One of my online groups has a round robin swap. I got the box today and there was a large piece of black leather in it. I used some it to add a triangle to the booth backs.


I hate my internet service!

Once again we are near our usage limit so my posts will be less frequent for a week or so. The girls head back to college in the next couple of weeks so we should have much less trouble with nearing our limit. I'm very thankful for high speed internet at the church and at my brother-in-law's, though, in the meantime. :-)

Friday, August 14, 2009

The diner has a name

Ok, so it's isn't a very original name but I like it, lol. I saw a fluorescent sign this afternoon and had to figure out how to make one for the diner. I used colored paper clips, bent them into shape, glued them to the black cardboard and after the glue dried I coated the paper clips with clear Gallery Glass paint to make the "tubes" shine.






Here's my soda fountain and the inspiration photo I used. Again, it was made with items I had on hand: beads, connector dowels, paper fasteners, corrugated cardboard and wood scraps.


The ketchup and mustard bottles are painted Lite-Brite pegs and the salt and pepper shakers are just two beads glued together. I painted some black glass paint in the pepper shakers and white in the salt shakers.
Is there anything I've made for the diner that someone would like to have a tutorial on? If so, please leave a comment telling me which thing you would like to see as a tutorial.



Thursday, August 13, 2009

Hey, it really looks like a diner!

I had a slight change of plans. The wallpaper I found online would not print clearly so I used a tone on tone scrapbook paper instead. I used the envelope liners to make a tiled floor. I had several different patterns in black and white. I love how it turned out.

The light is an LED one that hubby and I found at a ham radio fest. I find a lot of useful mini tools and supplies at those. It looks a bit retro and lights up the kitchen really well.

I'm not finished yet. I still need a soda fountain and condiments. There are other things, too, but those are the most important.

Please notice that the back splash for the grill is covered in splattered grease. Thanks for the idea, ladies.

I've been able to make so many items for this room with found objects. That's one of my favorite things to do - see something I like in mini or real size and try to figure out how to make it with what I have on hand.















Thank you, Mercedes!


First, a quick welcome to two new followers, Anne Marie Elliot and peechesmini. Thank you both for taking time to follow my blog!
Second, look at the wonderful goodies that arrived from Mercedes (www.libertybiberty.blogspot.com) today! She sent some beautiful Noah's Ark fabric (which I was expecting) and a lovely quilt and two little sailboats! The boats have already found a home in the beach cottage. I have to find just the right place for the Noah's Ark quilt. I have a real size ark collection so I may put the quilt in the dollhouse that represents my real house. Thank you so much, Mercedes!


Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Diner Update

My future son-in-law has been here for the past two days and the guest room is my sewing room so I couldn't do much of the "construction" work I need to do on the tin. But I was able to bring a tray of stuff out to the dining room to work. I made the grill and the cabinet it's on, the fryer, the coffee maker and the milkshake machine, the food, and the coffee mugs. The cheese on the fridge was made by Gaye from My Small Obsession. I made the salad prep board a year or so ago.

Besides raising the floor on the lid and wallpapering, I still have a lot of accessories to make. Menus, napkin dispensers, condiments for each table, signs and a clock - there's probably more but that's all I can think of right now, lol. Oh, just thought of a couple more things - soda dispenser, cash register, waitress's notepad...

I found a pink vintage wallpaper for the top half of the walls. I'm going to use a black and white print from the inside of old billing envelopes for the lower half. I want a black and white tile floor, too. Once I have the floor leveled, my booths will sit better. They are level but the floor currently isn't.

The meals on the tables and counter are burgers/fries/pickle; hot dog/fries/pickle; grilled cheese/pickle; and bacon and eggs. They are all on plates made from juice carton seals. The coffee maker was made from a foam wine cork, the straws are colored paper clips. Most of what I made today came from found objects.










Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Update

First, update on Zyla. She's miserable - poor thing has dug a bald spot on her tail and she's scared to go outside on her own.

And the pictures speak for themselves. I'm happy with the way everything is coming together. The tin is already rusting through the gesso, though, so I'm probably gonna have to get a rust-o-leum primer and then paint or paper over that.















A tale of a puppy and some hornets...

We had a rough start this morning. Zyla, our lab mix 18 month old, got into a hornets' nest. She was frantically trying to get them off of her - there were at least 30! - and when I went out to help I got stung, too. We've been to the vet for her - I just took Benadryl 'cause I only got a few stings. Now Zyla's afraid to go outside. Can't say that I blame her but we'll have to work on that soon.

I worked a bit more on the booths last night. I added black piping to the backrests and it looks great. I also added buttons to the juke box. I'm still hoping to put in some time today and get updated photos later.

Monday, August 10, 2009

Here are the pics I promised

Obviously, there's still a lot work to do but I got a good start today. The juke box needs some beads for buttons and knobs so it has some dimension but I think it will work. I'm very happy with the booths and the counter and stools. The booth benches are pieces of metal angle brackets that I saved from something and the tables were made from cappaccino container lids and film canisters. The counter was made from a wooden box a watch came in and the stools are bits of hardware with vintage soda lids for seats.

I did have a catastrophe today, though. Zyla got into the craft room and ate some of my mini food I had out for the diner. I can't wait until she gets past this stage. It makes me crazy!

The next step for the diner is to prime the interior and figure out paint or wallpaper. I want a black and white tile floor and pink upper walls. I think I will raise the floor level of the front part to match the kitchen level...or at least make them closer to the same height.






Sorting....

I spent some time sorting through the drawers full of saved items to find possibilities for items for the diner. I found some really good stuff! I am getting very excited about the diner! I hope to have some beginning photos later today. Stay tuned!

Sunday, August 9, 2009

My purchases

Hopefully, the next time you see these items, they will be a lot less rough. The main body of the breadbox will be the kitchen area. I think I'll make the counter so it bridges the height difference. Those metal pieces will be used to form the stools. The Victorian style stoves will go for other projects but everything else will be used in the diner. The color scheme will be pink and black to match the exterior colors. I am anxious to get started.

On a sad note, we found out today that a dear friend from our college years died last week. We'll be making another trip tomorrow for the viewing.



A few photos of my trip

We had a wonderful time on our little getaway weekend. The photos show the rose petals on the bed and around the heart shaped jacuzzi tub. Also, the outside of the "cabin". There were 3 other rooms similar to ours. The grounds were absolutely beautiful. And, finally, a photo of Mark and me on our anniversary - our first day at the Bed and Breakfast.














Saturday, August 8, 2009

I have 75 followers!


Wow! I am amazed that so many people are enjoying my blog enough to follow it. Thank you so much! Please help me welcome Stephen of http://nikonsniper.blogspot.com/. Stephen has some wonderful photographs on his blog of various subjects. Stop by and take a look.

New project coming soon

Hi everyone! I'm away for the weekend with my husband for our anniversary. We've done a lot of antique shopping and found the perfect tin breadbox to turn into a diner. At the oldfashioned hardware store, my hubby helped me to find the perfect pieces to make stools for the counter. I found a sink/cabinet at another shop. It's obviously meant to be!

Photos and more later, once I am home again.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Mercedes inspired me

Mercedes over at www.libertybiberty.blogspot.com made a beautiful little shabby display coffee table from a picture frame. I tried a similar project and this is the result. I will have to make my own little shabby room now. Anything so I can start a new project, lol.


Small World summer contest entry

Now that the winners have been announced I can show you my "Picnic in the Park". I made all of the food except for three slices of the watermelon. Burgers, potato salad and cherry pie...yum!