Another new shopper and her find

 After my hair appointment, I made a quick stop at Goodwill. There I found this really cool little Buddha and a mini Bratz doll. I gave the doll a new handbag and she's ready to purchase the statue. I also accented the studs and chain on her belt with a silver Sharpie marker. The rest of her clothing is very nice, even if it is just plastic. Then Again Antiques has as eclectic a clientele as it does antiques. ;-)

I forgot to post a photo of the salt cellar I purchased to use as a tray when hubby and I were shopping. It's the pretty rose print tray behind the milk bottles.

I hope you are all enjoying a great week! The next post should be back to the dollhouse...

And so it begins...

 I have three coats of magenta paint on the exterior pieces. The trim will be a soft white satin finish. I'm still debating on what color to make the door. I want a third color for accent. I'm making the dollhouse from a DuraCraft Lafayette kit. It's a tab and slot - not my favorite - but so far the pieces are punching out cleanly.

The rest of the furniture will be from kits or from scratch but I found the tub and cradles when DH and I were exploring antique shops last week. The sink, toilet, and family are all ebay purchases. I don't want to make any of the kit furniture until I have the house built. I read at least one review that said full scale furniture doesn't fit well. I have a couple of other houses like that. They just take a bit more creativity to furnish, lol.

I am trying to make myself take this project slowly...or at least slow for me. I guess we'll see how well I do. ;-)

Have a great week!

Still in the Christmas mood

 I made this tree a couple of years ago and it has been listed in my zibbet shop but as I was looking at pictures of it, I decided it needed more ornaments. This is the result. Now it has red, white, silver, and clear ornaments instead of all red.

 The tree skirt is reversible and has hand beaded edges.

 The tree topper is a painted button. The sewing loop just slides over the top of the tree.

A close-up shot of some of the ornaments. I really like the contrast between the white and the red and silver ornaments. The clear/crystal ornaments add a bit of sparkle. I wouldn't mind a Christmas tree like this one in my size. :-)

The next project is a bigger one. I'm making a dollhouse for my daughter's boyfriend's little girls, ages 5 and 3. This will be fun because I love to decorate dollhouses for little girls. Hiding it will be the hardest part.

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas...

...or at least some Christmas minis! These are the projects I started on Saturday. I got some time this afternoon to finish them up and get them listed in my zibbet shop.

 The cookie tray is an acorn cap but I made everything else. I'm so excited about the cookie cutter. I wrapped a strip of craft metal around my flower Kemper cutter and then squished it a bit to become a gingerbread man.

 This is one of my better Santas, I think. I finally managed to make one 6 mini feet tall. Most of the others fit the description in 'Twas the Night Before Christmas" - tiny. I think his eyes are improved over some of my dolls, too. I still have a long way to go there, though.

Santa comes with the filled stocking. The decorated tree is another zibbet listing.

Is anyone else making Christmas minis yet? I really need to make more cornucopias but they aren't as much fun as cookies and Santa. ;-)

Works are in progress!

I will post some photos soon of my latest small projects. My daughter's boyfriend and his 5 and 3 year old daughters are visiting so mini projects are out until tomorrow. But I promise that I am working. ;-)

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

...at least in the mini world here. My SIL gave me a bowl full of mini Christmas ornaments today that she found as part of an auction purchase. The different styles and sizes gave me toys and ornaments with lots left over for decorations. Yay!

 I think this tree came out really pretty with the oversized ornaments. It doesn't have a home yet but I will find the perfect spot.

 I added several new toys - soldiers, trains, another jack in the box, a small rocking horse and more.

 Downstairs I added more bears - these look cute with the stacked blocks.

There were even 5 mini gifts-one for each elf in the workshop. I think they are really ready for Christmas now. ;-)

The big haul

My husband and I had an antique shop and dinner date this afternoon. We explored several new to us shops in a nearby town and had so much fun. He's an engineering type and enjoys collecting slide rules and mechanical calculators and we were lucky enough to find two of them in different styles from what he already had. I picked up a couple of things for a child's dollhouse I am planning as a Christmas gift at one store, a dog for the log cabin in another. In yet another shop, I spotted a lovely salt dip that was perfectly scaled to use as a dollhouse tray (for the mini antique shop). When I told the owner how I planned to use it he asked if I'd be interested in any vintage plastic furniture. I said yes so he brought out a large basket with several sandwich bags filled with pieces in mostly half scale. I started to sort out bits I liked when he asked if I'd like the whole lot for $30. Woo hoo! Of course I said yes. I spent a fun evening sorting and found items to use in both the bungalow and the colonial half scale houses. There were even a couple of bags of people. The colonial has a new owner (and her date) who's apparently been antique shopping, too. She has a new desk, sofa and chairs in the den and a cool art deco bedroom set. The new dining set was an earlier Goodwill purchase. The bungalow got visiting grandparents, a baby buggy, a high chair and a rocking horse. I have a ton of goodies left over. Time to look for another half scale house!

 The dog has obviously smelled the rabbit. Better hop away fast little bunny! (1:12 scale DuraCraft cabin)

 This is only about half of what I purchased!

 I love this bedroom set - the vanity drawers and the wardrobe doors open. After a bit of repair painting, the lady of the house looks quite elegant for her date. (1:24 scale RGT Colonial)

 Her date looks a bit too comfortable...I hope he isn't a total bore. (At least he isn't wearing the bilious green slacks he came with, lol.) (1:24 scale RGT Colonial)

 The desk drawers open, too. All the red definitely brightens up the room. The green bookcase was made by a friend for a small scale swap. I think it must be an inherited piece because it doesn't fit with the rest of the furniture but you make exceptions for the special things. :-) (1:24 scale RGT Colonial)

 Grandma and Grandpa are visiting on the porch while the baby naps. (1:24 scale RGT Bungalow)

 Grandma looks a little uptight. I hope the conversation is going well...(1:24 scale RGT Bungalow)

 Grandpa, OTOH, looks a little crotchety. I think he's been banging that cane around. I hope he doesn't wake the baby early. (1:24 scale RGT Bungalow)

This cute dining set is made of resin. The flowers and the coffee are molded on. The set is a nice size for the small kitchen.  I have several very nice half scale kitchen sets but my cabinets and appliances are very securely glued so I will save the others for future projects. (1:24 scale RGT Colonial)

That's a quick preview of my bargain purchases. There are a whole lot more pieces so stay tuned for future projects!

When your friends know you as the dollhouse lady...

...they think of you whenever they run across miniatures. A friend's neighbor is moving and while packing she found these pieces of dollhouse furniture in the back of a cupboard. My friend's daughter immediately thought of me when the neighbor said she didn't want to move these. Thanks to Miss C. I have some  new things to distribute around the Victorian houses. Woo hoo!

Sale!

All items in the seasonal category of DeLightful Minis by MiniDe are 10% off until October 31. Shop now for Halloween, Christmas or Easter items for your mini home or shop. Mr. and Mrs. Skelly are included in the sale price category. :-)

Shamelessly self promoting ;-)

Those of you who have followed my blog for awhile know that my first online miniature shop was at etsy. A couple of years ago I became a bit frustrated with the direction etsy seemed to be heading and I moved my shop to zibbet - De-Lightful Minis by MiniDe. I love the atmosphere there, the friendliness and openess of the administration, and the ability to do so much more customizing to my shop. Etsy has recently changed even more of their policies resulting in a much less friendly environment for small scale crafters, artisans and sellers of vintage items. The result is a large move to zibbet by many of those sellers. If you haven't taken the time to visit zibbet and explore all it has to offer, I encourage you to do so. Now, more than ever, the selection is large and varied and the site is a delight to explore. And while you're there, please stop by and visit my shop (linked above.) I'd be delighted to see you. ;-)

Oh, one last thing -  please notice the new email address at the top of the right column. After all these years I thought it was about time to have an official blog/shop email address so all of you don't get lost in the depths of the main family email. I want to see your questions and comments right away!