I'll be away for a few days

My father in law passed away last night. It was expected and he's now free from pain but we're gonna miss him. Anyway, please don't worry if you don't hear from me for several days but we've got some busy days ahead. Now I need to get some sleep 'cause I haven't been to bed yet and it's nearly 5 am.

Welcome!

Please help me welcome Josje to the party. Her blog is A Beautiful World.

Hutch ala Casey

This is what I came up with based on Casey's tutorial. It took several attempts before I found a combination of rubber stamp motifs that I was happy with.
The hutch on the right is like the one I used. On the left you can see the finished hutch. The door insets are leather. I used cherry acrylic stain and then a dark walnut glaze to add depth to the finish.
The color on the picture above is more accurate but this one shows the detail a little better. I love how expensive the finished hutch looks.

Welcome!

Please help me welcome a new follower - Your Daily Muse News . This blog showcases all types of art. Stop by and check it out!

I'm gonna hurt tomorrow...

Yesterday was a big day with lots of walking. We took the family to an Indianapolis Colts football game. Our seats were in what hubby calls "the nosebleed section." We were near the top of the stadium in the endzone. We could see quite well but those steps up were very steep! Unfortunately, the Colts coach chose not to play the starters for the second half and they lost. Boo! We had a wonderful time anyway but it's a 3.5 hour trip each way so we were all exhausted by the time we got back home.

Today we put a gift card from my mom to use by purchasing a Wii Fit for the family. Who knew exercise could be fun, lol. We all got at least 30 minutes of exercise today. The question now is whether anyone will be able to get out of bed tomorrow...

Casey's Michael's hutch covered in polymer clay has sparked my interest. Hopefully, tomorrow I will get a chance to play. I'll let you know how it goes.

Playtime!

After several days of holiday activities I was desperate for some mini time. I chose to play with my new diorama. I had some Plasco kitchen appliances from the 1940s stored away so I dug them out for the apartment. The chairs are some other brand from the same era and I made the table. The Plasco pieces are 1:16 scale. I'm pretending, of course, that we can only see part of the kitchen and the rest of the apartment is also imagined. I am debating adding wallpaper to the kitchen.
I added a flower pot to the window outside the kitchen.
The biggest change is in the antique shop. I scanned a photo of an antique shop from one of my miniatures books to enclose the back and added a few items to the floor to add dimension. Now it looks as though the shop stretches much farther beyond what you see through the window.

I had so much fun making this little scene truly mine. :-)

I just have to share this gift with you

I shared in an earlier post about the game room I made for my brother who customizes 1:18 scale action figures. Well, a friend of his in an online forum saw the room box and liked it. He created this diorama for me. His name is Eric Vaughan. The diorama is 1:18 scale like the action figures he and my brother customize and it is full of details.
The pizza shop has sodas on the counter and a large pizza inside.
There's an electric meter on the wall outside the pizza place.
The window and door of A Moment in Time antique shop.

I had some 1:16 scale dolls on hand that look great in the pizza shop window.

I am so excited about this beautiful diorama. It was a totally unexpected gift and it is just amazing!