Saturday All-Day Workshop

Got so busy that I didn't think to take any pictures but....

I love the days when a number of us get together...there is a certain magic that happens. The ones who have been doing minis for a long time and the newer ones share their ideas and methods. Someone mentions a problem or idea and the ensuing conversations just bring up SO many new ideas!

Gilbert was the first to present in talking to/showing us about making a clock/radio/soap container into a miniature display. He explained the different tools he uses to do that....for wood and plastic.  He was showed us the different Dremel tools he uses for plastic and tin. He demonstrated the tools for cutting through plastic but because of the noise, he didn't demonstrate the tools for cutting through tin although he did emphasize the necessity of safety tools (safety glasses, ear protection and face mask).

I talked very quickly about  reinforcing a gift bag to make it into a "room box". Although, in the past, I have done each wall separately, I said that I thought it might be better to do it in one piece by scoring the corners from the back and folding them. We agreed on that then Tina mentioned that Brooke Tucker had suggested that for making a curved wall, you score the material vertically along regular intervals across the back...which gave me the idea of how to cover my wall in the miniature in a circular box that Tina would be teaching later in the day.

Marg, our resident artist, spoke beautifully about making a scene in a book box. She showed us how to make a leather-look cover for the book using tissue paper and paint and showed us how to age book pages with chalks. She also spoke about making scenes more like-like by using chalks to develop shadows, etc., in corners and along other lines. She also spoke about sometimes seeing things from a different prospective after it's been done and perhaps changing how you would have done it.

Tina showed us how to put a "floor" in a round container - including a method of hiding a battery under the floor so it's out of sight and easily changeable.

I also quickly demonstrated making knives from the ends of turned toothpicks and we discussed using a quilling tool to make cans of spray paints and cans of foods for a pantry.

Almost 40 years ago, we took our two children on an extended trip through the western United States. We, of course, went to Anaheim, CA, to see Disneyland and Knott's Berry Farm. At that time, the Mott Miniature Collection was displayed at Knott's Berry Farm. And I absolutely fell in love!

Then I discovered Casey's Wee Littles, my first miniature store.

When we returned home, I started trying to make things on my own and the next Christmas, Vern and the children gave me my first dollhouse kit.

As the years passed, I amassed quite a collection of books on making miniatures and learned to make more and more things.

Then at some point, I discovered the on-line miniature group "Small Stuff" and my world expanded.

Daughter Leanne moved to Garland, TX, for two years and while she was there I attended Dallas Mayfest where I took some classes and attended my first big miniature show. One of my delights there was finding a stack of Nutshell News magazines that gave me endless ideas on what and how to make even more things.

In 2002, the big search for turned toothpicks was exploding on Small Stuff. Joanne e-mailed Small Stuff and said that she had checked out WalMart and they didn't have them. I e-mailed her to thank her for saving me a trip to check them out and we discovered that we only  lived a few blocks from each other.

She took me to the summer get-together of M.E.E. (held at Judy Mitchell's that year) and I joined the club in the fall. 

So I've worked on my own, with the aid of on-line groups and as part of a club.

And to my mind, with a club is best. While I certainly could have continued on my own, especially after so much became available on the internet, the knowledge, ability, and immediacy of those things in a club has made me a much better miniaturist.

Thanks to all my fellow miniaturists over the years.