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A FREE MONTHLY Dolls House & Miniatures magazine written exclusivley by AIM members for dolls house collectors and enthusiasts. If you love all things miniature - you will love the AIM magazine. Each month's edition features FREE projects, articles and features all written by the worlds top international miniature artisans!Why not visit the AIM website http://www.artisansinminiature.com to find out more!Enjoy...!
Citation preview
Regular Features… 5 Editor’s Note: Read Bea Broadwood’s introduction &
welcome to this month’s fabulous ‘ecclesiastically inspired’
edition of the FREE and ‘downloadable’ AIM magazine!
26 Fashion Gallery: Baby To Bride AIM members
showcase their miniature ‘special occasion’ outfits.
30 Getting To Know You: Get to know more about AIM
member Julie Dewar.
45 Blog Of The Month: This month we take a closer look at
AIM member Patricia Cabrera’s wonderful online blog.
46 Diary Of An Edwardian Dollshouse: Don’t miss the 4th
instalment of Julie Campbell’s fascinating miniature dolls
house adventure!
52 The Knitting Basket: Read the 2nd instalment of Frances
Powell’s fascinating new series.
64 Through The Keyhole: Ever wondered what it would be
like to be able to have a closer look at the working
environments of AIM members? This month we take a
peek at the work space of food artisan: Debbe Mize.
75 Aunt Anastasia: If you have a miniature dilemma , then
why not write to our very own agony aunt for her well
considered advice?
76 In Season This Month: Welcome to the next instalment
of this popular ‘miniature food’ feature. This month Vicky
Guile and her fellow AIM food artisans take a closer look at
the delicious ‘Mushroom’.
90 Cross Over Crafts: Have you ever stopped to consider what AIM
artisans get up to in their spare time? This month Sally Watson
reveals her fascinating (non miniature) hobby.
97 AIM Gallery: There Once Was A Vicar... AIM members come
together to celebrate their miniature ‘character’ creations.
102 Mini Aimers: Mini Makes for the artisans of the future. Written by
Debie Lyons
104 Show Reports: From all around the miniature world.
106 The Miniature Grapevine: Catch up on all the latest news and
announcements from the international world of miniatures, which
this month includes a ‘Kensington Dolls House Festival Preview’!!
Contents…Contents… May 2010: Issue No 24, Cover Image: Carol Bull
21
Artisans In Miniature 2
42
76
6 Cover Story: Bags Of Character: AIM member and doll artisan Carol Bull tells us more about her beautiful miniature ‘characters’. 12 Take A Seat: We take a closer look at the stunning miniature chairs
and furniture created by highly talented AIM member Colin Bird.
18 Religious Furniture: AIM member Jean Day investigates her family
connections with this traditional furniture.
21 A Norman Church: Food artisan Pauline Everett lets us take a peek
at her current project.
34 Mourning Fashion: Fashion expert Janine Crocker shares her
stunning, yet traditionally sombre hats.
38 The History Of Coffin Making: Gary Powell ‘lifts the lid’ on the
history of burial boxes.
42 Illuminating In Miniature: Read Jean Days insight into this age old
craft.
54 Our Little Church: Julia Jeffreys shares her very own miniature chapel. 58 Catholic Priest’s Robes: Montse Vives takes a close look at religious robes and their significance. 62 Stained Glass Windows: Jean Day brings us her research and and shares her sources of inspiration. 71 The Church Yard: A potted history by AIM member Frances Powell. 72 New Faces For Old Dolls: Mixed media artist Grimdeva shares her miniature creations. 86 Ecclesiastical Emphasis: A gallery of inspirational ecclesiastical miniatures from the members of AIM. 94 Chain Of Events: A real life miniature story from AIM member Kathi Mendenhall.
Free Projects… 24 1:12th ‐ Knitted Christening Robe: AIM member Frances Powell shares her delightful pattern create a traditional baby’s gown. 32 1:12th ‐ Stained Glass Tutorial: New member Regina Passy‐Yip teaches her wonderful tutorial for creating a beautiful stained glass window in miniature. 40 1:12th ‐ Religious Prayer Candle: AIM member Melanie Navarro shares her stunningly realistic tutorial for a traditional candle. 68 1:12th ‐ Folded Blanket Project: Christina Berry has the perfect technique to create a beautiful miniature blanket that would compliment any bed. 82 1:12th ‐ : Top food artisan Vicky Guile kindly shares her method of making a traditional French style ‘Mushroom Picking’ cane.
Features…
Artisans In Miniature 3
68
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Artisans In Miniature ?
Artisans In Miniature 8
CLICK…on Artisans In Miniature
How did you find the Online Magazine??
Did you follow a link? Did a miniature friend tell you about it?
...and do you already know about the Artisans In Miniature Website, and the talented members who have all helped create this Online magazine.?
If not, copy, paste and CLICK now – www.artisansinminiatures.com and come and meet us all. Founded in 2007 by Bea (Fiona) Broadwood of Petite Properties, the website has been created in order to showcase the fantastic work of the individual professional international artisan members who create beautiful and original scale miniatures for sale to the public. Together they form the Artisans In Miniature association. Since its launch the AIM association has rapidly grown and now boasts membership of well over 200 professional artisans, including some of the most talented within the miniature world! On the website you will find further information about them and their work; however, please note new pages are constantly being added and there are many members who are not yet included on the site... If you are a professional artisan who is interested in joining the association, you will find all the information there..... If you are wondering what Fairs may be on in your area – that information is there too… We have lots of links…to Fairs and Events Organizers…Magazines…Online Miniature clubs….Historical reference sites…..Workshops…and more… it’s all there!
If you’d like to contact us, copy, paste and CLICK... we’d love to hear from you!
www.artisansinminiature.com
Editor’s Note...
The AIM Magazine’s Editorial Team:
Bea Broadwood office@petite‐[email protected]
Debie Lyons [email protected]
Janine Crocker [email protected]
Julie Campbell [email protected]
Margaret Cassidy info@mags‐nificent.co.uk
Mary Williams [email protected]
Vicky Guile [email protected]
Please note
AIM is an active association to which all AIM
members contribute …
Formatted By Bea Broadwood & Vicky Guile
Dear Reader It’s that time of year again! Since my workshop was built, I have always adhered to a rigorous spring cleaning schedule ‐ I clean it ONCE a year, whether it needs it or not! So as I sit here typing this editor’s note there are simply no prizes for guessing what is on the agenda today? Yes that's right ‐ I am going in, where angels (and normal tidy humans) fear to tread! It is officially 'spring cleaning day' in the 'Beehive' workshop!!!
You would think that at this point Mr Bea is looking happy, given that he despairs daily at the chaotic state of my workshop and flatly refuses to enter it most of time; passing coffee cups through the windows instead! But NO... He is gloomy and down beat and is sporting a pensive 'dentist's waiting room' expression…
Why? Well each year, spring cleaning the workshop always seems to end in dispute. It starts full of optimism and enthusiasm and everything is eagerly emptied out of the workshop, so that cleaning can begin ‐ no problems there...
The mood changes however when it is time for it all to go back in, this is when I traditionally flatly refuse to throw anything away and it is this conflict which signals the start of UN style peace keeping negotiations, where Mr Bea tries to coax me (always unsuccessfully) into sacrificing key elements of my 'stash' into the recycle bin!!
As with any serious diplomatic dispute ‐ I always fail to concede, I always get stroppy and I always have my own way... (I can't see the problem with this) Mr Bea then 'always' retreats quickly, 'always' mumbling unmentionable adjectives and unknown foreign words and phrases as he exits...
How unreasonable of him? Yes my thoughts too... Take last year for example...I tried really, really hard to be 'tough' and 'thin out my treasures' and at the end of the official clean I proudly held up one small 'filled' bin bag at him. For some strange unknown 'man reason' he failed miserably to be proud of all that I had valiantly 'let go' of... mumbling instead something along the lines of 'is that it?' (Again punctuated with colourful adjectives) So it seems that there is just no pleasing some people!
Any how, it can not be put off any longer... 'dentist's expression' or not. We have the household cleaning box, loaded for serious action We have a sturdy broom, dust pan and brush Mr Bea is sporting a dust mask (drama queen) and I have a new packet of black bin bags ‐ even though we both know that I will only be needing the 'one'
For now we are talking, the sun is shining and the recycle bin is empty and pensively primed and we are off to clean the workshop, muttering under our collective breaths, "Once a year, whether it needs it or not...!"
Bea
Editor (& General whip cracker) May 2010 www.petite‐properties.com
BAGS OF BAGS OF
Artisans In Miniature 6
By AIM Member Carol Bull...
Artisans In Miniature 7
By AIM Member Carol Bull…
I've had a dolls house since I was
5yrs old which my dad made me
for Christmas. It was a replica of
the house we were living in. The
dolls house is still in the family
and gets passed on for all the
children to play with.
When I was about 24, I bought a
book on how to make your own
dolls house. I never did make
one, but my dad did, so as a
grown up I had another dolls
house and needed things to put
in it. I was told about Miniatura
by a colleague and a very large
1/2th scale world opened up for
me.
I started messing about with
Fimo in 1992 as therapy after a
very traumatic incident in my
life. After a few carrots & cauli's
I had a go at making a head, as in those days there were virtually no character dolls on the market, and
that was what I wanted to put in my dolls house. Everyone said I should I should sell them, so I did.
Bags of Character was
born.
I n d i v i d u a l l y
sculpted 1/2th scale
character people with
hand sewn clothes. I
started in this scale as
almost everything was
1/2th scale then and it's
a size I find pleasing to
work in as it allows me to
get in all the detail that is
a signature of my work.
Artisans In Miniature 8
Artisans In Miniature 9
People often ask me where I get my
ideas from. I can only say, out of my
head. They just come. I went to art
school and then worked in
advertising as a typographer, so I am
pretty creative by nature. I love the
illustrations by artists such as
Norman Rockwell, Donald Mcgill,
Lawson Wood etc all having the
character and humour that appeals
to me. I like to make a group of
characters that look well together in
a scene, such as you see in real life.
I am a self taught doll artist, so I
have not picked up anyone else's
style; it’s just what comes naturally
to me, like your handwriting. I put
my whole self into each piece I
make, everything is very personal. I
get lost inside my work, and love
holding the completed character,
feeling I have achieved something
that made my dad proud, as he was
such an inspiration to me my whole
life.
One of the worst things about
working in miniature for me is the
weather. It's either too hot or too
cold. I work in Fimo and anyone who
has used it will understand.
The other thing is the flipping
manufacturers who keep changing
the composition of the stuff. And it's
never for the better. So much so
that some artists who work in this
medium have given up miniatures
altogether because of this.
Artisans In Miniature 32
I sell my work at Miniatura at the NEC in
Spring & Autumn, where I also take
commissions from people who have a certain
thing in mind that they cannot see on my
stand. We chat about their project and I get a
feel for what they're doing and make what
they want. In the same way I work from
orders I get over the phone, e‐mail, letter and
internet. I love the variety and warmth of
people I come into contact with and have
enjoyed making and selling my work to them
worldwide. I am currently waiting to exhibit at
Kensington dolls house fair.
I am asked over and over for some of my char‐
acters, such as the colonels, dowagers and
jolly vicars etc. I don't mind because to me,
each one is individual and different in its
creation and I enjoy making them.
You ask me what is my biggest claim to fame.
ooh ek ‐ I don't know. Just the fact that
people like and buy my work, it makes them
smile, that's good enough for me. I have just
become a page 4 girl in the Financial Times!
I was photographed with
my work at Miniatura a
couple of weeks ago. A big
photo appeared on page 4
of the FT the next day,
and a photo of my 'Only
Fools & Horses' scene was
featured in the Mail on
Line the same day.
I have pieces in various
museums around the
world; I've made a scene
for The Big Breakfast
Show many years ago that
appeared on the show.
Text & Images © Carol Bull
I've been interviewed at BBC Pebble Mill a
few times, and appeared in a slot on a local
TV news programme when I was filmed and
interviewed at Miniatura at the NEC. Gosh,
sounds good doesn't it, so how come I'm
the one still cleaning the loo then!?
People will say to me 'I've had a go, but I
can't do it like you' and I say, 'when I
started, I couldn't do it like me either!' You
definitely get better with time and practice
if you still enjoy what you are doing.
Your skill will grow with experience and
knowledge and the demand of the market
around you. You become much more
efficient and adept too. Things just seem to
come naturally where before you really had
to work hard on them. You become all
fingers instead of fingers and thumbs, and
we've all suffered from that at one time or
another!
Why not find out more about Carol’s captivating character dolls by visiting her website:
www.bagsofcharacter.weebly.com Artisans In Miniature 11
Artisans In Miniature 12
TAKE A TAKE A
By AIM Member, Colin Bird.
Seat...
Double Bow High Back Elbow Chair:
“This is one of my favourite chairs. Originally made by chair maker John Gabbitass from Worksop in Nottinghamshire, dated from around 1822 to
1839. I copied this from various photos. The original would have been made of yew with an elm seat and I have used cherry for the seat, apple for the splat and yew for everything else. I also make a low back version of this
chair..”
CC
Artisans In Miniature 15
olin’s adventure into the world of miniatures started with his mum Maureen Bird. Having brought up
three children she found herself with time to spare and started making soft toys which she sold to
many of the top stores in London. She became a life member of the British Toymakers Guild and there she
got to know other members who made miniatures. Colin’s Dad Kenneth Bird who had always painted and
was a commercial artist by trade thought he'd have a go at painting miniature water colours. He was quite
successful and eventually retired early and started making miniatures full time. Colin was a BT engineer at
the time but had always liked making things and using his hands, so he went along to the London Dollshouse
Festival one year where his dad had a stand to see what all the fuss was about.
Colin was fascinated by what he found there and as he already had a small lathe at home he decided to try
making a few items of furniture; just for fun. People who saw Colin’s early attempts told him that he should
try to sell them, so he managed to
book a stand at the Dorking
Dollshouse Fair. Unfortunately
Colin didn't sell a thing but he was
not surprised as his ‘range’ then
consisted of only two items!
Unperturbed Colin sent a sample
of his work to Bob Hopwood who
gave him a stand next to his Dad at
Miniatura. After that Colin was
invited by Caroline Hamilton to
attend the London Dollhouse
Festival. In 1995 Colin decided to
take advantage of BTs very
generous voluntary redundancy
scheme and he started making
miniatures full time.
Most of Colin’s work is Victorian,
mainly because that is when the
majority of Windsor chairs were
made, although he is gradually try‐
ing to increase in crease his range
and make more pieces from other
periods and including a wider vari‐
ety of furniture, other than chairs.
A lot of Colin’s original chairs were
copied from those on display at the
High Wycombe Chair Museum. The
museum staff were very helpful
High Back Smokers Chair:
“This chair was made as a commission from the customer’s
photos and measurements and is now
one of my range.
From the Yorkshire region and
dated from the mid to late
19th century.
Similar to the more common
smokers bow but with a
higher back...”
Artisans In Miniature 13
and allowed Colin to take as many photos and measurements as he wanted. They even had some of
Colin’s chairs for sale in their museum shop for a while. Others pieces are copied from photos in books or
customer’s photos and measurements and nowadays of course there's the internet. Colin also finds
antiques web sites very helpful as they often have quite detailed photos and measurements depicted on
them.
Colin is a prolific chair maker and probably makes more chairs than anyone else within the miniature
world. He always tries to make his work look as realistic as possible and pays particular attention to the
wood that he uses. Colin explains how full size furniture uses woods such as oak, walnut and mahogany,
but in his opinion the grain of these woods tends to be too open and coarse and looks out of scale in
miniature. Instead Colin prefers to use woods such as cherry, pear and apple, stained to represent the real
thing.
Colin has a range of standard
items that he makes with the
only ‘one of a kind items’ made
as commissions and these
designs are then added to his
collection.
“The first one of anything I make
takes ages. I have to get all the
measurements right, make
notes , make up any jigs or
templates that may be
necessary, so with all that work
it's just not practical to only
make one of anything.”
Colin does accept commissions
but requires clear photographs
and plenty of measurements.
Much of his range started off as
privately commissioned pieces.
Although he prefers to work in
1/12th scale, Colin can make
some items to order in 1/24th
scale. However he finds making
Windsor chairs in 1/24th, VERY
fiddly!
Artisans In Miniature 14
Clissett Arm Chair. “This chair originates from the village of Bosbury near
Lebury in Herefordshire. Made by chair maker
Phillip Clissett who worked near Bosbury from about 1840. The original was made of elm, mine is
cherry with a light mahogany stain…”
Artisans In Miniature 15
Mendlesham Chair:
“This chair originates from the village of Mendlesham in Suffolk, made from around the early to mid 19th century.
There were numerous variations of this chair and this is a typical example..”
Colin attends three fairs a year; the Spring and
Autumn Miniatura and the Kensington
Dollshouse Festival in May. He also take orders
by phone or email and has an established
customer following. Colin also has a website
which has just been updated and is proving to be
very popular!
As you can see Colin is an amazingly talented
artisan and a very modest one at that. However
he is rightly very proud to have won gold medal
at the 1993 National Woodworker Show, which
we at AIM think was richly deserved!
Danish Table:
“An unusual Danish table.
This was a commission based on photos the
customer found on the internet, and so far is
the only one of these that I have made. I'm
unsure of its exact date or origin. The customer
was pleased with it anyway…”
Cross Splat Side
Chair:
“This is a typical
side chair from the
East Anglia region,
dated from around
1790 to 1840.
Cherry with an oak
stain..”
Artisans In Miniature 16
If you would like to see more of Colin’s stunning miniature
furniture, why not visit his website:
www.colinbird.co.uk Artisans In Miniature 17
Text & Images © Colin Bird 2010
Victorian Davenport:
“This is my latest piece, copied from photos I found on the internet. Davenports were usually made of walnut,
but I have used cherry with a walnut stain.
The grain of real walnut would tend to look
out of scale in miniature.
It is fully functional, the top
lifts up and the inside is
fitted with letter racks and
pen and inkwell holders.
The sloped writing surface
also raises to reveal three
dummy drawers, one
working drawer and two
pigeon holes.
The right hand side has four
working drawers and the left
has four matching dummy
drawers...”
Religious FURNITURE...FURNITURE...
Artisans In Miniature 19
By AIM Member, Jean Day
When I was very young, we would visit my grandfather, Adam Turnbull who was a wonderful carpenter by
trade. I would go down the stairs to his work area and smell the shellac, varnish, oils and glues that he
would warm on a small element. He had a very large work table where he would have a design sketched
on large sheets of brown paper. He would place various colours of thin veneers for his fabulous inlaid
tables. I have included a photo example of his inlaid furniture below for your ideas for miniature furniture.
I was interested to read on the back of the photo that this display had won a first price in a competition,
We are fortunate to have a
few of these pieces in our
home.
My grandfather, also received
commissions of furniture for
churches, many fonts, altars
and pedestals. I have
included photos of some of
his beautiful pieces on two
‘inspiration’ boards. I loved
the altar with the carved
wording. I later inherited my
grandfather’s and great
grandfather’s hand made
engraving gouges with their
initials stamped on them. I
have used these for turning
minis on the lathe, the
gouges are smaller than any I
could buy. It is so wonderful
to use these beautiful tools
for miniatures, knowing the
work they have done in the
past.
In with my grandfather’s old furniture books, I found an informative Worship Furniture brochure from the
1950's from The Valley City Manufacturing Co. Ltd. It is filled with the most wonderful Gothic designs
which may be an inspiration for those of you who might decide to make your own scene of worship in
miniature. Since I was concerned about copyright of these sketches, I found out that the company has
been in business since 1884 in Dundas, Ontario, Canada. They kindly gave me permission so share these
detailed sketches with you. You can find their web site here www.valleycity.com and see more modern
workshop furniture they are making today.
On the inspiration boards you can find fonts, altars, pulpits, chairs, communion tables, pews and hymn boards, all suitable for miniature projects… The fonts are often 39" in height and 20" in width to give you better idea for miniature scale. The communion tables average 32" in height, 48‐60" in length and the hymn boards are about 33" in height and 18" in width
Jean Day of Jean Day Miniatures
http://jdayminis.com http://jdayminis.blogspot.com [email protected]
A Norman Church A Norman Church
In Miniature...By AIM Member Pauline Everett
Having accidentally come across an Ebay listing for a stunning Norman Church which ended within a few
hours I added it to my watch list (just out of curiosity of course). Having somehow resisted the temptation
to bid on it I was surprised when nobody else did and told myself to forget all about it – I had already got a
part finished Victorian house and what did I want with a church anyway! I just couldn’t get it out of my
head and talked myself into thinking it was just what I needed as a showcase for my wedding gowns and it
would be easy to collect as the seller lived in a town was very close to me. The elderly lady seller who
owned it had actually won it from a magazine competition 3 years earlier. She was very pleased to receive
an offer and after some confusion with the dimensions and being unable to collect because of heavy snow
eventually it became mine. I sat admiring it and decided I didn’t want to use stone effect paper on the outer
walls so looked around for alternatives. Real stone would be too expensive and heavy on such a large
building so I did some of my own research and asked all the talented AIM members for their help and
suggestions too.
Thankfully I had lots
of useful and
interesting advice
from many AIM
members and after
some deliberation
decided to make
individual small stone
facing blocks using a
mould and stone
casting powder from
local supplier (just a 5
minute walk away)
t o g e t h e r w i t h
lightweight filler.
Artisans In Miniature 21
Artisans In Miniature 22
On my first attempt at casting
the blocks I used too much of
everything and made them
slightly too thick but soon
learned exactly how much
water and powder was
required to produce thinner
ones. In my cold house it took
about 40 minutes for the mix
to set well enough for the
blocks to be removed and
then left to dry out properly
(several hours) before being
used. I tried a few on a trial
run using a piece of plywood
and then started on the tower
which is not permanently
attached and could be laid
down to work on. It took a lot
longer than I thought to
arrange and attach the blocks
using PVA glue, breaking some into different sizes and shapes and making sure the front of the tower could
still be opened easily.
Once the glue had dried I used the lightweight filler as mortar to fill in between the blocks at first applying it
with a spatula and then working it in using my fingers but soon found it was easier to use just my fingers.
Finally I used a fairly stiff damp
paint brush to remove most of
the surplus from the face of
the blocks and left everything
to dry ready for painting. I
have now covered all but the
porch and the end wall where
the tower stands but not quite
completed applying the filler.
The stonework then has to be
painted to give a more realistic
effect and I am not confident
about doing this as I have very
little experience with artistic
painting.
To see more of Pauline’s fabulous miniatures why not visit her website:
www.12thhousebridalcouture.co.uk
Photographs & Text © Pauline Everett 2010
So my thoughts turned to how I would make the windows into stained glass (as the Perspex is already
sandwiched into them) which led me into the possibility of using inkjet window film and I have made all
5 small windows plus the very large end one too. The designs are authentic church stained glass images
resized as near as possible on the computer and printed onto the film. Cutting them to fit was a bit
fiddly and I will probably have to spend a lot more time making sure they are absolutely smooth.
The effect with the light shining through them is beautiful but to show this I have had to take the photo
of the outside with the light shining through from the inside. The picture of the inside had to be taken
at night.
Once the stonework is finished I plan to make flagstone flooring and wooden wall panelling for the
inside not to mention stone steps and of course a bell for the tower!!
Pauline
AIM member Frances Powell shares
her knitting pattern for a 1:12 scale
knitted Christening Gown.
For experienced miniature knitters.
(This is not suitable for first project in miniature
knitting) Cotton yarn is recommended for this
pattern as it drapes better and shows off the
lace pattern.
Abbreviations: st –stitch; k‐knit; p‐purl; yrn‐yarn round
needle to make a stitch; sl‐slip; sl 1‐slip next stitch from
one needle to the other without working it; psso‐pass
slipped stitch over; k2tog‐knit next 2 sts together to make
1 stitch; p2tog‐purl next 2 sts together to make 1 stitch;
p3tog – purl next 3 sts together to form one stitch; ( )‐
repeat instructions between brackets; ssk – slip next two
stitches (one at a time) knitwise from left needle to right
needle, insert point of left hand needles through front
loops of the two stitches keeping right hand needle through stitches, then knit both stitches together to make one twisted stitch; p2togtbl
– purl next two stitches together but insert needle into back of the loops to twist them as you do this; inc – increase by working twice into
next stitch to make 2 stitches; sst – stocking (stockinette) stitch – one row knit one, row purl.
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Christening gown
Materials: size 19 needles, 75 me‐
tres 1‐ply cotton, stitch holders, ¼
‐metre 2 mm wide silk ribbon for
waist tie, small button or bead for
neck fastening, 1 mm crochet
hook for neck (optional)
Back (make 1) *Cast on 33 sts. Row 1: k 1, (k 1, yrn, ssk, k 1, k2tog, yrn) to last 2 sts, k 2. Row 2: k 1, (p 2, yrn, p3tog, yrn, p 1) to last 2 sts, p 1, k 1. Row 3: k Row 4: k 1, (p 1, p2togtbl, yrn, p 1, yrn, p2tog) to last 2 sts, p 1, k 1. Row 5: k 1, k2tog, (yrn, k 3, yrn, sl 1, k2tog, psso) to last 6 sts, yrn, k 3, ssk, k 1. Row 6: p Rows 7‐48: rep rows 1 to 6 five times.
Row 49: k 1, (k 1, yrn, ssk, k 1, k2tog, yrn) to last 2 sts, k 2. Row 50: (decrease row) k 1, (p 2, p3tog, p 1) to last 2 sts, p 1, k 1. (23 sts) Bodice: Row 51: k 8, (k2tog) three times, k 9. (20 sts) Row 52: p** Row 53: k 4, (k2tog) twice, k 2, turn, Work on these 8 sts only: Row 54: k 2, p 6. Row 55: cast off 2 sts, k to end. (6 sts) Row 56: k 2, p 4. Row 57: k2tog, k 4. (5 sts) Row 58: k 2, p 3. Row 59: k Row 60: k 2, p 3. Row 61: k Row 62: cast off 2 sts, p 2. (3 sts) Row 63: k Cast off remaining 3 sts.
Rejoin wool to 10 sts left on nee‐dle: Row 53: k 2, (k2tog) twice, k4. (8 sts) Row 54: p 6, k 2. Row 55: k Row 56: cast off 2 sts, p 3, k 2. (6 sts) Row 57: k 4, k2tog. (5 sts) Row 58: p 3, k 2 Row 59: k Row 60: p 3, k 2 Row 61: k Row 62: p 3, k 2 Row 63: cast off 2 sts, k 2. (3 sts) Cast off remaining 3 sts. Front (Make 1) Work as for back from * to ** Row 53: k 4, (k2tog) twice, k 4, (k2tog) twice, k 4. (16 sts) Row 54: p Row 55: cast off 2 sts, k to end. (14 sts) Row 56: cast off 2 sts, p to end. (12 sts) Artisans In Miniature 24
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Row 57: k2tog, k 8, k2tog. (10 sts) Row 58: p Row 59: k Row 60: p Row 61: k 4, cast of 2 sts, k4. Work on last 4 sts only: Row 62: p 2, p2tog. (3 sts) Row 63: k Cast off remaining 3 sts. Rejoin wool to sts left on needle: Row 62: p2tog, p 2. (3 sts) Row 63: k Cast off remaining 3 sts.
Sleeves (Make 2 alike)
Cast on 12 sts.
Rows 1‐2: k
Row 3: k 2, (inc in next st, k 1)
four times, k 2. (16 sts)
Row 4: p
Row 5: k
Row 6: p
Row 7: Cast off 2 sts, k 13. (14 sts)
Row 8: Cast off 2 sts, p 11. (12 sts)
Row 9: k2tog, k 8, k2tog. (10 sts)
Row 10: p
Row 11: k2tog, k 6, k2tog. (8 sts)
Row 12: p
Row 13: Cast off 2 st, k 5. (6 sts)
Row 14: Cast off 2 sts, p 3. (4 sts)
Cast off.
To make up:
Join shoulder seams. If you wish to
work a crochet edging around
neck, then with right side facing
and using a 1 mm crochet hook
work 1 row dc around neck,
making a small loop for
buttonhole at one end. If you do
not wish to crochet a neck edging
then sew a small loop for
buttonhole at the top on one side
of back opening.
Set in sleeves. Sew up side and
sleeve seams. Sew in all loose
ends. Sew button or bead onto
neckband on opposite side to
Petticoat
Materials required: 25 metres 1‐
ply cotton in a contrast colour to
gown, size 19 needles
Back and front (make 2 alike)
Cast on 30 sts
Rows 1‐2: k
Rows 3‐48: sst
Row 47: (k2og, yrn, k 1) to end.
Row 48: k
Cast off
To assemble gown and petticoat:
With right sides together sew up
side seams of petticoat. Turn right
side out and place petticoat inside
skirt of christening gown, so the
right side of the petticoat lies
against the wrong side of the
gown. Thread ribbon through a
blunt pointed needle and starting
at the centre front feed through
one of the holes in the lace
pattern of round 49, through a
row 49. (There should be 10 eyelet
holes to match with the 10 holes
made in the lace pattern of row
49.)
Work around row 49 with the
ribbon carefully joining the
petticoat to the skirt section of the
christening gown. Do not tie bow
tight until the gown is placed on
the doll. If you are not placing on a
doll carefully draw up the ribbon
to form a waist and tie in a small
bow. Cut the ends fairly long so
they drape down the gown.
www.buttercupminiatures.co.uk
© Copyright F H Powell 2010
This pattern is for private use only
and may not be reproduced in any
form, or reproduced for
commercial gain including selling
any item knitted up from these
patterns without written
permission from Buttercup
Miniatures. Reproducing or
transmitting this pattern by any
Artisans In Miniature 25
Artisans In Miniature 26
Artisans In Miniature 27
In this regular feature a brave AIM member answers our probing questions, helping you to get to know both them and their work a little bit better!
This month our willing victim volunteer is the Canadian based miniature artisan; Julie Dewar of Westwinds Miniatures
Can you tell us a bit about your life before Miniatures? Well, I don't think I had a life before Miniatures. Growing up in Lancashire, England I spent hours
redecorating my dollshouse and making peg dolls. Now, I live in Canada with my Canadian husband and
since first walking into a Miniature's store, I've been "playing" with minis for 20‐mumble years. I just
turned "pro" in 2009.
As a child, what were your favourite toys? That's easy: paper, paints, glue and shoeboxes! I used to make little houses and room boxes.
What attracted you to miniatures in the first place? I have always loved small things and have
always loved to make things.
What was your first purchase? A Chrysnbon Victorian Dresser Set Kit.
‘Getting ‘Getting
to know to know
you...’ you...’
Artisans In Miniature 30
Artisans In Miniature 42
You can see more of Julie’s wonderful work in her gallery:
http://picasaweb.google.com/westwindsminiatures.com
Photographs & Text (Answers) © Julie Dewar 2010
What miniature item do you most covet? Anything by Lori Anne Potts. Her miniature accessories are exquisite.
Who do you most admire in the miniature world? Janine Crocker of Miss Amelia's Hats. Her hats are classy and have great style.
What made you decide to specialise in fantasy furniture and accessories? Making the range of items that I do, I am never stuck doing one thing. One day, I might be painting, another
sewing. I like the variety.
Have you had any unusual commissions? 10 pairs of gloves for one customer.
Do you have any hobbies unrelated to miniatures? Indian cooking with my husband. We make a butter chicken to die for.
Any phobias? Not really, but I am petrified of wasps.
Fantasies? I dream about being invited to top miniature shows and selling out.
Artisans In Miniature 31
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Artisans In Miniature 32
By AIM Member, Regina Passy ‐ Yip.
Secure the template to be copied under the acrylic with
an adhesive tape. Cut very thin strips of lead tape, 1mm
to the edges of the design and even thinner for the
internal parts.
Cut the lead tape with the exacto knife.
To achieve best results, hold the lead tape on the cut
surface with an adhesive tape, the shiny piece of lead
downwards. Cover with a ruler and then slide the knife
along
With the help of tweezers, adhere the lead strip tape on
the edge.
In 1:12th Scale...
Stained Glass...
Directions...
Materials... Thin acrylic or glass
Tweezers Lead tape
Exacto knife or surgery knife Fine brush - 4 / 0
Varnish stained Stained-glass template
(outlines)
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Artisans In Miniature 33
To view more of Regina’s fabulous miniatures, why not visit her website;
www.reginapassy.com.br
Text & Photographs © Regina Passy ‐ Yip 2010
Arriving at the
end of each line,
cut off the excess
with the knife.
Lead is malleable
and with the help
of forceps also
covers the curved
lines.
When all the outlines are covered, lay white paper over
your work and pass something like the cable clamp to
straighten and force the lead tape to adhere.
Release the back of the acrylic model and check the
seams, if necessary remove any possible excess of lead
with the knife.
Apply the paint with the brush vertically, letting a small
drop of ink fall and pulling it toward the edges of lead.
Making stained glass is a delicate work, which brings
great satisfaction.
Artisans In Miniature 34
By AIM Member, Janine Crocker. (Aka Miss Amelia)
MOURNING FASHION...
With the death of her beloved Albert in 1861 Queen Victoria entered
into a state of mourning that was to last for 40 years until her death.
Although mourning had long been an extravagant affair during this
period the rules became even more rigid and the public demand for
black fashionable clothing grew.
These are a few interesting snippets of information that I have come
across while researching mourning millinery to reproduce in 12th
scale and smaller.
Artisans In Miniature 35
The full mourning period for a widow was one year and
one day which required clothing draped in crape and
heavy veiling.
The secondary mourning period then lasted a further
year and during this time the widow was permitted to
gradually remove more and more of the crape until the
stage of half‐mourning was reached and she could then
wear other black silks with ornate trims, furs and
jewellery
The following half‐mourning period of six months
allowed the wearer to add grey, mauve and even white
to her outfit in discreet amounts
Only jewellery and ornaments of jet (black amber) were
to be used for the first 18 months
The crape used in the mourning veils was believed to
be harmful to eyesight and respiration and began to
smell strongly when stored.
Fashionable mourning dress could be used
to a young widow’s advantage in the latter
stages as she would be relatively free from
the restraints that would be applied to a
young single woman.
Many wealthier families dressed even the
servants in black if the head of the house
died.
The mourning industry was helped by the
belief that it was bad luck to keep
mourning attire for future use although for
the poorer classes this was the only
option. Many families would be found
dyeing their normal clothes black if they
couldn’t afford to buy new ones rather
than flout the tradition.
Accessories included black parasols, fans,
ornate jewellery, brooches with locks of
hair, and gloves. Hair was plaited into
trinkets as keepsakes.
Hankies and stationery were edged in
black and many women would even tie
black or purple ribbons around perfume
bottles and trinkets.
Although children’s clothes would be
trimmed in black or purple a girl was not
considered to be capable of wearing
mourning dress until she reached 17.
Known as ‘weepers’ the sleeves of a
mourning dress had extra long cuffs of
lawn to allow the wearer to wipe away her
tears.
Artisans In Miniature 37
You can see more of Janine’s wonderful work on her website:
www.missameliasminiatures.com
Photographs & Text © Janine Crocker 2010
fÉÅx Åtç áxx à{|á tá t ÅÉÜu|w áâu}xvà yÉÜ Éà{xÜá |à |á t vâÜ|ÉâáÄç |ÇàxÜxáà|Çz
àÉÑ|vA A box to bury the dead no matter the material
or shape, can be described as a coffin. In
North America the coffin is often described as
a casket. Undertakers used its original
association with a jewellery box to soften the
impact of the connection with the dead and
burials coined the term casket.
The term casket has since then become to be
associated with a 4‐sided rectangular box of
constant width. The 6‐sided traditional coffin
is an anthropodial shape. Coffin or casket
construction is not restricted solely to the use
of wood. Other materials including stone,
metal (lead particularly) and even crushed
seashells have been used in the past.
The practice of conducting a ceremony for the dead goes back to the dawn of civilisation itself. With this came a
sacred place for the dead to rest. Neanderthal man was found to bury the dead over 60,000 years ago.
Artisans In Miniature 38
Arguably, the Victorian era in Britain was the height
of Britain’s obsession with funeral etiquette. Funer‐
als for those who could afford it were grand affairs.
The funeral was announced with a suitably black
edged mourning card. The coffin would usually be
held at the deceased home from the morning of the
funeral, sometimes with the coffin lid open, so that
friends and relatives could pay their last respects.
The deceased would often be dressed in their finest
clothes or a specifically designed burial gown to
show them off at their best.
The coffin would be horse drawn through the streets in a glass sided hearse led by the chief mourner attended by
various foot attendants. The horses pulling the hearse would be decked in feathers and the coffin draped in black,
purple or dark green cloth. At the cemetery the procession would go to the chapel for a service then onto the grave‐
side for the burial. It was customary for the women to leave and the actual internment was observed by the men
folk.
As an idea for your Victorian dolls
house or miniature church: why not
dress it as it would have been for the
grand Victorian funeral? 1/12th scale
coffin (or coffin kit), coffin pall (or cof‐
fin pall crochet pattern) and mourning
cards are available from Buttercup
Miniature shop ‐
http://store.buttercupminiatures.co.uk
© Gary Powell 2010 ‐ Buttercup Miniatures ‐ www.buttercupminiatures.co.uk
Artisans In Miniature 39
By AIM Member Melanie Navarro
Religious prayer candles, also known as seven‐day
candles or, in Spanish, Veladoras, are used in everyday
homes to honor certain saints. Growing up with a very
religious Cuban grandmother, I saw many of these in my
day. The popularity of these candles however has now
reached new heights and can now be found just about
anywhere and now you can have one in mini too.
What you will need:
Candlestick ‐ Wick ‐ Lighter ‐ Scissors ‐ Crystal Clear Gallery Glass ‐ Aileens Fast Grab Tacky Glue ‐ Suitable container of choice ‐ Image of choice.
Step 1: Cut a small amount of your wick, approximately
½ inch long, and set it aside.
Step 2: Light your candlestick and let it burn for a few
seconds. Once you have accumulated a nice amount of wax
on your stick grab your container and carefully pour the
wax in. Fill it to 2mm from the top.
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Artisans In Miniature 41
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Step 3: While the wax is still fresh, insert your wick.
Depending how long you want your wick is
depending how far you should push it in.
Step 4: Once the wax is fully dry, apply a tiny dot of
tacky glue (Fast Grab glue is best for this) in
the middle of your container. Apply your
image of choice and hold for a few seconds.
Step 5: Using a paintbrush, apply a thin coat of gallery glass to the image. Applying more than one coat, could cause your
image to smear, so be careful.
The Final Step:
ENJOY YOUR NEW MINI CANDLE!
Until next time, Toodles!
Project text and photos ©2010 Melanie Navarro ‐ Mels Miniatures
www.melsminiatures.com
www.melsminiatures.blogspot.com
Artisans In Miniature 42
Artisans In Miniature 43
By AIM Member, Jean Day.
When we were in England I found the most beautiful
book from 1895 called "Illuminating" or The Art of
Illuminating by W. J. Loftie, BA FSA. I thought it would be
wonderful to reproduce in miniature.
This book has fabulous plates of examples of illumination
and Loftie also used his own illustrations to teach this art
form. I visualized monks spending years on their
exquisitely detailed manuscripts.
Here is my one twelfth scale version of this book
(See right). Since I like to make my reproduction books in
scale, in size and width with the original, I only included
the illustrated pages because I wanted to use all of the
exquisite illustrations.
‘Manuscript’ means made by hand and the ornaments or tiny illustrations on the manuscripts are called
Eluminures, illuminations or miniatures. Manuscript text includes decorated initials, borders and miniature
illustrations with such delicacy of touch. So Illuminating could also be called miniaturizing. Illuminated
manuscripts are priceless works of art and are in museums all over the world. The term illuminated
manuscript used to mean those decorated with silver or gold that were illuminated or lit up by these
additions but now the term is used more broadly.
After reading the book I was very excited to learn that the Illuminations were far more free form and
creative than I had ever imagined. They are created much as we would enjoy doodling around our initials
today. As related to miniature decorating for the home, in full scale more and more decorative initials can
be found on pillows, in collections of old hankies and even used on lamp shades. Each of these works well
in miniature too. It gives an old world look to a modern environment. A miniature illuminated initial could
be framed or placed on the wall of a dollhouse, Gothic castle or scene.
Artisans In Miniature 45
There was a great description in Loftie’s book for what was meant by illuminating. It is a Book of Hours,
written in France at the beginning of the sixteenth century.
“It consisted of seventy seven leaves of vellum, which measured about seven inches by five, with an
illuminated border to every page. There were twenty miniatures, some the size of the full page and
some smaller. The borders were composed of flowers and fruit, interspersed with grotesque animals,
birds and human figures, most eccentrically conceived. Both the capital letters and the borders
were heightened with gold, sometimes flat, and sometimes brilliantly burnished.”
There were a large number of heraldic animals used these
manuscripts too, I was pleased to hear this as I worked for a couple
of years for a heraldry company and always enjoyed blazoning the
animal figures.
I thought I would try illuminating a letter on vellum and show you
how I did this. Here is a photo of my miniature illumination for the
letter A.
More photos for this workshop can be found on the ‘Illumination
Inspiration Board’ on page 34
I have used strips of frisket film from Grafix on the outside of my let‐
ter to hold it in place, it is wonderful because it doesn't stick to the vellum and can be reused. It can be
used for airbrushing, stencilling and protective coverings but you can use a light stick masking tape as
well for a short time. I used a magnifier for more detail while I'm tracing and painting. I put a bit of each
paint colour onto my pallet. First I painted the gold to identify the actual letter A shape, then I added each
of the other colours. When I was finished with the colours I added to the outline of the image and a few
more swirls with the micron pen. This painting might work well for a castle or gothic setting.
A few years ago I started being interested in illuminating
manuscripts when I bought a few true mineral paints for my
watercolours. I have real lapis lazuli watercolour from the stone for
ultramarine blue and malachite ground stone for green. Other real
minerals and natural ingredients that were used for painting in
Medieval times and later are gold as gold leaf, which is real gold
hammered very thin and bound in gum arabic or egg. Cinnabar or
vermillion, cochineal and iron oxide for red, yellows were from
ochre earth colours, weld or turmeric. Blue was also derived from
indigo, just like blue jeans or azurite. Black from lampblack,
charcoal or burnt bones.
Jean Day
Jean Day Miniatures www.jdayminis.com www.jdayminis.blogspot.com Text & Photographs © Jean Day
www.woolytalesminiatures.blogspot.com www.woolytales.com www.artisansinminiature.com/woolytalesminiatures.html [email protected]
“Brickwork begins…”
I began to attach my brick slips to the outside of the
house using PVA glue. 2000 brick slips later I have
completed the front, right hand side and the chimney of
the house and it looked lovely.
First of all I attached the two gate posts to the side door
walls. The final pillar will go on when I have the floor
decorated and am ready to put the railings up.
I bricked the outside of the wall to get back into
practice; it’s some time since I last used brick
slips. They are so simple to attach, its time
consuming, but also therapeutic and I did a lot
of planning as I sat there sticking bricks.
Once I was in the swing of things there was no
stopping me.
Artisans In Miniature 46
WEEK
3
DIARY OF AN EDWARDIAN DOLLS HOUSE
By AIM Member, Julie Campbell
First, as the house was lying on its
side post pebble dashing, I tackled
the right hand side of the house.
This is the largest wall space of the
whole building so I knew once this
side was done the rest would be
plain sailing.
It’s very simple to do.
Just paint a section of your wall with
pva, don’t coat too much or it will
dry out.
Then start to lay your bricks with each row staggered to give that familiar brick pattern. This is where you
really need a ruler. A clear one like this is great as you can see the rows of bricks beneath it.
The first time I used brick slips I was sure I didn’t need a ruler. I could easily lay my bricks in a straight
line… no problem… About 6 rows in I realised my bricks were starting to slant upwards. By then the
lower layers were already dry so it was too late. Lesson learned, I armed myself
with a long ruler! Artisans In Miniature 47
Artisans In Miniature 48
It’s most important when
bricking a wall with
windows to check that
you have the same
number of rows either
side of the window and
that they are level. Your
ruler is your most valuable
tool here.
I learned from my
mistakes on a previous
house!
Carry on working in sections until you
reach the end of your wall. The brick
slips can be easily snapped in half or
trimmed with scissors at the edges for
fitting around window and door frames.
You can see just how nice the wall looks
all bricked. As I was enjoying myself I
carried on and bricked the shop front.
Artisans In Miniature 49
I wasn’t happy with the shop
door surround so decided to
brick that too.
There is no architrave around
the door and I think this makes it
look very "dolls house".
I wanted my toy shop to look like
a real old building, not a dolls
house.
So improvisation time again! I
had an old piece of dado rail
which fit perfectly around the door frame so I painted this
and attached it before bricking the rest of the frame. I
think you will agree it looks better with the architrave.
Here is the finished front with architrave painted and bricks
in place ready for mortar.
I bricked the chimney stack, taking care to match the rows
of bricks upon all four corners.
My first pack of brick slips was all used up so now it was
time for the bit I like least!
Applying the mortar.
The powder was mixed
with water and PVA to a
stiff paste.
This is then rubbed over
the bricks pushing it
down between each
brick with a soft damp
cloth.
It’s gritty and messy and
you have to work
carefully one section at
a time. Here is the first
section of the wall with
mortar applied. (See
top left picture). I
found this quite scary
the first time I did it, all your hard work seems to
be covered in muck! Next you take a damp cloth
and a bowl of water and start cleaning. You want to
get the bricks clean but leave the mortar in the
gaps. If you have too damp a cloth you will simply
wash the mortar away so the trick is to wring out
well, fold your cloth into a fairly flat shape and
carefully wipe over the top of your bricks. Keep
wringing out the cloth and wiping, rinsing frequently. It does take some time but as your bricks emerge it
really does look very effective, just like a real wall! This is the finished cleaned up wall and doesn’t it look
fabulous!
I tipped the house over onto its back as I still had loose pebble
dash on the top section which I caught to re use on the left hand
side.
I then left the house on its back
so I could attach the front panel
with hinges once my mortar is
dry. Here is the completed front
and chimney looking very nice
with the mortar drying out.
As the characters that live in this
building are not rich the building
will look a little aged, not exactly
shabby but a little worn.
This is the wall half way thr
ough wiping clean.
Artisans In Miniature 51
To find out more about Julie’s beautiful dolls, why not visit her website; ‘Bellabelle Dolls’
www.bellabelledolls.co.uk
Text & Photographs © Julie Campbell 2010
When rinsing the mortar I left some showing around the edges of the window trims and sills which gives
a lovely slightly dirty effect.
I will be distressing the chimney stack a little and dirtying it up around the pots. I want this to look like a
real building rather than a toy and so far I'm very happy with the way it’s turning out.
Whilst waiting for more brick slips to arrive I attached the front of the shop with the hinges provided.
This was a simple and easy job thanks to my small dremel drill. There is a catch to go on the side but I
need to apply the bricks to this side first. However you can see here how good it looks so far!
I had intended to tile the roof this weekend but my time was taken up by the windows...
Simply glue the plastic window frames into the openings said the instruction manual. Well the small
windows fitted like a dream and I just popped them in with a touch of PVA. Then I came to the large
windows. Quite simply they didn’t fit! The window openings were 2 mm smaller than the plastic
windows !!!! There was only one thing for it.... sand papering. If you have never tried sanding a tiny
rebate on a window opening of a built dolls house you have never known true frustration!
In the end I rolled my sandpaper round a slim pencil and then rolled the pencil round and round the
rebate. Eventually I managed to widen the gap slightly but there was just no way I could find to
satisfactorily increase the gap.
I managed to wedge the windows in tightly, so tightly that they wouldn’t come back out. If forced too
much I think the plastic would snap. So my two windows on the front of the house are ever so very
slightly bowed. Nobody who has seen it has noticed but I know it is so, which is a bit frustrating.
Never mind, I will put it down to character!
I stood the house upright and attached the chimney.
Despite the window problem I have to say it looks pretty perfect so far !
Lace Knitting In Miniature…
Lace knitting can work very well in miniature
and a simple lace bedspread or dress can
make a stunning addition to your dolls house
or miniature scene. You do not need any
special equipment, except perhaps for a mag‐
nifier, but may need a lot of patience to
complete a lace pattern.
Many people are put off the idea of lace knit‐
ting, as it looks far more complicated than it
actually is. The key to lace knitting is to know
which row you are working on a pattern.
These patterns are often very simple repeats
of say 4 to 8 stitches over perhaps 4 to 6 rows
of knitting, but even so it can be difficult to
work out where you are in a pattern if you put
your knitting down mid row and leave it for a
few hours.
Lace knitting can also look very different if knitted in different yarns. Although lace knitting works best in
cotton yarns, it can look equally stunning in 1‐ply wool yarns depending on the pattern used.
More open lace patterns can be worked using larger needles and thinner yarns (these will also drape much
better). Experimentation is often the key, as some yarns will work better than others and the finished results
can look much better in one yarn type than another.
The Knitting BasketBasket
If you want to learn more about miniature knitting and sewing, then you are going to love this brand new regular feature, written by Aim member Frances Powell of Buttercup Miniatures...
NEW FEATURE!
Artisans In Miniature 52
Pictured above: 1/12th scale knitted lace curtains and bedspread.
If you would like to see more of Frances’ wonderful knitting, why not visit her website:
www.buttercupminiatures.co.uk
One thing to remember when
knitting miniature lace is that if you
scale up the lace pattern to ‘human
size’ the lovely lace design might
have enormous ‘holes’ in it and
would not look right, however it may
work in miniature.
When working a lace pattern for the
first time, it may be best to try the
pattern on much larger needles and
with thicker thread to get used to
the lace pattern before you move to
knitting it in miniature.
It will also help to have a plain cloth
on your lap (or skirt/trousers) in a
colour that contrasts strongly with
the miniature knitting so the pattern
shows up well as you are knitting it.
For example if you are knitting in a
pastel colour or white, use a very
dark colour cloth on your lap.
Artisans In Miniature 53 Photographs & Text © Frances Powell 2010
The stitches used to make lace patterns are generally quite simple and very often consist of knitting
stitches together and ‘making’ stitches by putting the yarn over or round the needle before working
the next stitch.
Even if you are an experienced knitter, if you start with a simple pattern (less than 10 rows repeat on
the pattern) and progress to a more complex pattern you will find it easier. Sometimes a good
magnifier can be of great help when working lace patterns.
Frances Powell
1/12th scale knitted Christening gown
Some years ago, Hywel and I
had made a lovely 12th scale
church, but it took up a fair bit
of room for something that we
only really appreciated at
Christmas time. So, we downsized! The Olde Abbey takes up only the space of a room box, so it is perfect
to use as a Christmas display and can easily be stored away after.
We bought the basic kit online and decorated the exterior and interior in our usual style using grey brick
compound to make the exterior stonework and pillars.
The roof has individual cedar wood shingle tiles, which I aged and then added some moss. We also
slightly altered the back of the kit, adding cross beams to make the open back smaller and more
decorative, as I wanted to display the Olde Abbey with the open side to the front, so that everyone could
see in at a glance.
Inside, the ceiling and walls are covered with good old DIY Decorators Filler, which is then given a light
coat of cream emulsion and a heavy coat of Tea bagging! I discovered whilst working on this project, that
if you ‘teabag’ whilst the emulsion is still damp, the finished effect is muckier and if you really squash the
teabag into the corners, it resembles damper patches and the little bits which break off the teabags
resemble mould!
Artisans In Miniature 54
OUR LITTLE
CHURCH...
‘THE OLDE ABBEY’ By AIM Member, Julia Jeffreys of Bearcabinminiatures
Artisans In Miniature 55
We couldn’t decide on
what flooring to have
inside; wood or flag‐
stones, so after a little
debate, we decided on
a real wood floor.
Hywel spent a whole
day, trimming the
wood planks and
laying out the pattern,
only to discover that
the pattern was lost
once the church
furniture went in!
The kit was supplied
without window
glazing, so I bought
some acetate and made up some ‘stained and leaded glass.’
TIP: If you have a pattern you like for your window, place it under your acetate, then trace around it with an outliner pen. Fill in the spaces with glass paints and hey presto, you have a lovely stained glass window.
Hywel also made all the
church furniture and we
made a wonderful mess
melting down candles and
pouring the wax into straws
to make our church candles!
Text & Photographs © Bearcabinminiatures 2010
Finally, I added some shop bought children dolls and my wonderful Reverend, who used to ‘live’ in the other
church. My Reverend was commission made for me a couple of years ago, by Julie of Bellabelle dolls. He is one
of Julie’s earlier dolls, so he is extra special and unique.
You can see more details of The Olde Abbey by looking on our blog, under blog archive 2009,
Bearcabinminiatures.blogspot.com
No doubt I will continue to work on and add more to The Olde Abbey for a few more Christmases to come and
that adds to the joy of it, as The Olde Abbey only comes out once a year, I never get fed up with it.
Julia Bearcabinminiatures.etsy.com Bearcabinminiatures.blogspot.com
Artisans In Miniature 58
CATHOLIC PRIEST’S ROBES CATHOLIC PRIEST’S ROBES
& & THEIR SIGNIFICANCE...THEIR SIGNIFICANCE... By AIM Member, Montse Vives
Religion is any form of spirituality with two ways: vertical (relationship with God and the Divine) and
horizontal (relationship with fellow human beings). Christian tradition is more than 2000 years old, and it
even adopted some symbols from older religions. This means that nothing is gratuitous or left to chance.
Let’s talk about how these traditions and symbols are shown in the robes of the catholic priests.
What does the priest wear? First of all, the priest puts on the Amice. It is a rectangular piece of white linen with two strings at the upper
corners, used under the Alb to cover the neck. It recalls the humiliation put upon Christ, who died as a
criminal condemned to death, and is a symbol of the helmet of salvation.
The Alb comes second, a white robe‐like vestment or tunic, symbolizing Purity.
Next comes the Cincture: a cord to tie the Alb around the waist, symbolizes chastity.
The fourth is the Stole, a kind of scarf worn over the Alb, around the neck hanging equally on the chest, or
forming an x‐shaped Cross. It is a symbol of the clerical office, and of immortality.
The Chasuble, matching the liturgical colour, is the long, sleeveless cape worn over the Alb and stole during
the Mass. “On top of everything else”, to put it simply. It is a symbol of the yoke of Christ, learning from
him, this symbolizes charity (love).
Another vestment, the Maniple, was used before the liturgical reform. It is a strip of linen, matching the
Chasuble, suspended on the left forearm and hanging equally on both sides.
Remember, also, that a priest until the middle of the 20th century would wear a cassock, and it may show
under the vestments. Modern priests wear trousers, but this is quite recent. My grandmother, born in 1914,
used to tell me she had a good laugh the first time she saw a priest in trousers… she was a married woman,
by then, and she got married after the Spanish Civil War (1939).
Getting dressed is not as simple as for common mortals: every vestment has a prayer that must be recited
when putting it on, so getting dressed is, for the priest, a moment of preparation for the religious service.
The diversity of colours is not a question of fashion either: it is used to express the particularity of every day
in the liturgical year:
White is the colour of happiness, glory, innocence and purity. It is used between Christmas and the Baptism
of our Lord, and on holidays related to Virgin Mary, for example.
Red, the colour of blood and fire, is used on Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Pentecost.
Green, the colour of hope, is used through the year in the ordinary time.
Violet is the colour of penance and humility, used in Advent and Lent, and on Holy Saturday liturgies.
Pink, a colour of happiness and love, and Blue, a colour for purity and the sacred, are used in some places.
Pink for the 3rd Sunday of advent and forth of lent, and blue for the Immaculate Conception Holiday.
Black may be used for funerals, and other colours, such as gold or silver, for solemnities. At a friend’s wed‐
ding, the priest, who was a friend too, wore gold, and he said he looked like a Ferrero Rocher!
Text © Montse Vive 2010
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Vestments...
Artisans In Miniature 59
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Artisans In Miniature 60
To find out more about the miniatures made by Montse aka
Minimontse, why not visit her blog site… http://minimontse.blogspot.com/
Minimontse
©2010 Montse Vives
Artisans In Miniature 61
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Artisans In Miniature 63
By AIM Member Jean Day
When we visited Spain and Brazil last year I really enjoyed taking these photos of
the wonderful stained glass windows and churches we visited. I thought they
might be inspiring for your own miniature stained glass windows. I am showing
a few of my favourites on the inspiration board. The photos on the bottom half
are from the amazing Antoni Gaudi, La Sagrada Familia, Cathedral in Barcelona.
It was designed in 1883 and is still being worked on today. The stained glass is
very modern looking and glows so beautifully.
The photos on the top were from the Metropolitan Cathedral we visited in
Fortaleza, Brazil. It was built in 1939 by the architect George Mounier. They
are more traditional and so elegant. These photos have also inspired me to
do a watercolour, either miniature or large, perhaps a collage style. I have
free watercolour workshops on my blog if you are interested..
You can find many books with stained glass designs for your miniature
creations such as the design I have shown from Dover publishers.
www.doverpublications.com
©2010 ‐ Jean Day ‐ Jean Day Miniatures
http://jdayminis.com ‐ http://jdayminis.blogspot.com ‐
email: [email protected]
Illustrations on the right of this page are copyright free clip‐art.
By AIM Member, Debbe Mize
ThroughThrough The Keyh le...
Artisans In Miniature 65
Ever wondered what it would be like to be able to have a closer look at the working environments of AIM members? This month food artisan Debbe Mize tells us in her own words all about her workspace in Georgia, USA...
I live in Cumming, Georgia, USA, 40 miles north of
Atlanta GA.
My studio is a converted bedroom in my house. I had
adjustable shelves put up on 2 of the longest walls on
which I keep my labelled plastic boxes of miniatures and
materials that I work with, along with all of my miniature
magazines for reference. I have a barrister bookcase
along one wall in which I keep my clays and
paints. There are two work tables in my studio.
The largest one is the one I use most often. The smaller
white tin table belonged to my Nana and was her
canning table. I keep this in the studio for nostalgic
reasons and also because it has a great smooth surface
to work on when I'm claying. I keep all my packing
supplies in the large closet. In one corner I have a very
comfortable wicker chair and small table where I take
my breaks and read for a while.
My studio is known as "Mimi's Dungeon”. My grandies
made a sign years ago and stuck it on the outside of the
door! I also have a CD player in there and work to either
classic rock or classical music. Sitting on my larger table
is a small serenity pond a dear friend made for me and
when I get frustrated or blocked, I gaze at it for awhile
and it really helps to get my mind working again. And my
cup of coffee is never far from hand :}
Like most miniaturists, I started out working at my
dining room table and worked there for 10 yrs or
so. When my youngest daughter moved out, I decided
to "move up in the world" and make my own studio, so I
converted her bedroom.
If you would like to find out more about the beautiful miniatures that Debbe creates in Mimi’s Dungeon - why not visit her website:
www.cdhm.org/user/trisscade or http://community.webshots.com/user/debbem101
I create various miniatures. I am mainly a foodie and love making prep tables. I also make other types of furniture
scenes such as a doll artisan's table, bathroom and garage shelves, scrap booking tables and so on. I just let my
imagination guide me. There are endless miniatures you can create! I sculpt food, flowers and dishes from
polymer clay. I prefer using Sculpy and Fimo, but have used Kato from time to time.
The best thing about my workspace is the amount of room I have. It's large enough to move around in
comfortably so I don't feel closed in. I have claustrophobia and could not stand being closed up in a small room!
You know, I don't believe I would change anything about my workspace. I think it's perfect!
I store everything in see through plastic boxes. This is the best way I have found of keeping up with small
items. My boxes are labelled and when I need an item I can go straight to it. It helps to keep everything organized
which is a big help to me as I am a most unorganized person :}
I have a lovely view from my window! My husband is a landscaper and he and my youngest daughter built me
a beautiful water feature. In warmer weather I open my window and listen to the soothing sound of the
waterfalls. It's very relaxing.
I have worked in my studio since 1997.
Debbe Mize
Are YOU a professional miniature artisan??
Do you sell quality handmade miniatures to the public??
Do you want to showcase your work and talents on a global platform??
Do you want to be part of a supportive professional association??
AND do you want it all for FREE???
If you answered 'YES' to EVERY question…
Then look no further, AIM is the professional miniaturists association for YOU!!
AIM is completely FREE to join and completely FREE to be part of.
So...if you are a professional miniature artisan and you would like to find out
more about joining the AIM Association,
please email AIM’s Membership Secretary: Mary for more information:
Or alternatively visit our website… Artisans In Miniature 67
AArtisansrtisans IInn MMiniatureiniature“An association of professional artisans, dedicated to promoting a high standard
NEW www.artisansinminiature.com
artisansinminiature.blogspot.com
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Artisans In Miniature 68
By AIM Member, Christina Berry
This project shows how to make a folded blanket that you can place
in a blanket box or linen press. You could leave it at the foot of a bed in case there’s a cold snap.
A piece of cream coloured doctor’s flannel 160mm X 120mm A piece of cream coloured satin bias binding 190mm long
Matching sewing thread Pins
Scissors Sewing needle size 9 sharp
Milliner’s needle (not essential)
(Use matching sewing thread. Contrasting thread has been used in the photographs for clarity.)
1. Cut the doctors flannel to size 160mm X 120mm
2. Cut a length of satin bias binding 190mm long
3. Open one edge of the bias binding and pin it to the longer edge of the doctor’s flannel in the following
way.
The shiny side of the bias binding should be towards the doctor’s flannel.
The edge of the bias binding should be positioned 2mm above the edge of the doctor’s flannel and should
stick out 15mm at each end.
4. Pin and tack the bias binding into place.
5. Machine the bias binding to the doctor’s flannel along the pre‐folded crease. Take the stitching right to the
ends of the bias binding and tie off the ends of the thread. Remove the tacking.
1:12th Scale...
Folded Blanket Project...
To make one folded blanket you will need...
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6. Tuck in the ends of the bias binding. Fold the bias
binding over the edge of the doctor’s flannel. The
creased edge of the bias binding should just meet the
row of machine stitches. Pin the bias binding into place
inserting the pins vertically as shown in picture 2.
Pictures 1a & 1b show this stage from both sides of the fabric...
1a 1b
2 7. Unpin and carefully raise a corner of the bias binding and fasten on a length
of sewing thread with the size 9 sharp needle as unobtrusively as you can.
Put the pin back and begin to attach the creased edge of the bias binding to the machine stitches in the
following way.
Pick up each alternate machine stitch with the point of the needle and then catch a few threads of the bias
binding.
Draw the bias binding carefully into place as shown in picture 2.
Work to the end of the binding removing the pins as you go and then fasten off unobtrusively.
The blanket is now ready to be folded.
8. Fold the blanket into three lengthwise and secure with pins keeping the best side of the bias binding on
the outside. Do this in the following way.
Now that you have applied the bias binding that edge of the blanket will be fractionally shorter. To allow for
this place the first pin vertically in the centre of the folded blanket and pin outwards to the edges.
Tack into place, see picture 3.
Keep the centre pin in place and
remove the rest.
3
Artisans In Miniature 69
9. With the side of the blanket that has the bias binding
away from you begin to fold in the sides of the blanket
using the centre pin as a guide. Because you have to
accommodate the thickness of the three layers of blanket
the ends will not meet in the middle. There will need to
be a gap of 10 to 12mm. See picture 4
Pin and tack and then remove the pins.
Finally fold the blanket in two, closing it towards you like
a book.
10. Insert two or three pins to keep the folds in place. You
can hold the folded blanket together with tacking if you
prefer to do so. Using matching thread, fasten on
unobtrusively and secure the folds of the blanket in place.
You can use a milliner’s needle if you have one. You will
probably need to stitch in to all three open edges of the
folded blanket to get a neat finish. See picture 5.
Remove pins and tacking.
The folded blanket is finished
If you have any difficulty getting
hold of doctors flannel or satin
bias binding then The Dolls
House Bedding Co. can supply
you.
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4
5
Bed commissioned from Willow Models
(Also AIM members)
© Christina Berry 2010 The Dolls House Bedding Co.
To see more of Christina’s stunning bedding why not visit her website: www.thedollshousebeddingco.co.uk
By AIM Member Frances Powell
The start of summer reminds us that as people pose for
wedding photos outside the church, few really notice how
much wildlife and plant life there is in the churchyard.
Trees have always played a part in religion and those found
in churchyards are no exception. This may have stemmed
from earlier religions that worshipped the actual trees and
incorporating this into the ‘new’ Christian religion made
life easier all round.
Many trees and plants were sacred to the Druids who lived in the UK prior to Christianity arriving, these were
incorporated into the church ceremonies and things like holly and mistletoe are still associated with religion today
and these trees are often found in the churchyards. Willow trees are also found in churchyards (people may have
planted weeping willows overhanging a tomb of a loved one). Yew trees are often found in churchyards as these
represent everlasting life.
Today our churchyards are often a haven in a busy town for both people and wildlife. Church towers are often used
as nesting places by many different birds. The trees are often centuries old and provide habitats for many small
animals and birds. The church itself may be covered in moss and lichens. Older areas of the churchyard may be left
untended and many native wild flowers and small bushes grow up. Some churchyards have a hedge rather than a
wall surrounding them and this may be home to many types of plants. The compost heap in the corner of a
churchyard often provides a winter home for hedgehogs and other small mammals.
Some people may see churchyards as a sad place that is full of dead people, in reality there is probably more life in a
churchyard than most people could imagine and many are now being documented as havens for wildlife, complete
with nature trails.
So if you have or want a miniature church, don’t forget the churchyard and the plant and wildlife that can be found
there.
©2010 ‐ Frances Powell ‐ Buttercup Miniatures
www.buttercupminiatures.co.uk Artisans In Miniature 71
By AIM Member Grimdeva
Being a miniature and mixed media artist, I have many bins and
boxes filled with toy parts, faux greenery, crystals, and trims.
Besides constantly scrounging through thrift stores, hobby shops,
and online for supplies, much of my stash is also donated by well
meaning friends and neighbors. In the mix, I have quite a bit that
is not suitable for 1:12 dollhouse scale, such as cloth prints or
laces that are too large. Then people began bringing me broken
and unloved porcelain baby dolls too. I ended up with a trunk full
of them and various mismatched clothes. What to do with them?
Living in Texas, I often see the brightly colored sugar skulls, called
Calaveras, in many forms of art and fashion. I learned how to
make these and a bit of the history by attending a community
college workshop on Day of the Dead traditions last year. They
were very messy to decorate and the chocolate ones were
delicious! Sugar Skulls are a traditional folk art from Mexico used
to celebrate El Dia De los Muertos, the Day of the Dead.
The celebration occurs on November 2 in connection with
the Catholic holidays of All Saints' Day (November 1 for the
children) and All Souls' Day (November 2 for adults). Spirits
of deceased loved ones are welcomed back to their homes
with beautifully decorated altars and special foods. Sugar
skulls, marigolds, candles, incense and food adorn home
altars, along with photos and personal items of the
deceased. Families will also take the flowers and sugar
skulls to the cemetery to decorate tombs at this time. Sugar
skulls are colorfully decorated with icing, pieces of bright
foil, dyed sugars, and flowers. They might even bear the
name of the lost loved one being honored.
I was inspired to make my own family altar for the holiday.
I had pictures of both living and deceased relatives and on
one side, they went back 5 generations. I added
mementoes such as rosaries, prayer cards, handmade
doilies, and coins. It was a very meaningful experience.
Traditional Sugar Skulls
My Family Altar Artisans In Miniature 72
I also tried my hand at making miniature
Calaveras out of a Halloween garland I
had. In popular custom, some skulls are
personalized to represent certain
characters or even a specific individual.
They may reflect a hobby or a job. I
thought, “Hey, I grew up in the 80’s” so I
went for a punk rock theme!
I’ve begun collecting fabric printed with Day of the Dead designs and
trying to learn more about local culture. In Texas, it is very common to
see purses, skirts, shirts, and patches made with the theme.
On my quest, I’ve visited several
Botanicas, the local Mexican herbal
shops that have shelves of incense,
holy water, candles, and votive
figures. Often you will find a large
Santa Muerta, the Saint of Death. This
figure represents a syncretic blend of Spanish Catholic and earlier
Me s o am e r i c a n
b e l i e f s a n d
represents the
reverence of
mortality.
While not officially
sanctioned by the
Church, Santa
M u e r t a i s
i n c r e a s i n g l y
popular. The
various outfits
represent different
aspects of death. I
found a red robed
Reaper type and
another as the
Virgin.
Punk Rock Mini Skulls
Day of the Dead Fabric (above) and Virgin Santa Muerta (below)
Reaper Santa Muerta Artisans In Miniature 73
Santa Muerte is referred to by several alternative names.
She is Señora de las Sombras ("Lady of the Shadows"),
Señora Blanca ("White Lady"), Señora Negra ("Black Lady"),
Niña Santa ("Holy Girl"), and La Flaca ("The Skinny One"). A
common representation that I see all over the place is the
‘Catrina’ wood engraving by Jose Guadalupe Posada.
I think this is a beautiful tradition and I decided to repaint
some of my dolls as Calaveras and Santa Muertas. I make
any necessary repairs and sometimes alter the facial
features using fast drying epoxy clay. I then base spray the
dolls white and give them a thick layer of gesso on
the face and arms for texture. At this step, I’ve tried
crackle glaze using 2 color layers. I’ve also
experimented with multiple layers of dry brushing
and inking. After this, I draw the sugar skull pattern
on with gel pen. Using a combination of acrylics and
inks, I color the designs in and then matte spray it.
I give the dolls new wigs I make out of hand dyed
wool. Sometimes I take the eyes out. For the
clothing, I soak Victorian style outfits in a
combination of coffee, chestnut dye, indigo dye, and
tea. They smell wonderful! Once dry, the clothes
are embellished with additional ribbon, cameos,
pearls, laces, acrylic painting, and ink washes.
My Calavera dolls have been popular as
auction donations, gifts, and commissions.
©2010 Grimdeva ‐
Cauldron Craft Miniatures
www.cauldroncraftminiatures.blogspot.com
www.cauldroncraftminis.etsy.com
Posada’s Catrina
Sugar Skull Baby (above) and Sissy the Vampire Muerta (right)
Artisans In Miniature 74
Dear Aunt Anastasia… I have a problem that I hope you can help me with. My wonderful husband bought me a dollshouse kit and I am having such fun assembling and decorating it, but I am at a loss as how to paint the windows: they have non
‐removable panes and I just know that I am going to get paint all over the "glass". Do you know of a way to paint them neatly? Anxious in Accrington
Dear Anxious, Indeed, I do know of a cunning way of getting the paint on the parts and not on the panes. Trotters and I were faced with such a dilemma and this is what we did: we tootled down to the kitchen when Mrs. Murgatroyd was elsewhere and "borrowed" a goodly length of greaseproof paper (my niece in Canada tells me the nearest equivalent on her side of the Atlantic is waxed paper) and cut it into strips. The paper is thin enough to slip between the "glass" and the wood surround and won't let the paint through. Of course, you shouldn't overload your brush when painting to avoid any seepage. I hope this helps. AA
Dear Aunt Anastasia… I have some plastic miniature kits that I plan on painting, but I don't know how I am going to do it, some of the pieces are so small. How can I hold them? Mary
Dear Mary, It can be quite a challenge not to get more paint on self than on the miniature, but it can be done. Trotters, when he is not complaining about his bunions, can be extremely helpful and he suggests (having done quite a bit of model car and aeroplane building) that one can leave the tiny parts on the sprues (those apparently are those rod‐tye things that the plastic parts are moulded on) to paint them, then carefully cut the parts off and just touch up the spot where they were attached. One of my favourites (especially for things like plates & dishes) is to stick a lump of Funtak/BlueTac to a pencil or empty film canister and then paint the item, but the thing I use the most is what I call my painting board: it is just a 4" x 2" piece of scrap wood (we all have those laying around, don't we?) which I wrapped in ordinary masking tape until all the wood was covered. When I want to paint a tiny thing, I put a strip of double‐sided tape on the board and stick the part to the tape, paint one side and when it is dry, turn it over and paint the other side. One word of caution, my dears, double‐sided tape comes in different strengths of "stickiness", some is so strong that you might break the miniature when trying to get it off the board, so what I do is pat the tape repeatedly until it is just sticky enough to hold the piece without risk of snapping on removal. AA
Well, my dears, that is it for this month. Just remember, you can write to me in confidence that your email addresses with never be sold, shared or used for any other purpose (perish the thought!).
Now, where has Trotters got to with my afternoon tonic??
Artisans In Miniature 75
Aunt AnastasiaAunt Anastasia GGreetings from Miniscule Manor! I'm Aunt Anastasia, your very distant mini relative (sixth cousin, twice removed and scaled down) and when I am not making the most fabulous minis, sipping bubbly or bossing my butler Trotters about, I just love helping miniaturists and solving problems of a miniature nature, so if your paint won't stick and your glue won't glue, get in touch:
[email protected] Looking forward to hearing from you soon….
Aunt Anastasia
Aunt Anastasia
This month the members of AIM are taking a closer look at all things mushrooms and fungi.
So what exactly is a mushroom? The brief answer
would be to say that it is a spore producing fruit of a
fungus, in other words the mushroom itself is no more
than the reproductive organs of the fungus which lies
underground in a network of thread called ‘Hyphae’...
but mushrooms, I think, are so much more than that!
The fungi family is in a class of its own, separate to
other plants, vegetables or even bacteria and genetic
studies have shown that fungi are more closely related
to animals than other plants.
Each mushroom has within itself billions of spores, but
of these billions only a few will survive and go on to
meet a compatible spore from where they can go on
to create a network of Hyphae and more mushrooms.
Portabella Mushrooms Basket (left) by Kiva Atkinson
www.kivasminiatures.com &
www.kivasminiatures.blogspot.com
144th Scale Light Up Mushroom House in Glass Orb
(right) by Tori West ‐ Mini Motion
www.minimotion.com
Porcini Mushrooms (above) by Maria Teresa Espanet ‐
Minihouse di Terry
www.terry‐minihouse.blogspot.com
Laricino Mushrooms (top left) by Maria Teresa
Espanet ‐ Minihouse di Terry
www.terry‐minihouse.blogspot.com
Open‐cap Mushrooms (middle left)
by Vicky Guile ‐ NJD Miniatures
www.njdminiatures.blogspot.com
English Breakfasts (bottom) by Stéphanie Kilgast
‐ www.petitplatfr ‐
www.petitplatbysk.blogspot.com
The ancient Egyptians believed that the common
man was not worthy to feast on such a delicacy
as mushrooms, prized for their flavour they were
deemed a food only to be touched by the hand
of royalty. Throughout other cultures and
civilisations there have been many rituals
involving the use or worship of mushrooms. The
people of China, Russia and Greece, amongst
others believed that the mushroom could
Mixed Mushrooms (above) by Kiva Atkinson ‐
www.kivasminiatures.com &
www.kivasminiatures.blogspot.com
Fungi on step (top right) by Maria Teresa
Espanet ‐ Minihouse di Terry
www.terry‐minihouse.blogspot.com
Mushrooms crate (middle right)
by Carol Smith ‐www.starsgemini3.blogspot.com
Toadstool Rug Kit (bottom) by Frances Powell ‐
Buttercup Miniatures ‐
www.buttercupminiatures.co.uk
transport the soul to the heavens, locate lost
objects or even present the consumer with
super‐human strengths.
It is thought that the first country to cultivate
the mushroom was France. King Louis IV is said
to have set aside a labyrinth of caves near Paris
solely to be used for the cultivation of one of his
favourite food commodities.
Baked Stuffed Mushrooms and Peppers
(top left), Mushroom Basket (middle left)
and Scallop and Mushroom Mornay
(bottom left) by Linda Cummings ‐
www.linsminis.etsy.com,
www.linsminis.com &
www.linsminis.blogspot.com
From early cultivation in France to modern
day, the global market is now awash with a
wide variety of edible fungi that have a
wide range of culinary uses. The brown
Crimini, a button mushroom with a rich
and full earthy flavour is used mainly in
beef or game dishes but also delicious on
its own.
The Porcini or Cep mushroom with its
exquisite taste and price tag to match is
highly prized by chefs around the world
and prevalent in Italian cuisine. World
famous chef Antonio Carluccio describes
the Porcini as ‘the wild mushroom par
excellence!’ and it ranks as his most
preferred species of gastronomic fungi.
Dried porcini are also widely available, the
drying process results in a taste more
intense than the fresh version which
intensifies during cooking as the
mushroom soaks up and melds with the
flavours of what it is accompanying.
The Shitake mushroom, grown on oak logs,
is native to Eastern Asia. Known as Pyogo
in Korea or Hed Hom in Thailand amongst
other names throughout the region, the
Shitake is used in a wide variety of dishes
and is also available, like the Porcini, in a
dried form which must be reconstituted
before cooking. Another Asian mushroom
is the Enoki or Enokitake, easy to cultivate
at home and grown by many in bottles,
resulting in a clump of Enoki which can be
Shitake Mushrooms with Punnet (top right),
Mushroom Head Log (right), Chanterelle Basket
(bottom right) and Mushroom Log (below) by
Kiva Atkinson ‐ Kivas Miniatures ‐
www.kivasminiatures.com &
www.kivasminiatures.blogspot.com
All photographs ©2010 by
their respective artisans.
Text throughout this article
©2010 ‐ Vicky Gule/NJD
Miniatures ‐
www.njdminiatures.com
But probably the variety of mushroom that we
are all most familiar with is the common White
Mushroom, grown in over 70 countries
worldwide and consumed in even more. The
white mushroom comes in a variety of forms...
Open‐cap, Button, Portobello, Field, Table and
Swiss to name just a few, it’s bound to be a fungi
with which we are all familiar!
Artisans In Miniature 82
Artisans In Miniature 77
Artisans In Miniature 83
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Artisans In Miniature 85
A gallery of inspirational ecclesiastical miniatures from the members of AIM
View of Chapel with Altar (left), Marriage Domes (above), The Baptism (below left) and Nun (below) by Béatrice Thierus ‐
Les Miniatures de Béatrice ‐ www.myminiatures.net
Gothic Pedestal (top left), Celtic Bible (top right), Mexican Votive Retablo (centre left), Celtic Church Set (centre right), Catholic Saint Votives (bottom left) and Votive Prayer Cards (bottom right) by Grimdeva ‐ Cauldron Craft
Miniatures ‐ www.cauldroncraftminiatures.blogspot.com & www.cauldroncraftminis.etsy.com
Church Flower Arrangements (right and above right) by Kathy Brindle ‐ www.kathybee.net
A Psalm of Life (above top and bottom) and Quarter Scale Wedding Album (above centre) by Jean Day ‐
Jean Day Miniatures ‐ www.jdayminis.com
Artisans In Miniature 88
Blue Angel (above) with golden halo and Guardian Angel (below) with baby in her arms by Louise Goldsborough ‐ Angelique Miniatures
www.angleiqueminiatures.co.uk
Framed Jesus (top), Framed Winchester Cathedral (centre) and Famil Tree and Birth, Marriage and Death
Certificates by The Dolls House Mall www.thedollshousemall.com
Artisans In Miniature 89
The Camera Never Lies...The Camera Never Lies... Oh Yes It Does!
By AIM Member, Sally Watson
This month Sally Watson of SallyCat Miniatures tells us more about her passion for photography...
How? Not just with clever Photoshop editing but also with size and illusion. I have enjoyed photography
form an early age and gradually it has crept into my mini‐work. This is not just for keeping a record of
what I make and showing up those un‐noticed errors in glue or paint; I use photographs in a variety of
ways including to trick the eye. Of course it isn’t cheating!
My earliest venture into the world of the camera must have been around 1958 as a precocious 10 year old
wanting “pin‐ups” of her dolls. Sigh... Now that I am almost grown up I use photography extensively both
for pleasure and to record and enhance my work in miniature.
My very first camera was a tiny plastic thing from Woolworths – cost me all of my half crown pocket
money! I was hooked! Saw things I liked – clicked – mine forever! Albeit the prints were not much bigger
than a postage stamp but that didn’t matter. A little Brownie replaced this and I loved it! There were piles
of black and white shots of indiscriminate places and people in my flowery decorated shoe boxes at this
Cross Over Crafts...
Artisans In Miniature 90
Artisans In Miniature 91
time. When I reached my early teens I regularly took shots of stately homes and buildings as well as
attempting to position dolls and small items (of no particular scale!) in snowy, aka cotton wool,
landscapes for Christmas cards. Although I had long abandoned the beautiful dolls house my mother
had built for me it started to come back into use: my two interests were starting to bond. By then I had
discovered colour prints and transparencies. Luckily developing had become much cheaper.
Years passed, cameras improved and I had the inevitable huge albums of my children but always there
were the landscapes, foreign holidays and those wonderful buildings. My most recent journey was to
Australia via Singapore to visit fellow AIM member Kathy Brindle – a wealth of opportunities for
snapping exotic wildlife there. So many, in fact, I have to go again in April!
It is difficult to select a favourite photo from this long period but I do love one of my then tiny sons
running through woodlands towards a cottage we had rented in France some time in the early 80s. This
was taken with my husband’s fairly ancient Leica and won top prize in the holiday company’s brochure,
gaining us a free holiday. Hooked again! Sadly it is
not digital and I have no idea where the negative is.
Eventually I ventured into digital and have never
looked back but have a vague regret for the passing
of the 35mm Kodak fast film.
I now use an SLR Fuji Finepix S5700 recommended
my dear friend Noni the Oz and love it. I bought a
couple of extras for it duty free in Singapore – a
Polaroid lens that allows photos to be taking
through glass or water and a frighteningly good
close up widening lens. This will show every fault in
a mini: both a curse and a blessing!
When photographing minis I use a collapsible “box”
with up to 3 spot lights or I take advantage of the
SLR and utilise different settings for light levels and
effects. I avoid flash with minis as it tends to leech
colour. For outdoor work I often use the auto
‐setting which is very accurate on the Fuji but if time allows I change settings manually.
I began to use my own photos in mini work quite simply: reducing and printing on canvas to provide
“art works” for my room boxes and houses. Print and frame – easy!
Since retiring I have been able to indulge my hobbies far more and use my work in vignettes and
shadow boxes as background or illusion. My earliest venture was in response to a GSOLFOT Club
challenge to create an autumn scene. Although quite pleased with the result – 12th scale on a 10” x 10”
base with wall was the challenge – there was something missing when I photographed it. The sense of
background distance just wasn’t there so I printed a view taken from a nearby ancient park and
carefully sized it. This took several prints and many drops of ink but eventually I got it right and the
Artisans In Miniature 92
piece was transformed. I decided that this was the way to show perspective in shadow boxes – the measly
depth of 2.5” of the ones I use is a challenge but with a bit of cheating – no, not cheating – illusory effects –
I am working with it. Continuation of the ground covering on to the background and forcing the perspective
helps here.
Both of these use photographs of the real place depicted in the box. The addition of TT and slightly larger
gauge models helps force the perspective. Do not look too closely at the bathers!
Another illusion is to take a photo of a real piece of furniture. I used this method to do an autumnal
scene, again as a response to a GSOLFOT Club challenge. The basic request was Halloween without the
pumpkins and witches. I chose to base my piece on the night when the veil between the real world and
the spirit world is thin enough to see through. I took a photo of the Edwardian fireplace in my sitting
room and printed it on acetate along with a wallpaper design. This had the addition of a photo of an
open fire, (it was a
very warm September
when I did this – I am
dedicated to my craft
but there is a limit!)
backlit by a red LED all
mounted on a sheet of
acrylic. 2” behind this
could be seen a spooky
landscape from a
children’s book. I was
pleased with the
effect.
Recently I have been
concentrating on
photographing the
progress of my fantasy
tower – each room has
its own album of
photographs. As for
the future……maybe
some more ghostly
effects. I have just
purchased a gadget to
convert old negatives
to digital – who knows what will emerge?
One tip for all? – use a tripod!
To see more of Sally’s fabulous miniatures why not visit her website:
www.sallycatminiatures.com Photographs & Text © Sally Watson 2010
Artisans In Miniature 94
Chain of Chain of
Events…Events… By AIM Member Kathi Mendenhall
(Here is the set up.)
Just as in the movie, “Apollo 13” an event hap‐
pens so early on one has no idea of the chain of
events that will follow. A friend of mine had an
exciting event, her first grandchild. We are in
the same miniature club called the Minigang
and I belong to an internet group
(MSATMinidollslist on Yahoo!) that talks about all things miniature doll. Hereafter called “the list”. Let
me go back a tiny bit farther.
Michelle Mahler owns Doll Artist’s Workshop (www.minidolls.com) and she had a pair of twins. Michelle
and I have been building the La Petite Belle Patterns since 1998. She was all about babies for a long time,
and wanted some patterns for babies. I resisted as long as I could.
The late Brad Deville, of Deville Dolls, had recently
sculpted some babies that are anatomically correct
and also articulated somewhat and wanted some
baby patterns, too. He and I had built a good
working relationship and thought it would be fun to
introduce the patterns with the List in January, New
Beginnings Month. We devised a plan; he made me
a boy and a girl baby. I started working on the
patterns.
I began sending little notices to the List and the first
was a declaration that in January I would be a proud
new momma. Some people knew it was a joke and
others were drawn in to the game. To make the
waiting period more suspenseful, we then sent in
Michelle’s Ultrasound of her twins and announced
we were having twins.
Artisans In Miniature 95
The patterns were “Bringing
Home Baby” including
everyday clothes, and a
“Special Day Baby” set that had
Christening clothes and
Photograph clothes, Sunday
Dress, etc. Instructions for the
accessories were included in
each pattern. Brad was busily
making the babies for Michelle
to sell with whole kits, and I
was working on patterns.
In the meantime, we were pulling
names for Christmas presents at the
Minigang meeting. I just happened
to pull my friend with the new
Grandbaby. I, however, had no idea
what to give her as a Christmas. It
would come to me.
I continued to send little notices to
the List, the babies are fine,
everyone is healthy, we are
expecting in January, are the types
of notes I would send.
In the meantime, I needed to make a
Christmas present and decided to
use the boy baby to celebrate the
grandchild and keep the girl baby for
myself. Presentation is everything in
a present. I found in a local hobby
store a small divided box that I
thought would be a perfect solution
to my dilemma. The box I later
learned is a card box for storing
decks of playing cards.
After deciding what to do, the box came together quickly. I
covered the outside with scrapbooking papers, miniature
trims, and scrapbooking embellishments. The inside was
completed similarly and I added batiste pillows edged with
more miniature trims and laces to finish the inside divisions.
To each of the box sections I placed the items I had made
from the pattern samples.
In the upper left of the box are day clothes, a jumper, onsie,
and embroidered bubble pants and tied in a rattle and a toy
horse. The upper right side is a diaper shirt, a bunting, and
another rattle and duck button. Also, included is an Ann
Vanture Nursery Rhyme Book. (www.paperminis.com)
The baby boy sleeps on his lace pillow in his simple Christening Gown with matching blanket and pillow
and a new baby scrapbook. I used free internet printable items to fill out the theme.
The lower right completes the box with a diaper bag, bib and baby products. I purchased the baby bib,
bottle, and little rubber ducky
from Kitz! (www.minikitz.com)
The alphabet beads, purchased
from a hobby store are a cute
accent.
The project was quite fun to do.
In December, my friend opened
her gift to complete delight and I
breathed a sigh of relief. We
announced the birth of the
babies to the List with a real birth
announcement, and then
another with their pictures. Soon
everyone was “in on the game”
and the patterns shown to the
List members. The whole event
was a hit.
Post Script... Shortly after announcing the birth of our babies, Brad caught a cold, which escalated into pneumonia. Admitted to the hospital, he stabilized and returned home. He told me he was having a hard time getting rid of this cold. Hospitalized, again, Brad soon lost the fight to the pneumonia and complications. I have his molds, but each time I see the little baby girl, I remember Brad and his kindness and love of sculpting. I miss him.
To see more of Kathi’s wonderful miniatures why not visit her website:
www.minipatterns.com Photographs & Text © Kathi Mendenhall 2010 Artisans In Miniature 96
Artisans In Miniature 97
...named Mcpinners,
he held regular classes for his sinners,
they were graded and sorted,
so the really distorted,
would not be held back by beginners!
1.
2.
3.
A vicar, the Reverend Bowles,
took care to protect all our soles,
with a stern but fair grin,
he would steer us from sin
and make godly living our goal!
1 & 5. by Joy Cox ‐ Adora Bella Minis
www.adora‐bella‐minis.co.uk
2, 3 & 4. by Teresa Thompson ‐ Costume
Cavalcade
www.costumecavalcade.co.uk
4. 5.
Artisans In Miniature 98
7, 8 & 10. by Joy Cox ‐ Adora Bella Minis
www.adora‐bella‐minis.co.uk
6, 9 & 11. by Teresa Thompson ‐
Costume Cavalcade
www.costumecavalcade.co.uk
6. 7.
8.
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A sister, who’s name was Felicity
tried living without electricity,
by propane she cooks,
and by oil lamp reads books,
and forbids watching TV
explicitly!
9.
10.
11.
12. 13.
14.
12. by Teresa Thompson ‐ Costume Cavalcade
www.costumecavalcade.co.uk
13. by Tiggy Goldsmith ‐ Mrs Tiggywinkle’s Dolls
www.freewebs.com/tiggywinkles
14. by Béatrice Thierus ‐ Les Miniatures de Béatrice
www.myminiatures.net Artisans In Miniature 101
Mini Makes!
Mini Makes... Please read all instructions carefully before you begin.
This month we are going to look at how we can take a box or a small suitcase made from card and turn it into a room box. I found the cardboard suitcase in a shop that sold home furnishings and it was only £2.
With a little creativity and know how and by using simple techniques, it is possible to create something that you can use as a starting point for many projects. I used mine to create a simple playroom and to show you the toys on the shelf, which will be next month’s mini make.
The box with the press-studs was a flat packed document box that was brought from my local Wilkinsons for £2.50. This box has the added advantage in that as well as dropping one side of the box, you can also take off the lid for an aerial view. If you wish to decorate a box like this, you will need to secure one end with glue and cover up the messy end. First you should decide what theme you would like for your setting and plan which colours you would like to use as wells as which decorations. Planning is essential and it is important to make sure that you have all your materials before you start.
By AIM Member, Debie Lyons
Artisans In Miniature 102
Please note – although the projects in this column are for
children, adult supervision is recommended at all times.
The author cannot be held responsible for any accidents
arising from these projects and cannot take responsibility
for the final outcome of the project.
Text & Photographs © Debie Lyons 2010 Artisans In Miniature 103
A box of your choice Paint or wallpaper Floor covering (I used pre printed paper from Hobby Craft) Glue – UHU and PVA Paint brushes
Scissors A shop brought or homemade shelf. Additional Pictures (optional). Skirting boards or card, so that you can make your own.
.1 - Paint the in-side of the box. I
used a paper towel crushed into a little ball to create some texture on my walls. If you don’t want to paint the walls of the box you can use wallpaper.
2 – When the paint is dry, put down your chosen flooring.
3 – Measure how much skirting you will need and pre paint it before you stick it in place.
4 – Take your shelf, paint or stain it and then stick it into place using UHU glue.
5 – Your room/setting is now ready to decorate.
Materials needed...
Method...
All projects are intended for
children 14 years old and over.
By AIM Member Jain Squires
This spring was my first Miniatura as an exhibitor, having visited as
a customer for at least the last 10 years. I was thrilled when I got a
call from organiser Andy Hopwood offering me a table.
After weeks of preparation and stock building, the time came
round to set off to Birmingham. I was travelling with my friend and
fellow dollmaker Julie Campbell (Bellabelle Dolls) Julie has been
exhibiting there for a few years now and was an 'old hand'! Thank
goodness I had her with me, would have been a little daunting had
I been on my own.
On arrival we drove straight to the hall where we were able to
actually drive into the hall to unload!! The staff were marvelous
and very well organised, we were unloaded in no time, which is
more than can be said for my setting up. I had not had any real
practice of setting up my stand as I have it now, and think it took
me 3 and half hours to set it up, including (just a little) chatting!!! I
was exhausted!
Unfortunately as we set off to get some food (long awaited) and
check in to the B&B which I have stayed at many times, the Sat Nav
decided to go wibble on us and we lost all sound! A major issue as
neither Julie or I seemed to be able to read a map!!! About an
hour later, after pressing reset on the Sat Nav we got our food and
arrived at the B&B (5 minutes away from the NEC)!
Up on the Saturday morning bright and early, not quite bushy
tailed, but fairly excited. Last minute bits done to the stand, cup of
tea and toilet break and the punters were let in. We were a fair
way in to the hall and it seemed to be ages until people finally
starting filtering through to us. Julie had had a few customers who
had come straight to her stand, but as a newbie I just had to wait!!
Had a brilliant first day in the end and I had so much interest in my
little characters, including several press people, one of which took
a picture of everything on the stand!!
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Artisans In Miniature 104
The hall that we were in was the Pavilion hall and
compared to the other halls usually allocated, it
seemed slightly smaller. The canteen facilities
were perhaps not as good and toilets seemed to
be in short supply too. The biggest problem for a
lot of stallholders was the fact that it was a 50
minute walk (according to one of my
customers) to the nearest cashpoint. This may
have lost me a couple of potential sales and I
know other people said the same. This is going
to become a much bigger problem when they
get rid of cheques completely. The
organisation of the show and the friendly team they have working there
overrode any problems with the facilities and made my first exhibiting Miniatura a fantastic one, an
experience I won't forget and hopefully the first of many.
©2010 - Jain Squires - www.giddykipperdolls.com
By AIM Members Julie & Brian Dewar
The 30th Miniature Enthusiasts of Montreal Annual Show was
held on March 27 & 28 at the Holiday Inn in Pointe Claire, Quebec. Twenty‐seven exhibitors from the
provinces of Ontario, Quebec and one from the state of Pennsylvania brought a broad array of miniature
treasures for collectors of all types. From one of a kind artisan crafted miniatures to mass produced items, it
all was there, as well as three members of AIM: Martha McLean of Martha
McLean Miniatures, Glenn Anderson & Nancy Keech of
Keenderson Miniatures and Brian & Julie Dewar of
Westwinds Miniatures.
Saturday was busy, with a nice steady pace and although it
was a little quiet on Sunday (possibly because it was Palm
Sunday) it was a good, well‐organized show. We will be
there again next year.
Julie & Brian Dewar - Westwinds Miniatures
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SHOW REPORT... SHOWPORT... SHOW REPORT... SHOW REPORT... SHOW REPORT..
Artisans In Miniature 105
The Miniature...
New AIM Members
We would like to extend a warm welcome to the
following new members who have joined AIM in the
past month:
Vintage ginger spice… New from Jean Day
Jean Day has recently designed a new Toddler Kit called Vin‐tage Ginger Spice and mother's matching apron and linens kit called Vintage Ginger Spice Apron set.
Visit Jean’s website for more details:
http://members.shaw.ca/jdayminis/html/jean_day.htm
Anne Walden mills… Anne Walden Mills of the Miniature Needlework Society is doing a workshop to make a patchwork cot quilt at this May’s Kensington Dolls House Festival.
Visit the website www.dollshousefestival.com for more details.
pastmastery… Also at the festival will be this wonder fu l Boot f rom Pastmastery which is for sale, Don’t miss the chance to own this wonderful piece Visit:
www.pastmastery.com/miniatures/phantasy‐
houses.htm to find out more….
In print...
Annemarie Kwikkel is delighted to let us know that Dolls House and Miniature Scene have an article on her dolls in the June issue. Visit Annemarie’s website to
see more of her work
www.byannemariedolls.com
Marsha hendrick... Marsha Hendrick recently won 1st place in the Pottery Miniatures division at the 52nd Annual Heard Museum Indian Market. This is a very large and prestigious Native American market that took place March 6th and 7th. She has several Native American pottery miniature pieces left that are suitable for use in dolls houses and 1 inch to the foot scale settings. These pieces each come with a certificate of authenticity and a little bit about the original artifact they are fashioned after. They are all in the style of the ancient mound builders of the southeastern US and are from the Mississippian period.
Visit Marsha’s website to see and read more!
http://choctawart.com/pottery.php
Ian Jones Regina Passy –Yip Sandy Calderon Carmen Llorca Jacqui Perrat
Christiane Lourier David Iriarte
Marianne Colijn Anne Fisher
NEW
GRAPEVINEGRAPEVINE
Artisans In Miniature 106
Buttercup miniatures…Buttercup miniatures… Buttercup Miniatures has been featured in an article on miniature crochet web sites in the current issue of ‘Inside Crochet’ (issue 7 April/M a y 2 0 1 0 ) . Although Buttercup Miniatures has been featured in several other magazines in the past, this is the first time they have featured in a magazine dedicated to crochet.
Buttercup Miniatures
www.buttercupminiatures.co.uk
New from New from
Helena Helena
bleeker…bleeker…
This colorful lady is new from Helena Bleeker S h e i s c a l l e d Independance and would certainly brighten up any scene! See more of Helena’s
work at
www.helena‐petitefashions.co.uk
New online shop forNew online shop for
peitite properties ltd…!peitite properties ltd…!
Petite Properties Ltd are delighted to announce the official opening of their brand new online shop, which is in the process of being stocked with all their kits, books and s m a l l e r s c a l e accessories…!
Why not visit today?
www.petite‐properties.com
nancy cronin… THE NANNY June 5/10 Full Day Class. 9am‐4pm NANCY CRONIN ~ MASSACHUSETTS Assemble a painted 1" scale original sculpted caricature doll cast in resin ready for you to breathe life into. She is dressed as an attractively serene English Nanny in "veddy" proper period attire. She holds a lovely Christening dress for the special day ahead..All the materials needed to assemble and dress this lovely doll plus make the Christening dress will be in the kit.
$175 76 Andover St.,
Wilmington MA 01887
[email protected] 978.657.7806 Nancy Cronin
www.picturetrail.com/nancyc1938http://
missameliasminiatures.com
Get well soon!!Get well soon!! We were sorry to hear recently that Muriel Hopwood of Miniatura has been ill. Anyone seeing Muriel Hopwood's brief appearance at Miniatura might have quite rightly thought she didn't look very well. Subsequently Muriel was admitted to hospital and has had her gall bladder removed and is now at home recuperating.
Everyone at AIM would like to wish her well!
The town & country planner New from Ian and Krystyna at the `Town and Country Planner`, a range of finescale building products for 1/12th scale miniature buildings under the `Salvage Yard` products label. A comprehensive list of materials is under development but those items just released include, a selection of handmade clay `Rosemary` roof tiles of traditional design and still used prototypically today. Also available are the patterned varieties to compliment the plain ended tiles, these include `Arrowhead, Bullnose and Fishtail` types to create intricate designs into the rooflines. (continued overleaf)
Artisans In Miniature 107
The tiles are handmade from Terra‐cotta clay, finely detailed but easy to cut and fit.
The first of a range of ridge tiles available to compliment both clay and slate tiles, are also just released. The simple half round types will be supported by a range of Victorian patterned angled `crested` types and highly detailed `Finials` to create su‐perb realism.
Next, a range of hand split roof slates is now available in initially, four sizes to allow va‐riety and style to tra‐ditional roofs, firstly in Welsh slate to be fol‐lowed by the Cum‐brian variety.
External wall surfaces are catered for by the new realistic `Pebbledash` and `Stucco/Terylene` ren‐dering mixtures.
Internal/external floor coverings are initially provided for in the supply of both 6 and 9" Traditional Terra‐cotta clay, square floor tiles. This small range will be expanded quickly to include many patterned/shaped designs.
All the products will be supplied in various size quantities for both large and small projects. Full detailed installation instructions are supplied with each product with hints and tips to create something a little different from the average current alternatives.
Full information on the ever expanding range can be
found at www.townandcountryplanner.co.uk
Stay updated,
follow The aim blog…! If you don’t want to miss what is going on in the
miniature world ‐ check out the AIM blog today:
www.artisansinminiature.blogspot.com
Preview...
The Kensington
Dolls house festival
London
The eagerly awaited Kensington Dolls House Festival will be held on
14th 15th and 16th of May.
The following AIM members will be exhibiting;
ANN HIGH ANRO MINIATURES
ARTFORGE BELLABELLE DOLLS
CAROL COOK CEYNIX
COLIN BIRD CRUMPLED & RUMPLED
DATEMAN BOOKS DEB JACKSON DESIGNS
DOLLS BY GEORGINA RITSON DOLLS HOUSE MALL ELF MINIATURES
ELLIE DE LACY MINIATURES FIONA'S MINIATURE WORKSHOP
GALE BANTOCK The GIDDY KIPPER JILL BENNETT
JO ARTS JOSEPHINE PARNELL
K DESIGNS LE COFFIE D'EMILIE LESLEY'S GARDEN
LISA JOHNSON‐RICHARDS LITTLE HATTER MINST.COM
PETITE PROPERTIES Ltd PLATTS MINI PACKAGES
ROOMBOXES ETC SHEPHERD MINIATURES
STOKESAY WARE TEMPLEWOOD MINIATURES
WILLOW MODELS WITCH & WIZARD MINIATURES
Artisans In Miniature 108
Artisans In Miniature 109
Here are just a few of the wonderful items that will be exhibited there by our members…
peter tucker Peter Tucker makes "one of a kind" lights, furniture and room‐boxes, although he won’t be bringing any room boxes to KDF. Most of the lights are made using LEDs but Peter assembles his own set ups so the lights can be quite different. For this show he has focused on the Art Deco period, but with his own designs
in that style. The sculptures are by Neil Carter.
See more of Peter’s work at www.roomboxes.com
and roomboxes.blogspot.com
K designs K Designs is a r e g u l a r a t Kensington. The K Designs table will have a few new additions, such as a flamboyant Tu‐dor officer. Kate will also have a modern family and most of her other figures. As always, Kate is happy to discuss any particular character you have in mind.
dateman books Dateman Books have lots of new things to offer at KDF this year. Firstly they have a book that no Victorian house would be without, The Bradshaw’s Railway Guide giving time tables for trains throughout the country. An absolute MUST.
For the gentlemen’s study there is a little something to be kept on a high shelf or in a bottom drawer. The Victorian Gentle‐man`s Companion, contains a selection of Victorian Post Cards, comes in its own brown paper wrapper.
Two new Rupert Annuals 1950 (for those getting their bus pass this year) and 1966.
In the children`s ranges are four new classic stories Cinderella, Tom Thumb, Jack and the Beanstalk and Little Red Riding Hood. Each is beautifully illustrated throughout as are all the “Forever Young” series.
Finally there are some new additions to poets corner, Keats, Wordsworth and Tennyson plus the classic parlour favourite “The Green Eye of the Little Yellow Idol” and other poems by J. Milton Hayes.
Something new for everyone so visit their stand in the Centre Hall, Ground Floor.
bellabelle dolls Julie Campbell of Bellabelle Dolls is a first time exhibitor at the summer festival although she has previously exhibited at the Xmas festival. Visit her table on the lower ground floor to see her unique dolls and a wonderful fairytale display featur‐ing Jack and the Beanstalk with the Giant amongst other well known nursery rhyme and fairy tale characters.
The giddy kipper Jain Squires aka The Giddy Kipper is a regular exhibitor. This is just a small selection of the wonderful characters she will have on her table. Be sure to visit her on the lower ground floor to see more!
www.giddykipperdolls.com www.giddykipperdolls.blogspot.com
Petite Properties ltd Bea (Fiona) Broadwood of Petite Properties is really excited to be launching her brand new range of 1:24th scale Petite Properties at the Kensington Festival. Petite Properties’ new ‘Premier Collection’ dolls houses all feature stunning completed / lit interiors.
Bea will also be launching the first addition of her unique new range of 1:48th scale ‘Room Box Kits’ priced at only £9.99 each!!
The new room box kits are complimented perfectly by Petite Properties’ highly versatile new collection of quarter scale chimney breasts & fire surrounds; all of which incorporate many periods of architectural influence, from 1940s retro chic to traditional Georgian panelled elegance. Numbers are limited, so don’t miss out…!!
Come and visit the Petite Properties’ stand in the foyer area.
www.petite‐properties.com
Witches & wizard miniatures
Nikki Rowe of Witch and Wizard Miniatures will be at Kensington for the first time this spring.
Nikki makes mostly One Of A kind, and limited number s o f various items like potions, man‐drakes, hats, potion baskets, pumpkins, books, scrolls, plants, bookstands, hat stands, filled furniture tables, shelves and beds, and just about everything for a witch or wizards needs.
Pictured above is a little preview of the type of mini’s Nikki makes and below: work in progress...
Don’t Miss A Thing!
All FREE and fully downloadable at:
www.artisansinminiature.com
Fabulous FREE projects; written exclusively by
AIM members!!!
A Miniature
Celebration 0f
Summer!!!
Written by artisans Enjoyed by miniaturists...!Please Note:
The projects included in this publication are not suitable for children under the age of 14* The miniatures featured in this magazine are collectors items and therefore unsuitable for children under 14*.
All projects are undertaken at your own risk. AIM does not accept responsibility for any injury incurred. All articles and photographs used in this magazine are copyright of their authors.
The AIM magazine’s content is for private use only and it must not be reproduced in part or in full for commercial gain in any form.
Each artisan contributor is responsible for their own work / contribution to the AIM magazine and retain full responsibility for their published work.
The authors/self publishers cannot be held legally responsible for any consequences arising from following instructions, advice or information in this magazine.
*with the exception of the Mini AIMers feature which is written especially for children under 14.
COMING nEXT MONTH…
www.artisansinminiature.com
See you again next month…!
‘Aunt Anastasia’ Bea (Fiona) Broadwood
Béatrice Thierus Brian Dewar Carol Bull
Carol Lester Carol Smith
Christina Berry Colin Bird Debbe Mize Debie Lyons
Frances Powell Gary Powell
Grimdeva (Jana Rowntree)
Helena Bleeker
Jain Squires Janine Crocker
Jean Day Joy Cox
Julia & Hywel Jeffreys Julie & Brian Dewar
Julie Campbell Kathi Mendenhall
Kathy Brindle Kiva Atkinson
Linda Cummings Louise Goldsborough
Mags Cassidy Maria Teresa Espanet
Mary Williams Melanie Navarro
Montse Vives Nancy Cronin
Patricia Cabrera Pauline Everett
Regina Passy-Yip Sally Watson
Stéphanie Kilgast Teresa Thompson Tiggy Goldsmith
Tori West Vicky Guile
This issue would not have been possible without the generous contributions from the following AIM members…
Many thanks therefore go to...