They're Heeeere...

First, I have to show my favorite acquisition from the Museum of Dollhouse Miniatures show and sale.  A martini set.  This will be great for the midcentury house I am working on. 
Secondly, I have to say this...I was a bit disappointed in the selection at the show.  Maybe because I am picky but here it goes...I thought most of what was there was the same basic stuff you can find on  any web site or miniature shop (not that we have one here in Indy).  I was really hoping to find some interesting and different things.  I did get a few accessories at the show which I am a bit short on, so that was good.  I didn't take any pics because I didn't see anything truly impressive. Overall,  It was a nice show though. 

The rest of the accessories I picked up at the show.  I'm thinking of making an entry into the exibit next year.

I've been looking for this book for awhile.   I found this one only because I spelled the author's name wrong in the search.  It popped on a web site called www.alwayshobbies.com.  I think I may have gotten the last one because I didn't see any more on the site.

I just got this from Amazing Miniatures.  It probably looks familiar doesn't it?

And this also from Ann at Amazing Miniatures.  I already had the big one.  It looks like a mom and baby doesn't it?

Last, but not least the seller that I bought this from on Ebay had accidentally sent me the wrong Kaleidoscope house living room set.  He rushed the correct one and told me to keep the other one as a gift.  Thanks scuderlulu on Ebay!

So, over all this past week was a great one for miniature acquisitions.  Now If I can just get more time to work on the houses.

Making Stone Out of Newspaper



Step 2. Put wet newspaper strips in the blender with some additional water.

  

Step 1.  Tear news paper into strips and soak in water for a couple of hours.



The sludge before flattening...eeeeeeewwwwww!


  

Step 3.  Spread on a baking sheet lined with waxed paper or Reynolds no stick foil.




Step 4.  I pat the sludge down flat and use paper towels to absorb some of the excess water and then roll over the paper toweling with a small rolling pin to make it more uniform in thickness.  Then I bake it at 200 degrees for about 1/2 hour then I put it in front of a fan to dry the rest of the way.  It will take a few hours to dry completely.

  



Step 5.Once dry, cut into long strips of varying widths.  If you want a more uniform look, then cut into even strips.  I'm going for a midcentury vibe, so I made them varied to resemble limestone.



The strips.



 


Step 6. Cut those strips into smaller pieces.



Step 6.   Cut those strips into smaller pieces.









The Final Product!





I think the best parts are that it looks very realistic and it's virtually free!



Today is a VERY disappointing day :-(

Last Week, thanks to the heads up from Call of the Small on her fabulous Facebook page, I won this Kaleidoscope House Jasper Morrison sofa set for only $50.00 on Ebay! I impatiently awaited it's arrival from California.  Today the door bell rang and our mail lady finally had the package.  I was sooooo excited!  I had been trying to get one of these for awhile as I foolsihly sold mine on Ebay about 5 years ago for $30.00...What was I thinking!?

This is what was in the box.  It's the other Kaleidoscope House living room set...You can probably imagine the disappointment.  I almost cried! :-(  I immediately e-mailed the seller to try to track down the Jasper Morrison set...Still waiting to hear back from him.   Wish me luck on getting the right set!

Groovy and Cozy

OK, so I'm slowly but surely getting a few accessories making sceen setting a little more realistic.
The Noguchi table is one of the very few things I had kept from my former doll house days.  I just couldn't part with it and I'm glad I didn't.  I got the Crailsheimer chairs, groovy Lundby fireplace and rug on E-bay.

I could hang out here.

CH-CH-CH-Changes...



I had this little cupboard that came with something else I bought on E-bay.  I was going to Re-bay it, but thought I could do something with it.



I cut off all if the traditional looking trim.

I decided to turn it upside down and make the top of the shelf slanted torard the top.  I took it down to my husband's saw and the door opened while I was cutting it.  It tore up the door and two of the legs came off...Oops!

Time to rebuild...

All fixed, now all I have to do is paint it....hmmm, what color?

White is always safe, but as in my own home I like things a little quirky.  Out comes the chartreuse paint! I added some modern handles and voila!

Please excuse the photography, I do know it's a bit crooked. (If anyone has suggestions on how to take better pics of these little things, please pass them on!)