"Cat" Odor: I used to work for a company that provided medical supplies.   Among the  product lines we offered were products for people with colostomies and urostomies (when your body's "elimination" parts stop working, sometimes surgically creating a new opening is the only solution). There are a number of different brands of "ostomy deodorant" available for those patients.  A couple of drops placed in the ostomy bag are very effective in eliminating the odors of urine and feces.

Check your yellow pages for a pharmacy or medical/surgical supply house that sells ostomy supplies.  Often they will be the ones who also carry walkers and wheelchairs, canes and crutches, motorized wheelchairs, etc.   They should have some deodorant available. You can put a bit on a small piece of paper towel or cloth on top of a piece of plastic (just to protect any finish on your house), and put the house in a plastic bag for a couple of days.  Never tried it on cat urine, but its very effective on human.

Dave

Suede Paint: Someone posted a question the other day asking what a possible mini-use for suede paint might be...How about for flocked wallpaper? You could use a stencil pattern - just a thought : )

Lyn

NO STICK'UM TIP: I wish someone told me that if I spread a tiny bit of VASELINE around the threads of a paint bottle or glue bottle, it will keep the top from sticking to the bottle. Now I do not need my pliers to get the caps off, just some plain old elbow grease.

DrBob...Delray Beach, FL

NO STICK'UM TIP: For the glue bottle, I wrap plastic wrap.  It also keeps the glue from drying out.

Ella

Japanese minis:   I came across this page  http://japaneseminis.homestead.com/FirstPg.html while I was looking for Shoji paper for my real size doors, and the things look wonderful. I haven't purchased anything from these people, but I would be interested in hearing from anybody who has. I hope this helps:

DeeDee in Carmel Valley

Chariot etc.: For the SSer who was looking for a chariot, I found one on google, made by Fontanini,   http://www.roman.com/fontanini/5in/accessories/50214.htm

It is carried by many Christmas shops, and probably can be mail ordered from one as well! For those of you who don't know the Fontanini line, they make amazing things for Nativity era villages, many of which can be incorporated into mini scenes. There are shops, people and accessories from everyday life of that period, including some Roman pieces. Be careful if you order though, as they make their things in several scales. Make sure you get the appropriate size for what you are doing!

I have been coveting a structure that looks like the ruins of a Greek or Roman temple for quite a while now! lol

This stuff is absolutely gorgeous! Two Christmases ago, I even bought the potter at his wheel and his kiln for a friend as a Hanukah gift!

Alice Zinn- Pt. St. Lucie FL

Recycled  crushed glass: The recycled glass has been around in the UK for quite a few years. We can buy it ready bagged at the garden centre. It was quite expensive the  last time I looked.

The loveliest, and safe use, I have seen was at a hospital in Harrogate, Yorkshire. They had made a lake using it. Different shades of blue were used to give a feeling of depth and movement. A couple of cranes at the side finished of the master piece. This scene would look lovely in miniature too.

Perhaps someone with a rumbler for polishing gemstones could make you some in miniature. The same effect that the sea creates. We have a selection of wine bottles in blue here and you could even break an inexpensive glass item. Several shops now sell inexpensive recycled glass items in some lovely colours. I did notice that these were mainly made in Spain.

Tiny glass or plastic beads might work and be safer though. I have some beads that are uneven in texture and shape like the polished glass stones. You can often see them made up into bracelets on elastic.

Pauline, UK

Fortunately for me, Sue in N.C. led me here: http://crystalrivergems.com/products/glass/beachseaglass/frames/FrameSet.htm

Here you do not have to buy fifty-pound bags of one color, and the price, compared to bulk, is manageable.  (i.e. do you want 50 pounds of sea green at $70, or 2 pounds at $12?)  They are in Pittsburgh, for you lucky locals.  Meanwhile several people have suggested I could find a rock-tumbling enterprise to do some work for me, OR, in keeping with general tool and machine mania, I could get a rock tumbler myself, like kids have.  I'm going to check both these possibilities out.

Melissa

Forming acrylic plastic: While on a different search, I happened upon this site which has some very specific explanations about plastics and working with acrylics at home: http://www.acrylic-designs.com/plastic_FAQ's.htm   My eyes lit up when I saw it, and though I don't have any immediate plan for it myself, I am fairly sure that among these talented SS-ers there are several who will.  I checked the SS archives and couldn't scare up anything on the topic because "acrylic" is so often used in connection with "paint".  The writer on the above site doesn't include any warnings other than to wear gloves, but I can't help but imagine there will be fumes, as with the oven-baked clays, so please be careful.  I have seen acrylic sheets in various dimensions at the home centers.

Rosalind Perantie

Quick mini projects:  I enjoy making different sorts of fancy bottles/ flasks with beads and findings, you can whip out enough to stock a bathroom and a boudoir dressing table in fairly short order.  I put small furniture kits together on the "installment" plan, sand/ shape one day, stain another, glue another time, etc.  I usually juggle several small projects and save the rainy weekends and cold weather for the lengthier projects.

Holly