Seashells: Don't bleach your little shells. After you glue them down, seal them with clear acrylic so they don't lose their delicate colors.  You can rinse them in clear water to clean out the grit.

Havana (FL) Holly

Fridge magnets: I went to the website of the fridge magnets and there are several other categories that would be useful for minipictures.  They are called itsy bitsy magnets and come in a hinged acrylic box of 48 tiles for $5.00.  They vary in size from 5/8" square to some a bit smaller or larger.  They had a baby motif, perfect for decorating, a boot motif, maybe good for a shoe store, animal motif etc.  The web site is http://www.fridgefun.com

Harriett -Framingham, MA

Tapestries: For the person looking for the vendor who sells tapestries, there is a web site that has tapestries to print and they are beautiful!  Try http://www.pixiedustminis.com    They even tell you what type of material to print on for the best results.  Good luck, hope you find something you like.

Ina

Printing Transparencies:  Transparencies, of course - the kind they use on an overhead projector during those long, boring business presentations.  These are available from most any office supply or computer supply store.   Be sure you get the right type for the printer you are using, e.g., laser vs. inkjet.  You can print anything on this thin, transparent material that can be printed on plain paper.

There is also a product available that is similar, but after you print it, you heat it in the oven, and the material shrinks to a much smaller size, becoming thicker as it shrinks in length and width.  The final product is fairly thick and stiff and could serve as the windows themselves.  I believe I found mine in the office supply aisle of my local Meijer supermarket.  Again, check the local office/computer/stationary supply stores.

Dave

Printing on transparency paper: I love it and use it a lot. Just MAKE SURE you put the paper in right (I hear groans of recognition out there).  One side is intentionally rough so  that the ink doesn't smear. I must printed out some CD's from Jim's site and they look great on the transparency paper.

Marti-in-Maui

Material to use with Backlighting: Terry solved my question about printing photos to be back-lit for a room box. That would be this: http://www.paper-paper.com/backlight.html   But several other people  had good suggestions for me which I'm also  going to try out, involving clear transparencies and mylar available  from officesupply stores.

Melissa

Material to use with Backlighting: re: "What could one use for computer paper to print enlarged photos out on transparent or translucent material?  The purpose is to back up a room box scene of an outdoor view seen through large windows, lit from behind the photos (primitive homage to Thorne Rooms)."

Suggestion: use overhead transparencies made of thin plastic (sold for both ink jet and laser printers, I believe). I am a retired teacher, and would often scan, enlarge, then print B&W or color pictures onto the transparency "paper", to show on an overhead projector onto a screen or wall. Depending on how big you make the picture, the colors will fade out as the size increases. The paper is rather thin, so would have to be firmly anchored/glued onto the windows.

Bonnie in Sarasota

Wallpaper:  here is a site with lots of printable wallpaper.  http://www.geocities.com/boopmini40/

Marian

Japanese homes:  I just bought a fabulous book last time I was at EPCOT at Disney World, called, "The Japanese House". It had styles from all eras, both interiors and exteriors. It is written by Murata and Black, and is published by a company called Tuttle.

Alice Zinn- Pt. St. Lucie FL

Japanese homes: For the person looking for interiors and exteriors of older style Japanese homes, there are at least three different Dover Press/Publications books with both photos and illustrations. Tuttle Publications is also one of the largest publishers of Asian-related architecture and art books, so you can try them too. And if you can find anything by Kodansha Press (Tokyo) even if you can't read the Japanese, there are plenty of picture books that they publish in English also with great gardens.   Sorry that I can't be more helpful with specific titles, but you know where I am and how bad these proxy servers are.

Sara in Paris