In doing my artist's room/loft: I've had so many responses from you for suggestions that I'm now doing and here is what I did for paint bottles.   I cut off small lengths of a plastic piece of tubing 3/16 diameter, painted the inside with different colors of paint, then for the lids I glued on size 10A hearing aid batteries. Since these were all lined up in a cupboard there was no need for bottoms on the bottles. Very realistic, and to think of what lengths we go to   when we need something boggles my mind too!

Connie, Arizona

Floppy tassel report: A while back I asked for advice on making miniature tassels that were actually floppy. I received a number of suggestions and after much trial and error have now been able to make some silk pillows with properly floppy tassels. I wanted to share the advice that I received and what has actually worked. It turns out to be one of those things where miniaturizing creates unique problems and no one idea works on its own.

If you want just the illusion of floppy tassels then that is easier: incorporate fine beading wire, or the wire from the edge of wired ribbon (already nicely covered and disguised) into the hanging cord of your tassel. You can then place the tassel how you like.

For truly floppy tassels it is a bit more involved. Tassels that would be 3" to 4" long in real life do not have enough weight in miniature to flop, so I have been incorporating tiny beads into the tassel head for added weight, and they look nice too.

The tassel cannot be attached right up against the pillow otherwise it just sticks out; it needs a length of thread out from the pillow to allow it to dangle and flop; the length of this is a matter of experimentation and personal preference. The hanging thread needs to be as flexible as possible. The only thing that I have found to be sufficiently flexible is silk thread, separated down to its smallest stranding. This means untwisting and separating it one step further than you would normally do for petit point, so that it is no longer plies twisted together. You then need to dampen and iron these strands to straighten them further. I worked out that any time threads are plied or twisted together, the twist adds rigidity, which is want you want to avoid to have your tassels be able to flop. You can separate DMC down to this level but it is then not strong enough, and just pulls apart when you try and do anything with it.

Wendy in Clinton, NJ

Room by Room update:    Below is the company's response to my letter.

Absolutely we will be repeating the line for this year. As a matter of fact it will be on TV in the fall [2002] and should be even bigger than last year. Unfortunately many retailers are now sold out of most of the rooms and do not get more in until later this spring or summer. You can try TTGO.com to see if they still have some additional rooms left at this time. If not, KBtoys.com will be carrying all 12 rooms, but probably not until this summer. Toys R Us will be running a special Laura Ashley version of the house as well, but not until the summer.

Special thanks to Shirley in Bakersfield, CA for hooking me up with the website. http://www.ringsidesupplies.com .

Donna Baird of Indiana

Making beer:: If you don't want to buy the Environtex(liquidy stuff) to make your beer, you could use a bit of clear caulking tinted with food coloring or clear nail polish with food colorings. Add a tiny bit of Styrofoam on top to replicate foam. However, I do not think these products will last a long time.

Pearl

Faking Beer:  to use what's on hand for this, use clear nail polish or tacky glue, tinting it with a tiny bit of yellow and red food coloring or Kool-Aid; you may have to keep it in a covered container and add to the mini glass and pitcher in layers so it will dry in a reasonable amount of time.   ("Covered container" can be just a jar lid with plastic wrap snugged airtight around it.)  Then whip up some soap flakes with very little water and apply on top for foam.   It's true clear nail polish will yellow over time, but who'll know if your beer goes from lager to bock?

Loretta.Sniarowski

Hair Salon equipment: Try www.jlbminiatures.co.uk They have modern electrical equipment as well as specialist stuff for hair salon, hospitals, shops and offices.

Jane in Warwickshire, UK

Artist's Canvases: I have a set of canvases in various degrees of use done by Jeannetta Kendall. You can see them at http://www.spminiatures.com/athpaintset.htm They're at the bottom of the page.

Carol

Artist's canvas: I recommend the use of cambric fabric. This is the stuff that roller window blinds used to be made of -- they are now plastic. It has a very tight weave that really resembles canvas in miniature. I do stenciling and wall murals professionally and use this for samples or for the finished product which is then adhered to the wall. The hard part of this is "Where can you get it?" The only place I know of is Indiana Coated Products and they sell it in HUGE rolls -- much too much for mini folks. If you contacted them and explained your needs, they might be able to supply end cuts or scraps. It doesn't take much to make a mini canvas or floor cloth. For a studio, I would suggest making some stretchers and stretch some and would also have some in rolls. The cambric does not have to be primed and also works beautifully if you can paint mini pictures (I haven't been able to reduce my eye to that level yet).

Leigh Hill in Delaware

Telescope: I have a couple of modern ones from Nantasy Fantasy on my site at http://www.spminiatures.com/nfpieces.htm They're at the bottom of the page.

Carol

Telescopes: We carry telescopes on a tripod www.dollhouseportal.com Look on page 52 of the metals section. It has to be painted and finished. Hope it helps. http://www.dollhouseportal.com

Terri in SW Florida

golf stuff: For the lady looking for mini golf stuff. Sheila Seme, 34643 Sunward Loop Sephryhills, FL 33541 (Email gpage@innet.com) makes wonderful golf clubs and bags. Hopefully she still makes them, and that the above address is still good because if I remember correctly, her prices were exceptionally good. If you were a Dolls and Miniatures subscriber, you'll see some of her work in the Summer 98 issue, beginning on page 63.

Viola

Rug Kits: For beautiful carpet kits, I highly recommend Orientals Expressed. http://mywebpage.netscape.com/orientalsxpressd/home.html

Michelle has some gorgeous designs in various sizes. If you dont want to pay $50+ for a kit, you can purchase just the chart, and furnish your own canvas and threads. Further, for a mere $15, Michelle will adapt one of her designs to suit your color and size requirements. You can send her a scan of your wallpaper, and she'll use colors to match. Before she completes the design, she'll send you a bit of it, to make sure that you like it, and if not, she'll make adjustments with color, etc. So, for $15, you get a custom designed chart to make the perfect carpet for your space.

Jonathan in Israel

Rug kits: I have made some really nice rugs without kits--using the patternsin a book entitled "Oriental Carpets in Miniature" by Frank M. Cooper (1994). Good luck!

Barbara in DE

needlepoint rug kits: all our kits are well within your budget, so why not have a look? There are several oriental ones, as well as other popular styles, and many other ideas for needlepoint items, too. Web site: http://www.janetgranger.co.uk

chris

Needlework rugs: You might try contacting Bunny Papke of Distincitve Needlework for needlepoint rug kits. You can get just the pattern for about $10.00 or the whole kit for $15.00, up to $50, depending on the pattern.. Her snail mail address is:
6516 Pine Park Place NE
Albuquerque, NM
87109

Pat

Beads/Findings: Beth & I located a source for jewelry components that you might find interesting, Rio Grande. They can be found at http://www.riogrande.com if you like to use beads or findings or semi-precious stones; this is the place.

Brian

Cars: I looked at the two die-cast car web sites that I have dealt with, and only found a different model of a Renault. Sorry. Here are the sites however, in case they would consider doing a special order....? http://www.toy-mart.com/ertl.die.cast.cars.html and https://www.ewal.com/index.html and type the scale you want in the search block. I looked under 1/18 scale, although I didn't know what you might want.

Sandra

Dogs: Peggy wanted to know how to find a dog by Carol Cardinal, shown by Lilliput Land. Carol Cardinal has been making phenomenal pets for many years. This is the last address I have for her, from 10 years ago: Carol Cardinal Miniatures by C.C. 9535 Diagonal Rd. Mantua, OH 44255

You can find Beth Stark of Lilliput Land at Tom Bishop shows. She's famous for carrying unusual and finely hand crafted miniature items. This is her address: Beth Stark, Lilliput Land, 89 Lisa Dr., Northport, NY 11768

Paulette in IN

Child's Roombox: Our grandson is now 5 and loves the "house" we made for him - it isn't really a house at all, just a large room box with no ceiling.  It's rather like what we call over here a bedsit, with everything, except the bathroom, in one open space.

Maybe your grand daughter might like the idea, Rose.  That way you can put a bit of everything in it, bed, shelves, tiny kitchen and things like the Michael's hutches, with lots of opening doors and drawers.  Adam had three hutches in his, in various styles, and loves to put the mugs and plates and things away and out again.  He also loves to make the bed up, so we made lots of simple bedding, so he can choose.   Most of all, though, he likes the food and drink (like his Dad!)  I made a lot of pies, cakes, sandwiches and burgers, all from Fimo, with a couple of slices cut out, so he can share.  He loves to offer his Dad a can of beer or Coke when they play with it together!

Florida Gill, Surrey, UK

Special Newspapers: When I was making Trinity's dh, I made a little newspaper all about Trini, her birthday, weight, eye and hair color, all kinds of little stuff about  what the weather was like on the day she was born, what the top news story, etc.  You get the idea.   The point is, I made it on the computer, took maybe an hour and was tons cheaper than buying newspaper patterned dh wallpaper.  Couldn't something like this be done for those on a limited budget?   I guess I am always looking for a way to diy, since I limit my spending budget as well.

Eileen in St.Louis