Stained Glass: I'm sure you'll get lots of ideas about how to make stained glass windows from this list. I do "full size" stained glass and really had an interesting time trying to replicate that "look" in miniature for my grand-daughter's custom Oakmont dollhouse. This is the URL for the tips on the methods I learned in the process:

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Hills/8157/tips.htm

Wilma Kinder

Jewelry bits: You're on the right track with the jewelry bits. You can also glue them together with broken (or cheap working) watches to make fancy mantel clocks. Use them as fancy curtain tiebacks. Grommets from the fabric store turned upside down are just right as candle cups, so glue those onto bigger pieces to make candlesticks. Get the biggest size triple-hook fishhooks at the hardware, snip off the barbs, glue big sequins and grommets on the ends as candleholders and festoon the hook armature with jewelry bits to make a fancy real-candle chandelier.Then, fasten to a shank button with a jump ring and glue the button to the ceiling. (Cut down the long, skinny birthday cake tapers found at party stores and crafts stores for mini-size candles that fit the grommets.) Bits also make great ormolu to glitz up the cheap imported furniture found at dollar stores. Just keep experimenting and you'll come up with even better ideas of your own.

Loretta Sniarowski

X-Files Office is done! All of a sudden, the elements finally came together this week and I finished my 1/12 X-Files room box. Basically, I barricaded myself in my house for the past two days till it was done. It was my first excursion into electrifying...and I was so happy to see how easy it was. Lots of folks to thank here for all the great ideas and suggestions. Especially Anita on the lighting advice, the perfect wiring instructions on Tom's E&T site and whoever suggested the wrinkled tissue paper ceiling treatment. It gave the basement room just the look I wanted. I have put a page on my site. If you are not a fan of the X-Files...be warned...it is not for the faint of heart :) (just kidding, but it does include a realistic alien figure.) I am thinking of making it a trilogy down the line and do Scully and Mulder's apartment living rooms as companion boxes. Both sets have interesting design challenges and would be fun to decorate.

http://www.wishbooktoys.com/dollhouse/xfiles/index.html

X-Files box: The X-Files box is a combo of made, bought and bashed items. On the desk for example, the blotter was bought, but I added the paper items and photos. The tape dispenser was bought, but I added the tape to liven it up. I also made the "brass" desk lamp (drinking straw, gold tape, two wires, balsa base and a black bead for the switch) and extension lamps (GI Joe binoculars cut and trimmed with strip wood arms.) I made the sunflower seeds and the FOX MULDER nameplate for the desk. The styro coffee cup is the top to a glue bottle painted white. Most paper items were reduced from actual items. I got the basic folders and manila envelopes from Jim's Printables website then cut the bound pages out of a National Geographic for the papers inside them. The folder holders are clear plastic covered in black contact paper and bent to shape. The black binders were made the same way and also filled with magazine pages. I scratchbuilt the white medical cabinet and small lawyers' case. The file cabinets were bought and painted. The slate topped counters and cabinets are cheapie wooden kitchen sinks that I bashed into lab tables with black vinyl on cardboard glued to the surfaces. The desk and both chairs were bought at my local miniature store, as was the computer table, but I added the woodgrain vinyl top. A little of this, a little of that and somehow it all eventually came together.

Roombox ideas:  I also have hit upon two other ideas for room boxes. One is a 1950s small-town movie theater lobby with concession stand. I could make the poster frames changeable, so one week the theatre could be showing classic detective films, next week a sci-fi fest, Universal Monster films, musicals, etc. The possibilities are unlimited. It could be set while the feature is playing and the usherette could be sitting behind the counter reading a 50's movie magazine. Thinking about this idea led me to another project...how about a classic Drive-In movie theater concession stand.? It could have the snack counter with all kinds of food ..hot dogs, fries, burgers, popcorn, candy (much more than just a movie theater has...I have been eyeballing all the goodies at Mary Eccher's Pannikins by ME site, making my shopping list,) a picnic table, maybe a small playground area right out front for the kids (remember those?) I'd have to have those great faded color photos of the burgers, fries and cokes lit from behind on the menu sign...can you tell I like this idea?

John in Yonkers

Razor Scooters: I got a scooter at Wal-Mart in the toy department.  Skate boards & snow boards, also.

Marjorie in CA

Mascara brush: Pipe cleaners come in different sizes. I think that I would try the smallest size in black. Cut it to an appropriate length and taking very sharp scissors, cut off the "brush" from the length, just leaving a brush on the tip. For a cap, you could maybe make one from Fimo to go on the other end.

Rusty

Mascara brush: How about gluing a bugle bead for the cap, a straight pin or snip of broom straw (or those plastic things that attach price tags to clothing) for the shaft, and some very finely snipped bunka for the brush, with a larger bead alongside for the open tube? Dab a little brown or black paint on the bunka snips after the glue dries to load the wand with "mascara." Might also use a snippet of Velcro for the brush, but I think it's probably off-scale.

Loretta Sniarowski

Mascara brush: I have several little brushes that are used for cleaning around braces--about 3/8" long by 1/8 " diameter which you could trim the cone shape to be more cylindrical if you are particular. Otherwise ask someone you know with braces if they have one, or look in the dental floss section of the drug department, or ask an orthodontist's receptionist if she can help you in exchange for a "free peek" when you are done.

Xmas Carol

Mascara brush: For a mascara applicator, perhaps you could taper a small piece of pipe cleaner and make a fimo handle? Pipe cleaners come in many colors and thicknesses.

Cindy in Dunmore, PA

Curlers: The ones that have a c-shaped clip on them to hold them in place? You are too young for those! If so, you could use pieces of clear or colored drinking straws, cut to length, and then slit lengthwise on one side--or a section cut out if too large in diameter. They should hold their shape and wrap around a "pipestem" curler (that's pipecleaners in oldie language!)

Xmas Carol

Curlers: Xmas Carol suggested using drinking straws for curler clasps. They make Cocktail straws with a smaller diameter. Also there are round plastic stir sticks that are even smaller around (stripped or solid colors). You could use the stir stick as the roller and the cocktail straw as the clasp, following the directions Xmas Carol gave, by cutting away a small lengthwise portion of the straw. These would look good on or off your doll, especially if you used the striped stir stick for the roller and a solid color for the clasp for contrast. Be sure to cut the clasp a little shorter than the roller so the ends of the roller(or hair in roller) is visible. Sounds like a fun project.

Brooke, WA

Curlers: Another way to make miniature curlers is to remove the cotton on cotton swabs. The ridged end looks like a different kind of the curlers you were talking about. Look for colored swabs for colored curlers.

Bonnie in Montana

To make a mortarboard.  Not all that hard.  You need tacky glue, card, felt in the school colors, a seed bead, and a round clothespin or chapstick as a mold.  Thin the tacky glue (or use fabric stiffener) and soak a 1 1/2 inch or so square of the felt in it.  Mold it over the pin or stick and rubber band in place till dry.  Trim down to the beanie shape of the hat bottom.  Meanwhile, cut a card square about 3/4" and cover both sides with felt.  Weight to dry so it stays flat.  Glue the beanie and board together.  Make a tiny tassel (wind floss around a half-inch piece of card, slip a longer piece of floss under the wound strands and tie them together, slide off card, use more floss to wrap into tassel shape.  Pull ties through seed bead, knot and glue in place, trim ends and glue seed bead to center of mortarboard with tassel dangling.

Loretta.Sniarowski

blood in a bottle - try mixing very, very red paint with tacky glue & coating the inside of the bottle. How about lite-bright pegs for glass bottles?

Carbomax

Curlers: Another way to make miniature curlers is to remove the cotton on cotton swabs. The ridged end looks like a different kind of the curlers you were talking about. Look for colored swabs for colored curlers.

Bonnie in Montana

Computer: I purchased a computer from Hobby Builders.  I drilled a hole in it and put a light in it and came out very nice.   You could also make one using the patterns from Jim Collins' printables.  You could use wood for the base.

Mary

Decals: I have been reading about the transfer glaze and thought I'd share my idea.  I use the clear package sealing tape this way.  Press it onto what ever you want to transfer, carefully cut out the design, soak in water for 30 min and gently rub the paper off the back.  You will be left with a decal that has a slight glue from the tape.  I glue it down with tacky to make sure it stays where I put it.  I first tried this on a black silhouette.  I put it on a button with a fake ivory center and it really looks great.  I have a cat and a dog in my Christmas roombox next to the fireplace.

Carol (jody)

Blue and white plates and platters: I represent Avon Porcelain of the UK and have some of their Blue Willow pieces on my website at:

http://www.spminiatures.com/avon.htm

as well as the Stokesay Ware blue and white collection at: http://www.spminiatures.com/stokescant.htm

Carol, S P Miniatures

Pencils:  Try using colored paper clips.  Cut with wire cutters to the proper size.  sharpen one end with sandpaper or a file.  Paint the tip black for a #2 pencil or leave as is for colored pencil.  If wanted, paint a silver band topped with pink for an eraser on the other end.

Mary Lou in Portage, IN

Pencils and paint brushes (miniature). Go to your local pharmacy and get a package of "stir sticks" or wooden handled cotton swabs (professional Q-tips) The birchwood shafts are about 1/16" diameter or 3/4 of a scale inch. To make small pencils, paint brushes, etc: Chuck an appropriate length in your Dremel tool and "turn" to size and shape with an emery board or such. USE EYE PROTECTION!

While on the subject, The 1/16" dowels make for VERY economical; moldings. Slip into a 1/16" wide X 1/32" deep groove in a metal pate. Shave away the part sticking up and you have 3/4" (scale) half round. In the Dremel, you can get more creative than just paint brushes. With sharpened jewelers screwdrivers as turning chisels, I make finials, pendels, balustrades, and such for my micro-scale (1:144) houses. How about turnings for a plate rail along the top edge of kitchen cabinets or as spindles in a really nice magazine rack. A hundred  (~6" long each) should cost you about $2.

Mel in Las Vegas

Pencils:   Pencils can be made quite successfully using straight Cocktail Sticks.  Just cut to appropriate length and paint to desired colour (leaving the pointed piece) and add a dab of the same colour to the very tip.  Look good in a small section of  clear 'biro' case - this also makes quite good drinking glasses.

Chrissie - London - UK

Pencils: Cut 9/16" from pointed end of a gold sequin pin. Using a sanding disc on your Dremel motor tool, flatten the cut end. Punch pin holes in a flap cut from a cardboard box. Insert the flat end of you pencils into the pin holes.  Paint with several light coats of Testors yellow spray paint. When dry, paint the pointed ends with Testors tan # 1167, using 4 upward strokes around the pencil to simulate the sharpened end. When dry, use a black felt marker to add a tiny tip for the lead. Now pull the pencils out of the cardboard and reinsert with the pointed end down. Using Testors light tan # 1170 , paint down about 1/32" and across the top of the flat end to make an eraser. Be sure to leave a gold band between the eraser and the yellow pencil.  This makes a perfect yellow pencil which is in true 1" scale. Most miniature pencils are too big.!

Sharon Stockton