Wedding Cake Columns: Here are some 1:12 scale ideas for cake columns:

Column for a bird bath
Column for a sun dial
Display stands in an art gallery or shop
Cut in half for the legs of a modern coffee table.
These are best for the shorter 3" cake stands.
5" ones could have extra bases and tops added to them and be used as 1:12 scale columns.

Sandra in New Zealand

Oriental stuff: With all the talk about oriental projects I was surprised nobody mentioned the museum catalogs that come almost every week this time of year...absolutely beautiful 1"scale photos of Japanese and Chinese wall screens, paintings, photos, etc as well as some great ideas for dishes and such. Slipping them onto appropriately sized mat board and tape edged possibly the wall screens would look like the real ones I have on my wall. I have Boston's, the Met, and Smithsonian to name a few but I'll bet other museum gift shops put them out too (as well as big estate house museums like Winterthur).

Other sites would be Kowloon Traders and El Rastro (both on the web).

Ana Gerard

trash cans: I took film canisters the round black ones with gray tops, covered the outside of the canister with the corrugated paper that comes inside the boxes you get light bulbs in. Because the lid was already gray I just painted the corrugated paper gray to match. You could paint the whole thing silver. I added a little handle on the lid made of file card. I put a little plastic bag inside and folded it over the edges, put on the lid and they looked quite nice. Everyone liked them so maybe this would work for your doll house.

Helen Borders

Clay Pipes: I know that eucalyptus are pretty ubiquitous in most countries so...  If you get the little gumnuts from the Sydney Blue Gum then they are exactly the shape and the correct scale (1-12) to make those clay pipes that seem to turn up in every era from Elizabethan to the Georgian. Just scrape out the insides, drill a hole, carve a little curved stem and voila....a clay pipe.

Moira Lynch Windsor Australia

BACKGAMMON COUNTER IDEAS:

[1] Garden stepping-stone pavers.

[2] Occasional Table tops (glue to base of decapitated chess piece, recycled drawer knob, or three-legged pizza prop painted "chrome" or "brass"; leave top as is, faux marble, decoupage, or paint if you're artistic).

[3] Make a wire carrier rack and it's a pizza stone. (Be sure to paint on lots of gungy burnt cheese and filling, unless it's for a brand-new shower or housewarming gift.)

Loretta

Meat Hook: For the hand held type, how about a large hook and eye... the type on bra straps? You could get them in black, etc., and make a handle that looks like wood. I don't know how old your son is, but I'd stay away from fish hooks, unless someone cuts the barb off first. I was married to a fishing fanatic and have seen the havoc they can wreak. LOL!

Cindy in MA

Ax: As for the ax, how about polymer clay? With a wooden handle. You could use any color clay, and then paint it in metallic silver. If he's like my son, you'll need red paint too, for the blood. LOL! Are we talking action figures like Superman, the Joker, etc., or Freddy Krueger, Jason, etc. LOL!

For a Jason hockey mask, how about one of those plastic pieces inside oil bottles, etc.? I've see white, blue, etc. I'm not sure if you know what I'm talking about, but some bottles after you open the outside cap, there is a piece of plastic with a loop that you grab, and pull out the seal. You could cut out the face, and paint the whole thing white, with a small piece of elastic cord to hold it on. If

Cindy in MA

Champaign cages:  I use them for four sided hanging lampshade frames by twisting the top square part a bit smaller and by curling up each of the 4 bottom ends a bit shorter. You can also use the top corked cap piece for the top base and drill a tiny hole for the wires/bases etc. I then create my four-sided design (or leave it plain) and print it out on tracing paper, seal it and then mod podge it to give it clarity and shine. You may also use a light parchment paper, they really turn out nice. They also make a Gold colored Cage, which make beautiful pieces. Can't wait to try the bar stools.

Brooke, WA

Cheap Trunks:  I too purchased those beautiful little $.97 trunks at Wally's. The sides are a bit thick for scale so I lined the trunks with cloth and turned and glued the edges close to the inside outer edge of the trunk to give it the optical illusion of having thin walls. Hope this makes sense.

Brooke, WA

Very Fine China: I have some very fine china from many artisans (none of them Bespaq) on my website.  Everything on my site is in stock and I will do special orders if it's not in stock.

http://www.spminiatures.com

Carol

Very Fine China: You mentioned Stokesay Ware of  London. This past summer I purchased from the "Washington Dolls' House" two  different patterns of Stokesay Ware. They are absolutely beautiful !!!! They  are bone china. One pattern is "Sovereign Red" It is white with red border and 22k gold rims  and swags. The other is "Georgian Key' white with black Georgian key design and 22k gold trim.

Ethel in Tucson

Very Fine China: Be sure to check out The China Closet, her china is exquisite.  I lust after her display each year at the Philadelphia Miniaturia, it is just perfect.

Nancy (in Maryland)

Very Fine China:  Nancy from Maryland recommended The China Closet's china but did not  have the address.  The address given in this year's Philadelphia Miniaturia catalogue is:

  The China Closet

  367 West Elbert Street

  Indianapolis

  IN 46217

I knew I filed the literature away for a good reason!

Wendy in NJ

Very Fine China:  To see some of the china available on the mini market, take a look at Feb. Miniature Collector. There is an article on tea that includes many lovely  pieces. Some of them were lent to me for the article by our own Carol of S P Miniatures and I am sure are available from her.

Mary Kaliski

Very Fine China:  I have some pieces by Elizabeth Chambers that are special. One is  Quimper chocolate pot. She does lovely work. Since she is a CIMTA member, your local mini shop probably has pieces you can see and will order the rest for you.

Laurie Sisson

Very Fine China:  If you are looking for some of the most exquisite miniature china available on the Internet let me recommend Porcelain Fantasies. Marsha Hedrick is the artisan and we've known her for quite a few years.

In fact, Marsha fabricates the greatest majority of Helen's custom-made porcelain containers that she uses for her floral arrangements at shows and on our web site.  The quality of Marsha's work is unbelievable, but seeing is believing ---  Click on http://www.porcelainfantasies.com then follow the "Gallery" link and enjoy!

Richard

Buttons: About buttons (wow, what great ideas there!) -- the fabric stores often have bins of discontinued buttons real cheap. I made hatstands out of dome-shaped ones on top of candlesticks (wood or metal). A friend of mine was making full size buttons from Sculpey and left them in the oven way too long. When she took them out they were black and very shiny, beautiful really, like glass. There has to be a mini use for that "technique

Judy in TN

Jars: I use the empty glass ampoules that come with insulin and fit in a dosetronic pen. Take the plastic cap off and you'll see the "neck" then I use my Dremel tool with a cutting disc (and wear safety glasses) to cut off to the desired length. Fill from the bottom and seal with a circle of acetate (holepunch). As lid you can use some material or the round bit of a copper splitpin (to close envelopes)

Dorothee

Book Covers: To get the books you want take the cover off and tape or pin it to a wall in a bright room. Stand back about 6' and take a picture. When the picture is developed cut out the cover and make a book for inside it-a block of wood for a closed book. If the photo is too thick then photocopy the photo onto whatever thickness you need. This probably breaks copywrite laws but it works. I'd think the publishers would be pleased at the free advertising. I've often thought that if the big companies that spend millions on buying space in magazines just printed scale replicas of their products like cereal, they'd have all the advertising they need. They'd be in every doll house in the world. The problem would be with entrepreneurs trying to sell them.

June in London Ontario Canada

Golf Tees - turn upside down and push a large wood bead onto the pointed end. Makes a hat stand.

Laura Miller