Holidays Page: 8 |
Brooke Tucker's books: There are two books on Brooke's roomboxes: Brooke Tucker's Golden Christmas Cristina |
Brooke Tucker's Books: If you would like to order them on-line, both of Brooke Tucker's books were available at MiniBooks - Great books, too, BTW, as I'm sure you know! Jenny Dahl |
Autumn leaves: If you want to save yourself some work - this woman was at the Good Sam show in San Jose and sold little packets of fall leaves for about a dollar a bag and there are hundreds in there. I also bought some ivy leaves and they are great too! Her card says: Paper punches, flower kits, petals and leaves. Metal Miniatures, No hole beads, Gold plated findings, Noah's Ark kits and more. She also had oodles of Halloween things. Hooked on Miniatures (CIMTA & NAME member) Sharon Granicy Phone: 661 948-2112 Sheena |
Christmas Trees and Depth Problems- There's a way to make a Christmas tree (or an outdoor evergreen) that reduces the depth problem, though it's easier to start by describing the full version: Just glue equal-length branches of pipe-cleaner type material ("pine stems," etc.) to a cardboard cone. It's the cone, not the length of the branches, that determines the overall shape of your tree. Fiddle around with scrap paper until you settle on a final version. Cut cone to desired size from dark or painted cardboard, including a tab to glue under the opposite side. Shape the cone with your hands, but flatten it out again for gluing on branches. Cut a bunch of branches roughly five-eighths of an inch long. Turn about three-eighths of an inch at right angles; the short leg is glued to cone. Note: the needles MUST grow toward the tip of the branch, or they'll look weird. With E-6000 glue start at the bottom and glue branches densely onto the card, leaving a bit of space at both sides. When most of branches are stuck on, glue the cone into shape; use clips as necessary to hold while drying. Don't worry about the hole at top. When dry, fill in gaps and top, and prune as necessary. As for the shallow-space version: Make a narrow cone with tabs on both sides, and glue these onto a flat back. Mary (Oregon) |
Mini Flowers: I processed fresh Crows Feet(Lycopodium) to make mini X-mas trees. First I dried in Silica Gel, then soaked in a solution of 1 part glycerin to 4 parts rubbing alcohol. I was told to spray the trees once a year with this same recipe. Just spray-painted the tree today as a matter of fact! Hope this helps. Marcy |
Mini Flowers: I processed fresh Crows Feet(Lycopodium) to make mini X-mas trees. First I dried in Silica Gel, then soaked in a solution of 1 part glycerin to 4 parts rubbing alcohol. I was told to spray the trees once a year with this same recipe. Just spray-painted the tree today as a matter of fact! Hope this helps. Marcy |
"Crows feet" is the common name of a plant. It is also call "Lycopodium" – any of a genus of plants, the club mosses, erect or creeping, with evergreen leaves. (Webster.) Marcy |
Glass Beads: You can also get a nice mix of glass beads from a company called BeadBox. They have a mix of about 130 glass beads from the Czech Republic that I have combined with other smaller beads to made perfume bottles and Christmas tree ornaments. They do have holes, so I usually use headpins snipped to size to hold all in place (glue too). This mix is $9.99. Their toll free #is 1-800-BEADBOX. I didn't see a web site listed. Judi |
Candy and cookies: I carry the fimo rolls you can slice. I have gingerbreadman cookies, plus candy cane, Christmas trees, peppermints, holly, poinsettia cookies or candies. Email: yumaminis@juno.com http://www.jbsdollhousesminiatures.com Jackie Bruno |
Fimo Cookies to slice: For the fimo rolls that slice up like cookies, please check my site. http://lincsminiworld.bizland.com/ LINC'S Mini WORLD The HOME of SHAPED Polymer Clay "STIX"(canes) for slicing EXACT DUPLICATE shapes. You should be able to find almost any kind of Christmas cookie shape you would like, from Gingerbread Boys/Girls, Trees, Angels, Snowmen, Santa, etc., down to the NEW 1/16th inch Snowflakes. Oops, the Snowflakes aren't on the site yet. I haven't seen SHAPED fimo/polyclay stix/canes anyplace else. Now when it comes to "round" canes for candies, etc., check with Jane King JKMINI317@aol.com - for already sliced pieces, or Donna Smolik wolfes@flash.net for canes to slice. SS's own Noella used to do some really great canes, but I'm not sure that she's still doing them. Linc in Indiana |
Gingerbread houses: I have done those mini scenes inside the clear balls for Christmas ornaments and they suggested using bathroom caulk. I believe DAP was the brand they recommended since it dries snowy white. Cindy Smith |
Goodies: Yesterday I was trying some different methods to make goodies. I discovered that lentils are the perfect size for cookies. I put brown dots on them for choc chips and you can even ice them. I also have some beans that look like lentils only they are kind of a peach color (I don't know what they are called) and they look like some real cookies I make called orange white choc chip. I made the white dots for chips with my 3D fabric paint and found out that you can do all kinds of things with the 3D Fabric Paints. They have a tiny tip so it comes out small and if you swirl it a little you come up with great divinity (my mother always made divinity at Christmas time in different colors). I do them on a ceramic tile and when they dry you can scrape them off. Or you could put them on a little piece of waxed paper for use in a kitchen scene of baking cookies. Rebecca in Vegas |
COSTUMES: I watched a segment of Martha Stewart's show this morning (proving what a rotten person I am). Topic: Making Halloween costumes from crepe paper, little "flower" getups for children. These could be made about the same way in miniature, but I also recall that Yorkshire's Helen has been dressing fairies from fabric flowers, and those would work for parts of kiddy costumes too, wouldn't they? The trick-or-treat tradition is said to have started in the US with Irish fleeing the potato famine in the 1840's, though it probably wouldn't have been adopted quickly by inhabitants of those big grand houses. Google.com, given "Halloween history," came up with plenty of references. I stopped at this one on the first page, because it summarizes trends in the 20th century: http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/pumpkinave/history.htm Especially for Southwesterners, here's a page crammed with information about the Day of the Dead: http://www.azcentral.com/rep/dead/ For a dome scene, a gaggle of little girl dolls, different heights and shapes, outside a doorway in their flower getups; grownups with treats on the other side? And for somebody who itches to make some madly extravagant costumes: how about a giddy 1930's costume party in an Art Deco setting? Mary (Oregon) |
Costumes: Look for the Susan Sirkis wishbooks. You may find them at the library. One has 18th century costume patterns, including men's clothes, which is the basic pirate look (believe me, I was hooked on old Errol Flynn movies as a kid!), then make your scoundrel a tiny eye patch, wrap a gaudy bandana on his head, and give him a little jump ring earring. Metallic paint on a plastic cocktail sword will convert it to a pretty convincing saber. Loretta Sniarowski |
THE MOVEABLE DOLL/FAIRY/WITCH : Leslie from Buffalo has an excellent pattern for making little fairies, which she told me, involves fake flowers. So easy to do and makes a great mini; it's hideously seductive and it's so easy that when one is tired, it's good to fall back on, 'cause the end result is good and makes you feel smart, and I'm all for minis like that. Things you will need: Fake flower spray made of 5 curved petalled flowers, each with central stamen, each on a wire stem TO MAKE DOLL Gently pull the 5 petalled flower up away from the stamen; it should slide along the wire. You may have to pull hard. Think tough love thoughts. Leave it loose but on the wire. If the stamen comes off, simply glue it back on end of wire. Do this for another flower but completely remove flower from wire. Put this flower on top of other flower on its wire - this is to make the skirt. So now you have one leg with stamen foot, and skirt. Poke the other wire with stamen on end through the skirts from underneath beside the other wire; twist these together both under and over the skirts. The legs should be about 1/2 an inch long. Now you have a pair of legs with feet and a skirt. Dab tacky glue on top of skirt ('waistband') near wire to keep all secure. Fold wire down so that one has about 1/2-3/4 inch doubled wire above skirt . There will be excess wire below 'waistband level'. Cut off excess. Squeeze doubled wires together to hold firm. Use one of the bits of excess wire that you cut off to make the arms. At its midway point, wrap it again and again round the body, leaving two ends of equal length free - these are the arms. I trim these to suit when all else is done. Shove a cocktail stick with tacky glue on it into the bead hole, twirl around, remove, push bead onto top of body wires. Draw face on bead. Glue chopped up Bunka/embroidery floss on bead for hair. Or stick small cup flower on top of bead to make a flower fairy. To MAKE FAIRY Do as above. Remove 4 petalled flower from wire and stamen. Pinch together, dab pinched fold in glue and glue to back of doll. Flower will flatten out to look like wings. How obliging of it. To MAKE WITCH Dismantle all the flowers and paint black with acrylic paint. Paint stamens black. Leave to dry. Then assemble as above. Make teeny pointed black hat from black paper, stick on bead. Helen from York, England |
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