1/144" scale. I've started working on 144th scale people but wonder if I am just crazy, since no one seems to have people in their dollhouse dollhouses. I just love making things tinier and still realistic looking. I'd like to do some furniture, too. Here is a site that carries 1/144" scale furniture and other items. This might just be the inspiration you are looking for.
http://www.wood-street-miniatures.co.uk

Marilyn

1/144 microminis: Callie asked if it's mad to make people in this scale. Actually there is a whole group of crazy microminiers who have their own list. Houses, people, furniture ... it's all there, impossibly small. Many of them are members of this list, too. Join them at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MSATMicroMinis

Kay in Ottawa, Canada

144 scale Furniture: the 144th scale houses can be furnished by buying unpainted pewter and painting them. There is a lot of this pewter around and I have furnished almost a complete house with it. You can also get tiny "H" wood from a miniature railroad shop and get creative. Cut off one "leg" of it and slice in thickness desired and you have a set of chairs. Make it longer and you'll have a couch. You just have to not only think small but smaller. You can't get too much detail, illusion is the thing.

Irene

Scales: Once again I will mention that there is a lot of similarity between some of the model railroad scales and miniature scales, so drop by some of those "other" hobby shops and see what they have:

N scale is 1:160, close enough to 1:144 for some things to be useful

O scale is 1:48, exactly the same as the 1/4" mini scale

G scale is 1:22.5, again close enough to 1:24 for some things to be used

David

Little Debbie Scene: what if you built a box out of foamcore or matboard, then cut and taped segments of the edges around the top of several Little Debbie boxes together for a frame.  Then have the frame color-copied at a Kinko's or your local printing place so you get a solid, neat piece, spritz with clear acrylic fixative, cut out a window in the middle, back the window with acetate or glass, and glue to the box front once you have decorated the study scene?   That would allow you to change the proportions to something better suited to 1:12.  Or you could accept the size of the standard Little Debbie package, reinforce it with matboard and do the scene in 1:16 or 1:24 scale.

Loretta.Sniarowski

Flower shop - ideas for a name: I've been making some 144 scale flower shops, one is a matchbox is on my site at the moment and the other is going to be a tiny wooden one which I have managed to light as well (very fiddly in such a small scale) I called this one 'Blooming Marvellous', it has to be some kind of stupid pun really, you should have heard some of my punning boyfriend's suggestions, not many are printable!
Another idea was Budding Genuis, or Flower Power. Anyway my URL is http://www.tinyminds.freeuk.comand the florist is on the matchbox shops page. There are also plenty of pics of various flowers which might give you some more inspiration.

Jenny in Brighton, UK

144 wooden furniture: I don't want to bore you to death and know many are not interested in 144 scale but you may enjoy looking at my new 144 wooden furniture, I have just finished a fainting couch that can fit along with an end table on a penny. Also there is a neat baby crib. These are terrific as toys in any scale inc as doll furniture in 1/4 scale. Crazy? yup probably but I love doing these bitty furniture pieces!

Also a bit of news for the animal lovers. Talked to Liz McInnis the other day and she will be doing her first show in years at Chicago Int this year!...and I do mean years. You can see some of her animals in my "rooms in my collection" or Artists section where I share some great pictures of what I consider to be terrific artists. I have a Borzoi(Russian wolfhound)   Sled dog, schnauzer, by precious bengals Bubba and Sissy done by her and a white kitty. These are some of my most treasured things. Especially my Bengal portrait kitties as I have lost both so they are precious memories.

Anita McNary-Haynes

Foamcore is available in two grades and sizes. It can be purchased in 1/8 and 3/16 thickness and is available in Acid-free (this is better, right Kathy!) and regular grades. Sheet sizes are 32 X 40 and 40 X 60 and can be purchased from a custom frame shop or an art store.

I used to make architectural models and they were 1/4 scale. I used 1/8 acid free board for the structure and used matboard for doors interior walls, and windows, and made the furniture with foamcore and matboard. I am currently making a 1" scale using 3/16 foamcore and matboard to give me the 5/16th standard of walls and the structure is 45 X 45 X 60 high and is quite structurally sound. I use matboard for "painted" walls and if I need thinner material, I peel the top layer of matboard off and glue it to the foamcore. I have architectural models built 15 years ago and they are still fine.

Douglas, Hamilton, ON, Canada

1/4" Sculpting: I have been trying my hand at sculpting in 1/4" scale. I found a different sculpting medium for the smaller scales. The commercial name is Kneadatite. It's a blue and yellow ribbon epoxy. You take the two separate halves and mix them together until the mixture turns dark green. The texture is very similar to chewed chewing gum, yuk! The mix has about a three hour working time. It is easily added to and sticks well to itself. I have never had any adverse reaction from the epoxy, although I wash my hands after each use. I like it much better than Sculpey, etc. because I have hot hands. I'll try and post some pics of my leprechauns sometime soon. I've been sculpting a bunch of goblin heads from the movie, Labyrinth, for a doll maker. I'll post some pics of them as well.

Shaun

1/4 scale dolls: I have not attempted something this small, but here's my suggestions:
1) Try a different medium - I don't know which is which, but I know that Fimo, Sculpey, Sculpey III, paperclay, etc. each have a different consistency and pliability. Maybe one that is less pliable would work better.
2) Make the body out of wire, not sculpting medium. This way you're not continuing to handle the head once it's formed. Take a piece of wire and hold it vertically; from the top (neck) come down as far as the torso length will be and bend the wire slightly at that point - then go down as far as the leg will be (including foot length), and fold the wire back on itself. Bring the wire back up to the top of the leg and bend it back down again for the second leg, then back up on itself again. Twist it once around the hip area, then run it up to the shoulder area - leave enough at the top for the neck, including enough length to insert into the head. At the shoulder point, bend the wire out sideways and run it the length of an arm and hand, then back on itself to the shoulder, loop it once to anchor, and then across for the other arm. Back to the shoulder and loop it once to anchor and cut off remainder. Then crimp the leg and arm ends to form hands and feet. Form your head and stick it on top, then air-dry or bake upright. You can even add sculpting medium over the wire for hands and feet. I think this would be much easier and require minimum handling of the head.
3) Paint, don't sculpt, the head and facial features.
4) Make the head out of a bead or something rigid that can be painted.

Graceanne

Piano Hinges: For the person looking for solid brass piano hinges...You can purchase smaller scale hinges In solid brass at Woodcraft. They come in two sizes 3/4" and 1/2" and come in a 24" length. I use these for making small gift boxes and have never attempted to hang a dollhouse wall with them so can't attest to whether they would work or not due to the weight they might need to support. I buy from the catalogue or the live store but they do have a web site. http://www.woodcraft.com

Reva

½ Scale Doll Molds: Ellen in the UK wanted to know who sells and ships molds there - and wants 1/2 scale - I'm sure House of Caron has some molds in that scale - their web site is: http://www.houseofcaron.com

Paulette

1/4 inch teapots: a very talented maker of all tea pots especially 1/4 inch is Nona Mitchell, Her email is: tpot@centurytel.net

http://www.mitchellminiatures.com/

Bonnie in Montana

Bruce Steinke's Quarter Scale Furniture:
http://www.bjminis.com

144 scale Lodge/cabins: - I made the two-story "lodge" form a Northeastern Scale Models kit, then decided to design the rest myself. On the ones I designed, the roofs lift off and they are divided into rooms that copy the floor plans of various cabins I have vacationed in over the years. This was the very first mini scene I ever made, then I moved up to 1" scale! A good railroad hobby store was indispensable in providing the small scale milled siding, windows & doors, landscaping materials, etc. I used N-Scale things, as they seemed closest to the 1/144 that I needed. The lodge, the people and the car are the only things in the scene that were not my own design.

Chris in Minnesota

Beginners: It was so nice to see several letters from beginners in the latest digest. I hope they'll feel welcome in the mini world. I would offer a warm welcome, but some of us have already had all the warmth we want the last few days. A warm welcome to those in the southern hemisphere, anyway.

In my new website, http://francesarmstrong.homestead.com,I have a section specially meant for beginners. I had in mind those who were interested in smaller scales, but much of what's there applies to any scale. Even in 1/12 scale we try to reproduce things like pens, soap, jewellery, fruit and so on, when the results are smaller than our fingernails, and there can be problems gluing, cutting, painting or even picking up these things.

I've tried to provide links between pages to make exploring the site easier, and I'd love some feedback on whether the links are working. In return I hope even non-beginners will find something of interest. I'm adding new stuff all the time.

Frances Armstrong, Erin, Ontario

1/2" scale bricks: I think this as a cost effective alternative to make the bricks you want.
A real life brick is 8" long. X 4"deep X 2 1/2" high; translated into 1/2" scale this means we work with 1/16's of an inch. You do the conversion Real bricks have a smooth side and a rough side.
Concept: On a piece of wax paper, pour (for plaster) or roll out (for clay) the thickness that would be the thickness of the brick.( the height dimension) Fit a Jewelers saw with a piece of steel wire in place of the blade. Clay is easier.
If you want smooth face brick, do nothing to the surface. If you want rough face brick; select the grit of sandpaper that will give you the roughness you want in scale and press it on to the surface of the clay. Use the wire in the Jewelers saw to cut the clay to make bricks in the dimension that you want. Harden the clay. I am avoiding the words Polymer or air dry clay. You take your choice. Remove from the wax paper and use as brick.
I feel that air dry clay may be the simplest to work with for this project. More cost effective also.

DrBob...Delray Beach, FL.

144 scale Bridge; When I did my 1/144 scale railroad scene, I needed bridges. I used some of Jeanetta Kendall's shelf edging paper trimmed and folded and it worked fine.

I painted it to be a proper bridge color and was able to use a different one for a second bridge (wouldn't do to have two alike, donchaknow).

Dottie in Tucson

Tall acrylic boxes: I think those tall acrylic boxes could hold trees; say one tree in each with different scenes beneath the tree, or someone on a swing: a sandbox with children playing; a couple having a picnic; youngsters at a lemonade stand; maybe a headstone and a mourner; or do a palm tree and sun worshipers, with sand, towels and lotions.

Susan in Cool Green Asheville

Mini Domes: Thank you to everyone who responded to my mini glass domes query. I was asked to post the private responses. Here is what people suggested privately: JAF, Michaels, http://www.hometown.aol.com/GLASSMURPH/sitemap.html and http://www.minikitz.com. I need to replace one that broke.

Linda Master

1/4 scale dolls: I have not attempted something this small, but here's my suggestions:
1) try a different medium - I don't know which is which, but I know that Fimo, Sculpey, Sculpey III, paperclay, etc. each have a different consistency and pliability. Maybe one that is less pliable would work better.
2) make the body out of wire, not sculpting medium. This way you're not continuing to handle the head once it's formed. Take a piece of wire and hold it vertically; from the top (neck) come down as far as the torso length will be and bend the wire slightly at that point - then go down as far as the leg will be (including foot length), and fold the wire back on itself. Bring the wire back up to the top of the leg and bend it back down again for the second leg, then back up on itself again. Twist it once around the hip area, then run it up to the shoulder area - leave enough at the top for the neck, including enough length to insert into the head. At the shoulder point, bend the wire out sideways and run it the length of an arm and hand, then back on itself to the shoulder, loop it once to anchor, and then across for the other arm. Back to the shoulder and loop it once to anchor and cut off remainder. Then crimp the leg and arm ends to form hands & feet. Form your head & stick it on top, then air-dry or bake upright. You can even add sculpting medium over the wire for hands and feet. I think this would be much easier and require minimum handling of the head.
3) paint, don't sculpt, the head/facial features.
4) Make the head out of a bead or something rigid that can be painted.

Graceanne