Making Mini Clothing: Instead of Fray check or tacky glue to secure the edges, try Aileen's OK TO WASH IT. It has a thin consistency but will not spread. Also, Try tracing your pattern pieces onto the fabric. Then put the glue just inside the line and then cut out the pattern pieces after it has dried. Ends all fraying. Someone else may have an even better solution for you, but that works for me.

Tracey Meeker

Making Mini Clothing: Try using Sobo glue. It won't run all over like Fray glues, and it is softer than Tacky. Takes longer to dry than Tacky, but not much, and it is worth it.

Carol in MN

Making Mini Clothing: I've been dressing miniature dolls for 27 yrs now, and most of my work is hand sewn. (I do stitch underwear and petticoats by machine) But otherwise, you use a fine needle and make very tiny stitches. I almost never use Fray Check or treat seam edges because I never take the clothes off my dolls, once they're on. So the seams don't get any pull causing the fabric to ravel. If I'm using a very fragile fabric, I iron a lightweight backing to it, to strengthen it, before cutting out pattern pieces.

Paulette in IN

Making Mini Clothing: I have found that the only way to make very tiny clothes is to use a lot more fabric than you need. Meaning, as you outline a pattern on the material, do not cut the pattern out along the pattern lines. Outline the pattern piece with tracing paper, so that you not only have the darts, seams and matching up points of the pattern marked on the fabric, but the complete outline of the pattern piece is outlined. Then when you cut out the pattern, you will leave a large seam allowance beyond the normal pattern outline. At least several inches; enough so when you use the sewing machine on it, that the fabric doesn't jam up or get pushed into the sewing plate machinery. With the tiny seam allowance on these patterns and considering the size of the pieces that are being worked on, it is just not enough fabric for a sewing machine to sew on and they get totally messed up. Its the same when you try to hand sew it, use larger seam allowance. Once you have sewn the pattern together as much as you can with the oversize seams, you can then cut the seams back as much as you need and then if required you can put a defrayer on the seams. You may want to keep a larger than 1/4" seam, if the outfit can tolerate the extra fabric. But you might want to put the defrayer on with a toothpick, or something very tiny, so the defrayer doesn't get all over the fabric.

LadiThrills

Punches: Besides Wal-Mart and Michael's, a minier suggested an office supply store or a teachers supply store.

Here are three Website addresses for punches given to me by a number of our miniers. They are worth taking a look at.
http://www.scrapbooksuperstore.com/

http://www.hankypankycrafts.com/home.htm

http://www.punchpalace.com/

Dolores

Glue syringe/Monoject: To view or purchase a Monoject glue syringe with a rubber stopper go to http://www.nh.ultranet.com/~smallife/Tools.html scroll down to Glues & Applicators and wait for the photo to load. There are tweezers on the page also. Sorry, no fancy shopping cart on this homemade site! You have to use e-mail, fax, carrier pigeon or the phone.

Pam & Pete Boorum

Mini Hold Remover: I use a steel tool designed to remove ear wax. It has a small metal loop at one end and a tiny metal cup at the other. It is the best thing I've ever found for removing Mini Hold from the container. The loop will shave a small sliver and the cup will scoop a perfect ball. The fellow at the swap meet has these goodies. They are $2 each. If you want one, let me know and I'll pop over and pick one up for you.

Becky

Converting a Dremel to a router: This is a really easy task. All you need is the # 330 router attachment from Dremel and a set of the router bits. If you want to make moldings, etc., you might also look at the Dremel 231 shaper/router table. The difference is you move the router over the work and you move the work over the shaper table. Both can be found in the Dremel display of any good tool department (Home Depot, Lowes, Wal-Mart, etc.)

Dave

Cutting Plexiglas; Using a Jewelers saw (I get the impression yours is motorized) makes a wider kerf than if you used a Plexiglas cutter. If your saw is motorized there may be a heat generation problem; if it is hand operated I found that I had a problem not splintering the Plexiglas when using a hand saw. The Plexiglas cutter is much easier and faster.

DrBob...Delray Beach, FL

Turntables: Consider the larger turntables by Rubbermaid, sold in better household supply stores such as Linens & Things or Bed, Bath & Beyond. They are built to hold weight. I've also used the turntables sold in hardware stores in the kitchen cabinet section. I cut the lip (if there is one) off the turntable with a hot knife. I usually use Contact cement to attach it to a wood platform. This platform is the base, topped with Velcro for my miniature set. The miniature set has Velcro on the bottom.

Becky

Miter Master: The best tool I have found for cutting miters for picture frames, etc., is the Miter Master which is available from Micro-Mark. Their website is: http://www.micromark.com

Jean in FL

Hot Glue: When hot glue first started being used a lot, they told people to use it on everything. It really is best to use it on soft textures, such as fabrics and dry arrangements. Even the cold can affect it. It's really just a type of wax. If your dollhouses are completely done and it's hard to apply another type of glue, if it were me, I'd leave well enough alone but keep an eye opened for the glue breaking down. At that point I would use some other glue over it, making sure you are making contact with the wood as well as the glue. As the old saying goes, "If it works, don't fix it" or something like that. If your houses are such that you can use another glue with no problem, then I would do it. That's just my opinion.

Linda

Soldering Irons: Flat end or pointed end? The first question to ask is what size?
Depending on the type of soldering iron, a flat end (and I presume you are referring to a wedge shape) could be anything from 1 mm to 6 mm. For wiring a doll's house, I would recommend a fairly small size tip in conjunction with a power rating of 15 to 25 W. My preference would be for a 2.3 mm tip and these tend to be flat on the top and rounded below. This should be suitable for soldering wires as well as soldering to the copper strip.

Soldering irons are made by a number of manufacturers, from well known reliable companies to those dubious types supplied at very low cost from some market stalls. You do not say which manufacturer of iron or catalogue you are using, but if you let me have these details I will gladly pass on my suggestions and recommendations of types that may be suitable.

Neil

cutting tin, etc: I bought a hand-held metal cutter from Micro-Mark which does a great job of cutting thin metal. It nips out a little bit at a time and doesn't distort the edges. I used it to cut a cheap metal photo frame for a fireplace and it cut around the corners of that without flattening it out. (See House in Progress in my photos.) It is called a metal shear, item #60662 in their catalog and costs about $12.50. You can order on line at http://www.micromark.com

Chris in Minnesota

After waiting a year I finally received a telescopic lense screwed into a glasses frame. the other side is left empty, and onto this telescope I have two different lenses which clip on, one for reading and one for mini work, and the telescope is to see normally. anyone with really bad vision is able to now see close up! it is wonderful and has no name I know of, but is available through Optometrists. It was well worth the wait to see my pixie for the first time in years. (and he looks so kind). It is well worth asking your eye drs about for relatives or yourself with bad sight. It is very expensive, but you can buy lenses as you can afford them, for different sights, to see minis properly at long last.

Robbie

Health Issues: Folks, I'm pulling out my old soapbox for this one. The stuff we work with like glues are the things that are killing teenagers because they sniff it. We just lock ourselves in our rooms and work ourselves sick because we are...working.

Please be aware of every bottle and jar you open. Take a minute to read it. How many hours do you sit with the nail polish open, coating things, letting them dry? Paints? What kind? Sprays...OUTSIDE and leave it there. Just give every media a quick read and take it outside or to the garage to paint and dry.

I finally got my Asthma diagnosed at age 50. No one in my family has ever had it. Remember, a miniaturist is a terrible thing to waste. You get to learn what I didn't.

Laurie Sisson

Paint removal: I was at Wall-Mart the other day in the paint section looking for a drop cloth. I am in the middle of painting the interior of the real house. Since I am the messiest painter in the world a product called OOPS! caught my eye. The label says that it removes dried latex paint, tar, lipstick, crayons, gum, ink, adhesive residue, oil, magic marker, and grease. It does have a list of cautions almost a mile long but I can tell you it took light beige paint out of dark green carpet in my dining room before DH saw said paint very well. I have no idea how safe it would be in dh application but if you have paint on a favorite pair of jeans or a spill on something that is ruined with the paint it might be worth a shot. My carpet looks fine where I missed the drop cloth and DH is really picky (he is the kind that can spot the smallest flaw from across the room)

Joanne in Beavercreek Oregon

Tall acrylic boxes: I think those tall acrylic boxes could hold

Those spray bottles of Fantastic and Windex. Do not discard them. I diluted some of my acrylic paint with water and put it in the spray container and used it to spray paint onto my steel wool trees (green of course).

Next thing I found out was that if I cleaned out the paint and put in Elmer's glue with water and shook it real good. I can spray a surface with the diluted glue and sprinkle what ever I want on to the surface and it sticks when things dry out.

I also found that if I am putting sand on a surface, I first spray with the diluted glue and drizzle the sand on and then I spray after that and the sand is rock hard bonded between the two layers of glue. When I tip the diorama no sand comes off. I then flush out the spray bottle for the next time. I am as happy as a pig in mud (or was it something else?)

DrBob...Delray Beach, FL.

I found a WONDERFUL mini-helper in the scrap wood heap last week. My hubby had used a piece of 2"x4" scrap lumber, cut to about 8" long for testing his settings when making borings for another project. It is full of various size holes which are just perfect for sitting glue and paint bottles into upside down. I drilled some smaller holes for paint brushes, meat skewers and toothpicks. It keeps everything right together and ready for use. I love it!

Reva in Loveland Ohio.

Legos: Please, don't get rid of all your Legos, for they can be of very good use. When you want to glue things in a right angle, just make a wall with a corner with your Lego, put the glue thing in it and use a rubber band to keep it in the corner and let dry. This works very well for me and it might work for you as well!

Marjon de Haas (The Netherlands)