I see the Harbor Lights..........

Ooooooooh, this build has been so much fun! The new laser cut kits at Greenleaf totally rock! I built the lighthouse from start to finish in 6 days. There's no more sanding with the laser cut kits and that not only made the build go faster, but it was so much easier on my hands.





I'm a landlocked girl and always have been so it was kind of surprising for me to build a lighthouse. Never having seen a lighthouse in real life, I didn't even know where to start. Oh wait a minute. I *have* seen a lighthouse in real life, but it's in the middle of Kansas so I don't think that really counts. Anyone who would put a lighthouse in the middle of Kansas probably wasn't much on historical accuracy anyway. I couldn't resist adding a little dazzle to the floors after I found out that the floors in stone lighthouses often had a decorative pattern. This one has the moon phases which is very apt for a lighthouse, don't you think? All in all, I'm pretty happy with the way it came out.





Click on the video below for pics of the lighthouse and pier, or you can go to http://www.debsminis.com/ and find the album for the lighthouse in my 1:12 scale gallery.



Sing along with me!


~~Sittin' on the dock of the bay...............~~

A little seduction never hurt anyone

I have a theory that one of the things miniaturists find so appealing about dollhouses is that we can create our fantasy worlds in miniature. Things that we may not be able to do or have in real life become possible in dollhouses and room boxes. Actually, that's not just a theory. I know a lot of miniaturists and I've asked around. They all agree. It may not be the primary reason for why we do what we do, but it ranks up there in the top ten. That's why there are so many dollhouses featuring witches, wizards and fairies. We love to exercise our fantasies in miniature.

So, why is it that mainstream miniatures are all so traditional? Are manufacturers missing a huge demographic? I mean, it's not like they don't ask around about what miniaturists like. If I can find out about the fantasy thing, I'm sure they know about it too. So why is it that all we see is the same victorian, mahogany, white upholstered, cabriole legged, brass handled furniture? Oh, there are examples of modern furniture and the occasional side trip into rustic country or shabby chic but who made the rule that all dollhouse furniture has to fit into a stereotypical form? I'm pretty sure that not all our fantasies have to do with victorian houses and Queen Anne furniture.

I know, I know, it's all about mass appeal and manufacturers and retailers are always going to cater to the mainstream. Believe me, I'm not complaining because it's that mainstream philosophy that gives us artisans a place in the miniature world.

I've made so many of the furnishings in my houses because I couldn't find retail miniatures that fit the themes. I built kimono chests and tatami mats and futon frames for my samurai's house. I ventured into the world of paperclay because I wanted leaf shaped furniture for my fairy's house. It's been more fun than the law should allow.

When I started dressing furniture for sale I began with the traditional styles. After all, according to the retailers, that's what people wanted. It didn't take long before my Muse insisted that traditional is just not what we do and pretty soon there were four-poster beds with enough sequins to make a mirrored disco ball feel inadequate and other four-poster beds made of leather and lace that came with accessories like a little leather whip.

I'm a very sensory person (a handy thing for a textile artist to be) so when I create miniatures I like to use a lot of textures so the owner will enjoy handling them as much as looking at them. I still make mainstream miniatures that fit into victorian or country decor and but they use vivid colors, textures and patterns that put a sparkle into small rooms. But more than anything else, I love using sensuous fabrics like silks and velvets. I love seeing a rumpled silk bed that makes one wonder what the little person of the house has been up to!

Sometimes it's a touch of virginal innocence and sometimes it's the steamy passion of heavy velvet and animal prints, but isn't it all delightful to see a hint of seduction or a touch of sensual expression showing up where you least expect it!

Phil O'Dendron

I get really tickled when I find a special miniature. I know I'm easily amused but there are some miniatures that just appeal to my sense of humor. This little book by Blue Kitty Miniatures is one of them. When I saw him, I knew he had to come live with me. Isn't he adorable? I named him Phil O'Dendron.

There was quite the mini disturbance when Phil arrived today. I won't go into details, but you can read about it here. I think I have all the scorch marks off the wall and the dragons are sedated.

My hubby usually takes everything in stride but when I told him about the disturbance, he asked if I'd been mixing up my meds again. Okay, so maybe I got a little too involved with my minis today, but damn, it was fun.

I've discovered that minis bring out that side of me. For example, a few weeks ago I was cleaning the living room and needed to move C'est Si Bon off the glass table where she resides. I moved the dolls off the patio first and laid them on the floor under the table so they'd be safe. I cleaned the table to a sparkling shine and replaced the house, totally spacing out that I hadn't put the dolls back. A little while later I was walking thru the living room with my hands full and noticed the dolls laying on the floor. Now I often talk outloud to myself when I make a mental note so I don't forget things. The talking to myself doesn't bother me. However what I said was a bit disconcerting. What did I say?

"You need to pick up your dolls"

*sigh*

I don't think that's something a middle aged woman should be saying to herself.

Greenleaf Spring Fling!

What's better than a Cadbury egg and three pounds of chocolate bunnies? The Greenleaf Spring Fling contest!

I love spring because there's so much new life bursting out everywhere. Everything gets green and fresh again. After a winter full of brown and grey, I can hardly wait for things to turn green again.

The folks at Greenleaf are as excited about Spring as I am because it's time for the annual Spring Fling contest. And what is a Spring Fling you ask? It's the best miniature contest ever. Every year Greenleaf releases a new kit with a super low price and invites miniaturists all over the world to get creative. There have been some fabulous entries in the past but this year is promising to be the best ever.

Greenleaf designed a totally new house this year! It's a 1:12 scale dollhouse kit with two rooms and the coolest design for a dollhouse you ever did see. People are already excited about what they're going to do with the kit and they just started shipping out this week! If you hear news reports about mailmen being stalked over the next week or so, you can put it down to Spring Fling.

I've already had a chance to build one of these little darlings and they are such a delight to build! For an expert builder, there's plenty of challenge with all it's potential but it's still easy for a novice to build. That was definitely planned by Greenleaf because this year they've added a junior division of the contest. How cool is that!

To find out more about Spring Fling and how to get your kit and enter the contest, visit Greenleaf here.

I've put together a little slideshow of mine. This one isn't entering the contest since it's going up for sale in my Etsy store this weekend. As the Editor-in-Chief of the Greenleaf Gazette I sometimes get to test new prototypes like this one. Some lucky person is not only going to get a great dollhouse, but they'll get one of the first of these houses ever built.

Moving pictures!

So, way back before I started off on my miniature adventure, I was a computer geek. To be specific, I fixed computers. It's something I enjoyed a lot because, well, I'm a Virgo and fixing things is something that we Virgos just loooooooove to do. I spent a few years working for one of those major cable ISP's when broadband was new (Yes Children, that was back when the earth was cooling and none of the dinosaurs had a laptop) Working for the ISP was interesting because I was one of the pioneer members of their corporate escalations/customer retention department. On one hand that was kind of cool because we had all the fun tools and complete liberty to fix anything that came across our desk. Not only did I have access to things in the network that most people didn't know existed but I could tell customers, "Okay, grab that screwdriver and let's pop open that computer case and see what we've got in there". On the other hand, I never got to talk to anyone who wasn't seriously pissed off so that part sort of dulled the luster on my crown of geekiness.

Anyway, before that gig with the ISP, I worked for a huge tech support company. I won't name names, but in the 90's they provided all the tech support for Apple Computers. I loved every second of it! Apple is such a cool company to work for. I was the technical training manager so I got to be in on all the new products and worked with Apple's research and development department. (now there are some true geeks!)


One of the really cool applications that came around in the 90's was a little bit of software called Avid Cinema. It was bundled on the Performa 6400 and turned the video world around. All the Apple Masters (a huge collection of celebrity musicians, artists and authors) were twitterpated and with good reason. This wonderous new technology had timelines and storyboards where you could drag and drop music and pictures to make movies. It was simple to use and opened up a whole new world for a lot of people. It was a little before it's time since digital cameras had yet to become household items, but oh, it was still glorious!

Storyboard video software is nothing new anymore since Windows grabbed the idea from Apple and started bundling something like it on all their computers. Now it's common technology and readily available to everyone.

You're probably yawning by now and wondering where my rambling is leading and how this relates to miniatures. In a way it does because slideshows and movies are a fun way to get our miniatures out there for the rest of the world to see. Our little miniature world doesn't get a lot of recognition in the mainstream world because people don't even know it exists or they think dollhouses and miniatures are toys for children. As miniaturists, we need to take every avenue available to us to share the joy of minatures with everyone we can. The internet has caused a resurgence of popularity because it made it possible for us to network with each other and even bring new miniaturists into the hobby. What better use for technology than to reach out to a younger generation?

Flashing pictures, special effects, and music make any content more appealing and storyboard software makes it easy to do. I spent yesterday playing around with some storyboard software and created some video slideshows set to music, then posted them to You Tube. I've seen all my pictures before but seeing them in that context made them all new and exciting. I hope that it has the same effect on others when they see them and maybe inspire a few to take up minatures as a way of life.

It may be small, but it still needs to be comfy!

Wanna know one of my wee obsessions? I think that miniature furniture should be comfy. Yes I know, the dolls aren't real people and they won't notice if a bed is comfortable or not. That doesn't change the fact that my brain insists tiny furniture should be soft and inviting. For one thing it adds to the goal of realism in miniature scale and that's always a good thing. But my obsession goes one step beyond that to actually making the furniture so comfortable that if you let your imagination take you away for a moment you can really feel yourself sinking down into deep cushions and downy pillows.

I'm very sensory oriented so that probably explains my obsession but I love being able to put it to use in miniatures. When I dress a bed, I use fabrics that are a delight to the senses. I combine different textures in each bed to create a piece that's not only visually stimulating, but are also irresisitble to touch. Run your finger across the top of a bed and feel silky satins, soft cottons, sensuous brocades and delicate lace. I like to add in surprising touches of velvet and buttery soft suedes. Most of all, I like to create a contrast between the wood and fabrics that brings out the best of all textures.

Recently one of my best clients asked if I could get him a specific style of living room furniture. I dug around thru my dealer catalogs and found the style he was looking for. The next thing I knew, we were discussing re-upholstering the furniture to match the decor in his miniature living room and how many pillows and throws would be just right. Somewhere in the middle of that conversation I realized that we were discussing a custom order and that I'd be venturing into a new type of miniature textiles. I was delighted! For one thing I like trying new things but mainly I loved how our conversation of "what if" had naturally evolved into a real dressed living room....something I'd thought about but had never gotten around to making.

I'm going to digress just a little bit about how much I love the planning process. I spend a lot of time with my clients when they request something special. It's a rush for me to discuss miniatures and get a visual of someone else's ideal dollhouse room. I love to find out what kind of wallpaper they'll be using.........what type of flooring.......will there be heavy woodwork in the room.......how many windows........will the room have lamps or will it be a little dark......... Those questions not only delight the miniaturist in me, but it gives me the information to create the furniture to make that room picture perfect!

The conversation can go on for days and even weeks. I like to learn everything about the room. I want to know the era of the house and what styles are represented in other rooms in the dollhouse. I ask about the story behind the dollhouse or roombox and what kind of people live there. Finding out the personality of the people living there is one of the most important things to know since the furniture will reflect that personality. So in addition to getting to know my clients, I also get to know their dollhouses and the little people who live there (even if there aren't any dolls in residence) When I learn things like "she's a very practical lady with strict victorian sensibilities but she does appreciate the finer things in life", I know to make a bed that's spartan and functional yet has the softest cotton blankets and a silk bedspread. Learning that "she's a world traveler who likes the exotic, yet she still has a sense of girlish whimsy" leads me to making a bed with unique and sensual textures and just a light touch of femininity. I think the planning process is so much fun for me because that's when the creating process begins.

That ties into my obsession with making comfy miniature furniture. I don't perceive it as dollhouse furniture.........I see it as a small representation of our dream homes. Therefore the furniture should be as inviting as it is in our big houses. Chairs and sofas should have soft cushions that sink deeply when pressed with a finger and pillows should be fluffy. A throw casually tossed over the arm of a chair or daybed is close at hand to snuggle under if one should want to drift into a sweet nap. All these little comforts come together to make miniature furniture that transforms a dollhouse into a miniature home.

Well I didn't get old on purpose!!!

Recently my rhuematologist said those words that I'd been dreading, "Deb, it's time for you to start physical therapy". Oh, I know it's something that I need to do. And I'm the first to admit that it would be nice to be able to stand up long enough to cook dinner. Not that the veiw from my kitchen floor isn't interesting, but it's really hard to reach the stove when I'm sitting on the floor waiting for my back to unlock. I also understand that arthritis and degenerating discs will be easier to control if I teach my muscles to compensate for the weakness in my bones. My brain tells me all these things but yet a little voice in the back of my head says, "Oooooooooooh, this is gonna hurt soooooooo bad".

The first step was to call the PT office and get an appointment. When a chipper, young voice answered the phone, I reminded myself that it would be unreasonable to hate her just because I have house plants that are older than she is. I gave her my name and the name of my rhuematologist and explained that I was calling to set up an appointment. She was really sweet and started thru the questions to set up my file. We got thru my name, address, age, etc and then she asked, "Why do you need to see a physical therapist? Is it the result of an accident?"

I couldn't help myself. I blurted out, "Well, I didn't get old on purpose!".

She may be young but her reflexes aren't that great coz I heard her burst out laughing before she could hit the mute button on her phone.

With my appointment scheduled, I had a few days to think about the whole thing. The biggest initial obstacle was convincing myself that I could leave the house and go out in public wearing sweat pants.

When the big day arrived, my hubby drove me to the appointment. When I walked in the door the first thing that caught my eye were all the machines. Row upon row of shiny machines. BIG shiny machines. Machines with bars and straps and belts and pulleys. I immediately had a flashback to 8th grade World History and the pictures in my textbook of the torture devices used during the Spanish Inquisition.

My hubby may not be young but he still has good reflexes and managed to grab the back of my shirt when I bolted for the door. As he pulled me back thru the door I hissed, "Fine. But if that therapist's name tag says Torquemada, I'm holding you personally responsible."

Turns out his name is Dave and he's a very nice young man. He didn't make me use any of the torture devices since it was my first visit. We'll be doing those later this week. He pointed to one that has straps and pulleys on it and said that would be the one we'd start on. I'm going to Google it just to be sure it's not a new version of the Rack.

The good thing is that since the therapy is focusing on my back right now, it doesn't effect my hands and I can still work on my minis. I'm adding a line of day beds to Deb's Minis and finished three of them already. I always get delighted when I do something new. My muse and I spent about four hours playing with designs for bolster pillows before I had a Eureka! moment and scared the cat again. I'm happy with the end results of the day beds. Now if I could just figure out how to shrink myself down and snuggle in those soft pillows for a nice nap.

300 Monkeys: (or: Learning about Photography)

My approach to photography is a lot like the theory that if 300 monkeys typed for 300 years, one of them would produce the works of Shakespeare. In other words, I play the odds. If I take as many pictures as possible from as many different angles as possible, somewhere in there I'll get a good picture. As you can imagine, I spend a lot of time editing pictures. LOL!

But I'm learning things along the way. I learned how to use a white or light blue background to reflect the light properly. Since my miniatures range from tiny embroidered pillows all the way up to large dollhouses, I needed a large space so I set up a permanent photography table with a white sheet fixed to the wall and draped over the table. That was easy and it eliminated the background "noise" as well. Then I learned how to use the macro setting on my camera and it quickly became my new best friend. When I replaced my camera last year one of the things that was a neccessity was a good macro setting and as high a resolution as I could get. I drove a salesman crazy because he didn't understand why I needed to take pictures of things that are only one inch tall.

So with my nice, white background and some practice with macro settings, I made progress. My pictures were beginning to look a little more professional...........or at least they were showing the subject matter a little more clearly. But I still wasn't getting the quality I wanted and determined that my lighting was a problem. I have three 100 watt bulbs going in the studio and while that's good for my eyes, it's not ideal for pictures. Outdoor light is always best but hauling a background out to the backyard as well as a huge dollhouse just isn't feasible. I tried the obvious solution first........a drop light with an aluminum hood. You know the ones I'm talking about. They sell for a couple bucks at any hardware store and have a clamp on them so they can be fixed into convenient positions. Okay, that was marginally better. At least I had a little more light focused on my subject matter but it still wasn't quite right.

I fixed my hubby his favorite meal and then broke the news to him that the new shop lights he'd just bought for the garage were now residing in my studio. Fortunately he's a good sport and didn't fuss at all. He just went and bought another set for the garage. The shop lights definitely made a difference in my photography! They're on a stand and adjustable both in height and angle. Now I had the background, the right camera and proper lighting! My pictures were definitely looking much better.

There was still a constant battle with shadows. I used the drop light as a spotlight but it didn't always give me the consistent light I wanted. Then I discovered the Lumiere portable photography studio. Actually, that discovery was fairly easy since my hubby had placed it under the Christmas tree! The photo box is excellent for pictures of the dressed beds that I sell and that alone thrilled me. But the lights were exactly what I needed to use for baby spots to take the shadows out of my pictures. I was doing some serious happy dancing when I saw the pictures taken after I pulled it all together! I'm still doing a lot of experimenting with lighting and the settings on my camera. I have a lot more to learn but it feels really good to have a grasp on the basics.

Obviously, I'm a complete novice when it comes to photography but I realize that in order to display my work properly and professionally, I need to have at least a small skill set with a camera. So I'm continuing to practice and learn. As with any skill, practice is the key. I play around with the camera, experimenting with the lights and trying new things.

Today, I was playing around with backlighting. In my experiments I've discovered some beautiful effects by focusing light in one area of the picture while using shadows for contrast. I'm sure there's a name for that but I have no idea what it would be.........I just called it "I have some free time today so I'm going to play with the lights and see what happens when I back or side light a subject". LOL

In "The Zone"

I just looked at the calendar and realized that I've lost about a week somewhere. Actually, that's not all that unusual when I get sucked into "The Zone". I've been known to lose a whole month, so one week isn't all that bad. The creative Zone is kind of like the Twilight Zone except there's no ominous voice-over in the background. .....unless you count the voice of a lonely husband asking if you're ever coming out of the studio and making wistful references to the days when meals were home cooked and not ordered in. (if there wasn't a phone in the studio with the chinese delivery place on speed dial, we'd both starve)

It happens to me sometimes when I get so into a project that I obsess and can't seem to tear myself away from it. I'm an insomniac and usually I wish that I could get more sleep, but when I'm really into a project, I look forward to sleepless nights because it gives me more time in the studio. Pitiful, huh.

So, Fifi is almost finished and is so enamoured with herself tonight that she let me get away for a couple of hours. Her interior is completed and furnished and when I left her just now, she was preening in the reflection of her lights in the windows. The exterior is done as well and all that's left is the landscaping. I spent a couple of hours today gluing tiny leaves and roses onto trellises for her while the paperclay dries. It'll be ready to paint tomorrow morning and after the paint dries, putting in the fences, grass and accent pieces will be fast and easy. I must admit that she's turned out beautifully and all of Fifi's plans have been perfect for her.

One little bit of stubborn behavior has been with the chairs. I'm happy with the way the tablecloths came out and even the teeny little folded napkins on the tables, but the chair covers have been putting up a fight. Every design I've tried just hasn't come out quite right. So this evening, I lined up all six chairs and pulled out my dremel stylus. Holding it to the seat of one chair, I announced, "Okay, enough is enough. If you don't start cooperating with me, your friend here is going to have more holes than swiss cheese." There was silence from the chairs. I hit the power button on the dremel and cranked it up to 10. Over the whine of the motor, I said, "I'm not kidding. And the dremel is only the start. If things don't start working out better, I'm getting out the jigsaw. I know at least a thousand ways to turn wood into sawdust, so start talking". Amazing how cooperative things can be if you just motivate them properly. I think I have the perfect design idea for the chair covers now. We'll see how it works out in practical application.

I'm not sure what's worse........me threatening little chairs at dremel point or the fact that my husband thinks it's perfectly normal.

Well, here we are......

I've never been good at keeping diaries. Even as a kid, I felt silly about locking my diary because there was never anything written in it. Of course, keeping it locked and hidden did drive my brother crazy so that was probably why I had a diary in the first place.

Anyway, here we are with a shiny new blog. It's the cyber version of a brand new notebook.........full of potential and promise yet slightly intimidating. On the other hand, I've never run short of words so I'm sure I'll find something to write about. And since the thing I like to talk about most is miniatures, we'll definitely be chatting about them a lot.

I just finished four new beds so I'm a little tired tonight. I've also got a very miffed dollhouse sitting on the work table in my studio because I've been making beds instead of paying attention to her. Her working name is Fifi and she's the jealous type. A new dollhouse kit arrived today and it was so irresistible that I had to put it in dry fit to start the "talking" process with it. I have a feeling that it's going to be a Mexican hacienda but we're not sure yet. At any rate, Fifi is not pleased with this stranger intruding into her workspace when she's only 2/3's complete. I just turned the light off and left them alone to work things out. Tomorrow morning I'll either find out that they've made friends or there will be nothing left of a mexican hacienda and a french cafe but a room full of splinters. Only in the miniature world could I have an international incident occuring in my own home!