Wednesday, January 28, 2009

For Me

Out of all the dollhouses, roomboxes and scenes that I have created, I have never done one especially for me. Until now that is. Being that my favorite color is purple, I found it only natural that I should make a darling little bakery using that color. I am still waiting on the roof to dry, however these shots were best taken without the roof. I am only glueing down one side of it so that I can remove the other to view the interior.


This first picture is of the counter. You have a choice of Strawberry cake or Chocolate. Personally, they are both yummy.



This is a picture of the reception desk. Orders are place here and cookies are always a sweet treat.



Here you can see the clock and the guest table. They may be difficult to see but there are two wee cups on the table.


This little bakery was a gem to create. I am enjoying working in the quarter scale and am thinking of order another 6 piece kit. I'll keep you posted!!
Finally the back wall. The plant in the corner requires little care, which is a plus for a busy baker.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Ready for dinner?

Oh my! Shame on me for going so long inbetween postings. Well, I certainly have been busy. In my Hobby Builders Supply order, I received three books on working with clay, in miniature. Two of the books are by Barbara Meyer, a fantastic artisan in the creation of miniature foods and flowers. I am sure she does other fabulous work, but my books authored by her are for food and flowers. She gives a recipe for bread dough, not the kind used in making real life bread, but for use in making miniature items. She also gives very detailed instructions on her creations. She has worked many years perfecting her art. I was a bit sceptical on the bread dough but I gave it a try. It is a wonderful mixture that, at least for me, is easier to work with than polymer clay. Also, her dough is air drying so there is no worries of over baking as with the polymer clays. You can color the dough using acrylic paint mixed into it. It is also wonderful to just paint after it is dry. I have used permanent markers on it too.



In the picture, the shrimp, aspargus and the lettuce under the shrimp were all made from her recipe. The oranges, bananas, bread, muffins and cake were made with polymer clay. I received a pasta machine this past week-end for my polymer clays. It is a great machine. I don't think it would work well with the bread dough as I think it would stick too much to the rollers. I am still experimenting with the pasta machine and some day I hope to be able to create some of the wonderful mini foods I have seen.

Monday, January 5, 2009

Quiet Time

The past few days have been quiet for me as far as my creative muse. I am anxiously awaiting my order from Miniatures.com. I spoke with a CSR on Friday the second and she confirmed my order had arrived and was entered into the computer. She was such a nice gal. I wish I could remember her name but I called from work and was a little distracted. In my order will be three new guide books to working with polymer clay. I am really looking forward to creating some wonderful foods, flowers and sweets.

I am at a stand still with the Wine Shoppe. I mistakenly threw out the piece of foamcore that I had from cutting the hole for the door. I cannot seem to cut one that looks good enough. I guess that is one of the drawbacks to building from scratch and not from a kit. I thought of just leaving it without a door, but with the exterior sidewalk, it didn't seem realistic. I will continue to ponder the situation. I did make sure to save the piece I cut when making the doorway to the patio. Lesson Learned!