Still up to my ears in boxes - and books...

Thanks to you all for your good wishes re the move.  It went okay but there are still LOTS of unpacked boxes sitting in the garage - not only can I not get to the workbench we can't get the car in!! :)  We arrived in Australia with two suitcases - where did all this other stuff come from??????? 

Internet was finally connected yesterday so I can begin to catch up on what's been going on out there recently.  Not sure when I'll get to do anything productive in the mini world but at least I feel that I'm 'back in the loop' again which is a good thing.

And I'm back at uni!  A bit of a shock to the system after having the whole of last semester off, which was preceded by the summer vacation, so it's several months since I've had to find the discipline to study.  The time off was beneficial and fun but I fear that my brain has grown a bit of mould ;)

A warm welcome to all the new faces on my Followers list! I have had a look at some of your profiles to look for links to your blogs but on many of them I can't find the link which is a shame so if you have a blog perhaps check your Profile settings to make sure your blog link is featured.

Taking time out to move

We're moving house on the weekend so just letting you know that I'll probably be absent from Blogland for a little while due to moving and resettling chores and also I'm anticipating that we may have a bit of a wait for the internet to be reconnected. 

A big plus at the new place is that there is an area in the garage where I'm hoping to set up a workbench - that'll be a real luxury - no more sawdust all over the living area :) 

See you all soon but right now I've got more boxes to pack ...



I am entranced by a new blog "In the Court of the Gypsies"

I have recently discovered Daphne's new blog - I'm totally entranced and just can't keep it to myself.  Here are a few images from the cottage...

This cute little Brownie sculpted by Daphne

Pop on over and take a look:  click here

PS - Daphne is about to announce a giveaway - don't miss it!

Breathtaking miniature paper artist you MUST see

I just found this image of this incredible miniature paper construction on Pinterest and followed back to the source - click here to go to the source page at Merveilles en papier - the link is to the November 2010 archive where this creation appears. 

Oh to have the courage and skill to even attempt something like this!

All images credited to Laetitia Mieral @

http://merveillesenpapier.typepad.fr/merveillesenpapier/

Click here to visit Laetitia's Facebook page.

Little beanbag - gift exchange with Carolyn - chapter 2

Before going to New Zealand recently I looked through Carolyn's blog to see what I could possibly make for the 'girl who has everything' :)  Eventually I decided on a  simple white upholstered chair for the lady's bedroom in the shabby cottage.  However when we put it in there it just didn't look right, this is a difficult room to work with because the floor area isn't large and the vertical space is cut into with attic gables.  Carolyn got around this problem with great ingenuity, she simply slightly downsized the furniture which cleverly gives the illusion of space - and it was an illusion that fooled me!  The standard 1:12 chair looked totally out of place, however you could say that Carolyn's "loss" is Liberty's* gain because it's now gone off to her (after the addition of a couple of fairy cushions), and the 'French tapestry' cushion that accessorised the chair originally went to Mona because it matches the portrait on the bedroom screen she won in my recent giveaway.  *(Mercedes' daughter @ Liberty Biberty)


I had planned to make something for Carolyn's shabby cottage little boy's room too but ran out of time, and inspiration, before leaving but once I saw the room 'in the flesh' I knew just what to make for it.  So I haven't been entirely idle recently (nor spending 100% of time on my Pinterest!) - here is the beanbag and vintage Biggle's books (which Carolyn and her son have a soft spot for) - made since my return - bottom pic (courtesy of Carolyn) shows them in their new home - the little cushions were made by Carolyn and already in the room.

I've also made a simple little wooden bench for the end of the lady's bed in Carolyn's shabby cottage. I'm hoping it will suit the space and that the colour will be close to the blue accents in the rug. It's not in the mail yet so here it is photographed in the bedroom of my 1:16 house with a photograph of it's 'destination' next to it - hope you'll like it Carolyn!

Photo on right courtesy of Carolyn

PS - Since this post was published Carolyn has received the bench - and here it is in place

I'm so relieved to see the size and colour are just right

And I've received a second gift from Carolyn, some more pretty plates.  The florals will probably go in the shabby French apartment and the others in the modern kitchen that is still 'on the drawing board'.  Thank you Carolyn, they're just wonderful. 

Click here to visit Carolyn's blog  (Carolyn's Little Kitchen) and see more of her gorgeous shabby cottage and her original dollhouse, a Dutch canal house.

The bedroom in my 1:16 house is empty because all the furniture is packed away ready for our 'real world' move in a couple of weeks.  I wish the real apartment was as easy to pack as the dollhouse!!   

I'm Pinning my heart out!

I SHOULD be making minis, I SHOULD be doing laundry, I SHOULD be packing because we're moving house soon, I SHOULD be cleaning the house, I SHOULD be resting -  BUT I'm playing with Pinterest.

The best that I can say in my defence is that it's research - yes truly it is - so it's a kind of work - I'm saving gorgeous pics that I hope will inspire great minis!  I was ultra excited around 6 this morning because I found EXACTLY the sort of pictures I'd been looking for to show me how real exposed lath looks after old plaster falls off - it's important for a gal to know these things when she's  researching/working on a mini French property that should end up with a look of 'faded elegance' - probably more faded than elegant but that's ok. 

Exposed lath from Euro Antique Market blog

I'm having such fun filling my Pinterest albums with inspiring images, it works so much better than saving to a computer file.  One of the features I like best is that the source URL is saved with the image so there's no problem with knowing where it came from - which can be very important sometimes.  And it's fun looking at the albums of other people who share similar tastes and interests. 

Click here to visit my Pinterest page, click on a board to see all the images in that category in a larger size.  Maybe there's something there that will inspire YOU!  I hope so.

Do you have a Pinterest album??  If so please let me know in a comment - I'd like to come and take a look. 

If you don't, but would like to, let me know and I'll send you an invite.

Now I'm going to go and do something on my "I SHOULD be doing ..." list ......

Have I lost my mind? (This post now has an unfortunate postscript)

This isn't a mini, it's a "standard human size" old, battered cabinet with a bin. Clearly it's seen better days but I love it. It was rescued from the workshop of an old house that my cousin has just bought. She was with me when I bought the old sideboard (below) that is now in the New Zealand cottage bathroom after some repair and painting so she knew that it would appeal to me.

I won't be painting the old green cabinet though, it's great just as it is, well I think so anyway although there are others, perhaps saner than I, who do not agree. 

The green cabinet isn't the only thing she rescued from the old house - she just managed to get this old chest of drawers out of the clutches of her husband who was going to chop it up for firewood!

There will definitely be some 'upcycling' work to do here - for a start only two of the handles are intact, but it's generally in good condition (look at the beautifully shaped kickboard!) and it looks to be just the right size for the cottage upstairs bedroom, perhaps replacing the bookshelf in the corner...

Thank you Dot for coming to the rescue and saving these beauties for your perhaps slightly insane cousin :)  I won't get to see them 'in the flesh' until our summer visit which is some months away - I hope she can keep Trevor and his axe away from them until then!!

Postscript

I just heard that the old bin is no more :( 

It disintegrated when it was moved so my love affair with it has been somewhat shortlived.  It wasn't in the dry workshop with the chest of drawers but in a laundry and had been damaged by the damp, unfortunately that didn't become apparent until they went to move it.  Oh well, it is the demise of many of these old pieces that makes the ones that survive all the more valuable - there must be another one out there somewhere...

Meeting Carolyn, Mercedes and Frederica in New Zealand

I had a great time during my recent visit to New Zealand to celebrate my brother's birthday, it's not often that he and my sister and I get together as we live far from each other - they live pretty much at opposite ends of New Zealand while I'm on the other side of the Tasman Sea here in Sydney. Being able to meet up with some special New Zealand miniaturists as well was a real bonus.

When I discovered that Carolyn (Carolyn's Little Kitchen) lives not far from my brother visiting her was a definite 'must do' during my trip.  We had a great afternoon together, the time went much too fast - and what a surprise it was to discover that we both love purple, as you can see by my scarf and her cardigan - it may look black on your screen but trust me, it's definitely purple!  It was a delight to see her original dollhouse (the Canal house in the picture) and the shabby cottage that I've watched come together room by room through her blog.

Carolyn had some lovely surprises for me

  

The breakfast tray and plates are soooooo pretty!



This boudoir tray will be perfect for the French bedroom

As well as her Etsy store Carolyn also has an online minis store - well, actually at the moment it's offline because it was brought down by a hacker some months ago :(  I fell in love with the French slippers from The Dolls Cobbler that  Carolyn showed on her blog a little while ago and fortunately she had some on hand so how could I resist buying these beautiful little real leather shoes.......

My next big treat was spending several hours with Mercedes (Liberty Biberty) in Auckland when I transited through on my way back to Sydney.  To my great delight Mercedes invited Frederica (Frederica's Little World) to join us for lunch.  Enjoying a delicious lunch with Mercedes and her family (including cute as a button and very funny Liberty of course!) and Frederica was the perfect end to my New Zealand visit. Here we are in the Auckland sunshine in Mercedes' front yard

It was great was to have plenty of time to enjoy looking at Mercedes' fabulous projects: the barn, the shabby cottage, the Nylon's big house - and how exciting to meet Mr Nylon as he relaxed on his front porch!  

 How lucky I was to receive these pretty gifts from Mercedes

 

I've long admired Mercedes' shabby tables, now I have one of my own, the pretty paper minis and canisters are by her as well. (Sorry about the lighting problems in this pic)

These pretty little children's jackets by Frederica are just delightful - and they're mine!

Such lovely things from such talented and generous women. 

It was a pleasure and a privilege to have Carolyn and Mercedes welcome me into their homes, and to have Frederica take the time to visit.  I never imagined that my decision to start this little blog some 18 months ago would lead to friendships with such warm hearted and talented women as these.

Thanks again girls!!!

Click

here to visit Carolyn at "Carolyn's Little Kitchen"

here for Mercedes at "Liberty Biberty"

and here for Frederica at "Frederica's Little World"

I love Picnik!

A lot of the time I spent working on my friend  Rowan's blog last week (see previous post) was playing around with her images on the online photo editing website Picnik - if you haven't seen it before take a look and try it out - there are a heaps of free features or you can pay for Premium access.  There's a lot you can do with the free ones and it's REALLY user friendly. 

And it won't take the time it took me unless you too are afflicted with "perfectionitis" - here are some of the 'draft' versions of the image used on Rowan's Mexican Chowder post  (using the Polaroid framing feature)

made before I decided to go totally in the opposite direction with the density of the background colour - this is the published one ...

 If you haven't tried it yet pack up a few favourite images and take a Picnik this weekend - it's a lot of fun!!

I have blogged myself silly this week - but not for me!

My friend, Rowan Bishop, Foodwriter

Since arriving back from New Zealand last Sunday night I've spent many hours "ghost" blogging for a Foodwriter friend I'm helping out with her brand new blog.  She is my oldest friend and a very intelligent and accomplished woman but put her in front of a computer and she'll be the first to admit that all her powers mysteriously desert her.  Having been the one who bullied talked her into starting a blog about her food and travel adventures (currently several weeks in France and Italy) it seemed only fair that I help her out when she found herself faced with all kinds of problems including having the Dashboard language change to French (I don't know if she's got it back to English yet but last I heard she was thinking of throwing her laptop out of the window of her gite).   Anyway, because it's a brand new blog I have had the feeling that I've been pretty much talking to myself all week so if you'd like to join the conversation pay 'us' a visit at her blog "Rowan Bishop Foodwriter" - a word or two would give both of us a great deal of comfort and encouragement! :)

By the way I certainly can't take all the credit for how the blog looks.  The basic Blogger template was styled (brought to life!) by my talented daughter-in-law Lamina who created the header and co-ordinated the fonts and colours with the cover of Rowan's new cookbook.  It's been a wonderful foundation to build on and I've appreciated having her to run ideas by this week. 

All that blogging elsewhere has left me with a brain that is now about as much use as a fried computer chip so I must apologise - I'd fully intended to blog today about my recent visits with Carolyn, Mercedes and Frederica but it'll have to be next week ... sorry about that because I know you want to hear all about it, and I want to show you the gorgeous little gifts these generous women gave me, but please bear with me - I'll get to it as soon as my circuits recover :) 

To visit Rowan's blog click here, and here to visit Lamina

Photo of Rowan in her kitchen by Chris Hillock, Photographer  published courtesy of Foodtown Magazine