First day at Camp Mini Ha Ha - start of project

My workspace in the project room!

First full day of Camp started bright and early with breakfast and our first bag full of goodies made by our fellow campers!)  Then we were right to work on our project.

Our project is a corner scene with the theme of "Inside and Outside".  One of the things I really like about this camp is that we're all encouraged to go our own directions with the basic layout of the project. There are quite a variety of scenes being planned by the participants: English cottage, fairy house, hobbit hole, gardener's shed, Tuscan house and many more!  I decided to try a crofter's cottage with a stone floor and stuccoed exterior.

Lots of workshops today: wiring (with LEDs), various faux finishes (including bricks) and paint techniques. Lots of good advice: I learned about an excellent glue: Crafter's Choice, which dries clear and stable (unlike Tacky Glue, which continues to have some give to it).  Nice stuff, and amazing for work with foam.

One of the things I learned today was how to carve the 9/16" thick builder's foam we're using as the basic building material for our structures.

Draw flagstones (or rough, uneven shaped stones) in pencil on the foam.  This will be my floor, but of course you could use this technique for walls.

With a very sharp Olfa cutter or other small craft knife, cut v-shaped grooves for the lines between the stones.  Carve some of the stones a little uneven (as if a corner is chipped off, etc.).

Next, add texture.  We were shown how to use a rolled up, crumpled sheet of aluminium foil to texturize the foam surface.  I also added wear in the centre of the stones with various tools.

And at the end of the day today I had the basic framework of my crofter's cottage roughed out.

I've increased the size of the inside floor, and moved the window from the end wall to the door wall in order to make room for a fireplace.  I changed the end wall to incorporate a double thickness of chimney. 

I've left only enough room on the outside for a few climbing roses! Some people have made the garden area much, much bigger than the inside, and some have added extra baseboards for more garden!

I also got my mantlepiece done and painted (I made the large beam for the mantle from carved foam, which I'd never tried before), plus my door and window.

Tomorrow we learn how to upholster a chair and make draperies -- I probably won't use those in this project, but I am really looking forward to learning how to do them!

Camp Mini Ha Ha -- first evening

This is one of my favourite room boxes on display in the Exhibit Room:  it's called "Fixer Upper" and really reminds me of our house when we started ripping it apart :)  It's even got layers and layers of wallpaper over lathes!

I write this from the Annapolis Basic Conference Centre (the former Cornwallis Armed Forces Base) where I am ensconced in my very nice room after a busy day, a long drive and a few hours of exposition and hilarity :)

I am pretty much overwhelmed by the energy and talent of all these lovely people! Tonight was a bit of a blur -- looking at the exhibits in the Exhibit Room, trying to learn names, trying to pay attention and absorb the culture I've just dropped myself into.  I'm pretty socially awkward in large groups where I don't have a leadership role, so I generally cope by going quiet and trying to work out who's who and what's what ...

I think this is a lovely group of lunatics with a long shared history :)

After the announcements and introductions (there are about 35 of us, mostly from Ontario and Eastern Canada, with one, lone, American -- Mary Anne, I and and other woman are the only newbies) we had the draw for the first night's Giftie.  On each of the five nights of Camp, everyone who has brought a Giftie gets to participate in the gift exchange.  Seriously, the standard of work here is extremely high all around -- I would have been honoured to receive any of the items.  To my delight, I was chosen to receive this:

Isn't it stunning?  It's a handmade window with real lead and I adore it!  It's by Kelly Pinheiro, and I can't wait to incorporate it into something ...

I just figured out that in my mad rush to get everything packed and in the car I forgot the tube and mask for my CPAP machine, so we'll see what kind of sleep I get.  I have to be up very early (breakfast is at 7:45, I believe, with the first session of the day starting at 8:30 -- NOT opera hours :)) so I'm going to turn in now.  Goodnight, and more tomorrow!

Frantically getting ready for Camp Mini Ha Ha!

Annapolis Basin Conference Centre - can you tell it used to be an army base?  :)

Oh dear.  I seem to have procrastinated, and now I leave for Camp Mini Ha Ha tomorrow, and am I all packed?  NO!

(On the plus side, I have some book covers ready for download -- you can buy the downloads on this page :))

So today will be a whirlwind of preparations, I guess -- I wonder how many things I'll forget? I've been sent lists of stuff to bring and tools I'll need for the workshops, so it's all very organized in one way (on their end :)) but I am just not ready!

So, off to make some copies and put my tools together -- have a great mini day, and I'll be blogging from Camp!

Mini books galore!

I love making 1:12 scale books, and I've been making a lot of them lately. I'm also hard at work on a DIY kit for mini books, which will contain everything you need to make over 60 tiny books of various kinds (just add scissors and glue :))

More soon!

Another sampler!

I'm stitching up a storm!  I finished everything but the background on the Adam and Eve sampler yesterday, and am almost done with the detail of a sampler from Pamela Warner's excellent Miniature embroidery for the Georgian dolls' house. (I wanted to make good use of the bit of silk gauze I was using for the Adam and Eve sampler, so this one is also on 40 ct.)

 It's a very pretty piece, sprigged with potted plants, and featuring a Georgian house.  The original was signed Sarah Stuart, 1798.  I've changed some of the colours, and I'm very pleased with it!

I want to have a few pieces to take with me on a business trip I have next week, so I can just stitch background and not have to worry about counting a chart :)

Needlepoint sampler and getting ready for camp!

Hello, all!  I'm back after a very predictable long break :) From the beginning of June through August every year I'm busy with various operatic projects, but now I'm ready to get back to the world of very small things!

I'm going to attend Camp Mini Ha Ha in the Annapolis Valley for the first time, in two weeks, and I've been busy getting various little gifts and so forth finished. (I'm amazed that I was so focused on minis online that I never knew there was a big mini camp practically around the corner from me!)  I'm also making some items to sell, including some petit point.

This is Nancy Sturgeon's Early 18th century Adam and Eve sampler from Annelle Ferguson's great book, Traditional needlework in miniature. I foolishly started it on the wrong count silk gauze (I used 40 ct instead of 48) so I've taken the liberty of editing it a little (I've made it shorter) so it will be more in scale.  I've also made Eve a blonde :)

It feels lovely to be back, working in 1:12 scale again!  Lots of projects ahead, and I shall be reporting from the camp at the end of the month!

More miniature pottery by Sue Dix

Miniature pottery by Sue Dix

1:12 scale chamber pots by Sue Dix

I'm back in Canada, after a wonderful trip!  One of the boxes waiting for me was a custom order by American potter Sue Dix, whose work really pleases me.  She makes lovely, rustic pieces suitable for earlier period scenes, and I had ordered a number of her regular pieces.  I had also asked her to make me some chamber pots, as it's hard to find ones that look appropriate for pre mid-18th century scenes.

These were the reference photos I sent her of late 17th century chamber pots:

I think she did a brilliant job, and I now have four beautiful little chamber pots!  (I notice she has a few up for sale in her Etsy store, Suramics, right now, and I know she's always happy to make custom orders :))  Thank you, Sue!

Barnard Castle, Whitby and Scarborough

The only surviving oriel window in the ruins -- it gave me goosebumps to know that Richard III, my historical crush, stood at this window and saw this beautiful view.

After a lovely day at Barnard Castle on Monday, we went to Whitby on Tuesday and DIDN'T LOSE THE CAR KEYS.  This is quite an accomplishment.

I had heard a rumour that there was a little place to buy dolls house items in Whitby, and I found it in the Shambles Market in Whitby Marketplace.  It's called Angel, and has a small selection of mostly standard Dollshouse Emporium items.  I was able to get a few pretty prezzies for my dollshouse club friends as well as good deals on electric candlesticks.

Yesterday was a quiet day for me while David went out to photograph some of the trains at the North Yorkshire Moors Railway.  Later on I tap danced with the Easington Tappers! I think for next year I'm going to buy proper tappy shoes and really give this my serious consideration :)

Today we drove down to Hull to see a friend, stopping in Scarborough on our way down.  We were able to visit two brilliant shops here:  The Train Shop (where we picked up our first N scale loco and carriages) and, just around the corner, Box O' Trix, which sells some very special dolls house minis.  This is well worth a visit if you're going to be in Scarborough.

I picked up quite a few blue and white pieces, plus some very special little oddments, including a display of packets of pork scratchings for our pub!

Tomorrow is our last real day in England before we spend all Saturday travelling.  It's been such a great trip, and I'll try to post some photos of my buys once I get home!

Weekend in England: Ormesby Hall and family dinner!

Cleveland Mounted Police horses at Ormesby Hall

 Saturday we drove up to Ormesby Hall, just south of Middlesbrough.  This 18th century house has a very Queen Anne exterior, but is much more mid century fashionable inside. It has been the home of the Pennyman family for almost 400 years and is only open on weekends.

 The stable block is grander than the house, I think!  It's now the home of the Cleveland Mounted Police.

We weren't allowed to photograph the inside of the house (I suppose because people actually still live here :))  It's a shame because it's a perfect, rather shabby country house in an ideal scale for dolls house reproduction.  It's not a really big house, but has lovely ceilings and some stunning collections.  The attics now house several large model railway displays, which delighted David!  Well worth seeing.

On Sunday David had a bowling lesson at the bowls club, and then we had dinner at Kerry and Steven's where we had another superb meal (with Chris's imported yorkshire puddings :)) and the always-stimulating company of Anna, Eve and their giant dog, Max!

Great Ayton and Middlesbrough

Wisteria in Great Ayton

Had a lovely day in Great Ayton yesterday with David's cousin Rachel and her husband Martin!  We had a walk through the pretty village (the birthplace of Captain Cook) to The Buck where Martin and Rachel took us to lunch.  We had such a good time, in spite of the rain :)

Then we went shopping in Middlesbrough and took a look at the Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge, although it, sadly, was closed.