A Tiny Career Change

I have not posted in a while because I have been VERY busy. As you know, I love building little houses. However, recently my day job as a corporate environmental lawyer just has not been cutting it or making me happy. Because of this, two months ago I quit my job and enrolled to study architecture at university. Im really poor now, but Im happy! 

Below are some pictures of our first major project. The purpose of the assignment was to teach us about structural framing. It was a bit of a challenge to build a whole house from technical plans (as opposed to dollhouses where walls are solid) but it was fun. 

These are some projects from our first year design subject, so much balsa wood!

Look forward to some more miniatures which will (hopefully) now be better informed and more interesting thanks to all the new skills I will be picking up!

Another 1:144 Scale Project - Little Toy Dollhouse

I haven't made many posts in the past few months, so here is an update of a little project I have had going. I have been doing more 1:144 scale houses lately mainly because my apartment is so small and they are manageable projects!

I wanted to make this little house look more like a toy dollhouse one would have, rather than an authentic house in miniature.

 I made the house from stiff card and coloured paper.

It looks right at home in my dollhouse bedroom. This is an adult's room though, so I'm sure it would look even better in a nursery. 

    

I got the small pieces of furniture from SDK Minitaures. They were more than a bit fiddly to put together!

Palladian Cat Villa: Update

Since my last post about a project in which I made a miniature Palladian villa for my new kitten, little Frankie Mayonnaise has finally arrived. By popular demand from several of my lovely followers, here is an update.

I'm pleased to say Frankie Mayonnaise loves her castle. 

She is also quite fond of dollhouses (although that is mainly because she likes to destroy them). 

If you use Instagram, follow her too! @frankie_mayonnaise 

Hanging and Ageing Tiny Doors - A Tutorial

Preparing and hanging doors is a tricky business. To get a real aged look you have to create wear and tear.

Lightly sand the surface and then smudge it very lightly with grey chalk pastel. Be sure to smudge only where ordinary wear and tear would be, such as around the door handle. 

To add more realism I made a faux door catch by cutting an indent on one door (above) and gluing a small brass square on the other (below).

I hung the door using hinges rather than using a pin (which is easier).

This required carefully cutting in where the hinges will go.

I superglued the hinges on, and then drilled little holes for the nails. This makes it much easier than trying to nail it when it is not fixed in place. Also, be sure to drill the holes and glue in the nails rather than nailing them in with a hammer. If you nail them in the chances are the delicate wood of your door will split. 

It is important to ensure your hinges are perfectly lined up and horizontal, otherwise the door will not open or the hinges will break when you open it.

The result is pleasing.

Miniature Palladian House for a New Kitten

I am going to be getting a new little kitten next week, and so have been planning and collecting supplies for her arrival. Despite extensive searches I couldn't find a cat bed I liked. They all seem to look like giant bean bag chunky things with bad/ugly fabric. As such I decided to create my own.

I had a pile of card board outside and decided to recycle it. I wanted to use my miniature skillz to create an architecturally correct cat house which is a good hidey-hole for puss but also looks novelty.

I am particularly enamoured of the great neo-classical architecture of Palladio. Especially the Villa Chiericati.

I decided to copy it in miniature. The cat house measures 38cm square. 

There is circular door in the back of the house for puss to enter. 

I decided to replace the Palladian statuettes with neo-classical cats.

It looks surprisingly inconspicuous in the lounge room.  

The test will be whether the little cat is actually interested in it...

  

Tiny Accessories

As an almost final touch (because a miniature room can never really be finished) I bought a tiny but realistic ashtray. People smoked indoors in the 50s, so I thought it added a special touch of realism. Such "adult" things are not always easy to find in miniature.

Little Touches

Today some little throw pillows I ordered arrived. I ordered them from Annina at Miniatures by Annina on Etsy.

They look lovely. Because she has filled them with a type of sand rather than stuffing, they have a more realistic look. 

It is now summer in Melbourne, and today the temperature reached 36 degrees (97 degrees F). Because of this when I came home my little shelf had fallen off the wall because the blu-tack had melted! Such hot weather always makes me feel like Christmas will soon be here (Yay!).