I Took a Trip

I Took A Trip On A Sailing Ship....

Several weeks ago, Dear Readers, I was enticed to buy this little model ship (which you see still in its packaging for safe-keeping...) when I was searching on-line for little electrical lights. The ship came with a table which could be very useful, and a pair of old "Ships Lanterns" which you can see below.

But it was the little model ship which I really wanted.... for Clarence... to remind him of his seafaring days.... once we get the Cupboard House a little more finished....! It will sit on the mantlepiece of his Library fireplace. This particular ship is a Schooner which resembles very closely the REAL Schooners which once plied the waters of New England.... and in fact still do sail along the coast of Maine with tourists on board. I had never Actually sailed on one of these Schooners until LAST WEEKEND when I went to Virginia for my Niece's Wedding and they hosted a party aboard The  Schooner "Alliance" sailing out of Yorktown, Virginia.

I could not have imagined that it would look so much like the tiny model ship!

With all it's sails catching the fresh breeze....

My Beautiful Niece and her Husband talking with my Daddy.......

It was an evening to Remember!

And lest you think that I got Nothing of a Mini-sort done all weekend..... 

I will show you what I Bought in a little tourist shop in the Old Williamsburg Plantation.....

In a Christmas shop I found this Gorgeous little Musical instrument! 

It will probably pass for a Cello or maybe a Bass Violin!

It is quite well made with real little strings and beautifully polished wood.

And that is not all I found......

They also had this Fantastic Electric Keyboard in Perfect 1:12 scale!!!

(Now I won't have to keep making one from cardboard for the Band!!)

So even while I was exploring the Historic Old Houses and Palace..... I had mini's in mind!

As for those mini lights I was searching for... 

I found a GREAT source for mini builders at  

ModelTrainSoftware.com

The kit for mini hobby lights comes with the battery holder and switch and a selection of lights to suit the size you are working with... 

I chose the 1.8mm LED and got extra ones.......

"Where am I planning to use them you ask?"

In the Folly Tree House, of Course!!!

Here you can see the Tiny Hearth without the lighting.....

And here you can see it with the LED lights!!!! 

I have painted the bulbs with a layer of yellow and orange paint to tone down the brightness.... even such tiny bulbs are brighter than needed in this Tiny room! The overhead light will need some kind of "shade" or Fixture.... but I haven't decided exactly what.....

And here you can see I have added the bubbling Cauldron over the fire.......!

I can't tell you how EASY these kit lights are.... 

and how Excited I am to have lighting in the Tree House!

So that's what I found when I took a Trip!

The Folly Tree

How Small Can It Be?

Dear Readers, I have been making some Progress on the Landscaping for "The Folly", although I must confess it is NOT Turning out Anything like what I had first Imagined! "How can that Be" You ask? Well, to begin with I was planning that "The Folly" would have a "domesticated" garden on the side where the Walled garden is, and on the other side where the little brook is to go there would be a "Wilder" garden with perhaps a slightly Japanese feel to it... all green and natural... with a large tree overhanging the brook and sheltering the House. That part of the plan has not changed.
But a Little over a week ago I drove across the Wilds of New Hampshire so that I could go to an

Art Gallery Opening Night 

(Please click on link to go to Amy's blog...)

to meet a Blog Friend whose Artwork I find very inspiring. Amy Gross makes the most AMAZING little creations.... both in the Dollhouse world and in her "Fuzzy Orbs" as I call them...

(Amy I am not sure what You call them!)....

Here is a picture of Some of them that I took at the Gallery... 

I just Love them and could get LOST in each tiny fungus adorned world.....

It was SO Worth the long drive to meet Amy and see her creations up close and for REAL!

And after the Long drive home .... quite late because they fed me Dinner Too!.....

I dreamed all night of amazing Fuzzy Mossy Landscapes.....

And the Big Tree beside "The Folly" became a Hollow Old Fungus Bedecked Tree.... 

And BEFORE I Knew WHAT had Happened.... the tree had Little Tiny Rooms in it.... 

one on top of another... for a Tree House for some Tiny Creatures to live in!!!

And when I woke up... I had the feeling I had fallen down the Rabbit Hole.....

Because THIS was one of those Ideas that Would NOT go away!

So I started to build the Tree House for "The Folly"!

The Tree was going to need a Sturdy and SOLID attachment to the base, so I needed to carve out the layers of Foam all the way to the bottom and attach the Main Tree Upright to the wooden base. I made the tree itself a separate wooden base layer so the whole Tree structure is removable while construction is under way. The vertical wires are coat hanger wires straightened and attached for the three other "corners" of the Tree House Trunk. The wires are so there is some flexibility in the shape of the tree as it is being constructed. The eventual outer layers of cardboard and paper mache will make it structurally solid. The wooden support on one corner is so I can attach the little hinged doors to the rooms.........

And here you can see I have carved out the upper layer of foam so that the Lowest Room will be "underground" in the roots of the tree.... and the door will be open on the side where the brook runs past...

Here I have started the basic structures carved from the foam... and the tiny steps from wood. The little "people figures" are stand-ins just so I can get the scale correct. How small are they you ask? The taller one is one and a half inches tall.... the shorter one is one and a quarter inches...... Yup, this is a Quarter scale Tree House! One Quarter inch equals one foot!

Here you can see the Kitchen floor painted to resemble stones.... 

and the Hearth begun and the stairs are painted and glued in place.

And I have started on the cupboard shelves.

Here you can see the cupboard doors in place and the hearth has some "coals" made from colored beads and that glittery gauzy cloth I like to use for smoke...... (sorry this picture is blurry...)

I realized fairly quickly that this TINY House was going to have to be all assembled and glued in place before the next room above was begun.... it is VERY hard to reach in even with the "ceiling" still not in place! And because I don't want it to take me YEARS to Finish THIS house.... I needed to make the things I needed rather than buy the parts.....

So I started to make the TINY dishes and pots for the Kitchen out of sculpey.....

The large white thing is the future Sink!

See how TINY they are??? Am I NUTS???

But the more I make... the more I am getting into the tiny scale......

Here you can see the beginnings of the Kitchen sink...... 

with peel off scrapbook "tiles" from Michaels...

The tiles are each about one quarter inch.....

Here it is painted.... with little faucets and beads for handles........

(next to the Super glue for scale....)

Finding the perfect piece of old plaid silk ribbon for a kitchen sink skirt.....

Isn't it Cute????

Here you can see the TINY cup hooks I added to the shelf to hang the TEENSY Tiny Cups.....

 And some more of the Tiny dishes.... all Glued in place!

Here you can see a Temporary mock-up of the outer layer of cardboard tree trunk.... 

just to give a sense of the size and proportions of the Tree House...... 

With the Little Door in the roots....

Yes, the leaning trunk is intended.... but it will have to lean less at the top!

Here is the view from the side where the "opening" to the kitchen level is located......

With the "Door" hinged to open.... 

this will be covered with paper mache to simulate tree bark.... 

and fungus and lichen to disguise the opening.....

 I still have NO Idea WHO is going to live here......

And there Sure is a LOT of Building to do......

And Eventually Maybe there will even be a Mossy and Fungus covered Landscape surrounding the Tree....

Inspired by the Beautiful Creations of Amy Gross.... (Thank you, Amy!!!)

But for Now I seem to have embarked on yet Another House project...

In a Scale I NEVER expected to be working in!!!!

Just HOW small can it Be?

Giveaway Winners!

And More Folly!

Dear Readers, Please forgive me for keeping you waiting for the announcement of my Giveaway Winners!
First, I want to thank so many of you for joining in the Giveaway, and even listing it on your own blogs! And there are many New Followers as a result.... and quite a few names written on small strips of paper....

And put in a little book box........ 

And then I had to ask Hazel if she would mind helping me with the selection of winners.....

She was only too happy to oblige!

So here we have Winner Number One.......

Iris March!...Please send me your address !!!!

And because there were so many entries.... 

we have Two Winners........

Ilona...!! Please send me your mailing address!!

Thank you ALL for following my blog and being so patient with my ever-changing projects!

Speaking of which....I HAVE been making some small progress on the new Base for "The Folly"! 

I realized that the solidity of the builders foam was not enough by itself for a sturdy base. I would need to make a framework for the foam panels. I started with some very thin and inexpensive plywood.... it is known as Luan...it is what is used to make those hollow-core doors.... anyway it is readily available in  this part of the world. For the sides I would want stronger wood... so I chose regular 3/8 inch plywood because I have lots of scraps .......

Here you can see the back "wall" with the opening for the "electrical cave" 

and another opening on the left which will be a Garden Gate... to nowhere.....

Here you can see the TINY Side Garden .......

And below you can see the base with the "Cellar" carved out of the foam.....

which I am calling the "Electrical Cave"....where the power strip will be hidden!

And here you can see it from the back side.....

And with The Folly in place........

And if you look carefully at the above picture you will see that I am testing out the idea of Chimneys for "The Folly"!! I am using pieces of the builders foam.... and will probably try the Egg Carton Brick method.....

Here's a better shot! I just can't accept a House with lovely fireplaces that has no chimney! 

And I do think it adds a whole lot of elegance to the structure.....

And while we are looking closely.... 

I have also painted the edges of the roof eaves to match the blue trim..... 

for the longest time they were the orange color of the walls and looked very ratty!

And this house kit does not come with trim for the outside corners.... which means that in certain conditions the sunlight shows through the crack into the interior room! So I have added trim made from regular stock strips...... which gives the House a much more realistic finished appearance!

The shingles' edges still need painting.... along with touch-ups in places.... 

and the Chimneys need bricks.....(I'm eating LOTS of eggs!)......

And the electrical wiring is still FAR from done.....

And the Landscape is barely begun...... So much still to do!

But at LEAST I can say we have 

Giveaway Winners!

Look What Arrived!

My Own Signature Sans! Suitcase Garden

Can You Believe how Utterly Delightful this Is?

Way back in January I was one of the LUCKY winners of Sans!' Blog Anniversary Gifts. She promised to send each winner a tiny Signature Sans Rusted Suitcase Garden! And being the Dedicated and Generous blog friend that she is.... she wanted to make them each different to suit the recipient... only asking which color suitcase we might prefer! Knowing that she had more than one to make, I told her not to hurry... to take her time....that we were used to waiting for spring around here! And if you are one of her followers you know how busy she has been.... both with making suitcase gardens.... and with visiting other Blog Friends in Europe! So Imagine how THRILLED I was when this little package arrived in my mailbox!!!!!

I immediately ran downstairs to see how it would look with "The Folly"!

And then I went looking for some of the other little Garden Gifts I received Last year....!

And before I had even set everything up..... Look who happened by.......

Hazel took ONE look at the little Suitcase Garden and Fell in LOVE...!

"What a Wonderful IDEA! A Garden in a Suitcase!" She exclaimed. 

"There doesn't seem to be anyone around to look after this properly..." she thought....

"I better take it home with me!"

"And just look at that tiny Bird House...!" 

"It looks Just the right size for Jenny Wren...!"

"Agatha! Come look what I found!" she hollered 

(Agatha is only a Little hard of hearing...!)

"Oh, MY!" Said Agatha....

"A Suitcase full of Posies! Well, I never!" 

"And those Darling little signs that say Chirp!" 

"How very Clever....!""Are the Flowers Singing Hazel??.... 

I can't quite hear them......!"

"No, No Agatha.... those are the Birds! The Birds on Daydreamer' Blog!"

"Are you Sure it's not the Flowers Singing... Hazel?" 

"I thought I heard the flowers singing once...."

 "Just wait until Daydreamer builds us our Own Garden, Agatha.....".......!

Seriously, Isn't this little Suitcase Garden Enchanting?! 

I just want to bring it Everywhere with me.....

A Tiny Suitcase filled with Birdsong and Garden Dreams.....

From the bottom of my Heart I THANK YOU Sans!

*********

And Just in case you missed the Blog Anniversary Giveaway notice.....

I have decided to Extend the Giveaway deadline.....

So If you want a chance to win two of the Famous Wedding Decoration Topiaries....

Just leave a comment on the Anniversary Post 

Before Midnight on May 4th!

And then maybe You Too will get to say.....

"Look What Arrived!"