What Happens.....

 

When Elves Come to Play....

Well, Dear Readers, I hope you will understand that I fully intended to get my work table cleaned up and "fully operational" for a New Year's blitz of project progress in every possible direction! (New Year's Optimism is going strong!) And step One of this clean-up required that I "Tidy away" a few incomplete little items I had added to the mess in recent weeks under an excess of "Christmas Decoration Mania"! I refer, of course, the The Teeny Weeny Secret Books kits by Robin Betterley that I had finally begun on Christmas Day itself. And there were the beginnings of those two Tiny Elves which I had rashly started to construct using the "glue trick".... just waiting for the paint.... and the tiny kitchen stove still didn't have the Teensy tiny gingerbread houses painted and those itty-bitty little plates that needed to be cut out and added to complete this tiny kit.... would I ever find all these bits and pieces, let alone finish one single tiny kit if I "tidied them away" now.....? (What a silly Question!) It was obvious that it would not take long to paint such tiny figures....(and surely then they would at least be visible!) So out came the paints... Above you can see I painted the heads and hands a flesh color.

                        And here you can (sort of ) see I started to paint their faces and legs.....

 Meanwhile I also started to paint the teensy-tiny gingerbread houses....

I placed them on a strip of double sided tape so they wouldn't get lost!

Here you can see I added some glitter to the "snow" icing on the houses!

 

Next the Little Elves got their tunics painted green!

 

And here I am starting to add the hair... 

it is just six strands of regular sewing thread... 

glued across the top of the head.

 

And here the second one is started.... 

You can see I trimmed one side of the first one...

 so I could use the remains on the second one!

 

And while the hair is drying, 

I cut out the itty-bitty tiny plates and "cupped" them...

see them there on the mat? 

I need to make sure they fit right above the "stove".

 

Now both the Elves have had their hair trimmed... 

they just need their "shoes" added....

which required a little bit more glue in the toes!

 

And they needed caps... 

these are just a tiny scrap of paper toweling

 cut in a cone shape and painted red.

While it is drying I shape it slightly into a rounded cone...

 and glue it to the head.

 

And both the caps are attached!

And then I got a bit carried away, Dear Readers,

 with the assembling process 

and forgot to take any pictures for a while...!

Here you can see the Elf on the Stove... (not the shelf!)

So it can reach the shelf-top of the Stove...!

As well as the Teensy-tiny Gingerbread houses in place, 

two on the top and one on the base.

Also the little plates have been attached to the wall.

And the Elves' "shoes" have been painted too!

 

I confess that there was some anxiety on my part

 about whether the whole arrangement

 was going to fit inside the Book Cover....!

 It is only 3/16 inch deep!

I had to flatten the Elf as much as possible

 and it barely slides in...!

 

Here is the decorated "Stove" inside the Book box...

And the little rustic stool positioned beside it...

All it needs is the second Elf...

(but first I had to give her a glitter frosting covered knife... 

because she is still decorating the gingerbread house!)

 

Like so...!

 

And does it fit inside the Book Cover....?

(Well, I had to bend her foot back a tiny bit...!)

But yes! It Fits!

 

Boy, that was fun!

 

But..... Wait a Minute....!

I looked over beside my shoulder and noticed a strange sight...

 

What's this..." More Elves...??? I thought?

 

Whoa.... ! Look at them all.....!

 

How many are there....?

 

Who started this Mischief anyway...?????

 

Well, Dear Readers, I suppose you can imagine

 that I did not get Any progress made 

on cleaning off my Work space for 

New Years projects...! 

Maybe that is just what Happens

 when Elves come to Play!

Traditions....

 

 The Card....

Well, Dear Readers, it is The New Year, and some Traditions really should not be ignored! I refer to my personal "Tradition" of being so late with my "Christmas Card" that it is a wonder it is still called that! As I have mentioned a time or two, I have been drawing an annual "Christmas Card" now for more than forty years. When I was a child, the sending of "Christmas Cards" was quite a big deal and you could buy many many commercial options to send to friends and family. Because my family leans to the artistic side, we often made our own. My Father designed and had cards printed some years... I remember quite a few of those, and recently came across one of his designs. Because "four color printing" was so expensive, his designs were black and white. Remember, these were the days before photocopying was possible! (Can you remember that?) When I was a teenager we made some linoleum cuts and wood-block hand printed cards.... I can clearly remember some of them, but don't think any of the originals survived. It was great fun to set up the "printing" process and make prints that had to be hung to dry all over the house! And then one year in my early twenties I discovered there was a local shop that would "photocopy" your original artwork in black and white...! I made a drawing and had it copied and hand colored the drawings at home. In the above picture you can see the first twenty-five years of the "official" Christmas Cards I began when my (now ex) husband and I got together in 1983. I began innocently enough with just pen and ink drawings... my favorite medium at the time and easy to get "photocopied"! As is often the case with my projects... I didn't have a clue what I was starting... but it very quickly became a "tradition" especially with the addition of children to the picture. If you look closely at the bottom right corner of the above picture you will see color copies had entered the world! My cards became pen and ink and watercolor..... which meant they took twice as long to make.....! So this year's addition to the pile.... not as late as some years.... again is a bit dark....

                                      I hope you don't mind that it isn't very "Christmas-y".

And I hope you will understand that 

my Father's death last April has colored the year. 

It has been a challenge to "find Christmas" this year. 

But the card must happen anyway... 

so I am calling it an "honest" card....

 telling the story of this difficult year of sorrow.

The minis are in there... 

along with the Family events.... 

You might just have to look harder to find them!

So Thank you, Dear Readers,

 for your understanding and patience 

with my personal Tradition 

of being Late with the Christmas Card!

Santa Says....

 

Another Distraction....

Well, Dear Readers, Some years I guess I just need a few small distractions to keep me going! And Santa pointed out to me a few of the Tiny Kits I had received and not yet assembled... and since I had been craving gingerbread and thinking about the many little Gingerbread Houses I had made in RL over my accumulating years... This tiny kit by Robin Betterley Miniatures was calling to me! On Christmas Day I pulled the pieces from the package and got started! The pieces are tiny and go together very cleanly (these kits are Amazingly well designed!) so I had made great progress Lickety-split!

        Of course, this is one of their "Secret Books" series in the "Teeny Weeny" size range.

The cover and spine and interior all got bright red paint.

And the cover art carefully glued on!

Here is a close up view!

And the interiors.....

It is supposed to be a tiny kitchen!

See how teeny weeny it is?

 

And there is a teeny weeny "stove" to assemble and paint...

And Teensy Tiny Gingerbread Houses!

It got me thinking.......

(More about that later.... )

 

And because I was "on a roll" as they say...

 

I had to start a couple more of these right away.....

It was Christmas Day after all....

And there was a kit for an even tinier one....!

Just waiting to be tested......

Above you can see an "Itsy Bitsy" "Secret Book"

 this in a series of Guide Books for well known places...

 London in this case. 

These end up really Tiny!

I am not sure there is anything I could make to put in there!

(But I might have to try!)

I did complete the tiny stove for the Gingerbread House.... 

but not the Teensy weensy Houses yet.... 

(see them there in that plastic baggie?)

so it is not yet all glued in place.... 

and I am afraid there is already some creative mischief afoot..... 

but I'm not telling yet! 

Because there was still another secret book under way...

(These kits are a bit addictive... !!)

 

This one.... "A Winter Wonderland" by Frosty Snow...!

Is really pretty inside and begs for some improved adornments...

Which will have to wait its turn!

For now... the attention has gone to the Gingerbread House Kitchen....

 

Here you can see the interior with the

 decorated "Stove" inside... (at the top)

But if you look very very carefully

 in the middle of this picture there is

 the beginnings of a Tiny "Glue trick figure"...

Because it seemed to me that there would

 need to be some "help" with the

 decorating of the Gingerbread Houses!

 

 

Here is a closer shot of the fellow....!

 

And some furniture to sit on......

which needed a lot of fidgeting....

 

 To get the spreaders on the legs.....

 

And perhaps only one helper was not enough....?

And the very rustic stool is assembled...

And here you can see... if you look very closely..

The arrangement of the stool and helper....

But that is as far as I got.

We will all have to be patient to see the final results... 

at some distant future...

because I have a task to accomplish first.

I am back to work now, Dear Readers, 

... and I am making progress!

And while Santa Says "go for it" 

A Little Distraction doesn't get

 the Christmas Card done!

Wishing Everybody a Happy New Year!

with plenty of Exciting New Projects

 

And The Nativity....

 

You Know How It Goes...

Well, Dear Readers, I don't know where the Time has flown off to, but here we are suddenly almost at Christmas... and I am never quite ready! When last we peeked into The Folly Living Room to see Gabrielle's new Lighted Tree, it was too gloomy and dark to be able to see the Nativity she had set up in the window sill. It is much brighter today, but still a little dark for photos... but never mind... we have seen it before, this simple gathering of Mary Joseph and the Child with an Angel hovering overhead. It is just perfect in it's simplicity.... for who else was there when the babe was born that Dark midwinter night? And even though we have not Quite arrived to that moment this year... we still can treasure the Story we know so well. And if you were passing by from outside in that Wintry Wonderland, you could just spot it if you glanced the right way...

along with the glowing fire in the hearth and Gabrielle's little tree!

 

And Meanwhile, over at The Lovely Old Dollhouse,

 Pollyanna has remembered to set up the family Nativity

 in it's spot on the sideboard in the living room.

 

As we know, it is always

 a little bit of a Last Minute Thing...

After all, Mary could not predict

 when exactly the babe would arrive.

And Pollyanna would not have her sitting

 waiting week after week...!

And suddenly it is here... 

Time draws short....

all the players have been assembled...

"It looks lovely as always, Dear" says Helen happily.

"I think it looks so peaceful...." added Charles.

 

"Hmmm...." said Pollyanna, not quite sure she agreed.

"I am not sure the camel should be over here..." she added,

pointing to the right side of the arrangement.

"But it never seems to fit on the other side with the Kings...!"

 

"Well..." said Helen..."maybe the Kings and the Camel

 should just arrive later.... they didn't actually arrive

 until Twelve days later, after all!" she added.

 

Just then Arthur looked into the room...

"Ah, I see you have assembled the Nativity!" he said.

 

"But.... " said Pollyanna... 

"I am just not sure the camel should sit over here... 

when the Kings are all over there..." she said

 pointing to the other end of the sideboard.

"Ah.... I see what you mean...." said Arthur diplomatically.

 

 

"Perhaps he is just happier over here 

with the other ruminants?" he added tactfully.

"Well.... I suppose there is that...." 

said Pollyanna thoughtfully.

 "I still think it looks so peaceful as it is..." declared Charles!

"Well..." said Pollyanna... 

"I suppose it will have to do!"

"We can't, after all... actually ask the camel...!" she muttered.

 

 

"But I do think he looks happy over here..." 

she added, smiling at Arthur.

 

Well, Dear Readers, You know how it goes...

The Nativity is always a last minute thing...  

and the camel is notoriously difficult to order about...

But the Eve will come and the Babe will be born

 and the World keeps spinning on!

 

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate and 

Happy Holidays to those who celebrate other traditions.

 

(And I could almost swear I saw the camel wink at Arthur!)