The Kit....

 

It's A Treasure Trove....

Just In Case you Wondered, Dear Readers, It did not take me long to Jump In to this kit! The very next day after it's arrival, I was sorting through the parts and reviewing the instructions to get a sense of the "layout" and the order of tasks. The manual is a bit complex, being mostly just pictorial with very little written instruction. I know this is so it can be used by people of many languages and I am good with picture diagrams, but it did take a while to figure out the "locater" system for all the individual bits and pieces. Each part in the assembly picture has a number which coordinates with a "Parts diagram or list" which will give you the "little bag number" or "layout map" of where to find it! Complicated, but effective and you get used to the three step process! But First thing, as I was familiarizing myself with the process, I noticed there was No Glazing for the windows! All those windows (on every wall and the ceiling!) and No Glazing even of the plastic type??? Not a good idea in My dusty house! But I could fix that. I decided right away that I would add plastic windows....

I started with the smaller side walls.

 And I realized the kit had "spray-painted" an orange base color

 all around the interior edges of the openings.

 Since this color was not my idea of a great color 

with the interior of the room's wallpapers.... 

I decided I needed to paint all these interior openings 

to match the trim of the wall decor, which was dark brown.

 You can see this step in the above picture!

 

Here you can see I am gluing the plastic "glazing" 

to the outside of the building. I did this because there are 

places where the decor is positioned on the window ledge.... 

or so close as to be the same thing.

And I figured the exterior window frame trims would cover

 the "bump" of the plastic under the wall-covering.

 

Yes, my gluing is a bit bumpy and the glue

 got on the surface in a few places...! 

These papers are all coated with a gloss, 

so it mostly could be wiped or rubbed off later. 

Rest assured, it looks better after drying! 

And then, since I was painting the window openings dark brown, 

I realized I might want a different color for the exterior window trims...

 especially against all that lovely brick...

 

Like a Lovely Traditional Green.....?! 

Oh, yes, I think I might want that instead of

 the reddish-brown of the wood in the kit packs!

 

But before we get romping too far ahead, 

the back wall needed the exterior papers

 and might as well get the flooring glued on too! 

Because the next step is challenging!

The electrical system needs to be prepared and glued

 into the wiring channels on the back wall

 before the interior decor can be started!

 There is a very careful diagram about just how to twist

 the mini LED lights into the pattern needed.

 And there are two separate "chandeliers"

 for the studio and the shop which need to be 

constructed and also glued into the wire channels.

 

Here you can see the chandeliers and the LED string

 (off the right top corner) being glued into the channels.

 Then I forgot to take pictures of gluing on the

 interior papers and starting the gluing of walls onto the base.

 

But here you can see the "corner" started where the little studio is set up,

 and the lights and wires have to dangle off the top for a while now....! 

Because they want you to get the corner studio all completed.... 

every little detail before you move onto the main room decor! 

So I jumped right into the building of that tiny desk.... 

I actually think this kit is closer to half scale than full scale.... 

 

I'm sorry the pictures are darkish.... it is Winter and getting late.... 

and the lighting in my house is very old fashioned.... 

but here I have hunted down and painted and

 assembled the pieces for the corner desk... 

(I decided that I wanted the darker brown for the furniture too... 

that reddish brown color was not to my liking. 

And add to that all the unfinished edges 

from the punched out pieces.... 

I was going to need to paint them anyway!)

 

And here you can see I have added the

 little gold "drawer pulls" to the desk! 

Believe me, they were not easy to do! 

One of the little "instructions abbreviations" 

in this kit are the use of little symbols like "scissors" 

where anything needs to be cut apart rather than detailed descriptions.

 But the little metallic jewelry findings that needed to be 

"cut in half" according to the diagram, were very hard to cut!!!

 I used the scissors..... pliers, wire cutters, and eventually

 repeated bending the metal to make it separate... 

and then the pieces were not very neat... 

but they were willing to be bent back into a shape that was usable..... 

and Hey, I think they look great after all!

 

And by now, I was getting the feel of this kit, Dear Readers, 

and found myself Dreaming of it at Night... 

and waking up with the knowledge that

 a few more details would need to be changed!

 

In particular, I was not fond of the wallpaper for the main room! 

The top border is cute, but the red and cream stripes did not please me. 

And It is the "Fairy Tale Wonderland" Dollhouse Shop.... 

so Could I use my 'Fairies" wallpaper instead?

 

I have had this wallpaper for ages,

 just waiting for the "right" place to use it.... 

I know... too many still unfinished projects in line out there.....! 

But really, wouldn't this be better... more fitting? 

The color would work fine with the main cabinet... a pale blue color.... 

And I know most of the walls are covered with all the little items... 

but still... a stray fairy peeping around from behind would not be amiss! 

I was trying to get a test picture here but the paper started to fall.... 

but it was good enough that I went ahead with the re-model straight away! 

 

I think it gives things a much more magical, ethereal atmosphere!

 

And the little interior wall dividing the Studio from the Main room... 

there are so many wonderful touches in this design... 

like the stained glass windows!

 

And starting to glue the desk in place! 

It was such a dark and snowy day.... 

the light never got very bright....

 

And starting to assemble some of the "paper bits"..... 

the box with extra stuff that goes under the desk in the corner. 

And I can't tell you how much Fun it is, Dear Readers,

 to find each of these little paper pieces 

and to realize how detailed they are

 and the printing is so precise....

 you can read the details on most of them!

 

But this is where I will leave you, Dear Readers,

 as I go flying off to hunt down

 more tiny pieces to assemble for

 this magical little Treasure House! 

Tis The.....

 

Christmas Card.... And A New Kit....

Well, Dear Readers, Here it is at last..... And "Last" is the operative word as this is technically Last year's Christmas Card, finally finished (as is the usual case) in the new year! It is as always, 8.5 x 11 inches, watercolor and pen and ink on Arches hot pressed watercolor paper. I hope you enjoy searching out the familiar images.... yes, mostly just The Tree House, most of which is very old work, accomplished in 2012 and 2013 for the most part. But last year was a year that didn't seem to give me any time for focusing on minis, since there were some real-life distractions that took a lot of time and attention. Yes, there was the Leafy Green Rhododendron finally completed properly and a bunch of tiny tapestry cushions stitched.... and a little bit of rocky landscape and the Nursery wallpaper.... and The Nano House... but not much else! Yes, it was That kind of year! I am very much hoping for a more Fun and Productive year of making minis! And because that is next on my agenda since the Christmas Card is Done.... let me show you a little... just a little new kit.....

 

Yes, yes, I know.... 

why ever did I think I needed another new kit....?

 (This is how I get myself into Trouble... Right?)

 

But.... it is called the "Once Upon A Time Fairy-tale Wonderhouse"..... 

A miniature dollhouse shop only about 8 inches wide by 5 inches deep....

and 7 inches tall.... and the front swings open...

 

To reveal the most astonishing assortment of tiny Houses, 

some fully furnished....! and Little Vignettes... 

and a corner nook for construction.... 

and it comes with ALL the parts, 

pieces, printies, Led's, tools and trinkets...

 everything you will need except your Time and Patience!

 

How Could I Resist????  

Well, clearly, I couldn't!

 It is my this year's Birthday gift to myself... 

a Treat for being Soooo Goood all last year 

(Duty before pleasure and all that!) 

It arrived yesterday and I have already spent hours studying

 the Assembly Instructions which are a 26 page 

full-color wonder in themselves!

 I am starting to think of it as a wooden version of

 The Home Sweet Home stitched Cottage project 

I embarked on three years ago... 

it took a year to finish and I learned a lot

 and Loved every minute of the project including the finished product!

 

I am going to TRY to stick to the kit instructions

 and not deviate into glorious unknown territory!

 We shall see how that goes..... 

I really cannot promise anything.... 

 

So There you have it, Dear Readers....

 'tis the Card and a Huge New Tiny Kit .... 

and that means a whole Lot of

 wonderful Tiny Trouble!!!!

 

Stitching Updates....

 

 Cushions  And "Our Lady"....

It Has been a While, Dear Readers, since I showed you any of my stitching projects, and that is in great part because it has been a while since I have been stitching them! With the completion of the stitching on the tiny Tapestry Cushions last summer, I felt the need to start another tiny scale (thread count wise) project right away because I enjoy it so much! It was full summer, the days were hot and long and the nights were short so daylight was abundant and the tiny thread count projects require good lighting! I dug around in my stash and found the above kit waiting for me. I had purchased it quite a while ago at one of the Miniatures Fairs.... it is another kit by Phyllis Stafford (now deceased) who also made the Baktiari Carpet kit and the Chinese Dragon Carpet kit (although I added the dragons to that one), so I felt ready to tackle this one. Believe me, it has been a challenging one!

To begin with, it is another 40 count mesh design, like both the Chinese Dragon Carpet and the Baktiari Carpet, but it has a much larger variety of threads! There are twelve colors of cotton threads, five colors of metallic threads, of two different types, and 5 colors of silk thread of a type I had not stitched with before! The end product will be about 2.5 x 3.75 inches so it is not large, but it has a great amount of detail.

 Add to that the chart is the old fashioned symbols only kind.... although I think it would be very hard to chart the different thread types if you were only using a color chart! But that is a large number of different symbols/numbers to keep track of! I will confess that the first time I opened this kit I took one look at the chart and decided I was not ready to work on this yet! 

But last July, I was eager to get started! I had been stitching those 50 count cushions with gold metallic thread mixed into the designs and had gained confidence! But where to start?! There are very few large blocks of one color in this project. And the counting needed for every single part required relentless accuracy.... no room for jumping around or re-designing parts with this kit! And because the metallic threads were such an integral part of the design, and used Abundantly.... yes, very very challenging! I decided to start with the eyes as they were easily identifiable on the chart, and I could approximate the positioning in the overall cloth.... no going back! 

 

The story behind this kit is that near where I live is a Polish immigrant community of long standing who brought their "church" with them from Poland along with an icon of the Black Madonna of Czestochowa. Occasionally when my sister visits with me we go to church services at this Church where the icon lives. Phyllis Stafford, the kit designer was familiar with this church and made the kit of their icon in miniature. When I saw the kit in the offerings at the Miniatures Fair, I recognized the icon and thought it would be fun to stitch! The deep black lines on The Madonna's face are where the original icon was damaged by thieves who attempted to steal it, and no amount of "mending" has made the gash disappear!

The process of stitching requires constant thread-changes....you can only count so far when the stitches are random gold pieces of a complex design... but you have to make sure they are in place first for the more complex designs.... it is complicated! I did the reverse for the metallic thread "gems" in the white band of the headcloth... I left the "gaps" for the metallic threads to be stitched later. I did this in part because they are random single stitches in a place far from other bits of that color.... easier to start and end the thread with the surrounding parts already stitched! But I made a counting mistake at the bottom end of the design...! No way to fix it later when I discovered my mistake. And the metallic threads are profuse in the clothes and in the Haloes of Mary and Jesus.

 

 

The picture on the kit package is fairly small, 

it actually is printed to "finished size" which is very handy,

 but it makes stitch details in the picture difficult to see.

 I was at first quite puzzled about the "white ribbon bows"

 that she "wore" on her headdress.... 

only to realize as I was stitching them that they are tiny angels....

 one at each ear for both Mary and Jesus! 

 

 

Of course, the original angels in the painted icon

 might be easier to recognize...

 I was quite enchanted when I realized what they were!

 In this picture the angels for Jesus are still incomplete.

And the ones for Mary still need the two blue and one red

 metallic stitches for the eyes and mouth!

 

And then there is the challenge that there are both

 gold and silver metallic threads used lavishly in the Halos.... 

and the clothing... and keeping track of where you are

 on the chart and where you already stitched....

 constant counting and double-checking!

 Did I say I wanted a challenge?

 

And trying to make the clothes for Jesus.... and the halo...

 

And Jesus' hands...

 

Their clothes are stitched with the silk threads... 

"Ping Ling" silk which you have to separate 

the threads and use two to stitch with. 

They are quite "bouncy" and twist abominably 

so you need to be very careful how you 

pull the threads through... 

and start with a short length!

 

I made some boo-boos in the metallic pattern in Jesus' sleeves, 

but honestly, it is hard to tell!

 

I spent many peaceful summer mornings

 outside on my porch stitching 

while the birds sang and the crickets hummed!

 

 

Here I have been filling in the background of the halos

 with the gold cotton threads.... in three different shades!

 Keeping track of which row you are on... 

and adding the gold or silver metallics

 when I discover a missed stitch.... 

there were a few where Jesus' halo

 and Mary's headscarf join together.

And then the weather changed... 

Autumn was coming the light was fading...

 this project went on the back burner!

 

 But Oh, yes, those little Tapestry cushions..... ! 

They "just" needed to be stitched to a backing, stuffed etc....

 

At the last minute before cutting these 

little squares apart, Dear Readers, 

I had realized I should stitch an extra row 

of plain background around each one to give more

 "seam allowance" for stitching these into pillows.

 Then I separated them.... 

and I have already shown the finished 

Astrological Cushions on the blog last Fall.

 For the Tapestry ones I had several possible 

backing options in my stash as you can see above with the Deer cushion. 

In the end I decided not to use only one color for all six cushions!

 

And I even had options for the cording that goes around the seams....! 

 

In this case a varicolored Perle cotton that could be used selectively 

since the length needed was short for each cushion. 

And I decided that since the back of the cushion and the front

 are never seen at the same time.... and that the cushions 

would not be all in one location... (that would be too much!)

 I could mix and match to my heart's content! 

It was really random and spur of the moment

 as each cushion was being stitched!

 

The cat was the first completed... 

I know... the corners are not done very well.... 

they are hard to turn inside out!

 But it really is not very noticeable in the end.

They are all stuffed with small beads so

 they have some weight and can be shaped a little. 

 

The bunnies came next.... 

don't they look wonderful together?

 

Here you can see the slow over-stitching 

that attaches the cording around the seams. 

It covers the little bits of silk mesh that show 

when the cushions are turned right side out.

 

There! The squirrels are finished too! 

These were done over many weeks last Fall.

 

And the hounds too! they do look happy together!

 I am so glad I decided to add the second hound!

 

And yes, the Deer cushion and the Unicorn cushion

 have also been completed.... 

but I didn't get good pictures of them in the dollhouses yet.

 

 

And lastly, the Dragon carpet has had the 

"little gold leafy" details added to the main area. 

This design has always had a few parts that mystified me!

 The gold "accents" are scattered very widely

 through the design and add a bit of "sparkle" to the pattern, 

which is why, I suspect, they are there.

 Because I moved parts of the pattern around 

to accommodate the dragons, the gold bits got re-arranged,

 and I deliberately skipped some of them altogether, 

and added some where I thought they could balance the design.

 

And because I didn't like the "gold bits" 

that were in the original design's corners... 

I changed them completely!

 I decided instead to take the tiny original central circle design

 and bring it out to the corners too!

 And that's as far as I have gotten on this project. 

We are back to the dark time of year 

and it is too easy to make mistakes

 when stitching in poor light! 

 

So none of this is recent work, Dear Readers,

(Because, yes, I am still working on the Christmas Card....) 

 but all of it worthy of showing here...

Just a little overdue Stitching Up-date

on the Tapestry cushions and "Our Lady of Czestochowa"!