Updated Herb Shop - just some pics :)

I added a new shelf unit (found at an antique store) for all of the herbs and accessories.

There are jars of all sizes, a basket full of seed packets, and some growing plants. Also, there's a mortar and pestle, canisters, and even some shopping bags on the bottom shelf. The cork on the shelves was added by me so the objects on the shelf were more stable.

Crystal balls and antique pottery in the display case.

I rearranged this shelf quite a bit and put the hats on top. I would like to add more items.

Bowls of stickers, a selection of gems, and Mexican tapestries.

My homemade bookshelf and screen, with a cute wooden carved rhino.

This shop is my first miniature project and I've enjoyed putting it together. Adding and moving things around means a project is never *quite* complete, and I like that!

Looking over some posters.

A book I put together from a kit. I love the details on this.

A better view of the shelves.

I made this hex sign from a brochure I picked up while in Lancaster, PA.

I thought this picture turned out pretty cool. :) Here, you're looking through the front door of the shop.

I just *love* this log with toadstools. I bought it from Earth and Tree a little over a year ago. :)

Birthday gifts!

Last weekend, my fiance treated me to an amazing weekend in Vermont for my birthday. We stayed at an awesome little place called the Manchester View (in Manchester, VT) and enjoyed a fireplace and a lovely Victorian-decorated room. I loved it!!!

Not only did he treat me the whole weekend, but he spoiled me with some wonderful (crafty) gifts, too. (And a dress from the Marimekko outlet!!!)

Anyway, here's the eye candy:

The little shelf with hooks and basket are from Memoriesnminiature on Etsy. The book is one I have been wanting for a while and has lots of cute crafts, many of which are definitely applicable to miniatures. :) Maybe I'll share some stuff I make from the book. :-D And of course, a cute little maple leaf punch which are really hard to find in any of the chain craft stores around here. :)

 The cute little stamp is from Terbear Collectibles, also on Etsy. And of course, more HoM stuff to grow my collection. The book is one I think I already have in my collection (my bad, since I likely didn't update whatever wishlist he used). He mentioned he didn't mind if I did already have it, that it would be good for another giveaway. ;) What a sweetheart! I will announce that in the new year.

It was a fun birthday and we had a lot of fun.

Today, I have been getting ready for Christmas. I made gift card holders and money holders for some of our family members.

And I decorated the dollhouses, too. :)

I still have lots of baking to do, as well as wrapping presents, but I have most of my shopping done, which is nice. :) I hope all of you are having a good holiday, no matter which one you celebrate. :-D

New items added to shop plus a few more treasures

So I just added some new things to the shop! :)

They include: two cool little crystal balls and the prep board, which includes the tray, a little jar of apple butter, English muffins and a tiny knife.

I've also made a couple things that might go into the shop, but I haven't decided yet.

 This little work table needs a few more touchups on its paint before it goes into the shop, but that won't take long, so expect it to be added pretty soon. :)

These were my first attempt at peanut butter cookies, but I didn't get them in very uniform sizes, but they are cute. I also need to get some clear glitter to better show up as sugar. But these are pretty festive. I am planning a Christmas-themed giveaway so these may be included! :)

These oranges and lemons are going to be part of some colonial Christmas decorations that I am going to be making for the shop soon. :) Can't wait! They were fun to make, too!

And lastly, this crystal ball was my favorite! The bead is a little irregular but it will look great in the herb shop, so this one is for me. ;)

I hope everyone is having an enjoyable day! 

Findings and reorganization

Hi everyone!

I wanted to share with you a few finds I have made at our local Hobby Lobby. Sometimes I go to the craft store for one or two things, and then decide to look around a bit to see if there is anything interesting I could use for future projects. This habit, of course, gets quite expensive if I am not careful! ;)

I like to use jewelry findings in many of my projects, including Etsy goodies, and decided to stop by that department. Well, I spent some time looking at the charms, surprisingly not items I look at very often. I found some great charms that are perfect for 1/12th scale. Here they are:

On the left is a lovely hand mirror which really reflects, and on the right is a keyring with some old-fashioned keys. Both of these are now in the historical society. I placed the mirror in the display case and the keys are sitting on the curator's writing desk.

Another thing I have done recently is rearrange the herb shop. I took out everything, cleaned out the dust, and rearranged items. This resulted in leaving some items out completely to make room, but I like the way it looks now. Here are some pics:

I am finished with my work that has to be done before tomorrow and have laundry in the dryer so I am free to make some minis. But what to work on...? ;) It might be time to dig through my stash for inspiration!

Cute mini find

Yesterday, my fiancé and I drove around the area. We stopped at 10 Thousand Villages, which is a shop that sells fair trade goods from all over the world. They have a lot of locations and are worth checking out! They have great fair trade coffee and chocolates, too!

Anyway, while there, I found a little woven pouch with six tiny dolls inside. They are perfect for mini scale stuff. Here's the pouch:

Here are two of the dolls on the bedroom mantle in the Glencroft:

And the rest in the herb shop:

They are really cute and perfect for both scenes!

And while I was in the herb shop, I pulled out the little chest I had in the center of the shop and put it in the historical society. It fits nicely in there, I think:

Now I just need to add some items on top of it. :)

Historical Society Tour

Alright, just got back from a seriously thorough and challenging workout at the gym. *phew* Waiting for dinner so I can share some things with you now. :)

I took some pics of the historical society, so here's a little tour. First of all, this little historical society is set in Amish Country in Pennsylvania. There will be lots of historical stuff in here that deals with the Civil War, Amish and PA Dutch culture.

First, here's the whole thing in my little corner of the living room. (I have a favorite side of the couch, and my fiance has his favorite side of the couch...).

 This is the first room you would walk into when you entered. You can see I have some touchups, but there was also a push toward making this house a little imperfect since it's supposed to be old. I am also going to add a writing desk (kit by Daisy House) in here for the curator (Stanley, who's standing on the porch above). I am also considering purchasing a dress form to make a PA Dutch or Amish cape dress for display in this room.

Hey, it's Honest Abe! And he appears to be glancing over at the PA Dutch trivet hanging on the wall.

The thing on the left is a wooden nickel I found at an antique shop in Cambridge, NY. I couldn't resist. The owner gave me a great deal on this and some tin types. The distelfink on the right came from a brochure I picked up at a rest stop in PA for the Kutztown Folk Festival. I cut out the design and mod-podged it onto a wooden disk.

The design above the door came from the same brochure. This time I mod-podged it under an acrylic square so it looks like a quilted piece under glass.

Okay this is the other room on the ground floor. This is the research room. There is a computer on the desk and I will be adding a screen to it soon. You can kinda see the barrister bookcase on the left side. I filled it with some generic books for now, but will be adding handmade ones soon. The aforementioned tintypes are on the wall on either side of the desk. On the left is a lady (it's too big for any of the frames I currently have; going to have to make one. On the right...

...is a gentleman's picture that I framed. You can see the detail in the crown moulding at the top of the room here. I bought it in the wood aisle at Michael's.

The upstairs in the Canterbury house is very small, as you can see below. I am using it for "storage" and it's nice because I have a lot of "antique" miniatures in my collection which look great up here. 

Closeup of the Lincoln chest and chair in the background.

The other small room. I want to fill this up with more stuff. The rug is a fabric I found in the scrapbook paper section of Michael's It's perfect as a worn-looking carpet.

As I said, I still have touch-ups and lots of details to add, but I am glad I finished the building part. Decorating and detailing is my favorite part. :)

Here are some other pics from my collection: