Life...

...has been really crazy these past several months. Lots of ups and downs, so I have been very quiet lately. I haven't had a lot of time for minis since we moved into our new apartment, but I do have all of the houses displayed and they look really nice. I recently got a DSLR camera (yay!) and plan to do a few photo shoots with them when my schedule allows it. I may invest in a macro lens someday soon...

I have, however, started a new hobby: soapmaking! I started late last fall to make Christmas presents and I found that a) I really, really enjoy it and b) my soap recipes were turning out to be pretty awesome (if I say so myself - haha). My husband and I revived our old business, PeaceCrafted Products) from when we lived in NH and are now selling hot process handmade soaps. (Shameless plug: here is the website and the Etsy store. We'll be adding spa salts soon too, and I may even throw in a few miniatures on the Etsy store that are left from Linda's Minis.) It's rewarding to have started our old business back up again and I love crafting soap since it is very relaxing while taking a break from my day job. Plus it's like alchemy...turning lye and oils into something absolutely wonderful! :)

Hope all of you are doing well! I still read blogs from time to time and lately have been feeling quite inspired by all of them. :)

Cheers!

Ebay post

Hi everyone! Sorry, I have not fallen off the face of the earth, just the blogosphere! lol Anyway, just putting it out there that I have posted some dollhouse items on eBay in a lot. We just moved to a new apartment and I did some purging in the process.

Hopefully there's something here you like!
Dollhouse miniature lot

Hope all is well, readers. I hope to pose some new and interesting things soon!!!

Shop update and other things!

I've been pretty busy doing several things over the past few weeks and just realized it's been a while since I posted here! And, yikes, I have some reading to catch up on to see what's happening in all of the blogs I've been following!

Hmmm, what has happened since the last time I posted?

- Well, I have been working on a swap with Faby via Jazzi's Christmas in July Swap! We've received each other's gifts and I will be posting real soon! (I still have to take photos!)

- I also participated in a second swap with Mini*Aesthetics who was interested in my dollhouse quilt and I made one for her. Pics will be coming once that swap is complete!

By the way, if you see anything you like on my blog or in my Etsy shop and want to do a swap or trade, I am very open to it!!! :)

- I have been taking up quilting (in 1:1 scale!!!). I made a quilt for our couch - slightly smaller than twin size - to use up excess fabric in my stash. I will post some photos of that, too! (I have a lot of pics to post!!!)

And that's only craft stuff, and doesn't account for work (in which a nice personal accomplishment was made) or day-to-day stuff. This summer is a busy one.

Our Etsy shop will be going on vacation from July 9 - 19. I am happy to announce that I will be doing a sale from NOW until Monday, July 8 at 5PM EST. Use the coupon code July42013 to receive 25% off your order before then! (Here's the link: https://www.etsy.com/shop/LindasMinis)

Hope everyone is doing well, and for those of you who are experiencing any heat waves are staying cool!

Cheers,
Linda

Tote bags are now in my Etsy store!

I got several positive responses for my tote bag I made yesterday, so I made a few more. I added two to my Etsy store!

Click here to go to my Etsy site

 

 

Click here to go to my Etsy site

I really enjoyed making these (and yes, they do open and you can put stuff inside!). If they sell, I will make more. I also take custom orders on my site, if one wants a specific color or extra flourish (like the flower I added in the tote I posted yesterday); just click "Request Custom Order" on the left-hand side of my store's page.

Follow-up and update on Pam, the doll

Pam is all dressed up! Not terrible for my first go at dressing a doll (if I say so myself!). And those of you who commented on my last post, thank you! As you mentioned, fabric glue is LOVELY when making dolls' clothes in this scale. I did use the sewing machine on Pam's skirt, but fabric glue took care of the more fiddly sleeves and bodice. I used Beacon Adhesives Fabri-Tac. I love this stuff as it quickly dries so there is not much waiting between steps of a project. 

Also to answer a question from Iris March, the doll was made from a Teresa Glisson mold and painted by Jan Hughes (who sold me the doll). Her eBay page is here in case any of you are interested. (Her shipping was SUPER fast!)

If you noticed, I put Pam's hair up. I like it better that way. She looks quite elegant (and ready to meet her new neighbors!)

I also made a cute tote bag out of some scraps. I might make more of these. They are easy and fun, too!

I will be doing a photo shoot soon of Pam in the Glencroft, historical society, and herb shop soon. Stay tuned!

Say hi to Pam!

Well, I think I found a resident for the Glencroft. Pam arrived today (from California!) thanks to a kind seller on eBay. I saw her (perhaps through Small Stuff? I can't remember...) and thought she kinda resembled the character Pam (played by Jenna Fischer) from one of my favorite shows, The Office. Maybe just a little. Anyway here she is!

She arrived in New York without any clothes (oops?) so I am getting her outfitted and trying my best at designing clothes for her. This is my first time trying to make realistic doll clothing for an actual doll (don't tell her that) so this will be interesting. For now I have outfitted her in a slip and a tube top.

 She did come with her shoes, though! They're so pretty!

So I have sorted through my fabrics and picked out a few favorites...

I am going for modern (with some retro flair - like this awesome dress!). There are quite a few options here, but I am looking at the stripes...

...or the blue floral print. Both would be super cute! So, I am going to learn how to design a dress pattern and make a dress. Might be good practice as I really want to make my own clothes sometime soon! (My sewing machine and I have a real hot/cold relationship...I love it when it behaves, but occasionally it rebels. I am sure it's due to user error, though. I'm still learning the ropes!)

Anyway, what do you think..stripes (navy blue, they are on the left in the above picture) or the blue floral?

I am excited to get her dressed so she can "meet" Oscar, Esmerelda, and Stanley. I'll document her visit to the herbal shop, the historical society, and finally her move-in to the Glencroft! I can't wait!

Quilt update!

Well, I finished my first dollhouse quilt. Even with using the sewing machine, it was quite the venture. In fact, using a sewing machine probably upped the difficulty level a bit, since I had a 1/8" seam allowance. Hmmm. I might just make those pieces wider next time. ;)

Anyway, here is how it turned out.

The top of the quilt. I am pretty happy with this. The binding is a bit too wide, so I will definitely change that for the next quilt (and there will be a next quilt!)

This is the back. I'm not crazy about it, but I had LOTS of this fabric in my stash and wanted to use it. My sewing machine was being a pain too, so the stitches were less than awesome on this side. I still need to trim some stray threads.

This is how it looks on a bed. It fits a dollhouse scale full bed.

It does look good on the bed, so I am pretty happy with that! This quilt is one I will keep, but I will hopefully be designing and making some more for the shop once I get a good method down. :-)

Lessons learned:
1) Hand sewing may actually be better for tiny stitches.
2) Skinny binding will look better in this scale. (And maybe darker for this particular quilt, though I like it when it's on the bed.)
3) Patience is required!
4) I can make tiny quilts! :-D