Recently, HBS/miniatures.com wondered
So, again, we ask … How many of y’all use sketches to “concept” your mini projects? We’re wondering if this is the exception or the norm?
Here are some sketchbook notes from January, when I started the build:
It’s a pretty clear — and typical — reveal of both my initial ideas and process: sketches, doodles and notes. Working with approximate dimensions helps keep things feasible. I have to sketch out furniture and cabinets and make cut lists.
I keep a paper folder of ideas, swatches and snippets of possible “things” as well as digital files for research and reference.
What’s unusual about these sketches and this build is how little I’ve diverged from my original concept thus far.
I made the front shelves and the wood storage under the back windows from inch wide x 1/16-inch basswood, and painted them the same Simply White as the rest of the trim.
Today I took a pleasant meander around my yard looking for the right branches to make the logs. I chose a woody bottlebrush shrub (Callistemon) and pruned out several offshoots. These I cut into 1.25-inch logs and stacked into the wood holder with glue to fix them in place.
Then I sat with a glass of sparkling water, the lemony scent of the wood and the invigorating fragrance of eucalyptus mingling on the afternoon breeze.
nancyland.com 
Wow. I feel as though I’ve just had a glance into a modern day equivalent of the Da Vinci notebooks. Thank you for sharing. Inspired by your last post I bought a package of Crayola Model Magic. (Only a mini coil pot so far..)
Whoa. I humbly submit that putting pencil to paper is waaay easier than using a quill and ink :)
And yay for Model Magic! I’ve not used it for anything other than rockscaping. I’m curious to see how your coil pot fares over time, and how you ‘glaze’ it. Link to your project?
Well, I do happen to think that you are incredibly talented!
I’ve never posted any photos of my dollhouse – one day, maybe. I like to think of it as one day filled with miniature contemporary paintings and pottery, but I have a lot to learn.
Wow you are organised. I pretty much make decisions as I go, never make drawings of the buildings and scribble measurements on the first thing to hand (usually the back of a piece of sandpaper) Maybe I should get a mood board =0)
*blush* Thanks, Pepper!
I am reticent to share pages from my notebook, as they can be too revealing, messy and/or personal. But I’m a huge fan of trying to corral thoughts and ideas in one place, and favor the slim and sturdy Moleskine-type notebooks. It’s kind of like having a detachable brain, and easy to find again in studio clutter. Important!