Category: modern miniatures

Couch, Mounds, Stripes, Sea Wall Fail

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couch_022816So happy with the results from the first of Kris Compas’s new line of kits, the Lisa Sofa. The micro-check fabric is cut from a thrift store-sourced man’s shirt. I used three strands of DMC floss to make the piping.

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This was the couch last night. I thought I was going to use yellow piping — having also considered tomato red, plum, pumpkin and bright olive green — then opted for the charcoal gray. Keeps more options open for pillows and stuff.

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The kit comes with unpainted cute fat feet. I used the aubergine acrylic the first set of doors was stained. The feet are not blurry in real life.

I am a bit surprised how well this curvy couch works on the covered porch. I had intended to use a sleek modern couch, upholstered in wool. Alternately, I have an old Houseworks Chippendale sofa kit, the one with the squiggly back. If I can find the right scale silk brocade, or maybe a fantastic Paisley man’s tie… then the wood base and legs could be yellow… The deadline for this build-along project is September 26. I don’t have to decide now :)

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I cut slices of styrofoam eggs to build up areas of the ground and glued them to the project board.

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I mixed thick glue and Ceramcoat “Trail Tan” and coated the mounds and surrounding area, then sprinkled on a fine sand/tea mixture. Still drying. In addition to farming wool, Argo Wool Works also grows lavender. There will be lots of it, as well as California poppies and succulents. I found this awesome echeveria tutorial from Annie Christensen of We Love Miniatures. Very excited to begin propagating.

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Small progress on the Yipes, Stripes Meets Checks rug.

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End of day Friday, B left work early and we went down to Sharp Park to watch the waves. We walked out onto the pier, and then along the esplanade. This is where a sink hole opened up in the sea wall a few storms ago. There used to be about eight more feet of walkway there. The sun was setting and there was a blowing mist in the air from the waves. A somber view of the ocean’s power.

Also, viewed together, the Yipes, Stripes rug and this photo have a certain commonality.
O_O

Hide one’s light under a bushel

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I wound up making six bushel baskets from Kris Compas’s tutorial. I used one-inch wood circles that I had on hand for the base, and after the second basket, redrew the pattern so all the uprights were like fringe, instead of individual slats. (The pattern is up on 1inchminis. There’s also a version to print multiples. Yay no measuring.) By the fifth or sixth basket I was getting a nice bulbous curve by shaping it over the top of a two-ounce acrylic paint bottle. Coopering the top rim was also much easier on the paint bottle form.

I’m working mostly on the new project now, but the in-progress Argo Wool Works Showroom is a nice bright place to sit and think and plan, with a cup of tea. (The ladders are by Sir Thomas Thumb, to be used to display hanging goods. I also splurged with the 2015 contest award and bought a scythe o_O)

Now I have to go make a 12:1 cup of tea :)

 

Foundation, Sideways

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I’m about to go sideways on another project, so I want to catch up on what progress there’s been on the as-yet-nameless 2016 build. I’ve opted not to enter the HBS contest this year, and so will continue to post freely on this structure. This is a side foundation in progress, integrating the 1906 San Francisco earthquake salvage, which includes rubble as well as dressed stones, aka egg cartons.

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Painted in a first coat of “Mudstone” with room for the support post.

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I made one of Kris Compas’s bushel baskets from this month’s tutorial. Adorable.

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Here’s the backside of the build. I decided to add a deck off the porch to increase the living area. The main structure is not yet glued to the foundation, so I’m keeping add-ons modular. There will be more foundation elements to the deck, but I’m done with math and power tools for the evening.

Heading into a major multi-birthday month, which I believe in celebrating *fully*. It will include multiple three-year-olds. multiple 60-year olds — and others— as well as baby goats, cheese and fine, fine wine.

 

Foundation, Ground

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I traced the foundation perimeter outline onto the project board. Because there’s just four inches (10 cm) of clearance, and I learned valuable lessons trying to build out the underneath of the Sea House Warming Hut — only three inches — after it was fixed to its project board, I’m roughing in the base earth now. Using a mixture of glue (actually, old mosaic tile adhesive that I have an excess of — there’s that serial artist thing again) and thin paper toweling, I built up an uneven substrate in the farthest reaches of the foundation. The ground is a mix of fine sand, Irish Breakfast (leafy) and Earl Grey (fine texture) teas. (Which I also have an excess of, because I like tea. I might even collect tea, and these were really old.)

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The paper-glue modeling gives enough unevenness to suggest a convincing ground. I’ll be adding in some plant life where the sun might reach. Beyond that, I don’t know.

 

Foundation Rock Painting

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Here’s the upside-down foundation with an “Espresso” wash, after drying overnight.

Delta Ceramcoat was on sale for US$0.97 (!) so I stocked up on these gorgeous earth colors:

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If I wore lipstick I would totally want some in “Georgia Clay”.

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I followed up with washes of “Roman Stucco”, “Trail Tan” and “Light Ivory”. Some stones were painted with a heavier wash of the light ivory, then dabbed off.

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This is what the underside of the floor would like like if you crawled under the foundation and looked up. It will never be seen in the build, but I like knowing it’s there.

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I was going to glue in joists and floorboards, but I’m just not feeling that crazy. Look at how different the stone color looks because of the light:

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The exterior foundation walls are going to be built from salvaged dressed stone, with the occasional rubble and timber posts. I’ll be using egg carton:

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And must now remember to buy the same kind (Judy’s Organic) to keep textures similar.

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Here’s the start. It will be built at the rate at which I acquire cartons, which is equivalent to driving a rubble-loaded wagon back from San Francisco, so it will take a while. And that’s okay. The scenery is gorgeous :)

Lastly, I’ll share this PSA I made today. In the crafts store parking lot I looked down to see this perfect little horror of the most commonplace litter. Feel free to share :)

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*steps down from soapbox*

Foundation

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After determining the maximum height of the stairs based on the project board dimensions, I established the height of the foundation, which turned out to be four inches. Using inch-thick styrofoam, I cut and glued it to the bottom of the second base kit.

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I decided on more rubble and salvage from the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, and was pleased to also repurpose some foundation stones from an abandoned early build. I used the recommended Foamtastic glue, which I’m pretty sure is just an extra-thick tacky, and as a result my thumb joint is sore from *squeezing* the bottle all day.

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Here’s the upside-down completed foundation, with a first coat of paint drying, an entire two-ounce bottle of Delta Ceramcoat “Mudstone”. (I’ve since added a wash of “Espresso” to good effect, but lost the light and will have to wait until tomorrow to show you.)

 

 

Yipes, Stripes; Keystone, Geometry

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www.nancyland.com

Work continues on the Yipes, Stripes rug. A new working title has evolved: Stripes Invaded by Checks. It’s a very enjoyable and intuitive process watching it develop. Thus far we have the chaos of irregular stripes organizing themselves into more regular expression, as influenced by the surprise appearance of an upstart checkerboard pattern. I expect I’ll know how it’ll turn out at the end — when the length reaches six inches.

Making steady progress (and regress) on the new build. I finished the interior brickwork, and after a few color assays, decided on a soft white semigloss. There’s like four layers of gesso, some DecoArt Snow-Tex for mortar texture, floor and wall gaps filled with DAP CrackShot, and three layers of acrylic latex enamel paint. That’s authentic, right?

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I’ve one more sanding and finish coat to do on the wall cabinet.

I glued in place the three interior walls, back porch wall and supports, and beams.

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This is by far the most fiddling I’ve done with a base kit and am encountering many delicious measuring opportunities. The keystone pieces provided with the kit make excellent hide-one’s-crap-joinery structural reinforcing plates. I mentioned earlier how delighted I am with the hardware I ordered from Olde Mountain Miniatures. Here you see her star-shaped anchor plates and some punched paper bolts applied to the keystone.

I also stepped away from the aubergine-stained doors, opting instead to carry through with the gray stain. This leaves me far more options for adding color, and as I intend to use this build as a prop for photographing products, the more neutral the better.

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The entire rest of the day was spent figuring out how to build the additional support posts, beams and window casings. I felt like Leonardo da Vinci contemplating Vitruvian Man or something, but I finally worked out the various dimensions (if not the angles; that’s what sandpaper is for). Then it was time to watch the sun set on this warm and mild day with a glass of wine. I’ll sketch out and record my findings tomorrow — many dimensions of strip wood are involved! — and work out how to correct the warp in the kit base board :(

No wait, I mean :) That’s tomorrow.

Gratitude, Framing

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Thank you all for your hearty congratulations and encouragement along the way. I really was surprised to win again, and a bit overwhelmed. When I got this comment from Bennie:

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Something clicked with “I watched it evolve from beginning to end!” Sharing our work as we did has created a genuinely supportive community for both sharers and viewers, something I value. For me, there are elements of vulnerability and trust in posting imperfect works-in-progress, in letting you see unedited glimpses of my messy studio, my naked un-manicured fingers. One of my motivations is to spark your creativity, as a maker or a viewer. Inspiring appreciation, fostering delight, is another. So thank you for dropping by. Really truly.

The light today is crazy, brilliantly sunny then dark and gray. But I was glad to arrive at this point in the new build:

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I got enough pieces from a second kit to be able to get a basic (and square) frame up, and determine with only minor maths the additional posts and casings that need to be built. Starting with the porch support post (finally).

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Next, I’ll knock it all flat again to finish the interiors and exterior cladding, then reassemble with omg glue.

A peek at the side wall progress:

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Now back to bricking.

 

 

What?!

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Well that was a surprise. I am wide-eyed proud to announce that the Sea House Warming Hut placed third —of more than 100 entries! — in the 2015 HBS Creatin’ Contest. (More contest results here.) Thank you for being curious and caring enough to watch and comment on my meandering mini odyssey; heartfelt congratulations to everyone who participated.

Tiny rancor is more than happy to share my five three minutes of fame :)

In other fun news, I just signed on to this 28-day challenge sponsored by Creative Live. It’s free of cost, and results are shared on Instagram (I’m nancy_k_enge). Check it out!

Aubergine, Overlook

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Using the kit’s doors, stained aubergine, with the mullions painted oxidized lead black.

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Yesterday I took a picnic lunch (not pictured) to Thornton Overlook, just north of Pacifica. So pleasant to sit outside with mild sea breezes and a majestic view. The Sea House Warming Hut is not far from here, in case a chill fog sets in :)

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Looking south, with Pedro Point rocks in the distance.