Tag: Modern Miniature Succulents + Sundries

Honor, Office Essentials, A Sconce

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Earlier this month, I was delighted to receive an email from Uppercase magazine publisher Janine, saying that the Plastic Litter collage would be included in No. 33. Today, while flipping through a lo-res digital preview of the upcoming issue, I was astounded to see it was given a full page! Whoa and wowser. Above is a photo from her newsletter, with action shots of the printing process. Of course all of you are already subscribers, so I don’t even have to go on about how truly worthwhile and inspirational this publication is.

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I’m about three-quarters of the way through photographing and writing instructions, kitting and listing the four or five kits that comprise the new Office Essentials line over at MMS+S. Then it will be on to the wall sconce kit, which is through prototyping, yay!

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For my birthday, our water heater ruptured and flooded the under-house utility room for $1,750. Other than that rude occurrence, everything was lovely. Thank you! I’m getting back to work now!

 

 

Same As It Ever Was

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The late night sorties continue, despite my best defenses.

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This just made me laugh out loud; she so looks like Alice in Wonderland/Grace Slick doing “One pill makes you larger, and…”

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Zilly and Stormy continue to meet up after work, and are really enjoying getting to know one another. Here they are, chatting away, sitting on what I refer to as the “floral footstools of anxiety”. It’s got nothing to do with them, and is a story for perhaps another time? The fabric, however, is fabulous: “London Calling” from Studio RK for Robert Kaufman. I want to reupholster everything in it.

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For my birthday I purchased a set of lenses for my iPhone from Photojojo. I’ve not had much time to purposely explore them — it’s not even quite my birthday yet— but here are a few snapshots.

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I was most interested in the macro and telephoto, but could not resist the fisheyes and filter lenses. Above is EC01 Echeveria, looking fabulous larger than miniature life-size.

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These are very lively moss flowers, less than a half-inch tall, growing on the backyard retaining wall, as seen through the macro lens. Who know spores had EYES?!

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And here is either the fisheye or super fisheye, good for laughs and turning one’s home into a hobbit-hole. In the foreground are the lens boxen. I heartily recommend!

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I’m about to go south, and then north, for a couple of days. I wrote and photographed the instructions and listing for the first of the MMS+S Office Essentials, in colorway “Warm” today, but will hold off actually listing them at MMS+S until I return and have a chance to kit and document the whole series.

The south part is to my family in Santa Cruz, and the north part is to a *very* special tour my delightful husband has managed to arrange, of a very special archive of amazing artifacts, all housed on a fairyland ranch that is so sprawling and gorgeous it takes one’s breath away. (And/or, is typically Northern Californian.) Happy birthday to me, and all the March babies!

Yikes

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The new issue of the newsletter Cut, Fold + Make just went out and I forgot to harangue you to subscribe, if you’ve not already done so. There’s a complementary 1:12 scale vertical file holder template, as well as some inspirational and obscure links of creative goodness. Don’t make my imaginary business coach scold me.

It’s chilly nights here in coastal Northern California— as is seasonally appropriate — and Scarlett is taking comfort as she finds it, in recently vacated slippers.

Shade Concept

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Inspired by the bicycle basket of Almira Gulch, I’m happily exploring different size weavers on the 1/16-inch paper spokes loom. (Wait, please click the link. Years ago I had a boyfriend who would hum this song whenever he thought I was being too crabby. It still makes me smile.)

Anyway. This is made with eighth-inch weavers. The shade is 1.5 inches in diameter, supported by two interior rims, cut from cardboard and covered in cardstock.

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Here you can see the intriguing patterns cast when light shines through the structure. Considering that the flat weave is made from two rectangular shapes, the effects of layering and light are interesting. (I don’t know why my thumb looks like a misshapen grub.)

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I’m also working a 3/32-inch weave. That’s one less than an eighth. Finer.

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Hard to compare the eighth-inch weave because of the curvature, but maybe squint your eyes? Don’t yet know which I prefer.

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Light shining through. So pretty! I see now that I’d move the lower rim to the very bottom of the shade. Undecided if additional trim is warranted. Next I will fiddle with a top thingy to channel the wires (I picture this as a hanging lamp). Don’t think I’ll mess at all with a harp, as it all seems so particular to the kind of bulb one is using.

Lightists, now is when I would *love* if you’d chime in and tell me all the things I’m missing and should consider. I’m just here watching the Miss Gulch clip a few more times :)

Toto2 Basket Kit Listed

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The Toto2 basket kit is finally listed at ModMinSucc+Sundries. Studying the above pictured basket, which is not the one Dorothy carried in the movie — this is the wicked basket — gives me the idea to try some thick/thin weaving. Thanks, Almira Gulch!

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The Toto2 instructions ran to one-anna-half pages O_o

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Printed front and back, folded in half. Tidy. But of course I spotted the spacing error in the name (twice!) after they were all printed. It’s going to stay in for now :/

And now it’s time for a glass of relax and eyes away from cameras and screens. Check it out!

Absent, Not Idle

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The Toto2 basket kit stalled when photographing the instructions, and underwent a minor redesign. Necessitating more prototypes and models, etc., as everyone who has ever been involved in bringing a product to market knows. At least I am my own boss and manager, and our production meetings are… relatively honest and supportive of everyone’s efforts.

Then I got distracted with designing some office supply products: a coordinated group of essentials, in different colorways. Here is the first, in gray, orange and yellow, that will eventually have a fashion name like Southwest or Urban Warmth. The kits will consist of a horizontal file holder, a vertical file or magazine holder (not pictured), a cache pot, and a trash bin. Oh, and coordinating file folders. The trash bins would also make stylish planters, given a coat or two of planter-style finishing.

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And then there was this development. One day I came home and noticed a small artifact on the kitchen floor… a tiny thing I knew was a prop from Argo Wool Works, which is next to the Sea House Warming Hut. Supposedly safely ensconced atop a six-foot tall cabinet, protected by a buffer wall of foam core. (Relegated there after the previous degradations on the work table.)

Breached. I knew not yet how. A day or so later, as I was working at the work table, I heard a thunk behind me and looked up to see Scarlett, atop the living roof. She is now agile enough to leap four feet in the air from the adjacent desk to plunder forbidden miniature worlds. And plunder and pillage she has done.

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I documented these first raids, then cleared all the stuff, and her, out. There have been many subsequent scruffings, even though she knows it’s wrong.

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The tiny shelves, once filled with wool products, are decimated. Her hopeful forays have been abated as long as I remember to position my Luxo lamp at an upward angle, blocking the leap from lower desktop to shelf top.

Toto2 Prototype, First Article

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Rounding out +Sundry baskets, here is the final Toto2 basket prototype. There are at least two handle styles possible, and I played with the idea of basket hardware.

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I improved the proportions from the first Toto, and experimented with lid types.

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Here is the first article. It’s Minwax Golden Oak stain and W&N Promarker Marsh Green.

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Tomorrow, light and electricity permitting, I’ll be able to photograph the instructions and shop listings. There’s a big windy storm blowing in, and with the ground already saturated… Everything will be alright.

New Basket Kit, Stormy, Scarlett

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This was me last night, after finishing the stormtrooper kit. The beauty and precision of Bandai’s design and manufacturing is so elegant, I was inspired to rethink several of my kit components. I spent all morning redesigning and test cutting, watching the Cricut machine’s performance with each iteration. As a result, I’ve made small improvements to the kit building process and experience, and improved kitting efficiency. When one wears all the helmets hats in a business, small improvements make a big small difference :)

BTS: For instance, the first version instructions for the newly-listed round basket with handle kit had you measuring and cutting parts for the handle. Tricky measurements, too, like 9/16 of an inch. I realized this was contrary to my core value proposition *snerk* of taking the tedium out of miniature building; that’s what machines are for. Now there is a pre-measured and cut handle assembly piece that took me like four tries to optimize for the Cricut. It’s still fiddly to make, but no rulers are involved.

The stormtrooper’s name is… Stormy. He and Zilly have yet to meet.

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I think Scarlett is getting big, with permanently dirty toes. At seven months old, she’s not at that super leggy stage, but who knows?

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Oh, and here’s a beauty shot of the new basket. It’s colored W&N Promarker Orchid. (This was my favorite color when I was a young girl, but I called it lavender :)

Boxen

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Gee golly gosh oh man golly, does taking something to market take some time? Answer: yes. Not complaining; I want to get it right as right as I can make it can be.

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Up in the MMS+S shop today are three cardboard box kits. Three sizes of boxen, each the epitome of scale fidelity and utility. If you didn’t know you needed these before, well, it will soon become apparent.

I’m pretty much over my basket weaving overload aversion, and am looking forward to bringing the mildly-redesigned Toto basket into production. Priority: next.

Thank you, thank you all for your support and interest. You make a difference.