Sometimes life is just the same old, same old. Nothing to report here. I did finish painting a battalion of tiny (23mm, 1 inch) teddy bears. Wishing you a great week!

 

 

P.S. Sherrill just drew my attention to the battalion of bears currently invading Paris. You can read about their antics daily on Facebook.

A Teapot for Jodi and Other Stories

Jodi Hipler at My Miniature Madness is building a dollhouse called Storybook Cottage. It's got a teatime theme and I'm enchanted with the house even if it's far from finished.
Ages ago I made a few mouse teapots following a Youtube tutorial by Christel Jensen. Christel is one of my long-time miniaturist heroes, and together with Angie Scarr probably the reason I started making polymer clay food. I see that Christel has taken the teapot video down, but there are still some delicious cupcake tutorials on her page.

Enough name dropping. Jodi, I'm sure I could do a better job if I tried making one of these teapots now and I would love to send you one to add to your cottage kitchen. If you would like a mouse teapot please let me know what colour you prefer and I will get onto it. You will most likely only receive it at Christmas for reasons below.

On to Other Stories.

You might have noticed that there have been no new posts on my blog for a while, that I've stopped commenting on the blogs I regularly follow and dropped off Facebook and Instagram.  I hope everyone haven't been having too much fun without me. As soon as I settle into my new routine, I will be back in full force.

What happened?  I GOT A NEW JOB!!! Yeah, I know. I already have several. But this one brings me closer to a dream I had almost given up on. I've always wanted to be able to say that I'm a writer. Real writers get paid for writing. Well, it's finally happening! In June I started working as a writer for a company that employs a whole team of writers. We even have editors who read the stuff we write and return it with lots of red marks. And then we get paid. I love it! (Ha ha, Emily and Sharon, I know you are reading this with your pencils tucked behind your ears). I'm not going to tell you who the company is or who our clients are, but I might talk in general terms of what I'm writing about in future.

For those of you enjoying summer in the northern hemisphere, I'm jealous as I sit at my computer under a blanket. If you are suffering from the heat wave in Europe, I hope it rains soon.

Writerly yours
Megan

P.S. One of my tarantulas is going to have babies at the end of August!

How to make a Fairy Basket from an Acorn Cup

This tutorial was originally posted exactly five years ago.  How time flies!  I'm in miniature making mood, and I still love making these little baskets at Eastertime. I thought I would reshare it, in case you feel like joining me.

I’m slouched behind my computer, supposed to be concentrating on  work.  But somehow my mind only wants to wander today…  It is autumn in the Southern hemisphere, and staring through my studio window, I see that the trees are loaded with acorns.  Which makes me think of squirrels and hoarding things for winter.  Which makes me wonder what the fairies are harvesting right now?  And what are they using to bring the harvest home in?  Which brings me back to acorns.  Acorn cups specifically.  Wouldn’t an acorn cup make just the perfect gathering basket for a fairy?  So, let’s drop what we are doing and go help the fairies make some baskets to bring in the harvest!

Here is what you will need:
Acorn cups, duh, can’t do anything without those.
Something to make a handle with.  Materials that would work well—a platted pine needle, a pliable twig, a snip of wire, a sprig of grass, a scrap of ribbon or string.
If you want your basket to stand, you will need to sand the bottom flat, or glue a small button, metal washer or a flattened ball of polymer clay to the base.
Line the basket to cushion a fragile load.  Use materials that a fairy would typically choose—moss, tiny feathers, a scrap of lace or fabric, cat hair. Huh?  Just checking to see if you are still paying attention :-)

Constructing the basket:
Start by making the base of the acorn cap flat so that it can stand.  You can do this by rubbing the base over sandpaper, or by gluing a small button, metal washer or flattened ball of baked polymer clay to the base.

If you prefer a more finished and durable look, varnish your acorn cup.
Glue the handle to the sides of the acorn cup.  My handles are made from wire, platted pine needles, twisted polymer clay, ribbon and rope.  If you are using wire or rope, you could drill two small holes to put the ends of the handle through the acorn cup instead of gluing it.  I made a polymer clay grip for the wire handle.

Advice when platting pine needles:
These make the most natural looking basket handles, but they require a bit of patience to assemble.  I like to use dry pine needles, because of the natural brown colour.  Soak the pine needles in water for a few hours before starting, this will make them pliable and less prone to breaking.
Tape the end of the pine needle to your work surface with masking tape, and put a pin through it to stop it from pulling out.  Carefully and tightly plat the pine needle.  Rub over the platted length after every few twists to make sure that it is lying flat.  When you get to the end, tape the needles down with a second piece of masking tape, and leave in position to dry. 
I find it easier to glue one end of the basket handle to the acorn cup and let it dry, then cut to length and glue the other end.

Line the basket:
I used a variety of linings—moss in the wire handle basket, feathers in the baskets with pine needle handles, lace with the ribbon handle, and knitting wool fluff to resemble raffia and moss in the basket with rope handle and basket with polymer clay handle.
As you can see, some baskets have a more naturalistic look, and others are more colourful. 

Tip for lining material:
Some wool shops have an amazing variety of chenille and boucle knitting wool.  It can be unravelled or snipped into tiny pieces to make moss and raffia to line your acorn baskets.  Chenille sticks (pipe cleaner) also come in a variety of colours.  Use small sharp scissors to cut off the fluff and use it to line your baskets.

Fill the baskets with goodies and drop off at the Fairy Depot.  Here are some ideas to get you started.

Cupcake, anyone?

In the interest of a healthier lifestyle, I promised to stop stuffing myself with cake in the New Year.  But the craving lingers... Last weekend I made a batch of polymer clay cupcakes.

They are approximately 1cm (3/8 inch) tall, and iced in colours of violet and rose.  I put them on pins so that you can stick them in your pin cushion to enjoy.  Yummy to look at and calorie free!
I have put more pictures on my website, and a link to order if you need a few.

The cupcake pin cushion in this photo is made of felt.  The pattern is available on my website, and in my Etsy Store.

Easter Bunny Polymer Clay Workshop

Been playing with clay this evening. Here's a sneak peek at my very simple bunny for the polymer clay workshop this coming weekend. He needs to be baked, and have some colour added, but right now it's beddy-bye time for the big bunny. Sleep tight, dear friends.

From a blog post a week ago, in case you missed it:

Here's a quick note to let you know that the proposed Easter Bunny Polymer Clay Workshop on 29 March has been confirmed.

Here are the bare bones details:
What:  A polymer clay Easter bunny.  Jointed or unjointed, your choice.  Easter eggs from clay if you want to.
When: Saturday 29 March.  Morning 9am to 12, OR afternoon 1 to 4pm.
How: Adults, beginners to advanced.  Sorry, no children.
Cost: R 60 per session, no clay included.  Bring your own clay, buy clay at the studio, or ask Megan to prepare a clay kit for you, additional cost R 100.  There are no workshop notes, you are welcome to make notes in class, and photograph the steps of the project as we go along.
The class will be limited to 8 persons.  There is a morning and and afternoon session, but you need to book as soon as possible to ensure your place. If you want to stay all day, book for both sessions and pack your own lunch.  Teatime treats served all day.

Flamingos

I have a friend who has a bit of a fling with flamingos at the moment.  It's her birthday today.  So what did I make her?  Flamingos!

The pin cushion is made from a tuna can, covered in silk and velvet.  I made the birds and water plants from polymer clay, and attached every piece to a pin.  One can re-arrange the pond if it takes your fancy to do that.  Reminds me a little bit of those zen gardens everyone had on their desk a while ago; sand, pebbles and a tiny rake so you can pretend doing yardwork while at the office.  This is the crafter's version :-)

Mechanical Mouse Polymer Clay Workhsop at JSME

On Saturday I taught a group of talented miniaturists at JSME (Johannesburg Society of Miniature Enthusiasts) how to make a mechanical mouse from polymer clay.  When you turn the handle on the side of the cheese, the mouse twirls around.

It was a laughing kind of day...

 With intense concentration at times...

When it became too stressful we had to go outside for a cheese break... 

 

Then it started coming together, and things were great!

I was watching all the time to make sure they do it right.

They tell me it was the first workshop ever where the teacher brought a stove...

Hmmm, we all know miniaturists are a bit strange!

JSME offers workshops on the first and third Saturday of every month at the Roosevelt Park recreation centre in Johannesburg.  They also send out a bimonthly newsletter, and organize the largest miniatures festival in the southern hemisphere.  If you are fascinated by small things, and would like to learn to make items for your own dolls house, head over to their website and join the club!

Miniature Mechanical Mouse

After a few false starts with the mechanical mouse project last week, I did manage to make a working sample.  I immediately realized that a picture would never do the little mouse justice, I needed a video to show you how it works.

My small success with the mouse mechanism pointed to a huge gap in my skills base.  I knew virtually nothing about video, and the thought of making my own YouTube video had never crossed my mind.  Thank heavens for Google and Nikon online help.  After some research I knew that I could film 30minutes of video with my digital camera, and that I could edit and smarten it up with the same software that Steven Spielberg uses for his movies.  In order to free up my hands , I unearthed the tripod that I bought a few years ago and have never used. 
Filming the dancing mouse was easy.  Editing the video was not.  After fourteen hours of studying the software and pressing the wrong buttons, I had forty seconds of workable material.  I am not considering a career in the film industry.
So here it is for you to enjoy.  I will be teaching a mechanical mouse workshop at Johannesburg Society of Miniatures on 18th May.  You do not need to be a member of the society to join in a workshop.
Later, when I have time, I will also publish the workshop as a PDF tutorial.
But right now, there are some other wonderful little distractions calling to me.  I will write about them in my next post.

Of mice and men

People often say things to me like 'you are so clever', and 'you have such wonderful ideas', and 'you make it look so easy'.  I can't take it seriously.  This is why.



I have just spent ten hours trying to make a miniature mechanical toy.  I have a desk full of eraser shavings, metal scraps, and one seriously scorched mouse and a burnt polymer cheese to show for my efforts. 
Some days are like that.  Taking something from an idea to a product that works can mean a lot of head scratching and dead ends.
Then, just as I was about to nibble on eraser shavings and chew wires, the man came home.  He took one look at my work table, twisted a piece of wire and started talking about tolerance and play.  Not in the context of human relationships.  Remember he's an engineer...
I spent hours trying one type of fabric and another to give the gears more grip.  He asks, what about sand paper?  I spent hours trying to align every axle and gear, and get them centred.  He says, offsetting the gears will give better torsion.   Whatever that is, but I can see what he means.
So, now I have some new avenues to explore.  At this late hour I'm going to start over.   When I go to bed I will dream of dancing mice.

Dates for your Diary

One problem I never have when waking up in the morning, is wondering what to do today.   It is a privilege to live a life dedicated to creative endeavours.  There is also the adventure and challenge of dealing with daily life, I’m sure you know exactly what I mean.  Just yesterday the dogs treed a troupe of monkeys in one of the big bush willows behind the pond.  I spent quite some time out there admiring the monkeys and wishing I could understand the comical curses and sign language they were hurling at the dogs.  Then I distracted the dogs with a snack and a walk so the monkeys could make a safe escape.   It was a few hours till I got back to work.  All that time I was supposed to be at my sewing table but what the heck, we only get to live this one life!

You will find a small Newsletter with Sew Along dates and Saturday Workshops for the second quarter of 2013 as a PDF HERE. 

We also have an all day bear making workshop on the first Saturday of every month.  This is great for beginner bear makers, and for those who want to spend a stretch of time with their works in progress.  

It would be lovely if you join us at Sew Along, or one of the Saturday workshops.

Not on the calendar, but happening soon:

Saturday 27 April 9am till 12.30pm 
Polymer clay play.  This is not a workshop.  I am busy making dolls house food and clay pins at the moment.  You can copy what I am doing, pick a project from a book or magazine, or just bring your clay and make whatever you feel like.  I will be available to answer questions and to assist if you get stuck.  This month the studio has acquired a dedicated clay oven, what luxury!  I’ve tried it out and it is working beautifully.  I’m eager for you to help me put it to good use :-)  Cost R 55.

Saturday 27 April 13.30pm till 16.30pm
Sew Along.  Bring any project that you are working on, bears, dolls, beading, crochet, whatever, and sew along with us. I will be available to answer questions and to assist if you get stuck. We will also have a sort discussion about pandas, and I will show you how to alter a one-colour bear to incorporate two or more colours.  Cost R 55.

Wednesday 1 May 9am till 12.00pm  and 13.00pm till 16.00pm
Polymer clay play.  This is not a workshop.  I am busy making dolls house food and clay pins at the moment.  You can copy what I am doing, pick a project from a book or magazine, or just bring your clay and make whatever you feel like.  I will be available to answer questions and to assist if you get stuck.  This month the studio has acquired a dedicated clay oven, what luxury!  I’ve tried it out and it is working beautifully.  I’m eager for you to help me put it to good use :-)  Cost R 55 per session.  There will be tea and biscuits all day long.  You are welcome to stay for the day, just bring your own snack for lunch.

Coming in June
A mohair teddy with needle felted face and paw pad details.  This is going to be an advanced workshop, and will incorporate many techniques apart from needle felting.  It will be a full day Saturday workshop, or complete the bear in two sessions on a weekday.  If you are interested and would like to put your name down for a place already, you can let me know.  More details and pictures available soon. 

Fuller Picture

I have added a few more tiles to my polymer clay book cover.

Can you spot them?  Techniques used include, mock cloisonne, backfilling, image transfer, and working with mica powders.

Turning over a new leaf - Polymer clay book cover

Here's a sneak preview of something I'm working on. 

It's a mosaic style polymer clay book cover.   I measured out a block the size of my book, then divided it into smaller squares.  Over the last few weeks I've been mulling over the polymer clay techniques that I use most often, and have identified no fewer than seventeen that I love creating with.  Every tile represents one or more techniques.  Not only is it a sampler of my work, but a fantastic way of teaching a lot of techniques in one project.  Hence, a new workshop in the making!  Here are close-ups of the first few tiles.

Mokume Gane, tool impressions and rubbing with acrylic paint.

Lace impression rubbed with acrylic paint.

Caning, framing, tool impressions and rubbing with acrylic paint.

Skinner blend, tool impressions and rubbing with acrylic paint.  I'm no good at drawing, but I love the way this tile turned out.

And this is my other favourite tile so far.  Framing using cutters, including mixed media elements, making letters and clay impressions, a bit of caning, and rubbing with acrylic paint.  This tile was amazingly easy to make.

I'm looking forward to showing you the finished book cover.

Miniatures Spectacular - Nearly there!

‘Tis the night before Parkhurst and I’m very excited! Our annual miniatures fair is always a magical experience. The primary reason I take a table at the fair every year is so that I have an excuse to be there all day, every day. And of course so that I can have a base from which to shop, and a table under which to stash my newly acquired treasures. This year I am also offering for sale some of the best miniatures that I have made in a long while.
So what's with the suitcase?  I will tell you next week :-)
In the meantime, here is a sneak preview of some of the miniatures I will be offering for sale tomorrow.

This little one I've named Minnow.  She is only 9cm tall, made from polymer clay and mohair.  I don't know whether I will have the heart to let her go...

Two vintage style dolls made from polymer clay.  About 10cm tall, wire jointed.  I love the new glaze that I'm using.

Polymer clay 'people pins'.  these are always a winner at fairs, and fun to make.  I didn't have time to make too many this year though.

A tiny (8cm) jointed kitty with hand painted stripes.  This is another one I'm tempted to keep.

Needlefelted dog 1/12 scale about 4cm high.  I wish this one would find a home.  He was messing around with the crockery while I packed.

I managed to finish several of these micro tiny (4cm) polymer clay dolls.  They have wired arms, and take absolutely hours to paint.  This batch has particularly nice faces, the photo doesn't do them justice, I will try to snap a few pictures in better light at the fair tomorrow.

That's it from me.  Hope to see you at the fair, and if you can't be there, have a creative weekend.

Finished it on Friday

This week I spent a lot of time at the clay table.  The doll with the eyes that have been bugging me so, got eyelids, ears and a neck a with flange so that it can be attached to a cloth body.  Once the paper clay has completely dried, I will be able to cover the head with fabric and start painting the facial features. 

I have never painted a cloth doll face before.  This is an adventure I am looking forward to!

Viola Ruth got arms this week.  Making hands with fingers are also a first for me, I love the way that they turned out.  If you look closely you will see a little heart on her chest.  It is not a heart at all... it's her ears, ready to put on her head later!  She is ready to have her head covered in cloth now, and then will follow several layers of gesso and lots of sanding.

Isn't the bird feeder just the sweetest thing?  Henning brought it home from the greengrocer.  I think it is too lovely to put in the garden, I will play with it here in the studio for a while first.

I have a new photo editing program.  Am still finding my way around in it and learning lots. All this doing things for the first time is quite exhausting, I feel as though I am spraining muscles in my brain.  What a privilege to have the time to experiment and learn though!

Doll Sculpting

I have been working on this doll face since December.  The eyes keep getting the better of me, don't know how many times I've taken them off and done it over.  When I had a look at it this morning I discovered the head is covered in mould.  I need to work a little faster... or get back to teddy bears, they don't go mouldy... another reason why I love them so much!

Polymer Clay Tutorial - Brinjal

Quiet doesn't mean that I'm not cooking up something... for the last few days I have been playing with some stunning new polymer clay cutters that Peter from Everpace Supplies sent all the way from Hong Kong.  There are very few molds and cutters for clay available that are truly small enough for 1:12 dolls house scale.  These fit the scale perfectly, and once one gets the hang of working with them, they are pure pleasure.  I'm in love!
So, here I am offering the fruits of my labour, my very first polymer clay tutorial ever!  Enjoy.  If you would like to download the tutorial, you will find the PDF HERE.

You will need only two colours of polymer clay to make brinjals. 

A bit of green.  Not too bright, with a yellowish cast.  I mixed Sculpey Olive green with a bit of yellow and translucent clay to get the colour that I’m using here.

Purple.  This should be very dark, almost black.  I mixed equal portions of Premo Fuchsia and black.  Brinjals come in many colours.  You can use your imagination, or pay a visit to the greengrocer.

 

Roll out the green clay until it is paper thin.  Brush generously on both sides with baby powder or corn starch.  This will prevent the leaves from sticking to the cutter and distorting.  (If you don’t have a clay cutter that will cut a very tiny star or flower, you can cut the shapes by hand.  Roll a tiny ball of clay, flatten it with your finger and shape with a blade or toothpick).

Place the clay on a sheet of plastic or wax paper.

Place the cutter over the clay face down, and cover with another sheet of plastic or wax paper.

I like to cover the clay when using cutters and rollers for two reasons.  I get upset when my clay gets contaminated by colours of other clay that is stuck to tools, and I’m always conscious of damaging the smooth surface of tools such as cutters and rollers.  Bit of OCD...

Gently but firmly use a roller to impress the cutter into the clay.

Carefully pull the clay away from the cutter.  For my brinjal calyx I’m going to use the largest of the four petal flowers.

Roll a log of clay approximately 8mm (3/8 of an inch) thick and cut into segments. 

Each segment will become a brinjal. 

There is no fixed size for brinjals, in nature they come in all shapes and sizes.  I like my dolls house food to be young and tender when picked, so my fruits are approximately 15mm (1/2 an inch) long.

If your dolls house gardener is going to enter his prize brinjal in the regional agricultural show, you can make them a little bit bigger.

Here comes a bit of important realism.

On the fat side of the brinjal, make a shallow indentation with a ball tool.

This is the blossom end of the fruit.

And a bit of trivia:  Did you know that brinjals are of the same family as deadly nightshade and potatoes?  Technically a brinjal is a berry. 

Push a tiny scrap of green clay into the blossom end of the brinjal with a toothpick, and scratch and blend the green to the sides of the indentation so that it looks uneven.

The completed blossom end.

Press a green flower shape over the narrow end of the brinjal.  This forms the calyx.

Press down with your fingers until the petals start melding together and lie tightly against the body of the fruit.

Use a ball tool or toothpick to make a small hole in the center of the calyx.

Roll a thin log of green clay to make the stem.  Make one end of the log pointy.

Press the pointy end of the stem into the prepared hole, and use a toothpick to blend the clay around the base of the stem so that it is securely attached.

Use a sharp blade to cut the end off the stem,  it must look as though it was picked off the plant with secateurs.

Bake your completed brinjals according to the clay manufacturer’s instructions.  (Most polymer clay bakes at 130˚ C for about half an hour).

 

Finally, when the clay has cooled, paint with a gloss varnish that is intended for use with polymer clay.  It is important to paint only the purple part of the fruit, the green bits of a brinjal have a matte appearance.

I use toothpicks and prestik (blu-tack) to hold the brinjals while the varnish is drying.

Ta-da!  My finished brinjals. 

The real brinjals in this picture came from a fellow miniaturist’s garden.  Thank you Rinda, they were eaten with lots of garlic and olive oil shortly after I took the picture.  Just delicious!