A 1980s Family In Their Own Home - and fabulous KDF!

The 1/16th scale family I mentioned in my last blog haven't wasted any time in settling in to their new home - and very cosy they look too!

These were a fun family to make - a change in scale and in style as they were created for a restored late 1970s - early 80s vintage house. A super collection of vintage furniture by different makers adds to the charm and means that like any home it's absolutely unique.

So here are the family just after I finished them - deliberately photographed on the workbench so as to indicate some idea of the 1/16th scale. (Workbench of course still somewhat chaotic).

And here they are again, feet up watching the television in the sitting room of their gorgeous new abode.  Many thanks to M. who very kindly sent me these lovely photographs and has allowed me to share them on my blog.

I had fabulous day at Kensington Dolls House Festival on Saturday....there just aren't enough superlatives in praise of the artists and artisans whose work, as always, is a privilege to see. I did make just a few purchases - exquisite and beautifully crafted so I am thrilled.  I'll take pictures and share them next time.
 
The list of those that really inspired me is a very long one and I also came back bursting with ideas and the determination to challenge myself further in my own work. So really all I need is lots and lots of money to indulge in collecting more fine work........and more time (and effort) to develop my own miniatures.

....and it's still raining!
Thank you for looking
Robin

It's November, It's Raining........I don't like it!!

For a whole variety of reasons I don't like this month....and it's raining..... and the shops are filling up with Christmas far too early in my book! However miniature work is a very nice distraction and I have another character finished and off to a new home.

You may very well think you've seen this chap before, standing in the field of poppies on the WW1 Scene Celia Thomas and I created. Actually it isn't the same elderly gentleman in his Royal British Legion blazer, but another as close as I could make him to the original for a customer who is building the scene from our How-to instructions in Dolls House and Miniature Scene Magazine.  We have heard from a number of people who are inspired to make their own versions of the scene which is very exciting.  Of course it would also be wonderful to see finished scenes because everyone will have brought their individual ideas to the concept. If you haven't seen it, go to our Nostalgia in Miniature website for a super video.

I cleared my workspace to work on some 1/16th scale characters, which I make from time to time for those who are vintage/antique dolls house collectors.  The challenge of course is that these wonderful old houses vary quite a lot when it comes to scale, as does the furniture, so quite often it's necessary to make minor adjustments when it comes to creating the dolls. They're nearly finished - I'll show you another time.

The workspace soon gets bunged up - I seem incapable of keeping it clear! In between other things I'm playing with toys - little boys love toy cars so I thought I'd experiment.  If you fancy a Vintage Toyshop workshop next year that Celia and I are running, details of that too are on our website.

Thank you for looking
Robin

The Little Vintage Toyshop....and ....A Game of Boules

I love it when I receive photographs of my dolls and our other items in the scenes they were destined for - and I've just received this super picture of the two 1/24th scale French boules players featured recently on my Blog.

Janet commissioned the dolls to be included in the Billericay Dolls House Club's French Village Scene and  sent the photo to me - many thanks to her and to Norman Hunter who has kindly allowed me to use his picture.  The whole scene is absolutely wonderful and was a great success at the recent exhibition.  Congratulations to all the members who created such  lovely work.

And now at last, after all the hints, I can announce that our  Nostalgia in Miniature Workshop next year will be 'THE LITTLE VINTAGE TOYSHOP'. We think this is our most exciting project so far and Celia and I are looking forward to it enormously.  We're busy building, planning and creating replica vintage toys. Celia of course is lucky enough to handle genuine vintage dolls house toys and houses all the time as Mrs KT Miniatures and let's be honest....I'm old enough to have played with some!

We are hoping that we can hold this on a Saturday in June but unfortunately aren't able to arrrange the date with the venue until early in the New Year - however we do have a Reserve List with a number of names on it already so if you're interested and would like to have the opportunity of a place before booking officially opens on our website, do contact one of us asap. This does not commit you at this time - just gives you a first chance to book.  More details will be available shortly.

 On this occasion, due the complexity and the fact that by their very nature toys are small and sometimes tiny, we are offering this in 1/12th scale only but its compact nature means it will sit on a bookshelf or mantlepiece so it is very versatile and we think it will also have wide appeal to those of you who usually  work in the smaller scales.

At £86, with a semi constructed carcass and highly detailed  frontage based on a beautiful antique miniature shop, together with kits, materials and instructions to make over 30 toys inspired by originals mostly from 1920s-30s - this could be a future heirloom. And if you're tempted to come with friends as group - a Discount may apply.

Thank you for looking
Robin

In Remembrance.....A Permanent Home for our WW1 Scene

This weekend  many people will take time to remember those men and women who over many decades have sacrificed their lives, health and futures in the hope that the next generations could live in peace. This is the story of one of those men during World War 1.

Those of you who have followed the progress of the World War 1 Scene created by Celia Thomas and me in our alternative Nostalgia in Miniature Workshops roles will, I hope, be interested in the end of the tale.  While we were thrilled to be able to donate £200 (50% of the sale price) to The Royal British Legion in support of their important work, we were deeply moved by the generous amount paid by a lovely lady from Hertfordshire, and even more so by the poignant story that prompted her purchase.
She has very kindly allowed us to share it with a wider audience.

A few years ago, her family inherited some letters from her grandfather that had been kept safe at his old farm ever since WW1 by his niece, who is now a grand 91 years old!  He was one of two brothers in the French Army, and they both looked out for each other during the war.

Her grandfather was an engineer so his letters  were quite detailed about the villages, the landscapes and the different movements of troops at that time. Being  a photographer too, he was sent out as a scout at night to survey the paths to be used by the canons the next day.  He was also in charge of "communications",  a glamorous word for carrying a wind-up telephone around everywhere, and was quite a character by all accounts! Both brothers survived the war itself, but her grandfather's brother sadly was gassed during the conflict and suffered badly until his death in 1951. Her grandfather died in 1936, in a motorbike accident.

As a final footnote to this story.....the lady's brother organised an exhibition in the little town where grandfather lived, just west of Paris,  earlier in 2014 as part of the WW1 Centenary  commemorations. The exhibition traced the  destiny of four soldiers from the same area, including photos, medals etc. and an itinerary was created following the first four days of the war in 1914 in Belgium, based on her grandfather's letters.

We feel very privileged that this little scene now belongs to the family of such a brave man.

For more information about this little scene, please go to: www.miniatureworkshops.com
View the video  - lovely music too, so speakers on - on the side bar.

If you are in Thame, Oxfordshire the scene itself is being displayed in the window of the Oxfam Bookshop until 13th November.

Thank you for looking
Robin

An C18th Family ...and..Playing with Prototypes...

It was another 'one of those weeks'.....but I think the gremlins have finally left my camera and laptop alone after another little attempt to distrupt things, but moved on to kitchen equipment....not a lot of fun!
However some proper miniature work did get done and delivered so I can at least share some pictures again.


It is always very interesting to be told about the house or setting my little characters will be moving into and it's often helpful in creating them.  So.......somewhere around 1780 a happy little hardworking 1/24th scale family lived in a pretty cottage on their smallholding. Mother and father and two little girls had a good life, even if money was a little tight.

However Mother's sister had married well, to a merchant in the nearby town.

Every so often they came to visit.

 In between C18th 1/24th and a modern 1/12th scale charcters there's been a little time to play with toys...or at least a few prototypes.  When my Father-in-Law was a little boy he had a wooden pull-along ship...his son played with it...and the next two generations. It's very much still going strong...and this is the rough protoype for a vintage toy ship.

Our next Nostalgia In Miniature workshop is still some time away - next June - but we're already planning and you might guess that vintage toys will be a feature........it will be a few weeks before we can give details but our website, this blog and Celia's too will carry all the information as soon as we can.  In the meantime we do have a Reserve list already running  - absolutely no committment at this early stage, but you'll get all the details and opportunity to book first. If you're interested and love vintage toys as much as us do get in touch.

In other news...those of you who have kindly been interested in our World War 1 Dug out and Trench Scene created for Dolls House and Miniature Scene Magazine earlier this year, might like to know that we are thrilled to announce its sale has enabled us to donate £200 to The Royal British Legion.  The purchaser has very special reasons for buying our scene and has allowed us to share a rather wonderful story, which we will do in a few days.
If you live in or near Thame, Oxfordshire,  it will have its last public appearance later this week and over the Remembrance period in the Oxfam Bookshop window display in the High Street.
If you're new to my blog and would like to see more, switch on your speakers and view the video on the side bar. 

Thank you for looking
Robin