Search My Blog!

Use the Search box below to find keywords that you're looking for quickly and easily!

Search Feature

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Scraps, Leftovers and Possibilities

A common trait amongst us mini obsessed is to never throw anything away. I myself have been guilty of (or smart about) this very thing throughout my entire mini phase. Even during my nine year hiatus from minis, I had kept a rolling cart full of bits, bobs, leftover kit pieces and scraps of wood. It won't surprise any of you to know those very pieces have saved my bacon in creative ways more than a time or two during a project. So while cleaning up and reorganizing after my fall project, I thought it would be fun and challenging to try and make a couple new, small projects where the majority of materials were taken only from my stash of "someday I'll use this" drawers.


What follows in the next few weeks will be a chronicle of (hopefully) my success in making neat things from leftover scraps, brain farts and "I wonder if that would work" items. This week's post won't have a lot of "during" photos, because I had to see if this was even going to be a possibility before I began to chronicle. But I hope it will inspire you to really take a look at what you've saved, and then to create something super fun from all of it!


I find that I really enjoy working on small projects. Ones that don't take up too much room and allow you to really delve into a subject or a style. I feel like with big projects such as the New Orleans, having a large house with rooms full of everything you find in a real house can be overwhelming for you or the observer to absorb. So, I decided to make a couple small bookshelf sized room boxes. These would allow me to use my leftover materials, and enjoy a genre that I haven't really worked with very much before: Mid Century Modern and Modern Modern.



I started with the Mid Century Modern structure. I looked at my resources, drew up a quick sketch, searched online for some theme ideas, and then gathered some possible materials. For the base, I cut a piece of 1/4" plywood scrap down to 8-3/8" x 6-3/8". I used scrap 1/8" x 1/4" to trim the edges, then used leftover wood flooring for the interior part of the roombox. I had some Provincial Minwax Wood Stain Pen left over, so I decided that's what stain I'd use for all the wood in the project.




With this base, that would make room enough for a small (enclosed on three sides) room scene (5-13/16" x 5-5/8") plus a peek out into a small atrium type garden (6-1/8" x 2") through a large (4-3/8" x 7-7/8") window. The walls were constructed from leftover 3/16" foam core sheets. I used a combination of scrap wood flooring and wallpaper sample sheets that I got from Joanne's several years ago to cover both the interior and exterior walls.  The 1/16" Lexan for the window was leftover from a sheet I used to make the windows for Autumn's Pantry. I trimmed the wall edges with 3/8" x 1/8" wood scraps.








For the angled ceiling, I used more foam core. I made a skylight with the same Lexan, used more wood floor scraps to clad the ceiling, and used grip tape strips for the roofing which was leftover from the New Orleans.




For the exterior fencing around the atrium window garden, I was able to use up a lot of the 1/16" x 1/2" basswood strips I had floating in a drawer. I used leftover  1/4" corner molding for the corner posts. I used other miscellaneous pieces of wood to make a holder basket for the 9 volt battery pack. The lamp that I'll use in the scene is one from my Shapeways Store. It uses a regular 12 volt screw socket bulb that comes with a plug. The lamp is designed to hold the bulb with a channel to run the wire down through the lamp base and out the bottom like a real household lamp. It can be easily run on battery power too, just by connecting the wires from the bulb to the battery pack and securing with shrink tube or electrical tape. I am going to paint the base of the lamp to match the roombox decor.



I want to get the structure completed for the Modern Modern roombox before I start on all the interior furnishings and the garden for both roomboxes. This way, I can clean up and put away all the construction-y stuff and make room for the decor materials. Here are a few more angles of the Mid Mod box as it stands today...




I hope you feel inspired to go take a look at all your "someday" supplies, and I hope you come away with some exciting ideas on how to use them! Making a bookshelf roombox is a great way to display and enjoy special pieces that you have put away for "someday", too!

xo xo,
Jodi

34 comments:

  1. I love this! Pretty much everything I'm doing this year is either with my 'someday' supplies or something I can buy with the cash in my pocket.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Sheila! It's a fun challenge, isn't it?!? And it comes with an even bigger sense of accomplishment! I am really looking forward to using up some of the drawer stuff because some of it is really neat, and with the extra space I'll gain I can collect again for the next big project and feel more responsible doing it!

      Delete
  2. What a clever way to use up scraps. I love that you can make little scenes with your special pieces. I’m just now starting to get enough of a stash to use supplies serendipitously, so I’m going to tuck this idea in my “someday” file.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Sherrill! It's a great feeling when you've got enough "stuff" where you don't panic about running out of something and having to halt production for several days to several weeks for things to arrive in the mail! Our smartest ancestors made due with their ingenuity and we are so much more blessed with material wealth that we should be able to do great things with our stash alone!

      Delete
  3. me encanta esa estructura, esperando a ver la sala terminada !

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gracias carmen! ¡Estoy emocionado de ver a dónde conducirá y qué aprenderé también!

      Delete
  4. It is always good to recycle. I love mix century modern and look forward to how this progresses.

    Huibrecht

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Huibrecht! I have always enjoyed the look but confess I was not very educated about it! It has been interesting to learn and fun to try and make what I have fit the bill! I am happy that you are on the journey with me!

      Delete
  5. When I first glanced at this, I was trying to read what was in the cubby, figuring it was a famous quote or story relative to the project. haaaaaaaaaaaa I think because the label was scale-person reading height and perfectly level. Anyway, I love this idea. I have some ideas, but no time.... Filed away while I enjoy your process.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh Brae I wish I could come up with a great way to add something apropos to the window - that is a great idea! Sadly, it is only the Lexan protective cling plastic with factory labeling on it. I don't dare take it off until the last second because sometimes I am clumsy and sometimes I have rotten luck! :O)

      Delete
  6. Para mi es todo un proyecto. Muy bien la estructura.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ¡Qué gran desafío, Isabel! ¡Y haces los proyectos más sorprendentes en los que tu sensación de satisfacción debe ser inmensa! ¡Espero poder hacer la mitad de bien con la mitad de estructura!

      Delete
  7. Hi, Jodi - This is going to be a unique project, and I know that you'll have so much fun! I can't wait to watch the creative juices flow and see the wonderful results that you'll achieve. I'm already inspired to at least take inventory of all my boxes and bins and see what happens!
    Marjorie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Marjorie! I am so excited that the project has inspired you to begin looking at your own stash for ideas! I must admit that it has been fun to go through the drawers and cubbies and to rediscover potentially great ideas again! I hope my creativity flows, too, and that the projects end up being a worthwhile endeavor!

      Delete
  8. What a wonderful post! ;O) And it really put a big smile into my face; it's always so good to be reminded that there are more people out there who have this damn little devil sitting on their shoulder whispering "You should better keep it - the day will come when you're in need of exactly this piece"... *LOL* You might remember that for me it's my Sometime-for-something-boxes, but Someday-I'll-use-this-drawers sound also great to me.

    And you have quite a collection (and so organized *sigh*)… it's a great idea to use the stuff you have for smaller projects. We all know the problem of running out of space - and deciding to choose a special theme for this small display is a great idea. I really like how this turned out so far - and as usual I'm looking forward to see more.

    Hugs
    Birgit

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Birgit! Us miniaturists keep finding that we are definitely wired in the same ways and it feels so good to know there are kindred souls out there who justify our eccentricities and that they prove themselves to be critical to our creativity! As for the organized part, I try to group like items with like items, and my motto is that if it's in a drawer it's clean, right?!? My mother did not buy that logic when I was growing up but I am the boss now and can have it how I like, lol! ;oP

      Delete
  9. Years of living abroad and collecting hand crafts have filled my home with large and small art. Upon retiring, I looked for a hobby, something to keep my fingers busy. Making dollhouse items caught my attention, because, I thought (wrongly), they don't require much space. Today I have one entire room in my home full of this "someday" staff together + boxes storing finished projects which don't have room for display anymore.
    Dear Jodi, I'm sure your leftovers are going to turn out masterpieces, inspiring the rest of us to follow your steps. I already love what I see here.
    Hugs,
    Drora

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh Drora it sounds like crafters Disneyland! I think you should open up the doors and start to sell tickets! I'd be first in line to see all the trinkets and hang on every word in each of the stories of how they became treasures! Your busy, retired fingers create magic and wonderment, and I am so glad you chose minis and chose to share them with us on your wonderful blog!
      Thank you for the lovely encouragement! I hope the intent behind the effort is received as it is meant to: with love. :O)

      Delete
  10. Your clever ideas for using up leftover scrap materials and transforming them into full on mini projects, are truly inspirational! If I remember correctly, this was how your bathroom sink series began, and what an Outstanding Success they all proved to be: THUS shall it also be with your room boxes! :D

    elizabeth

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you dearest Elizabeth! You have a wonderful memory and it is correct about how the sink project began. I think of all of my supplies/kits/leftovers in a way like The Velveteen Rabbit. I hope that coming into my hands turns out to be a blessing for them, though it might take a very long time like it did for poor Rabbit. I hope my mind won't fail me, and that they turn out to be, as my hopes have imagined, wonderful!

      Delete
  11. LOL looking at the first picture, I thought you were building a bush longdrop-loo with a funky wrap-around-entrance :)
    That would be kinda fun and different, I guess, but this is so much better. What a great use of leftover bits and bobs - and super little battery pocket at the back. I am so looking forward to see where you go with the paper prints.

    Anna x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha ha! Anna, you are exactly right! They do look like a forest loo and I should have seen it! Lord knows I have used enough of them during our camping adventures! I may just have to make another to look exactly like one - padlocked TP rolls and all! :O)
      The designers of the toilets probably shared many of the same objectives: cheap, small and simple! :O)

      Delete
  12. Me encanta la idea de rebuscar entre los " por si" .
    Estoy deseando ver el final.
    Un saludo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gracias marian! ¡Ha sido un desafío muy gratificante hasta ahora!

      Delete
  13. I love this! I am extremely fond of mid-century modern anyway, and this use of bits and pieces is so clever! I also like the little pocket you built for the battery. Brava!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes you are and extremely good at replicating it in miniature! I only hope I can get it half as "right" as you did on the Merrimack! Thanks Deb!

      Delete
  14. I'm very curious how this will be.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Me too, Gonda! And I am glad to have you here to find out with me! :O)

      Delete
  15. Hi Jodi! I am really LATE again! But I truly admire your ability to take parts and pieces and come up with a Whole Project that is cohesive and looks like you bought the parts For it... not the other way around! LOL! I think I work the opposite way... a small piece with an idea that requires me to Go Get a Ton of other pieces to go with it! LOL! (Like the Doll-maker's "Vignette" which is now going to be a three story house.... I am not going to make it four stories tall! LOL) The mid-century modern look is popular and now there are a lot of craftspeople who make replicas of those iconic pieces.... I am looking forward to seeing what you do next! :):)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are always right on time Betsy and I thank you for your lovely comments! I must say I am also surprised that I could make two entire roomboxes out of scraps, but I am so very happy that I tried! My normal M.O. is to worry so much that I will run out and not have enough that I end up hoarding too many things. In my effort to be truly mindful of my blessings I have spent the last year + trying to use what I have and only purchase things when I need them NOW! :O) It is becoming less uncomfortable and the faith that I have what I "need" has grown in amazing ways! But I am so happy you are going with a three story doll shop and I am going to really enjoy watching it happen!

      Delete
  16. Que gran idea y que escenario tan bonito!! Nos has dado una lección muy interesante,con pequeñas piezas,que a primera vista,pensamos que no sirven....un precioso "telón de fondo" para una escena!
    Besos.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Dunque eccoci ad un nuovo progetto! Sono molto contenta che tu abbia scelto questi periodi e stile per le due stanze, è difficile trovare progetti ambintati in questi periodi, soprattutto Mid Mod! Sono molto curiosa di vedere come procederà il progetto! ^_^

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Grazie Elenè! Questo non è uno stile di design che io conosco molto, ma sto partecipando a uno scambio in cui entrambe le persone che ho avuto come mod e mid mod. La necessità mi sta costringendo a provare, anche se mi sento completamente fuori dal mio elemento! Non posso dire molto di più sullo scambio fino a quando i miei destinatari avranno ricevuto i loro pacchetti a dicembre, ma poi condividerò tutti i dettagli! Grazie per il tuo commento incoraggiante!

      Delete