It's Crazy Busy Around Here!

I can't believe it's been almost a week since I posted!
Well.... Yes I can believe it, actually. Many of the "want to's" and "need to's" in life have converged, and it has left me little time for mini-ing!

I've managed to accomplish a little bit of the landscaping on Alki Point - in brief segments in between a long list of To-Do's. There is still lots to go, but I do see the finish line on this project. Once it's completed, I am going to take the opportunity to reorganize, paint and change out the carpet for laminate in my workshop a.k.a. the dining/living rooms.

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As those of you who are personally close to our family know, Russ gave up his highly stressful and way too demanding Operations Supervisor position in January, and has opted to go back to doing what he loves to do - Build Stuff and Be His Own Boss.

Our new company is Big Feet Construction. Russ and Ande (and sometimes my brother who is also in the construction industry) are the muscle and creative team, and I am the administration. The Universe has supported this endeavor, and I am happy to report a steady work flow since early January.

I have been busy web site building, logo making, QuickBook learning and setting up, getting insurance, bonds and bank accounts, and keeping track of everything. And, I still do have my regular job, so, life is FULL!

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In addition to all of this craziness, we thought it would be a good idea to lay new flooring in a couple major areas in the house. And while we are at it, how about doing a little remodeling and some fresh paint. And while we are living among the shambles of all of these excellent ideas, lets get away for a few days to celebrate our 29th anniversary.

Either we are extremely CAN DO people, or we are just CRAZY! The answer will become obvious in the next couple weeks...

Until then my dear and very missed mini friends, I shall be on Hobby Hiatus. I'll try to catch up on all of your creative endeavors in every treasured moment I can steal away! I hope to be back and ready to play soon!

Landscaping Progress, Tips and Resources

Although I still have a lot to go, I wanted to share some of the progress I am making on Alki Point with the landscaping. Don't consider this a tutorial - I am really just making stuff up as I go along. Consider it more an idea sparker (I hope) to those of you who, like me, find ideas and inspiration fleeting a lot of times.

I started working first on the planters, by painting them a cement kind of color by Americana called Driftwood. Why fight the 3D texture when you can just make it work for you, right? Concrete containers fit the bill in a modern setting, so this was a good stroke of luck! I then filled them about 3/4 of the way full with hot glue. This makes them more stable, less top heavy, and is a cost effective medium to use.

Now I needed to fill them with "plants". I bet a lot of you are like me - you like to hoard hang on to things you know that you will definitely use in your mini projects in the future. I have rescued many a silk or plastic flower arrangement from Goodwill, relatives, garage sales or when I find a good dollar store prospect. I have a drawer full of this stuff, and I always manage to put it to good use. Does it really naturally occur in nature? Some of it does, but I give my projects a lot of leeway in the imagination department.

For the larger planters, I just used a combination of the stuff in the photo. I could not begin to tell you what the plant species are (maybe the lichen) except to say that the purple and green one looks to me sort of like lavender. The green leafy one is just a good size, and I picked all of the foamy bits off the reddish one because it looked like a good ground cover. I Googled some planter photos so I'd have some idea about arranging them, and then I just winged it from there. I used a bit more hot glue to secure the main plant into the container. Once that was cooled off and set, I just added a layer of Tacky glue and filled it with lichen or moss. Once that was secure, I just added filler stuff until I liked the look. If it can employ gravity and stay in place while the glue dries, I used Tacky. If it wanted to get away from its place, I used a dab of hot glue on the end of the stalk and just hung on while it dried.

One of the goals I have for this year is to learn to make paper flowers and plants. I have several kits, paper and punches to learn on. I will attempt at that point to make actual species, but for now, these are just fabulous!

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In the medium sized container, I wanted a topiary. I have made these lots of times. They are really easy, and always turn out great! All you need is the container, of course, a twig that will accommodate the number of "bushes" you want, the bushes themselves and glue.

The bushes I used for this topiary are made by MBS. They feel foamy, although you can squish them and they pop right back into shape. Miniatures.com calls them "squeeze me" bushes. They are great to use, and look very realistic. If you don't have them on hand, you can always use foam balls (found in craft stores, usually in the floral department), or carve your own shapes with leftover Styrofoam packaging (use your imagination with all of the shapes they come in now). Then you can cover them with glue (hold it on a toothpick for this part - it's messy!) and sprinkle with any landscaping ground cover or clump foliage. There are YouTube videos on how to make your own ground cover, too!

I make a hole in the center of the bushes using a skewer. It is usually a little smaller around than the twig I am using, and that is a good thing. If you make a hole that is larger than the twig, the bush will want to fall right off. No one wants the bush too big for the twig! (Forgive me, I just couldn't resist!) Now take the twig and push it up through the top bush, but only about half way. Pull it back off, then apply a little tacky glue to the end of the twig. Put the top bush on and let it dry a bit. The second and any additional bushes can now be added from the bottom. Just push them on the twig just short of where you want them, apply a little tacky glue, and cover the glue with your bush. Play with the spacing, and Google "topiary" for ideas. I use hot glue to secure my twig into the container, leaving room in the top for moss or other ground cover.

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Speaking of ground cover, I needed to make little mounds of them for the planters in front of the deck. An economical way to do this is just like I told you above for the topiary bushes - carve or use Styrofoam. I used 1" foam balls, cut in half, stuck onto a toothpick, then painted them dark green.

To these, I add a layer of tacky glue, then dip them in Garden Growies, also sold by Miniatures.com. I got this bag back in 2012 when working on Encounters Gift's & Grub, and I still have some left! It's a good buy and great to have on hand! P.S. The 20% coupon is good through 2/16/16!

I'll leave them to dry overnight, then glue them on wherever I need a happy little mound of color!

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For the last bit of landscaping I did during this phase I used a new product for the first time - Woodland Scenics Small Trees Kit. These are made for model train dioramas, but are the perfect size for miniature bushes. The kit includes 5 tree armatures in varying sizes and a green webby material that you are supposed to stretch over the armature.

The armatures are made of a gray/brown colored plastic and are bendable in every way. I just bent and twisted until it seemed like a nice, full bush shape.

I didn't really like the stretchy green webbing stuff that came in the kit. It might look wonderful in 1:48 scale, but was not detailed enough for 1:12. Instead, I used Woodland Scenics Clump Foliage. It had bigger bush like clumps that were easy to glue onto the armature with Quick Grab Tacky. I've used it in the past and I like the way it looks.

They recommend that after the glue is dry that you spray on a product called Scenic Cement to set the bushes and harden them. The idea is to put it into a sprayer and mist it over the foliage. I used it, but can't say that I am awfully impressed. It really soaked the entire bush and took a long time to dry. It didn't really feel "set" when dry, either. I think maybe next time I'll just try some pump hair spray, or the make your own version from this YouTube Video. There are lots of railroad diorama how to videos on YouTube, so with a little time investment, you can really learn a lot.

All is well that ends well, and I like the finished result. Once I get the rest of the ground cover and plants added, it will look like the gardener comes by fairly often!



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Containers, Fountains and Resins - Oh My!

I made a lot of containers when I went through my whole 3D design spree last November. I had so much fun, and one idea would just sprout another idea and so on until I ended up with a whole lot of them. When I gathered them all up this morning, I sat and stared trying to figure out if I'd use them on Alki Point, and if so, how?

I had originally designed the Enliven square nesting bowl set to be used as a decor item. I quickly used up all of the space inside, so I decided that they could become planters for the outside. Except, then I looked at them, and thought "fountains"! I mixed and matched the bowls with some of the other containers to piece together a couple fountain designs. Since the effect from the 3D printing process leaves a kind of stepped texture, I thought painting them to look like concrete would be fun.

I decided I'd make two different fountains. For the first, I would use the middle and smallest sized square bowls, with the middle sized on top of another square planter, tilted forward so that it's water would run into the smaller bowl. I had to do some caulking and glue to make them appear as though they were one solid piece. After it dries I may have to add more due to shrinkage, and then touch it up with some additional paint. Don't you just love the texture!

I needed something to support the "water" as it cascaded into the smaller bowl, so I just cut a ramp (I guess you'd call it) from a piece of saved plastic packaging (see Russ, I told you I'd use it someday!) and glued that in. I sort of tapered it and I am hoping in the end it will look more realistic.

For the second fountain, I used the large bowl from the set and added the Resplendent Vase to the center as the water spout. I glued in a small piece of clear plastic straw to also give the "water" something to cling to. I am always looking for twigs and rocks and things when we explore our beautiful surroundings, and these tiny rocks are just the right size and variation in color!

To make the "water" I am trying a new product for the first time. It is called Magic Water, and I ordered it from miniatures.com when I had a 20% off coupon. I have to honestly say that for a full price cost of $29.39, I was expecting A LOT more.

It is pretty typical of epoxy/resin as there is a "part A" to be mixed with a "Part B". In the case of this product, it is two parts resin to one part hardener. It was disappointing that for the price, there was no measuring device, cups or stir stick included. I used the big bottle cap to measure both and just cleaned it with a paper towel after each part. I didn't want to put any of it on my measuring spoons. I poured it into one of the disposable Dixie cups I keep around just for this type of occasion. It cautions you to stir it for 5 minutes, then again for another 5 minutes, so I stirred it for a long time. The drying time is 24 hours for about 1/2" in thickness - kind of a long time to me.

I used the stir stick to drizzle the resin into the water spout on the one fountain, then over the ramp on the other, then pinched the Dixie cup into a spout to carefully pour over the rocks, letting it settle in before pouring more. The directions say that you can add Mod Podge over the top to simulate ripples, so I may give that a try tomorrow. If not that, I'll use some 5 minute epoxy and wait till it starts getting thick before I apply it to the waterfall ramp.

I'll get better photos of everything once they are all finished up, and let you know how the Magic Water did.

A note about my experience with other epoxy/resins:

I have used many other epoxy/resin brands and types in the past, so it will be interesting to compare how Magic Water stacks up. On hand, I have Amazing Casting Resin and Amazing Clear Cast. Right off the bat I can tell you they are both over $10 less per kit than the Magic Water, and there is a lot more resin and hardener - at least twice as much. Plus you get several measuring cups and a couple of stirrers.

I made items from these resins for my Starbucks project in 2013, and they are still holding up perfectly. The clear also takes 24 hours to dry, but the regular dries pretty clear and much faster. I have added artist chalk shavings into both to color my castings. It comes out still clear but colored like like soda pop. I have also added acrylic paint, and it comes out about the color quality of a creamsicle - a little milky, which was perfect when I cast gallon whole milk jugs! The white artists chalk worked awesome for 2% milk jugs. Unless the Magic Water unleashes the magic little people to come finish my landscaping for me tonight, I probably will stick to the Amazing brand in the future. To be continued...

All decked out...

Today was one of those days where I was able to focus a good deal of time on doing what I love to do: Make Progress On A Mini Project! And, it was one of those days where the concepts came easily, and the implementations manifested just like I had them worked out in my head. For me, those days are farther and fewer between than I'd like. So while all of this good juju was happening today, I was thoroughly enjoying myself!

I started out trying to remedy the fact that I did not install or run the wires to the exterior porch light behind the siding like I should have. Luckily, I had recently read Brae's post about concealing her wiring for Milo Valley Farm behind channel molding. Hey! That's a great idea! I installed the porch light on top of the channel molding (kind of gives it an 80's vibe), then ran the molding with the wires tucked inside all of the way around the back to the power strip. I'll get better photos once I have all of the wiring tidied up.

While running the channel molding, I thought I'd better just get Alki Point attached to it's base. Then there'd be more glue contact surface for the molding and therefore a better hold. Russ was kind enough to pick me up a 4'x8' piece of 1/4" plywood on his last trip to Home Depot, and he even cut the base piece out for me! A perfect 25"x18". Just what I needed! Have I mentioned that he's not only kind and handy - he's still pretty hot for a 51 year old! :O)

I marked out where I wanted the house to sit, traced it out in pencil, took the house back off the base, then ran a fat bead of tacky glue on the pencil line. I sat the house back on the base over the glue, then cleaned up the excess glue with the best tool my dad taught me about for glue and caulking - my finger!

Once the house was attached to the base, it was time to start framing out the decking. I used 1/4"x1/4" basswood as the outer frame and interior brace pieces. I glued them and clamped them, then when they were dry I applied a coat of the vinegar and steel wool stain.

While everything was drying, I stained about 24 pieces of 1/2"x1/16" deck board with the same stain. Then it was just a matter of letting them dry, then cutting them to length.

I used the same deck board to cover the ugly edge of the plywood on this side. I'll do the same to the other three sides as I begin the landscaping.

I had to weigh the boards down because they wanted to curl up. Also, the spacing between the deck boards was a challenge because not all of the deck boards were straight. I essentially had to eyeball it... Not too bad though. I really like the color variation in the boards, and any imperfections can be hidden with the planters and landscaping.

Not bad for a day's work, and good days like this only make me long for more of them. I hope the landscaping and the rest of the wiring go just as cooperatively!

Just Feeding The Addiction...

Have I mentioned how much I love the creative expression that happens for me when I get to see how ideas translate into reality working on mini projects? I mean, it is better than sex+drugs+rock&roll combined! Right? It is truly an addictive behavior that I have no desire to 12 step out of, ever!

Progress is happening on Alki Point, and while it is not exactly what I had in mind, it's kind of like my kids. Mind blowingly better than I could have imagined!

Enough blah, blah, blah! Hope the photos make you as happy as they make me!

Touch ups, steps, base, landscaping next... Vinegar + Steel Wool stain turned more brown that I expected, but I am kind of digging it. We'll see... So excited!!!

Roof Vents and Conduit

I found myself with a couple of free hours this morning, and naturally, I decided the time would be best spent working on Alki Point!

The next part of the project to tackle was camouflaging the ends of the can light sockets. This was necessary, as the roof thickness of the kit is only 1/8". The height of the socket sticking out of the roof was about 3/8". The most realistic solution was to add roof vents.

I looked online at examples, and boy! Who knew they could be so intricate and fancy! I was looking for a more plain Jane version, so a model that was essentially a rectangle box with vents on the sides sounded doable.  I had some Woodsies that were rectangle, and about the right width and length. Adding some 1/8" x 1/4" side pieces would make a simple vent box. I also had some plastic screen from packaging that I could use for the vent screens.

I was also going to need to hide the wires as they ran down and through holes in the roof where they would eventually tie in to the power source. I saw many photos of beach houses built in the 40's. A lot of them had been updated, and seemed to use conduit on the roofs and down to electrical boxes to house wiring. I had some straws that I thought might just work!

I built the basic vent boxes, then drilled holes in them for the wires to run through. The lower set of vent boxes needed two sets of holes drilled - one for the upper wires to enter, then one for both sets to exit.

I glued the upper vent boxes to the roof, over the sockets, running the wires out of the drilled hole. If you look closely, you can see the plastic screen glued to the side of the vent box. I hope the textural detail shows up when I paint them.

Once the glue had set, I measured and cut the conduit that would carry the wires to the lower vent boxes. I strung the wires through, then glued them to the roof. Once that glue had set, I ran the wires from the conduit into the hole on the lower vent boxes. Then both sets of wires were run through the bottom holes on the vent boxes.

Now I needed to attach all of the wires together - yellow to yellow and brown to brown. I would also need to extend the length of the wires using regular white 12 volt wires. The brown wires would attach to one of the white cord's wires, and the yellow to the other. The yellow wire is the positive for these lights, and that is important to know. LED lights only work if they are plugged in the right way. Since the yellow was positive, I used yellow electrical tape to mark the positive side of the white wire so that I would know which way to plug them in later.

Then again, all of the wiring was run through the conduit. This time, though, the conduit needed to go down through the roof. This is where the bendy part of the straw came in really handy! The main power supply panel will be in the back of the structure, but I want to be able to remove the roof for cleaning. For this reason, the conduit will remain part of the roof, and the wire ends that exit it will have a plug so that I can simply unplug the lights when the roof needs to be removed.

This is as far as I want to go with the roof panel for now. I won't paint the vent boxes or conduit until I do the final touch up paint on everything. For now, I want to get started on the siding. I'm really looking forward to seeing the outside of Alki Point start to look like a real home! I'm also excited to see what the vinegar and steel wool stain will turn out like! Now hopefully, I'll be able to find some more free time again soon!

A Little Adventure, A Little Good Luck

It's always about this time of year that the hubs and I start to experience cabin fever. Our normal weekend get away destination, Gifford Pinchot National Forest, is mostly under snow, having roads closed due to mud slides, or subject to seasonal road closures. This doesn't leave many options for close distance and inexpensive mini trips, so we start to get a little cranky.

Last weekend, we decided to try a new area a little closer to the coast. Sure there'd be rain, but that's not a game ender. There's less snow near the coast! We often like to find a secluded camp spot to spend an afternoon reading, listing to spooky podcasts, daydreaming and taking little naps. Olympic National Forest turned out to be a wonderful little adventure. We will definitely visit the area again, as it was wild, woody, and very beautiful!

One of our favorite things is getting to see all of the interesting sights along the way. My favorite this time was this little A frame cabin. Can you imagine that folks actually lived in this place at one time? Kind of reminds me of the bunk house Russ and I lived in when we were newly married! The mossy pallet front step, old tires and range couldn't be more perfect! One day I will recreate this scene in miniature and call it Appalachian Oasis.

After a really lovely weekend, I was ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work on Alki Point. When I last posted, I was waiting for the spackle to dry so I could see if that solved my "heavy roof texture" problem. As luck (the good kind finally) would have it, it worked out perfectly! I painted several coats of black on the roof surface and the skylight frames and I am pleased with how they turned out.

I measured, cut and sanded the interior frames, then set to work gluing and painting them.

I wanted the windows to be pretty sturdy, so rather than using the stuff that came with the kit, I ordered a Lexan sheet from Amazon. I traced the frames and used the special plastic cutting tool to cut the out. I taped my stainless steel ruler to the surface to make sure it did not slip while I scored it.

I glued the lexan to the frames, then the frames to the roof, then added the mullions last so that they would line up with the ones that were already a part of the roof.

I had a challenge when I added the caulk to the seems. The tube arrived with no cap, and that didn't worry me. I could cope with that. The problem arose when squeezing the tube to apply the caulk to the seems. The end of the caulk tube was apparently not sealed well, so all of the caulk was coming out of the end of the tube making a giant mess! There's always a challenge with minis, right? We are nothing if not resilient, so I cut off the bad end and used several layers of packaging tape to re-seal the end. Ta-Da!

Now, here's where it's handy to have a husband with a garage full of crap useful stuff. "Honey", I said, "I need finish rings for my can lights and the grommets I have are too small. Do you have anything that might work?" Literally, four minutes later he comes in with these:

Perfect, just like him! And he even took and sent photos to me so that I could share them with you! Also, he had a hole gauge, so I knew instantly the diameter drill bit I needed to make the holes for the light sockets.

Probably most of you already know a lot of this stuff. Like I have said before, I am usually late to the party. For those mini friends who, like me, find themselves a little behind the mini knowledge curve (and get really excited making new discoveries), I may redundantly state what to most might be the obvious. Nevertheless, I hope the information helps someone!

I wanted recessed LED lighting, but wanted to find a solution where they did not cost over $10 each. Enter eBay, and mini LED lighting from Hong Kong. $11.99 for 10 bulbs, 10 sockets with wires, and 10 clips (which I did not use on this project but may in future ones), free shipping and I had them in less than two weeks. One negative... I ordered WARM, and I got 5 warm and 5 cool. To make them warm if they are cool, you can add some orange or yellow Gallery Glass paint to the tip.

Here's what they look like in the ceiling with the rings. I'll get the "all lit up" photos once I connect all of the wiring and tidy that up.

Speaking of tidying up... I need to make rooftop vents and run conduit to conceal the wires on the roof. That will be the next To Do, then I can finally get back to The Siding Experiment!

Hope you all have a fantastic weekend, and that you all do something really nice for yourself! You deserve it!