My 100th Post!

You know how you can be in a room with 100 people and still be lonely? If none of those 100 people love miniatures, it can be the loneliest place on Earth...

That is the main reason why, last spring, I began this blog and started to devour every other miniature blog I could find. I realized very quickly what an incredibly kind, sharing, supportive and unbelievably ingenious community you are! I found my people, and all of you are the same brand of crazy as me! Yippee!!!

No one in the mini community has ever made me feel like the new weird girl. In fact, any contact and comments left have been so very, very kind! It has been incredible, and I really feel the welcome. Thank you all so, so much!

To celebrate this milestone, I'd like to give back! These are the crazy holidays, so I'll leave the drawing open until New Year's Eve. Just leave a comment on this post, and your name goes in the hat. Whatever I make or buy for the Alki Point between now and 11:59 pm December 31st, 2015, I'll double. One for me, one for you!

What a grand adventure! This is going to be so fun!

Quick Cost Saving Tip For Stainless Steel Handles & Legs

I'm up to my elbows reorganizing my work space today. It's funny how much mess you can create just trying to get a better handle on all of your "stuff". The mail came, and in it some little treasures I've been waiting for. What a welcomed opportunity to take a break and share a "find" that I found last week...

I was putting together the mini refrigerator and oven front kits from Elf miniatures. Included in both kits were handles. Just square stainless steel rod cut to the appropriate length. I looked at it and thought it would be really handy to have some of it around to make my own cabinet handles, pulls and furniture legs.

I began looking at metal stock on MicroMark and other hobby suppliers. I was disappointed in the selection, and offended by the prices! Necessity and being thrifty are the mother of thinking outside the box for mini resources. So I began my effort to find the perfect metal for a much more reasonable price.

Enter eBay, and what they call Steel Key Stock. It is stainless, even more nicely finished than the Elf handle material, and it's only $3.71 for 5 (five) 1/8" x 1/8" x 12" pieces! One stick of this stuff can cost up to $7.00 through hobby retailers! Plus, they are zinc coated to help keep it from corroding over time. That means it stays shiny and modern looking!

I ordered it on 12/1 and got it in today's mail. not too bad at all! I have not had an opportunity to cut it yet - I am thinking my little hacksaw or coping saw will do the job, but I will definitely let you know.

Here's the link to the eBay seller I purchased through. He's got other sizes, too.

If any of you have info to add or better material or resources, please let me know! I'll update the post!

A-La-Deux

I have reached the point in my project where I pull every item out of every crevice and cranny, lay them out in front of me, and try to decide where every piece should go. Today, I mostly just stared at all of it and got a lot of nothing done...

I have to decide what to make of all of this:

And this...

And this...

Oh! I figured this one out! Mostly...

But I am still puzzling over this...

And this...

But while I was "thinking", I came across this:

It was in one of the drawers of my grandmother's antique sewing table. It is a Russian Doll sort of flat head screwdriver, gradually getting small enough to almost work for a doll's shop. It looks to be brass, and it looks like it is made from old bullet casings. My grandpa was quite an inventive guy, and made some very clever tools. Did he make this, or was it issued to him when he was in the Army? Hmmm... A mystery, but a warm heart smile today, for sure!

In between making more messes, and spacing out a lot, I managed to scrounge up an old but useful item to help me in my endeavor to do a better chrome job on 3D plumbing fixtures a-la-deux.

A perfect dust cover so that maybe I will have less particle and more chrome finish this time. I WILL NOT be putting ANY sealer on this batch!!!

With any luck at all, I'll wake up tomorrow full of creative certainty, and some dry and shiny faucets to install.