Little Projects in Paper

 I've been working on some more little paper models lately. This little Patisserie is very tiny- it's only half an inch tall, and an inch wide across the front.

 This party  is a little larger- the front of the box is about an inch and a half wide.

 This courtyard scenes is about the same size as the party above...

but the base of this cottage is only an inch wide. I really had fun with the landscape embellishments on this one. I also added a textured roof, and a few other 3D elements to enhance the building..

Lions, and Tigers, and Bears! Oh, my!

This bear started off as a commercially made toy. Unfortunately, I always forget to take before pictures! He was actually really cute right out of the package, just a little too new. I wanted him to look a bit worn, and a little less modern, so I figured out  a way to "clump" his fur. I first gave him a bit of a trim, just to get the bulk the fur down in places he'd be particularly worn. Be careful- you only want to cut the fuzz, not the fabric!

 Then, I spread a tiny bit of tacky glue over patches of the fur. You really want to use almost no glue! Then, I used a wire brush from the hardware store to brush the glue-covered fur before it dried. Brush in several directions, until the fur looks tousled but not unruly. The trick to making this look right is to work in small sections, and think about wear patterns.

I noticed that he had some pretty visible seams on the bottom of his feet, so I gave him leather pads for his paws. Last was the new silk bow. Overall, I kept this bear in pretty good condition- no stuffing showing or eyes/limbs missing, just a little wear to show that he is well loved by the dollhouse children!

A Tea Party

 I've been working on something a little different lately. This half scale table and chairs were bought for another project, but they ended up not working out. I decided to make a doll's tea party with the furniture instead. I added some decorative painting and distressing to the table and chairs. Adding seat cushions also really make a difference. I used my new favorite striped fabric on those. The teacups, teapot, and vase were all things I had tucked away in drawers.

I'm still working on the party attendants. The bear was an inexpensive, commercially made bear which I tried to make look a little older and better loved. The doll to the right of him is a molded polymer clay doll I made last week. Continuing clockwise, the next two are dolls borrowed from mom's collection. They aren't going to stay in the scene, but I wanted to see what it would look like with all the chairs full. The last baby doll to the right is another polymer clay doll I worked on yesterday. You can see she's almost slipping out of her chair. I'm thinking about gluing her to the chair, but I'm always a little nervous about making scenes so permanent.

 I'll post more about how I made everything later this week.