Warm Thatcham Nearing Completion.

This photo is showing the back removable wall in place. There is a roof panel as well that is held in  place with magnets.

Photos are a bit all over the place sorry. Blogger keeps changing and I haven't been blogging enough to keep up with the changes!! I'll add more external photos later. But now that both my boys are at school I have been revelling in all that time to myself!!! So I pulled my litte house out of the corner and got to work. The kitchen and upstairs area have remained mostly unchanged. The garden now has it's daffodils, bluebells and cyclamen. The lounge area more cluttered. Now if I could just shrink myself and all who wish to visit.

Little House Nearly Completed.

I haven't had much time to work on my little house. This time of year is mad! But I took a few pictures and thought I would post them. I had a go at making a basket. It's a scruffy one but so is my RL one. My little house is slowly filling up. Just need to work on the garden and outside area and it's nearly done. Don't look at the blue tack holding the rolling pin in place will you. Every time I needed to move the house (it's on an old computer desk of the kids, it has castor's) there would be this horrible noise of all the little things carefully arranged falling. At one stage the kitchen looked like it had been ransacked!! Double sided tape in tiny pieces and blue tack fixed that. The table set with goodies for a yummy afternoon tea. The tea cosy was an Ebay find. The bullion roses are so small and the colours are delicious. Some of Jennifer's mail from Looking glass Miniatures on the sideboard. The letter holder is just a brass finding bent to shape. I had smashed the hurricane lamp part of this light. A pandora bead fits over the top nicely and gives a lovely glow when it is on. I will never recover a wing chair again. EVER!! It was awful to do and I don't like the messyness but the print is now more to scale. I used double sided tape to make the cushions and they are stuffed with glass beads to make them floppy. This is looking through the bay window. The sideboard still needs to be filled with 'stuff'. Plans for the next house are all sketched out and supplies are en route!! How excitement!!!

Linen, Lace and Corsets.

I finally finished the bed. I gave up trying to figure out what I wanted and just went with what I had. I really don't like sewing so everything is held together with strips of double sided tape. I used hemming tape for the laces. The pillows are stuffed with loo paper. I found I could get them to squish a bit better that way. I didn't want fluffy pillows. The reason I become so spurred onto to finish the bed was so that I could show of the beautiful corsets from Marlie. I have become a huge fan. Her work is amazingly neat and so fine!! Bows so tiny and porcelain flowers!!! The matching briefs were a wonderful surprise!!

Click to find Marlies Etsy shop.

How to do slippers evaded me for such a long time. Came to me very quickly one afternoon and I was left wondering why I was having so much trouble in the first place. Over thinking the culprit yet again. Does it every time. Cut a sole shape out of some pretty paper. I reduced samples of wallpaper in Photoshop and printed them out. A small square of lace glued to the underside of the toe area. About an inch, a small inch did it. When it has dried bring the lace up and over. Before this gets glued look to see where you can trim away lace to reduce bulk. Glue underneath again to form the upper sole area. I used felt as the bottom sole. It hides my really poor attempts as cutting a neat curve. Teeny bows on top. I went a bit nuts and made a heap of them.

A few more things to add. Cluttering stuff really. An antiqued stool for a bedside table is up to it's fourth layer of colouring for maximum chippy, scuffed oldness. Thatcham is nearly finished and I am already planning my next project!!

Thatcham Moving Along.

Amazing it is that something as small as my little house can take so much to 'fill' up. The kitchen was easy. Kitchens especially old ones have lots of lovely interesting things to put in them. In fact I had to pull up the reins there as I was filling it up so much that no little person in their right mind would work under such claustrophobic conditions. The lounge is a struggle however. My own house if full of bits n bobs picked up haphazardly from years travelled but when you have to make them to put in a house it a little bit more awkward. So I'm still working on the downstairs. Basics covered but it the little things that make a house a home that are eluding me. The little table still needs a finish and lots of plump cushions of course. My sewing machine sits glaring at me from across the room. We are currently on speaking terms only. It knows it's too fancy for me and I just don't treat it the way it feels I should. That is why the curtains are for the time being made out of paper. The kitchen needs a rag rug I think. Whipped up the little sewing basket, took hours! The basket is still a work in progress but I used this one for now. I'm making a lidded one. Well I'm having a go at making one anyway. But it is school holidays here in Queensland so I'm off to the bush for a week. See you then!!


Yes this photo is terrible. I used my Iphone which had just had it's third drop in water for the week. Remarkably it still works.

A Warm Kitchen

Told the kids to look after themselves on the weekend, I had a kitchen to do. They did for the most part. I haven't done much to my little house for quite some time. The boys took in turns to get sick and Etsy orders to fill. As well as other general life stuff that gets in the way. But the majority of that was all settled and I sat down and finally put all the bits n pieces I've been hoarding into some use. This side of the kitchen is done for the most part. Need to add a few things here and there. Hanging bunches of herbs, more utensils, tea towels and fire wood. Stuff. The other side will now get my attention. A pretty shelf over the table and a little cupboard to go behind the door for all of Mrs. Thatcham's pots and bowls. It is so nice to see it finally come together. Canned food is just lengths of dowel cut painted silver and printed out labels gluesticked on. The jars of preserves are filled with clear silicone with a drop or two of food colouring and then polymer clay slices pushed in with a toothpick. The muslin tops were off an old quilt. The cotton had worn down so much into lovely soft muslin. Squares lightly glued on the top then very fine gauge wire around to hold. Then trim off the muslin. Had a go at ageing enamel canisters. Now where as scary as I thought.

Looking through the net on how women cooked with open fires I discovered all sorts of cast iron 'technology'. One of which was a swinging plate to cook on directly or to put pots on. I made one up from carboard cirlces glue together to for the plate. Electrical cable bent and glue to another smaller cardboard plate that would be glued to the brickwork. All glued together and painted black it works a treat.