Suzy's Minis

Happy Thursday! Almost the weekend yay! Throwback to a few summers ago when I made a little village in all the marigold planters.   I love putting minis in flower pots. They seem to last better in planters and pot than under trees.  The squirrels and birds knock things over to look for food and insects when I attempt stuff under trees. Last year a branch fell on my Fairy garden ( You can see the aftermath here lol ) Since then I have picked up a few more houses at Goodwill for my planters so spring better hurry up so I can start planting.  

When I was a teenager I worked at this rustic place called Cullen Country Barns. It was a craft /art store that was made out of old barns.  It also had antiques, food and a garden centre ( owned by the Cullen family who are Canadian famous for their Garden stores)   My mother worked there part time as well and we both taught classes on wreath making, ribbon roses and other 80's crafty stuff. To this day I always think of the barns when I hear the name "Dusty Rose"  -the most popular colour for decorating that year. This is also where I learned how to use polymer clay.  Fimo was fairly new to the Canadian craft scene and I had pretty much only seen it used in the miniature world for dishes and bread.  We got to use a certain amount of product to make sample displays so I remember being very excited to try the clays out.  I've  been wanting to do a craft room scene for my 1:6 dolls for a while and thought my old wooden crate would be the perfect backdrop for one based o

Mattel's Sunshine Family Dolls were a popular fashion doll line in the 1970's. They were considered a bit of a hippy family and some even called them anti-Barbie because they were so wholesome and plain compared to her.   The Sunshine family cooked from scratch, made pottery and art and probably sang around a campfire.  The Baby was called Sweets, Mom Steffie, dad Steve, and Grandpa & Grandma Sunshine. The first video below from the Denver Miniature museum is a great visual explainer and shows the playsets.  I had the craft store when I was a kid. My mom made me tiny candles and fabric bolts for it. This commercial is from 1974 This is a cute video of one of the Sunshine craft booklets. Free Sunshine Family Clothes pattern   - From Chellywood doll blog 

 Updated 3/16/22 This bamboo utensil tray/organizer is my favourite find.  It makes the perfect shelf for Barbie and it fits the Zuru Mini Brands very well.  I haven't tried it in a 1:12 setting yet but it does have possibilities.  Found these adorable little pinwheels at the dollar store in the party section. They are made by Wilton for cupcakes. So sweet but I think I might add some bright colours to some. They are a little too pale for me.  I remember getting these at the hardware store when I was a kid. It was always one of the first signs of #spring when pails of shiny #pinwheels went on display outside.  The bright colours caught your eye whirling in the wind. Found this toilet and the dog crate in the candy section. I have been trying to make a toilet out of clay but its not going so well. I'm going to try to spray paint it a nice shiny white.   The crate and the puppy is adorable. I don't remember if there were other breeds or colours so I'll check on my next vi

 Happy 63rd Birthday to Barbie. Born on March 9, 1959 ( the day she debuted at the International Toy Fair in NY City.) The first commercial aired the same year during The Mickey Mouse Club Click here to find out which Barbie was popular the year you were born . - From Good Housekeeping. Mine was Malibu Barbie :) 

Hello Friends!, I'm so happy that the first official day of spring is just over two weeks away.  This feels like its been the longest winter ever and I'm excited about getting back to gardening and more outdoor activities.  What is your favourite thing about spring? This is also the time I start thinking about outdoor Mini displays, Fairy Gardens and dollhouse spring cleaning and makeovers. I don't know about you but my dollhouses get just as messy as my real one.  I like to browse the internet and social media for new ideas and of course spring printables. Here are some of the ones I've come across so far.  Easter Printables in Half Scale - From Paper Crafts blog  Easter Printables -   From Blossom Friends   Easter House Printies - From Nwabisa's Little things  Petting Zoo Spring and Bunny party - From Mimi's Dollhouse 1:6 Scale Easter Printies - From Suni Doll - The bunny table setting is adorable!! An Easter Peddlers cart A mini Easter Box 5 Polymer clay

  These bingo sheets were my first attempt in making printable minis.  I'm very happy how they looked once printed and cut. Right click and choose save as to save the full size image to your hard drive.

I recently made my first miniature floor out of popsicle sticks.  A ton of mistakes were made and it was a lot harder than I thought it would be. Some of those tutorial videos make it look so easy. I used the larger size sticks, the ones that are more like the tongue depressors. I used regular craft scissors to cut the ends but I think heavy duty ones would have been better. Maybe ones to cut leather?  The sticks can break very easy when you cut them. I've seen videos where the whole pile of sticks is cut at once with a band saw. Maybe Santa will bring me one next year, Haha! I sanded the ends but not perfectly. The next floor I might take my time and do a nice job.  The large emery board/nail files make great sandpaper for minis if you don't already know. I find them so much easier to use than regular sandpaper and they are great for getting in tiny spots. I made the base from a piece of scrap wood that came as support packaging with a piece of furniture I had delivered. On th