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3 posts from September 2012

close ups of the sunroom - Michigan Lake Cottage - Spring Fling 2012

The couch and purple chair are vintage Lundby piece I refinished, the pillows I sewed myself.  The fabric I upholstered the sofa with I picked up at the Bishop show in April, the rest are from a quilter's charm pack I got at JoAnne's.  I also picked up the modern style green chair at the Bishop show...it was teal, and taller, but I repainted it and then shortened the base to make the seat of the 1:12 chair the same level as the 1:16 furniture.  I made the lamp from a wooden finial (though I had my husband drill the hole through it to run the wire through, because I was a big chicken)...the paper lampshade is held up by a wire harp..a big thank you to Kris at 1 inch minis for the harp tutorial.

The rug is a 1:12 afghan from otterine.  The coffee table is a piece of round glass from a small picture frame atop a rusty nut I stole out of my husband's garage.  The other two end tables and the plant stands I made from tiny turnings and scraps of wood....I don't have a good picture of those, but they're not terribly exciting.

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I made the magazines on the tables, which are all local publications, in keeping with my Grand Traverse Bay theme.  The ceramic cat I got at the Bishop Show, but I don't remember where I got the yellow glass vase.

Most of the plants in the sunroom were made from kits.  The palm and snake plant are from Bonnie Lavish kits.  The Boston fern, 1/2 scale African violet, wandering jew, Christmas cactus and schefflera were made from kits by sdk miniatures.  The polymer clay cyclamen next to the lamp is from Twilla's Tiny Treasures.  I made from scratch the philodendron on the other end table, the swiss cheese plant, and the no-named plant sitting between the wandering jew and the Christmas cactus.

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close ups of the kitchen - Michigan Lake Cottage - Spring Fling 2012

The stove, sink and refrigerator are vintage 1:16 scale Lundby pieces.  The sink cabinet was painted, then I added new knobs (head pins) and a towel bar.  The refrigerator and stove retained their original finishes.  I made the butcher block counter and the trash can.

The tiles on the wall turned out fantastically, it's just what I pictured in my head when I started...it's one of my favorite parts of this build.  I punched the 1/4" by 1/8" tiles from paint sample cards, glued them one by one to a piece of white cardstock, then sealed with several coats of semi-gloss polyurethane.  I did not grout them...I did a few tests with different grouting materials on a scrap piece and found I didn't like the way it looked.

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An in-progress picture of tiling...the pieces of plastic were used as spacers between the tiles.

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The light fixture was added after the fact, so the wiring runs on top of the wall instead of behind, which isn't unrealistic, I suppose.  The bulb was originally in the origami light fixture over the dining room table, but I broke the wires finishing the ceiling...I cut the bulb off, added new wire, then used it here instead.

The soapy water in the sink is to disguise how shallow the sink is.  I intended to write a tutorial, as requested, but can't seem to duplicate the effect satisfactorily.  I made the soapy water with clear microbeads, a bit of white paint, and clear, glittery nail polish.

The soap dispenser and dishsoap bottle I made from beads.  The rest of the accessories were purchased inexpensively...most were picked up at the Bishop Show in April.

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A picture of the origami light fixture when it worked.  I was very cross when I broke it.

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The casserole was made by Jan Patrie of Autumn Leaf Studio , the beer steins and cookie jar on the shelf were made by potter Jason Feltrope, the crocheted pot holders by Deb's Custom Crochet, and the fancy glass bottle to the right of the tall yellow glass bottle is by Gerd Felka, a glassblower from Germany.  All were purchased at the Bishop Show in April.  I made the towels and the wine cork...the decorative artichoke and eggplant are glass beads...the rest of the accessories are inexpensive mass produced pieces picked up here and there.

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The table and chairs are vintage Lundy pieces, repainted and reupholstered.  The salad is from Crown Jewel Miniatures (I added the serving spoons, which are the ends of fancy toothpicks)...I made the salt shaker, pepper grinder, napkins and cork trivet...the rest of the accessories are inexpensive pieces from miscellaneous sources.  The wine glasses are plastic, but the wine bottle is glass...I used fingernail polish to fill them. 

I was able to find smallish 1:12 scale accessories to go with the 1:16 furniture, but not smallish flatware.  I ended up cutting down cheap 1:12 scale flatware to fit with the place settings...they're still a bit too big but they don't dwarf the plates now.

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Michigan Lake Cottage - Spring Fling 2012

This is not a tiny house, this is a 1:12 scale miniature house.  While I am delighted with your admiration, I can't answer emails with tiny house questions.  I live in a regular size house.            ~Keli, 12/02/2016

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My project is titled Michigan Lake Cottage; it was inspired by the beautiful Grand Traverse Bay area, which I am lucky to call home.

The solar panel on the roof of the cottage powers the lights; there are two basement window wells on the side of the house which aren't visible in the pictures, which are lit and look fantastic in the dark.  The solar panel, LED lights and their mechanics are from a disassembled yard light; the circuit board and battery are under the house, accessed through the bottom of the base.  The light fixtures were made from scratch.

The tiling in the kitchen was done by hand, the 1/4" by 1/8" tiles were punched from paint sample cards.  The 3/4" scale furniture is refinished vintage Lundy, with the exception of the modern chair, which I purchased and sized down, and the tables and plant-stands in the living room and the butcher block cabinet in the kitchen, which I built.  I also made the tree, as well as all the shrubbery, flowers and houseplants; most of the flowers and houseplants were assembled from kits, a few were made from scratch.  I whittled the split rail fence from a fallen branch, the brick walk and the brick on the foundation were made with egg cartons, the gate was fashioned from strips of leftover wood, and the fire pit from a candleholder.  The fire pit was actually set ablaze in order to give the logs inside a proper charred look.

Because of the large windows I cut into the front of the house and the sun room made from the greenhouse addition, I fashioned a back wall for the cottage to keep one from seeing all the way through the house.  The back wall is held on with magnets.

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