Petite Crafter

You can go to a home improvement store and buy a large bucket of paper mache mix for just a few dollars. I've used alot of it, and it works up very nicely. You can make it rough looking, smooth, use templates to apply patterns to it, shape stones with it, or just about anything you would like to do with it. Adjusting the amount of water is the key to the end result. You should be able to find a smaller container in those stores, and experiment with it, for very little cost. Paperclay is nice, but I agree, it is quite expensive if you need much at all.

Love it! Getting ready to do a southern beach house, that will be slightly larger. You have some great ideas.

You can go to any Walmart, [or any auto parts store], and in the auto section, they have the acrylic mirrors. It comes in a sheet about 8 x 10, cuts easily with scissors, and looks real. Hope this helps.

If you have MS Office 2007 on your computer, it has a language translator built into the program.

Would love to see the Beaumont, or similar house return to the list of availability, some shops would be great, various roomboxes, ready to install door and window components, and maybe a couple of houses that would have some 'add-on' components available, Components such as large bay windows, big double entry doors, etc. Also, some front opening houses and other buildings. And yes, it would be great if the electric kits were available again!

For any bead work I do, I always used E600 glue. Even Walmart carries that. But, I have found the new glue by Aleene's, Jewelry and Metal glue works great, and dries very rapidly! Be careful with it...if you get it on your fingers, they will stick like super glue! Also, it has a tiny pin point tip which is great, and remember...just a tiny little dot of it is enough to hold it. Put the glue on both items very sparingly, hold the parts together for a few seconds, and it will stay! [Walmart also has the Aleene's Jewelry and Metal Glue].

Holly, you did a beautiful job! I am sure the recipient will love your gift, and all the hard work that you put into it. Your bedspread is very pretty, and I know how difficult that tiny work is! Great job on both of them.

There is available at most any store that sells hand tools, what is called a scorer, or scribe. It is just about like a pencil, with a sharp point on one end. It is extremely hard metal, and it will scribe or score wood. I've used one for small pieces of wood that I used for making furniture. I would think you could easily take a wall, clamp a straight-edge on it, score the line, and move the straight-edge down to the next one. The tool is very inexpensive. I got mine at Lowes.

Born and raised in Phila., PA, but have lived in south GA for the last 43 years. Wolfie, I cook like you do. No artificial ingredients, at all, they scare me. [margerine was tested, and not even ants or roaches would eat it, so we don't either]! Moved here in 1965, married, had 3 children, divorced after 23 years, and have been married to 2nd now for almost 20. [yes, been married all my life]! Now have 4 grandchildren. 4 of my siblings, all my kids, and grandkids and I now live in the same county. Great family get togethers, with lots of food! Anyway, I worked in an office supply store for 5 years, while doing flying for the ASCS office for several. Then became a computer tech for a privately owned company. Was there for 15 years until bad health, [probably from the chemicals in that company], put me out of commission. Have been disabled since 2003, but that does not keep me from my minis. I have collected and built my own for about 40 years, and have just the last few years gotten into the houses! My first build was a Pierce, than converted a small house into a Santa's Workshop, and am working on turning a Vermont, Jr. into an 1800's saloon for a gift. DH has a wood shop next to my craft studio, so we work well as a team, on regular and mini sized projects. DH is an attorney, so when he has to go out of town on cases, I am his riding companion/secretary. We have a good life, and I appreciate every minute of it!

We also do not have an AC Moore, but I did go to one in Savannah yesterday. I won't go again. Very, very few minis, but what they did have was very expensive, and not on sale. According to the sales clerk, they have not put any of their minis on sale, at all! I would not mind the prices at all, if it were hand-made items. But everything they had was mass produced, and way to expensive. Not even any building components except one door, and one odd sized window.

That is going to be a gorgeous room! Your work is truly beautiful.

Beautiful work, and beautiful setting! Very neatly done. TFS.