Thalia

Tonight I made a little log cabin block just as a test to see if it could be done that small. I did it using the non-English paper piecing method (it's hard to explain, but the design is drawn on a piece of paper, and the cloth is placed underneath it. You sew on the drawn lines. It's a way to get accurate seams on small pieces). It's an inch and a half wide (not counting the seam allowances) with 1/8 inch wide logs so 9 inches square at 1/6 scale. I did it in thin silk because I figured regular cotton cloth would end up way too bulky. I wanted to see just how stiff it would come out, and I guess it's not too bad. I was wondering about making a quilt at 1/6 scale using this method. I suppose if I don't make a whole quilt I could make this into a potholder.

I made Joe some 1/6 scale boxes of pasta, and put up a blog post about it. Is this the right place to share that? The blog post is here.

Thanks for the welcome, everyone! havanaholly: Yes, I did make Joe's sweater, out of a pair of socks (I certainly did not knit that myself!) They're the perfect size for him--use one for the body of the sweater, and the other for the two sleeves. MikeUK: Yes, it's from layers of mat board. I built it up to make the different thicknesses, e.g., the painted splats are two layers thick, the rails are four, and the posts/legs are six. I left tenons in the thinner layers (like the rails) and cut mortises out of the inner layers of the thicker pieces (like the legs) before I glued all the layers together. I also covered up the layered edges with a bit of card to smooth it out. The bit about Joe finding it antiquing is just a bit of fun as if things were seen from Joe's point of view. I had to look up the IGMA forum--my goodness, that's quite a compliment! Thank you. eta: D'oh, I meant 'cabriole' legs, not 'cabriolet'--that's a convertible car!

Hi everybody-- I've done a little bit of miniature making in the last few years and joined to inspire me to make more, although I prefer playscale (1:6) to the usual scale. I have (grand, pipe-dream) plans to make my old '70s GIJoe doll a Craftsman bungalow. I'm an artist by trade and pretty artsy-craftsy so I plan to do it all myself (ha). I've made a few things here and there so far, like a chair and a senet board (an ancient Egyptian board game) but haven't really known where to start on the whole thing. I think now though I should start with just a room box, of his kitchen probably. I chose the Arts and Crafts movement style because I was new to all this and it looked fairly simple and a good style for someone learning how to make something new. It's gorgeously designed, but is for the most part nice simple square things put together at right angles, so I wouldn't be trying to carve (say) cabriolet legs or any of that. Also, miniatures just crack me up. I made four 1/6 scale rolls of toilet paper today for Joe's house, and they are the funniest things I've ever seen, I swear. That seems to me a good hobby to have. I've got a blog for Joe called The House That Joe Built (though he/I haven't even started the thing yet). Here's a pic of the Stickley cube chair I made him: