Welcome to my first blog post on miniatures! My goal is to make it possible for you to make your own miniatures(or life-sizeditems) by sharing photos and steps that I took to create a miniature item. You can use your own ideas to launch off of my ideas or you can try to make the same thing. This is to give you the ideas and steps it takes to create something but free to change it up for your own need or want...
Let's start with the thing that inspired me... I found this on Pinterest:
There were a few other ideas I saw as well so I took what I had and made my own miniature one but now I can't wait to make myself a real life-sized one some day, hopefully soon!
Are you ready? Here we go!
I had a small salt cellar that I had found somewhere for $.99 that I thought might be the right size for my room box.
For more on salt cellars, check this out:
First I decided to paint the inside white as I thought it would go well with my green and white livingroom box and I didn't want it to be clear. And... I wanted it to look expensive...so tell me at the end if you think it looks expensive 😉
I've noticed in scrolling on Pinterest that green and white rooms often have gold accents. I had a gold permanent marker but it wouldn't work on the smooth surface of the glass so I went to Hobby Lobby and found some gold paint to add accents.
At first I was thinking of making a garden inside the glass but I was afraid it would be a bit too complicated. ( If it would have been a life-sized one it would have been easier because I could have filled the whole thing with dirt but for this I would have had to put a fake bottom in. ) So I cut a round piece out of a leftover wooden vegetable packing crate. I used a peanut butter jar lid because it was the size I wanted and traced it on the wood so I could get an almost perfectly round piece for the top.
I wanted it to have a water feature like I see a lot on Pinterest, (check these out:);
So I squeezed on some tacky glue to form the shape and added tiny pebbles:
Then I set some weights on it t keep it from buckling because the wood was so thin:
After it was dry it was nice and flat, and ready to add the water:
I used my xacto knife to spread to the edge and the corners to make sure the area gets covered.
I wish I had a teeny, tiny animal to add...
Next I dug to the bottom of my container that hold the preserved moss(from Hobby Lobby) to get to the "crumbs", the powdered stuff on the bottom. I wanted to make it look like there was moss growing in my little garden:
I spread the tacky glue into the corners and around the pebbles with my xacto knife before adding the moss. Then I put the glass salt cellar on top to weigh it down so it won't buckle.
After it was dry I trimmed the pieces that hung over the edge. Then I cut a thin strip of cardboard to go around the edge to make it look like a shallow container to hold the plants. I used E6000 to hold the ends together because it dries quicker than the tacky glue. When it was dry enough to stay together I flipped it around and sealed the gap with E6000. I used a flat stick to scrape it flat so it doesn't stick out on the bottom and look like a poorly done job. I wanted it to look as expensive as possible.
You might be able to see it buckled a little bit but the cardboard side hides it.
I painted the side and top of the cardboard with the same paint as I used inside the salt cellar. I wanted it to look like pottery or some other expensive-looking medium.
The cardboard was green on the one side so I decided to leave it, thinking it would blend in with the plants. And then I glued it onto the salt cellar, trying to center it as best I could by eyeballing it. (I painted the gold accents on first before attaching the top.)
Next I found a thin piece of wood that I wanted to use to hold the top so theirs a space for the plants to get air.
I painted it gold to match the accents:
And then I let it dry:
Before chopping it up into the lengths I wanted:
Next I glued them on the cardboard uprightly to hold the "glass" after I added the plants.
Now is the fun part! I had so much fun cutting up fake greenery to make tiny plants! Here I am working on the first plant, a fern:
I used a small pebble to hold some of the leaves up to make it look real:
There were a few spots around the edge where I could see the wood underneath so I squeezed on some tacky glue and:
Added some coffee grounds for dirt...
I see there's a spot I missed but I guess that is what happens when you do it after dark without proper lighting...
Now it's time to add the top! I cut a round of plastic from the cover of a homemade calendar using a peanut butter jar lid. I used E6000 because I thought it might hold better than tacky glue. I dabbed a little bit one each post and centered the table top by eyeballing it before setting it on the post so that I can avoid moving it around after it touched the glue because I didn't want it to leave marks. As you can see, a bit of glue is sliding down the posts, so I took my xacto knife and scraped it off so it doesn't leave a bump.
As you may recall, I wanted it to look like an expensive and professional product...what do you think does it? Now that it's finished?
Would you add something more to it? I may add some decor on top as I add the finishing touches to the room box in the end. Right now I'm still working on the fireplace.
Do you think this is something you could make? What things would you change? How would you change it to make it with your tastes? Please let me know in the comments. And...if you make your own version I would love to see a photo!
Thanks for reading! And please sign up for the newsletter if you want monthly updates on news around here!