Looking Carefully

Sometimes the miniature accessories we purchase are perfectly scaled at one inch=one foot but they can still look like they are not correct. That is the case with these Houseworks windows I bought. I spent a lot of time painting and aging them but something was wrong. Then our Chair Ron Hoess reminded me that windows in urban structures were set into the walls. The trim around these windows is too wide to do that (these are made for wooden structures like suburban houses). So I cut them down simply by using a sharp blade on the backside. I think they will be more to scale. Look carefully at all your miniature components. Just because they are technically to scale doesn’t mean they will look right.

Another example of this is the mailbox I had last year in The Birds. I got the measurements for it from the US Postal Service website so it is the correct size but to the judges it looked too large.

 

This is The Birds as it appeared in Singapore, with a bird sitting on the mailbox. Perhaps the bird makes it look more in proportion.

We Can Do Better

If you are getting frustrated with work on your miniature setting, know that you can do better than the U.S. Marines who made this miniature scene for target practice in the early 20th century!

Let It Snow

If your driveway is anything like mine, it is a veritable moss factory. Before all that beautiful moss gets covered by snow, destroyed by snow plows, or killed by salt, scrape it up now with that snow shovel you have handy. It can be used as grass in a mini setting or in terrariums. Keep it slightly damp with some light and it should last a long time. I am going to wrap some of mine around lava rocks to make moss boulders.

 

 

How to build a building

The first time I did a Miniature Setting for the Philadelphia Flower Show (2011), I was a substitute for someone who had to drop out at the last minute. I was invited to exhibit on January 1st for a show that opened only 8 weeks later. I didn’t get started for two weeks so basically I had 6 weeks to make it. That is definitely not enough time and over the years I have learned to start really early. I’ve spent months designing this year’s exhibit, trying to figure out how to compress an entire Greenwich Village courtyard (from Rear Window) into our 36inch by 24inch box. The key is to identify the key iconic elements and include those while eliminating the unnecessary parts. I will write a post on that in the future and hopefully all the exhibitors this year will identify the key components of their exhibits.

In the meantime, I want to show the basic components of my build. It is quite complex, with several building and different garden levels.

This is built in a wooden box 24 inches deep (2 inches more than previous years) and 36 inches wide. It is 37 inches high (the size that will fit in my car).

The first layer is 3/16″ white gatorfoam board. Gatorfoam does not warp and can be cut easily and cleanly, with sharp lines. It is a bit stiffer than foamcore board and quite a bit more expensive. Towards the front of the board you can see a sketch of where the viewing window opening is.

Next I built up the different levels with pink insulation board, available at all hardware or home renovation stores.

When I had the correct height, I added one or more layers of gatorboard because it will have to hold the hardscaping, mostly pathways.

After sketching out the layout, each planting area has to be cut out, through the gatorfoam layers (which are glued together) and into the first layer of the pink insulation. These will hold the plastic planting trays which I will demonstrate in a future blog.

It’s important to number the tray areas so they are easier to match up later.

I also used gatorfoam for the building facades. This involved a lot of measuring and design. Some of the windows will be made from scratch and some are purchased.

Each building will have a different facade treatment. This one has plastic brick sheets which will be painted and aged later.

 

More buildings are being added on the sides, giving the entire scene more complexity. The scene is built on a slight angle to the viewing window so it does not appear too static.

 

More to come.