Miniature Lantern Tutorial

Happy pre-Thanksgiving Y'all!  I promise I will eventually report on something other than miniatures... buuut it's just what I feel like sharing mmmk?

I recently posted pictures on my Instagram page of a cabin scene I made.  And in this precious scene were two lanterns that I made in a sort of jiffy.  The next day or two I thought... maybe this mini cabin person has a collection of lanterns... so I started digging for more beads and more buttons and along the way thought I'd show you!

I started by going through my old button stashes for bases, middles and tops of the lanterns.  For the bottoms I wanted more decorative and flat bottom buttons.  For the middle, ones that could support the round globe beads.  For the tops, something either domed or that had a hook resembling a handle.  Here are the ones that I found.

For more of my miniature tutorials click HERE.

Decorative bottom buttons.

Tops.

These are the beads I used for the globes or the lanterns.... I guess there are not pictures of the middles.  They are pretty plain.

Next I glued the middle buttons to the bottom base buttons, then the globe, then more middle buttons, and then the tops.  I used Elmer's Wood Glue.  It's my favorite go-to glue.  I didn't take pictures of the process of gluing.  I simply dip my favorite paint brush into the glue and dab it on a button the stack.  The important thing is to give the glue time to dry.  I'm bad about the patience part of this.  :)

After the glue has dried and set it's time to paint.  I just use normal craft paint.

Some of them need handles.  So I cut a piece of wire about one inch in length, bend it around a paint brush handle and bend the ends.  I then put glue on each bend and place where it belongs on the tops of the lantern.

Here are my results!  They aren't perfect and some of them aren't straight but that's how I like them.

This one sort of looks more like a hummingbird feeder to me.  So I guess that can happen too.

When I look through old buttons like this I always pick out the shell buttons and put them in a special jar.  I can always spot them.  They have a different kind of opal-ness to them in color and shine. Most of the time the backs of them are darker like sea shells, a lot of times they aren't level in their cut and they most always have a cooler temperature.  I like to touch them to my chin to make sure of the temp.  They are so pretty and I for sure don't want to use them in this project and paint over their natural beauty!  Check these pictures out of them.

This picture show the back sides.

They aren't always white in color.  I love these darker ones.  

The back of these is the picture above.

It looks like I've never gone through this tin of buttons and pulled out the sea shells.  

I'm certain there's more!

My morning sorting.

For more of my miniature tutorials click HERE.

aging a funkin

I ventured into Hobby Lobby a couple of weeks ago and although my Witch's Kitchen is complete they had funkins on sale for 40% off.  So what did I do?  I bought me another one.  This time an orange one.  Just incase I decided to make another diorama in the future.  If not, I have a pumpkin to sit around for the season.  

When you first buy fake pumpkins I feel they look a bit too fake.  You have to put a little age on them.  It's really easy to do and all you need is a little dark brown craft paint, a paint brush and some paper towels.  You dip your brush in paint and swoop in sections because the paint dries fast.  Make sure it gets in all the cracks and before it dries wipe the sections with paper towel.  A damp paper towel is also needed.  The dry one sometimes doesn't wipe it off as good.  Waalaa!  Aged funkin!!

Much Better!!!

a tiny suitcase tutorial

I guess we all knew this was bound to happen right?!?!

With all the dollhouse mayhem going on around here I knew I would eventually get around to sharing how I did something.  While I was thumbing through Pinterest looking for attic ideas I saw a couple of tutorials and watched them.  One made suitcases out of clay and the other a match box.  I liked the second one but the majority of it was way too complicated and perfect for me.  Mine would never look as good as that and frankly it doesn't need to.  I am not a perfectionist and like to take the easy route.  My motto is "If you think it's got to be perfect then you worry about a lot of shit that really doesn't matter." 

 

During naptime on Tuesday I happily threw my first tiny suitcase together.  Then while I was rummaging through a draw in the office I found a little jewelry box that only had twenty or so sequins in it.  It may be a little bit big for my dollhouse but I figured I could take some pictures and show you how I made the first one.  OK... so here goes the supply list.

 

 

1 iddy biddy box

Aleene's Quick Dry Tacky Glue

Scrap pieces of leather (Thanks again Barb!!!)

Black card stock

Scissors

Gold craft paint

 

First... make your area look like you are ready to craft.  I prepared food in this same spot an hour before this!

Pull your leather or fabric up around your box to make sure it will lap over each other and cut out a good rectangle.  You can always trim it down if it's too big.  You can't add to.

Making sure it will fit before I glue.  I did straighten this edge out.

Apply glue to the top of your box and lay it top down into the center of your leather.  Press down for a good fit.  Let it set for ten minutes or less if you are impatient like me.

Cut straight towards each corner so you end up with four flaps to glue up.

Apply glue on each end, one at a time, and pull leather up gluing it down as you go.

Then glue the larger sides, gluing and pulling as you go.

Trim off any excess leather with scissors.  Looks like a little brief case doesn't it?  This will actually be the bottom or back so you won't see this.

The covered box... and my first suitcase.

For this one I cut strips of black cardstock for the straps with my handy dandy cutter and trimmed the end to a point.

Apply glue to one side of the cardstock and bend into place, pressing down as you go until they overlap a bit.

I cut a smaller piece of cardstock and bent it up for the handle.

I trimmed the ends on it too and glued it down.

Too fancy!  And while the glue is drying I might as well let some paint be drying too!

One tutorial said she ordered the fancier gold bits for the corners and clasp look from ebay.  I don't have that kind of patience... or care... or money to throw around... not that they would cost an arm and a leg... but you get it.

I painted circles as best I could on each corner and also gave my suitcase little button fasteners and gold "holes" going up the straps.  I also wrote down my motto as it came to me on my paint plate.

I wound up giving them a little bit of "use" look by dabbing and streaking brown paint on the green one and white paint of the brown one... lightly... on the corners and belts.

I swiped some travel "stickers" from one of the tutorials (they said it was ok), printed them out, sprayed them with a top coat spray and cut and glued them out.  Aren't they cute?!  I only picked the ones of places I'd like to go.

And here they are!  Attic ready and literally took me about twenty minutes to make.

 

I thought this picture was clearer than it turned out to be.  Oh well!  Maybe you will recognize them in my dollhouse when the day comes that I actually put all the things I've made into it.