A Scary Tutorial Featured!

I love, love, love seeing my work in the magazine 'Dolls House & Miniature Scene'. Especially when I am on the front cover as well! I feel very honoured.
This is a great UK magazine, but you can order it wherever in the world you live and it's also available as a digital download.

My scary tutorial has a Fall / autumn theme... it's a spooky pumpkin scarecrow, but if you read the tutorial, you'll see that it can be adapted for a Guy Fawkes scene as well.

In this tutorial, you will learn how to;

- make a scarecrow (including his clothing and pumpkin head)
- make carved jack o' lanterns
- make fluffy black crows.


The instructions are for a 1:12 scale model and for an intermediate clay crafter.

Find the magazine issue here!

Interested in these sorts of spooky characters? See the 'making of' at my other Facebook page here.

See more about this particular spooky Halloween project in a previous post here and the tutorial below.

A Scary Workspace!

I know, I know... I don't blog here enough at all! I update my 'Caroline blog' and its corresponding Facebook page more frequently these days. And of course, there's always my blog and about my range of miniature food here.

What have I been up to lately? Aside from making a miniature birthday with the tiniest candles ever, for a an artist friend at Dreamworks (read all about it and see photos here), I have been creating a scene for one of my favourite miniature magazines ever - Dolls House and Miniature Scene Magazine. Here's a iny glimpse of what is to come below... take a look into my workspace and don't forget to buy this brilliant magazine when it comes out next month! Find the magazine here.

New TUTORIAL available! Spooky Fireplace...

Want to learn how to make a spooky old stone fireplace and fill it with your own handmade pumpkins? I've created a special tutorial with 27 step-by-step instructions to teach you exactly how to create your very own fireplace fit for a miniature fantasy / witch's home and filled with colourful pumpkins and jack o' lanterns.

This tutorial comes in PDF format and you can download it instantly from my online shop. Just click here to find it at the Pixie Dust Miniatures shop.









Exactly what you will learn how to make....

- A 'stone' fireplace with mantelpiece,
- Several pumpkins / gourds (some which glow in the dark),
- A Halloween vase,
- Halloween bunting flags to hang across it.

Techniques taught...

- How to create realistic brickwork, aged stone slabs (with my special aging technique),
- How to sculpt realistic pumpkins / gourds,
- How to paint a realistic pattern on pumpkins / gourds,
- How to sculpt a vase, including an special tip for a tidy finish.

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Shop announcement

The PDF tutorial is available right now, but as you will probably notice the rest of my shop is currently on 'vacation mode'. I am out of the country for 1 week having a holiday in Lanzarote with my family, so will not be able to ship miniatures until I am back. However PDF tutorials are electronic so you can download them instantly - even when my shop is on 'vacation mode'.

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This is what you'll learn how to make!

 

My Tutorial in DHMS Magazine!

Guess what?! A new Pixie Dust Miniatures tutorial which details step-by-step how to create your very own Crate of Dragon Eggs is now published in the current issue of 'Dolls House & Miniature Scene'!

A bit about 'Dolls House & Miniature Scene' magazine...

I am sure that most of you are familiar with this magazine, but for those who perhaps are not, click on the links below and discover it today...

'Dolls House & Miniature Scene' is a monthly magazine published in the UK and an excellent resource for miniature hobbyists, serious collectors and professional miniaturists. Each issue has projects, reports on fairs, clubs and miniature news from around the world and great articles about all kinds of miniature artisans. I love diving into their articles and finding all sorts of inspiration there.

They have a website here - where you can find this (latest) issue.

Hope you enjoy my Dragon Egg Crate Tutorial as well as the rest of the magazine. Here's a little preview of it... ;)

My Workspace - Chimney for the Cottage

....And another thatched cottage update! Here I'm working on the chimney. I'll be able to start on the thatched roof over the next few days and then can finalllllly start to paint!

I'm using PaperClay for the chimney over the foamcore base. The shapes of the bricks are carved into the wet clay using a needle tool.

See past Thatched Cottage posts below and don't forget to follow the blog to find out more or become a fan on Facebook!

Cottage update 3

Cottage update 2

Cottage update 1

My Workspace - Cottage update

Here's an update on the fairytale thatched cottage project. You can see past posts on this miniature scale model house here.

As you'll see I've made a front door, added wooden beams to the front, stone wall details using Paper Clay, and changed the front door shape from rectangular to arched. I just felt it suited the design better.

I'm going to do a full in-depth tutorial on how to make this cottage and release that soon. It will include a step-by-step guide to making the door. I've shown a few pictures of the door process below, but there were actually many more steps to it than that and these are all outlined in detail in my tutorial.

Don't forget to check back here or the Facebook page for the final result!

My Workspace - the Thatched Cottage

Just to keep you all updated, here are some photos I took today of my thatched cottage. You can see the photos I showed before (the very first stage of the cottage) here.
Now you will see that clay, wood and plaster have been added. I've probably only put in another 3 or 4 hours since those first photos, but I plan on taking lots of photos of the process so you can get ideas and be inspired to create your own things. As usual feel free to stop by the Facebook page and comment / ask questions about materials and techniques. You can comment on this blog as well of course and I'll answer questions.

In case you can't tell, I am going for a whimsical almost (but not quite) Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs style fairytale cottage rather than a realistic representation of a Tudor house.

More to see soon, don't forget to follow the blog and stop by!

Tutorials and more for 2013!

Wondering what's in store for Pixie Dust Miniatures in 2013....?! I'll tell you. :)

First of all, I must apologise for my absence for a few weeks of this year thus far. I've been busily preparing for my move back to the US and also had some exciting work in miniatures at a film company... for an insight into my miniature work outside of Pixie Dust Miniatures see my professional blog here.

Now, as for 2013 - I'll be moving back to Los Angeles in about 10 days time (during which I am afraid my online Pixie Dust Miniatures shop will remain closed)... then I will re-open, all miniatures will ship from LA and I will soon introduce my new ranges. Yay!

Expect to see a magical Valentines range as well as fantastical new unicorn horns, more bottled magic, cauldrons, books, a Pixie Dust Miniatures FURNITURE RANGE and a whole lot more in store which I'll be a bit secretive about for now! Follow this blog here and / or become a fan on Facebook here and you'll be able to stay ahead of these new ranges, new coupon codes and a brand new competition coming soon....

Anyway, here's my first Pixie Dust Miniatures tutorial available for sale here. It's a clear and easy to follow step-by-step guide on how to make a miniature Grinny pumpkin cauldron in one inch scale. It comes in PDF form with full color photographs (as seen in image two). It is for Beginners / Intermediates (age 18 plus).

TUTORIAL Published

In this month's issue of 'Dollhouse Miniatures' magazine, you'll find my first Pixie Dust Miniatures tutorial!

Learn how to make a Grinny Pumpkin Cauldron like the ones I sell at my online store here. Perfect for Halloween.

You can see a thumbnail of the tutorial below, but in order to read it and be able to follow it you will need to purchase the magazine in stores or online here. It's well worth the low price ($6.99 usd / £2.99) as it's full of features on other miniaturists, other tutorials, great articles and inspiration. So, I'd certainly encourage you to purchase this magazine. Hope you enjoy my first Pixie Dust Miniatures tutorial!

Final result - Grinny Pumpkin Cauldrons just in time for Halloween

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Magical Christmas Video!

Christmas is such a magical time and never more magical than in the workshops where the little Christmas elves make it happen! I've been taking pictures of their work as they ice the gingerbread houses, bake the cakes and make the cookies. You can catch a glimpse of the pixies at work in the workshop by scrolling down for a video on my Caro Home Crafts channel brought to you by Pixie Dust Miniatures! ;)

Don't forget, I'll start posting tutorials for making dollhouse miniature food in 1:12 scale in 2011 and they'll all be on my Caro Home Crafts blog and channel, so look out for them!

C xx