Tom Bishop Show # 2 Photos

The Tom Bishop Show 2010

I am home from Chicago having seen the most beautiful miniatures. It was great fun, I loved meeting so many talented miniaturists and seeing their work.

I am totally exhausted today. I think I was so excited the night before I left I didn't sleep at all. Saturday night...no sleep again. UGH!!! I am dragging today. Still I want to post a few photos for you. I'm afraid I didn't take that many. Saturday was very crowded and I had a long list of things I was looking for.

Saturday night I met Karin Corbin for dinner. That was fantastic!!! She is just delightful! I know she took lots of photos so I am sure she will post them when she gets home and write a great show report.

Sadly when I went through security at the airport and had to open my carry on bag, I discovered all the things I had bought on Saturday had made a mysterious disappearance. No point in crying over it. It's just stuff but it was very, very unhappy. The good news is that I have everything I bought on Sunday and I will take some photos of those things for you in a couple of days.

Light Fixtures - by Scott Hughes, Scott's Lighting (no web site)
Miniature Furniture - by Ann High http://www.annhigh.co.uk/
Miniature Plants - Carolyn Mohler Kraft http://carolynmohlerkraft.blogspot.com/
Gerd Felka - Miniature Glass http://www.miniglass.de/
James Carrington - Dolls http://www.jamescarringtondolls.com/index.php

Copper Teapot

This is a miniature copper teapot I have been working on. I am very pleased with this one because it has a hole all the way through the spout to the pot and I like the shape of the spout and pot. It has a turned wood handle and knob.

Making Kitchenware

WELCOME EVERYONE! Thank you for visiting.

I have had a terrible time trying to photograph things today. Sorry about these bad photos, sometimes you just have to throw in the towel and move on.

I made this tiny strainer out of the smallest screen I could find. Actually someone told me where to get it. I bought it in a paraphernalia shop, yep it's for smoking dope in a pipe.

I dapped the screen first then I made a fold over bezel out of brass to encase the edges of the screen. I left it sort of grungy looking so it would look used.

There is a pattern to the holes in the bigger copper strainer but I wasn't able to capture that in the photo.

I am making lots of copper frying pans and sauce pans. I want to rhodium plate the inside of them when I am finished. I think it will look much better than tinning the inside of them.

On the left are wood cheese boxes I made ages ago.

Who's Kilmouski?

Kilmouski is my Siberian aristo-cat. No matter how many hours I work, he sits in his chair right next to me. If for some reason it isn't there, he meows and paws me until I go and get it. His "chair" is a kitchen stool with a huge wood tray bungee corded onto it.

When I named him I made up a story about the Kilmouski Family having been the official mousers to the czars of Russia. For that he had to have a coat of arms! From that coat of arms I took the center design (the shield) and made him a sterling silver and gold tag for his collar. The 18K gold star on the tag represents the cattery I bought him from (Starberian). The Kilmouski family motto is engraved along the side of the tag in Russian/Cyrillic script. It translates... Death To All Mice. On the back of the tag I engraved all of his information plus phone number.

I never get to do anything without his strict supervision. Including using the porcelain facilities!

Happy Birthday Kilmouski!!! AKA "Killy" <---- Has never even seen a mouse.

Mail Today

I have been wanting a few books from Treefeathers. They came in the mail today. I am delighted with them. Among others, I ordered the Jane Austen set. Which are personal favorites in real life.

Also my order from Gerd Felka arrived. Four wine glasses that are exactly like my real life ones. Which go nicely with a decanter Frank Whittemore made and the wine bottles I bought from Hanneke that arrived last week.

The painting also came which is going to fit right into a theme I have in my mind about the person that lives in the dollhouse. I have to get started making a miniature pair of English riding boots. The leather for those came last week. I bought that on Etsy.

The Zinnias I made last month from kits.

Why is it when these things come in the mail do they always feel like gifts? I know I am going to get the bill for them. Yes...It is worth every penny!

CORRECTION posted... 05/30/10
I am delighted to be able to tell you that the sterling silver water pot was made by Obadiah Fisher. I have confirmed this.

Gift For Mary

I have an online friend that is making a 1" scale Brambly Hedge mouse house. Today I decided to make her a few things for it out of paper. There are some great prints in the Scrapbook section of crafts shops. Some of them come in card stock weight. The two coats of acrylic paint to the side that wasn't printed and the additional ten coats of clear nail polish made them quite sturdy. I however am still swooning from the nail polish fumes.