The tropical drinks of summer- mini size

I have had more than my share of Margaritas in the past 3 days- something about that drink that quenches the thirst, perfect poolside as I read a book. What a life I lead!
These little drinks just made my day when I found them on line. What a talented miniaturist!

Beat the summer heat with Michele Kelly's Tropical Tiki Cocktails: Banana Daiquri, Mandarin Crush, Mai Tai, Piña Colada, Blue Hawaiian, Lava Flow ...

For more minis by Michele Kelly, visit:
Blog: http://michelesmenu.blogspot.com
eBay: http://myworld.ebay.com/uniqueminis
Etsy: MichelesMenu.etsy.com

NAME CONVENTION...

I am on the steering committee for this convention as so looking forward to attending and participating..

National Association of Miniature Enthusiasts
July 12- July 19
Indianapolis, Indiana

Public Days - Exhibits and Vendors Sat & Sun

Alice In Wonderland March 2010 - Tim Burton

The traditional tale has been freshened with a blast of girl power, courtesy of writer Linda Woolverton (Beauty and the Beast). Alice, 17, attends a party at a Victorian estate only to find she is about to be proposed to in front of hundreds of snooty society types. Off she runs, following a white rabbit into a hole and ending up in Wonderland, a place she visited 10 years before yet doesn't remember.

Among those who welcome her back is the Mad Hatter, a part tailor-made for Johnny Depp as he collaborates with Burton for the seventh time. "This character is off his rocker," Zanuck says.

Aussie actress Mia Wasikowska, 19, best known for HBO's In Treatment, has the coveted title role. "There is something real, honest and sincere about her," Zanuck says. "She's not a typical Hollywood starlet."

There is the usual Burton-esque ghoulishness (Helena Bonham Carter's Red Queen, whose favorite retort is "Off with their heads," has a moat filled with bobbing noggins), but Zanuck assures most kids can handle it. "The book itself is pretty dark," he notes. "This is for little people and people who read it when they were little 50 years ago."

To create this in miniature, I have thought about it for years, now is the time to begin! This picture is now my inspiration.
Alice in Wonderland will reunite Burton with Johnny Depp (who’s playing The Mad Hatter - again, perfect match) for the seventh time. The two have come a long way since their first team-up on Edward Scissorhands back in 1990 (man, almost 20 years already!), and even though it almost seems inevitable that they will work together, I say don’t fix it if it ain’t broken!

The rest of the cast includes Alan Rickman as The Caterpillar; Helena Bonham Carter (aka, “Mrs. Burton”) as The Red Queen; Anne Hathaway as The White Queen; Stephen Fry as The Cheshire Cat; Crispin Glover as The Knave of Hearts; Michael Sheen as The White Rabbit, and newcomer Mia Wasikowski as Alice.

This was the artist rendition of what the Mad Hatter character was to look like, look below for Johnny Depp's look.




I love the work of Tim Burton.. a bit strange, yes I know but maybe I am drawn to it for he is fascinated with fairy tales, make believe, children's stories and brings to his work an art form that is I believe a gift.
In March of 2010 , he will be releasing his "Alice In Wonderland movie. The perfect selection for the Mad Hatter being Johnny Depp, well, his entire cast is perfect. The teaser pics, trailers are incredible, my birthday is in March - so this will be my gift, watching this movie probably 2-3 times!

Remembering

“We all have our time machines. Some take us back, they're called memories. Some take us forward, they're called dreams.

The incredible work of Martha Boers and her youngest sister, Marianne Reitsma

Beauty & the Beast

Beauty sat in the garden, playing her lute and dreaming of home. The Beast leaned close, not daring to touch her, and asked as he did every evening, "Beauty, will you marry me?"

Both figures have heads, hands and feet of Super Sculpey, on a wire armature, with cloth bodies. Beauty has brown mohair hairdo with curls and a bun in back with blue silk ribbons. She wears a dress with a light blue brocade underskirt, and a cyan blue overskirt, both trimmed with blue, cream and pink. Her bodice is cyan brocade with a pink and cream brocade stomacher. She has large puffed top sleeves, and light blue striped lower sleeves. The dress has a wide white lace-edged collar. Beauty holds a handmade painted wooden lute.

Beast has hair of rabbit fur glued carefully up to the edges of his sculpted face. He has dark pants, and wears a tunic of dark blue brocade trimmed with wine and gold. He has gray lower sleeves, and several puffed top sleeves. He has a purple brocade cape.

Props: Both figures sit on a "stone" bench made of wood, in a garden with handmade fabric rose bushes.

Height: 41 cm (16")

http://www.marthaboers.com/dollart/mandm/index.html

Points of Life

My plate, my life, my heart was shattered today... I can not fix it. I find it difficult to believe that...

It’s up to you to make your life the best it can be.
This life is the only one you’re given.
Look for opportunities to grow,
and never be discouraged in your efforts to do so.
Replace your weaknesses with positives;
take life’s broken pieces and re-create your dreams.
Never measure the future by the past;
let yesterday become a memory and tomorrow a promise.
Begin each day by focusing on all that is good,
and you’ll be in a position to handle whatever comes along.
Take responsibility of your actions;
never make excuses for not being the best you can be.
If you should slip, be comforted by the thought that we all do at times.
Determine your tomorrow by the choices you make today,
and you’ll find yourself living in joy and triumph.

***

Don’t ever try to understand everything-
some things will just never make sense.
Don’t ever be reluctant to your feelings-
when you’re happy, give in to it! When you’re not, live with it.
Don’t ever be afraid to try to make things better-
you might be surprised at the results.
Don’t ever take the weight of the world on your shoulders.
Don’t ever feel threatened by the future- take life one day at a time.
Don’t ever feel that you are alone-
there is always somebody there for you to reach out to.
Don’t ever forget that you can achieve so many things you can imagine- imagine that! It’s not as hard as it seems.
Don’t ever stop loving, don’t ever stop believing,
don’t ever stop dreaming your dreams.

My favorite..

Somehow strawberry season has escaped me, I only had my favorite dessert once . A glass of white wine and "my dessert" but then again creme brulee is right besides chocolate and strawberries..
But maybe I can create them in miniature?
Thank to http://betsy-niederer-miniature-food-igma-fellow.com
for perfect chocolate and strawberries!

This is what I want....

if you are cold, tea will warm you;
if you are too heated; it will cool you;
if you are depresses, it will cheer you;
if you are exhausted, it will calm you. - William Gladstone


The first sip of tea is the always the best - when you cringe as it burns the back of your throat, knowing you just had the hottest carpe-diem portion and that from here it will only get colder. ~The Quote Garden

Maybe in another week she will be finished

I am busy making my "characters" for my fall show.. she is beginning to take shape, a broom is in progress ( broom stick has a face), her book of spells is being worked on too. I've lots of details to put on her yet but she is beginning to take on a personality. You can still see pins, unfinshed edges, no beading yet ... hmmm...

I did not know that these book were written about dollhouses

Banks, Lynne Reid. The Indian in the Cupboard.
When a nine-year-old boy receives a plastic Indian, a cupboard, and a little key for his birthday, he finds himself involved in adventure when the Indian comes to life! First in a series. (Juv Fic SF)

Cassedy, Sylvia. Lucie Babbidge's House.
Having found a dollhouse full of dolls, Lucie creates a secret life for herself in the orphanage where she leads an unhappy existence. (Juv Fic)

Clapp, Patricia. King of the Dollhouse.
A miniature royal family moves into the dollhouse of an only child and keeps her company during the summer. (Juv Fic SF)

Curry, Jane Louise. Mindy's Mysterious Miniature.
A young girl finds an old dollhouse with unsuspected magic powers. (Juv Fic)

Godden, Rumer. The Dolls' House.
The activities, sorrows and joys of a family of hundred-year-old dolls living in a Victorian dollhouse and of the two little girls to whom they belong. (Juv Fic)

Godden, Rumer. Home is the Sailor.
Through a series of unusual circumstances, the missing sailor men of the doll family are reunited with their relatives. (Juv Fic)

Godden, Rumer. Miss Happiness and Miss Flower.
A shy little girl's ambition to construct a proper house for two Japanese dolls results in new friendships and closer family ties. (Plans for the dollhouse are included.) (Juv Fic)

Godden, Rumer. Little Plum.
Nona and Belinda (from Miss Happiness and Miss Flower) work to become friends with the rich, new girl next door when they learn she has a Japanese doll. (Juv Fic)

Hope, Laura Lee. The Bobbsey Twins at London Tower.
While visiting England, the twins halt a thief's plans to steal the crown jewels from the Tower of London. (Juv Fic M)

Martin, Ann M. The Doll People.
Little girl doll Annabelle has lived with her family for 100 years, coming to life when no people are around. When the plastic Funcrafts move in, Annabelle Doll and Tiffany Funcraft risk Permanent Doll State when they try to find Annabelle's long-lost Aunt Sarah. (Juv Fic SF) (Followed by The Meanest Doll in the World)

McDonough, Yona Zeldis. The Dollhouse Magic.
During the Depression, intrigued by the beautiful dollhouse they see in a window, sisters Lila and Jane befriend its elderly owner and ultimately have a very different Christmas. (Juv Fic)

Moxley, Lucina Ball. The Mexican Dollhouse.
Nancy and Katie befriend new girl Rosalinda and learn about Mexican culture through Rosalinda's beautiful Mexican dollhouse. (Juv Fic)

Stover, Marjorie. Midnight in the Dollhouse.
Set in the 19th century, a family of dolls and their house help renew nine-year-old Melissa's interest in life after she is badly injured and confined to bed for four months. (Juv Fic M) (Followed by When the Dolls Woke)

Turner, Ann Warren. Finding Walter.
Eight-year-old Emily draws her sister Rose and her parents into her efforts to find the youngest of a neglected family of dolls in her grandmother's old country house. (Juv Fic)

Wright, Betty Ren. The Dollhouse Murders.
A dollhouse filled with a ghostly light in the middle of the night and dolls that have moved from where she last left them lead Amy and her sister to unravel the mystery surrounding grisly murders that took place years ago. (Juv Fic M)

To answer the question

Alright, alright.. to all who have asked, no, I am not going to my 40th high school class reunion.
I do not have to explain why, but I will let you know what I looked like in 1969/70

just thinking..

Once in awhile,
Right in the middle of an ordinary life,
Love gives us a fairy tale.
–Anonymous

Where do old cayons go?

Another question that I have been contemplating for some time. the Crayola company makes probably millions, maybe billions of crayons every year, where to they go? I mean the old broken ups ones, or the colors you never use? Now that school has ended for many children, what has happened to those crayons?

I discovered what to do with them... melt and make them into alphabet crayons, then I am going to donate them along with coloring books to a children's hospital! As I say, "Pay It Forward".



I found this clever idea and picture on the following website:http://megduerksen.typepad.com
I need to learn how to link!

Do people in love still carve their initials into a tree?

Close your eyes and imagine that you're a teenager again. It's a summers day and you've wandered up the hill outside of town. You reach the old oak tree at the top where you can see for miles. There's nothing there but the old oak tree, tall grass, and a big blue sky. This is where lovers sneak off to to be alone. Do lovers still carve their initials in trees?

Now, why did I ever think of that question?

I am working on 2 miniature trees to be used as accessories for witches. As I was thinking about how tree bark is not really brown- more like gray/black, I walked outside ( yes, in the rain) to look at one of my trees. What a great ,beautiful tree it is, in fact a bird's nest had fallen out of it and was lying on the ground. I'm keeping the nest also, for something. I am intent on getting my miniature tree's bark the correct colors and I wondered-

Do lovers still carve their initials into trees?
Did I ever do that?
I have no idea if I ever did.. memories.. funny how some things in your life your remember , others are hidden away.

So, I have decided to make another miniature tree - making sure I carve initials in it. Maybe these trees will now become gifts , maybe a wedding gift ( how unusual a tree with their initials), an anniversary gift, an engagement gift, a birthday or just a "gift" gift. I really like this idea ..

I still smile when I think about "stuff " like carving initials in a tree, a heart locket with your picture and your true love's. I love charm bracelets ( I have four - started at different times in my life, my first was given to me in high school . I can remember why each charm on every bracelet was purchased or given to me, in some cases who bought it and why.) I love the fact that I have a red leather journal . Inside it , I have marked down "dates to remember" for years and years and when I reread it , I can actually go back in time and really remember what happened.

I also love a ring I have, it's a Purdue ring, the day I got it was a very special day in my life, that's why I bought it so I would have something to always remember that day. I still remember that day just like it was yesterday. But did I ever carve my initials in a tree?

So, back to my trees, some of the people in my life, don't be surprised if you get a tree with initials !

Quiet time..

Today is a day of nothingness, I have those quite often. I am lucky to be able to do so. Maybe a book day with a glass on wine, maybe a pool day, maybe a letter writing day, maybe a sculpting day, maybe well, maybe a day with whatever I do there will be a glass on white wine...

This lovely miniature tulip can be found at:
http://une-petite-folie.blogspot.com

PEOPLE MAY NOT REMEMBER EXACTLY WHAT 'YOU DID,
OR WHAT YOU SAID,
~BUT~
THEY WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER HOW YOU MADE THEM FEEL.




A sculpture of inspiration... yes, this elderly lady is not real.
but the saying, I hope describes me. I have always hoped that the lives of others I have touched have left them smiling and within their heart a feeling and within their mind a memory of a very special moment.

A rainy day movie....

"In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars." --F. Scott Fitzgerald, "The Great Gatsby"


I love the book- yes, it is my favorite. I fall in love with this book every time I read it and I do so every summer. The movie- well, what is better than watching Robert Redford and wishing you were Daisy..
the days of summer white clothing, the summer heat, love and having your heart broken with a love that could never be.

I find his work as the best I have ever seen..

Below. a few photos of Ron Mueck pieces, an Australian hyperrealist sculptor, sez Wikipedia. Sez Snopes, “Ron Mueck is a London-based photo-realist artist. Born in Melbourne , Australia , to parents who were toy makers… His work is lifelike but not life size.”

Summer is mine - to read - to travel- to remember - to be creative - to enjoy family and friends ( near and far) - but I do think I am going to travel to Chicago ( one of my favorite cities) and see the Chicago Botanic Garden. This is just a preview of what one might see- then to recreate it in miniature size. I stay in downtown Chicago when I go.. if you do not mind walking you can enjoy Chicago more that way but again taxis are always there when you just can not take another step.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past…we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude…I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it.

Charles Swindoll -

It looks so real...

Looks real.. but in my miniature world it is real, only 1:12 inch scale. I will need to find out who made this wonderful plant... made of polymer clay...

I need to read this everyday..

LIFE'S LITTLE
INSTRUCTIONS

Forgive. Always do your share and a little bit more. A person never looks so tall as when he stoops to help another. Smile when introducing yourself. Have a firm hand shake. Be the first person to say hello. Always buy what little kids are selling. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully. Memorize your favorite poem. Watch at least one sunrise and one sunset a year. Remember people's birthdays. Not just your own. Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want. When you say, "I love you", mean it. When you say, "I'm sorry", look the person in the eye. Be engaged at least six months before you get married. Believe in love at first sight. Use fresh herbs when cooking. Never laugh at anyone's dreams. Ask questions. It's not always about what you know, rather What you can find out! Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only way to live life completely. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling. Don't judge people by their relatives. Talk slow but think quick. When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer, smile and ask, "Why do you want to know?". Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk. Call your Mom! NOW Laugh....A Lot! Say "bless you" when you hear someone sneeze, especially a stranger. Take a plate of cookies to a new neighbor. When you lose, don't lose the lesson. Remember the three R's: Respect for self; Respect for others; Responsibility for all your actions. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it. Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in in your voice. Marry someone you love to talk to. As you get older, conversational skills will be as important as any other. Spend some time alone. Open your arms to change. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer. Read more books and watch less TV. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll get to enjoy it a second time. Trust in God but lock your car. A loving atmosphere in your home is so important. Do all you can to create a tranquil harmonious home. In disagreements with loved ones, deal with the current situation. Don't bring up the past. Read between the lines. Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality. Don't Litter. Pray there's immeasurable power in it. Never interrupt when you are being flattered. Always respond to a compliment with a sincere and heartfelt "Thank You"! Mind your own business. Don't trust a person who doesn't close their eyes when you kiss them. Once a year, go someplace you've never been before. If you make a lot of money, put it to use helping others while you are living. That is wealth's greatest satisfaction. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a stroke of luck. Learn the rules then break some. Remember that the best relationship is one where your love for each other is greater than your need for each other.

My library of books....

Is the value of a library in the books you've read or in the books you have not read?