Creatin' Contest 2016 Blogger Campaign Entry - And BIG Projects Behind The Scenes

Hey mini friends! How have you all been?! I've missed you guys so much! I have been up to LOTS. Like... LOTS. I'll tell you guys all about my other projects, but first I want to show you what I did for the HBS miniatures.com Blogger Campaign! They sent me a kit in exchange to share my progress with everyone- I shared the most on my Instagram so if you want to see more pictures, head over there! Find me @theminiaturebazaar on Instagram!

I wanted to go for something simple. Almost minimalist- due to time constraints and when I began this project I wanted to also enter the contest. However, it's clear now I won't have time for that! (More on that later in the post)

The idea is that this is a remote cabin where someone goes to create. As you can see in some of these pictures, there are some dollhouses in the works! Those were made by my SUPER talented friend Karine over at Kayanah Miniatures.

However at the time of this photo shoot our inhabitant was taking a break from building dollhouses to carve some pumpkins! And sneak a sweet snack... or two... or five...

Some of my favorite elements of this build are the extended windows and the chevron reclaimed wood wall. The larger windows let in so much more light, so I didn't have to do any electrical work. The reclaimed wood (inspired haha) wall was a labor of love, but the end result was exactly what I wanted. You can see it more clearly in the last picture! 

The living room set was purchased from a local craft store. I really loved how the blue accented the grays and neutral tones the build has.

Of course we had to have pumpkins on the porch. The haunting season is upon us, after all! If you look closely in the following image you can find a furry little friend trying to sneak a snack for himself... Go on little fella, we all deserve some candy during this time of the year!

That's pretty much it for this project! I'd love to make some additions in the future, but for now I just don't have the time I thought I would! I want to thank HBS/miniatures.com for including me in this campaign. They have been so incredibly patient and understanding. I had some issues with the right image size, time constraints, etc- but they worked with me! I already can't wait to see the kit for next year and the entries for this year!! The deadline is December 16 so if you want to enter, you still have plenty of time! I won't be entering this year, but I will TOTALLY be following along!

If you would like to read more about some of the other things going on (some are actually miniature related!) then please read on!

First I want to mention that I have been doing a series of local craft shows/festivals. The first one for the season was the Indie Craft Parade in Greenville, SC. I am debuting my felt flowers at these, so don't worry if you thought you missed some miniatures! I did a small festival in the city we live in, Easley. And in a couple weeks I will be at another festival near here in Traveler's Rest, SC. Here are some of the most recent felt things I have made-

This is a little bundle of mistletoe I am starting to make for the coming holidays! And the following picture is the pergola I built with my dad for our booth display, all filled up before the Easley Fall for the Arts Festival.

Besides all the festivals, I have been packing for a family trip to Disney world. We're leaving on the 8th and coming back on the 14th (of October).

However, the biggest thing I want to tell you guys is that Easley has been holding a competition called the Main Street Challenge. Essentially they are granting small businesses with funds to help within the first year of business in an actual BRICK-AND-MORTAR STORE! So as you might assume, I entered. I have actually made it to the second round which requires me to create an in-depth business plan and create a 30 minute presentation. My business plan is essentially done, I just have to fine-tune and print it. The presentations are October 20th. If this works in my favor I could potentially have a place to sell all of my handmade goods AND have more space to work. This has been my issue for the longest time... I have only had so much space to store what I have made & the supplies, tools, packaging materials, etc.

I will of course keep you guys updated, but my personal goal is to bring all of my handmade lines together under my name. It's exhausting running multiple micro-businesses, but if I shift my thinking to them being separate product lines underneath one business I might find more peace in the chaos. I already have a website up and running and you can check it out, here - christopherblakehandmade.com  . I would love to get back to making miniatures like I was before and this would be the perfect opportunity to do that while also building my other lines and my overall business as a whole.

The website is a work-in-progress, along with everything else, but it's coming along! I wanted to let you guys in on whats going on so that you know where I have been and can maybe keep me in your thoughts  in the coming weeks!

Thank y'all so much for stopping by and I will check back in whenever I have some news!

X

-Blake

Updates! Miss you all so much! Getting back to miniatures!

Hello, my mini-friends! I miss you all so much! I just wanted to pop in and let you guys know what I have been up to!

Firstly- I moved! Yeah! This is my first apartment that's 100% totally MINE! ( I do share it with my girlfriend, Claiborne, but she is part of the excitement :D ) Some of the best features are: It's roomy! Large living room with tons of walls (for tons of art!), tall windows for lots of light, AND my very own work room! Yeah! It's serving as our office as well, but its so much more than I have ever had.

Second- I have been SWAMPED with school, etsy things, and life in general. I am taking more classes this semester than I have in a long time and it's taking a toll on me. Less sleep, more stress. And on top of that I have to stay on top of orders for Twintrees and my newest baby, Leaph Boutique. Which, speaking of- here are a few of my newest felt flower bouquets! *u* I can't seem to stop making them. I love having the apartment full of flowers and we always end up killing the real ones! Haha!

Third- I started a YouTube channel!? Since this is my first place, all of our furniture was either given to us or thrifted. So I have made it a personal challenge to redo pretty much everything! It's going to take a while, but I love giving all these old things new life. My first video is sharing how I turned an old dining room table into a faux-reclaimed wood work table! It's super simple and if you like this kind of thing, check it out! Click HERE to see the video! OR watch it below!

I think its really funny that I am starting this right as Stephanie Kilgast, from PetitPlat, is starting her channel. It's super nice to have a newbie YouTube friend! :) Go check out her channel, too! She has been making some great time-lapse videos of her sculpting all kinds of minis!


And lastly, I wanted to fill you guys in with where I stand with my miniatures! I haven't lost my passion for them- I probably never will. I just have lost the time! I am currently making sketches for new lines, as well as some other fun projects. I am also still working on my entry for the 2015 Creatin' Contest! Since I am starting this new path on YouTube, I will be filming the rest of my progress and sharing that once my entry is submitted! This will continue to be my miniatures blog, however I will be starting a new blog for myself in general. There I will share basically everything I work on. This will make things easier on me so that I always have something to share, instead of sharing bits here and there across different platforms. I won't have any new miniatures for Halloween 2015, because there just isn't enough time. I have to keep up with everything else, AND I am going on a family vacation on October 17th, for a week! So all my efforts are geared towards any current projects/priorities!

Thank you guys so much for your ongoing support and love. I am going to go and have fun in blog-world and see what you have all been up to! If I don't follow you, or you don't think I follow you- leave me a link to your blog! I will give you a follow ASAP! I love seeing what other people are creating!

I think that's all for now. Until next time, XOXO
-Blake

The Painted Lady // New House Build / Personal Updates

It's a rainy day here in Clemson, SC. And... Oh my gosh. It has been far too long! How are you!? What have you been up to? I had a little bit of spare time the other day so I took a look at some of the blogs I follow. I don't know if it was the best thing to do... or the worst thing. Haha! It left me so inspired, and ITCHING to work on something miniature!

I honestly don't remember what my last blog post was, but here's a little bit about what I've been up to. Lately I've been occupied with school! My summer classes started last week, giving me a whopping WEEK for break from my spring semester. Do I sound bitter? I'm not bitter. Not THAT bitter. Luckily, these summer classes don't run as long as Spring and Fall so I will only have a couple months in them! Downside- they have a faster pace. Once the summer classes are over, I will be moving into some student housing (hopefully- it's still not been worked out entirely). I don't have a ton of room where I am right now, so I have to pick and choose what projects I work on. Lately, I have been making these felt flowers!

I cut every petal by hand, and it is actually quite meditative! I even started another Etsy for them! It's called Leaph Boutique. It's something nice for Claiborne and I to work on together- she picks out the colors, then I make the flowers, and then we make the bouquets together!

Anyways, the other day I was going through my room at home to cut down on what I will have to take when I move... guess what I found!? The Painted Lady! I bought this kit last year at Hobby Lobby right before the Indie Craft Parade, in hopes to finish at least the outside to display at my booth. But... that was VERY ambitious. I decided against it at the time, and it worked out in the end! "The Painted Lady" is a Real Good Toys kit, but once I settle on the direction I am going I will give it a new name. For the next couple days I will be pinning to my Pinterest inspiration board and making sketches. Here is what The Painted Lady looks like! (Photos found on realgoodtoys.com)

I have a LOT of ideas for this baby but, with it being so big, building will have to wait until after the move. In the meantime, however, I just found out about the HBS Creatin' Contest! I HAVE to enter. Seeing as how it IS a contest, though, I won't be able to share too much on the blog as I work on my submission, but I feel like that's a more realistic project to work on while I am where I am. Here is the the kit for the contest-

The kit is called Denise's City Cottage and (from my understanding) is temporarily available JUST for the contest! How cool is that!? I know of a couple people that are entering. Casey over at Casey's Miniatures isn't entering her cottage in the contest, but is posting her process on her blog! And Brae is building TWO! One for entry and one for us all to follow along! The contest deadline is December 16, 2015- so you have plenty of time to work on it if you want to enter! Who out there reading this is entering?

That's all for now! I have some Psychology to read up on and some Statistics homework to do!

Talk to you soon!

xoxo

-Blake