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

The Artist's Studio 1:12 Scale Build | June Updates

Hello lovelies! As I type this it is 11:45 at night, we just spent an ENTIRE week getting "our new place" ready for us to move in, and we have to be on the road to the coast tomorrow to meet our family at the beach for a week-long getaway!

I haven't had a chance to do *much* work on the artist's studio (TAS for short, because I'm lazy). However, I will show you what I have done since we last caught up! As you can see in the picture above I widened my windows! Since I have two kits- I used the window inserts from both to make up a larger window. All it took was a little bit of work with a jigsaw and instant light!

As I've said before, I love adding more natural light into a build- partially because I am intimidated by adding electrical elements, but also because it gives the build so much more air-y-ness! Over the last couple weeks I also started on the walls.

I used those pesky flooring sheets from Hobby Lobby- I still have no idea how you are SUPPOSED to use these, but I manage to use them a different way every time I get them. I made an oxidation mixture with vinegar and steel wool. Essentially you dissolve some steel wool in a jar of vinegar and it does amazing things to the wood! After a few more touches- whitewash with some chalk paint, a little sanding, some brown paint here and there- I got a pretty authentic looking reclaimed wood finish!

Personally, I love how it's coming along. I imagine a very light and airy cabin by the lake- or maybe up in the mountains. This is all the pictures I have today, but I promise to have more soon!

Okay, a little bit of what I've been up to- like I said earlier, I am moving! Which means I haven't had a place to work for the last couple weeks and it might be driving me a little crazy. The good news is that I have a pretty sweet setup in our new place and I am VERY MUCH looking forward to using it when we get back from the beach! We'll be there a week, and I have to say we REALLY deserve this vacation. And... I need a tan like you wouldn't believe!

Thanks for checking in, I will be in touch soon!

x - Blake

The Artist's Studio | Dry Fit & Initial Alterations

So this week I finally had some more time to work on the Creatin' Contest 2016 build. I've already decided I want this to be an art studio, but I am not set on any specific details just yet. The kit is super cute right out of the box, but my gut was telling me to make some changes. One of those changes was the front porch.

I don't want to worry with electricity with this build... I actually have never put lighting in a house- to be honest it seems SUPER intimidating. The front porch gets a bit dark depending on where in our apartment I sit the building- so I decided to cut it off. First thing to go was the beam at the peak of the house. Then I cut the roof.

To cut the roof without an electric saw I just used my x-acto knife and a ruler and made LOTS of firm cuts. Firm, but not too hard because I didn't want to risk the blade breaking. Or worse.

Once I got a decent groove made I used it as a guide for my hand saw. Then I used this side of the roof to trace onto the other side so that they are the same length.

This is what I was left with, but the porch is a bit awkward. Plus- it it too big for the base I will be making. Luckily my dad had a jig-saw that I didn't even know about! (Thanks, dad!)

MUCH. EASIER. I think I'll keep this for a while.

After the major changes to the front of the structure were done it was time to move on to the back. Do you remember that triangle piece that was at the top of the front porch? Well, I decided to use it on the back of my building, like in the picture below.

I'm also making a removable piece for the back wall. If you guys haven't noticed I like having full access to the inside of my builds. You never know what you'll want to photograph, you know! After I did all the major alterations to the building that I wanted, it was time to make my base.

My base was actually SUPER easy to make. All I did was take an old canvas apart and cut a piece of pegboard to fit it!

 I used glue and nails to hold it all together and that's it!

I bought a huge pack of these canvases a few years ago on sale and I'm glad to finally use some of them. I've also had the pegboard for years and its just been taking up space in my closet. Now I have more storage AND a nifty base for my build!

Remember that beam at the peak of the house? Well I took the part I cut off and cut it into 4 equal pieces. These pieces are now the supports beneath the house! This added almost two inches beneath the house so I will have plenty of height for the foundation.

I nailed/glued the supports to the base and then nailed/glued the floor of the house to the supports!

The final change I want to make for now is to the porch. Since I am having to work with a small base I had to set the stairs into the porch a little over an inch. You'll see what I mean in a minute...

As for the stairs- I got SUPER lucky. These steps were leftover from another kit. They were EXACTLY twice at tall as I needed and half as wide as I needed. Sound confusing? It did for me, too. To be honest I just went with my gut and it worked out in the end.

Cut 'em in half.

Glue the halves together.

Hold with tape.

And that's it! The stairs fit into the space I cut out earlier and I have a tiny bit of the base shown so I can do something with the landscaping! I'll be back in a few days to share more! I am working on the walls next, followed by the foundation!

X - Blake

P.S. If these pictures look a bit weird its because they are actually stills from the video I am taking of the process. I will eventually post everything to my YouTube channel as well, but I don't have time to edit it all right now. I will have more time in May, once this semester is over!

P.P.S. If you want to join my Mini Mail list, hop on over to theminiaturebazaar.com - there I will be sending out updates at LEAST every other week. These updates include progress on my builds, new lines of miniatures, shop sales, and more!

P.P.P.S. I love you guys and every time I scroll through my blog feed I drool over all the wonderful little worlds you guys are making!

The Artist's Studio / Creatin' Contest 2016

Say hello to the Backyard Bungalow! Though it won't be that for long... As some of you might already know, Hobby Builders Supply (miniatures.com) hosts an annual contest called the Creatin' Contest.

Each year they create a new kit for us to decorate and bash and go crazy with! The Backyard Bungalow is the contest kit this year. It's small enough to be a manageable size, but large enough to still have plenty of options. Oh and guess what?! This year they sent me a kit in exchange to share my progress with you guys!

I love the character of the windows and the doors, and although I'm not crazy about the front porch the shapes are basic enough to have limitless possibilities. The interior will be a challenge for me, but I have a few ideas in mind.

Are you joining the fun this year? It's an awesome challenge and a really creative project to take on! If you want to read more about the contest, click HERE to check out the info on miniatures.com.

OH AND ONE MORE THING. I still REALLY wanted to to enter the contest, so I purchased a second kit that I will work on throughout the year in secret. :)  (You can only enter by purchasing a kit, so I can't enter with the kit I was given. That's only fair, right?!)

I'll be back soon! I have some video editing to do and then I will be back with more information about what's coming to The Miniature Bazaar!

X