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Welcome to the Greenleaf Gazette!
Making Minis on a Budget! |
May 2008 |
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Dear Miniature Enthusiast,
This month, we're taking a look at how to make the
most of your miniature budget while still having
enough leftover for other things like gas and food.
Holly shares some of her best ideas for making your
own miniatures, and we've got a fun challenge game
guaranteed to get your creativity in high gear. Tracy
Topps shares a quick and easy way to add realism
and greenery to your miniature home that only
requires two materials!
The report from the main office is that the judges for
the 2008 Spring Fling contest are threatening to go on
strike. They claim that picking only three winners out
of the 73 entries is cruel and unusual punishment!
There truly are a ton of fantastic projects, but don't take
my word, have a look for yourself at the Spring Fling Sneak Peak Gallery!
Deb Roberts
Editor in Chief
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Building on a Budget
By Holly Parker
Many of you who live close to the belt have by now
discovered that this hobby can get a tad pricey. Heck,
it's downright expensive! I have my standard answer
for this problem: DO IT YOURSELF!!! What? You say
you checked the price of plywood at Lowes and those
little pieces of basswood at the hobby shop are
causing you to feel woozy? Guess what? You've built
a dollhouse kit, you have resources literally at your
fingertips!
Full story...
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 Creating Mossy Effects
By Tracy Topps
This month, Tracy Topps shows us how to add those magical touches of moss to stonework for your miniature home or vignette.
Full story... |
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 'Building on a Budget' Challenge Game
By Deb Roberts
Join us in a little creative fun as we challenge our
readers to come up with ideas for miniatures made
from ordinary items!
Full story... |
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 May Member of the Month - Meet Gina (Butterflyex)!
By Heidi Cleveland
I would like to introduce you to our May Member of the Month, Gina (Butterflyex). Gina has been a member of the Greenleaf Community since May 31, 2006. Gina is a wonderful person to chat with as well as an exceptional miniaturist.
Read more about Gina... |
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Havana Holly's Quick Tips!
By Holly Parker
It's the end of the month money-crunch time and you
wound up owing Uncle Sugar money on your taxes,
and you want to make pleated drapes? I read this DIY
your own pleater on Small Stuff Digest. If you happen
to have a piece of plywood or MDF approximately 6" X
10" and a pack of bamboo skewers, you can cut the
skewers into 10" lengths. Glue the first skewer to one
10" edge of the base and lay another next to it; glue
another one next to the second skewer and lay
another one next to it, and repeat this; as the first
skewers begin to dry you can remove the even
skewers and use them to finish. You will want to seal
this with polyurethane because when you pleat your
fabrics you'll be working with them wet and letting
them dry on this gadget, and after every few pleating
sessions you'll want to rinse off the starch build-up.
No plywood or MDF & you use the skewers to BBQ? No worries, mate. You cut a piece of the cardboard box your dollhouse kit came in, with the 10" side running the same direction as the corrugations (you'll notice the ripples across the 6" end). With a wet rag dampen one side until the cardboard darkens & looks & feels wet, and gently peel the layer off, leaving the rippled center layer glued to the bottom layer. Let it dry really, really well before applying polyurethane to both sides (one side at a time, letting it dry before turning it over). This version will not last as long; but as it is basically free, who cares?
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The Critter Corner!
Feline Foreman keeps human on task
Maggie is the perfect miniature building supervisor
too! She's equipped to do the job all the way down to
her little hard hat. Based on the miniature work done
by Maggie's human, Smallhouset, Maggie must be
doing a great job! Our thanks to Smallhouset for
sharing such a great picture with us.
Our thanks to Terry for sharing such a great
picture with us! Maggie will receive a $25 gift card
from Petsmart for being our May Critter of the Month. If you'd like to submit your pet's picture for
consideration for the Critter Corner, you can upload
pictures in the "Good Pets
acting bad!" or "Good Pets acting cute!"
galleries at the Greenleaf Forum.
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