1:6 sets or dioramas: schools of thought

One school of thought wants to make the 1:6 set or diorama realistic down to the smallest details. I've seen people print and bind their own legible books for mini libraries, make their own quilts for mini beds and construct matching storage boxes for mini shelves. These are the people who have at least 4 different backgrounds, 1 for each season, to stick outside their set windows. These are the people whose 1:6 clocks most likely have movable hands to indicate passing time in successive scenes. They build stone walls out of individual Styrofoam bricks, which are then weathered with multiple coats of paint. These are the people who dislike Barbie stuff because it's slightly undersized for 1:6. These are the people who use multiple plastic cats, all painted the same, but in different positions, to stand in for a 1:6 pet in different positions. This school of thought has nothing but my admiration, but it is certainly not me.

My school of thought is defined by a suggestive aesthetic, more akin to that of sets for a play. Things don't have to look meticulously similar to reality; they just have to look close enough to suggest reality. Books are made out of small pieces of foamcore wrapped with paper. There may be one quilt that appears on all different beds and one storage unit that appears in different room sets. People who merely suggest reality probably ignore windows as excessively detailed. They don't care about the hours shown on 1:6 clocks. Their stone walls are made from printed cotton fabric stapled to foamcore. They don't weather anything. Barbie stuff is fine; even the pink can be acceptable. Plastic pets have only 1 position. My aesthetic is defined by ease of creation, parsimony and reuse.

La Nuit de Mai par Alfred de Musset

Speaking of muses, here's a poem that I read in my junior year of college about an exchange between the Poet and his Muse. It's called La Nuit de Mai...and the Poet and the Muse definitely have a romantic relationship!( Read more... )

No Nosferatu clothes for Lucian

The Nosferatu Taeyang I wanted got damaged in last weekend's flooding, so I can't get it. I have a refund and no clothes for Lucian. Maybe Andrea can help?

EDIT: I got him an outfit from a Taeyang Disney Captain Hook doll, featuring lots of reds and pinks, very flamboyant. Best of all, I just paid for the outfit, no doll!

Lucian's castle walls

Jennifer shows off Lucian's castle wall with tapestries. I don't want to hear anything about unconvincing fabrics or obvious tacks. This works for me.( Read more... )

1:6 toy chest

Here are most of my 1:6 toys. Can you find the [not all are listed] Barbie [starting from top left and working toward bottom], warrior woman, zombie, American Maid, princess, woman with stole, blond girl, 1:144 dollhouse furniture, doll of Jareth, happy family, angel, baseball glove and baseball, basketball, soccer ball, mushroom mat, ray gun, pink squirt gun, [now moving up the right side] cars, VW bus, school bus, backhoe, stuffed pigs, stuffed bears, stuffed bunnies, puzzle mat, helicopter, duck pull toy, dog, penguin, caterpillar, lunchbox, swan training potty and toy shelf with black-haired girl, bunny, devil girl, horse, bird and art supplies?( Read more... )

Improved lighting setup

EDIT: Uh oh, the light looks too brown. I'll have to substitute wax paper for the parchment paper.

I put some parchment paper over my lamps this evening to diffuse the harsh full-spectrum light. Here is a picture of the lamps.( Read more... )

A doll for Ellery

Ellery plays with dolls, so, naturally, I need to get her some dolls. I would like the dolls to be around 1:36 scale, that is, 1:6 scale for 1:6 scale people, but I can go with slightly larger or smaller. Anyway, I bought Ellery an awesome little replica of Silken Flame Barbie and her carrying case. It is a Hallmark ornament with two pieces, one the doll, the other the carrying case, which actually has an opening drawer. It's either 1:36 scale or a little smaller. Pictures when I get mine! No, I won't tell you how much I paid for it.

EDIT: I also got her a set of 3 1:36 GI Joe ornaments, including a GI Joe, an ATV and a mummy's sarcophagus. Yay, now she will have truly scaled dolls! No, I won't tell you what I paid for those either.

EDIT 2: I also got her a set of 12 Homies figures, which are 1.75 to 2 inches tall, just right for 1:36 scale. It was only $6.00 for 12!