The fun of collecting and creating in miniature size is having a realistic replica of something from real life.
That's evident by the interest in all the miniature toys that are suddenly popular like the Mini Brands food items and the Wacky Packages items - small scale replicas of real life food products and parody products. I admit both these are "cute," though they are more Barbie size (1:6 scale) than dollhouse scale (1" =1').
Most of us creating in miniature like adding those real-life touches, no matter the size. In my case, I enjoy working in 1:24 scale (half scale or 1/2" = 1'). Yeah, it's small, but I like that you can get the realism without it being so small you have trouble seeing it. (Folding things can make you feel like you're all thumbs, though!) I made the shelf above a while ago for a kitchen. The shelf is 4" long. The printable (printie) food boxes range in size from under 1/2" to just over 1/2" wide and 1/2" high or so.
This post actually started with a couple of items I got in last year's annual swap from the Half Scale group. I got a kick out of the paint cans a couple people sent and wanted to figure out how to make more. Hard to get a real good photo as these are only just over 1/2" high. (Emily Morganti made the can on the right using part of an LED Christmas bulb for the cap, she said. Check out her blog - she has some great half scale dollhouses and ideas!)
I was pretty happy with how mine came out using a dowel rod, thread and a slice cut from the end of a wood paint brush to make the cap. I shrunk down the label in my Word program. (They look a little beat-up in the photo since the camera picks up every-single-mark. ha! But on a shelf, they look pretty good.
I also just found some tiny beads with straight sides that might work for other color and clear plastic caps. They're called Perler Beads and used to hook onto pegs almost like Legos. The pegs are part of shapes like butterflies, etc.
We'll see if they work for my purposes. The beads are about 1/4" high, similar in size to the clear cap on the first can photo though that one has slightly angled and rounded sides. I'll try and make some to see how they turn out. You need more than a few cans on a shelf, right? And once you start making something, I admit, you get kind of hooked on having multiples. ha! I wanted to see what size a 1" scale can would be also, though I'll likely need a larger dowel and a bigger bead. But that's another day.
I've been making some other things as well for the latest Half Scale dollhouse so stay tuned!
Thanks again for stopping by!