Fun #Halloween Minis and Books!

 Set up a few of the Michael's Halloween minis (see last post) in the roombox I normally use for Christmas. I still have to add some more lights but thought I'd share ahead. (Click photos for full size.)

I just love that typewriter!

* Looking around: there are some other fun Halloween mini toys... 

Oh look at this! A tiny ET from the World's Smallest line on Amazon. Now that is cute!!

The mini Funko Bitty Pops of Nightmare Before Christmas are cute. (On Amazon.) I like the Pumpkin guy. 

And... how about some Halloween reading?

Speaking of Halloween, got my copy of the anthology, Noncorporeal II, with some great ghost stories including my eerie (and somewhat touching) story, "Secrets of the Last Mine." See post for links to buy.

And... the Kickstarter is still going on but nearing the end, 14  days to go, so get your goodies!  (getting close to the $2k bonus giveaways!) for the Behind the Shadows II anthology. Includes my creepy, Twilight-zoneish story, "Blink!" I loved writing this one!

Thanks for visiting again! Come back soon for more updates. Working on that neat half-scale tree bed!

Halloween Mini Shopping!

 Ok, I know, I know, it's only three items - so far  (hey it adds up $$) - but I went to Michael's to check out the Halloween and LeMax stuff. (Click for full size image; see last post: Halloween house.)

* Update: I went back. haa!  I put X's by the extras I got. 😁

Well, the LeMax stuff is pricey this year; I just couldn't get myself to pay $10-$20 an item, even with a 20% discount. (But the Ashland stuff had a neat larger light up tree that I liked for $15.) Three new mini tombstones were $7 but...then I found the Ashland Miniatures and was much more impressed. Wow, what a cool selection! (See it online.)

So I got these three pieces which will work for half-scale. (The shelf is about 3.25" h; the seated skeleton is about 2.5" h; the busts are about 1 3/4" h.) I'll watch for the sales as they had some other cool items that would fit in a 1" scale library.(Photos from website.) Here's the ones I really liked: -  and I got that typewriter! (Plus the black candelebra with purple candles!

Gonna set up the roombox I usually decorate for Christmas. In a Halloween mood! Pix to come!

X Got the dog.

X got it.

X got it! 

I had to get this typewriter! This is how Is started writing. On an old Royal typewriter. No, that's not my hand. haa! 

There's a neat veiled statue bust, a candelabra and a skellie dog... a pile of skulls, 

X got it!

Just several neat-looking spooky things to choose from. I'll have to take another trip. Fun stuff! 

Back to the #Halloween Dollhouse!

Yes, I have been working on other miniatures! Halloween anyone? 

👻 See, I left this dollhouse sit so long, it really is haunted with a ghost from the past. haa! (Click photos for full size. See other links in left column archives list.)

Well, I was wondering what to do next after the Tiki Bar. I did finish the Tiki cup shelf and a stand for one of the Tiki sculpture candles (pix to come).

So, as I've heard stores are already putting out Halloween stuff (which I have to go see for myself!) I decided to do some Halloween decorating. 💀

I got out that other half-scale dollhouse I'd done a while ago and set aside (remember the Greenleaf Van Buren? wow, I was working on it in 2021! Here's a multi-project link from  2022.) The house isn't real big, but I still like the style and design.

Yay! Finally got the top roof trim done, too. I think it turned out pretty good.

 I added some small posts in each corner of the roof and cut off the tips on the fence sections. (Chipboard fence, 2.5" from AlphaStamps since it's smaller and can be cut into two pieces.) And you get all these little points and pieces that can be used for decorations. I used some of the tiny points on the front of my Fairfield house. See oval on the bottom of the house front here. They also sent a small gift bag of those "crystal" plastic pendants.

I finally put the trim on the back edges, which really finishes it off. I also added a bottom trim to the front and sides (see front photo). 

I made a new table kit (I used the other Gothic table in my Fairfield house) and redecorated it with the Miss Haversham-style tablecloth. I'm thinking of making the spooky lady, too, if I find a doll in my stash that I'll want to age and make creepy. More cobwebs will have to be put inside the house, too,

 Also put together this cool Gothic chair, that actually came out better than I'd expected. (All Gothic items from SDK Miniatures.) The chaise is from Michelle's Miniatures.

I'll do the bookcases next. I also have some poison plant kits to do that I bought at the last show, also from SDK. I want to do some front landscaping and maybe I'll finally make those animal topiaries like in The Shining, too. 

Then I found something pretty neat! I had this Fortune Teller kit, which I'd bought from Michelle's Miniatures a while back when she came to the Chicago shows. I'd totally forgotten I'd tucked two other kits inside the package! A surprise! See, it pays to be forgetful! haa! 

 I thought the tree bed was such a unique kit when I first saw it. She has some really different kits. She has an Adirondack chair with a carved spooky face that I still eventually want to get. And there's a whole section of haunted half-scale items, too! But I see some Christmas shopping to do here, too, I think! 😀🎄

I'll have to do that Fortune Teller box for the house's attic as this little doll will fit in there once I paint and redress her, though she does seem to fit the house well otherwise. I love the scrapbook paper on the walls above. It has skulls and cats.

For fun, I framed more creepy pictures. I like framing old weird art. I really like this one of the creepy old grandfather.

So far, so good! Stay tuned for more Halloween house updates as I start hanging pictures, decorating and getting more kits done. I have to decide on what to do for a kitchen, too. Then I can indulge in making all kinds of creepy food! Not sure of what furnishings to use but it has to be something that I want to make old and run-down.

Thanks again for visiting! Come back soon to see what's next!

Writing: Behind the Shadows II Kickstarter Starts!

 * Get in on the BEHIND THE SHADOWS II Kickstarter beginning JULY 3 for special perks, daily posts, and who's who's in the horror lite anthology. Also check the Facebook page for updates.

Includes my eerie, creepy Twilight-Zoneish story, "Blink!" 

I loved writing this story! Tommy wakes to a new world and wonders why no one else "sees" what is going on but him!  A little weird and even funny at times!

A Special #Miniature Skellie Guest!

 Funny as I was wondering before what to post about and now I have a bunch to schedule. Well, that's good, and yes, more minis to come!

Up first - I'm reading an ARC (advance reader's copy) of a new mystery collection, The Skeleton Rides a Horse and Other Stories by Toni L.P. Kelner, that I think will interest everyone here for several reasons.

First, not only is the main story in the title involve two faves - a Skeleton (ya know I like Halloween!) and a mystery - but the author has a mini version that is her companion, let's say, on a lot of her book-related excursions!

 (* Get the paperback on Amazon. Publisher Crippen & Landru also has a wide array of excellent short story collections.)

Yee-haw!!!

 Meet the mini-version of Sid, the main character in Toni L.P. Kelner's (also writing as Leigh Perry) delightful Family  Skeleton mystery series!

And just like in the books, the mini Sid gets around, going to various conventions and the like. Here he is at Times Square in New York City! (Huh, he travels more than me! ha!)

Hey, Sid should come meet his "cousin," lounging here at my miniature Witch's Cottage! 

Speaking In full disclosure (ha!), the "cousin" took up residence with his dog in my half-scale Witch's Cottage. These mini bendable Skellies are such fun little figures as they are fully jointed, yes, even the dog is! (I got my pair a while back on ebay!)

 ** While Toni's mini Sid does have a coffin to sleep in, he needs his own home and bed, too, don't you think? Maybe Toni will find some mini inspiration here! 

About the Book:

Here's the actual book cover. The new mystery collection contains a dozen stories with different inspirations - pirates, carnivals, the circus, and more! Toni says, '"Murchison Solves a Mystery” was from a name that intrigued me, “Skull & Cross-Examinations” was me trying to write a legal thriller story, “Bell, Book, and Candlepin” was for an anthology of paranormal game stories.'

The story of the same name in the collection's title is set at a convention revolving around a retro TV series, Cowtown. 

When a beloved actor is found dead and a priceless memento goes missing, Georgia, her boyfriend, Brownie, and Sid, work to solve the crime - and have some "cowpoke" fun! 

Yes, Sid, who can see and interact with Georgia, (even in pieces as hinted at on the cover!) does get to fully reassemble and fulfill one of his own past-life life-long dreams! I won't give it away, so you have to read the story!

Each story also has an afterword explaining the book connections and sometimes the reason they were written.

 Fun stuff and I'm enjoying the stories so far. I'll let you know which is my favorite in an upcoming post.

For fun, I figured readers would be interested in a different twist on reading and collecting, so I asked Toni to share a bit about Sid and how he came to be:

(Photo: Sid being chewed on by the dog representing Byron from the book series, made by Dana Cameron.)

About the Main Character:

What inspired Sid?

Toni says, "honestly, I wish there were a “Eureka!” moment, but if there was, I no longer remember it. I came up with Sid and wrote the first couple of pages a solid decade before actually selling and writing the books. But as best I can remember, I was trying to sell a book which took forever to sell, so while I was waiting, I started thinking about writing something paranormal. 

"But which creature should I use? Vampires? One of my best pals was Charlaine Harris, and she had those covered. Werewolves? Another pal is Dana Cameron, who was doing great stuff with hers. Witches? Ghosts? Wizards? Angels? Magical cats and ghost cats. All being done and done really well. Then some odd part of my brain said, “Hey, nobody has done an ambulatory skeleton yet!” I decided instantly that his name was Sid, and his voice and character are pretty much as I imagined them from that moment. Georgia changed a lot from the original piece, but not Sid. And everything in the series started with that."

What is Sid’s background?

"Sid came to life without warning when a young girl was in trouble, and came to live with the Thackery family. Well, not live exactly, but to hang out with. I don’t try to come up with a rational explanation, though I do have many irrational ones. As in, “bitten by a radioactive skeleton” and “when a Mommy skeleton loves a Daddy skeleton very much….”

"He has no memories from his pre-skeletal life. Well, other than one person who looks familiar, whose appearance became the catalyst for A Skeleton in the Family the first book in the series."

Start the Series: 

 Sid first appeared in Book 1, A Skeleton in the Family, A Family Skeleton Mystery, now a six-book series by Toni's alter-ego Leigh Perry. In Book 1, adjunct professor Georgia Thackery moves back to her childhood home to teach in Massachusetts where she also discovers Sid, a walking, talking, joke-making skeleton in her family's attic. On an outing, Sid recognizes a face from his actual past life, and Georgia vows to do whatever she can to solve his murder and dig up bones from his past.

Sid becomes Thackery's best friend, with the duo making quite a crime-solving team, which includes their latest venture solving the murder of a beloved actor from the Cowtown TV series in the short story of the same name in the title of the latest collection, The Skeleton Rides a Horse and Other Stories."

About the Author:

Toni L.P. Kelner (recognize that other famous face?) has been writing mysteries for over thirty years. She won an Agatha Award for her short story "Sleeping With the Plush", included in her new collection, The Skeleton Rides a Horse and Other Stories. Her story "Baby Trap" was selected for inclusion in Best American Mystery and Suspense 2024, edited by S.A. Cosby and Steph Cha. She also has been nominated for the Anthony, the Macavity, and Derringer awards.

As Toni L.P. Kelner, she's the author of eleven novels: eight Laura Fleming mysteries set in Byerly, a small North Carolina town filled with Laura's extended family members, and three "Where are they now?" mysteries, about a freelance entertainment reporter who specializes in stories about the formerly famous. She's also the co-editor of seven urban fantasy anthologies with Charlaine Harris.

As Leigh Perry, she writes the Family Skeleton series about Georgia Thackery, an adjunct English professor, and her family's unusual family skeleton, Sid, who walks, talks, and tells bad bone jokes when not solving crimes with best-friend, Georgia.

(Photo: The author with writer/actor Eriq LaSalle (Remember the show ER?) at the Bouchercon horror convention, San Diego, CA.)

Hope you enjoyed Sid's visit. This was fun! Thanks to Toni and Sid for stopping by and letting me share your photos!

Writing: Ghost Stories Anthology Pre-Order

 Like ghosts and spooky stories?

The anthology, Noncorporeal II, featuring my story, "Secrets of the Last Mine," (the story is eerie, not scary or gory) is now going up for pre-order on various sites! A spooky mix of stories from near-horror to sci-fi and more! See author list.

  * Get the paperback at Amazon.- paperback & e-book: B&N

* Get the e-book version from Apple, Kobo and other sites; see links here.

Updated #Miniature Tiki Room

 

Box: full view

Worked on putting drinks and food in the miniature half-scale Tiki roombox. Still have to put the glasses and decorations on the back shelf. (*See last post. Click photos for full size.)

It's been a fun project to do, considering it came about as a last-minute idea. I'd had the thought in the back of my mind and just decided to work on it between "bigger" projects.

As I mentioned before, the room is set in a former photo storage box. The box is 10 1/2" w, 7 1/2" d and 6 1/2" h, so plenty of room. I covered the sides and top, added lights on the ceiling, and used a wood placemat for the walls. Added wood strips to make it look like an attic, with brick on one side.

Here's the right side: filled the buffet table and added some wall decor. I think I'll add another shell on the right side of the picture to even it out.

Buffet foods on the side table. I have to add some silverware and a serving spoon yet.

Showing the layout - the buffet table on the side. I added a couple more plants and the coffee table by the couch.

Left wall:

Front tables:

The decorated guest tables at the front of the room by the window.

Finished drinks on the bar - loved making these! I added the fern and other plant, too. 

This really was a fun project! Now what to do.....? 

Well, I've been thinking of pulling out the camper kit I got a loooong time ago. I was going to make it into a coffee bar. My friend, Gigi, and I are planning a camper display once she starts setting up her dollhouse collection and her mother's houses. She has a larger camper for a B&B, and the tinier camper kit. I'm also thinking of getting the larger camper since I saw it pretty cheap at Hobby Lobby. 

I'd put the camper aside, but it's already papered on the inside and most of the trim is painted a dark rose pink. I also have to make a lot of boxes and bags for display/"sale" items. Looked at it again, and it might work. 

I checked and I also have another box similar to this, but with a wall inside (which I'm not sure I can get out). So wondering if that can work for the gothic library but with a small entry/hallway. Will think on that!

We'll see what's next... Stay tuned for more projects & updates! Thanks again for visiting.

Eat, Drink, Be Miniature Tiki Merry!

 

Been having fun figuring out the food and drinks for the half-scale Tiki Bar! (*See last post.** Click photos for better view/full size. Other post links in left column archives.)

Dug in my stuff and had forgotten I'd bought some tiny Tiki cups at the last show. (Blackthorn Miniatures.) I also had some 3D printed bowl glasses and hurricane glasses (KM Wohrstein). Lots to experiment with!

Here are the Tiki cups painted and unpainted so you can see the size. Love the faces!

I decided to experiment and used glass stain, or gloss Mod Podge mixed with acrylic paint to fill these. The straws are painted/cut florist wire. I didn't realize some of these glasses don't go all the way to the bottom inside. They're not-quite-finished as I'll have to paint the outside yet and do some touching up. Sand (for salt) will go on the edge of the blue drink - Margarita! I used cut pieces of Fimo fruit canes, too, for garnish.

They are just so darn cute! Fun stuff!

Also made some food plates with air-dry Crayola Model Magic clay to make sandwiches, fries, and "shrimp." The "lettuce" is torn pieces of floral tape. I seal the clay with matte Mod Podge and also gloss things like the tomato cane slices with Gloss Mod Podge. I'll set up a food buffet on that larger table. I have to find some silverware yet, too.

I did end up making a small table for in front of the couch. It's cut from a wooden fan with 1" scale moldings for supports. Thought it looked good with the food and a drink added. The mixed salad dish was made by my friend, Gigi.

I'll post more photos once I get everything set up and some other things made. This has been a fun little project!

Thanks again for visiting! Come back soon for more updates!!