Happy 2014!

May your new year be happy, blessed, successful, fun and everything else you could wish for!

Here's to more minis and friendship in 2014!

Miniatures Monday!

Haven't done this in a while, so thought I'd share a few other miniatures I just made. Yes, the ladies shops are still ongoing. And.... since I bought a partly-constructed Brimble's General Store, I am thinking of going even bigger and making a shabby ladies shop - mostly dresses and things.... I haven't lost the bug yet...

Cabinet with perfume and other boxes.

 New jewelry chest I got for Christmas.

Perfume display. This bookcase was an ugly gold color before I painted and papered it. Hooked on shabby chic!

Tried out a new dress style which is easy to make and turns out well.  I have a red one too and wait'll you see the matching sandals!

Merry Christmas!

I hope you and yours have a wonderful Christmas!

(And how about a fun read? GIRL Z: My Life as a Teenage Zombie makes a perfect after-Christmas book!)

(Pic: Christmas tree from my miniature Christmas dollhouse, see website, click Miniatures) 

Christmas Story: Thief of Christmas Present by Robert W. Walker, part 2

Part 2: Continued, "The Thief of Christmas Present"
By Robert W. Walker

(** If you missed the beginning, read Part 1 of The Thief of Christmas Present **)

(Photos: Christmas Santa House by C. Verstraete, see more pix at my website; Festive gold and white holiday scenes featuring the miniatures of Lissu, used w/ permission. See more pix and visit her blog)

Today we conclude our original Christmas tale by Robert W. Walker, author of more than 30 novels including his Detective Ransom series, as well as his latest eBook time travel novels, featuring his stories taking place in two time periods, TITANIC 2012 and the recently released, BISMARCK 2013, Hitler's Curse.

TO RECAP: the family are watching the film to see who is stealing the Cluewellens' Christmas from Julia's dollhouse.

Shortly after, Stevie entered the room, asking, "What kinda movie is this?"

"The movie that's gonna prove you stole the Cluewellens' Christmas!"

"I didn't touch that stuff! I didn't do it, mom!"

Joannie came down from her room and asked, "Are you still blaming that on Stevie? He wouldn't do that!"

"We got you on tape this time, Joannie...or Stevie...whichever one of you guys did it, so there!" Julia set her jaw, determined to watch every hour of the unmoving movie frame by frame. "Mom and me...we gotcha good now. Liar."

Joannie came at her sister. "Who're you calling a liar? Me?"

"If the shoe fits!"

"Enough, both of you! Stop it. Either sit down and watch the tape or leave the room, but please, no more accusations, Julia, and no more shouting, Joannie-and you, Stevie, stop crying."

"I didn't do it," he complained through tears. "I always get blamed for everything!"


"All I know is somebody stole the Cluewellens' Christmas tree now!" Julia shot back.

"Hey, what's that?" asked Joannie, pointing at the screen. "I saw movement-a shadow-back of the miniature."

Julia, Stevie, and Mother Waldron stared at the slight squeaking noise, too, and in a moment, they all watched a pair of whiskers and a brown button nose rise over the back of the miniature at the chimney.

"It's Newton, my ferret!" shouted Stevie. "He's escaped again."

Newton lived up to his name, always finding ways to escape his cage, and often, Stevie allowed him 'free run time' but Newton always returned to his cage. Newton had even found a way out of the house one night.

"What's he doing?" asked Julia. "OMG-he's going down the chimney."

"Like Santa," said Stevie.




"No...more like The Grinch," replied Joannie. "There's your Christmas thief, Julia!"

"But...I mean how...why?" she asked. "Why's he terrifying the Cluewellens and destroying their Christmas?"

"You really think Newton is thinking along those lines, Julia?" Joannie couldn't hold back her laughter.

"Shhh...watch him. Look, look," said Mom. "The little thief! He's dragging the entire tree out the front door."

With the tree clear of the door, it snapped closed, and Newton scurried away with the five-inch high tree, ornaments trailing. He truly did look like a miniature version of The Grinch except that he was brown and not green.

"Stevie's pet's the thief...the whole time," Julia muttered in disbelief.

"What's he doing with all the stolen goods?" asked mom. "Shall we find out?"

"I think you're gonna need a ferret whisperer or a pet shrink to figure that out, Mom," replied Joannie, still laughing.



"Nothing funny about that little rat destroying the Cluewellens' Christmas!" countered Julia.

"Why don't we all just go on a scavenger hunt?" began Mom. "To see where Newton is stashing all the decorations and presents."

"And stockings!" added Julia.

The four of them started for Stevie's room where Newton lived in a cage. Everyone in the family had gotten so used to Newton's escapes and escapades about the house that no one took great notice of him of late.

"What's going on?" asked Jack Waldron, their father, who'd caught them gathered at the foot of the stairs as he came through the door, home from the office.

Everyone spoke at once until Anna calmed them and pointed to the still action shot on the TV. "We caught Newton red-handed. "He's Julia's Christmas thief."

"Must be the shiny stuff attracts Newton, eh?" asked Jack.



"But he's never done this before!" Anna replied. "Any rate, we're heading up to Steve's room to see where he's stashing the goods."

"Say, did anyone read that book that came with the ferret when you bought Newton at the pet store?" asked Joannie, who was browsing the book for any clues.

"Who's got time to read?" asked Julia.

They all went for Stevie's room, and looked into Newton's cage, a made-over fish tank. There, amid the usual sawdust and toy shelters and fake greenery, was a stash of Christmas miniatures, from the tree, to the presents and the stockings. All of it lay in a neat, orderly circular design. The look on Newton's face said, "I confess."



Joannie handed the paperback book on ferrets and ferret behavior to her mother. "Take a look at the last section on page sixteen."

She glanced at the page. "Oh, dear...then this means..."

"What is it?" asked Julia. "Nothing in that book could possibly excuse this rodent's behavior, and as for you, Stevie-this is all your-"

"No, Julia!" countered her father, who'd now read page sixteen. "No way is this Stevie's fault!"

"You owe Stevie and me an apology," Joannie said to Julia, having closed in on her, nose-to-nose. "And all our friends, too!"

"You do owe everyone an apology, Julia," her mother agreed. "In the meantime, Newton is going to need a new name."

"Whataya mean?" asked Julia.

"New name?" asked Stevie.



"Newton is a girl, and she's stealing shiny objects to make a nest, because she's going to have baby ferrets."

"OMG!" replied Julia. "That's it! That explains the mystery."

"But if Newton's not a boy...what're we going to call Newton?" asked Stevie.

"Newtonia?" suggested Joannie, a snicker escaping.

"Why don't we make it Madame Curie," suggested mom. "I think she outsmarted us all. In any event, case closed."

Stevie lifted the flimsy lid and started to reach in to retrieve the Cluewellens' Christmas stuff-his sister's stuff, but Julia stayed his hand. "No, Stevie. She-Madame Curie-she needs it now more than the Cluewellens."

"Aren't you ahhh worried about the Cluewellens?" asked Anna of her daughter.

"They'll understand when I explain it to them," Julia replied and shrugged, "and besides, there's always next year."

Anna hugged Julia and Jack put a hand on his daughter's shoulder, and with the entire family looking on at Newton-now Madame Curie-every one smiled, and if ferrets can smile, Madame Curie smiled back, a knowing glint in her eye.

"I have an idea for the Cluwellens' Christmas," said Stevie.

"What's that? asked Julia.

"Why not give them a front row seat for Christmas?"

"Meaning?"

"Put their house under our tree!"



Everyone agreed it was a wonderful solution, and that Julia had a lot of apologies to make, and that she'd tell and retell Newton's story between now and Christmas quite often indeed.

THE END
(c) 2008-2013 RW Walker, published by http://candidcanine.blogspot.com

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Christmas Story: Thief of Christmas Present by Robert W. Walker, part 1

 To continue my annual Christmas tradition, I am reposting an original Christmas tale by Robert W. Walker, author of more than 30 novels including his Detective Ransom series, and the latest time travel thrillers set in two time periods - TITANIC 2012 and the latest, BISMARCK 2013, Hitler's Curse.







Never fear, this story, which runs in two parts ending tomorrow, Dec. 24th, is rated PG. Merry Christmas!


The Thief of Christmas Present
By Robert W. Walker

(Photos: Christmas Santa House by C. Verstraete, see more at my website.)



Julia rushed into her mother's room, her eleven-year-old arms flapping as she said, "Joannie stole my Christmas presents! I just know it was her!"

"Your big sister wouldn't do that, Julia."

"Then its one of her girlfriends."

"I've talked to Joannie, and she's given the third degree to every friend who has been visiting the house since Thanksgiving."

Julia's eyes filled with tears. "Musta been that boyfriend of hers then!"

"He seems like a nice, respectful boy, and whatever would possess him to steal your miniature Christmas presents from beneath your miniature tree?"

Anna Waldron hugged her daughter to her. "We'll find the stolen goods. They're likely somewhere on a shelf. Thoughtlessly moved by one of your little friends."

"No, no mom! I don't let anyone reach into my dollhouse and take out anything, not the figurines, not the furniture, and certainly not the presents under the tree."

Anna wondered how this could keep happening to her daughter. Julia had put heart and soul into her miniature house this year. In fact, she'd begun creating the tree, the ornaments, lights, stockings hanging over the fireplace, and the presents beneath the tree since last Christmas.

She'd got it in her head that her dollhouse ought to have all the ornaments and decorations of any home, that Mr. and Mrs. Cluewellen and their three children who lived in the miniature house ought to have a wonderful Christmas too.





Julia had worked so hard to make it happen, and now, day-by-day, all her work was coming unraveled. The day before she noticed an ornament missing from the tiny tree. The day before that one of the stockings she'd labored so hard to make was gone from the mantel. Poof. Now two of the tiny presents from beneath the tree-gone. Stolen.

"At this rate," moaned Julia, "by the time Christmas gets here, the Cluewellens won't have anything left."

Anna patted Julia's hand. "And The Christmas Crook of the Present will have won!"

"We can't let that happen, mom!"

"We must act, set a trap."

"A trap?"

"Yeah, we'll wire up a trap that will snap on those sticky fingers."

"Then you think it's Stevie?"

"I hope not, but your little brother is at that age. I sure hope he hasn't lied about this."

"Well...it's not a ghost. I asked the Cluewellens if they'd had any problems with anything like a poltergeist, and they said no."

"You believe them?" Mother Waldron laughed, but Julia stared at her, eyes saying, 'not funny'.

"They don't lie, cheat, or steal, mom."

"Neither does your brother or your sister for that matter, young lady."

"Well I'm not lying about it! Someone's stealing the Cluewellens' Christmas right under our noses."



"You set the trap," suggested Anna. "I'm going to set up a concealed camera, so we can get to the bottom of this before..."

Julia looked up at her mother, wondering why she'd stopped talking. "Before all of the presents and decorations are gone?"

"Before you make your sister and your brother angrier with you than they already are."

"Angry with me? I'm the victim here. Me and the Cluewellens."

"Honey, you have accused both of them of stealing and lying about it. Then you accused their friends."

Julia nodded, and for a moment Anna thought her child understood and agreed, but then Julia said, "It could've been one of Stevie's dumb friends."

"Well now, we're going to find out, aren't we?"

"You think it'll work, mom?"

"At the rate things are disappearing, my hunch is that whoever's behind the theft will be back."

They put the trap into play.

They wisely left the miniature house untouched and unmoved, the same enticement as ever.

An entire day and most of the evening went by with young Julia wanting to check the Cluewellens' living room and tree every hour, while her mother insisted they wait and see. When Anna decided the camera's battery would be in need of help, mother and daughter went into her room to determine if anything had been taken. They found the front door closed. Julia gasped when she looked in through the windows. The entire tiny Christmas tree had been taken! All about the front door and steps, glitter appeared like colored snow. Whoever was behind the theft, cleaning up after him-or herself-wasn't a concern.

"It's got to be Stevie or one of his goofy friends," Julia said, tears forming. "Maybe Stevie's too chicken to tell on Tad."

"Let's reserve judgment and see what the camera says."

They made popcorn and popped the film into the USB port of the TV and sat down to watch the unfolding events. Unfortunately, during the first hour, nothing unfolded.

"This is a real snore and a bore," Julia complained, tiring of the popcorn as well.

After a while, Julia began making up a storyline to go with the miniature people inside the house on the screen, and it was so vivid that her mom could almost imagine that the little Cluewellen family was as real as Julia believed them to be. She began to see Mrs. Cluewellen move that feather duster in her hand. But clearing her head and eyes, Mother Waldron thought better of saying she'd begun to see the miniature people roaming around inside their miniature house. Maybe the miniature was haunted at that....



(** See Part 2 of the Christmas Story, The Thief of Christmas Present, by Robert W. Walker

(c) 2008-2013 RW Walker published by http://candidcanine.blogspot.com

A Merry Little Christmas - story and miniatures!

  Since I have so much up on the blog already, thought I'd again share the annual  12 Days of Christmas in Miniature links.
 (Image: Gingerbread house by Christine Verstraete)

Each day's post links to the next day, so be sure to come back to this post and follow the links starting from Day 1 below.

Links are also on the top tab of the blog.

There is plenty here to keep you busy until Dec. 25 and put you in the Christmas Spirit! Have a wonderful and Blessed Christmas and New Year's!

                      12 Days of Christmas in Miniature:  

             2008 posts: Day 1     2009 posts: Day 1   
                                                   
               
                  ****** Original Christmas story ******
      
  "The Thief of Christmas Present" by Robert Walker

with miniatures illustrations! 

begins on Day 11 (in two parts)

                                                 



 


Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! 

Miniatures Advent Calendar!

'Tis the Season! Enjoy some miniature inspiration each day until Christmas.

 Merry Christmas!

 Begins today! 
Mini Wiki Miniature Advent Calendar

Dollhouse Miniature Displays 2

More of the unique dollhouse and miniatures projects that were on display this past weekend at the Wee C Dollhouse Show in Elk Grove Village, Ill.   Click one of photos for larger view. See the first set of photos.

I love this one - a room set in a box with a store design on front.

The store front window interior.

Sewing room

Interesting shape store front.

 Sewing supplies.

Nice brick on Tudor style house.

Part of a huge carnival scene.

Miniatures Show Dollhouse Displays - 1

I was at the Wee C Dollhouse Show this weekend, a favorite as they have a great display room. So here are a few of the rooms and projects that were on display. I didn't get pix of them all. I'll share more tomorrow.

A french bread store. Nice use of a frame.

Beautiful Christmas stall.

Neat idea for a container.

A sewing display inside a storage box.

Interesting mask storefront. Eye-catching! 

New Artisans in Miniature Mag - AIM Issue 48

Free minis mag - new issue!  of AIM #48 - ooh it has a section on miniature shoes! 

http://www.scribd.com/doc/181358539/AIM-IMag-issue-48-pdf

Miniatures Monday: New Miniature Ladies Shoppe Items

I make things in spurts, so here are a few more items I made recently. Scroll down for more past posts and pix.

Miniature Shoes and Bag in Halloween Colors

Sewing cabinet made from a Pie Safe. I used printed map paper on the inside shelves.

Miniature Cabinets Update

Updating the post for the Express Yourself Hobby Blog Hop at Entertaining Interests.  I have some new pix I hope to add later, but for now, here's a few of my latest things I've made. 

Some new items I made for the miniature Lady's Shoppe:

A new perfumes cabinet and a small chest for sewing items. (1-inch scale: 1 inch =1 foot.)

I plan to make several different purses in all colors. Addicting!

Some other framed purses. The top two bags on right are made by my friend Kitty -at MinisByKitty

* See smaller room in progress - before and after 

* Bookshelves and other items

Miniatures Monday: mini shabby chest

Love these little chests from Hobby Lobby. This will hold patterns and other sewing items for the miniature Lady's Shop. I put metal knobs on which I painted white also. It uses a French graphic from The Graphics Fairy.

The chest is 2 3/4" high at the back. It is 2 1/8 " wide and 1 3/8" deep.

Miniatures Monday: Before and after miniature shop

I'm still gradually working on the lady's shop. Here's a before pic of the smaller room which I bought finished so I have to work around some things. Electric tape had to be put on the outside so I'll be covering the top and sides with old ads...

Here's the after - so far, with the lights in and some items repainted.  What a difference the paint makes! I'm still painting and adding, making boxes and framing art... stay tuned for another update soon. I love those thimble cabinets! I have one more to paint for a wizard's room.

 I hope I find more of these! They're great for collections of items.

Colleen Moore's Fairy Castle Chicago

Some great photos! Love this! In real life the castle is lit so dark, it's hard to see. One disappointment, otherwise this is such a beautiful, must-see work.

Great photos and video here:  Colleen Moore Fairy Castle at the Museum of Science and Industry

Miniatures Monday: Flea Market Dollhouse

Great find this past weekend. This was sold as a birdhouse, but put a stained glass window in the hole and I see a half scale dollhouse!  And lucky me, the back is in held in with screws. I thought we'd have to cut a hole in the back. And it has glass or plexiglass windows. A great find!