Cruisie Lamps

Work is progressing slowly with the Green Dining Room but as I'm about to start on something I've not done before, I'm procrastinating although I've told myself I have to get on with it - more on that in another post. 

Meanwhile I've been searching around trying to find cruisie lamps in miniature.

The double cruisie lamp is primarily a domestic lamp with origins in Scotland and Ireland.   Also known, in other parts of the country as a Betty lamp.

These little oil/fat burning lamps were used mostly by the poor.   The top pan being filled with the substance and a wick added.    I have heard, although I don't know how true it is, that the Scottish had the double pan because we're so tight nothing was wasted and any drips were collected in the bottom pan and reused!   Animal tallow was preferred but fish oil could also be used although this was smokey and had a terrible smell.

In the working Kitchen of my Silk Weaver house the central ceiling light is a cruisie lamp with a glass fixture next to it.   I'm not sure of the purpose of the glass fixture, maybe it prevented smoke filtering into the room, but as it's there in the RL house, I've added it.

After much searching and enquiring of various miniaturists I was able to place an order for my little cruisies with Susan of Ashwood Designs.    This is a new item created by them and I think they're just marvellous.  Exactly what I was looking for.    Thank you again, Susan.    They were also able to provide me with a choice - wick or no wick so of course I had to have both!

* With thanks to Ashwood Designs for permission to use their photograph

This morning has been taken up with me finally getting the Kitchen finished with the addition of this little lamp.

Progress with the Green Dining Room

Hello followers and thank you so much for the lovely comments you left on my last post.   They are very much appreciated and I'm pleased you all like what I'm doing with this.

It would be too easy for me to charge ahead with this project to the detriment of my other two properties that I took a step back and concentrated on one of the others but the time has come to get back into the Green Dining Room.

This is my progress so far.

I've added a photo of the real property further down so you can see exactly what I'm trying to achieve.

The "painting" to the left is George II.   The table covering is a rug.   Thankfully I was able to find one the exact width.    (These things don't happen that often!)    

I've concentrated my efforts on the left hand side of the room as there are still a few bits I need to complete the right hand side.

Unfortunately there was nothing I could do about the glare with the lighting.   I think it must just be reflecting off the PVA I used to finish the copies.

Below is the real thing.   Some photos show the open doorway and some show it covered.   I went with covered as it was the easier option!

* With thanks to the Dennis Sever House for permission to use their pictures.

There are still some bits to add to the table scene - a couple of birds to hang from the left of the painting and a tricorn hat for the right hand side.   I'm going to try and make the hat and I had been waiting for a fair to get the birds but that's on hold for the time being.

Below, I've tried to show my little corner and the RL corner for comparison.

* With thanks to the Dennis Sever House for permission to use their pictures.

While I would love to have "like for like" minis to complete the scene, it's sometimes not always possible to find the right thing in mini so I've tried to create something that looks the part.

Below is another chance to see where all this work is actually going!

*With thanks to the Dennis Sever House for permission to use their pictures.

So, now that I have the best part of today to "play" I'll see how I get on with a tricorn hat, and a mob cap!

I hope you are all keeping well and busy.   Stay safe!

The Green Dining Room

Happy New Year followers!

Work has now started on the Green Dining Room and I'm slowly collecting all the necessary pieces required.  The photo below shows what I'm aiming for.     (With thanks to the Dennis Sever House)

*Copyright Ben Rea

I started with the fireplace, building it up slowly with mountboard.

The best way to deal with the walls was to create them individually using mountboard and adding the panelling.   

The windows to the right will be fake as it's tricky trying to recreate a building that has staircases, corridors and rooms off other rooms and getting it all to fit and appear believable in a front opening house.    That is why I'm working very closely with the drawing shown above.   The artist has dealt with the building as a cross-section whereas I am showing it as "face on".

The history of the imaginary family living in this building covers the years 1724 to 1914 and show their rise and decline in the silk industry.    The green Dining Room shows them very much on the up.

 Tile printies were used inside the fireplace along with bricks using a stencil and compound.

Meet Isaac Jervais* and his wife, Elizabeth*.   The decorative bow on Elizabeth's dress in the painting is displayed on the frame.    Above the fireplace is King George III.   

*Copyright Roelof Bakker

To get the same lighting effect on each of the paintings, 1/24th scale lights were used with shell findings attached.

To achieve the external atmosphere as seen through the windows, I googled "18th century London fog" and this is what I got...…..

Perfect!

Hopefully my next post wont be as long in coming.   Still lots to do and lots to add.

More work on the Working Kitchen

I can't believe it's been five months since I last posted about this property.   I feel I've been working on it for ages - to the detriment of my other projects but I'm back again with an update for you.

Firstly, to answer a couple of questions asked regarding the last post - 

Daydreamer - there's nothing said about the central part of the kitchen floor.   I just have to assume that perhaps when the present day owners were making it all safe that maybe work was carried out and rather than replace it with slabs, they put in wood to keep an overall feel for the period (and to make it easier to get back in if needs be).

Sheila - The bread oven.   After much searching the RL house I came across the lid of an aerosol (spot carpet cleaner to be exact!)

I already had the door so firstly, I added a base, primed it and painted it black, bent the door to fit the curve and then cut a small space at the bottom which I filled with some stones I already had.

It now looks like this.  I was really pleased as I'm not usually that lucky in finding "the right thing to do the job"!   It saved me a lot of bother.

So, on to progress.

I have scoured hundreds of pictures to get the detail of these rooms correct as there is so much stuff in the room and I am continually finding other items I hadn't seen before so of course, that's another mini order.   Blue and white china is at the top of my list as an awful lot of it appears in every room of this property.

In a lot of photos of the RL property, the spaces are dark and it's sometimes difficult to see what's going on in the corners - the wall cupboard to the left is one of those tricky spaces.   I initially thought I could see a cupboard there but after searching further pictures I don't think it is a cupboard but hey ho, it's a cupboard in my space!

Since I took the decision to remove the staircase from the property (with the exception of the stairs to the attic space) I couldn't really see the house as a normal house would be seen, ie. rooms leading to rooms in a logical manner so I took the decision to have it viewed "front on" as shown in Ben Rea's* painting.   Each room being viewed on its own and that is why there are windows on the right with an outside view.    It wouldn't work if I showed it alongside the picture of the crumbly kitchen next door.  As said previously, I've swapped the kitchens around as you wouldn't enter a Courtyard from a crumbly kitchen!

*With thanks to Ben Rea for permission to use his work

The little string of figures above the range are gingerbread men.   Created by painting and linking together sections of paper cutout figures purchased from MiniMcGregor

The Delft tiling surrounding the sink area is a tile printie and the plumbing was created using a piece of solder and forming it into the shape required, adding a tap and attaching it all to a correctly sized piece of "glazing".    The whole panel was then stuck in place.

This is the Working Kitchen* I am replicating and there are still a few bits to be included but it's almost there.   There are variations in the pictures I am using for reference and if I can, I'll show some in another post.

*With thanks to the Dennis Sever House for their permission to use the above photo.

*Photograph taken by professional London Photographer Susannah Fields **

** Susannah Fields very kindly gave me permission to use that particular photograph which is one of a collection taken at the Dennis Sever house.   You can see more of her DS work here https://susannahfields.co.uk/2015/02/25/dennis-severs-house-a-wonderful-step-back-in-time/ and here https://susannahfields.co.uk/2016/12/20/dennis-severs-house-at-christmas-interior-photography/.    They may give you a better idea of what I'm trying to achieve with my own mini version.

The Working Kitchen

Firstly, thank you to all that posted for your encouraging comments regarding the next stage of this project.   They really help keep the momentum going.

As this house isn't in any way straight forward I had to decide how the overall layout would be when looking at the whole property face on.    It got too complicated trying to work out how to link the rooms as they would flow in an ordinary space so I decided to go with that shown in the cross-section drawing by Ben Rea*    Each room is shown as a separate space.

*By kind permission of Ben Rea

Once that was sorted out I could then get started on what I will be referring to as the "Working Kitchen" (as opposed to the Crumbly one).

Work started with the main piece in the room - the fireplace and range.    I've used foamboard for the structure clad in self-adhesive flooring and a Phoenix kit range.    The brickwork was some left over piece from that used in The Courtyard.

Unfortunately, where this property is situated in my hobby room, it doesn't get very good natural daylight so on some occasions I'm afraid I will have to use the flash - as in the next photo.

My original thought regarding flooring was to use the fibreglass flagstone paper over the whole space until I looked again at the pictures I have and noticed that the central area is actually wood.   I was quite glad that I had spotted that early on before bashing on and going with my initial plan!   There will be more of the self-adhesive flooring being turned into wall panelling but first I must create two windows.      (It was the siting of these windows that gave rise to the decision to copy Ben's drawings and not exactly link the rooms although you will see that I have swapped the kitchens around).

To the left of the range there will be a bread oven and to the right, a sink and delft tile walls.

The dresser below is sadly not as impressive as the one displayed in the real building but we have to go with the space we've got!   There is still a lot of filling up to be done with this one.

The table below is a McQueenie Miniatures kit, two chairs were barewood and varnished and the other two are painted Phoenix metal kits.   My original intention was to have them positioned at the range (as in the picture I am following) but sadly they were too small but fit perfectly at the table.

What I have to do now is work out how to create a free standing bread oven.    I have the door - I just need to work out the rest especially as it has a dome shaped top!