Miniature Food for Dolls Houses

Food Items

Posted on 7:15pm Thursday 20th Sep 2012

We've been quiet on the blogging front as we've been busy beavering away in the land of all things tiny, receiving and packing and shipping your orders, and addressing some of those photo issues we mentioned in a previous blog post. It's a HUGE job as there's 3000 products here on the website, and we want to eventually update all the photos to make sure the quality of the pieces are shown to you. Taking one category at a time, we've been working on the FOOD images, of which there are many- and several are still to be uploaded. But have a look below at some of the new images we've brought you.
Fruit and Vegetables
There's a great choice of Fruit and vegetables available in the shop, including these wonderful baskets:

There's several of these available with varied contents, so be sure to check them all out. Would look fabulous in a kitchen, shop, market or even gardens and allotments. In a word- Stunning.
What's for Main course?
How about a Full roast turkey or perhaps chicken? With all the trimmings!

I'm starting to feel festive! Wouldnt they look fabulous as a Christmas centrepiece?? And Roast potatoes are my favourite :) yum!
But let's not forget the pudding...

Cake or fruit....fruit or cake....BOTH?!
These are all items we've had in stock for a while now, but the pictures really hadn't done them justice. We believe they're starting to look much more appetising. So much in fact, that when I photographed this Bangers, Mash and Beans the other day:

I had to go home and make some of my own. It's hungry work being a dolls house retailer you know...

Disappointingly, the miniature looked more tasty than my real dinner!!
We'll be back soon with lots more photos, updates and news. For now, go see some of the updates HERE
See you Soon!
- N

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War Years : Dolls house Miniatures - Magpies Miniatures

In our previous Blog Post we looked at some pinnacle periods in British history,which people often choose to theme their dolls houses, including Georgian, and Victorian. In this post we're going to look at the period between 1914-1945..ish. This covers both World War I, and World War II, but it took many years for life to resume to 'normal' afterwards, so 1945 isn't considered a specific cut off date.
Now there's so much to look at when decorating and using Miniatures for War periods. Style of furnishings of course is important to portray the right era, as are accessories. But how about the setting? Are you looking to furnish your whole house this way, or are you looking for a side-line project?

In British culture, children are taught about the World Wars from a young age in school- History is important in our education. I recall when I was of Junior School age (somewhere between 7 and 11) learning all about air-raid shelters, or Anderson shelters. I also vaguely recall making a scale model of an Anderson shelter using corrugated cardboard and papier-mache. While reminiscing, and scouring Google at the same time, I came across this website: Collectors Club of Great Britain which has step by step instructions on how to create an Anderson shelter from .... (I love this)... a Baked Beans Can! How fantastic! Much better than the model we made back in school, and I'd love the opportunity to be able to decorate it with dolls house accessories to really make it come to life.
Let's have a little look at some of the War Years accessories we stock here at Magpies Miniatures.

Rationing was an important part of War Time life, not only in the UK, but across other countries too. My historical knowledge is somewhat limited to British history, and you may like to verify information with other sources if your dolls houses are based on another cultural background. I believe it would be advantageous to look up information about rationing, as it will tell you a lot about the foods that were and were not available, and same applies for materials- so may change your opinion on what fabrics and clothes you were going to use in your scene. Wikipedia has some really useful information, and much more than I can write here: Wikipedia on British War Time Rationing .

You may note in Wikipedia's article, that it wasn't just food that was rationed in the War Years, but clothing too. Clothes became much more basic, no laces and frills, because this meant they used more material. If you find it difficult to find dolls which fit this description, and don't come with detailed clothing- did you know here at Magpies Miniatures we stock a  range of 'Undressed Dolls' for your Dolls' Houses, so you can find, or even make clothes to suit your particular style or era.



War Gardens, or Victory gardens were also commonplace in War Time Britain. These were plots of land where vegetables were grown to ease the pressure on the food supplies. They were created in any free space, public and private, to keep supplies up. Families often used the land surrounding their Anderson shelters to make their victory Garden, so if you like the idea of creating one of these shelters, think how you could use the space above and below.
Don't forget we have a wonderful range of scale garden miniatures here, including plants, vegetables, garden tools and watering cans, even wellington boots. Plenty of supplies to create a wonderful Victory garden in miniature!
If you'd like your Anderson shelter to have a worn and weathered look, have a look at our 'Scenic Rust' product. It makes the new look old, and is easy to apply to any surface which is considered 'paintable'. Opens up a new window of opportunities and special effects to the miniatures we stock here.

Hope this has provoke a couple of thoughts and helped to inspired you. There is much more I could go in to, but the best way to learn is to read, and have a browse of the website to see what wonders we have to help your scenes come along.

Come back soon for more blog updates

- Mandy & Niccy @ www.magpies-miniatures.net

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A craft idea: Dollhouse Chairs Jewellery Stand

A Craft Idea: Jewellery Stand

Posted on 7:48am Saturday 25th Aug 2012

I've been scouring the internet for creative ideas using dollhouse miniatures, something out of the ordinary for those who like to dabble in other crafts, and I stumbled across this Jewellery Stand from UrbanOutfitters, based on Dollhouse Chairs.
The stand they offered (which now appears to be Out of Stock) used iron cast chairs as opposed to actual dollhouse miniatures, probably for cheapness to mass produce- but how about creating your own for a unique gift for a teenager or anyone who loves dollhouses or jewellery( or yourself, of course!)! I absolutely love the idea. Each could be completely unique as you sculpt and glue the chairs together. We offer a nice range of chairs, and stools, which would be ideal for this little project. Or why not incorporate tables, or even other miniatures in there too, such as shoes or bags glued to the seats or hanging from the handles or legs.
Our chairs start at just £1.99 for this ladderback style (see image on the right) and we also have stools from £1.60, tables from £1.87, or even a set of 6 chairs and a dining table for as little as £13.95, working out as less than £2 per item.
If you fancy the idea of making it extra girly with accessories as mentioned above, there's a fantastic shoe collection here at Magpies Miniatures, to suit all decors!
Everything from Wellington Boots to High Heels, Browse our range HERE

Good luck if you decide to go ahead with this little DIY project idea- we'd love to see your photographs when you've finished!
Best Wishes, from the Magpies Miniatures Team.

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TGI Friday!

TGI Friday!

Posted on 6:37pm Friday 24th Aug 2012

Woohoo! It's Friday! Which for many means it's time to put your feet up, watch some really awful programmes on TV, usually involving some wannabe-celebrities on a talentless show, good old soap operas or reruns of timeless classics. However, for others- such as myself- it's time to carry on with business as usual, to ensure you get top quality service from us here at Magpies Miniatures, and in my "spare" time I'll be running after my 3 year old diva of a daughter, light of my life of course, but knows just how to push those buttons on Mummy that make her truly exhausted. The outcome? Wine. A nice glass of wine. Who's with me?
Have you ever thought about creating a bar scene in miniature? Perhaps you run or own a bar or pub, and fancy the idea of a novel little room box representing yourself and your surroundings? Remember, dollshouse miniatures don't have to mean dolls in a house- push the limits of your imagination. Think outside the 'house' if you will, and see what astonishing and novel ideas you can come up with! We'd love to see your photographs too if you have any imaginative projects on the go, please email them over to us using the email address on the contact page, and perhaps you'll get featured on our website too!
Now then, where's the wine?
Ahhh, here we go...

A quick jump on over to the DRINK section and I've found a lovely bottle of red. Half a dozen of them in fact, and a steal at only £2.10- that's 35p per bottle! You won't find that at Asda (Walmart)! Glugging straight from the bottle just isn't classy enough (not even with a straw), so we definitely need a wine glass or two to accompany.

Good thing we have this covered at Magpies Miniatures too. Is there anything we haven't thought of?

This double pack of wine glasses is exactly what I had in mind. As usual, an exquisite attention to detail, and no cutting back on materials here- these glasses are actually made of glass! Clink-clink!

Prefer white over red?

Done. (And only £1.27 for a set of 6, making them less than 22 pence each!)

More of a spirits drinker?

Covered.

Beers?

Honestly, there isn't much that hasn't been thought of within miniatures, when you get looking closer your eyes really will be opened to the products that are available out there. And another thing, there's no memory lapses and sheer embarrassment the next day as occurrances come flooding back to you. Well, nothing that can't be put down to old age anyway.

If you are interested in creating a bar or pub scene, then we also have a good selection of furniture and accessories available, from tankards and beer mugs, to bar stools and tables. A personal favourite of mine is this corner bar set, with a lovely wooden finish. A nice selection of stools are also available, along with Dart Boards, Billiards and Snooker Tables. Don't forget the corkscrew.

That's all for now. Wishing you all a very merry (*hic*) weekend. Enjoy the mindless Television, and don't forget to put your feet up.

- Cheers, from The Magpies Miniatures Team.

Want to keep updated on latest arrivals and news at Magpies Miniatures?

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