Create Your Own Miniature Paintings

A friend of mine told me about this new free software. Imagine the fun you can have creating your own miniature paintings for your dollhouse or room box. Using this software you can convert pictures of individuals, groups and objects into a variety of paintings. Check out the video below for a quick look at what you can do with Fotosketcher. Add a frame, and you have your own special finishing touch!




I've just starting "creating" with Fotosketcher myself and have been having lots of fun. You can visit Fotosketcher.com or fotosketcher.blogspot.com to learn more for yourself.

Micro Printing for Miniatures

I just used a hint I'd heard about some time ago and wanted to share.

Using your word processing program set your font to the smallest size typeface. Type your text. Highlight (or select) the text. Hold the Ctrl (PC) Command (Mac) key as you hit the left square bracket [ key five times. This creates the smallest typeset for use in tiny letters, books, greeting cards etc. that can be read with a magnifying glass.

If you want to use colors blue shows up better than red.

Pepita MT makes a nice script, which seems more readable than some of the other script fonts. But experiment to find the one you like best.

After I had typed the text, highlighted the text, and used the left square bracket [ key to make it smaller, I found could use the right square bracket key ] to make it larger and find the size that worked best for my use. The whole document was then set for the size font I chose. I used the zoom option (to 200%) to read and/or type more.

The IllumiKnife

Miniaturists are always on the look out for tools to make building and decorating dollhouses a little easier. I have found one such tool that will aid in trimming wallpaper around doors and windows in those dark tight spaces often found in dollhouse rooms.

As a dollhouse shop owner, I also do build and remodel dollhouses for customers. Ocassionally, visitors to the shop will peak into my workshop and watch the process. Recently, I was approached by one of the designers of this tool after he noticed me struggling with a light and a knife trying to trim and remove excess wallpaper from a deep dark dollhouse room.

The Illumiknife is the perfect tool for precision cuts! This lighted utility craft knife features LED technology with a 40-year lamp life, uses industry standard blades, and lights with a touch (no switches or buttons). Made in the USA. Knife comes complete with one standard blade and 1 replaceable battery. Perfect for trimming wallpaper and getting into those hard to reach and see dollhouse corners where you need to make a clean cut!

I'm impressed with this tool and decided to make it available at Jeepers Dollhouse Miniatures. Be sure to visit our website or stop by the shop to check out the IllumiKnife today!

Novalyte Flicker Module

The Novalyte flicker module is for use with 12-volt dollhouse wiring either AC or DC and will provide a random flicker to your lights (traditional or LED) and fireplace "flames."

Looking at the Novalyte flicker module you can see that that it is a circuit board with devices on it. The ones you will be using are the green connectors and the blue timing device. There are other things on the board, which you will not need to be concerned with to make your module work. The row of four green connectors is where the wires from the lights themselves go. Each of the connectors has a pair of "windows" on the side, which is closed by the screws above them. The wires from the light are inserted there after having been stripped of insulation and are clamped down by screwing the screw clockwise. It does not matter which wire from your light goes in which side of the connector. Each connector can hold more than one pair. The fifth connector is where the power wire goes. Again, it does not matter which wire is in which side.

The blue device controls the amount of flicker from raging if the wheel is all the way to the left to shimmer all the way to the right. The change in the rate is achieved with the use of a small screwdriver.

All devises connected to the module flicker at the same rate, but because the flicker is random they do not flicker in unison. It's like a choir at the same intensity level while each individual voice may be singing different notes and rhythm.

Before you install the module you will need to decide where you want to hide it. Unless you remove or add a light or fireplace fixture you will not need access to the module. The module does require some space around it for heat dissipation.

To see the module in action, click the arrow on the video below.

Quick and Easy Tip!

Miniaturists are always in search of new and unique ways to finish some aspect of their dollhouse or roombox. Here's a quick and easy way to stain dollhouse trim, such as baseboards, casings and crown or cove moldings...use a furniture marking pen (or touch-up marker) available at your local hardware or home improvement store. You might even have a few at home that you have used for quick repairs to dents, nicks, and dings to your favorite real life furniture. Either way, they can serve double duty!

Asphalt Shingles for Your Dollhouse

First, paint the edges of the roof the color of the shingles. You might also consider installing copper flashing.

Second, measure the first piece of shingle so that the slits in the material come out even on the left and right edges of the roof. Cut this piece off the roll. Now measure the second piece. This second piece is measured so the silt is centered between two slits on the first row. Cut this off. Use these pieces as patterns for cutting the rest. (NOTE: You have two kinds of rows, odds and evens.)

Third, make sure slits line up correctly from strip to strip. If the slits in one strip do not line up with the slits in the other strips, lay the shorter ones on the table and run your fingers along the strip to flatten and stretch it until it matches the other strips.

Fourth, glue the first strip along the edge of the roof, overhanging the roof by 1/16" or 1/8" (depending on scale). (Optional: Glue the first strip with slits facing the peak of the roof, then glue the second strip on top of the first strip with slits facing down and centered between the slits in the first row. This creates a weather tight seal on the roof edge similar to a real roof.) From the bottom edge of the shingle, Mark of dots every ¼" or ½" (depending on scale) to the roof peak on the left and right sides of the roof. With pencil and ruler, join the dots to make parallel lines. Measure accurately. This keeps shingle rows even going up the roof.


Fifth, glue rows up the roof, lining up the back of the shingles with parallel lines. Apply glue to both the spine of the strip and the individual tabs. If using staples, staple above slits, 1" to 2" from the edges, then 4" between staples. Cut uppermost row to fit peak. Cap the roof with separate shingles cut from the strip.


What kind of glue can I use? We recommend a petroleum based glue because this is a tar paper product. Construction adhesive like Liquid Nails®, lacquer based glue like Goop®, or Multi-Grip work equally well. Staples can also be used. White or wood glues are not recommended because they tend to fail after prolonged contact with the tar paper.

What are the shingles made from? Basically it is made from fifteen pound asphalt roofing paper, similar to what is probably on your own roof. The granules are made from various recycled materials, sized to scale and glued to the tar paper.

Can they be used outside? Yes, the shingles can be used for many projects outdoors. We do recommend that you protect the shingles with a coating of satin finish polyurethane paint, (either spray or brush) especially on the textured shingles. Both ultraviolet light and harsh weather will damage the color or granules. The painted shingles or plain shingles do not need this protection.

Will the color fade? Some of the shingle colors are not colorfast and ultraviolet light will fade the base color. Canyon Red and Spruce Green are the colors that fade most. Fluorescent lights do give off ultraviolet light and will cause fading. The rest of the line does hold up very well.

How many shingles are in each package? Each package will cover about one square foot (three square centimeters).

How many packages do I need? Measure the square area you are covering (length X width = square inches or centimeters) then divide by 144 for inches or 9 for centimeters and this number is how many packages you will need. If you have valleys, dormers or complex roof shapes the angular cutting creates some waste that is unusable and will need more than a simple roof, so plan accordingly.

What do I do if they curl or wrinkle? Tar paper is actually asphalt saturated felt paper and will stretch or shrink when the humidity changes drastically. To get the shingles to relax and lay flat again use a damp towel and weight, place the damp towel onto the shingles and weight them down for about 30 minutes, then remove the weight and towel and allow to dry.

Asphalt Shingles by What's Next can be purchased at Jeepers Miniatures.

Ohlm's Law Simplified for Miniaturists

While making sure I understood the relationship between watts, volts, amps, and miliamps in miniature lighting, particularly LED's by Novalyte, I learned this simple formula.

P = E x I

which translates into: P(power in watts) = E (Electromotive Force or Volts) x I (current or amps)

Conversely, for further information:
1,000 miliamps = 1 amp

Most of us don't really want to know about formulas, we just want to do miniatures and light them up for all to see. But understanding these formulas helps us make informed decisions regarding our lights and transformers. Another interesting formula that helps us understand the relationship between transformers and the number of lamps they can support is:

Watts divided by Voltage equals Current (or amps).

While you may not care about these formulas, I wanted to lay them out in this blog so that I (or anyone interested) could have ready access to them.

With a little algebra, you can estimate your electrical needs.