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The Miniatures Work Area
Your Dollhouse Miniatures
Construction Zone
A small table top is plenty of room...if you stay organized. The better organized you are the less room you'll need for your miniatures work area. A card table will work but it is a little wobbly and a tad bit low. I would opt for the kitchen or dinning room table if a dedicated, sturdy table is not available.
My Miniatures Work Area...
I'm fortunate enough to have a small 7'x11' room that is my office and dollhouse construction zone for miniatures. The office part has a computer, scanner, ink jet printer, and a laser printer. It includes all of my doll house craft supplies, a couple of table top power tools and my work area. Oh Al, aren't you lucky to have all that room - Maybe, but my miniatures work area is only 36" wide by 30" deep. It has proven more then adequate for my hand crafted dollhouse miniatures.
Seriously, I have stuff that has stuff. Remember, I've been at this for a few years. But, I do all of my doll house craft miniatures work in this small area. I keep all of my miniature making tools in small containers or trays. Some tool sets are still in their original boxes. I use them and put them back. "Ah, grampa you sound just like mommy telling me to put my stuff away." Right! The most frustrating thing for me is when I'm all pumped up and want to build a little something, I have to spend the next twenty minutes trying to find stuff.
Where to Put Stuff...
for My Hand Crafted Dollhouse Miniatures. I try to keep my miniatures supplies organized too. A small box for my glues. A small box for my sandpaper. A small box for the wooden scraps (which I can never throw away because I'll always need that one small piece to finish a miniature something). A box for my paints and stains. And, of course, stuff - for my hand crafted dollhouse miniatures.
I'm not talking expensive plastic bins here. Just cardboard boxes - small boxes. I happen to use ice pop boxes. They are corrugated, 6"x 6"x 9". I wrap clear shipping tape over where the flaps come together to reinforce them, then cut them in half to two 6"x 9"x 3" high trays, slap a label on it and its good to go. Now if you don't have shelves to put them on, just stack them into a bigger box and put them in the closet or a chest. Neat, out of the way and you know where they are when your ready to begin again. Note: My wife, Arlene, is saying, "Yeah right! Why don't you practice what you preach!" I do!... I just close the door to my room.
Lighting Your Miniatures Work Area...
Another thing to consider is some fairly decent lighting. Aside from my regular room light I have a clamp on swing lamp that I use for some direct lighting on my miniatures work area. I use a 60 watt, soft white bulb. I don't recommend anything brighter because you'll end up with too much glare while your working. This has a tendency to cause eye fatigue and possible headaches from squinting.
I keep it about 18 - 20 inches above my work top. If I need just a little more light to see a detail of the miniature accessory I'm working on I just pull the lamp down a bit, do my work, and move the lamp back up. Or, just hold the miniature furnishing closer to the light. It's pretty handy because I can even twist the lamp head a little if I need to brighten an area to the side of the miniature piece I'm working on. This avoids having to be a gymnast to get just the right working position.
Construction Zone Seating...
Having a comfortable place to sit is also important for your dollhouse miniatures construction zone. I have an office chair that is adjustable in height. I set my chair height just a little lower then a normal kitchen chair. This tends to keep my back straighter and helps prevent lower back pain if I'm working for a long period of time. My chair also has arms. There are many times when I'm trying to get a small detail into my miniature accessory and the chair's arm gives me a more comfortable, supported position, for my elbow. (Not only that but when I sit back to admire my handiwork, I have a place to rest my arms as I fold my hands across my belly. Such a satisfying position. :-)) Joking aside, try to have a chair that is comfortable for you.
Top of Miniatures Work Area
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