I learned today that a close friend of mine lost her dear aunt who was a significant part of her life. She is en route, with her husband, to Virginia and then to New York. So this post is dedicated to Marg & Suzanne.

What I’m listening to: Yesterday a very talented lady named Joey, of the husband-and-wife singing duo of Joey+Rory from Tennessee, lost her battle with cervical cancer. She just turned 40. She leaves behind a daughter who just turned two, her husband who is her singing partner along with two step-daughters who were raised by her.  They were recently nominated for a Grammy. So tonight I am listening to one playlist… songs by Joey+Rory.

What I’m Drinking: A glass of Pinot Noir (and trying not to cry…)

So….. two lovely ladies named Betty and Mary came to visit Mr. Basketmaker’s workshop this past Thursday. They were on their way from Kentucky to Sarasota, Florida and popped in to get some basket kits. I learned that they were heading to a “Miniatures Show” and are avid Room Box makers. Ah, what?

A room box is a display box used for three-dimensional miniature scale environments, or scale models. Now I have seen them but I didn’t know it had an actual identifying name AND that people all over the world go to shows, conventions and workshops for this specialized hobby.

After they left, I went online to do a little research. The ‘Miniature World’ and the ‘Basket World’ have a lot in common! Who knew? Well, maybe some of you did but I sure was unaware.

So tonight, I’m sharing the art of miniatures. There are numerous talented artists whose crafts are created “mini” size.

First, I have been familiar with miniatures… My in-laws have a RoomBox display off their kitchen. The scale is 1:24. Here’s a quick collage of 4 images from my mother-in-law Joanne:

These snapshots are from a stack of 5 Room Boxes that were created by my father-in-law Bruce’s mother. He also made a lot of the furniture. The stack of 5 Room Boxes is directly off their kitchen.

In addition, I’ve been fascinated by my father-in-law’s trains which are  an impressive scale of 1:87.

But mini’s that go way down to 144th scale or even 150th? I really had no idea that this is a major obsession. Until I met Betty and Mary last week. I thought only basketmakers were obsessed with their craft… but miniaturists also travel the country to workshops and shows! Who knew there were another equally-obsessed group? (Just teasing y’all!)

So to begin, here’s a miniature house by well-known miniaturist artist Karin Caspar. It’s also at 144th scale:

And another from room box artist Francesca Vernuccio, with a penny to show scale (which is also 144th)…

I really had no idea that people made miniatures so tiny! So I started doing some online research and there are many talented artists doing amazing things in the “Small Scale” world—of all scales.

Let’s start with something that is only 1/12th scale. I say ‘only’ sarcastically because his work is unbelievable…

It was created by artist Randy Hage and it looks like a photo taken right on the street in New York. Look at the below image he took of only the gumball machines next to a quarter (to give you a sense of the scale):

His detail work is extraordinary. On his website, newyorkstorefronts.com, he features his model next to the actual storefront he took a photo of like the one below…

I learned from his site that he is doing these in an attempt to preserve a part of New York City’s history. All I can say is… AMAZING!

The rest of the artists featured create even smaller pieces of art than the models I showed above…. all ranging down to 150th scale!!

Next is an artist who specializes in turning miniature art pieces on the lathe…

Or how about this little masterpiece titled “Sailing the Current Storm” by the same artist…

Overall size is about 3.5 inches and will set you back $150 bucks. (I’m starting to think I’m totally in the wrong business…)

This next artist is from Latvia which leads me to a quick little story…

Many years ago my parents used to host young hockey players from a poor area in Latvia who were talented but had no opportunities in their country to develop their skills. Our family quickly learned that as Americans, we are very spoiled and take things for granted. My mother had a bowl of fruit on our table and they couldn’t believe we had real fruit that you could eat, just sitting there. They picked up the fruit and motioned to my mother (they spoke very little English) pointing at the fruit then up their mouths. My mom quickly shook her head and said “yes, yes.” Needless to say, they ate all of them in one day. They could not believe the abundance of food we had.

My mom joked she went to the grocery store every day to replenish—they ate so much! Anyways, one of the exchange students ended up playing in the Olympics for his country. I remember my father, who was a hockey coach for twenty years, being very proud.

So, I have a soft spot for Latvia and this next artist is named Adriana and sells her work on ETSY under the store name: StuffBoxMiniatures.

She also happens to be from the same town, Riga (which is the capital city), as the exchange students were from.

Here’s another artist from Etsy, Renee Bowen and her little hand-made rug…

Now I haven’t forgotten you basketmakers. I will close with two teeny tiny baskets. One with dozens of eggs and the other used as a sack for potatoes…

Hope this provided a tiny bit of happiness tonight. And to remember that time is so small…. a minuscule space of years… take advantage of every day.

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