It won’t be long before most of us will be sitting down to a delicious Christmas feast of roast turkey, roast potatoes, pigs in blankets, the obligatory sprouts followed by Christmas pudding, mince pies and a glass or two of wine. I can’t wait. And it looks like lots of you talented miniaturists have been inspired by Christmas fayre too.
Santa took us on a sleigh ride around your workshops to take a peep at some of your handiwork, and here’s just a few of the lovely – and tasty-looking dishes that will be on display in dolls houses this year. Let’s get the sprouts out of the way first – although of course, lots of people love them!
Wyrd World Miniatures
Made by Wyrd World Miniatures, Anthea has been sculpting miniature models from a very early age, and loves to research and make Tudor food too. She crafts with polymer clay mostly, but also uses wood, air dry clay, thin metal, fabrics, card and other materials. This tasty roast chicken pictured below is one of her miniatures too!
At Christmastime it’s lovely to see the dining table all set out with the best china and sparkling glassware for our guests, such as Vicanna Vintage has set out in this scene. They have a passion for collecting miniature antiques and furniture, and have many beautiful collections in store.
Of course there’s usually a sparkling Christmas tree in the room and we spotted a delightful array of decorative trees – such as these from Scrappy Create. Becky is the artist behind Scrappy Create who grew up surrounded by dolls house miniatures as her mum made dolls and her grandparents made furniture and accessories. So while her parents were exhibiting at shows, she would spend most Sundays at her grandparents’ home.
Whether you make your own Christmas cake from a hand-me-down family recipe or buy one from the supermarket, the Christmas cake is an age-old tradition that goes way back to the Middle Ages. Originally it was a kind of plum porridge that people would eat on Christmas Eve after a day of religious fasting. These days the Christmas cake looks – and I’m sure tastes a whole lot nicer than in those bygone days.
Below is one of Sweet Briar Rose’s Christmas cakes. Jasmine Simpson specialises in miniature cold porcelain hand sculptured creations, in particular flower arrangements but on this occasion she was inspired to make a little Christmas cake.
For those who have more of a savoury tooth rather than a sweet tooth, then the Christmas cheeseboard will be something you make a beeline for after the main meal is over. Yours probably won’t be as huge as this display of cheese and wine but it’s very impressive. This is made by Vintage Miniatures, who also created the amazing Gingerbread Houses seen above. Artist Janet Coltman has always been fascinated with miniatures but could never find the time to try and make them. But then lockdown came along, and she suddenly had time on her hands so began crafting miniature foodstuffs – she has not looked back since.
And when it’s all over, there’s only one thing left to do… Call in Shepherd Miniatures!
Wishing you all a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Courtesy of the artists for the photographs.