Busy, busy, busy.....

I seem to have inadvertently mislaid the month of August.  One minute it's the first day, then, before I know it, it's the last. Admittedly I had an almost two week holiday in there somewhere, but even so, to mislay an entire month is extremely careless.
However, to paraphrase, 'tomorrow is another month' so I solemnly pledge not to lose September in the ether.

I always think of September 1st as the first day of autumn, which in my head always consists of September/October/November.  That said, summer days can persist right into October, but the leaves are already on the turn, conkers are burgeoning on the trees and the nights are noticeably drawing in.

This year I feel a bit like that grasshopper from Aesop's Fables, who idles away the summer months while the industrious ant gathers food to sustain it through the winter.  Granted I have been busy... just not always with what I should have been doing.

That said, I have just finished a complete 'Workshop in a Box' for the lovely ladies of a miniaturist club in Belfast.

They opted to make a Deluxe Jumeau-Style Toy Doll with pleated dress, bustled jacket and elaborate silk and lace bonnet.....

Elaborately costumed workshop sample doll

Beautiful hairstripe silk jacket

Their workshop box contains everything they need to complete their chosen project, including:

• Sample dressed doll for reference
• Comprehensive tools and materials checklist
• Set of fully illustrated step-by-step instruction booklets for each club member
• Selection of kit packs in assorted colours
• Wigging packs
• Organiser's pack which contains 'spares', workshop schedule, hints & tips etc

The club will also have access to an exclusive video tutorial which will take them through the complete process of dressing and wigging their little doll, step-by-step.

So.... whether you're a member of an organised miniatures club, or one of a small group of friends who get together to make miniatures, if you would like further information on my 'Workshop in a Box' packs, please contact me for further information.

Curiouser and curiouser.....

I've blogged recently about taking a new direction workwise next year, and although I'm still uncertain about which path to take, thoughts and ideas are swirling around and gradually coalescing into a nebulous plan.

The problem is, I have loads of ideas for 'stuff to do' all the time... it's sorting the wheat from the chaff which is the hard part.  Nevertheless, the more I think about things, the more certain I am that it's all worth a go.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained, and all that.

So.

For the foreseeable future I'm going to have plans for two 'projects' running side by side, while I engage in one of my favourite work-related tasks.... research and development.

Or Pinterest as it is sometimes known.

I'm also toying with the idea of forsaking my beloved 1/12th scale, and taking the plunge into 1/24th.  Yes I know it's no longer the new best thing.... the even smaller, and frankly impossible 1/48th scale has stolen that crown, but I've never been an early adopter.

As a result I'm in the market for a very specific half scale house.  There are lots around but none which tick all my specification boxes.  So whichever one I decide upon I'm going to have to do some serious kit-bashing.

That's my autumn/winter free time taken care of then........