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Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Half Scale Is Where You Find It....

If you are a person, three inches tall, looking for furniture, good luck! For some reason, half inch scale is interpreted by different companies in different sizes.

Maybe the best way to determine scale is to carry a man around in your purse....A very small man!

Here's an example...The bath set on the left is one that Fisher-Price produced back in the 80s. The kitchen furniture was passable, as were a few of the other pieces. Then they got crazy and produced a bathroom that is more 3/4" scale. They are smart though. They never said what the scale was. In this case, our man would have to have a stool to stand on.... The other set isn't very detailed, but more accurate to scale.

Where am I going with this? The point is, half scale furniture is where you find it...

The two men in these photos are from a set of "Annie" figures from the movie, whenever that was. They are perfect half scale, as are the other people in the series.

All of the furniture that I am showing you is stuff that I had in the half scale box. Most has to be redone. It is well used and scratched.

The desks and chairs in the second photo are the exact same pieces. This just shows you what you can do with a bit of paint and fabric. I got these at a thrift shop in a grab bag full of furniture. Just lucky, I guess...

Be on the lookout for the fridge magnets that were around a few years ago....Maybe tell your friends that you want them. This cook top was the top of a stove. I still have the stove, but since the top fell off....Bad glue....I am thinking of using it as a drop in cook top on a counter. Or I guess I could glue it back onto the original.

No....I am not going to make the desk into a stove. Speaking of which, you can change the look of the plastic pieces still more. They can be cut apart easily and the style changed.

I could easily cut the bottom two drawers off of this and use the top part for a skirted vanity table. I would just have to do a block of either balsa or ceiling tile for the bottom....Hey! I just might have to try that. I like the way it is cast so that the drawers open.

While I am in the bedroom, I will give you a "what not to do or to do" tip or two. The bed on the left is an example of not....I made the puffy pillow and quilt before I knew that using foam is a no no. After a few years, it tends to start turning to powder and the whole bed is lumpy and spoiled.

The green bed was done with low loft quilt batting and will probably last forever, almost...

By the way, the fancy gold headboard was part of a Christmas ornament. It was a plastic frame to hang on the tree with a photo inside. I cut the top and the sides apart and re glued part of the sides at an angle to fit around the head of the bed. I didn't even have to paint it. Both beds were made on a base of ceiling tile.

True half scale is very easy to make. If you have a pattern for a piece of 1" scale furniture, simply cut ALL of the measurements in half. Just remember to half the size of the wood also. If it calls for 1/8" square stock, go to 1/16".

The black chair is one that I made for Tessie. The smaller one is one that I made for a half inch Christmas house that is no longer with us. In this case, the half inch one came first.

The baby on the chair is a porcelain doll that can either be a doll in a one inch house, of a baby in the half inch world.

The one inch scale needlework stand is one that I made and put a tutorial on the blog. The half inch one is an example of why you need to drag a man along to shop. I bought it at one of the shows. As you can see, next to the chair, it looks a little over sized. You just never know....

Anyway, I am going to spend the rest of the day putting things away in the workroom....Sooner or later I will get all of the stuff out of the laundry basket. I am hoping to find a few more half scale things for the Fairfield. So far, I have another case of coke....At least nobody will go thirsty.

See you tomorrow.

4 comments:

Unknown said...

In my short time in the miniature world, I have already discovered that the size is not always right, so what you write is interesting.
Thanks for the tip, now I`ll go look for my old magnets and see what I have ....
Mona

Norma Bennett said...

You're definately right about supposedly 'scale' being an apparently fluid thing. It's very frustrating especially when ordering online.

Phyllisa said...

Hi Casey. Thanks for more info on 1/2 scale. I have a number of magnets that I use in my 1/2 scale mouse houses. They were quite easy to find some years ago wherever magnets were sold. I don't see them anymore.They are delightful pieces and very realistic. One house has modern kitchen appliances of magnets: stove,dishwasher,refrigerator, clothes washer (doors all open), dryer,rocking chair,bathtub and the cutest one of all....the upright piano (music box which plays "The Entertainer"). Another country house has magnets of old-fashioned stove,ice box and for outside, a barbeque and a step-in phone booth with phone which rings. All of these open.These pieces were the reason I searched for 1/2 scale houses and "people". The third house which I just started setting up has magnets of sewing machine, ironing board and a rocking chair.
I have other furniture in these three houses which I may discuss as I am working on refurbishing them.

Phyllisa

Heather said...

I adore the idea of using part of a Christmas ornament as a headboard, especially since ornaments get so intricate.

I almost got a few icicle ornaments to use as bedposts at a garage sale! Anyway, super awesome work!