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Sunday, April 15, 2012

Another Reason to Finish Fast....

I am not getting a lot of mini-ing done this morning. I took the pieces that I did in illustration board for trial and cut them up further. I made it so that all of the pieces go with the grain lengthwise. Then I traced them onto a piece of 1/16" thick bass wood.

That breaks down to 13 separate pieces. I numbered them all so that I will know where everything goes.


I then cut them out with an Exacto. I can follow the wiggly lines better than with the saw. And the saw takes a bit of the wood away. Less accuracy. At least for me that is the case.

Here are all of the pieces thrown together so that you can see where everything goes. I plan to do some more carving on them as I put it together for real.

It is, as usual, going slower than I thought it would. Remember that making a piece in mini takes approximately 10 times the length that you expect it to.

I am still undecided on the trim and timber color. I need to mix up some dusty blue. The one that I bought was too bright.

The reason for finishing fast is a good one this time. While we were in Carmel, Tessie found a new friend....She named him Rufus. Don't ask me why...She usually gives pets names that start with the first letter of the animal that they are...Rufus?


She sprung him on me this morning and announced, "Casey. Meet Rufus....He is my new guard leopard. He will be helping me make sure that things run smoothly on this build."

I would love to know how she got him in the suitcase without my knowledge...Every time I put down the Exacto, he gives out a low growl or snarl. I have to cut this short.

He is waiting for me by the door....He's small, but he looks mean. I am not going to argue. Back to work!

See you tomorrow.

3 comments:

Lucille said...

That's a big job, Casey. Your fingers must be sore. I always wear rubber gloves when I cut with an exacto knife. It prevents from slipping: 1) the fingers of my left hand which I use to hold the piece I'm cutting 2) it provides my right hand which is the one I use to do the cutting with more strength. I have to do this because my fingers, hands and wrists are not as strong as they used to be. Sigh!!! It's just easier on the fingers on the long run.

Yes, I agree that miniatures take ten times longer to do. I've been working on a metal bed (though not everyday) and it takes forever. So many little holes to drill! I'll be so happy when I'm finished with this project. It's not real metal, of course. Just plastic pieces, wood pieces, and paper covered floral wire, all to simulate metal after they are painted.

Audra said...

No pressure!

Debbie said...

I see Tessie, is still up to her tricks then..