Upcoming Classes

Casting Baked Goods and More! in 1/144 scale

 2024 IGMA Guild Show, September 17-22

Hilton Hasbrouck Heights/Meadowlands (New Jersey)

 

In this fun Wednesday evening class, students will learn the techniques and materials needed to capture fine details when casting and produce realistic results. Using a silicone rubber mold provided by the instructor, students will cast a variety of miniature breads and tarts suitable for 1/144. Although these items are tiny, they are actually pretty easy to cast, since there are no undercuts or pockets that you need to be sure to fill. And they’re fun to decorate. So this is a great introduction to casting for 1/144 miniatures!


While the resin cures, students will work on other baked items. As time permits, students will also cast small flower pots and picture frames from the Instructor’s molds. Students will take home a variety of completed baked goods. They will also keep the mold they used in class, and take home additional resin and other supplies so they can continue casting at home. Students will be given a supply list for materials used in class.

1/144 Scale Patio with Potting Bench

 2024 IGMA Guild Show, September 17-22

Hilton Hasbrouck Heights/Meadowlands (New Jersey)

 

This class is a great introduction to 1/144 for the beginner, but the experienced student should have fun and learn a tip or two as well. In this all-day (Thursday) relaxed class, students will start with a pre-formed base and learn how to make a realistic-looking slate patio using watercolor paper and paints. Next we will create an aged brick wall using cardstock and high quality photo-realistic printed brick. Students will age and weather the supplied 3-D printed potting table and pots, and put finishing touches on the prepared tree and garden implements. (Note that the pots may differ from those in the photo due to availability.)


After installing these items in the vignette, the remainder of the time will be used to make a variety of realistic and recognizable potted plants that can be arranged on the patio. Students will  create plants from punched paper, etched brass, live plant material, and various landscaping foams and dirt. Ink and colored pencils will be used to add color to flowers. Students will go home with extra materials and detailed instructions to make additional plants for this or another project. Approximate finished size is 1" wide x 1" deep.

1/144 scale Classic 1950s Style Diner

 2024 IGMA Guild Show, September 17-22

Hilton Hasbrouck Heights/Meadowlands (New Jersey)

 

 The prototypical US diner from the early and mid-1900s, with its traditional steel exterior and slightly garish interior of black and white tiles, stainless steel, and bold splashes of red or green, is iconic. In this innovative and unique class you will focus on building and fully furnishing an interior vignette in classic diner style.  While some parts of this all-day (Friday) class will be challenging, the instructor will offer alternatives to the more difficult steps.  You may be surprised as what you can do!


Students will start with a mostly assembled and stained vignette structure made from cherry. Then students will lay individual black and white floor tiles, put in wall paper, and scratch-build a counter and stools, a table and chairs, and other furnishings. You will have ready-to-use bottles, plates, breads, and baked goods you can add to the shelves or counter.  Students will have a variety of wall menus and "diner" signs they can choose from, and can choose red or green luncheonette seats.

 

Under the instructor's guidance, students will work with a variety of materials, including hardwood, styrene, soft metal castings, Yupo paper, and wallpaper. You may find a new glue or other idea to add to your mini supply arsenal. Good fine motor skills and patience are helpful,  Approximate finished size is 1" wide, deep, and tall.

Turn of the Century Toy Kitchen for your Dollhouse

2025 IGMA Study Program January 17-20 

The Williamsburg Lodge in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia

 


The Guild Education Program at Colonial Williamsburg is always a pleasure to attend--whether as a student or instructor.  The Colonial buildings are mostly open, and the mild (generally) January weather makes it easy to wander around. The instructors are great, and new and returning students are friendly and welcoming. The schedule has lots of time for making a high quality miniature (18 hours) but also leaves  time for exploring and socializing.  


I'm thrilled to be teaching again in 2025.  The class will be a reproduction of a Toy Kitchen from the turn-of-the-century in the Williamsburg collection. (The photo is of the actual toy. The prototype picture will be posted later this year.)  This is a time when kitchens were starting to modernize:  moving from coal to goas in some cases.  Adopting clean lines and white finishes on cabinetry.   The class kitchen will be a little more than 1” tall, 2” wide, and 1 ¼” deep. Furniture in the original toy kitchen was similar in size to modern playscale (1/6) and the items in this miniature will be about 1/87 (HO scale in the United States). In keeping with the look of the original toy kitchen, items will not all be to the same scale, and some items may be oversized.   Stay tuned for more information!

 

1/144 scale Small Town Bakery / Cafe

 2025 IGMA Guild School, June 7-14

Maine Maritime Academy, Castine, Maine

 

In this 36 hour class, students will build and fully decorate an engaging and airy 1/144 scale bakery and café. The realistic building exterior is reminiscent of those found on older main streets in small towns in the United States. The interior includes many fine details, including a tile floor laid on cherry wood using individual faux tiles, 3D-printed tables with carved legs and thin real wood tops, several types of chairs, a counter and a refrigerator case filled with baked goods, a cake on a cake stand, and eye-catching luncheonette style stools.

 

 

 

VISIT THE IGMA WEBSITE  ON SEPTEMBER 23 TO SEE THE CATALOG OF CLASSES! 

 

PHOTOS POSTED HERE SOON AFTER.

 

Thanks for looking....


This project will combine a wide variety of materials--etched brick, brass, laser-cut plasticized cardstock, foamed PVD, and more. Using these materials and appropriate glues and tools, students will scratch-build furniture and will paint numerous 3D-printed baskets, breads, and other baked goods (and also will make additional bakery items using simple techniques taught by the instructor.)   Adding weathering powders and liquid washes, along with a touch of greenery, will be the final step in bringing the storefront and its contents to life.

 

The instructor anticipates this will be the first of several shops offered, each using the same style base so they can be lined up to create a street.

Past Classes

1:144 Artist's Studio

 2022 Philadelphia Miniaturia, November 4-6, 2022

DoubleTree by Hilton, Philadephia/Cherry Hill (New Jersey)

 

 Learn how to work in 1/144 or expand your skills as you make this urban loft-style artist's studio. In this fun, half-day class, you will scratch-build using wood and plastics, learn how to weather and add realism to your roombox, adapt laser kits and photo-etched brass, and "repurpose" a variety of objects. So you can focus on completing the interior, some cutting and painting will be done in advance by the instructor. You will have a choice of artist & paintings so you may personalize your studio. You will be surprised at what you create! Students should finish the project in the time allotted, but may want to do final assembly at home. Approximate finished size is 1" wide x 1" deep.


1:144 Vignette of the Kitchen at the Governor's Palace

 Guild Study Program, January 14-17, 2022

Williamsburg Lodge, Colonial Williamsburg, VA

 

This vignette  captures the style and period feeling of the Kitchen at the Governor's Palace in Colonial Williamsburg.  Students will work with a variety of materials, including different woods, brass, cast resin or metal, and 3D printed items, and will learn how to repurpose items and to paint and weather for realism.  The vignette is chock full of detail, but still leaves room for the student to add more items at home--a broom? a grandfather clock? a chair?  A cat asleep under the table?  A small back area offers options for the student to create a vegetable or herb garden, or plant a tree.


The first day, students will build the vignette structure.  Parts will be laser and saw cut in advance, and partially painted or stained, to allow each student to focus on construction and final fitting, and mitering the floor.  The second day will focus on details--plates, pots, baskets, and food.  These are tiny and can be fiddly, but the instructor will work with each student to develop the skills needed to handle tiny items.  It is recommended that students have magnification and lighting on this day that is stronger than they usually use for 1/12 scale miniatures.  On the last part-day, students finish up items from the first two days. Students may choose to glue pieces in place, or wait until they get home.

 

Beginners are most welcome! Bring your tools and your patience, and be prepared to have fun in a relaxed setting and make a truly unique project!  The study program at Williamsburg is not only about miniatures, but we get to visit behind the scenes and see the objects that students are creating in class, as well as enjoy the historical buildings and Colonial setting in Virginia.  I hope to see you there!

1:144 Miniaturist's Workroom:  Expanded

 2019 Guild Show, September  17-22, 2019

Hartford/Windsor Marriott Airport/Windsor, CT

 

This is an expanded version of a popular class that has been taught several times before--the miniaturist's workroom.  It is a 1:144 scale roombox that is filled with the things that a miniaturist might need--power tools, hand-tools, paint, wood, rags, a clock--and of course several finished and in progress 1:1728 (or thereabouts) scale houses made both from wood and from  cardstock.  You will work with unusual materials, such as foamed PVC, as well as classic materials like styrene.  You will learn different techniques for weathering and tips on assembly in 1:144.  Your room box will include some tiny  hard to find items, including a tiny workbench designed by the instructor and cast in resin.   You have lots of options in how you put together your workroom!

 

The instructor does not plan to teach this class again -- so if you want one of these for your 1:12 scale roombox, this is the time!

 


1:12 and 1:144 Scale Project:  In Progress 1:144 Workroom on 1:12 Scale Worktable

2019 Chicago International Show

Marriot Chicago O'Hare

Join your fellow students for a project that combines 1:12 scale with 1/144 scale.  As always, students will work with familiar materials and some that may be new--like foamed PVC, laser cut card stock, 3D printed items, hand-cast resin pieces, styrene, and others.   Printed cards and paper and other items have been designed just for this class, which is full of fine detail.   Smaller Than Life will supply each student with a 1:12 scale try Square and coping saw, but feel free to bring other tools you may have or other "crafting" items for your table. This project is lots of  fun to design and make, and a great introduction to 1:144--you can do as much or as little as you feel comfortable with (just like at home).


1:144 Scale Potting Bench on Patio

2018 Guild Show, September  18-23, 2018

Hartford/Windsor Marriott Airport/Windsor, CT

Come spend a day on this relaxed and fun project.    The student will work with lots of different materials, including 3-D printed items, Palight (Foamed PVC), and weathering powder.  You'll learn different techniques to make plants and will go home with extra materials and detailed instructions to make more plants. 


1:144 Scale "Day at the Beach" Shadow Box

2018 Guild Show, September  18-23, 2018

Hartford/Windsor Marriott Airport/Windsor, CT

This unique little shadow box will provide the students with lots of options!   Students will have alternatives to the Adirondack chair in the picture--including a seagull,  lots more tiny shells, or a mermaid to paint!


1/144 Scale Silver and China Shop

2017 Guild Show, September 19-21, 2017

Hartford/Windsor Marriott Airport/Windsor, CT

 

Come spend a day and make a unique 1/144 scale Silver and China Shop at the Guild Show this fall in Hartford Connecticut.  The class includes several unique decorative touches designed just for this class. Everything in the photo is included.

 


1/144 Scale Artist's Studio

2017 Guild Show, September 19-21, 2017

Hartford/Windsor Marriott Airport/Windsor, CT

 

Come spend an afternoon and make a fun 1/144 scale Artist's Studio at the Guild Show this fall in Hartford Connecticut.  You'll learn how to work with a a variety of materials and have a relaxing time.

 

Students will have a choice of a variety of painters/ paintings, in addition to those illustrated in the prototype.


1/144 Scale Miniaturist's Workroom

2017 Philadelphia Miniaturia, November 3-5, 2017

Crowne Plaza Hotel, Cherry Hill, NJ

 

Every miniaturist needs a workroom, including your 1/144 miniaturist.  In this class, you will surprise yourself as you work with some tiny card models, 3D printed power tools, and other fun and unique additions.

 

The class will be held on Friday November 3, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 pm. 

 

Students will go  home with lots of extras, including unused 3D printed power tools and extra card models to make more miniature dollhouses.