Best birthday card EVER

Friend Hannah presented me with this Teeny Tiny People card for my birthday:

Perfect in so many ways. I just wish I'd thought of it first...

Peeking inside The Pink Door

As promised, here's a tour of Div's creation for this year's Sydney Miniatures Show. It's a shabby chic shop called The Pink Door.

Div's houses always have a fascinating back story to them and she has agreed to share the story of the shop's owner, Lily Love: 

 'Lilly was born Elizabeth  Langham in England to a well to do family in Tonbridge Kent. She grew up in a somewhat run down old Georgian mansion that belonged to her Grandmother who it was rumoured to have been the mistress of the Prince of Wales before the First World War.

Lilly loved her grandmother and the family always told her how much “Lilly Beth” looked like her. Lilly Beth became an actress with her grandmother’s encouragement much to the dismay of her parents and brothers, who did not approve of a life on the stage .At the age of twenty she ran away from home to star in the Australian production of “Hair” and created the stage name…Lilly Love. 

While in Sydney Lilly met and fell in love with a handsome young artist Damien Miller. They planned to marry but he was conscripted and went to fight in Vietnam. So they became engaged and had a blissful 6 weeks before he was shipped out to fight.

Lilly left the stage so she could always be with Damien whenever he had leave. She got a job with an interior decorator named Ray Siede. She rented apartment in a big old Victorian mansion on Moore Street in Surry Hills owned by a star of “Le Girls”.

Damien survived his first 12 months and they had a wonderful holiday together in Hong Kong. But six weeks after he returned to Vietnam Damien was killed in the battle for Long Ton.

 Lilly lost the love of her life but thank fully with the support of her landlord and a close band of friends she survived those first months of utter despair and loss. Lily decided to stay in Australia and with a generous inheritance from her Grandmother she found a house she could afford to buy in Surry Hills next door to her landlord. She threw herself into her work and doing up her rather run down new home. She loves cooking and the kitchen is the hub of her home.

She found she had a talent for decorating and a number of the stars of Le Girls had her create on a shoe string budget comfortable rooms  and flats for them. Then she got a call from America to make a film in Hollywood.

So off she went really excited only to find it was to be an erotic movie. The producer saw Lilly in Hair and thought that as she had taken her clothes off in Hair she would not mind staring in an artistic film. 

Lilly was taken aback but when she found out the money that was being offered she thought what the heck, she put on a black wig and called herself Lilly Loveless and went ahead and starred in the movie.

 Lilly spent six months in Hollywood and met a lovely young English lady called Rachel Ashwell who was just starting to make a name for herself, as an interior decorator. Rachel had introduced America to the concept “Shabby Chic”. Lilly fell in love with the concept, it reminded her of the happy home she had shared with her much loved grandmother.

She left America with the idea to return to Sydney and open a shop. While in Hollywood she visited a shop called “The Pink Door” and liked the name so much she thought she would name her shop “The Pink door”. Lilly liked America, but found she missed her home and her life and friends in Sydney. She realized she did not want to act anymore so home to Sydney she came with idea of the shop firmly fixed in her head.

Shabby chic made her think of the home she grew up in and the comforting surrounds of her grandmother’s home in the beautiful Kent countryside. She knew she could make a success of championing the style in Australia.

Lilly opened her shop in 1982. It is  a treasure trove of the style and her home  next door reflexes her love of the comfortable style that is “Shabby Chic” She loves the soft pastel shades and has created a shop and a home that reflexes her instinctive ease with this type of interior decoration.

She has a couple of pieces that are family heirlooms and collects blue and white china and antique books.

She has never married and lives a full and happy life with many friends in the art and entertainment industry.'

(Thank you Div, for sharing Lily's story with us!)

Houses in the Highlands

On Sunday my friend and I popped into Bowral for a poke around the shops on the way home from Div's.

Here's a round up of dolls houses and related items that we spotted while browsing Dirty Janes* and the attached antiques centre. (This sort of post seems to be becoming a regular feature around here...)

The first dolls house we stumbled across was in the emporium itself:

 Homemade with love, we were particularly taken with its pokerwork detailing which included a water barrel and pipe, quoins

 and iron lace.

 In the antiques centre, we were captivated by this vintage wire house which was being used as a lamp at the Suzie Anderson Home stall. Alas, it was out of my price range,

as were the other similar pieces she had on display...

The next stall had a sweet house made of felt, displayed on a vintage dresser with very clever trompe l'oeil, which I'd like to try on a miniature cupboard some time.

 Around the corner and almost at the end I spotted this house, made from packing crates:

I was tempted to send a picture to Rebecca to see if she was interested, but my phone was playing dead.

 The final house we spotted was less interesting:

 and faced a 1/6 scale ghost chair being used to display vintage jewellery.

(*I consoled myself by deciding there must be several people called Jane who were dirty...)

How I spent my birthday (part 2)

Adelaide and Jennifer brought a delicious lunch with them

and Celia brought bubbles.

 After lunch we returned to the workshop much refreshed

and finished off our picnic hampers.

 Mine contained most of the necessities of life (no chocolate, I'm afraid)

while first-timer Celia's was more elaborate (and much healthier!).

It was a great day all round: thanks to Div for providing the venue and Adelaide, Jennifer and Celia for providing kits, lunch and good company.

How I spent my birthday (part 1)

The day involved three mini friends (and one non-mini friend).

Adelaide brought her Italian garden courtyard for us to admire...

 And her trunk project, with a most appropriate tag,

Jennifer brought a present: a hand-knitted cashmere scarf.

(Which made me feel very special).

After morning tea, we headed up to Div's studio,

where Adelaide had arranged a surprise workshop!

The group ranged from experienced miniaturists to first timers.

I was pleased to find I had been given the special black and white version of the kit...

(to be continued...)