Fantasy homes made from the recycled garbage discarded by the human race, combined with the earthiness of gourds (a symbol of life, longevity and health.)
I have finally sorted out how to make the lights for my models.
When it comes to lights I have struggled to get them the way I would like but finally I have them sorted.
The main problem is that when I started over 25 to 30 years ago adding lights to my models I was using 12v (mains power using a transformer) and rice bulbs. These rice bulbs were soo hot that at one show one of my grape plants started to smolder. Terrifying!
So the next thing I did was change things to LED's but again still running them on 12v using mains power. (This proved to be very expensive.) Then a friend suggested I use batteries to allow me more freedom in placing the models at shows and schools. This led to doing 9v battery power.
Then came micro lights - well they changed everything!
They run on 4.5v and they are soo bright. Then I found strip lights (because I want to make lit mushrooms) and because they to run on 4.5v (when separated from the strip of 12v) and they are just soo bright which means I do not need as many lights to do the job. If you would like to read more please click on the read more button.
I was wondering through my blog and was surprised to find that I had not told you about how I made the My World sign I made to take to shows. So here it is.
The base of this sign is a large piece of core flute - the stuff that is used in real estate signs. Now because this stuff is plastic it doesn't actually like glue so you need to go a bit nuts with a sharp blade and slash it so that the glue will stick it self to the rough edges. I spread glue all over the base and waited until it was a bit sticky (hopefully preventing from to much of the glue from coming through the fabric to the front. I then placed the fabric on it and using my hands made sure that there were no air bubbles as I pressed it together.
Once you have done that I used material for the background.
As can be see in the photo there is a chain that I have attached around the whole sign. I have done this on both ends. This will be covered by the tree trunks made of hessian and will allow me to hang the sign. If you would like to read more please click here.
I think I have mentioned, more than once that, lights are the bane of my life. I realise it is my own fault, I keep changing things but what else would you expect from a person like me.
I decided to use strip lights because I wanted, and still do want to make, lit mushrooms and they use individual strip lights* so I went looking for some. Well there's a pickle. As with everything nothing is as simple as it seems. It turns out there are not just one type, no that would be too easy, there are stacks, some really tiny, tiny. If you want to know more info click here and it will take you to a website that explains it a lot better than I ever could.
If you would like to read about the reason and how I changed the LED lights in Pebble Cottage to Strip Lights click here.
Look at these aren't they amazing! I bought the lot!
Mini Noodle Sticks in three sizes
Have you ever seen the large Noodles that are used by people in swimming pools? Well now you can get baby noodles. Aren't they brilliant! They come in three sizes. 1cm wide, 1.9cm wide, 3.8cm wide.
At the moment I have been having a go with the 1cm wide noodle sticks and this is one of the things I have made. (see below)
To make these Cut them to the lengths I wanted, rounded off the top with sand paper then stuck a thin piece of wire up inside (it needs to be thicker). I then painted glue onto the pale blue noodle. It doesn't like this idea but I persisted. I then dunked it amongst the micro beads I like to use. These micro beads pick up the colour beneath them.
If you would like to read more about this post please click on the Read More link below.
For those of you coming back to this post please note I have reduced the resistor from 36 Ohms to 15 Ohms for 200 lights or less.
The first thing I would like to say is that I have put this extensive post on my blog, on how I wired this particular board in my model, for three reasons. One, I have a head like a sieve. I do soo much stuff that I forget what I am doing. This way I can come back on it and go "Ah ha! Is that what I did!" The other reason is that when I was young, and attempting to learn all of this stuff, I had to figure it out by myself because no one would tell me. It took years! I suppose their idea was that it had taken them so long to figure it out why should they just give the information away for free? In one way I don't listen that, on another, I can understand it. So you can use this information, although I take no responsibility if you follow it and it does not work, for free BUT I would really appreciate it if you could link back to my blog. Also, in the future, I am going to do an e-book on how my models were made and this is a good start, although I think I might add videos to that.
This is the effect that I was aiming for and I am very pleased with it.
The second thing I need to say is that I am NOT an electrician and so I have wired these micro LEDs as a novice. This works for me but if you are going to follow in my footsteps and have any reservations please contact an authorised electrician. Always be careful when dealing with electricity.
I have probably said this before in other posts but I will say again - wiring lights are the bane of my life. There are soo many ways to wire lights and it can really become a very complicated thing. As I am not a person for complication I believe I (after all these years) I have figured out a simple way for me to use LED lights within my model.
I am presently going through Pebble Cottage changing the lights. It is a model that is approx 20 odd years old and was filled with 'rice bulbs'. These chew up a large amount of power to run and so I have been methodically going through each section (7 of them) and changing them to LEDs.
I am using two types of LED's. The first are the individual 3mil and 5mil bulbs. These are mainly used inside the houses. The other type is the fantastic strings of micro LED's (Fairy Lights) with an added decoration over the top. Later I will be using the tape LED's for the fungi I want to light up and using Optic Fibre within the model.
I am also making it so the models can run on battery and also mains power through a 12v transformer which means that the 3mil & 5mil LED's can run on both sources of power. The micro LED's can only run on 4.5v batteries for the moment.
This is a lengthy post so if you would like to read more please click on the Read More link below.
I thought you might be interested in something I have been working on- a Sample Book, including a collection of physical samples of the hundreds of different plants, fungi and creatures I have designed over the many years of making my miniature models.
Below is one page from my new Sample Book and a photo of the finished Physical Sample that I am keeping to one side as a reference so I can look at it in the round if I ever wanted to make it again.
Sample Page of how I made the Yellow Fungi out of a plastic bath mat.
The finished Physical Sample to be kept for reference.
I am doing this because the one thing I had forgotten to do was keep a record of each one. Oh I have the original designs (a lot I haven't even made yet) and the photos of them all BUT not a description of how they were made and from what. If I wanted to go back and remake something and needed to work out how that was done I would have to go hunting all over the models to find an example of the item and then work it out. Not all the items I make are simple so this would take a lot of wasted time.
I shall be moving this post to a Pagetitled HOW TO:- The aim of the Page will be
to place tips and tricks I have either learnt or heard about in the hope that
some or one of them will help you with your project.
The first How To article is about removing dried Hot Glue from
fabric.
The main ingredient is Isopropyl Alcohol found in rubbing
alcohol and a cotton bud.
As can been seen in the video supplied* and the photos** the
removal of the Dried Hot Glue Stick Glue is soo easy it astonished me the first
time I tried it.
What I have found when using this method on silk rose
petals:-
First:- The thicker the glue to be removed the better. Upon
using the cotton bud to apply the Isopropyl Alcohol to the area with the dried
glue, (do ONLY one section at a time),wait 10 seconds and then with either your
fingernail of the tip of a knife you can pick the blob of glue off and it
leaves no trace.
Use Isopropyl alcohol to removed glue.
Soak one spot at a time with alcohol.
After 10 seconds pick at the glue with either finger nail or tip of knife.
Glue pulls off cleanly.
Second:- When dealing with thin scrappy bits of dried glue
then it becomes a bit trickier. First you apply the Isopropyl Alcohol to one
small section at a time, wait 10 or 15 seconds and then using the end of a
pointy knife and stretching the fabric with your fingers to keep the fabric
taught, scape the glue off. This may have to be done many times as can be seen
in the images supplied.
Silk rose petals with dried hot glue on both sides. By using a cotton bud soaked in Isoprophy alcohol you can see the before and after.
Reference:- * The video was found on http://www.instructables.com/id/Easily-Remove-Dried-Hot-Glue-aka-Hot-Melt/ and put on by John Mangan (siliconghost)
** The other images are mine (Nicola Tierney) - All images within the blog can be shared for your own personnel use BUT CAN NOT be used in any commercial endeavor.
