The Forgotten Patisserie

Years ago, back in 2010 I think, I created a French patisserie. It was built solely to showcase the growing range of French patisserie cakes I had been making at the time, and was not built as a roombox for sale.

However, this patisserie was never shown here on my blog or even on my Facebook page, as was intended. It seems I completely forgot!

I was digging through my archives - looking for some photos of cakes which I promised to a magazine editor when I stumbled on them and realised they'd never been shown. So - just to remedy that and keep my blog up to date with all that I create, I have decided to upload them today!

This French patisserie, built in 2010 and filled with pretty packaging, cakes, religieuse pastries and eclairs all made by me is not to be confused with the modern London patisserie / cake shop from 2012 (here).

Incidentally, you can still find detailed handmade French pastries at my Etsy shop. See the chart showing all the different varieties of religieuse pastries.

And this is my modern London patisserie and cake shop which I made in 2012. 

Ch-ch-ch-Changes....!

Logging onto my Etsy shop today I realised there are yet more changes to the site again and I have had that David Bowie song 'Changes' in my head ever since. ;)

So, not long ago Etsy allowed sellers the chance to create an 'About' page for their shops so that they could tell their shop's story and talk about how they make their products and so forth. I love this new tool and created an About Page for Hummingbird Miniatures which you may have seen here, (or see preview below).

Today I see that they have changed their 'Feedback' section and now instead of three grades of feedback (positive, neutral, negative) they have a 5 star rating. Okay, well I am not sure this change is a benefit, but I will wait and see if I get anything less than 5 stars (and be totally distressed if I do!) See how the Five Star Review section looks (image left).










Below is how my shop looks on Etsy today.

Whilst we're talking about Etsy, some of you may have noticed I have added very little to my shop since Independence Day... but I will have a small Limited Edition Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas range this year, so look out for that! I wont be making 10 of every item and usual - maybe just 1 or 2 of each as I have so little time these days.

Stay tuned... :)

My Workspace... Building my Retro Kitchen!

I've been a bit quiet about this, but have been slowly building out a colourful vintage / retro kitchen in one inch scale (for a project and also magazine feature I'll share soon).

The space was built by me out of MDF (and in part, foamcore). I made several pieces of the furniture, and other pieces were altered by me quite significantly (see previous post about the kitchen island here and about the hutch/dresser here). I made wooden panels for the back wall, and have put days of work into it. Here are some in-the-making photos I have taken along the way. I'll share the finished project here and on my Facebook page in a week or less.

Note that there are fun and unique kitchen goings-on at my other blog (here) so check that out too!

Don't forget to follow and like!

PS The last two photos were quick snaps of the kitchen as it is today but I am still arranging the furniture and making changes, so the finished kitchen will be different... ;)

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Mountains of Bread and Cheese, please!

Do you remember when I posted about my new bread range (back here)? Well I have been soooo busy that I still haven't had time to photograph each new kind of bread and make them available at my online Hummingbird Miniatures Etsy Shop. But, I will do soon... honestly! So check back here or Facebook every so often.

Anyway, part of why I have been so busy? I had an order for 500 pieces of bread from a lady in Paris, and almost as many cheeses. It was a fun and all-consuming commission so I thought I'd share photos of it in progress on my blog for you all to see.

Keep checking back at this blog and the Facebook page if you want updates on the new Christmas 2013 range which will be coming soon....! Don't forget to click to 'follow' and 'like' so that you don't miss coupons and competitions which are available for blog followers and Facebook fans. :)

Hummingbird Miniatures Jewelry in store in Canada!

If you're wondering why I am a little late delivering new ranges of miniatures (such as Hummingbird Miniatures' classic signature Birthday Cakes and the new furniture line) it's because I have had all manner of distractions!
I have been.... 
1) working on lots of fabulous Mini Food Jewelry for a boutique in Toronto, Canada (the photo above shows the trendy shop itself),

2) working on new ranges of miniatures for my other brand - Pixie Dust Miniatures (blog here, shop here, Facebook page here),

3) and finally... I have been working on my other (often non-mini) projects. If you're interested in seeing some of my children's book illustration and such then feel free to click over to my Facebook page here and blog here and take a look at that. :)

Here's the jewelry lines made especially for Canada! Don't forget you can find my adorable mini food jewelry at my online Hummingbird Miniatures Etsy shop here as well.

Photographing Miniatures

If you're not only a fan of miniatures, but also a fan of miniature photography and miniature filmmaking (who doesn't love Wallace & Gromit?!), then you might enjoy my personal blog which is all about the life of a miniaturist living in LA!

Being a huge fan of miniature filmmaking (such as 'Wallace & Gromit - The Wrong Trousers' (1993), 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' (1993), 'The Wind in the Willows' (1983), and so many UK television shows such as 'Noddy' (1990s), I knew I had to work in this world. I created a small business making miniatures for private collectors - as you all know - selling miniature food under the brand name 'Hummingbird Miniatures' and also fantasy miniatures under the brand name 'Pixie Dust Miniatures'. and I am delving into making my own films with my LA based company - 'Tall Tales Productions'. Take a look at the website, Facebook Page, and blog.

So on my personal blog I recently wrote a post about the 'behind the scenes' world in photographing miniatures. If you're interested in more like this then please visit the blog post here and visit the Facebook Page for Tall Tales here!

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Independence Day Cake 2013

What's a 4th of July picnic without cake? This one's in one inch scale, handmade by me from polymer clay and looks a lot prettier and more realistic in real life. :) It has strawberries and blueberries on top. You can find it at my online Hummingbird Miniatures Etsy shop. There's only one so get it before it's gone!

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