Mayhem in Miniature

by Margaret Grace

  “Maybe this will,” Richard said.

  My son stood up and reached into the pocket of his jeans (he’d instituted “casual dress for holidays” many years ago). He pulled out a business-size envelope, folded in half, a bit crumpled, and handed it to me.

  “I told him he should wrap it,” Mary Lou said, with a little cluck.

  A gift certificate, I guessed, probably a generous one to my favorite crafts store. But—why was Maddie still looking ready to burst? I’d already seen the painting. Maybe this was a plane ticket for my next visit to L.A.?

  I shook the envelope, as if that would give me a hint. When it came to presents, I had infinitely more patience than any of my relatives. Everyone jeered.

  “Come on,” from Skip.

  “Hurry up, Gerry. You’re so going to love this,” from Beverly, on the edge of her seat. (How come everyone knew but me?)

  “Grandma! Please!” from Maddie.

  I opened the envelope and found another envelope. I looked more closely. The Stanford Medical Center logo. My heart fell. But this was a present. It couldn’t be bad news. It seemed to be a letter to Richard.

  No, a copy of a letter from Richard.

  I heard, “Read it. Read it,” from everyone.

  I read aloud.

  To: Dr. Michael Olson

  From: Dr. Richard Porter

  It gives me great pleasure to accept your offer to join the Stanford University Medical Center staff.

  My family and I plan to relocate to the Palo Alto area soon after the new year, so I should be able to assume my duties by . . .

  The letter went on, but I couldn’t.

  Palo Alto, not ten miles from Lincoln Point.

  Maddie skipped around the room. Mary Lou beamed; Richard looked more like his father than ever. Beverly and Skip had smiles that could have stretched up and down the state of California.

  I started to form the words about how this secret had caused me so much grief. But why take away from this moment? It was really a message to me—to communicate more directly, not to make assumptions, to think more positively.

  “Did you guess, Grandma?”

  “I had no idea.”

  “It was so-o-o-o-o hard for me to keep it secret.” Maddie accepted enthusiastic praise from all for her outstanding restraint.

  By the time June and Nick joined us, we were all in a very jolly mood.

  I cherished the promise of many more such times.

  Gerry’s Miniature Tips

  MINIATURE TIPS FOR A LIVING ROOM

  • To make a quick easy chair: cut two three-inch-by-five-inch sponges in half. Arrange two halves perpendicular to each other, like the seat and back of the chair. Cut one of the other halves in half again, making two quarter-sponge-size pieces. Arrange these smaller pieces on either side of the “seat” to act as chair arms. Glue all the pieces together. Spray paint a color of your choice. Add rounded buttons for feet.

  • For a slightly fancier look, wrap (as you would a present) each piece in leatherette or a fabric of your choice before gluing.

  • Add a footstool: paint or cover the spare one-half sponge to match, and add buttons as above for feet.

  • Partitions and room dividers can be made in several ways. The easiest way is to photograph a scene that you like, such as an ocean or skyline or wooded area, in a horizontal aspect. If you use a digital camera and home printing, print to size; otherwise order an enlargement that suits the scale you’re working with. Score the photograph and fold in thirds or fourths. Stand in place. If it’s not sturdy enough, use two copies glued back to back.

  MINIATURE TIPS FOR GARDENS

  • For trees and shrubbery, in an atrium or outdoors, use florist’s foam, cut to size and shape. Twigs and trimmings from your life-size yard become tree trunks and branches. You can also use steel wool and scouring pads, spray-painted to look like hedges and bushes.

  • Flowers crafted from modeling clay are very effective, but it can be tedious to achieve the detail necessary for a lifelike appearance. Consider using a flower-shaped punch and colored paper, or an arrangement of sequins (petals), or dabs of paint for tiny blooms.

  • Ground cover can be made of beans, seeds, sand, dried leaves and herbs, or any material that can be crumbled and spread on the “ground” of your miniature setting. For gravel pathways, cut pieces of black or mottled sandpaper to size and lay down among the shrubbery.

  • Add an ornament or two to your garden, using game pieces, such as a rook or knight from a chess set. A coil of green garden wire becomes a hose when a “nozzle” of silver paint (sculpted for texture) is dabbed on one end.

  MINIATURE TIPS FOR LUGGAGE

  • Use various sizes of plastic pillboxes to make luggage pieces. Round pillboxes make excellent hatboxes. Rectangular pillboxes can be briefcases or hard-backed luggage.

  • Glue on small leather pieces (available in crafts stores, or from your own worn gloves and purses) to cover the box. Cut a tiny strip to act as handle, and glue to one side. Dabs of gold paint look like rivets on either side of the handle.

  • Glue on pieces of fabric instead of leather, to make more colorful luggage, or a child’s set.

  • To make rolling luggage, glue fabric onto a rectangular pillbox, as above, except for one side, where you will insert a large paper clip, painted black, between the fabric and the box. The rounded top and a portion of the side of the clip serve as the pull-out handle of the rolling luggage. Small black beads glued onto the opposite side of the box act as wheels.

  MINIATURE TIPS FOR JEWELRY

  • Jewelry pieces to place on a miniature dresser or in a “shop window” are easy to create. Purchase beads and findings at a crafts store, or (my way) take apart a scatter pin or other life-size costume jewelry, such as an inexpensive bracelet or necklace, and use the parts as raw materials for miniature settings. Knotted gold chains that can’t be undone for regular use can be cut up for miniature jewelry.

  • Ring. Wrap thin bead wire around a toothpick, twice. Slip off the toothpick and trim ends. Glue a colored bead anywhere on the circle.

  • Necklace. Choose an ornate but narrow metallic trim, such as might be used to decorate a life-size uniform. Cut a two-inch piece and glue end-to-end to make a necklace. Or use regular thickness thread to string tiny beads together in various sizes for necklaces and bracelets.

  • Evening purse. Use a box-shaped filigree necklace fastener, about half-inch size. Attach a thin chain to two spots on the narrow side, for a dressy strap.

  WELL-CRAFTED MYSTERIES FROM BERKLEY PRIME CRIME

  • Earlene Fowler Don’t miss this Agatha Award-winning quilting series featuring Benni Harper.

  • Monica Ferris This USA Today bestselling Needlecraft Mystery series includes free knitting patterns.

  • Laura Childs Her Scrapbooking Mystery series offers tips to satisfy the most die-hard crafters.

  • Maggie Sefton This popular Knitting Mystery series comes with knitting patterns and recipes.