A Bargain?

 Hello Readers,
I have always wanted a power tool of my own so I finally bit the bullet and purchased one. On a few blogs and forum posts people mentioned using a scroll saw to make miniatures. After a bit of research I thought I'd look into it.

Many of our hardware shops in Australia sell cut priced scroll saws...so the question was...do I go with a cheaper one or do I go for something a little bit more pricey. After seeing (and HEARING....add swear words here!!!!) my boyfriend use cheaper power tools that failed within a few hours of use I thought.....pay a bit more and so I did.

So here is my new "baby" a Makita scroll saw. I had a quick go this afternoon and WOW, I was so impressed! NO TIMBER IS SAFE!!!!!!!

I know it won't be able to cut really small stuff, however for the items I want to make I think it will be great.

 Now to my cheaper find this week. I was looking for a cheap supply of timber and thought...what about an old timber blind. So with this in mind I was off to our closest recycling centre and found this beauty for $5. As you can see I have already pulled it apart, ready to use.

The timber is about 5cm wide and only a few mm thick which I thought would be great to use for my kitchen cabinets, bookshelves and other items.


If you have any ideas of what I could use it for...let me know.


Time to experiment!!!!!!

IndyPoppy

PS. Thought Id share with you a quick photo from a recent visit to Australia's capital city, Canberra. Each year they have a spring festival called Floride. They plant thousands of tulips. Here's just one of the many photos I took.

3D Printing...The next Generation Minis.

I have noticed a few people who are designing their own minis and wondered how do they do it? Well the answer is 3D printing.  With this  additive manufacturing process if you think it you can make it!
I have been investigating the idea of a 3D printer since I purchased my digital vinyl/paper cutter. As I found it so easy to use. But after much looking I decided that owning my own printer is definitely out of my price range at the moment. ($1400 is a lot, and imagine how many minis I could buy for that!) So what are my options?
Well I found an online store that could offer me the best of both worlds. I can get my own designs made or I can purchase other people's lovely work. If you haven't visited this site before here it is :
http://www.shapeways.comUsing the information from the Shapeways site I did have a quick go at designing a small piece. A small wall panel part that could be used  in modern scenes. I used a free online program http://www.3dtin.com which allowed me in under 3 mins create a fairly quick attempt. (I'm sure if I spent more time on it, I could achieve much better results) It was fairly easy to use.  I do like the idea of making something that is one of a kind. If I spent more time on it, I would create slightly larger opening or shelves that you could sit your mini art pieces onto. As you can see, I'm well away from creating such custom pieces as you see below. (But you've got to start somewhere right?)

As you know from previous posts I have started a collection of 1/12th modern furniture, my main problem has been cost. I almost fell over when I purchased a chair at the miniature fair. (Did I really pay $!! for it?) After looking for a while on the shapeways site....here are a few of my wish list items.

My first picks are mainly furniture, but it got me thinking.....

I have always thought of making my boyfriend a mechanic's room box. Look at these lovelies that I

could use for it!
 

One thing that I would like to explore is 3D printed animals. I have absolutely no idea on how to go about it but would love to have a 1/12th version of my "fur kids" especially the ones that are no longer with me.

Ksenia agrees with me "Who wouldn't want a 1/12th scale Border Terrier for their house?"

Anyway, I'd love to hear from anyone who has actually gone ahead and printed something. Or what items that you think you would like to have a go at printing. The possibilities are truly endless.
Talk soon, IndyPoppy