Multi Miniaturist Open Studio Event!

I'm excited to be hosting my my FIRST multi-miniaturist open studio event featuring 9 artists working in a broad range of small scale disciplines including pottery, structure, painting, interior design and more on Sunday, January 23 starting at 2pm ET.

We'll be "dropping in" on artist studios throughout this 2 hour event so viewers to can get to know each artist, see their working spaces and check out some of their latest works. We may even get a tip or trick or two on how these talented makers are able to make what they make!

Link above to register now for this free Zoom - stay for the entire event or drop in as you wish. We'llbe spending about 10 minutes with each artist. Scheduled participants are as follows and in order of appearance:

Kate Santichen is a Brooklyn-based miniaturist who often shrinks down "slices of life" from everyday full scale objects like metro cards and voting stickers. Her tiny scratch off lottery ticket went viral and for good reason - have you seen that tiny card! Check out more of her work on her Instagram account here: @the_tiny_craftress.

Cheronda Smith is a mom, veteran and maker of tiny things - she's also distributer of miniatures from The Toy Box Store in Florida. Her cheese and sausage gift basket (with shredded paper!) and photos of many other wonderful tiny treasures can be found on her Instagram account here: @cypykersminiatures.

Toronto based artist Cielo Vianzon from @minipotteryproject crafts small batch, hand-turned miniature ceramic pots and vases which are "made with love" and part of her @minipassionproject. Her modern aesthetic from pastels to metallics has wide appeal and can be found for sale on her ETSY site here.

Dollhouse blogger and artist Kristine Hanna, also hails from Canada, and has a bright, modern approach to the miniatures she creates. She celebrates her work with seasonal updates to her small scale bungalow and then blogs and posts her decorated pieces on her social media. Follow her on Instagram here: @paperdollminiatures

May Woollcott is a Brooklyn-based artist living in the Cobble Hill neighborhood of the city known for its hip cafes and super cool restaurants and the perfect inspiration for some of the stylish and contemporary wallpaper and interior design pieces she crafts in miniature. Her work can be found for purchase on her Etsy site here.

Hannah Lemon from @hannahlemon_art has a special talent crafting the smallest scale houseplants in perfect detail including Philodendron Brazil, Dracaena and Monstera using Japanese polymer clay which she allows to air dry for final effect. She has a really fun TikTok account too which you can follow here: @hannahkatelemon

Danny Cortes (@dannycortesnyc) is a street miniature artist who grew up in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn who creates memories in small scale based on scenes found in his native New York City environments. His work is inspired by other artists including Keith Haring as well as iconic graffiti-laden structures found in Spanish Harlem, Bed Sty and Marine Park. More of his work can be found on his YouTube and popular TikTok account here.

Artist Mary Sullivan lives up to her Instagram handle, @notyourmomsdollhouse, every day. The pieces she creates certainly push the envelope and (some may say) boundaries on the meaning of a dollhouse miniature. Her inch-scaled plastic sex toys and trays filled with recreation drugs have caused quite a reaction in certain circles and groups.

Virginia based artist Amanda Kelly from @pandaminiatures crafts miniatures with meaning and often with a personal perspective and struggle from mental illness to often pushes the envelope on what miniatures are and what they can be. From her tattoo shop, cannabis shop to hoarders porch, she innovates using the newest technologies including 3D printing and always puts a personal spin with a story or background which allow the viewer to better connect with her art.

Excited for this open studio event and to chat with all of the artists!

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Until Next Time Thank you for being a part of the

D. Thomas Miniatures Community!

#FindTheJoyInMiniatures

2021 The Year in Miniatures....

It was another banner year for miniatures and the mini world! A combination of main-stream media stories about miniatures, folks restricted at home due to the Covid-19 pandemic while discovering new things to do and the rise of the miniatures influencer has created an explosion of awareness and interest in the hobby and more folks than ever are becoming makers, collectors, and all-around enthusiasts!

There has been a rise in mainstream publication and media stories about miniatures this past from global sources including The Wall Street Journal, People Magazine, House Beautiful Magazine, The Observer, and The Washington Post, among others. In April 2021, L.A. based miniaturist Chris Toledo from www.christoledominiatures.com was featured in Architectural Digest with a terrific story about his amazing 1/12 scale structures inspired by classic architectural design found in Southern California and, specifically, Old Hollywood, which demonstrated the breadth and depth of dollhouse design and art to the delight of readers.

We saw the long-awaited launch of Little Canada, a new attraction located in Ontario, Canada which presents a small-scale version of this awesome country where guests can walk through and see the sights and feel like a giant! We also saw miniatures on the U.S. program Small Fortune on NBC-TV (inspired by the hit tv show from the UK of the same name), and the launch of Dopl at its flagship SoHo location in New York City which shrinks participants down in small scale and creates a 3D color printed version to help capture special moments in time, or to mark a special occasion or just because it’s fun!

The Covid-19 Pandemic forced miniaturists to look for alternative ways to showcase their work and share it with the world. The Little Free Art Gallery in Seattle Washington began the trend and shared miniatures in a tiny outdoor gallery, inviting viewers to share a piece of mini art or to take a piece from the gallery. A number of artists began creating work and hiding it around their neighborhoods and towns where they live including “SAM” (Instagram: @streetartminiature) on Instagram and Steve Wasterval, (AKA That Greenpoint Artist” IG @stevewasterval) who creates urban art miniatures replicating landmark storefronts and homes in his native Brooklyn, New York.

The last year has seen an incremental rise in the number of social media accounts showcasing miniatures with some account owners elevated to become miniatures influencers in our mini world. Some are makers and some are collectors, and some are both! In addition to my own Meet the Miniaturist series on YouTube, Becky Gannon (IG: @MadAboutMiniatures) has created a podcast Mad About Miniatures and Antavia Cherry (IG: @MyMiniatureLoves) conducts Instagram Live events featuring Mini Conversations with folks from the community. Some of the popular makers have created a whole new contemporary look and assortment of miniatures to the delight of collectors and hobbyists. (Photo below: Marina Neff from IG @Deck_to_Farm_Charm)

The excitement around miniatures this year was most evident at the recent Philadelphia Miniaturia show held last November where we saw the of the mini-influencer, the new popular makers and fans and enthusiasts coming together for a shared social experience filled with delight and excitement and fueling a modern miniatures movement!

It’s been such a great year in miniatures – there has been so many terrific things happening and I’m so excited to see what’s ahead for the mini world!

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Until Next Time Thank you for being a part of the

D. Thomas Miniatures Community!

#LiveYourBestMiniLife

Rare Behind the Scenes Look: The Thorne Rooms at Knoxville Museum of Art

D. Thomas Fine Miniatures is excited to announce a very special livestream event from the Knoxville Museum of Art in Knoxville, Tennessee on Sunday, December 5 at 4pm ET when viewers will be taken on a virtual tour of the museum's collection of Thorne Rooms decorated for the holiday season along with a rare glimpse of the inner workings of the gallery which houses the collection and a close up view of the miniature rooms.

Several rooms have been decorated for the holidays!

Collector, maker and miniatures enthusiast, Jolie Gaston, has been decorating the rooms for several years now and will treat viewers to a look at the famed rooms inside the gallery created specifically for the rooms at the museum. We'll learn all about the history behind these extraordinary miniatures created by Narcissa Niblack Thorne originally exhibited at the Worlds Fair in New York City in 1939.

Viewers will also get a rare behind the scenes look at the space located behind the gallery walls that houses the built-in structures for a look at the inner workings of the rooms and an even more rare close up look at the tiny objects occupying these iconic miniature rooms.

Mrs. James Ward Thorne (Vincennes, Indiana 1882-1966 Chicago)

Thorne Miniature Rooms

Knoxville Museum of Art, 1962 gift of the IBM Corporation

This will be super! Register here to join the livestream:

Miss the event live? Watch the replay and all of the previous Meet the Miniaturist livestreams here.

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Until Next Time Thank you for being a part

of the D. Thomas Miniatures Community!

#LiveYourBestMiniLife