Our New "General Store"

So....

We've been "silent" for several months,

BUT

we have been VERY busy.

We have made several new things.

One of those is our

GENERAL STORE:

All of the display shelves were made by me. You can find the tutorial for the white one here:

http://piecesforreese.blogspot.com/search/label/canned%20goods

The doll pictured is a 23" My Twinn. We use him as an "adult" in our doll-world, as inspired by the AWESOME doll crafters at http://www.ourdolls.net

His very dapper attire was hand-sewn by my friend, Terrie, at http://www.alldolledup-dollclothes.com

 We made the pot-bellied stove (left) from a papier-mâché egg and some wooden plaques.

The (resin) wagon wheel is from Hobby Lobby.

We made the broom.

The jars are from Hobby Lobby, and their "contents" are all mini Christmas ornaments:

Candy canes, gingerbread cookies, peppermint sticks (we made these), chocolates, and candies.

 

 

The "cans" and "boxes" are made from wooden (round and square) dowels. 

My tutorial is here: http://piecesforreese.blogspot.com/search/label/canned%20goods

 The baskets (various sizes) are from http://factorydirectcraft.com/index.php

The fruit and eggs were found at http://factorydirectcraft.com/index.php

(I painted the eggs.)

The potatoes and carrots are made from polymer clay and handcrafted by me.

The wooden "crates" are from Michaels.

 The money was printed from this website: http://www.printmini.com/printables/pp.html ,

and enlarged to be 1/3 scale.

We had fun one day and hand-dipped our own doll-sized candles!!

 The antique wall phone is also handmade by us. We used a 1"x 2" board, some string, polymer clay, 2 miniature wooden bowls, wire, and even a mini flower pot!

 We made our own seed box using a wooden "playing card" case, and then printed out labels and decoupaged them onto the box. We also made seeds by printing out the seed packets and glueing them to card stock. 

 The "flour bin" is a wooden box from Hobby Lobby that we painted and then added the custom label.

We made our "bolts of fabric" by covering a 7" piece of wood with fabric scraps.

We made some "wool blankets" for our store by folding 8x12 rectangles of felt!

I made the "yarn hanks" by hand-dyeing cotton kitchen string, and then twisting into hanks. 

A personal thanks to JeanieD for the inspiration!!

 "Cheese wheel" crafted from polymer clay.

 "Lye soap" crafted from polymer clay.

I hope that you have enjoyed the little "tour" through our General Store! 

We are still working on it every week, and will be adding things as time goes on.

If you have any questions, please leave it in the comment section!

Please feel free to use these plans to build furniture, for sale or for pleasure, but please do not sell the PLANS as your "own".  Please also give credit to me and link back here!  I hope you enjoy them!!

***I am NOT LIABLE for any plans featured here. Please take every precaution and use your own discretion to make sure these toys are safe for children to play with them.

18 inch Doll: Polymer Clay Beef Pot Roast OR Beef Stew

Today, we are going to make

BEEF POT ROAST 

(or BEEF STEW)

for the dolls!

YOU WILL NEED:

1 - 2 ounce package of BROWN polymer clay (meat)

1 - 2 ounce package of TRANSLUCENT polymer clay ("fat" in meat, onions)

small amount ORANGE clay (carrots)

small amount CELERY GREEN clay (celery)

1/4 package BEIGE clay (potatoes)

Translucent Liquid Sculpey (to make your "sauce")

Triple Thick (clear glaze to seal your finished food) AND dedicated paintbrush to apply

Pastel Chalks (for creating color in your "sauce") AND dedicated paintbrush to apply

Polyblade (for cutting your clay)

a clay "plastic roller" or a clay "pasta machine" (for rolling out your clay)

toothpicks & tinfoil OR plastic cups (for mixing TLS/chalk: these need to be disposable!)

tinfoil (AND / OR a dedicated glass baking dish)

a small ball of tin foil (for texturing)

clay extruder

oven

***I used an orange "pot" from Hobby Lobby (these are seasonal: they change colors, sizes and shapes depending on the holiday) for $4.99. I also found 2 small "bowls" at Hobby Lobby. (Similar items can be found at World Market.)

DIRECTIONS:

Meat:

1.  Warm up ALL of your BROWN clay and about HALF of your translucent. Cut the translucent into large chunks, and add them to the outside of your brown clay. Roll through your pasta roller several times (folding over the clay onto itself as you go). When your translucent starts to make "veins" in the brown clay, begin working the rolled clay into a round ball:

2.  When the ball is ROLLED WELL: gently press it to flatten the bottom, while pinching the ends and top to make an OVAL:

 3.  Use your poly-blade knife to cut lines into the clay NEARLY to the bottom, and ALL THE WAY ACROSS. First from one direction:

 4.  Then from the other direction:

 5.  Then cut a few going from left to right:

6.  Place your "meat" into your dish (or onto a piece of tin foil for baking):

 7.  Use your poly-blade knife to carefully "cut away" (drag) at the "meat" until it appears FLAKEY:

 8.  You can REMOVE some of those pieces and add them to separate bowls (if you desire):

 9.  Larger pieces look more like POT ROAST, while smaller pieces resemble BEEF STEW.

VEGETABLES:

Carrots:

10.  Roll out a small amount of ORANGE clay. Once warm, roll into a ball and then into a snake. You can "par-bake" with a heat gun until "stiff" (the color will dull and not shine) so that it is easier to cut, but it is not necessary. Cut snake into either SLICES (stew) or SECTIONS (pot roast). Add Carrots to your desired dish.

Celery:

11.  I used celery colored (GREEN) clay, rolled out into a small snake, cut into sections just smaller than the length of a toothpick, flattened out a bit, and then "rolled" the clay lengthwise around the toothpick.  I then "baked" the clay-toothpicks under my heat gun just long enough to stiffen the clay (see carrots).  Once cooled, slide the toothpick out of the center, and then "slice" your celery into small pieces.  Set aside.

Potatoes:

12.  Roll out BEIGE clay (about .5 ounce) until warm.  Then roll clay flat on a pasta machine until it is about 1/4" thick.  Use a chalk brush and dark brown pastel chalk to lightly color the top of the clay (top only) so that it is the color of a potato skin.  Slice the clay into about 1/4"x1/4" slices.  Par-bake the pieces with a heat gun (see carrots) and set aside.

Onions:

13.  Roll out TRANSLUCENT clay (about .25 ounce). Once warm, roll into a small snake. Cut snake into approximately 4 small sections.  Flatten each section, and then "fold" each section lengthwise over a toothpick (see celery).  Use a heat gun to par-bake the clay (you will see the color change slightly), allow to cool, remove the toothpicks, and then slice them into "onion slices".  Set aside.

ASSEMBLING THE FINAL DISH:

14.  Add vegetables to the dish(es) as desired. (A toothpick is a good tool for moving "pesky" food pieces that don't "GO" where you first put them!)

 15.  Mix 1 OUNCE TLS with pastel chalks (dark yellow, dark brown, red-brown). (I used a small disposable cup and a toothpick, but tin foil works well, too.)

 16.  Keep adding chalk until the TLS has darkened (should look like "chocolate milk"). Hint: the TLS will darken EVEN MORE when it is baked, so don't go crazy trying to make it "perfect":

17.  Pour the colored TLS OVER the prepared "meat/vegetables". GO SLOW to make sure that you get all the "nooks and crannies" filled, while occasionally "tamping" the dish on a table to release trapped bubbles. You can add a few veggies right at the top for more depth and realism. I also sprinkle mine with crushed HERBS for a "spiced" look.

18.  Bake all pieces according to manufacturer directions on your clay package. Allow to cool.

19.  Glaze the top with Triple Thick, and allow to dry overnight.

 You are now ready for play!

 These are some "beef stew" that we made...just add MORE TLS, and MORE veggies at the top!

PLEASE REMIND YOUR CHILDREN THAT 

THIS "FOOD" IS FOR PLAY 

PURPOSES ONLY, 

AND SHOULD NEVER BE PLACED INTO THEIR 

MOUTHS!

Please feel free to use these plans to build furniture, for sale or for pleasure, but please do not sell the PLANS as your "own".  Please also give credit to me and link back here!  I hope you enjoy them!!

***I am NOT LIABLE for any plans featured here. Please take every precaution and use your own discretion to make sure these toys are safe for children to play with them.

18 inch Doll: Polymer Clay Cherry Pie

Today, we are going to make

a CHERRY PIE

for the dolls!

This pie was from our Thanksgiving set, 

but we are making one exactly like it!

YOU WILL NEED:

1 - 2 ounce package of BEIGE polymer clay (crust)

1 - 2 ounce package of RED polymer clay (cherries)

Translucent Liquid Sculpey (to make your pie filling)

Triple Thick (clear glaze to seal your pie) AND dedicated paintbrush to apply

Pastel Chalks (for creating color in your pie filling) AND dedicated paintbrush to apply

Polyblade (for cutting your clay)

a clay "plastic roller" or a clay "pasta machine" (for rolling out your clay)

toothpicks & tinfoil OR plastic cups (for mixing TLS/chalk: these need to be disposable!)

tinfoil (AND / OR a dedicated glass baking dish)

a small ball of tin foil (for texturing)

clay extruder

oven

***I used a TINFOIL "pie-tin ash-tray" for THIS pie. They USED to sell these at Party City in their "smoking" section (no...I don't smoke), but now they seem to only be on Ebay or Amazon. Something like a "tartlet mold" would also work (I've used similar before):

http://www.amazon.com/Fluted-Design-Round-Shape-Tartlet/dp/B00CLW45VU/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1373325058&sr=8-14&keywords=mini+pie+tin

DIRECTIONS:
Bottom Pie Crust:

1.  Work the beige clay in your hands until it is warm and pliable. Then roll it flat (on your thinnest setting) until it is wide enough to cover your pie tin. Gently press it into the pie tin (so that it leaves a faint impression) and then remove from tin:

2.  Lay your crust out flat, and use pastel chalks (dark yellow, red-brown, and dark brown) to "color" the crust (past the impression you made) so that it looks "baked":

                                      

3.  Now, flip the pie crust OVER and place into the pie tin (you just colored the BOTTOM of your pie crust). Gently work the crust into the pie tin, making sure to work the crust down INTO THE BOTTOM edges:

4.  Use your chalks to color the INSIDE of your pie crust, making sure to get the UPPER OUTSIDE EDGES: 

5.  Use your poly-blade knife to CAREFULLY cut away the pie crust edges, and save the scrap for the top crust: 

6.  Use a toothpick to lightly press down into the pie crust edge: 

7.  Once the edge is finished, use a bit of chalk to color any exposed BEIGE CLAY at the edges: 

8.  Go over the crust top edge with your DARK BROWN chalk (this gives it a "baked" look): 

 Pie Filling:

9.  Work your red clay until it is warm. Roll out into a ball and then into several snakes:

10.  Reduce those snakes down until they are the diameter of a toothpick (or slightly smaller): 

11.  Cut the reduced snake into small sections (about 1/8"): 

12.  Roll each 1/8" section into a tiny ball, and set aside (I used another bowl): 

13.   You will need enough "balls" (cherries) to fill the pie crust. (I did not COUNT them, so just keep rolling until you have enough. Yes....it takes time, but it's SO worth it!) 

14.  Add RED CHALK to approximately 1 OUNCE of TLS, mixing well, until the color is ALMOST the same as the cherries (your TLS will DARKEN when baked, so don't work too hard!): 

 

15.  Place a piece of tin foil into another bowl (for stability to mix your cherries and TLS).  Add cherries to tin foil, and then add ALL of the TLS:

 

16.  Use a toothpick to CAREFULLY mix the cherries and TLS while on the tin foil (try not to puncture it!), and then slowly ADD the mixture to your pie crust: 

Top Pie Crust: 

17.  Roll out your scrap BEIGE CLAY from your bottom crust on your thinnest setting, making sure that the WHOLE PIECE would easily COVER your current pie (it doesn't matter if it's "dirty" looking):

18.  Use your chalks (dark yellow, red-brown, and dark brown) to color ONE SIDE of the crust: 

19.  Slice your clay into 8 EVEN slices (about 1/4" wide) using a poly-blade to keep them straight: 

20.  Texture the TOP of each piece with a ball of tin foil, and touch up any exposed side edges with chalks: 

21.  Use your LONG pieces for the 4 middle lattices. MAKE SURE to WEAVE them in/out. (You can also assemble the lattice weave on the countertop and then add it in one large piece, if you find that easier.) 

22.  You will now be able to weave in your last 4 lattices on the outside edges. YES...it gets goopy (TLS everywhere!), but it looks more "authentic" that way....like your pie "bubbled over"! 

23.  Use your poly-blade knife to CAREFULLY cut away the excess crust. DO NOT CUT into your bottom crust edge! You can also gently tuck the lattice ends into the TLS at the edge of the bottom crust...it looks more finished that way:

***IF YOU WANT YOUR PIE SLICED:

you need to par-bake it for just a couple of minutes 

(so that the insides start to "congeal", but are still slightly liquid).

I use a heat gun for a short period (you can see the TLS color start to change).

Then I use the poly-blade to CAREFULLY SLICE and MOVE

pieces onto another surface for baking.

If it SQUISHES out....who cares?!! It looks more REALISTIC!!

Add any toppings (like ice cream) to the pie slices BEFORE baking.

24.  Bake your pie according to the manufacturer directions on your clay package. Allow to cool, and then glaze ONLY THE CHERRIES with TRIPLE THICK (pie crust IS NOT shiny). Allow the Triple Thick to dry overnight. 

You are now ready for play!

PLEASE REMIND YOUR CHILDREN THAT 

THIS "FOOD" IS FOR PLAY 

PURPOSES ONLY, 

AND SHOULD NEVER BE PLACED INTO THEIR 

MOUTHS!

Please feel free to use these plans to build furniture, for sale or for pleasure, but please do not sell the PLANS as your "own".  Please also give credit to me and link back here!  I hope you enjoy them!!

***I am NOT LIABLE for any plans featured here. Please take every precaution and use your own discretion to make sure these toys are safe for children to play with them.