Dear Miniaturist Friends

I wanted to let you all know that I am taking the current situation regarding COVID-19 and the welfare of both my customers and I, incredibly seriously as the current circumstances develop. I am committed to continuing to provide a high level of quality products and service during this trying time. Whilst I have already had to rapidly adapt my working practices, my creativity will ensure that I continue to evolve and adapt to the changes that lay ahead.

As you know, the situation is evolving daily, I’d like you all to rest assured that I have introduced a number of measures within my working practice, my workshop and store rooms, in line with government and NHS guidelines, to ensure that health and safety is a priority and that you will not be at any risk from continuing to receive packages from me. 

I am doing everything I can to ensure that I remain able to continue to provide a high-quality service, products and support to you all. My customers are highly valued and appreciated. 

As each of us will be spending more time at home and the opportunities to get out and about become increasingly limited over the coming weeks, I believe it is important that we keep ourselves occupied doing things that bring us joy and raise our spirits. 

With this in mind, I will be working on some new inspirational projects and creative ways to inspire you to put your stash of miniature kits and craft materials to good use.

I would be delighted to showcase your makes, ideas and stories on my blog and Facebook page. I know how much my customers delight in creativity as much as we do, what better time to share and inspire one another! 

Thank you for your continued support, and I promise I will do my utmost to continue to deliver ‘Business as Normal in Abnormal Times’

My very best wishes to you and your families,

Lorraine Cooper

Long time!

Sorry I haven't posted in a while, I've been a little unwell and then really busy making and adding new things to the web sites at Lorraine Miniatures and The Craft Pack Company, trying to get up to date with all of the wonderful things I have made, acquired or designed!

Here are a few examples of the lovely new things on Lorraine Miniatures

Pretty Hat & Perfume Display

 Floral Stationary

 Jemima Puddle Duck Nursery Set

                                                          Beautiful Boxed Blouse Kit

Bridal Lingerie Display

...and something for the gentleman of the house for a change!

This is just a small selection of around 200 items I will be adding over the next few weeks. Why not pop along and take a look! www.lorraineminiatures.com 



Hi Everyone, just stopping by to let you know that I have added lots of new kits to me Craft Pack Company web site. I also have a growing 1:48th scale section too. Why not take a look?

Here are a couple of preview images of some of the items I have added







Updates

Hi Everyone, we have added lots of new items at both Lorraine Miniatures and also at The Craft Pack Company most significantly at both I have just added some porcelain doll kits and porcelain mannequin's that I fired this past week in the kiln. At Craft Pack I am also now stocking a range of Nicky Bott's lovely character dolls, Click HERE. I am adding wigging hair, clothing patterns and fabrics to these kits to make them that little bit different.

At Craft Pack we are now selling Dolls House and Miniatures Scene Magazine each month and it is already on sale for December, ahead of a lot of shops, so get your copy now before it is gone as I only have a few copies left already! Click HERE to go direct to the page on our web site where you can get it. We also have a couple of The Dolls House Magazine available each month too.

Don't forget too that each month at Craft Pack we also have a prize draw where customers can win one of our lovely kits! Click HERE for details of our latest prize draw which is updated at the end of every month.

I have so much to add to Lorraine Miniatures over the coming weeks os if you have in mind to purchase some miniatures for a special someone for Christmas then you will find some brilliant new additions in the coming weeks. Dont forget, we also sell gift vouchers at Lorraine Miniatures, click HERE for details.

At long last I Mangaed to Update the Blog!!

Sorry to have left it so long to update as usual, busy, busy as always!

I'm in the process of making some new miniatures for LM and kits for CP. I'm also working of a couple of new projects for Dolls House and Miniatures Scene future editions. For Craft Pack Co I have designed a Baby Boutique double page Kit for one of the editions and am doing an article on making a 1:12th scale window box that will also be available in kit form on CP.

Why not drop by at Lorraine Minatures and have a look at the new additions and also The Craft Pack Company to take a look at a huge range f new kits, Craft Materials for miniaturists and project packs, bye for now, Lorraine xx





Spring Brings New Inspiration

Spring is here and we have been inspired to develop some new kits at The Craft Pack Company featured below and some beautiful new handmade items at Lorraine Miniatures. We are also running a new prize draw at The Craft Pack Company, this time two lucky winners will each receive a £5 gift voucher to use against any order from our web site or our sister web site: Lorraine Miniatures. All you have to do is place an order at Craft Pack (does not include free downloads) between Easter Sunday and 30th May 2011 to qualify. The winners will be announced on the news page on or after the 28th May. The gift voucher will give details of how to use it against the next order you place after winning.

Here are some of our new kits for Spring 2011 at The Craft Pack Company

Thank Goodness it's Friday Tomorrow!

Phew, what a week it's been!
Not wanting to wish away precious time but I am so glad it's Friday tomorrow!
I have a relatively free day after 11.45 when my supervisee leaves.
I intend to photograph and list several dozen items on my web site. I really need to get organised and up to date, my office and work room looks like Steptoes' back yard at the moment!!
I have porcelain doll kits, furniture, flooring and lots of accessories of all kinds handmade to photograph and list. It's all good but time consuming.....oh I wish I could do this all the time for a living.....tiring as it is, it's what I love doing the most and soooo rewarding.
I have had some lovely messages of encouragement and feedback this week from both collectors and other miniaturist artisans, it really does make it all feel worthwhile doesn't it?!
Though I haven't had a lot of free time I have managed to explore some of the miniatures blogs out there and I am mesmerised, inspired and humbled by people's creative ability. As a creative arts therapist by profession (in my other life that pays the bills!) it makes me realise how, at time, our creativity can be surpressed when we get a little burnt out by the pressures of life.....thank you everyone for inspiring my own creativity again!! :))
I made a couple of little things in between all of my other jobs, just to chill out and refocus my energies, here they are, two of mine and i've also included one made for me by Gary because it's really cool ;)

Castle and Knights for Dolls House Nursery by Gary Spencer exclusively for Lorraine Miniatures

Woody Nursery Toy

Wedding Cake by Lorraine Cooper

                                                     Miniature Tutu by Lorraine Cooper

New Prize Draw

We have a new prize draw to win a choice of one of our lovely new kits. This time there will be two winners drawn at random from all customers making a purchase between 22nd February and 22nd March 2011. To find out more CLICK HERE to take you to our News and Competitons page at The Craft Pack Company
Why not have a go, you have nothing to lose but may win a lovely kit for your miniatures scene, remember this time there will be two winners so your chance is increased and you can choose from a choice of four kits as the prize!

The Winner of the Valentines Day Competition......

I am delighted to announce that the winner of the Valentines Day Competition to win one of the new Lavender Ladies Memory Trunks as seen below is:

Barbara Colson of Savannah, Georgia, USA

Well Done Barbara!!!

Why Not Have a Go!

At both Lorraine Miniatures and The Craft Pack Company we have added lots of new items to tempt you this past two weeks.

At Craft Pack for instance, Emma and I have been working on the design and production of at least 15 new kits. I have already made up and listed 6 of them along with another 20 by makers from around the world this weekend. More will be added over the next two weeks along with new craft and creative materials to tempt even the most die hard miniaturists amongst us! 

Emma had kept some kits 'for a rainy day' that I inherited when I took over The Craft Pack Company in November. I am working on these at the moment, a sample kit has to be made first to photograph for the pack front and web image, this gives us the opportunity to iron out any glitches and see how the finished product looks before we launch it. It's time consuming but rewarding as we see our kits made up for ourselves. After all we need to be sure that what we are offering to customers is something we can be proud of and know works in reality, not just our imaginations! 

These are some of the new kits available. Some bought or created with Valentines day in mind, and there will be more!

Exciting News!

Sorry I haven't updated for a while. I have been rather busy! I am very excited to announce that I am the new owner of   The Craft Pack Company
I recently bought the company from my dear friend Emma Eilbeck who decided to step down for personal reasons, those of you who know Emma will know why. Emma's husband John has kidney failure and has to have dialysis 3 times per week. Emma is about to donate one of her own kidneys to John....what a woman....now that is cimmittment and love for your husband. Emma didn't think it was good for the company to close for 3 months prior to and following the operation. It wouldn't be good for her health either to try to get back to work too soon. So after lots of deliberation and discussion between us about the future of Craft Pack I offered to buy it and Emma agreed because she wanted to sell to someone she knew would take it forward in the way she always intended. I am so excited. I hope you all tell friends in the miniatures world as I could do with a little support as I re-open the web site for business tomorrow!!!! The Craft Pack Company has a trade section so those of you in the business can register for trade discount, there is a huge product range, from miniatures kits to craft materials. I will also be adding new ones over the comming weeks when I get to grips with a new web site admin system.
There is a Craft Pack Company Blog but I don't have access to it at the moment, once I do I will update it and you might want to follow me there too as I will be letting people know about new developments and new kits etc as they are produced.
Bye for now xx

What a mild and sunny day it's been here in Cheltenham. I've had a busy day today, though don't feel as though I've achieved much....
I did manage to list quite a few of my Porcelain Doll Molds on my eBay account though, I have around 400 and have decided to sell quite a few of them in order to make space for some new ones.
I'm just updating my blog before I watch my weekly TV programme 'The Apprentice' that and period drama's are about all I get to watch on TV these days. I'm enjoying Downton Abbey at the moment and love the costumes.....I am so looking forward to Larkrise to Candleford returning in the New Year....for many of us miniaturists period drama's are food for the soul and offer oodles of inspiration to set the creative juices flowing!
Check out my listings on eBay here: The Dolls House Store - eBay
These are just a couple of the molds I am selling:


Started off with a :( ended the day with a :)

My baby (car) has gone to the hospital (garage) to be operated on after a naughty man hurt her (colleague bumped her in the car park at work)! I am jinxed...this is the second time I have had my car bumped at work in 5 years! Now I am driving a shed of a car loaned to me by the insurance.....hey ho.....at least I am mobile :)

My son had a rehearsal tonight for a tallent agency and they loved his monologue based on 'knowhere boy' particularly his Liverpudlian accent for the role, they even asked him to sing which was an extra improvisation so they must have been interested in him....good thing he can sing too ;) I never fail to be amazed by his tallent......one day....mm....James Bond eat your heart out...LOL!

No new miniatures completed today, just a few more added to my web site as I have been working in the clinic.....now I am off for a whole week....so will be creating and sorting all week......yipee!!

Sundays are a Funny Old Day

I woke up to brilliant sunshine this morning, what a blessing! Though I was slow getting going I managed to catch up on quite a few jobs. Not least of which sorting out my stock and making space.

I'm in the process of tidying and reorganising my store/work room for a new adventure.....watch this space!!

These are some of the miniatures I made recently that have sold but I am open to commissions for similar, bespoke items. Clearing out and reorganising does clear the mind too I find and leaves space for more creativity.....don't you think??

Have a good week and let us hope there is more beautiful sunshine this week and beyond.....I love the Autumn, this and the Spring are my favourite times of the year....one makes way and the other is the start of new beginings!

I really enjoy making miniature wedding cakes like these, though they take quite some time to make it is so rewarding to see the end result.

This was the matching wedding bouquet for the cake above.

This was a commission for a lady in the USA who was doing a wedding display in a miniature church. I made a flower basket, Mother of the bride corsage, button holes, alter display and bridesmaids posy. I made a matching bridal bouquet but lost the images!!!

Half-term school holidays.....time to relax......I think not!
I have lots of miniature projects on the go and here are a few things I have managed to make in between work and social commitments this week. I really enjoy being creative! 

What a Day!

I have been busy making miniatures this evening for a commission. I've also been dressing one of my dolls and unpacking some new stuff to list on my web site. I have also had some lovely chats on the telephone, that kind of make up for the horrid day I had a work!! :((
Thanks particulalry to Emma for the chat and her positive attitude, she doesn't know how much that meant!

Lovely Day

What a lovely sunny autumn day it's been, went out exploring our beautiful Cotswold countryside with Gary in the Eos with the top down, exhilarating! Went to Burford garden centre and bought my yearly Christmas tree decoration which has become something of a tradition over the years, each one has a special meaning. Ooooh I love Christmas!

Came home and watched the cube....now down to some work on miniatures :) because I'm working all day tomorrow in the clinic.

This Lady's work is absolutely amazing

Click on this link to take a look at these stunning creations
PGM Sculpting: Home

This is what I have made so far in the kiln

I've just produced some doll kits having got my kiln up and running for only the second time this year! I also made some manequinn's too. I'm not sure the porcelain slip agrees with me though as there is silicone in it and I seem to be intollerant to it, so I have to wear gloves, mask and apron....I felt like I was operating rather than pouring moulds and making porcelain dolls!

                                                               Male Torso Manequinn

Full Skirted Lady Manequinn

Narrow Bottom Full Manequinn

Lady Torso Manequinn

Some of my recent work