Pigs May Fly . . .

For yet another week it's been too hot here (remember, it's summer downunder!) to attempt working with polymer clay, so I've been forced to find alternate ideas to replace those I would have done in clay.  The dragon who was going to be sleeping in the rafters is the one item that I'm really disappointed I haven't been able to do, but trying to make him to lie on and hang from the confined space of the rafters would have been incredibly difficult anyway.

In his place there is a cat hunting a rat over some abandoned scrolls, a couple of little fairies and a small orange dragon.  Maybe if I get some decent (i.e. cool) weather soon I'll replace these with the dragon I originally wanted.

On the other side of the ceiling, Orville the piglet has exchanged his orange butterfly wings for some snowy white feathered ones.  He's been joined by some lost books and a blue crystal ball.

Meanwhile on ground level, the sorceress in purple has opened her spell book to try and find a way to entice Orville back down from the rafters.

The other two people dressed last week are enjoying a relaxing game of checkers and glasses of wine with some colourful biscuts.

  I've done a little bit of re-arranging of the furniture and placed this gold table topped with an owl on stand along the right wall flanked by the two spare chairs . . . .

while the side table that was in that postion has jumped to the opposite wall.  It now holds a jewelled bonsai cultivated in the Crystal Garden and is flanked by a pair of pillars topped with crystal balls.

With the Hall now as close to finished as it can get until I get a chance to make the dragon I want, I spent some time working on the furniture for my 24th (1/2") scale tower.

 For the upper floor there are some tables, a stove, a chaise and grandfather clock as well as some wall mounted shevles.

The furniture is all made from balsa wood with the addition of some fancy turnings.  I'm particularly pleased with the grandfather (or long case) clock which is futher decorated with a clock face cut out from an old dolls house magazine and some jewellery findings for the weights, pendulum and finial on top.

Downstairs there are two armchairs with side tables, a footstool, stove and desk with chair.  The desk chair is the one piece of purchased furniture in the tower.

The armchairs could use some throw cushions, but I haven't figured out how to make some small enough without them disintergrating yet.

The desk drawer knobs are small gears from watch parts, the first real steampunk touch the tower has received.   As usual now I've made the furniture I keep re-arranging it and still can't really find a layout I truely like.

The tower has a far longer list of must have polymer clay items than the Hall did, so hopefully I'll get some cooler weather so I can keep working in here.  If not, I'll be starting to work on one of the next two room for the ToM; either the Lab or the Master's Chamber.