thinking on the small scale...

when i was little, my dad bought me a dollhouse kit and though we never finished it, we put quite a few hours into painting, cutting, gluing and puzzling over the plans. in fact, i'm regularly reminded that he's still storing it in his attic. (don't worry dad - i plan to reclaim it one day soon...)

i've always had a fascination with the miniature. i like kid versions of grown-up stuff - like the line of "power tools" and "home appliances" that sears sells called "my first craftsman tool" and "my first kenmore appliance". that's the kid in me. the kid that always wanted to grow up faster. (and in hindsight, probably grew up too soon anyway.)

and i love the detail invested in little things. tiny dressers with tiny drawers and tiny drawer-pulls. tiny teapots, painted with tiny flowers. it's something about my detail-oriented nature.

so just before christmas, i had this nagging urge to build a gingerbread house. not really having time for one more project, i never got around to it. but i did draw up plans - for a nearly-to-scale replica of our house, even. (there's that detail-oriented nature again.)

and then i ran across a blog tracking a collector's endeavor to recreate a historically accurate miniature depression-era home. the research required and the level of detail she invested in her dollhouse - handmaking the ornaments on the christmas tree (because that's what would've been done during the depression) using things only available at that time. and she told the story as she built the house. a bowl of candy on the coffee table wasn't just there because it looked good - "Mary", the home's "owner" (the doll, not the collector) - had used her war rations to buy a little candy this week because her nephew was coming to visit... it appeals to my interest in history.

so i've been thinking about taking on this kind of a project. no pressure to finish it, and really - i don't even have plans for it yet - i'm just musing. i don't know that i have time for it, but i am learning one thing about doing ministry: you are always doing ministry, unless you're purposely not doing ministry. so maybe a few hours here and there, lost in a fantasy world, wouldn't be such a bad thing.