Littlest Sweet Shop kitchen appliance debut - Nespresso machine

Hey guys!

I haven't written any entries for a while now. I've been busy with updating the new website, storefront, Etsy and developing new miniatures as well. I still haven't gotten the hang of juggling work and social media AND being a full-time housewife. 

Being away from blogging also means that my website is finally 90% complete (yay) and still able to produce Youtube tutorials as a way to encourage younger Littlest Sweet Shoppers to get into modelling miniatures. 

But today is a very significant time for me because it is the day that I am launching Littlest Sweet Shop's kitchen appliances! After 8 years I thought it would be nice to expand the range outside just food (but still keeping with a similar theme) and with the help of my husband who does 3D modelling in the computer, I can finally do this!

Presenting - the compact espresso machine in 1:6 scale!

These machines have been 3D modelled by my husband using the Nespresso machine as his reference so we can produce a perfectly scaled down model for dolly owners. 1:6 scale has always been a niche scale with kid's brands dominating most of the market. I thought it would be nice to bring a product into the 1:6 scale hobby for adult collectors for a change. The 1:12 scale market already has almost everything you can think of shrunken down to fit the size. 

The machines were 3D printed in resin and air-brush painted. Smaller details such as the raised buttons have been hand-painted. The handle (which works as the mechanism to create the espresso), capsule tray, water tank lid and coffee outlet are removable for extra play value. 

Since everything has been modelled based on the real thing, there are a lot of really cool details like the side vents, brand embossing and even perfectly formed tiny holes on the capsule tray. The handle has also been designed to fit in nicely into the machine so you can change the position over and over again.

Of course we also made the coffee capsules for the machines. The pods have been 3D modelled and printed in resin. These extremely tiny parts are airbrushed in gold and the tops are hand-painted in silver giving it the foil lid effect. 

We have also made espresso cups to capture all of that lovely coffee which will drip from the outlet. They are 3D modelled based on a real espresso cup, scaled down and printed in resin. Each cup is hand-painted in enamel paint. You can order empty cups or filled with really dark coffee! 

I also made some miniature almond biscotti to go with the coffee itself. They have the same crusty and hard texture like the real thing! Each biscotti has a generous amount of almonds and since each piece is hand-made, they are all unique. Make sure you have subscribed to my Youtube channel because I will be uploading the Biscotti tutorial by this weekend. 

Hope you enjoyed the debut of this small coffee machine. Me and my husband definitely plan to make more appliances in the future but for now this machine is available on Etsy. 

There is still so much to update such as a new 1:12 scale shop, new 1:12 scale dolls and even a new 1:6 scale diorama (featured in this post). But I will blog about that some other day :)

Bye!

Commission update: 1:12 scale Subway style sandwiches

Hello again Littlest Sweet Shoppers!

You might notice that the blog website address has changed back to Blogspot which means the website has been refreshed and updated!

Please visit www.LittlestSweetShop.com to check it out. The website still needs a lot of updating but I will get there eventually! For now you can still refer to the menu on the blog to see almost every Littlest Sweet Shop miniature which is available for commission. The only change for now is that the blog menus won't be updated with new miniatures and eventually be deleted once they have been updated on the new website.

Here is another commission I made for a returning client. She always asks for 1:12 scale items and this time it is for a scaled down version of Subway meals. I'm so happy to report that she loves them and said the sandwiches looked so real!

There were several new techniques used just to make this set of miniatures including 3D resin printing, vacuum forming and printing on tissue. It may not look like a lot but this took me a few weeks to make!

1:12 scale client commission

2 submarine style sandwiches (tuna mayo and turkey ham), 1 cookie with paper bag, Sprite in a cup with straw, spilled Sprite

Spilled Sprite. The spill is loose so you can put it anywhere

Comes with tissue paper you can use to wrap the sandwich for take-away

Spilled Sprite with glass crystals, resin printed straw and vacuum formed lid. Cup is real cardboard

2 sandwiches with tomatoes, cheese, lettuce and mayo

Other than that, she also ordered a scaled down version of our 1:6 scale best-sellers. I also made extras which you can find in my Etsy store.

Tubs of ice-cream including a new flavour (per client's request)

1:12 scale candies

1:12 scale orange soda

Kokomi-chan with some after school snacks

Currently I'm not taking any commissions and trying to stock up the Etsy store and maybe a new tutorial video for the YouTube channel. I hope everyone is staying safe during this pandemic and I will be at home (as always) making more miniatures.

Later! 

News! News! (and commission update)

Happy New Year Littlest Sweet Shoppers!

Apologies for being absent for a while now. If you have been following me on social media you might notice that I am still around - just not blogging as much. In fact I'm not sure how many people will actually read this entry but I'm still going to write some big news today.

First of all, there is going to be a new website! I have accepted the fact that blogging is now passé and this blog-based website is a bit 90s. I am currently creating a new website which is modern with a simple and better layout. The past years I have been pulling my hair out because editing my menu (pages) through blogger has been hell. The new website won't have any written entries but there will still be a link to this original blog. This blogger web address will revert to the original but you should be notified of the changes if you subscribe to updates. I will give more information when the changeover is complete but bear with me for a while since it's still a mammoth task to create a whole new website from scratch. To date I have over 3000 photos alone on this current blog and I'm linking them back to the new website one-by-one. I'm hoping to finish by end of this month.

This also means that I am no longer updating the pages with new items as I have already started shifting them to the new blog. Eventually when the new website takes over, I will also remove all of the pages from this blog so there is less clutter, redundancies and a more streamlined price structure.

Secondly, Littlest Sweet Shop is moving to a new address! Not me personally but there will be a new diorama for the 1:6 scale world. I love the original Littlest Sweet Shop in blue but just like this blog - it's old and made from cheap foam board so I knew that one day I will have to upgrade it. I'm not a diorama maker so this task has been handled by a very talented Korean artist. It will be revealed hopefully before this summer. 

Apart from web-editing, commissions, Etsy orders and being a housewife, everything is still pretty much the same. My Etsy sales have been great but it means I have less time to develop new miniatures or record YouTube video tutorials. I try to prioritise what's important now and blogging does not seem to gain me any traffic or new readers. However it is still my main outlet to talk about my commissions and anything interesting about running this miniature shop. 

Recently I made a commission for someone who makes shadow boxes. She wanted specifically these 2 boxes in 1:12 scale so they are only half an inch wide! Usually I'm nervous about making prints in 1:12 scale but these turned out better than expected and the client was pleased. I'm glad that it will be arranged into a personalised shadow box for someone.

1:12 scale box of candy

Only half an inch wide!

Kokomi with a box of Hot Tamales

Kokomi-chan with a Jelly Belly gift box

Other than that, I'm currently doing another 1:12 scale commission whilst balancing life! I put a lot of hard work in the last 8 years and since this hobby is always evolving, I'm still trying to catch up. Thank you to all of my supporters and loyal clients, I promise there are bigger and better things to come.

Bye!