Start Before you're Ready!

Happy 2017 everyone! I hope that each and every one of you, whoever you are, whatever you do, and from whatever part of the world you're taking the trouble to check in at my blog.... I hope most of all that 2017 is a happy year for you.

It's not exactly a quote, but it is inspirational -  Richard Branson advised others to 'start before they're ready'. It's excellent advice and I myself am so looking forward to what can be accomplished in 2017. I hope some of you have plans to try something new, or find something new in life that makes you happy. And on that note, people often write and ask me for advice on starting a career as an artist, or simply for advice on a clay technique. I want to encourage more of you to do this. Your emails will always be answered and I am happy to help wherever I can. My email is here and my website contact page is here. :)

I flew in from Blighty the other day and am fast settling back into LA life, breakfast tacos, coffee and ready to hit those 15 hour work days again quite gladly! In fact, I am already starting on a new witch character...

...But first...  let's look back at 2016, with another of my annual 'year's round-ups'!

My year started with more witches for 'Good Witches Bad Witches TM', and these punctuated 2016 at regular intervals. At your request, I started creating some videos (at my Tall Tales Productions YouTube channel) of the behind the scenes, so you can see how they're made. In February I guest-starred in the Food Network's 'Cake Masters' as a miniature expert, and by June I'd worked with Buzzfeed to bring you a live miniature making demo and also a 'Tiny Tasty' parody (I shot two miniature recipes being assembled just like a Buzzfeed Tasty recipe), - one of these videos was the most watched Buzzfeed video of the week. I created new tutorials and my website was revamped and a web-store finally added. (Huge thanks to all who support my business by purchasing consumer products and prints from me). I started creating timelapse videos of me working which caught the attention of Instagram headquarters, who profiled me as one of their 3 top favourite picks out of 500 million unique users! Lucky me! I also put together my first book which most of you know will *finally* be available this Spring! I did some more illustrations, concept sketches, made more scale miniatures (some of which you'll see published in magazines this year) and some fun cartoons using Photoshop (disclaimer - the Trump / Bernie cartoon does not reflect political views at Tall Tales - see more here!). And in my personal adventures, I stayed at a chateau in France with my family, made mini trips to San Francisco, attended balls and other such silly LA events and felt like Dorothy in a surreal field of California poppies. 

Happy 2017 everyone - I value and appreciate you all. Thanks so much for taking an interest in my work, and please continue to be involved, leave comments, ask questions and share your work with us as well.

Some witches I created in 2016...

...and more witches...

...and more...

...and yes, more...

...finally, the final witch creations of 2016!

One of the behind the scenes videos at creating a witch

Guest starring on 'CakeMasters' Feb 2016

Buzzfeed Live demo, June 2016.

Tiny Tasty video parody created June 2016.

Some illustrations and sketches I did, 2016

Some cartoons I did, 2016.

Website re-design! 2016.

New webshop at www.tall-tales.com!

The new book and tutorials created, 2016.

Just some of the miniatures created in 2016.

Timelapse videos of 2016.

Trips and fun of 2016....!

What's the Buzz?!

What's the buzz?! ...This week the buzz is all about the videos I made as a parody of the 'Tasty' recipe videos.

Full post about it here on my blog, yesterday.

One of my videos has already had 500k views in less than 48 hours. It's the second most watched video at Buzzfeed video this week. Pretty decent for a video I put together quite quickly this weekend, following a call from Instagram who asked me to do something special to mark the occasion of them hitting 500 million Instagram users. :)

Buzzfeed thought it would be fun to show their fans a 'behind the scenes' glimpse of me working, so I went over to their studios on Sunset Blvd, two days ago, and we shot a 20 minute segment of me creating realistic miniature food including bagels and lox, limes, iced donuts, cake with birthday candles and shrimp fajitas.

It broadcast as a live-stream on Buzzfeed's DIY video channel here. You can find it there or see a clip from it at my Instagram here. 

Stills of this video piece!

And in case you're wondering what all this miniature food is about when you started following this blog because you were interested in my miniature witch sculpts and 'Good Witches Bad Witches'... don't worry! I am working on a new witch right now (you might have seen the sneak peek a few days ago here on Instagram) and she's almost finished. Stay tuned for many more witches coming soon.

Behind the Taste

Catch my miniature parodies of the awesome 'Tasty' videos yet?!

(Tastys are 60 second cooking tutorials created by Buzzfeed video.)

Today Instagram is celebrating hitting 500 million users and they contacted me and two other Instagram users (out of 500 million of us - yeah, I feel special!) to profile the three of us to mark the occasion. They got Buzzfeed to cover it and it all began at the weekend, which I spent creating something a little special just for them.

Buzzfeed writes about it here.

I created two miniature parodies of two of Buzzfeed's 'Tasty' videos.

* Tasty video 'Shrimp And Avocado Salad' - watch the REAL TASTY VIDEO here!

My miniature parody is here!

Or, watch my parody on buzzfeedtasty's Instagram here!

* Tasty video 'One- Pan Sriracha Chicken and Veggie' - watch the REAL TASTY VIDEO here!

My miniature parody is here!

Or, watch my parody on buzzfeedtasty's Instagram here!

The behind the scenes process...

I created all the components for both recipes, which included raw chicken thighs, slightly cooked chicken thighs, more cooked chicken thighs, shrimp (again, cooked in three stages), raw bell peppers, onions and potatoes, cooked  bell peppers, onions and potatoes, avocados in 5 different stages of prep, whole lettuce leaves, chopped lettuce leaves etc etc! It took me a whole day just to create the miniature ingredients, and I used polymer clay and mixed media for all of it.

Then I set up a camera on a tripod, set up some bright lights, picked out my best miniature mixing bowls and cookware, and started filming the recipe process whilst watching the real videos for reference!

I edited them together, changing the speed at times to match the real videos. Voila! Besides my Instagram, you can also find these videos on my YouTube channel here.

Why choose me?!

Apparently it was the timelapse pancakes video that caught the attention of Instagram! Watch it here.

Life, in a Teacup

In a nutshell / teacup... in other words, condensing my past month into a quick update!

My website has had a face-lift and is hopefully a little easier to navigate around. And if you wait another couple of days there will be an online shop attached! Many of you probably know that I've sold miniatures and art prints on 3 Etsy shops for the past 5 years, and that wont change, but you can now buy directly from me as well. This means prices will often be lower, so worth a look if you're someone who shops for individual miniature pieces / figurines and prints.

Tall Tales Productions website here!

Behind the Scenes...

You've been asking for more photos and videos of what goes on behind the scenes, so I'm endeavouring to oblige. If you follow me / Tall Tales on Instagram then you probably caught this!

I've also made another quick little video up on the new YouTube Channel here which shows me making the Trick or Treat scene. More video tutorials / time-lapses will show up soon.

Also...

Another watercolour painting or two (which I've yet to scan and share)...

Another article which you can see more of on the Press Page of my site!

In other news, I am really honoured to be included on the Creative Talent Network's site here. It's run by Tina Price and if you're at all familiar with CTN you might even know that they're having an event this weekend. Details here. If you're in LA then come along and say hi to me there.:)

Aside from work, I'd love to share with you a new place I discovered in LA. The Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve. Went there on Easter Sunday and it was out of this world. Put it on your 'to do' list, but mind you pick the right time of year to see it. Bye for now and have a fantastic weekend!

Published Tutorial just in time for Halloween

Just gave a tutorial on how to make one inch scale pumpkin cauldrons for a magazine (out now and available here). These are basically props for 'Myrtle the Witch', but as many of you know I am partially funding the project by selling replicas of props for the film. The editor took an interest in my work and now it looks like her readers may be able to get the clay out for themselves.
Take a look, let me know what you think. :)

Miniature Model - Magic Trade Shop

These are pictures of a recent-ish miniature model I was commissioned to make. It's an antique shop of magic for trade. All in half inch scale (for those of you that don't know what this means... 1 foot in the real world equals half an inch in the miniature model world). So it was fairly tricky and detailed (I'm used to working in one inch scale).

This particular piece ('Boggart's Bazaar') is being featured in an English trade magazine 'The Dolls' House Magazine', published by GMC in the Nov 2011 edition. They're running an interview with me, so look out for it. :)
I've been permitted by both the editor and the owner of the model to show a few small JPEGs until then.

Miniature model of a Fantastical Magic Trade Shop - 'Boggarts Bazaar' by commission. (March 2011)

And something a bit older... here's an image of Hogsmeade Village which I worked on in Greater London at Leavesden Studios. It was my second gig after graduating and I loved it.

Miniature set of Hogsmeade Village for 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' (Feb 2005)
Photograph courtesy of Warner Bros.

scale miniature sets for film, TV and music videos - designed and built by Caroline Mcfarlane-watts