Making miniature cakes out of buttons

Hi Folks,

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. 

Today I wanted to share with you something different instead of my finished projects.

As Christmas brings with it Sweets, chocolate, cakes and all the yummy stuff I decided to do a tutorial of how to make miniature cakes made out of buttons. Yes folks BUTTONS!

I believe there was someone that asked me to give a detail explanation of how to do this and so here it is. It is quite easy to do especially for those who find it difficult to use polymer clay like myself. Although I think I will be trying my hand at polymer clay very soon.

 As you all know buttons come in different shapes and sizes. Some of them are just perfect to turn them in to a three tire cake. I always enjoyed doing these and I think they where the first of my creations. 

You don't need a lot of items or material to do any of these. You will be surprised that you'll find them roaming around the  house.  You need:

1) Three buttons

2) PVA glue or super glue

3) Crafts knife or a small saw

4) A fine small piece of sand paper or nail file 

6) Tooth picks

5) 2 Paint brushes

6) Various colors of Acrylic Paint

7) Acrylic gloss varnish or clear nail polish.

The most important thing is that you get your buttons correct and just right for the cake.  In all you need three buttons which must have the same diameter.  Two of them are just the ordinary holed button. It doesn't matter how many holes they have as they won't be seen. These will be used for the tires of the cake. The third button is used for the top part. So this button must not be holed from the top.  The button could be a shiny shaped button. You have to make sure that it's design and shape are fit for a cake. 

1) Top of the cake button

Firstly we start by removing the back piece of the designed button which is used for the top of the cake. You can use a craft knife to remove it if the button is made out of plastic. If the button is made out of metal, don't worry, you can use a saw or something to clip it off. It is important that this piece is removed and that the back of the button is flat.

2) Gluing the buttons

After that  glue together the buttons like shown.

You can use PVA glue or super glue. I prefer using PVA glue as it gives you some time to set the buttons in the right position. Make sure that the buttons are aligned in a straight line. Let the glue set. At this point you might find that the buttons looks strange and that they don't look like a proper cake. Note that this is not the finished cake yet.

3) Smoothing off the edges.

When the glue is set take a piece of fine sand paper and smooth off the edges of the buttons. This can also be done with a nail file. Please note that some buttons don't need to be sand papered as they already have a round finish. I usually only sand paper around the cake as it also helps when painting the cake.

4) Undercoat

Use 2 tooth picks to hold the cake upright by placing them in the button holes.  Paint the whole cake with a white acrylic paint. This is used as an undercoat. It helps to make the cake look whole. As the top button and the other buttons differ from each other it is always best to have an undercoat. At this point make sure you leave the paint dry properly. 

5) Decorating the cake

When the undercoat has dried up you can start painting your cake and decorating it the way you like. If you'll be using different type of colored paint always allow the other paint to dry up first as you'll end up smudging the whole thing. For small details it is best to use a fine paint brush. See what is best for your cake. This is your cake and you can do whatever you like. Let the paint dry throughout. 

6) Varnish

When the paints are dried throughout, paint the whole cake with a glossy clear acrylic varnish. This will make the cake look more moist and yummy. If you don't have varnish you can use a clear nail polish. Thinly varnish the cake twice.

When ready and dried you can place it on your cake tray or plate. 

Here are some samples of the cakes that I made with buttons.

I hope that you found this tutorial helpful. If you have any difficulties please don't hesitate to drop a line and I will be very happy to help you out.

Well folks this is it for today. 

Please keep tuned for more of my projects.

Take Care,

Rebecca xxx

Christmas Spirit at 'Chestnuts'

Hi folks,

First of all I want to welcome the new followers of this blog and I want to thank you all for following and for your kind comments. It's very encouraging.

Today, I will be sharing with you some Christmas Spirit at  'Chestnuts'. I love decorating this particular room for Christmas.

Here are some pictures of my Christmas scene. It's all set up for the Christmas Dinner.

After Christmas I will be sharing with you my second dolls house 'Sea Shells'. So I guess that's all folks for today.

The Guest Room

Hello everyone,

Christmas is getting closer by the minute. I have been very busy but I try my best to post regularly.

Today I will be sharing with you the Guest room, which is the last room of Chestnuts.

The Guest Room

Well it is quite a floral room. Most of the furniture was hand built. The curtains and bedding where sewn by me. I have also upholstered the armchair. Actually the armchair was the first piece of furniture that I did of the whole house.

The carpets have been done by me which are tapestries. The blanket in the cot was hand knitted by me too. 

The frames are hand made and the two oval frames where buttons which I have transformed them into portraits. 

 Even if it's a small room and actually just a guest room or a spare bedroom, I truly love the color scheme. 

Well I guess this is it and the final room for The Chestnuts house. 

Next time I will be sharing with you some Christmas Spirit in Chestnuts and then will go to a completely new project. So keep tuned.

Take Care

Rebecca xxx

The Music Room

Hello Everyone,

First of all I want to welcome the new followers on the blog and for the kind comments. It's very encouraging.

Today I will be sharing with you the music room which is situated in the basement of Chestnuts.

The Music Room

This room is situated in the middle of the basement which leads to the guest room and to the Scullery. As I had built the dolls house before the basement, obviously it wasn't  designed to have a basement and therefore I could not make an internal stair case to join the two buildings. So for this room I made a fake door at the back hidden by a curtain too.

I have bought furniture kit for the whole room as I didn't have any idea how I was going to build a grand piano as I never really got to see one in real life. 

I have varnished it and added a lot of touches myself to it. The desk for example didn't have any opening doors or window glass. I managed to make them open. 

The upright plates that are shelved in the unit have been done by me. The very first plates that I actually did. They are made out of paper and coated with glossy varnish.

The books and small frames have been done by me too. All soft furnishing was done by myself too. The curtain the chair cushions, the table cloth and the doily. The music notes have been minimized to scale and printed.

Well I guess this is the Music Room. Next post will be the guest room and the last room of the dolls house.

Please keep tuned as I will be sharing with you new projects very soon. 

Take Care

Rebecca xxx

The Scullery

Hello everyone,

Firstly I want to thank Diane for your much appreciated comment and for following my blog. I'm so glad that you are interested in my projects.

Today I will be sharing with you the Scullery which is in the basement.

The Scullery

Most of the furniture that you see is made by myself. The table and chairs I have bought them as a kit, I have joined the pieces and built them. I regret for not doing them myself. I think I would have done a much better job.

Here you find the area where the washing is done. I have built this section where the chimney is and the oven and tub are. I have built them out of wood and then tiled them up. The top of the oven was covered with clay and painted so it would have a stone effect. Obviously the lid is made out of wood too. the door of the oven is just made out of cardboard and painted acrylic paints. I have dirtied the bricks to make a worn look effect.  

I have added some suitable accessories for this room which also serves as a ladder. The furniture is painted in a very pale light green and there are sections where they are painted in cream. 

All wall shelves have been built and designed by me. I like the wall shelf near the window myself which took some dedicated time to do. 

Well I guess this is.

Keep in touch as I will be posting more very soon.

Take Care and see you.

Rebecca xxx

The Basement and Garden

Hello Everyone,

Today I will be sharing with you the basement. The basement is not a kit. I have made it myself and designed it well copied one of  the Dolls House Emporium's. I couldn't buy a kit for this as the house itself was handmade and I couldn't find a basement with the right measurements to fit the dolls house. So I guess this is it and I was really happy with it's outcome.

The basement and front garden

The front garden has a small fountain on the left hand side and some garden furniture on the other side. Then I decorated them with pots and flowers. I have covered the stair with marble adhesive paper.

The basement has three large rooms which are the music room, the scullery and a small guest room. 

Well I guess this is it. I will posting each room of the basement very soon.

Take Care

Rebecca xxx

The fountain in front garden

The Garden furniture

The three room in the basement

 

The Stairways!

Hello Everyone,

I hope you're all enjoying your weekend. I haven't posted in a few days. Shame on me! I guess I was busy through work, kids and Christmas preparations!

I want to thank Claudia and Sergio for you lovely comments as usual. You are all very encouraging. 

Well as you all know this was my first dolls house which I built 13 years ago. Like I always say 'there is always room for improvement'. Today I look at this house and if I knew the tricks and trade,  I might have done things differently. I won't change anything for the world doe. There are quite a few memories while building it that I will cherish forever. 

Today I will be sharing the stairways which will complete the house. 

Ground Floor

There are three stairways in this house. The ground floor stairway leads to the main door, the kitchen and sitting / dining room. I have made the hat stand and also the hats and the umbrellas

The hat and bonnet are made out of string and painted. The small roses are made out of ribbon that I managed to turn into little buds. The umbrellas are tooth picks and decorated with lace and material.

1st floor

The 1st floor stairway leads to the main bedroom and the bathroom. I have decorated it with a jardiniere which has roses and small white blossoms in it.

2nd floor

The 2nd and last stairway leads to the nursery and study. The difference between this one and the others is that as it's in the attic floor, one of the sides of the walls is slanting for the roof. Because of this I couldn't do the doors in the right position so I have just made arches to the rooms.


Well I guess this is it!

In the next post I will be sharing with you the basement which has the front garden and three lovely rooms.

So please keep tuned as I have much to share.

Take Care,

Rebecca xxx

The Study

Hello once again,

I hope you all had a great weekend. I want to thank Claudia and Charles for your kind comments. I'm so glad that you are following my projects.

Today I want to share with you the last room of the actual house which is the study. Obviously there is still the stair cases and the basement to go through which I will be doing in a few days.

The Study

Well there isn't much to say. The furniture is all done by me with all the soft furniture. The books in the book case too. They are all pieces of wood which have been covered with paper and painted,

All frames have been handmade. And there is also a portrait of Gilbert (my husband) and myself when we where still dating. I have turned it in to a black and white photo. You can see it on the top left hand side on the back wall, almost on top of the fire place. 

The corner fire place was quite difficult to do but I managed to do it too. 

The plant that there is in the corner near the sofa was also done by me. It is made out of wire and floral tape.

Like I said, as it's a small room there isn't much to say. 

Keep tuned as I will be sharing with you more stuff very soon.

Take Care,

Rebecca xxxx

The Nursery

Hello once again,

Thank you Claudia and Angie for your lovely comments.

Today I’m going to share with you my favorite room in ‘Chestnuts’; The Nursery. It took me quite some time to complete with all the little finishings and toys. The children who live in this house are very lucky. They have so many toys and a nanny to look after them and to keep them busy.

The Nursery

Well after choosing the wall paper and carpet. I had quite a lot of work to complete it. As you can see the furniture is hand made too. First I painted the furniture with a white undercoat and then I painted it with a old blue color. After the paint was dried I finely sand papered the blue paint where you can see some of the white undercoat. So  it made the nursery look a bit old too.

The Crib

Then I started the bedding and soft furnishings. I have crocheted the bed spread for the bed and also decorated the lovely cradle with lace and ribbons. I have made cushions, the center carpet and other blankets. Some of the toys are hand made too. The mobile of the cradle has been made by myself too. With string, beads in the form of ducks and some wire.


Some of the other toys that I have made was the rocking horse.

My two little dolls.

Two little dolls made out of pipe cleaner, small sticky bandage for their body, a bead for their head,  tread for their hair, ribbon for their dresses and gyps for their hands and feet.

Jack in the Box

My favorite; Jack in the box was made out of wood, a bead for his head, some material for his dress, Tread for his hair, a biro spring for his body and a small pill's casing for his hat and paint.

My bunny frames

I have also mad these lovely two wall bunny pictures. They are patch worked. They took me quite some time and patience to craft, but they where worth the effort.

The Non Working lamp transformed

Finally we have the non working nursery table lamb which I transformed. As this was my first dolls house that had been built around 8 years ago, there wasn't much choice. This non working nursery table lamp I had purchased i from the Dolls house Emporium collection which has matching book ends. I was so trilled when I bought it but at the same time a little disappointed. It was a pity that it didn't work. A brilliant idea popped in my brain which worked to perfection. It’s lamp shade at first was made out of paper decorated with frills and lace; so I removed the lace from the paper and removed the shade from the lamp. Instead of the paper I used a frosted paper much stronger, decorated the frosted shade with the same lace and frills and while gluing the shade to the lamp I inserted the bulb and wiring. And there the non working lamp was transformed into a working lamp which made the nursery look warmer too.

I hope you liked this room as this is truly my favorite. Will be posting more very soon. So keep tuned.

Take Care and See you all soon.

Hugs,

Rebecca x

The Bathroom

Hi Everyone,

I hope you all had a lovely weekend. Thanks for those who left lovely comments. I really appreciate it and it's good to know that there are persons who read my blog.

Here's the next room which is Chestnuts bathroom. It quite specious and big.

Chestnuts Bathroom

As you can see all it’s furniture is hand made and painted with white acrylic paint.  except for the obvious which is the bath, the toilet and  the sink’s basin.

I have chosen pastel colors; peach and light turquoise. The carpets and towels have been sewn by myself too. The screen was a bit tricky to do but with a little patience I managed to do it.

Well, I guess that’s all. Even doe there isn't much to say about this room, I think it's an important room as I just can't imagine having a house without a bathroom. I think my favorite accessory in this room is the screen which gives the bathtub more privacy and cosyness.

In the next post I will be sharing with you my favorite room, which is the nursery. So please keep tuned for more.

Take Care and see you soon

Rebecca xxx

The Main Bedroom

Today I will be sharing with you the main Bedroom.

The Main Bedroom

As this is a Victorian dolls house, in that era it was very fashionable that a canopy hangs over the headrest of the bed. I have used the same material for the bedding, curtains, bed stool and chaise lounge. I have used a pale blue for this room which makes it look warm and rich.

All the furniture is hand made and all the doors and drawers open. Most of the accessories have been purchased and collected through the years from the Dolls House Emporium.  I have also tapestried  a big carpet for this room. Most of the hanging frames I have printed and turned them in to frames. One of the frames is hand crafted with beads and wire.

I have also hand crafted a fan which I placed on the chaise lounge. I have used a small piece of lace. folded it in several folds, used a little bit of glue on one side of the folds. opened it in to a fan, used transparent nail varnish to harden the fan then decorated it.

That's all for today will be sharing with you the other rooms very soon. 

Take Care

Rebecca x

The Sitting / Dining Room

Hello,


Thank you all for those who started to follow me and thank you too for your kind comments.


Today I will be sharing with you The sitting / dining room of Chestnuts.

The sitting / dining room in Chestnuts

 The furniture is hand crafted.  The table cloth is crocheted and I have made a carpet (tapestry)  made by myself too. The fire place was painted in a way to look like marble. As it was my first dolls house, today I see many faults in it but it is still my favorite.

I love this room as it look very cosy especially as I enjoy hearing the working grand father clock ticking.

During Christmas time it is one of my favorite rooms as it is decorated with Christmas decorations. I will be posting some photos of it decorated just in time for Christmas.


Well I guess this is it! 


Will posting more rooms very soon. 




Rebecca xxx