Miniature Museum: Oriental Room

Oriental themed miniatures

The Oriental room was fun to put together with its mix of commercial dolls house furniture and lucky finds from second-hand shops. I just love the hunt, always on the lookout for minis that are a little bit different.

  The large feature of the two geisha girls on the back wall is actually a cloth wallet from the oldest Chinese emporium in Auckland. The long woven silk hangings flanking it, decorated with birds and flowers, are bookmarks. The chest with the red drawers is a piece of dolls house furniture that I customised by decoupage with cutouts from a magazine photograph of the details on a real antique oriental chest.

   On the left is a carved screen that is real ivory. I bought it in Singapore 35 years ago. Even older is the green and blue pagoda. When I was a child, I had it as an ornament in my goldfish bowl! 

   The curved cabinet with the scene made of cork carvings was a real bargain - only two dollars in a junk shop. And the metal temple dogs guarding the entrance were found on the side of the road beside a rubbish bin. You never know what you'll find when you're out walking!