Dioramas and Clever Things

James Randi (1928-2020) This past Tuesday, October 20, we lost one of the great defenders of the skeptical mind. James Randi, also known by his stage name The Amazing Randi, was a stage mag...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2020/10/james-randi-1928-2020-this-past-tuesday.html

If you are in New York City any time soon, put visiting Gulliver's Gate , on your list of sights to see. The designers have created an amazing miniature world spanning the entire globe. You w...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2019/09/gullivers-gate-miniature-world-in.html

These are pretty good figurines of John Lennon, done in conjunction with the Lennon Estate and with Yoko Ono. Comes with multiple outfits. 1:6 scale, $299, from Molecule8 . ...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2018/02/all-you-need-isjohn-lennon.html

This is genuinely unique. It is a demonstration kit to teach Scouting skills. It was produced as an Eagle Project . I like the concept and the individual pieces, but also the look and scale ...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2018/01/theres-probably-only-one-of-these.html

Since 2011, Tatsuya Tanaka has been creating miniature dioramas from ordinary household items (and often from food, which seems like a growing genre within the art).  His work has gained g...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2017/09/miniature-life.html

Reprinted from Colossal AN HISTORICALLY ACCURATE 19TH CENTURY PHOTO STUDIO BUILT IN 1:12 SCALE BY KATE SIERZPUTOWSKI  ON MAY 13, 2016 Turkey-based artist Ali Alamedy  had been bui...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/10/photo-studio-complete-with-bathing-suit.html

Miniature books. Can't wait to make more. Beatles Anthology X-Ray, Francios Nars Bidgood, Bruce Benderson Life Guard on Duty, Matt Albiani Arguably, Christopher Hitchens Okavang...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/10/books-in-my-apartment.html

Today's New York Times has an article about Russia inflatable arsenal . However, it is not a new idea. The allies in World War II used them very effectively. Designer Bill Blass was part of ...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/10/ghost-army-just-in-time-for-halloween.html

I had the opportunity recently to meet (via Skype) Raj Guram, one of the founders of J&R Guram, makers of fine campaign furniture. Located in India, it is a family run business that is know...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/08/go-back-in-time-to-india.html

Rare picture of Hank Williams with an electric guitar Hank Williams died when he was just 30 years old. He would have been 93 today. Instead of posting his bio, which you can read on on-line...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/09/happy-93rd-birthday-hank-williams-sr.html

The birdcage, which sat empty in my apartment for years, practically screamed out for a natural history museum.  ESCAPE! Views from above

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/09/the-best-place-to-keep-natural-history.html

This vintage Las Vegas ashtray has a working roulette wheel. Just push and release the spring loaded button on the bottom and hope you get lucky. It's a prized possession for me but you can get ...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/08/have-spin.html

I came across an interesting company. Christopher Schwartz, former editor of Popular Woodworking Magazine, along with his partner John Hoffman run Lost Art Press . They define their mission...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/08/i-came-across-interesting-company.html

These outstanding scale models are from Imagineering Disney , a blog made by former Disney designers who are still passionate about their craft. It has a lot of great content: photographs, m...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/07/after-all-its-small-world.html

Developer Dan Vanderkam collaborated with the New York Public Library to plot a collection of old photos from the Photographic Views of New York City, 1870s-1970s  on an interactive map. ...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/07/old-new-york-city-mapped-in-photos.html

That's Roland and Louise Flora who for years handmade neckerchief and bolo slides for the Boy Scouts of Ten Mile River Scout Camp up in Narrowsburg New York. They are both gone now, be many...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/07/the-slide-farm-and-cherikee-red.html

Scale model of the push button camper This Push Button Camper was presented in The Ford Treasury of Station Wagon Living, Volume 2 , which I picked up in at the Inquiring Minds book store i...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/07/push-button-camping-for-modern-family.html

Saw this in Poukipsee, New York yesterday, fourth of July on the Hudson. Pretty impressive. It's the Amphicar, which was produced in Germany and debuted at the New York Auto Show in 1961. Some p...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/07/a-sensation-on-land-and-water.html

Last November, The American Museum of Natural History unveiled its plan for expansion. It is fantastic looking. I am excited.  As a former teaching volunteer at the museum, I'm very happy to...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/06/exciting-expansion-for-american-museum.html

A very clever ad from Land Rover

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/06/well-stamped-passport.html

This is beautiful. I especially love the Johnson outboard motor. I wish I knew more about this picture but I don't have a source or a story.  It brings to mind the classic Chris-Crafts ...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/06/hand-made-vintage-wooden-boats.html

A working Swiss Army knife  in 1/12 scale by  L&A St.Leger  

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/05/coolest-thing-if-you-like-112-scale.html

Here are some more 'stuff' collages, which are basically collages I make with stuff I love and/or simply look great together. Item details below. Also see: Best Made collages Opined...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/05/stuff-collages.html

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2013/04/box.html

Just received this book by craftsman Peter Korn. It's in the vein of Shop Craft as Soulcraft and through Korn's story we get an appreciation of the satisfaction that comes with creating wel...

http://www.dioramasandcleverthings.com/2016/06/just-finished-this-book-by-craftsman.html