Welcome to the inside workings of the Ipswich Mini Crafters who meet every Wednesday evening at the Cooneana Heritage Centre, New Chum, Queensland, Australia. Our diverse group of mini crafters are great makers of one-of-a-kind miniatures and tend to all be working on our own things at our weekly gathering. We help each other with our unique skills and share equipment and materials readily.
But first a bit of history…Our club was started in 1990 (yes 28 years ago) by a few excited miniaturists with Alan Lindup leading the charge. Alan had seen fame with his 1:12 scale horse drawn vehicles being exhibited at World Expo 88 that was held here in Brisbane. During this display contacts were made and it wasn’t long before they had the makings of a club. Alan was also a member of his local Community Group at Karalee Ipswich, this became the first home of Karalee Mini Crafters, as we were then known.
Our club met for many years in Karalee, and early on this was twice a week, during the day on Mondays, and Tuesday evenings for a couple of hours. There were 22 members at this time, and the day time meeting appealed to a large percentage of our demographic. However, times change and members come and go, and the day meeting attendance was dwindling so it was decided that the evening gathering would prevail.
Around 2008 we needed to find a new home as the Karalee Community Centre was being taken over by the school, so one of our members found us a new home in Booval. This move, closer to the centre of Ipswich, prompted our name change to Ipswich Mini Crafters in 2009. Alan (now aged 91) is still one of our driving forces and the font of most knowledge of miniatures. A carpenter/joiner by trade, his help and guidance in this varied craft is indispensable. Over the years Alan has been passing on his craft to our members – finding our strengths and building on them. He is often heard to say if you need help with casting see this person, or if it’s woodwork then talk to that person. He is ensuring that we have a broad variety of skilled people within our club to help each other and ensure this craft is passed on for many years to come.
Alan has always been a master at creating and recycling items in miniature from all sorts of everyday items that we throw away. One of the first questions new members are often asked is if they have an illness – yes, a little odd but as you know medication packaging makes for great mini-items. He is always bringing strange pieces of plastic, glass or metal to our meetings and then presenting us with a new miniature. I think his vacuum cleaner from an asthma puffer is one of my favourite pieces. Just last week he arrived with odd little plastic things that were tops from a lancet needle that could be used as decorations on tops of furniture posts, or bottoms of legs as they look like castors.
We are great collectors of all manner of ‘junk’ - lids and containers, electrical innards, wood and bits and bobs that invariably find their way into our miniature creations in one form or another. This is a most excellent form of recycling that gives “The Borrowers” a run for their money. Any miniature bought items we decide we just can’t live without are always ‘gifts’, it’s a running joke that we probably could have made it ourselves but sometimes you just fall in love. And as you know there are so many very talented miniaturists out there that produce some truly exquisite items and miniature stores that are skilled at sourcing that most interesting new item that you couldn’t conceive making yourself. You just have to have them for your future as yet undecided room box, dollhouse or diorama, or just because it looks interesting in your display cabinet – the place where all your mini treasures wait their turn for their starring role in your next project.
We tend to display at least twice a year, sometimes more, depending on what organisations have approached us. Keep an eye on our social media channels for upcoming community displays. By Vanessa Williams
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