Look out Mr Jiggers is about and an update on Flourish and Blotts too!

You probably thought I’d been kidnapped by aliens it’s been so long since I posted anything onhere! I haven’t been around Blogland much as I’ve had lots of things to do!

The weather in the UK has been atrocious, we’ve had a deluge of rain and I’ve been soaked a few too many times of late! 

I badly hurt my left arm on Monday and have strained two large muscles (making life extremely difficult) and this has been topped off with an ear infection that has lasted nearly two weeks, so I’m guessing a trip to the Doctor’s will be in order. Other than that, I’m not doing too badly. :o)

Firstly, Mr Jiggers arrived this morning!!! :o)))) He was a little slow getting over from Germany….I’ve only bought two male characters from Silke and both were slow…hmmmm methinks they are a tad errant because all the females make it over in about 3 days!! lol 

He is soooo wanted and I adore him to bits!! :o) Mr Jiggers doesn't actually exist in the Harry Potter books, I made him up for my project. I knew I wanted a creepy character and roughly knew how I wanted him dressed. Silke came up with an idea of basing his face on a well known actor who played a really creepy and nasty character from a children’s book ….I wonder whether you can guess who it was!!?!

I own a lot of characters, but he has to be one of my top favourites, I most certainly wouldn’t want to spend too much time in Slug and Jiggers with him serving me!  lol  I will have him behind the counter and probably with a potion bottle to which he is pouring into…or some kind of vessel. :o)

His cloak feels like ultra fine suede and he had teeny tiny buttons  on it, he has flat wizard cap. It was Silke who said he should have  gaiters and the flat hat. I think he suits Slug and Jiggers perfectly!! :o) Huge thanks Silke. :o)

 He will be just the person behind Slug and Jiggers counter and ready to serve you your needs!

  He's quite a character!   

 Three wheels on my wagon! :o)

For the longest time I have been on the look out for a 1/12th vehicle…but could I find one?!!? Oh no, not when I was actively looking I couldn’t! A few weeks ago I was looking for weighing scales for Slugs and I found this fabulous 3 wheeled vehicle, it was a must have as far as I was concerned!!! The wheels move around, the front wheel also turns as does the steering wheel! :o)  

I will age and distress it first and then it must be dressed and filled! I thought perhaps a professor could be in the drivers seat and student in front and the back could be piled high with trunks and owl cages? It will probably have to sent to the artisan making the characters…I haven’t yet decided who to have made nor who will make the characters themselves. All in good time. :o))

I have been working on Flourish’s too…..but work has been mighty slow! The dog legged stairs case has taken an absolute age and I’ve had about 8 attempts to glue on the spindles!!! Grrrr and another grrrrr! I decided the home made ones (straight pieces of wood and no fancy work) just wasn’t up to the job in sooo many ways. So I bought some and I’m the process now of making the staircase once again! Because the staircase took so much time, little else got done. However, I soon picked up speed when I gave up on the home made spindles!


Having also bought myself a new CD/radio player also helped spur me on immensely, because I can now listen to my Harry Potter audio books, I have them all on CD! :o)

 I still need to add damp and ageing to the brickwork.

The outside is more done than not now. Tonight I glued in the door and I can fit the main shop window over the weekend. I will add the bit where the sign will go when I’ve made it. I will also add a lead roof to the bay window as I will all the bay/bowed windows I have.

 Still quite abit to do on the inside, but once the stairs and cornice etc is in, it will look almost completed.  

Most of the lower floorboards are down, just the upper landing ones to do now. They will need a little wash of colour over the top and waxing. I hasten to add I should have really done this before wallpapering. However, as I am having skirting board if I do touch the edges of the paper the ageing and wax won't show. I have painted all the cornice, skirting board and trims too. I have made the front step and sanded it down to show decades of wear. I have been looking at lights and I’m having a difficult time deciding what to buy…as always!  

I hope to tile the roof over the weekend and it will have a real lead roof like Slug and Jiggers and maybe a chimney stack too. As I’ve said many times before I don’t plan on filling my projects just yet….I want to get the project carcases built and then I can concentrate on the bits that matter! ;o))

 Stairs!!! Grrrr! The dog legged stairs...not glued together...yet! I hate making stairs!!!! Grrrrr!

 The window is not glued in, nor are the frame pieces within the door. I've just cut them for size here.   

  Arh! More kits..

So, Flourish and Blotts is nearly complete based on those terms. I managed to acquire a kit for another project I have been planning for over a year…that will be a series of kit bashes and I don’t want to start on any projects that are more challenging, so I will keep to more straight forward ones, but not easy I might add!  I have decided to start on Weasley Wizard Wheezes next - to be worked on mainly in my craft room and Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment shop in the summer house. :o)) 

A big warm welcome to my new followers….I hope you don’t mind my ramblings and madness! :o))

Michelle xxxx