This is one of the *gift* chapels for family friends. This invitation is so beautiful-with yummy colors, patterns and textures. I wanted to use the embossed portion as the roof, so the main building turned out sorta large. I added the tiny, tiny outrigger building to soften the scale of the larger 'airplane hanger'; and to add a little tension into the equation.
Nice, huh?!
c. 2006
This year, a new sub-tradition of the Christmas tinybuildings came into being. My son and his wife asked me to make tinychapels from the wedding invitations of a couple of their friends-as surprise gifts.
They turned out so nice, and it was such a good idea that I backtracked and made them a wedding 'complex' from their invitation. [I should have thought of this myself, right after their 2005 wedding.]
This 'complex' of tinybuildings came about because I wanted to include all the salient facts about their wedding day- the names, date, location- and to attempt to capture the warm feelings and aesthetic tone of the day.
I think the beautiful blue bird on the invitation inspired a tinybuildings 'first'- the arched roofs. Aren't they beautiful?!!!
A nice result from the multiple-buildings format is that they occasionally rearrange the buildings in their place on a living room bookshelf. I hope when they are doing that, it causes them to re-imagine that happy and beautiful day in their lives...
Blowfish is [I guess it still "is"- I haven't been there in years...] a brash, 'happenin'' sushi place in San Francisco. Its decor is intended to be as*dangerous* as its name implies. I vaguely remember it as dark, with hot spots of lights, noisy maybe...but the noise may have been all visual...
The sushi was yummy. I don't know why we haven't gone back. Could be because there are always newer places to try in that oh-so-receptive city.
The shape of this tinybuilding is also trying to be *dangerous* and noisy. Sort of mysterious and dark inside-and-out. Maybe a sushi speakeasy.....I think this was the first unusual roofline i attempted. Somehow, a hip roof with gables just wasn't gonna say *dangerous*. This tinybuilding is about 1-1/2 inches tall.
c. 2002
Hmmmmm. This was one of my earliest tinybuildings; and the cardstock, being coated, was very hard to work with. At least those are the excuses I'm using for such crude workmanship. But, it has some redeeming qualities: it's shiny, looks a little bit like the *real* restaurant, has some cute awnings, and the 'patisserie CAFE'' is nicely composed. Citizen Cake is about 1-1/2 inches tall. [and needs some repair...must go visit it.]
We haven't been to this restaurant in a long time. Don't know why exactly- probably because there are so many newer, better choices now. Food was good, maybe not great. Space was nice.
c. 2000
Well, this must be the tinybuilding from the wrong-side-of-the-tracks. It is completely unadorned, with no advertising, no detail, almost no color...but, lots of personality and charm. I have no idea when James made this one.. Early in the history of tinybuildings I would certainly guess--maybe 1977?
In any case it is very endearing. So humble, with low expectations, but a jaunty little roof, a *real* door and a little stuck-on door and a very basic window. Don't you just want to hug it?! It seems to have some water damage. I hate to think we were so irresponsible as to leave it out in the rain. Perhaps Santa spilled the milk from his snack on it.
The more I think about it the more this tinybuilding reminds me of James--humble, charming, not much advertising, somewhat short and stubby...and you just want a hug.
c. 1977
Prosecco. One of Italy's best inventions. This tinybuilding is made from the hangtag off a bottle of prosecco, a sparkling wine similar to champagne...but, Italian. Frankly, I can't remember the name of the Prosecco...starts with an *M*...Monetto, I think. Yummy.
I think Jane introduced us all to prosecco many years ago...and we all drink it now, especially for special celebrations, meals and get togethers. Actually, it doesn't take much to make us open a bottle.
This tinybuilding is about 1 inch tall, and very mysterious and graphic. The black-and-white cardstock just begged to be made into a modern building...It works, doesn't it? That cardstock must have known what it was talking about.
c. 2001
Kodak. Who were they? What did they make? A blast-from-the-past, I must say. This tinybuilding is from long before digital cameras. This is from the days of rolls [literally] of film being wound over the sprockets of your Nikon or Leica. At least, you hoped they wound over the sprockets. Many a great shot was lost because it didn't quite happen.
This tinybuilding is one of James' early ones. It has collected, over years of disrespect and bad storage, a wonderful patina of scuffs and scratches. But, it perseveres, proudly carrying on the illustrious, almost forgotten name of Kodak.
You can see how James had a different approach to conceiving and making his tinybuildings. He sometimes pasted pieces on instead of cutting out; he used *alien* materials like the door made from an index card. His imagination was free and glorious--not restricted by banal things like placement of windows and doors. From this boxy, slapped together thing he could envision a piece of architecture. I'm still envious....
c. 1977
This is a restaurant that personifies *everyday* San Francisco at its most down-to-earth [pun intended]. It serves food made with organic, locally grown ingredients, with an emphasis on freshness. This is the kind of restaurant you wish were in *your* neighborhood when you are craving a really good salad, and can't think of anyplace that can fill that need.
The graphics of the card are very well suited to the place. Slightly too 'corporate', but still refreshing. [heehee] I did not try to make a tinybuilding that would match the actual place, but did consider the layout of the card in forming the facades and roof. I like the window pattern and the cute little roof over the front door. Maybe this is a tall farmhouse on an organic farm somewhere in California....tall [ about 1-1/4 inch] and skinny, for the farmer and his wife in that painting...
c. 2006
Since the IO Spa is an interior space in a nondescript building, I made an 'interpretive', spa-like tinybuilding, using the graphics of the card to shape the structure. This is a case where the card definitely does the space justice. Just looking at it makes me more relaxed....
The interior of the spa is similar to the tinybuilding: white curving walls and slotted display areas and windows.
I especially had fun 'twisting' the logotype around the structure. I think it is rather Zen-like, whatever that means....
I did use multiple cards here, because I wanted the IO flag on top, leading you to a wonderful, relaxing and rejuvenating spa experience.
c. 2006
Let me tell you about the most wonderful 'food street' in San Francisco...maybe even in the U.S. - Eighteenth Street, between Guerrero and Dolores, in the Mission district...This is foodie heaven. On the corner is Tartine Bakery. Next to it it Delfina Pizzeria, an annex to Delfina. and next to that is Bi-Rite Market, a small, family-owned market with everything you could want to prepare a wonderful meal. A little farther up the street, and across, is Bi-Rite Creamery...unimaginably good ice cream in very imaginative flavors.
So, walking less than a block, you can have brunch, a very special pizza, shop for dinner or make a reservation at Delfina, then hop just the block for an ice cream cone to carry around the block as you try to walk off the pounds. You will have had some of the best meals ever! No exaggeration.
This particular tinybuilding is my granddaughter's. She had dinner there when she was about two weeks old. She was very well behaved and charmed all the staff and customers. Her parents also have a Delfina in their collection because it is a very special place to them. They got engaged there, had their rehearsal dinner there, and have celebrated many other times of there lives together there.
Delfina is about 3/4 inch square. The shape is somehow reminiscent of Tuscan farm outbuildings I saw there some years back. The *real* Delfina Restaurant was originally inspired by a small well-respected restaurant of the same name somewhere in Tuscany. We tried to eat there on our travels, but it was vacation season and the owners and chef had fled to wherever Italians go when they just can't stand one more American.
If you find yourself in San Francisco, go to Delfina and order the tomato-sauced pasta. So simple and so delicious.
c. 2007
This is the most recent tinybuilding in my granddaughter's collection. She has, at 4 months, already dined there at least twice.
This is one of the rare situations where the graphics of the restaurant's business card do not do the restaurant justice. The design, service and food and wine at Universal Cafe are much more sophisticated than this ugly card. I mean, why the red and blue; and why that nasty distorted star?
So, I had a rather hard time convincing myself to make a structure from it. If the restaurant didn't have such a presence in the SFO family's lives, I would never have bothered. My response was to make a little visual joke: the shape of the tinybuilding is reminiscent of a church - the Universal church. hahaha.
But here it is. The Universal 'church' is about 1-1/2 inch tall.
c. 2007
The de Young Museum, in Golden Gate Park, is a nice surprise amongst the slightly musty traditional buildings and shady walkways. This is my attempt to interpret the structure of the building-recalling the peek-a-boo quality of the facade and the airplane wing effect of the roof. Of course, the tinybuilding is made from one of the nicely designed, over-sized business cards from the Museum. The tinybuilding is about 1-1/2 inches square.
c. 2006
A tiny pizza 'parlor' that is not much bigger than the tinybuilding version.
This is an 'interpretive' structure- the original restaurant is on the street level of a 3-4 story building. The graphics of the business card, with the large, bold numbers, inspired the shape of the structure -'super' graphics redeux.
c. 2005
The BEST bakery on earth! [even Mark Bittman agrees.] And the morning bun- a cinnamon roll for the gods- is the best-of-the-best. It is impossible to fore go them if you are in the Mission neighborhood. The lines are long and the service is sporadic, but it's all worthwhile.
This is one of the tiny buildings that is an attempt to replicate the actual structure. Go see for yourself. It is also one of the larger buildings. It is about 3-1/2 inches by 2-1/2 inches by 2-1/2 inches high.
c. 2004
This is the yummiest ice cream store on earth. It opened in the Spring of 2007, in the Mission District. It is just up the street from Bi-Rite Market and Tartine's, and Delfina's. Can you imagine a better food street to live 'just-around-the-corner' from?
This is made from a single business card. i am particularly proud of the fold-down benches below the windows, which are just like on the real building. Although this is not an 'exact' replica of the building, it does resemble it - in actuality, the roof line is not an integral sign...but it could be/ought to be.
c. 2007
