At the Show - Holiday Wreaths & Swags

Laura Montgomery of Milestone Miniatures makes a variety of Christmas trees, wreaths, swags, garlands, and more for the holiday season. Look for her table at this year's show. hobbyqueen@mail.com,  www.milestoneminiatures.com

At the Show - Holiday Treats

A long-time dealer at Good Sam, Lola Renner, Lola's Originals, makes a delightful selection of Christmas treats. Her line of miniature foods is extensive and includes selections for other holidays as well as fabulous wedding cakes. Do stop by Lola's table to feast your eyes on fabulous miniature foods and desserts.
http://lola-originals.com

One of Lola's spectacular Gingerbread houses.

Glass tree filled with colorful ribbon candy.

Ribbon candy and Christmas cake with red ribbon, holly berries and leaves.

Tray of assorted chocolates. Candy wreath of fruit-sliced candy. Box of gingerbread boys.

At the Show - Christmas Elf Shoes

IGMA Fellow Sylvia Rountree, The Dolls' Cobbler, makes eye-catching leather shoes for Santa's elves. She designs fashionable women's shoes in wonderful colors and fabrics to capture your imagination. Her line of men's footwear is extensive and the children's shoes are adorable. There are always fun surprises. Be sure to stop by her table and take a look. dollscobbler.com

At the Show - Christmas Nutcrackers

Tom Lee, Lee's Microcosm, makes an extensive line of miniature Nutcrackers with working jaws about 1-1/4-inches tall. An IGMA Artisan, he also makes a large number of toys perfect for holiday scenes. Tom and his wife Linda will be dealers at this year's show. glenlee5@sbcglobal.net

At the Show - Christmas Bear with Trunk

Deb Laue, Dragonfly International, is a very long-time dealer at Good Sam. She offers an extensive line of kits, supplies, and crafter tools for the do-it-yourself miniaturist. This adorable 1-3/4" Christmas-themed doll trunk with tiny dressed teddy bear is one of Deb's most recent kits. She is also offering the kit as a Friday workshop at this year's Good Sam Show. www.dragonflyintl.com

At the Show - More Christmas Toys and Collectibles

Shellie Kazan owns Shellie's Miniature Mania, a local miniature store in San Carlos, CA. In addition to a fine line of artisan-made dollhouse miniatures, she offers workshops and classes. To see more offerings, visit Shellie's on-line store, www.shelliesminis.com. Be sure to stop by her table at this year's show.

Enchanting elf delivers Christmas presents on her pet unicorn. By doll artist Cindi Cannon,  Wee Beings.

Handmade dolls for dollhouse children dressed to perfection by Almudene Ferrandez, Spain.

Bow rocker with horse to ride and baskets for toys. Doll's pram with standing horse. Child's push horse toy. All handcrafted by David Daws, England.

At the Show - Christmas Exhibits

This week's exhibits from past Good Sam shows continue the celebration of Christmas in July.  Each scene is unique and brings special joy to the Holiday Season. Photos by Connie Sauve.

Santa's Workshop set in lighted Holiday wreath. From the 2008 Good Sam Show. Exhibitor's name unknown.

Hansel & Gretel Gingerbread House decorated for the Holidays. From the 2008 Good Sam Show. Exhibitor's name unknown.

Gingerbread themed Christmas display features Mrs. Claus baking for the Holidays. From the 2007 Good Sam Show. Exhibitor's name unknown.

At the Show - Christmas in July

This week and next, we will be celebrating "Christmas in July." It is with great pleasure that we share some of the enchanting holiday miniatures created by artisans attending Good Sam the last few years. All of the dealers featured here (except for one) are scheduled to be at the 2012 show.

Erik Goddard's "Christmas Past" in 1:12 scale portrays the streets of a London square in a bygone era. The bookshop has an upstairs apartment lit by a Christmas tree. The bakery/wine shop displays items through its windows. At the fall show, stop by Erik's table to see more of his fine miniature architecture. www.erikgoddard.com

"Christmas Past." Long-ago London square at holiday time.

Playful elves in front of the Christmas Past bookstore. New and different elves are created by Fern Vasi every holiday season. fernvasidolls@yahoo.com

At the Show - Holiday Elves and Santa

Holiday Christmas elves from a popular series created by doll artist Fern Vasi for more than twenty years. While their clothing is made from the same fabrics and they resemble one other, each one is doing something different. This enables miniaturists to add delightful new elves to their collection each year. Do stop by Fern's table to enjoy her full line of character dolls. You will surely be enchanted. fernvasidolls@yahoo.com

Four little Christmas elves, all doing something fun and interesting.

Resting Santa and Christmas elf playing with puppy. Sold separately.

At the Show - Christmas figures, One-inch and Quarter-Scale

Gayle Clausen of GayleDolls likes her 1:12 scale dolls to tell a story without words. They all have armature, flexible arms, and are poseable. She works in both one-inch and quarter-scale. You will be amazing at Gayle's wide variety of reasonably priced character dolls. Stop by her table and take a look. www.gayledolls.com

Singing Holiday Chefs.

Little boy waiting for Santa in one-inch scale. Quarter-scale holiday figures decorate the fireplace mantle.

Sleeping Santa surrounded by toys, gifts and goodies.

Quarter-scale scene with Christmas carolers.

At the Show, Santa with Friends & wee Christmas Village

IGMA Fellow Sylvia Mobley created a very naturalistic Santa in a woodland setting. He is accompanied by a very realistic reindeer and other North American wildlife. Stop by Sylvia's table to see her fine line of porcelain dolls ranging from ballet dancers to fantasy figures. Not to be missed are her figures of cats and dogs,  rabbits and hares, raccoons and ferrets, wild cats and dogs, and baby animalss. pinerose@dishmail.net, www.sylviamobley.com

Santa and friends.

Santa in 1:12 scale

Tiny Christmas Village with buildings 1/2” to 1-1/8” high. Sold separately or as display.

At the Show - Holiday Decor & Toys

IGMA Fellow Karen Markland offers charming hand-painted Christmas collectibles as part of her line. She designs in a unique vintage folk art and country casual style. Do stop by Karen's table at the fall show to see her wide range of whimsical 1:12 scale handcrafted furniture, accessories, and toys. Expect to be enchanted. Tel: 281-492-8496

Sled, wood Santa Christmas tree, and basket with gingerbread cookies.

Brambly Hedge mouse family celebrating Christmas. Hand-painted screen.

Handmade and painted Christmas toys.

Handcrafted and decorated gingerbread kitchen bin table.

At the Show - Holiday Decor with Anthro Animals & Toys

Paulette Svec creates fanciful anthropomorphic dressed animals and holiday accessories including hand-crocheted Christmas stockings. In addition to fully jointed whimsical animals, she makes teddy bears, doll trunks, filled toy boxes, and more. Animals range from 5/8" to 6". Be sure to check out Paulette's table at this year's show. psvecmini@yahoo.com

Santa Bear in sled laden with handmade toys.

Giraffe family in gay Christmas attire.

At the Show - Christmas Toys & Collectibles from Spain

Paola Ojeda and Alvaro Rodriguez of Taller Targioni in Spain make an eclectic selection of eye-catching furniture and accessories in 1:12 scale. Their original designs include charming holiday decor and toys. While they will not be at this year's show, you can order through their website. info@tallertargioni.com,    www.tallertargioni.com

Doll pulling wood cart with toys. Photo courtesy of S P Miniatures, www.spminiatures.com

Miniature theater with Victorian Christmas scene. Lights up. Photo courtesy of S P Miniatures, www.spminiatures.com

At the Show - Holiday Decor

A dealer at Good Sam for 30 years, Carla Gaustad specializes in selling original miniatures handcrafted by international artisans. She also designs an occasional holiday item utilizing her antique card collection. Striving for a collage effect, Carla mixes scales and assembles different objects to create collectibles such as the Christmas scene shown here. Tel: 949-768-5636, jgaustad1@cox.net

One-of-a-kind Holiday scene by Carla Gaustad.

At the Show - Quarter-Scale Christmas House

The Santa's Workshop kit is one of the themed structures from Karen Cary's Miniatures. Karen and her husband offer an extensive range of fascinating quarter-scale kits for structures and furniture. They also provide laser cut decorative molding, trim, railings, gates, stairs, windows and doors. You will enjoy stopping by their table at the fall show to see what's new. minis@karencary.com, www.karencary.com

Santa's Workshop kit in quarter-scale, $65. Furniture kits available for bedroom, table, chairs, pet bed and toy box.

At the Show - Christmas Decor including Quarter-scale, 1:144th Scale

Barbara and Lew Kummerow started making miniatures 40 years ago and are regular dealers at Good Sam. They specialize in toys, Tiffany lamps and screens, 1/144th scale houses and furniture, and holiday items. Do stop by the Kummerows table to see their Christmas scenes and much more. kumini@tcsn.net

Santa Christmas scene in the German style, 1/4" scale, 6" x 8" base.

Christmas tree with putz (miniature) village on table, 1:12 scale. Tree lights are a self-contained unit.

Winter house in 1:144th scale, 3" long.

At the Show - Christmas Exhibits

This week's exhibits from past Good Sam Shows all have a holiday theme. Photos are courtesy of Connie Sauve unless otherwise noted.

"Christmas Conservatory" exhibited by Lynn Miller, Mountain View, CA at the 2011 show. Designed by Marjolein Bastin, it was sold in Hallmark shops in 2001. The other pieces are Hallmark ornaments by various designers. Lynn designed and made the poinsettias and many of the flower arrangements. She has been attending and exhibiting at Good Sam for more than 23 years. She is a member of the Mini Attics miniature group.

"Christmas Conservatory."

"My Favorite Christmas" exhibited by Alexis Kovalik, San Jose, CA at the 2011 Show. This delightful Christmas Tree under a glass dome was made by Alexis and her grandmother. It includes many of Alexis' favorite things.

"My Favorite Christmas" exhibit under glass dome.

Della Robbia over the door swag and wreath by Nancy Wantiez exhibited at the 2011 Good Sam Show. Nancy enjoys creating scenes in miniature, especially Christmas ones. She also makes and sells 1:12 scale hats, accessories, and other items.

Door with lovely Della Robbia swag and holiday wreath. Photo by Michael Puff.

Adorable stackable Snowman with interior scene. Exhibit made from a set of three round nesting hat boxes with lids. Exhibitor's name is unknown. Displayed at the 2007 Good Sam Show.

Nothing says wintertime like a jolly snowman! Lots of charming detail.

Interior with scene featuring happy little snowman collectibles.