Miniature Tropical Vacation Hotel Roombox

Completed on November 21, 2010
The box was a football display case on clearance because the original glass in the back was missing. I created walls and a floor, then put a fake window in the back wall. There is a pocket on the outer back of the box so different scenes can be put in the window.
The floor and walls (inside and out) were covered with scrapbook paper. The window in the back was made with balsa wood and I used plastic packaging to simulate glass.
The window photos can make the room look like it's on the first or second floor. I rolled a piece of bamboo place mat from the dollar store to look like an open window roller shade.
The bed comforter and pillows patterns were made in Word. I printed on canvas fabric, then sewed into comforter and pillows. The headboard was made with mat board covered with needlepoint canvas and framed with wood trim. ​I embellished with scrapbook stickers.
I found a musical greeting card that played a tropical-reggae song. I removed the musical "guts" from the card and glued them to the back of the headboard.  I glued the shell arrangement on top to cover the pull-tabbed part of the greeting card. Pull the shell arrangement forward to play the music, then push it back into place to stop the music. I used a piece of mat board and hook and loop tape to cover up the back.
The booklets and pad of paper on the bed are printies. The couch was made with illustration board, foam board and covered with cotton fabric. I printed the pillows on canvas, then sewed them up using cotton balls as stuffing. The items on the coffee table were purchased, except for the candle. the candle pillar is a painted mechanical pencil eraser with a piece of thread glued in place as a wick. I glued the candle to a wooden disk, then glued tiny shells around it.
The coffee table and night stands are made from illustration board covered with needlepoint canvas. I used split round dowels for the legs, and split toothpicks and skewers for the other bamboo accents. I wrapped the pieces with thread, then used a variety of color paints to create a worn, washed look to the wood. I painted the illustration board tops to look like wood. The room service menu is a printie.
The lamps were made with beads, flip-flop charms and velum for the shades. I printed black seahorses to glue onto the shades. The phone and glassware was purchased. The clock radio is printies glued onto a painted piece of dollar store gum eraser. The desk is illustration board and balsa wood.
The stool was made using a basket. I covered a disk with a piece of dollar tree makeup sponge and cotton fabric. Purchased trim was glued around the top edge. The mirror is a piece of cut-able mirror replacement from an automotive store. I trimmed the mirror with cardboard and painted it to look like wood. Then I glued on shells and scrapbook embellishments.
The TV is a cell phone screen. The wall decorations and signs are scrapbook embellishments. The sand dollars were glued onto small pieces of tile trim.
The beach sign is a scrapbook sticker glued onto pieces of scrapbook paper. I made the frame with trim and used plastic packaging as glass in the frame. The gift basket has printies and painted dowel pieces to look like cans of nuts, boxes of chocolates and pretzels.
The red suitcase is a Hallmark ornament. I glued printies of map, magazine and sun tan lotion coming out of the pocket. The other two suitcases are made from an Altoid tin and a Camel snuff tin covered with scrapbook card and thin leatherette. I used flip-phone cell keys for the luggage latches. I glued metal strips to the floor of the box and magnets to the bed, nightstand and luggage. This was so the bed could be removed when replacing the battery in the back.
I had such fun in designing the items for this room. A football display case is just the right size!
Home
​© Elaine Goodwin, 2020. No part of this site, Elaine Goodwin Miniatures - elaineminis.com, may be reproduced in whole or in part in any manner without the permission of the copyright owner.