My name is Christina Pardy, I am a 31 year old who is completely in love in miniatures. I have been born and raised in the same house just south of Boston, Massachusetts. For my full time job I work in Marketing, Web Design, and as a Driver for a Custom Fabrication Company. I plow and sand for the City of Boston in the winter, and in the summer I work for a BBQ Caterer.

I'm not sure really when I began getting interested in miniatures, as I go along with my mini hobby I notice small things that show that I've always been in love with minis.

When I was about five or six my father helped me build a basic train set. I guess, now that I'm looking back, I got into landscaping back then, but I didn't completely pick up miniatures as a hobby until about 2000. My summer hobby of working on my car took a turn for the worse when I blew the motor of my car. I had parked out in front of the dining room, and I got sick of looking at it, so I went into the basement to start cleaning (no windows there) and I came across two of my childhood dollhouses. That was when I decided that I wanted to build a real dollhouse of my own.

So that's pretty much how my hobby began. Though I can trace my love of dollhouses back to my first trip to Germany when I was only 18 months old and my grandmother's neighbor gave me their dollhouse to bring home with me.

In 2004 I decided to enter the contest over at Hobby Builder's supply. I went and bought the Sugarplum, and created it into something magical. Which ended up winning me the grand prize that year. You can check out the photos here.

What inspires me to make miniatures is being able to make people smile. When people look at my miniatures and find all the hidden treasures I've put into the details, which makes them smile, and leaving them looking for more things they may have missed. The smiles and happiness that my miniatures bring is the best feeling. I also like photos of other people's work, these inspire me, I like to see what other people have made, and challenge myself to take it those ideas one step further.

I like to build old world rustic houses, castles, towers. I love the style and design in the older houses and castles I've visited in my 8 or 9 trips to my mothers home land. So my thought is if I can't be in Germany I'll bring Germany to me in mini.

I also love building landscapes, I love nature in real life and it great to have you own little garden in your office or home to shed light on the day.

As a Miniaturist I do belong to a few miniature clubs and groups. I am a member of NAME. I am on the staff over at www.AllThingsMini.com, and I am a member of the "Green Socks on Left Foot On Tuesdays" miniature club (or GSOLFOT for short). GSOLFOT is such an amazing club with amazing miniaturists, both in their abilities and personalities. If you haven't heard of these clubs and groups please please check them out.

Words of wisdom, and advice for those who are new to the miniatures world. A think a few words of wisdom that I may have to share is be patient. Take the little extra time to do the research, maybe a few sketches and measurements, it will help out better in the long run. But yes, most of all be patient, if you don't like how it turned out it doesn't hurt to try it again. And don't be afraid to try new things and practice.

My Life Outside of Miniatures

Outside of miniatures I have one major hobby out side of miniatures and that is my love for vehicles, both cars and trucks. I have a Custom 1980 Cutlass Supreme that I've had for about seven years now. I enjoy doing custom modifications to show and race to it. I also have a Lifted 1988 Chevy Short Bed Pick-Up that I do a lot of four wheeling and fixing. I enjoy everything from building engines to custom dashboards, uphostery, and stereo systems. I belong to the Canton Classic Car Club, and attend local cruise nights to share my enjoyment of these metal beasts with others. When building miniatures I look to my automotive hobby for new ideas, such as the lighting used in the Midnight in the Secret Garden of the Fairies. The blue light is used in car interiors.

Besides my cars I also enjoy boating, fishing, I am an active member at Port Norfolk Yacht Club. I also enjoy working on my patios and real-life sized watergardens that dot the parimeter of my home. Nature is always a part of me.

Another seasonal hobby which keeps my mini mind open is frequenting the local Renessance Faire, King Richard's Faire in Carve, MA. There's just something about getting dressed up in my own hand-sewn garb and dissapearing into a time long past.

Conclusion

I hope you've enjoyed reading about what makes his Miniaturist tick. If you have any questions or such, feel free to contact me at anytime.

Thank You,

Christina Pardy