Apples Tearooms is now (finally) open for business.

The inspiration for this property is numerous trips to York and the little surrounding villages that all seem to have traditional Tearooms, some with gift shops included.   Whether or not they have living accomodation above, I don't know but it seemed fitting to have that here.

I have been taking loads of pictures for you now that The Tearooms is finished.   There are still one or two items to be had but I can't do anything about that until NEC in March and they don't really affect the overall look.

It's the plan to post a couple of "floors" a day and then show the final whole interior so please bear with me!   Today it's the basement which contain the Kitchen and Storeroom/Office and the Ground Floor which house the actual Tearooms themselves.

The exterior finish was created using a Richard Bromley stencil and compound.

I can now turn the board showing "Closed" to reveal the menu which has remaind hidden for two years.

The little set on the table was purchased from Carol Cook.

As both the Kitchen and the Storeroom/Office are in the Basement, the theory is that the door back left of the Kitchen leads up to one of the doors to the right hand side of the Tearoom itself (the one marked "Staff Only"). One item I would point out is the dishwasher to the right of the picture. Press a button and it makes "working dishwasher" noises. A brilliant addition, I thought and purchased from Elf Miniatures as was the kitchen itself - one of the flexi kits.

Items here were purchased from a variety of sellers both through ebay and various fairs.   My favourite items just have to be the two pastries, shown front left from Paris Miniatures.

There is still some space in the store room cupboard that can take additional items as and when I see them.

Note the Scottish potatoes - well, I had to, didn't I?

Every Secretary appreciates a cup of tea, especially if the wastepaper basket is anything to go by - it doesn't look like she's having a very good day.

On the next level up are The Tearooms themselves.

Almost there..........

I'm determined to get the Tearooms finished this week.

There were a few bits of tidying up to do and some touching up of paintwork to be dealt with.   I never did find that television that I was searching for given the amount of space I have in the Sitting Room but I'll keep looking, there are still some accessories to add and I'd like in time to fill the drawers of the chest in the Bedroom but that isn't holding up progress.

I'm also awaiting delivery of a coffee table and once that's dressed, that's it.

In the meantime though, I thought you'd like to have a little look through the bedroom window - no one's looking, so go on - take a peek!

Happy New Year!

A guid new year to ane an' a'

An' mony may ye see,

An' during a' the years to come,

O happy may ye be.

An' may ye ne'er hae cause to mourn,

To sigh or shed a tear;

To ane an'a baith great an' sma'

A hearty guid New year.

In translation reads:

A good New Year to one and all

And many may you see,

And during all the years to come,

Oh happy may you be.

And may you never have cause to mourn

To sigh or shed a tear;

To one and all, both great and small

A hearty good New Year!

Slainte!

Season's Greetings

I'd like to take this opportunity of wishing all my followers a very Merry Christmas from my home to yours.

York Fair

Yet again, a sorry little post! It seems I'm destined not to get all the little bits I need to finish this property - at least not all in one go! This time, my sole item for The Tearooms was a till. It's a bit too bright and shiny for my liking so I'll have to dull it down and I was so sure I'd be able to find just the right television for this room that I ended up very disappointed not to get one. Either I rethink this idea or continue the search.

I did however manage to buy loads for my other property (no blog yet until this one is finished) but you'll have to wait for that!

A very warm welcome to my new followers, it's very nice to have you here and I hope you like what you see.

An odd little post!

It's a slightly odd little post for The Tearooms regarding my Miniatura purchases. All I managed to get was a counter. I figured this was missing from the Gift Gallery so that will be waxed and put in place some time this week.

Although not related to The Tearooms, I also purchased some needle files, wood and flooring (which unfortunately you can't see as it's rolled up the wrong way!)

A lot of other purchases were made on Sunday but some of these relate to a completely different property (no blog yet) and it wont be too long now before The Tearooms property is complete.

There's every likelihood a giveaway will happen then - I just have to give it a bit more thought.

An update

At last I have something to show you all in the Gift Gallery.   I wasn't happy with all the white furniture (I thought shabby was the way to go with this initially but it doesn't come naturally to me and at first I couldn't figure out why I couldn't get to grips with this room - now I know.   Stick to what you know best!).   The changes aren't probably that obvious at first glance but I've moved things around and stripped the corner cupboard of the white paint and waxed it.   I'm much happier with it now.   I've also changed the contents of the cupboard. Since this picture was taken I've also filled the little stand with cards. I'm still not sure about the pedestal with the white flowers though. They may move and I'd like to get something to put in the centre of this room. Everything's round the sides at the moment.

I've changed some pictures around in this room but unfortunately I can't do anything about the white shelving on the right hand wall. I shouldn't have glue-ed it on! I'm just going to live with it though as it's not that offensive.

The smaller of the two rooms has had the "stock" moved around and repositioned. For some reason I feel more comfortable with this room. Maybe I need more stock for the other one.

Other progress I've made with this property is to the living quarters "above the shop". These consist of a lounge and a bedroom. They're very bare at the moment as I'm looking for accessories and there's a fair not too far away at the end of August which should take care of that. I have to say, I can see myself sitting in this little room!

I still need to fix on the door frame and I've been looking for a television I like, but nothing's presented itself yet.

Finally, the bedroom. Again accessories are need in this room and I've a lamp I'd like to fit either here or in the room next door. I'm pleased with the way this is looking and I love the dressing gown on the hook!

As soon as I'm completely happy with this I'll post pictures showing more detail.