Inspiration: The Thorne Rooms

I am a perfectionist by nature, so of course as soon as I decide to do something, I have to do it as perfectly as possible! I hadn't been researching miniatures too long before I stumbled onto the Thorne Rooms, incredibly detailed 1/12 scale miniature rooms designed by Mrs. James Ward Thorne and built by master craftsmen in the 1930s. Many of them are on display at the Art Institute of Chicago. They are absolutely breathtaking.


Of course, once I'd seen them, I knew I had to try to achieve their level of perfection. I never will, of course; I don't have Mrs. Thorne's resources and will be doing almost all the work myself, rather than hiring master craftsmen. But this is the level of realism I'm striving for when building each room of my house. The challenge lies in seeing how close I can get to perfection!