Bluette Meloney with stacks of room boxes at Good Sam Showcase
Bluette Meloney, Miniature Artisan
Bluette Meloney passed away on Sunday, June 4, 2017. A nationally acclaimed IGMA Artisan in Faux Finishes, Bluette made distinctive 1:12 scale structures and hand-painted furniture. She used realistic decorative faux finishes and Trompe L’Oeil (fool the eye) painting
techniques in all of her designs. Following is the About the Artist’s Work page of Bluette’s webpage, which is being maintained:
Bluette Meloney, IGMA Artisan in Faux Finishes
Working exclusively in 1:12 scale, my architectural designs are wide-ranging, diverse and reflect many time periods. Structures are eclectic and embrace Old World buildings and
Hall of Mirrors Room Box
quaint country room boxes. Recent designs include an exquisite hand-painted children’s Nursery and a theatrical modern day shop, the Kaleidoscope, inspired by MacKenzie-Childs furniture.
All of my work incorporates decorative faux (fake) finishes, trompe-l’oeil (fool the eye) painting techniques, fine details, and superb lighting.
Lop-eared rabbit in the Nursery Room Box
For me, faux finishes are part of the magic of decorative painting. I use a variety of techniques such as aging, faux bois (false wood), faux verdigris (aged copper), marbling, creating patinas, gold leaf, and more. I use “Trompe l’oeil” painting techniques in a fun way to create decorative optical illusions.
In 2010, I launched a line of unique hand-painted collectible furniture. I specialize in custom upholstered sofas, settees and chairs with hand-painted fabrics and handmade pillows. I hand-paint and decorate armoires and chests, then add faux marble tops and tassel drawer pulls.?
I like to embellish the woods with antique gold bas-relief, gold gilt or gold-silver gilt. Then I hand-paint the fabrics–often with a floral design. Furniture prices range from $50 to $350 depending on the detail and complexity of the painting.
A life-long resident of the San Francisco Bay Area, I hold a degree in Interior and Architectural Design. My talented husband Jack builds the majority of the structures I design. Each new structure offers the delight of the unexpected. There is always room for a new twist and creative play.
Good Sam Showcase of Miniatures
Bluette was a regular at the Good Sam Showcase, teaching and exhibiting her amazing work.
Each year, the Show brings together more than 100 U.S. and international artisans and dealers, offer collectors unique, well-crafted 1-inch, 1/2-inch, and 1/4-inch scale miniatures from around the world.
Edwardian Gentlemen’s Apartment
The Good Sam website archives are a valuable source of information. I was disappointed at first that there is no “search” filed, but scrolling through the archives year-by-year brought up pleasant surprises.
Faux Finishes by Bluette Meloney
There is a DVD available on Amazon where Bluette gave away, (well, sold), trade secrets. Here is the editorial review:
Bluette Meloney, an award-winning miniaturist, presents a faux finishes primer for both novice and experienced miniaturists in this step-by-step instructional video, sharing her passion for creating various realistic finishes. You’ll see this expert instructor demonstrate these techniques, live and up-close with no-nonsense demonstrations using inexpensive, easy to find materials.
Click here for a link to the DVD.
There is so much to learn from Bluette’s work. I hope you find this post, and the sites to which it is linked, informative.
Susan Downing, with Patrick Owens
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I invite you to visit my Etsy Shop where I offer many accessories and pieces of furniture in 1:12 scale.
