Miniature food. Culinary miniature - making toy food with your own hands from various materials

24-year-old French artist Stephanie Kilgas creates miniature food models on a scale of 1 to 12, which are no different from the original. She uses scalpels, blades, toothpicks and polymer clay to create her delicacies. Stephanie made her first miniature in 2007, and today her collection includes more than 600 dishes.

1. Continental breakfast: croissants with butter and jam and black coffee. (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

2. . Stephanie creates her creations from polymer clay using scalpels, blades, stationery knives and toothpicks. One such job takes up to three hours. The first miniature was created in 2007. (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

3. Chocolate eclairs, profiteroles and cakes. The details are made from simple acrylic paint. (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

4. Traditional English breakfast: eggs, bacon, sausages, beans and lots of toast. For sophisticated designs, Stephanie has to turn to a magnifying glass for help. (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

5. Baskets of pears next to a nickel for comparison. Having started her activity in 2007, Stephanie has already made about 600 models of cakes, baked goods, meat products and other “goodies”. (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

6. She sells her work online. “I started this activity without a specific goal, after finishing art classes,” says Stephanie, who lives in at the moment in France. (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

7. “I just wanted to explore the world of miniature art, and my subject became food. Gradually I liked it and started selling them.” (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

8. Stephanie started working on her mini-masterpieces out of boredom during the summer holidays. (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

9. “Creating a miniature sweets buffet can take a long time. But if I make a regular breakfast tray, it takes about three hours.” (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

10. Lately, Stephanie has started making earrings and clips out of her masterpieces. (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

11. Stephanie's main clients are dollhouse lovers. (Stephanie Kilgast/Barcroft USA)

Hello, dear Gossip Girls!
Today I would like to talk about the master of miniature (Miniature Food Artist) - Stephanie Kilgast ( Stephanie Kilgast) . I learned about it from the Food Network channel. I'm a huge fan of the Food Network, where you can be inspired by the skills of famous chefs, learn new cooking recipes (some of which I've tried quite successfully in real life), and learn about such unusual masters as Stephanie Kilgast. There are also artists who create portraits of celebrities using products whose work is truly impressive, although I'm not entirely sure what the point of such creativity is. Probably in uniqueness.
In short videos shown on the Food Network, Stephanie admits that miniature creations are her passion, an activity that requires perseverance, patience, and a lot of time. I was amazed that Stephanie was able to turn her hobby and passion into a serious business of her life; not everyone can do this, I think. Her tenacity and talent are undeniably admirable.

Stephanie creates tiny 1:12 scale replicas of a variety of dishes from painted polymer clay.

Despite its miniature size, the realism and level of detail is amazing. Her tiny masterpieces look fresh and appetizing and differ from the original only in size. Stephanie’s works have found wide recognition among collectors (what dollhouse would be complete without a kitchen and a set table), as well as lovers of custom jewelry, because many of the miniatures are made in the form of rings, earrings and pendants (I checked their cost on the website - 20 €).

Sweet table:) I wouldn’t refuse such sweets.

Stephanie at work

Stephanie was born in 1985 in Frankfurt, Germany into an international family (her mother is German, her father is Finnish). Now lives and works in France in the city of Vannes in western Brittany. Fluent in English, French and German, he has a master's degree in architecture. In 2007, during the summer holidays, out of boredom, I started sculpting miniature food products from polymer clay, not expecting that an unexpected hobby would become my life’s work.

English breakfast

Cheese plate

The origins of this hobby come from childhood, when little Stephanie created furniture and clay food for her favorite Barbie doll. The first work made from polymer clay was a bread baguette, and now there are about 600 of them - cakes, vegetables and fruits, a variety of pastries, meat and fish dishes. In 2008, her blog and online store PetitPlat appeared online.

Creating one dish takes about three hours of painstaking work using a magnifying glass. But the result is always above all praise; it is not for nothing that such publications as New York Times and The Telegraph, and exhibitions took place not only in France, but in Chile and China. At just under 30 years old, Stephanie is a recognized master of polymer clay works, having published a textbook book “A Festive Feast in Miniature” (Repas de fête en miniature) in two languages, English and French.

Seafood

Sushi rolls

Fruits and vegetables. Everything looks very tasty.

Every girl today has a Monster High or Barbie doll. Her favorite toy also has clothes, a house, furniture and even toy dishes. But there is no doll food on small plates. There is a proposal to make yourself delicious miniatures from polymer clay for Monster High or for the Russian doll Masha.

Where to look for ideas

What can you “cook” from polymer clay? Let us answer in one word - everything. Exactly any miniature food your heart desires. If the dolls share your culinary preferences, then take on making your favorite dishes:

• miniature vegetables or fruits;
• soups and side dishes, salads;
• crispy-skinned chicken or fish with sauce;
• miniature sweets - cakes, cookies, muffins and pastries, an abundance of sweets and ice cream;
• Perhaps you have never tried sushi, but the doll loves Japanese cuisine;
• or you want to feed them something delicious, dishes that every gourmet dreams of trying at least once in their life, etc.

Today you can find any colors and shades of plastic on sale; the material can be soft or hard, slightly transparent or not, have a pearlescent tint, shine, or glow in the dark. In addition, any colors of polymer clay can be mixed with each other to obtain a new, desired shade.

The plastic is easily kneaded in the hands, and then molded from it necessary products. There is polymer clay that can be baked - then the finished craft will need to be put in the oven for a while and baked so that it becomes strong and hard. There is also the option of self-hardening plastic. There is no need to bake products made from it.

To find inspiration and gain experience, it is better to start by watching examples or master classes of real masters of their craft, because their miniature food for dolls turns out to be so realistic that you will have an irresistible desire to eat everything at once.

Among such masters are artists Shai (Shee) Aaron, Gail and Eileen Tucker, Kiva Atkinson. Some of them make their crafts from polymer clay according to ancient recipes, making miniature dishes that were served to the table, for example, in the times of King George or Louis, in the Victorian era, etc.

Culinary miniatures made from polymer clay require patience, perseverance and precision in detail, since the products are so tiny that they can fit on your fingertips. But the result is worth all the effort - real product masterpieces come out of the master’s hands, which are always unique and one of a kind.

To work with thermoplastics, double-sided stacks are required different sizes and molds, a rolling pin for rolling out clay, a knife and other available tools and materials. Special ovens are sold in craft stores for firing the product. You can also use a regular kitchen one, which must be washed after use. You cannot bake polymer clay miniatures in the microwave.

We bring to your attention simple master classes with which you can quickly and easily get involved in this interesting and exciting creativity.

Miniature vegetables

1. In order for Monster High to have food made from polymer clay in the kitchen, you need the clay itself (orange and green), stacks and scissors.
2. Let's first roll the orange plastic into a ball, and then make a cone out of it. This is the future carrot for the doll.
3. We will roll the same cone, but smaller, from green plastic.
4. We cut the future tops into four leaves and straighten them in a stack.
5. We press a shallow dent in the end of the orange cone and insert the tops there.
6. To make the carrot look natural, you need to make shallow lines.
7. Well, the carrot is ready - the most useful vegetable for Monster High.

A slightly different technique is used to make an ear of corn. We form the core from green clay. You can use improvised material. We roll a long rope out of yellow plastic and wind it onto the core in a tight spiral. Draw longitudinal stripes in a stack. Cut out thin green leaves and wrap them around the cob.

Food for dolls can be very varied. You can treat Monster High to cakes, pastries and multi-layer sandwiches. But, in order to maintain such a thin waist as hers, it is still better and healthier to eat vegetables and fruits.

Culinary miniature “Roast with vegetables”

Operating procedure:

1. We cut out two circles with a diameter of 4.5 and 5.5 cm and a thickness of 2 mm from a white layer of clay. Place the larger circle on the smaller one, press the middle part, forming the middle of the plate.
2. Making cucumbers. We take 4 pieces of clay the size of hazelnuts of different colors and roll them out into layers 1 mm thick: light green is the core, greenish and white is the cucumber pulp around the core, dark green is the skin.
3. We make a light green sausage (length - 2.5 cm), wrap it with the remaining three layers in the sequence as shown in the diagram. We crush the future cucumber so that when cut it is not round, but oval. Place it in plastic for 10 minutes in the refrigerator. Next, we form the tail of the cucumber. Cut 4 circles and place everything together on a plate.
4. On the other side of the dish we place an onion made from 3 thin sausages and a small onion made of white plastic. We create mashed potatoes from a mixture of yellow and white clay. We form indentations on its surface, sprinkle with “fried onions” (scraps of a mixture of orange, green and brown plastic).
5. Cut carrots from the orange sausage into strips and throw them in a heap on the plate. We make the roast from caramel-colored clay and glue a dark brown strip on top. The shape of the roast can be taken in any shape, in large or small pieces. Bake the dish in the oven, then varnish the vegetables and the rim of the plate.

Miniature fruits and berries

Cut the yellow clay into equal pieces and roll them into balls. Roll them into cones, forming a banana. We stick a little green clay to the very tip and smear the edges. We combine several bananas into a bunch. Cut off the excess and blacken the end of the cut.

1. Fold white, yellow and red clay tightly and roll into a thin sheet.
2. Roll a tight tube lengthwise and form a brick. Cut it across and insert thin white plates into the cuts. Cut in half lengthwise and form them into two halves of a berry using polymer clay.
3. In the same way, make a plate from three colors (beige, yellow and white), twist it, form a cone and insert it inside the berry. Slice the strawberries into thin slices.

Oranges made of polymer clay

You can make beautiful food for dolls with your own hands if you work out a few simple techniques. For example, an orange can be made using three colors of clay: white, orange and yellow.

1. Roll orange sausages, cut them lengthwise, insert yellow clay into the cut and roll again.
2. Wrap the sausages in a thin white sheet and flatten them slightly on one side.
3. Place 8 sausages together, wrap them again with a white clay plate, and then with an orange one.
4. Roll a long orange over the grooved surface, creating a citrus peel effect.
5. Cut the orange into slices, drawing a design on them in a stack.

Lemon wedges

We use 3 colors of polymer clay:

• White Fimo classic
• Translucent yellow Fimo Effect
• Yellow PREMO Sculpey

Bread and sandwiches in miniature

Take a piece of bread-colored polymer clay and roll it into a ball and then into a sausage. Press the stack of strips. A loaf, carrot or banana is food for dolls that is not at all difficult to make. It is somewhat more difficult to make, for example, cut-away berries.

Sandwich with black caviar and cheese

Operating procedure:

1. From a layer of dark brown clay we form a slice of bread. Using a toothpick we give it a relief structure. We form a lettuce leaf from the green layer. In 3-4 places we pinch its edges with our fingers, slightly crumple the leaf, giving it a waviness. Place the salad on the prepared slice.
2. From the yellow layer, cut out a rectangle of cheese about 3 mm thick. We make holes in the cheese with a knife or special molds. We form half an egg from pieces of white and yellow clay and place it along with the cheese on the bread. Next, let the sandwich bake. When it has cooled, spread the middle of the lettuce leaf with transparent glue and sprinkle a small amount of black beads on it, which plays the role of caviar. The delicious sandwich is ready!

https://youtu.be/kYfjyx-rBxI

https://youtu.be/jeb_Pnu5eLo

https://youtu.be/u6bjyu6rsbI

https://youtu.be/3doJcqqoAKY

Miniature sweets

Polymer clay cupcake

For the cupcake you will need a small ball of brown clay. Press it down on one side so it can stand up like a cupcake. Then, with the knife facing up, make shallow strokes that imitate marks from corrugated paper (like real cupcakes). Now make a glaze for it - roll out a piece of clay of any bright color using a rolling pin and place the resulting cake with wavy edges on the base. Press so the edges face down. You can also make another layer of glaze of a different color and slightly smaller diameter. Top with a cherry or colorful sprinkles. Finished product Can be coated with clear varnish.

https://youtu.be/BP5gm2i5p5o

Sweet rolls

After such a cupcake, it may be too early to make cakes, but for rolls and other pastries it’s just right. Mash the white and yellow pieces of clay. Roll them into rectangles (white smaller, yellow larger). Place a rectangle of yellow plastic, and a white one on it, then slowly roll them into a roll (use tinting powder to give the roll a golden crust - sprinkle and shade as you roll). You can decorate the top with berries or cream.

https://youtu.be/Bqh_YyQ0Ayw

Bagels, bagels and donuts are also easy to mold. For example, a small plastic sausage can be a bagel, but if you twist it completely and cover it with chocolate icing and decorate it, you will get a donut or a cake.

Cakes, of course, are made more complicated. First you will need to make the cakes (you can use a coin to make the circles even and uniform), then cream or meringue (maybe jelly, if the recipe requires it) for the layer between the cakes. If you want the product to have an appetizing piece cut off, you will have to sand and decorate all the side walls. Also don't forget about the cream and decorations on top.

Delicious donuts

We will need: white or cream colored polymer clay, liquid plastic gel, acrylic paints and tools.

Step one. We cut the clay into pieces of the desired size and form balls.

Step two. Roll the balls with fine salt, lightly pressing it onto the products so as not to crumble.

Step three. Flatten the balls to form a donut shape.

Step four. Mark the holes with a stack and expand them with your finger so that the donuts take on their final shape. We fire the products for half an hour at a temperature of 110 °C.

Step five. We take the donuts out of the oven and wash the salt off them by soaking them in water. We take caramel-colored clay, chop it into pieces and mix it with liquid plastic gel. Let the mixture sit for 2-3 hours, then stir it until smooth and rub the donuts with this mixture (with your hands).

Step six. We cover the donuts with “glaze”, which we prepare in the same way as in the fifth step, using the desired colors. In our case, it is pink, white and chocolate. Next, we decorate the products, fire them and varnish them.

Miniature food: meat, fish, poultry

https://youtu.be/Bxm8Y6OTIIw

https://youtu.be/WWvxpSwDV_I

Recipes according to which children “cook” mini-meals in a toy dish are of little interest to anyone, perhaps only their parents. Another case is if recipes for miniature dishes are presented on YouTube channel in the form of attractive animated videos, as does 24-year-old Californian Jay Baron. In them, he demonstrates the masterly preparation of tiny, but truly edible dishes. His art is international, universally understandable and attracts the attention of people from all over the world: in just a year, Baron gained about half a million subscribers.

When Jay Baron (Jay Baron) decided to become a blogger on a YouTube channel, then for some time I could not decide on a topic. The decision came to him when, rummaging in the pantry, he came across a souvenir - an antique cast iron mini-stove left over from his grandfather. This gave him the idea to create a cooking show in which he would cook mini meals. Having acquired the appropriate miniature dishes and the same Lilliputian kitchen equipment (half of which he made with his own hands), Jay began making videos with recipes for various popular dishes presented in miniature form.
The first video recipe called “ Mini Spaghetti! he published in March 2016. As a result, the video received more than 700 thousand views on FB and YT.

Agree, the process of preparing miniature food is striking in its realism, and tiny products and kitchen utensils give it a cheerful, slightly fairy-tale touch.
Absolutely everyone likes the funny form of videos. Children enjoy watching how water boils on a mini-stove in a tiny saucepan, and how something is fried in a tiny frying pan, and adults admire the complete correspondence of the prepared mini-food with its real recipes in the “real world”. That's why Jay Baron's videos are very popular. For example, recipes for miniature dishes “ Eggs and bacon" And " Pie" have several million views.

MINI BACON & EGGS

By the way, the author of funny short films does not consider them works of art. " “I consider myself a storyteller,” says Baron. I'm just telling people interesting stories I'm trying to please them with these videos... ." And it seems that he succeeds quite well. Although, apart from ten years of experience as an artist and a couple of unfinished courses, the young man has no special education in this field.

MINI CAKE

Gradually, Jay collected a whole series of colorfully edited videos where he prepares mini-food recipes different countries peace. True, in his case, it would be more correct to say microcosm. And this is why the process of preparing familiar dishes looks so surprising and fascinating. Moreover, regardless of the complexity - be it a regular omelette, lasagna or apple pie.

MINI Omelette

MINI LASAGNA

MINI APPLE PIE

Video recipes for miniature copies of dishes from all over the world have become the basis of the Internet resource " Walking With Giants" But its young author admits:

I created the Walking with Giants channel to attract people, entertain them, but it should be a springboard to more major projects that I want to create on the channel in the future. Walking With Giants won't be showing mini food forever. I have much bigger plans for him.".

By creating mini food video graphics like this, Jay is certainly not the pioneer of this “kawaii” style. (Kawaii (可愛い) - translated from Japanese means charming, cute, adorable). The style originated in the 70s in Japan and became part of Japanese pop culture. It affected appearance toys, clothes, food and even behavior. Elements of kawaii can be found anywhere among the Japanese - in government publications, public service announcements, in institutions, shops, and in transport.
But this seemingly infantile aesthetic attracts the Western, pragmatic viewer. For them, this is an element of a show and a fairy tale at the same time. This is an opportunity to return to the world of childhood for a minute or two. And Jay gives his audience this opportunity - the mini-food recipes on his videos are more like everyone’s favorite animation.
In conclusion, please note that the videos are shown accompanied by stylish soundtracks from such popular music artists and groups as ProleteR, Mr. Woox, Jesse James, Floppy Circus, etc.