Unusual Containers for Miniature Scenes

Feeling boxed in? Here are some container ideas for miniature scenes:

Build a dance studio in a ballet shoe box or old ballet suitcase.

For your favorite beautician, how 'bout a mini scene in an old bonnet hair dryer, or one of those new colorful makeup cases?


Need an idea for a police officer? Chatters suggested building something in an old lobster trap, bird cage or small animal cage (because they all look like little prisons), and one wicked chatter suggested a donut box, which might also be used for a donut shop.

For a fire fighter, a mini scene could be done in a plastic toy fire hydrant, a cut out boot, or for those into smaller scales, a matchbox.

Want to suprise an elementary school teacher? Try something in a school box with sliding slate lid or a hollowed out reading book. Sets of old encyclopedias can be found in thrift shops, and can make a container for a larger mini scene. Chatters also suggested a building something in a child's lunch pail.

Your favorite computer genius might like a scene in an old monitor, and your resident couch potato might like one in an old television.

Build a flower shop or potting shed in a clay pot for your favorite gardender. Chatters also suggested an old watering can.

Know somebody with a sweet tooth? Try an ice cream parlor in an ice cream container, a sweet shop in an old candy box, and a bakery in a cookie tin.

Need an idea for a lawyer? Build in an old briefcase, or hollow out a set of old law books.

Your favorite painter might like a workshop in an old paint can.

For a summer scene, use a picnic basket, or an old barbeque grill. For a Japanese tea room, use a paper lantern or a tea pot with a Japanese design.

Got baskets? Mimi has seen them used for a fruit stand and a basket shop. She's also seen a birdhouse used as a birdhouse maker's shop, a diner in an old lunch pail, and a sewing machine drawer used for a quilt shop.

Need ideas for a bakery? How 'bout a recipe box or a bread box?