I bought Corner Bookstore DG164 specifically because it is one of the kits I selected for my October 4 Rolife Meetup. The other kits I’ll be offering are ones I have already built, but this was one I had never done before. Since this Meetup is all about customization, I felt it was important to have at least one fully customized example of an actual kit participants will be building.
I purchased Corner Bookstore myself, and Rolife provided me with one of the customization kits so I could create my example. Thank you, Rolife! The customization kit includes pieces that can take a build in different seasonal directions, but I knew pretty quickly that I wanted to go with fall.
The colors already in Corner Bookstore helped make that decision. There is quite a bit of orange and red in the original design, including the orange above the door and the red awning, and that beautiful blue door really pops against all those warm colors. Fall just felt like a natural fit. I also had a hard time picturing snow piled around all those books outside, so autumn won this one! Here is what the original looks like:
One of the biggest things I wanted my example to show is that customization does not mean you have to use everything you are given or that every original piece has to stay exactly where the instructions put it. I chose the pieces that worked for the scene I had in mind, changed a few things around, and added some items from my own miniature stash.
For example, I replaced the original statue with the squirrel and swapped some of the original greenery for plants I already had that felt more fall-like. Of course I added a black cat because it is fall and there was absolutely going to be a black cat somewhere in my bookstore. I tucked other little details throughout the scene too, including the acorn house, pumpkins, logs and even that adorable gingerbread man.
Not every added piece has to be right up front either. Some of my favorite details are tucked farther back and are easier to see from different angles. I think that layering makes the finished scene much more interesting to look at.
I even put coffee in the little coffee cup because why not?
The flocking made one of the biggest differences in transforming the bookstore. I also realized that some areas would be much harder to reach once the model was fully assembled, so I added flocking to those spots as I went. I kept the box cover nearby and referred to it frequently to make sure I wasn’t decorating an area where one of the original pieces still needed to go.
After I had started adding flocking around the upper areas and the nook on the left, I realized I wanted more variation in the size of the leaves. The flocking is all fairly uniform as it comes, so I put some in a small cup and used scissors to snip it into finer pieces. Mixing those smaller bits with the original size gave me a much more natural look.
And yes, flocking gets absolutely everywhere!
I used quite a bit because I really wanted it to look like autumn leaves had fallen and blown across the roof, awning, steps, walkways and all those little corners. I wondered a few times if I might be overdoing it, but once everything was together, I was really happy with the effect. To me it looks less like I placed a few fall decorations around the bookstore and more like fall actually happened to it.
Even after using what felt like a lot, I barely made a dent in the very generous amount of flocking Rolife provided. There is plenty there to really have fun with it.
I also managed to break two of the small pieces while building Corner Bookstore. There are some thin, delicate parts in this kit, and apparently building a lot of miniatures does not make me immune to breaking one every once in a while!
As for Corner Bookstore itself, I really enjoyed this model. I especially liked the way the lighting and wiring were designed. Everything came together very neatly, and the warm lighting looks especially nice surrounded by all those autumn colors.
Building this example has made me even more excited for the customization Rolife Meetups. If you see one being held in your area, definitely take a look. It is such a fun opportunity to start with a miniature and then make it completely your own.
My October 4 Rolife Meetup will be in Fishers, Indiana, just north of Indianapolis. The event is currently full, but there is a waitlist and I definitely recommend joining it. At my previous Meetup, I was able to offer tickets to everyone who had been on the waitlist by the time the event arrived. That does not guarantee a spot, of course, but cancellations do happen. If space becomes available, Eventbrite will contact you with the opportunity to claim a ticket, so be sure to wait for that confirmation before making plans to attend.
I love that my Corner Bookstore still looks like Corner Bookstore, but now it feels completely different from the original model. That is probably my favorite thing about customizing. You do not have to change everything to make something feel like your own. Here are some closeups to show some details:
I have this kit in my stock, and I’m looking forward to build it