It was 1998, and Kate Santichen had just turned 13 when she discovered that a bottle cap, a small piece of felt, and a handful of beads made the perfect miniature pie. Somewhat reluctantly, her parents and grandmother had just given her a beautiful wooden dollhouse for her birthday – they feared she would grow out of it too quickly, that it would ultimately be a waste. Santichen is now 37 and a producer in New York City, where she continues to make miniature pies – and miniature armchairs, and miniature sun hats, and miniature scratch cards with foil you can really scratch off. “I was right that I wouldn’t grow out of it too quickly,” she says now.
On her Instagram page @the_tiny_craftress, Santichen delights just under 13,000 followers with photos of her creations – her most popular are tiny wicker chairs that she learned how to make during summer classes offered by the International Guild of Miniature Artisans (IGMA). If you’re surprised that there are enough miniaturists in the world to form a guild, then you have underestimated the power of the small – mini crafting is now so popular that Channel 4 launched a reality competition, The Great Big Tiny Design Challenge, in March.
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