The Alchemists Lab: A Miniature Diorama and Collab! 

Thanks so much for collaborating with me!! Buttons everywhere!!! You nailed the prompt! That main image you used is so spot on to what you made! I still can't believe how well our projects go together. The jars are just genius! Everything together looks just AMAZING!!

"He's just a normal guy trying to make some gold." For some reason that just makes me love the old guy! When you started out painting the room I couldn't help thinking "that is a LOT of yellow, Ara..." But the instant you added those dark brown shelves the color combo is PERFECT. This room ended up looking super neat. I love it.

Your 'distiller' is called an Alembic though distilling is exactly what it does 😊

I love how you sorted through the jars of buttons. It reminded me that I have a couple of old cookie tins that are full of my grandma's buttons. My mom gave them to me about 10 years ago. Gramma saved the buttons off of everything. I can remember her telling me not to lose them because they're hard to come by. I'll have to dig them out of storage so I can look at them again. 🥰

Jazza did a great job by gifting us this channel thats just so amazing

That brings back my earliest happy memory of sitting on my nana’s carpet near the dining table sorting buttons. My nana used to cut them off any item of clothing that any of her 8 children or 28 grandchildrens and save them in big glass canning bottles. She let me sort them into piles whenever my family were visiting at least 55-56 years ago. I don’t know if any of the others were allowed because I only ever did it by myself. I used to love the glass ones best.

I love this alchemist and his room! It feels very inspirational, like a story NEEDS to be written about him and all the things he is brewing! If you ever want to revisit him, all he is missing is a familiar. I'd be so interested to see what animal you might choose, and what activity they would be up to!

I went over to watch Darkest Raven Designs. Another wonderful artist. Thankyou so much for recommending her.

Absolutely fantastic video Ara! Two words, alchemy and buttons, and you produce a wonderful diorama. I’m blown away by your skills. Now I’m away to Chantals to see what she’s done! Thank you for this!

I have to say this is my favorite thing you've made. I mean everything is great but this is awesome. Only thing it's missing is some LEDs lighting up mixtures. The little dude you made is perfect for the room. Really like this one

I'm loving these smaller projects Ara, this turned out incredible! The walls look amazing!

Buttons, Alchemy and add Magic to this project. Just a wonderful roombox.

This is incredibly cool, I would love to see you do more of these small dioramas. You have a gift and real talent and I love watching you pull these miniature, magical places together. HUGS!

Definitely one of your best makes. Absolutely brilliant in fact - the room looks amazing, the decorations very clever indeed. Your figure is one of your best and the whole scene is completely cohesive as a whole. Very will done indeed.

Ara, I’m not a miniaturist (but I want to be!). I am inspired by your skill and your heart for others. ❤️

I love how the prompt and theme pushed you out of your comfort zone. Great idea and great video

I love this so much. The little jars are my favorite.

This is such an inspiration! I will be implementing the buttons into my Dark Fairy Dollhouse! TFS!

Simply Amazing! I LOVE to see what dolls LIVE in miniature scenes...Great job!

I love how you image your doll/miniature in the space while you're creating it. I'm really happy I stumbled on your channel, seriously awesome!

I love the alchemist. First he looked like E.T., then an alien. Fantastic work.

I am in total awe, over your creativity and talents!! This miniature room is amazing, I absolutely loved watching the elements unfold. 🎉😻👏🏻

Wow! Another wonderful success! I really love this scene! It’s so easy to imagine the alchemist making and planning all sorts of things. Love it!!🥰. Take care and thanks for such a great diversion during these trying times.

Glad to have found this channel! LOVE the jars :) I followed Heather's youtube channel and am sad to see no new vids. Hearing you mention that you've been in contact with her reassures me that she's still out there and ok. Great build btw!!

Out of all the posts I follow, yours is one of the ones I look forward to the most!

I never thought that so many buttons would give so much play!

WOW your Sisters collection is out of this world 😹😹😹 I have been collecting buttons myself since I was 6 years old 😹😹😹many of them are packed away at the moment so I will be pleased when I get them unpacked one day 😹😹I love your project it’s stunning 😊

I adore this project! I love watching (and rewatching) your videos.

Those jars are cool! I need to make some now lol. Chantal is an amazing artist with her creations, I ADORE her matchbox series, it's what drew me to her channel in the first place.

Thanks for this fun video. The button adornments were a novel touch. Very clever idea. They added so much drama and detail. I enjoyed every moment of the process. This was so much fun! Stay safe. ❤️

Oh my goodness, Ara! I love everything about this tutorial. The button sounds were great, thanks for leaving them in. There's something magical about the sound of buttons. (or maybe that's just me). The room looks fantastic. The alchemist is so great. Seriously, I love everything about this. While I do love your more detailed tutorials, seeing the whole thing come together in one video was really satisfying as well.

I love re watching your older videos this is 1 of my favourite your such a clever girl x

This is absolutely stunning. The oven/ stove is called a hearth. It's the "heart" of the home. In modern times it would be referred as a masonry oven. In Finnish it's called "baking oven" (leivinuuni). It was used to warm your home and bake bread at the same time. It would stay warm long, so you could also make sourmilk on top of it, as it would keep the milk warm enough to ferment.

Love all the little add on's and the straws with wires work out great. Your beams turned out so good. I am a stagehand and in my world we call it "Truss". We use it to hang lights, sets and just about everything. They are bolted together in shorter lengths to make as long as you need. So add some bolts, looks real. Also, I am a Ham Raido operator and the Truss is used for the base of antennas Vertical mount. If you mount your truss from the floor there are square base mounts we use. Ya can Look up on line some lighting riggs to get some idea how they look. Keep up the great work Mary

You are soo amazingly talented!! I lost my words at the end result. I am just learning so much from watching you plus you Crack me up and I love you little sweetheart Stormi. No contact hug 💚💜

Wow, just about everything you made will be perfect for my southwestern theme!

I love the idea of using paintings as inspiration! Thanks for the new channel to follow too!! Your collabs with other artists always come out fantastically!

Wow. How ironic. I study the language of Alchemy and symbolism. You did a marvelous, fabulous job, Ara! ♥️👍

I LOVE your alchemist. His outfit is genius.

I have watched this video twice now and love it! Great Job!

Come sempre sei bravissima...bella l'idea di usare i bottoni. Ciao. 👍👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🤗

love your video tutorials. I've learned more from them than from three years of classes. the ideas are stupendous, and leave lots of room for imagination.

Absolutely love how this little room turned out. I love Alchemy so this was so to my liking. And buttons!!! Your sister has about as many as my mom. Now I feel like using them for some of my projects. :}

it was because of Jazza that i found your channel and fell in love with miniatures. :D

Amazing! :D 💜 and I just love how this kind, creative mini community shares their ideas and let other ppl costomize the original creation to fit in their creations :) You guys are so inspiring :D Heather and you are a huge inspiration for me, and I think Darkest Raven Designs will be too, heading over there now! :D 💜

This was absolutely incredible!! Using some inexpensive items and making a masterpiece!! Great job!!

Your imagination boggles my mind! I have used buttons (as well as a slew of "tiny" parts) to create accessories for decades....................and I have never used one as you have! This was a wonderful challenge, and your result was amazing. Thank you for the FaceBook "plug" (though I personally don't use FB) - another manifestation of your caring and sharing personality.

Love the way the buttens just like fits into the place! Cool idea for a collab

Really like this project, Ara! One of your very best! 🧙‍♂️

Oh I loved your project too. The buttons you chose were so gorgeous. I love buttons too.

I just love your work! The only thing is, this is the perfect time to do crazy eyebrows!

Fantastic. As always. You're a miracle, young lady!

Absolutely fabulous and so clever. I thoroughly enjoyed everything - thank you for sharing so generously. You make it look easy when I know it's not - it takes special amounts of imagination, patience and skill. Stay safe and well - best wishes from Oz!

It helped me a great deal on how to connect the walls of the room and using the hot glue an the compound on the walls to adhere things. I am looking to make a garden shed and this really gave me some great insight. Thank you!

I have never made a dollhouse or any miniatures, but watching your videos has inspired me to do so. I am collecting supplies and plan to make a southwest, Adobe style house such that would be found in Santa Fe, NM. This particular video will be especially helpful because both the alcove you created and the wall texture are perfect for my design! Thank you.

Thanks Ara I absolutely loved your videos and the way you used all those buttons. 👍❤️

This is incredible! The walls look great!

Love it. I used to have jars and jars of my grandmother's button collection, but they went missing last time I moved. I think that "oven" you started with is supposed to be a small forge.

Wow! I really like the way you made the man. You make it look easy. lol!

The button noises was very cool :) I got lucky at a garage sale last year, found a big tin of various buttons for $2 :) Awesome work and video!!!!

This FANTASTIC!!!! Thank you so much for sharing xoxo

So fun! Your creativity and artistry always inspires me. Someday, I might try creating a doll...maybe...perhaps...!

I'd love to spent some time inside that alchemists Lab 😝

That is amazing !!!!! 💚💚💚💚

Pure talent ... love the results of your challenge, fabulous work.

So clever! So fun! So talented!!

This reminds me of the original “The Borrowers” movie and it’s re-make. I made both a Borrowers attic space and a within-the-wall Borrowers home area. I LOVE THE BORROWERS !!! They are such fun to make with the mix of human & 1:12 scales and the ‘borrowed’ items that make up their tiny world !

👍😀 cool roombox idea I will definitely watch her colab video too 👍

Wow.lu never disappoint Ara!!! This is awesome!!!loove that floor...oh heck as normal I love everything! Lol..all the lil detail just makes it pop!!..u and darkest raven both did amazing.ll would love to see a project u both do together one day cause your style is so simular..

Buttons are wonderful!

This is so good!! Love it!

Great job Love the chair and the pottery

This is so very COOL! You're so talented!

My word, you are so talented!

So totally awesome, I just love it.

Wow this is incredible❤️you never fail to amaze

Ara, I use the tubes of caulking to get into those side areas where I join fire places or have large cracks to cover, you can paint over it and it's easy to use.

ha ha, this is so funny. I'm working on a small Tudor cottage thus I have been spackling all week!

Wowww...it's so awsome...u can make awsome miniature with anything 😍😍😍...and thanks for round up of buttons....48 to 50...felt satisfying 😅😅😅

You are a GENIUS!

You should check out Ace of Clay. He makes sculpting faces and hands look obnoxiously simple. I think some of his techniques would work great for your dolls. :)

Just WOW I am so impressed!

This was AMAZING!

What a fun video! I always enjoy them, but this one was tops for me -- the buttons gave me so many ideas! I love Harry Potter and potions and such so this reminded me of Dumbledore somewhat. (and your hands are so pretty btw 😁) I don't have your skills unfortunately, but I always get engrossed in watching you produce awesome stuff, thanks!!!

Amazing!! And such an ingenious use for buttons :)

This is just wonderful! I love the imagination you put into the project and the inspiration you share with it. Thank you!

Distiller ... Yes! Used to separate the Essential oils from herbs! Wonderful job! Amazing as always! Coincidentally ... my Steampunk Conservatory story was originally based on Alchemy, though it's more based on Apothecary, herbal magic, and "pagan" magik now, set in a steampunk post-apocalyptic environment. I have always been fascinated in that branch of the "Sciences." That Alchemist is incredible! Great job!

Absolutely love your creations

You are very talented lady. I enjoy watching your vlogs. I made some books with your tutorial. I should say I have cut down some but have not finished. Thanks.

Beautiful, you have such a great talent.The alchemist came out great.

This is absolutely amazing!

So cute. You are so talented

Fabulous and I got so many ideas.

I'm in love with your work...

I am revisiting a favorite one of your tutorials to get some more 'ancient laboratory' ideas. I love that stove and the alcove thingie which seems to be in most alchemy pictures I have seen too. I am looking this time for lab equipment like test tubes or burners or whatever they used back then. I also have this miniature bottle that would make a great mini terrarium (maybe getting a bit ahead of myself here...if it works I will post a picture lol!). You are a veritable trove of ideas Ms Bentley! Oh I found these great Weathering pencil sets by AK Modelling. I saw them, wasnt sure so watched a video on them and I am glad I did because theyre great. Theyre like watercolour pencils but made specifically to be used on plastics and models. I got the chipping and ageing set and theyre great for getting into places that are normally difficult to reach. You apply them and then wet them or vice versa. They werent overly expensive for a set of 5 (just over a UK £ per pencil). So far I am really impressed and thought I would pass it on!.

Amazing

I watched both videos hers and yours. I think you did more with the item mentioned and put more thought into it.

Amazing like always

The oven was called an anathor and the source photo of your adorable contraption does look like a still. The anathor was designed to have a stable temperature by having one chamber for the fire and the thermal mass of stone between the 2 chambers would slowly absorb the heat and transfer it evenly to the chamber above where the ingredients were "digesting".

WOW!!