The Restaurant Concept

Occassionally I get an idea and it takes on a life of it's own.   The restaurant idea definitely did that.  I was preparing to do the photostory of Rod and Danielle telling the kids about the wedding.  I was going to do it at Danielle's house, but thought maybe the kids would take it better if they were eating fast food.  I'm not big on bribery in real life, but doll life is another story.  Of course this meant I would have to build a little fast food restaurant.  Why can't I just do things the easy way?  So early yesterday I started.  I came up with the idea to do some quick little booths and tables.  They are made from foamcore board and a paper towel roll.  I wanted to make them separate so I could change the layout if I needed to.  Boy oh boy.  As I started building, my mind went crazy with ideas.  I finally had to stop myself because I could have been building for hours.

I am patting myself on the back for this one.  This is going to change the scope of my stories and get so many more characters involved and it's not even taking up that much space.  The first restaurant I designed will be shown tomorrow when I FINALLY do the photostory with Rod, Danielle and the kids.  Below are a few others that I came up with.   Keep in mind, they are not complete.  This is to give you an idea of some of what I came up with.   As for the booths and tables, they will be covered with white contact paper to get rid of the rough edges.  I am going to keep them white, to keep them versatile.  Pardon any dust you see on those playsets.  They have been hanging out for years waiting for their chance to make an appearance.  One more thing.  The back wall is red on the other side and the black floor is cream on the other side.  You will see that tomorrow.  The brick paper is just pinned to the wall, so I will move it/change it when needed.

Can't have a town with all those kids and no MickeyDs! My families don't even have to go to the same McDs.  I can just change the layout and they can be at some McDs across town, or near someone's job.

That table behind the booth is supposed to be turned the other way. This is where they will put the trays.  I may have to look for a trash can. 

Here's Pizza Hut.  There are the girls from my "Sisterly Love" group.

Definitely need a Subway.  The counter will be in the center, I think.  I also want to build a potato chip stand.  May make some chocolate chip cookies, too.

How about a nice Asian restaurant.  Of course it can be a Soul Food restaurant, or whatever else I need.  I will also use this space for my upscale restaurants.  The booths will be replaced with tables and chairs.  Ohhhh the possibilities!  I can see Darius and Nikki dining in a fine restaurant.

You can get a glimpse of the chinese noodles and egg rolls I made a month or so ago.  I will get back to food soon.  The plates that arrived were the wrong size.  I am waiting for more.  Fingers crossed, again.

 

 

I found those lion heads in the Targe $1 section a couple years ago.  They were marked down to less than .50.  I bought the display case about 9 years ago for my miniature house.  Yeah, I have miniature houses, too. 

Another layout. This one will be perfect for a more intimate setting. Of course I need the right accessories and the back wall will have a really nice backdrop or maybe fabric. I will also change the setting just by changing the wall in the middle to a half wall.  Maybe that will be my IHOP restaurant. 

Here is a potential diner.  I will definitely be doing a coffee house because I have a wonderful coffee apron.  LOL.  I am famous for building full sets becauuse I bought an apron (i.e. the Anderson patio).

 

I will finally be able to use that sushi playset. 

The last one I did was a karoake bar.  Hey there's Kara, our resident singer/songwriter/hairdresser.  Oh look.  There is Tanisha.  We haven't seen her in forever. She's looking pretty cute in that green.  She is also part of the Studio Dreams group.  She is the dancer.  So the new guy is running the karoake tonight.  That is not his real job.  He loves music and fills in occassionally to help out his family who owns the place.

This will also be the place where the local jazz band performs.  Remove the karaoke, add a small stage.  change the seating and there you have it.

I don't know if you can tell how excited I am, but I have been jumping out of my skin ever since I started this little project.  We now have a place for most of the scenes I need to shoot.  Bachelor party.  Bachelorette party. Bowling party. Restaurant scenes. Coffee house scenes. Bakery scenes.  Now I'm tired just thinking about everything.  So I am off to make furniture now.  See you tomorrow.  Oops, I almost forgot to mention that my families can now go to church.  These seats will also serve as church pews.