Decorating With Miniature Animal Figurines

We're not sure the exact moment we first fell in love with miniatures (miniature cityscapes, animals, and dollhouses). Maybe it was the film Beetlejuice--remember the miniature town-scape in the movie? Or maybe it was the first time we rode the Peter Pan ride at Disneyland--amazing! While we are inspired by miniatures we try not to overdo it in our apartment (we actually own only one miniature fawn). More on why we love decorating with miniature animal figurines after the jump...

We love the playful aspect that comes with incorporating a miniature animal or two into your decor. We especially like placing our little guy in the kitchen next to the hand soap. Because there is nothing else to look at or focus on at the sink area, guests can take pleasure in this tiny decorative animal. A great resource for purchasing these miniatures is Hagen-Renaker in San Dimas, CA. They also have a great selection at the Farmer's Market in Los Angeles.

It's also fun to make a vignette or a fun scene with an animal or two. This flickr user rabbad (above) has placed the two figurines in a hide and seek vignette.

Incorporating these tiny animal figurines into your holiday decor (as seen in Vamp Shoes) is also a great way to bring an extra layer of warmth and festivity into your home.

Do you decorate with miniatures in your home?

Related Figurine Posts

Comments (15)

i'll go along with this if you promise never to post on the joys of pine-cone owls.

I do this sort of thing at Christmas. I have assorted not-to-scale little houses, trees, gnomes, animals, snowmen, etc., that I've picked up over the years. I always spread it out over the top of my piano as a Christmas village. I also have tiny cars that I add to the scene. I enjoy how it all goes together even though none of it is really meant to.

If you're pre-pubescent or over 80. Or never expect to have any male guests.

No, we don't love this. It's the home decor equivalent of talking in a baby voice.

Wish I could agree, but it's just clutter.

Maybe one of those letter press drawers on the wall could hold them!

Argh, and now that people keep pointing out the "royal we" we can't stop seeing it everywhere we look on AT! Perhaps the best way to satisfy everyone is to not write from either point of view. Just the facts!

Be careful! Twee figures make emotionally impaired people freak out.

My brother and his wife called me a heretic for adding a crocodile and a dinosaur to my crèche. Of course, they also returned the Harry Potter books I gave their children. No non-sanctioned graven images and no witchcraft!

We agree with armed studio and Palmetto.

I love this, actually, but for purely nostalgic reasons. An elderly couple I used to know had little miniatures hidden around their home and property, it added a sense of "whimsy" without being overbearing or taking up too much space... and we loved it.

a bit of temporary twee in the house at christmas is like sprinkling cinnamon-sugar on your toast. it's like a pop-up or glittered card instead of an institutional foil deal. it's like thick red mittens instead of black gloves.

the top fawn is darling and i'm not ashamed to say so.

My grandmother puts little figurines - in fact, she may have that fawn at the top! - in her potted plants. It works great; creates kind of a "forest" effect. But I'm not sure I like them just standing around randomly.

I collect Wade figurines. I like scattering them around my shelves and in my bathroom. And I have a tiny plastic frog (a souvenir from an aquarium) balanced in one of my plants. I like little unexpected details. I mean, no one would even see the frog unless they were looking for it.

I don't mind this, because I think it's really important not to take interior design too seriously. A little silliness is good for your complexion. That said, the sparer the room, the better the impact, I think. Personally, I like a a fairly heavy look compared to most folks here - my dining room looks like it's inhabited by an Edwardian naturalist, with lots of old books, bones, butterflies and so on. Anything even a little cute would just make the whole thing unbearable. But in one of those all-stainless, completely bare kitchens so popular round these parts, a little ceramic deer would be a welcome relief.

Nice if there are young children in the house but I prefer vulgar bling.

Using them because you think they're cute beats using them in an ironic way--like the fox and deer. But self-conscious twee-ness is like too much Lisa Loeb in the playlist. If you want to get laid, don't put these in your bedroom. No one wants to get lucky in front of Bambi.