(Mette Sauermilch Laurendz)
Tiny Treasures
by Pam North

Lundby is a countryside village in Denmark, south of Copenhagen, and coincidentally it also is a brand name for a Swedish dollhouse, so it is a perfect place for miniaturist Mette Sauermilch Laurendz to live. When she was 6 years old, she got a Lundby dollhouse for Christmas. It came fully furnished, had electric lights and a complete set of Lundby dolls. “Something happened then,” Mette recalled, “I realized, I could invent stories and settings. Everything was possible. I could arrange and rearrange, and as a little girl I was completely absorbed into this miniature world. I began to create my own items for my Lundby dollhouse, with mixed results I must admit. I did not always have the necessary patience or persistence then, but I learned that over time.” 
She now makes all kinds of miniatures for her own projects: furniture, food items in polymer clay, embroideries (cushions, rugs), Christmas items, all in 1:12 inch scale, from wood, metal, card stock, paper, etc. Those who follow her on social media know her mostly for her flowers and garden items, some of which are on display at Miniseum in Denmark, a miniature museum in the north of Jutland. “In real life I love gardening, and when the weather permits I spend a lot of time in my garden,”Mette explained. I like the challenge of recreating the flowers into miniature, trying to make them even more perfect. When I go back later and remake some flowers, I try to enhance them, always trying to make them better than the last version. It is quite fun to see the ‘development’ in the same flower after some years – from the first version to the last one. Most of my flowers take a lot of time to make. There are many details and processes until you have the final flower stem ready.” 
Inspiration for her comes from many sources. “It can be anywhere, a shop in the street, museums, movies, surfing the internet – you name it.”
She works as an IT system consultant for world-famous Danish Silver Smithy. Georg Jensen, located in Copenhagen. “I struggle with myself when I see miniatures made in 3D print. Is it art or not? I have respect for people using the 3D software, who have skills creating in 3D, but less so if a ready-made template/pattern is downloaded and adjusted only to fit to correct scale, and then printed. Maybe I am just too old-school, despite the fact that I work with IT!”
“Although I sell my miniatures (via her Etsy shop) what I have available for sale, I do not ‘mass produce’. I make the pieces I feel like making when I am inspired. Most of the time I go by the concept ‘one for Mette, one for the web shop’. I have to have my heart in it. I have made one large flower arrangement with rose hips, hydrangeas, and roses; it is a complicated piece with many elements, and it took forever to make. I made the first as a custom order; the second was sold in my web shop. After 3 years I finally managed to make one for myself. This is why I usually first make the pieces to keep for my private collection, to make sure I get one. I do not make the same flower arrangements over and over since that bores me. I ‘revisit’ the flowers, but arrange them in a new way.”
“I tell people that I play with my dollhouses - at the age of 52! I do, and it makes me happy. I love looking at the rooms, rearranging, rediscovering items. When you have collected so many tiny items, you sometimes have forgotten you have them. I imagine the stories that are taking place in each house, and I love the creativity it sparks for making or planning new additions for my little world. It is a place that is mine – my own private space.”
Mette had no formal training in the miniature field, but soon learned proficiency. She counts tweezers as her most valuable tool, saying “Life in miniature is impossible without tweezers!” Her  difficulty is that she finds it hard to find new, exciting materials. “Ten years ago, there was more variation in supplies. Often now, when I find supplies I really like, they are discontinued from the product range shortly after. It’s discouraging.”
The future of miniatures raises questions in her mind. “When one sees the creativity from skilled artists showing their work on social media, one would think that the future is great, but I am a little bit concerned,” she said. “Many of those who make miniatures were raised when we still had materials like colors and paper physically in our hands. Many younger people today are creative digitally mostly, and do not learn to ‘feel’ materials and create with their hands to the same extent we did. That being said, I read it is very popular now among young girls to learn to knit, crochet, and learn embroidery, so there is still hope.”
As for what’s next for Mette and her creations, she is working on a new house, one inspired by the Swedish painter Carl Larsson. “In many of his paintings, one sees these beautiful interiors from his own house. I love the style and the colors. His home is a museum today. I have finished most of the furniture; some are copies of the furniture on display at his home. I also have finished drawing the house and have most of the parts I need, so hopefully sometime this year I will start building it.”
Contact information:
Mette Sauermilch Laurendz - 
Business name: Mette’s Dollshouse & Miniatures 1:12 Scale
Email: enquiries@laurendz.dk
Phone: +45 20 83 74 04
Address: Lundby Hovedgade 54
4750 Lundby, Denmark
Website: www.laurendz.dk
Instagram? Mettelaurendz
Twitter? Mette’s Dollshouse (@mettelaurendz)