GSL Cuts: VHS Cassette Tape Rental in Miniature

Saturday, March 3, 2018

VHS Cassette Tape Rental in Miniature

I was recently told that VHS rental is coming back to fashion. My first reaction was - I need to celebrate this in miniature! I've been eyeing the GSL Bookcase 1 to 12 and decided it was perfect.

As with all of my projects, I start by laying out all the pieces to see how everything fits together. This one is super simple to figure out.

I decided to give the inside of my bookcase a neutral finish to make the shelf contents stand out so I gave the inside surfaces a coat of gesso as primer, followed by a coat of off-white acrylic paint.

Once dry, the bookcase was assembled using tacky glue. I used rubber bands to hold everything in place while the glue dries. Once dry, I gave the exterior a coat of gesso followed by a bright red acrylic paint finish.

The GSL Filmstrip Mini Sheets made the perfect décor for the sides of the case. I gave each one a coat of black acrylic paint.

Next came the fun part! Searching for images of some classic movie posters that I resized to perfectly fit inside the filmstrip openings.

Once assembled, they were glued onto the sides of the case.

To make the tapes, I started with dollhouse construction bricks I've had in my stash forever. If you aren't able to find them, you could also use scraps of wood cut to size. I painted the bricks black to mimic a tape cassette. Searching for images was fun. I was surprised how many VHS tape covers I was able to find. I adjusted the size for print, cut them out then used a scoring board to make the creases nice and crisp then glued them onto the bricks.

I knew I wanted to have some candy and popcorn on the top shelf because every VHS rental place I've ever been to sold to-go movie snacks. The popcorn box and Snickers display were free printable miniatures I found online. Same for the M&M's. To make a display case for the M&M's, I cut a tongue depressor and some coffee stirrers to size, painted them red then glued them together with tacky glue. The little Snickers and M&M's packages each got a small piece of coffee stirrer glued inside as a filler.

Final touches include a Starship Enterprise that started life as a Hallmark mini ornament, a ceramic popcorn bucket from my stash of miniatures and a Be Kind Rewind sign made from cardstock glued to one of those dollhouse bricks to make it stand up.