Postage Stamp Planes

Long before I started building 1/48 scale models, I was picking up these 1/144 scale Japanese models at the little Japanese market where I buy sushi and sashimi. They're tucked in amongst the Pokeman and countless other Nipponese collectible figurines I'll never be nerdy enough to know the names of. But I liked them because, for their tiny size, they have an incredible amount of detail.

As you can see here, they come on tiny sprues with tiny parts and tiny decals. They can be fussy and fiddly, but when they're done, they look quite cool. Too cool, in fact, to leave on a shelf to get dusty. So I bought some cheap shadowbox frames at Ikea and started doing this:

I have stacks of old National Geographics and various and sundry travel magazines from the 60s and 70s. I cut out suitable backgrounds, stick some foam core under the model for 3-D effect, some hot glue and voila. A nerdtastic project for my inner 8-year-old. I've made quite a few of these. I'm thinking Etsy may be my only salvation.