I'm looking for a good, practical miniature of anything.

August 21, 2007 7:34 PM

What are some great miniature things?

I'm buying a gift for someone who loves miniatures. Of anything. She doesn't collect them, but whenever she sees anything that doesn't usually have a miniature (example: miniature can of deoderant) she deems it cute and enjoys looking at it. Ideally, this shouldn't be a scale-model sort of thing, but an actual, practical, but miniature anything. Any ideas?

posted by milestogo to grab bag (30 comments total)

Miniature Dachshunds!
Miniature wine bottle opener, mini can opener, minivan.
posted by HotPatatta at 7:37 PM on August 21, 2007

Sorry, is miniature can of deodorant what she does like or not? Your question was ambiguous.
posted by ALongDecember at 7:39 PM on August 21, 2007

yes, she likes anything miniature and practical
posted by milestogo at 7:40 PM on August 21, 2007

Mini bottles of hot sauce then! I love the tiny Tabasco you sometimes get in room service meals.

Wow, a whole store dedicated to miniature products! And here's their blog. I like the tiny bottles of Heinz Ketchup.
posted by ALongDecember at 7:46 PM on August 21, 2007 [1 favorite]

alongdecember beat me to both the mini tabasco sauces AND minimus! geeeez. :)
posted by mittenedsex at 7:48 PM on August 21, 2007

My mom flipped out about how cute the mini calculators were that she saw at Staples. They come in a bunch of different colors and are pretty practical I suppose.
posted by rancidchickn at 7:55 PM on August 21, 2007

If there's a Cost Plus World Market near you, they usually have an awesome, random assortment of mini foods and sauces and snacks and such.
posted by logic vs love at 8:00 PM on August 21, 2007 [1 favorite]

Some of those clips for little girls' hair can be really tiny and cute!
posted by MiffyCLB at 8:08 PM on August 21, 2007

J-List has a bunch of Japanese stuff, Japanese people like tiny things, for some reason. Some stuff is NSFW though, beware.
posted by knowles at 8:18 PM on August 21, 2007

Bonsai?
posted by chris88 at 8:28 PM on August 21, 2007

Also, I found this particularly adorable. (tiny cactus in a capsule)
posted by mittenedsex at 8:51 PM on August 21, 2007

Perhaps it's a strange gift idea, but I've always been fascinated by miniature pocket knives. I was once given one of these tiny pens by a friend. Magnifying glasses are pretty handy.
posted by oneirodynia at 8:57 PM on August 21, 2007

Wee Willie Maize
posted by rob511 at 8:59 PM on August 21, 2007

Ideally, this shouldn't be a scale-model sort of thing, but an actual, practical, but miniature anything.

That description fits the Prybaby Keychain Edition.
posted by cribcage at 9:03 PM on August 21, 2007

I have a collection of mini sushi & Japanese dinner sets that I keep in a bowl on my coffee table. Totally cute and everyone who comes over starts playing with all the little miso bowls ( and yeah I'm a dork yeah). I also got some mini donuts in Japan which are fun. I vote for miniature food!
posted by teststrip at 9:28 PM on August 21, 2007

Go check out ultimatekeychains.com
I love the mini magnetic poetry set housed in it's own mini-refrigerator.
http://www.ultimatekeychains.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=78
They also have all kinds of mini games and stuff & all on a handy key chain.
posted by BoscosMom at 9:29 PM on August 21, 2007

If your friend is a nerd like me, and you don't mind hunting down hard-to-find collectibles, there are miniature versions of the First Edition AD&D rulebooks.
posted by CrunchyFrog at 9:36 PM on August 21, 2007

Zippo-sized camera?

Miniature books?
posted by porpoise at 9:45 PM on August 21, 2007

Welcome to the world of miniature firearms.
posted by whatisish at 9:52 PM on August 21, 2007

I've got a mini harmonica necklace, they're pretty common.
posted by Packy_1962 at 10:44 PM on August 21, 2007

I am especially fond of Italian pastry miniatures. But they don't last long, as eating becomes compulsory!
posted by Goofyy at 2:44 AM on August 22, 2007

I have a collection of over 90 miniature teasets.
posted by IndigoRain at 3:53 AM on August 22, 2007

Also, dollhouse stores will have tons of stuff, and Google Rement (example).
posted by IndigoRain at 3:54 AM on August 22, 2007

Yes! Re-ment!

I have an obsession with miniature things, too and I love those surprise boxes of miniature food and utensils. There is a grocery store one that has different themes like 'midnight snack' or 'making dinner' and it comes with a tiny basket and plastic bag.

Also, what about those miniature airplane sized bottles of liquor. Many are shaped just like larger bottles of whatever they are supposed to be holding.
posted by Alison at 5:57 AM on August 22, 2007

Miniature roses are adorable. Apparently you can get them as small as 1" across while still keeping the look of the traditional tea rose.

Desk accessories often come as models of things, especially when they're (Japanese) erasers (though "practical eraser" may very well be an oxymoron now). Or how about a little desk set? I have a Lego desk pal, which arguably is a macro of real legos...
posted by artifarce at 6:00 AM on August 22, 2007

Don't know how easy it would be for you to find, but somewhere I have a collection of mini lab glassware. Things like 1 ml beakers. The sort of thing they used to use before plastic tubes became easily available. It looks like a Barbie doll chemistry set, but all of it is cast-off items from actual research labs.
posted by caution live frogs at 7:19 AM on August 22, 2007

smallist.com - awesome!
posted by robinpME at 11:26 AM on August 22, 2007

How about an Ecosphere: A miniature fully enclosed ecosystem.

Not really practical, but I always wanted one.
posted by bigdave at 5:58 PM on August 22, 2007

Not at all practical, but cuuuuuuute miniature chairs and things.
posted by Lynsey at 9:20 PM on August 22, 2007

I was at Wendy's today. Their kid's meal toys are are all mini-games. Check it.
posted by knowles at 12:46 AM on August 26, 2007