Timber Kits - Magical Mechanical Models to Build !!

Timberkits are mechanical models made of wood and sold in kit form. Put them together, turn the handle and see them work. There is a great range of themes and and skill levels to suit everyone.
Timberkits are creative, fun and educational

It is an art form in which you can appreciate the magic of mechanical action and gives a fascinating education and hobby for children and adults of all ages.

In these safety conscious electronic times most of the mechanisms we depend on are well hidden so we never get to see how things work.
Take a look at the building blocks of our mechanical world. Assemble the wooden cams, push rods, levers and cranks and understand what makes it tick.

After you have made the model you can paint, varnish or customise it in your own personal way then try another!



Start your own Band!!

The Double Bass player rocks back and fourth, tapping his right foot, sliding his left hand up and down the Double Bass' neck and plucking the strings with his right hand. His head bobs in time with the music.

The Drummer looks simply amazing. With a full kit of drums and operating cymbal. One foot working the `top hat`, while producing a syncopated `rhythm` on the snare drum.

The Guitarist leans forward and bends at the knee while both arms move to play the guitar. Operated by two cams.

To complete your set we offer a moving mechanical model of a Classical Pianist, playing the piano, and a Clarinet Player who sways from side to side as he beats time with his foot, whilst arching his other foot in and out to the rhythm. 

Making a Timberkit is to step into the whole world of Automata and Mechanical Toys, with ingenious moving models and scenes.

Amaze your friends! No special knowledge or skills needed, just a little time and patience to follow the instructions.

     

Timberkits span ages from 7 upwards with designs of varying complexity and a wide range of themes to suit all interests and make excellent gifts for all occasions.

Enjoy the warmth of the natural wood, sourced from sustainable forestry and fully machined with no further need for specialist tools.

If your arm gets tired you can even motorise your model with our universal battery kit

Easily Build and Furnish a Dolls House - Every Little Girls Ultimate Christmas Present !

 Trelawney Manor Dolls House Externally Finished with a Brick Effect

 

Stock Reference - DH039B

The Trelawney Manor Dolls House is a 3 Storey House with Hinged Roof Attic, Split Front Opening Pillard Porch and Balcony, Interior Walls, Stairs and Doors and Chimnneys

The exterior walls have a Brick Effect Finish with White Windows and Door Finished with a Slate Black Roof

House is made of MDF Construction with approx sizes of:

• 33" (84cm) High
• 32" (81cm) Wide
• 18.5" (48cm) Deep

Supplied Flat Packed in Ready Made Panels with all details completed.

The Trelawny is just one of the great Dolls Houses on offer from the Hobbies website. See the full range - click here

OK you've got your Dolls House, Now the real fun begins.

Hobbies stocks an impressive range of Accessories designed to breathe life into your Dolls House rooms, and bring added realism.
You choose which rooms will be your Kitchen, Dining Room, Living Room, Bedrooms, Study, Music Room or Nursery.




You choose the Wallpaper, the Carpets, the decor, the Furniture, and the style you want.

Do you want your living room to have a Mahogany Fireplace with Brass Peacock Firescreen ?

Will the bathroom suite have a Corner bath, or Vanity Unit ?

Who will be living in your Dolls House? a Modern Family? a Stylish Lady, a little Westie Dog ?

and if its being made for a Christmas present, you will need a Christmas tree and presents, Christmas lights, a wreath, baubles and maybe even Santa Claus himself.

All of these incredibly detailed 1:12th Scale accessories are available from Hobbies website,. or from the Hobbies Store at Raveningham Norfolk.

We can now offer the Streets Ahead Catalogue 2015 for only £3.95 while Stocks Last.
This dedicated Dolls House Catalogue is jam packed full of accessories, figures and ideas for room settings.
At just £3.95 this is an offer far too good to miss!


And while you're having fun decorating and furnishing your Dolls House, don't forget,  joining the Hobbies Club gets you 5% Discount off all your orders for the year!!

Come Fly Away! with Guillows Balsa Wood Model Airplanes

A great favourite with Hobbies customers is our extensive range of Guillows Balsa wood model Airplanes
The Guillow model airplane company was founded by Paul K. Guillow, a World War I US Navy Aviator. His experience as a Navy pilot kindled in him a great interest in aviation and eventually lead to the creation and marketing of a line of small balsa wood, shelf model construction kits of famous aircraft. From the Fokker triplane to the Sopwith Camel of WWI to the P-51 Mustang and P-38 Lightning of WWII.

Balsa airplane models appeal to both the young and the “young at heart”. Everyone will remember the shiny red propellers of their favorite toy airplane!

The most popular kits are surely the Balsa World War II Models with a 16½" wing span - approx 1/30 scale. These easy-to-build balsa airplane kits contain die-cut balsa parts, plastic cowls and canopies, decals , plastic prop, wheels, tissue and a 24-page model building booklet.

The range includes planes such as the Messerschmitt BF-109- the best known German Luftwaffe World War 2 Fighter, and the Supermarine Spitfire Mk-1 - Britain's greatest World War 2 Fighter.

For those with an interest in the History of Flight - Don't miss out on constructing a true piece of Aviation History !! -

A replica of the first powered, heavier than air machine to achieve pilot controlled sustained flight. Guillow's has produced a Museum Quality scale replica of the 1903 Wright Flyer.

This amazing model kit has a 24" wingspan and over 150 laser cut parts.

The 'Painter of Light' and a Secret Darker Side to Thomas Kinkade

Thomas Kinkade, the Painter of Light, emphasized simple pleasures and inspirational messages through his art – and the branded products created from that art from textiles, to collectibles, to music and books, calendars, jigsaw puzzles, greeting cards, and CDs.

Thomas Kinkade believed that both the ability and the inspiration to create his paintings had been given to him as a gift. His goal as an artist was to touch people of all faiths and to bring peace and joy into their lives through the images he had created.

He characterized himself as " The Painter of Light," and his work remains much loved, mass produced and hugely collected with an estimated 1 in every 20 American homes owning a copy of one of Thomas Kinkade's paintings. 



A key feature of Thomas Kinkade's paintings are the glowing highlights and saturated pastel colors. Rendered in highly idealistic American scene painting values, his works often portray bucolic, idyllic settings such as gardens, streams, stone cottages, lighthouses and Main Streets. His hometown of Placerville (where his works are omnipresent) is the inspiration of many of his street and snow scenes. He has also depicted various Christian themes including the Christian cross and churches.



One of the best kept secrets of the art world for almost twenty years is that Thomas Kinkade, painted a beautiful body of work over a 6 year period, from 1984 to 1990, under the brush name ‘Robert Girrard'.

It is believed that Kinkade's ‘Girrard' body of work numbered no more than 70 paintings and two pencil drawings. The rarity and individuality of these works, together with their subtle beauty and turn of the century charm, distinguish them from other segments of Thomas Kinkade's work, and was among the best of his career.






He also created a series of paintings called the Disney Dreams Collection which celebrates great moments from Walt Disney Films. These paintings were called "narrative panoramas" because each painting tells the entire story of the film in one image.


Central Park in the Fall is a 2010 work by Thomas Kinkade. 
He wrote "The Park is a place where a quick cab ride lets you escape the big city and immerse yourself in nature's brilliant colour palette"

On April 6, 2012, Thomas Kinkade died at his home in Monte Sereno, California, of "acute intoxication" from alcohol and Valium. He was 54 years old. He died on Good Friday. He had been at home drinking all night, according to Amy Pinto-Walsh, his girlfriend of 18 months. His wife, Nanette, had filed for divorce two years earlier and was traveling in Australia with their daughters. His family initially said he appeared to have died of natural causes. Pinto-Walsh stated that the artist "died in his sleep, very happy, in the house he built, with the paintings he loved and the woman he loved."



Since his death his official website has acknowledged the existence of "Thomas Kinkade Studio Artists" who, it is claimed, will create "new images in Tom's 'Kinkadian' Master Style." The company says it will continue to create and release "new Kinkade originals" created by artists other than Kinkade. These works are to bear the artist's trademarked signature along with the word "Studios" appearing underneath. Gone are the Christian Ichthys "fish symbol" and the Bible verse John 3:16. However, new works still bear a small number next to the signature indicating how many "Nanettes" (the name of Kinkade's wife) are hidden in each painting.

Sywell Classic Pistons & Props - Celebrating Classic Planes, Bikes & Cars

Celebrating classic vehicles, both on the ground and in the air!

Sywell Classic – Pistons & Props is a brand new 2 day motoring festival celebrating classic vehicles - both on the ground and in the air. Held at Northamptonshire’s Sywell Aerodrome on the 28th and 29th Sept 2013, Sywell Classic will combine classic cars, motorbikes and planes with all aspects of vintage lifestyle and entertainment.

Enjoy high octane live action, amazing aerial displays breathtaking classic vehicle displays, great family entertainment vintage and classic traders. Make sure you don’t miss any of the action by making a weekend of it by taking advantage of the excellent camping facilities.

“Sywell Classic brings together the best of all the classic motoring events in the calendar, with amazing static displays, live action both on the ground and in the air, great family entertainment and a wide range of vintage and classic traders,” Event Director Tom Siddall explains.

“The facilities at Sywell Aerodrome are superb and it has a great atmosphere with its fantastic aviation museum and art deco buildings. There couldn’t be a better venue for an event of this kind.”

Sywell Classic - Pistons & Props: 

Saturday 28th Sept: 10am til 6.30pm

Sunday 29th Sept: 10am til 5pm

Celebrating classic motoring on the ground and in the air!

The Racing Runway – Historic racers will provide high octane motorsport throughout the weekend. Single seaters, sports cars and saloons will battle it out on the runway to see whose vehicle still has what it takes to win.

Dragster Sprint Strip – Things get heated on the way to the runway when vintage and retro Dragsters go head to head on the 200m straight line sprint to see who really has a need for speed.

Both the Racing Runway and Sprint Strip are open to racing car and motorcycle owners and drivers who are interested in competing. To gain entry and check eligibility of the vehicle, email David Alderson

The High Flyers – Spitfires, Tiger Moths, Chipmunks, Wilga's, Be2's and Tomahawks* are just a few of the iconic planes that will take to the skies as individual owners and clubs fly into the show and landing on the grass airstrip.

Aerial Acrobatics - Breathtaking aerial displays from Hangar 11's Spitfires and the Trig Aerobatic Team throughout the weekend as well as appearance from the Breitling Wingwalkers, the World's only aerobatic formation wing walking team*.

*subject to serviceability and weather conditions

The Classic Clubs – Some of the UK’s best motoring clubs will showcase stunning marques spanning eighty years, covering classic and vintage motoring on two and four wheels. They will be joined by classic aviation clubs, who will line up alongside with their own static displays of fantastic vintage and classic planes.

Classic Car Parking – There is also a Classic Car Parking Area for members of the public wishing to bring their own classic cars to be a part of the show. Space is limited, so please click here to download your booking form.

The Live Arena – The Live Arena will host classic motoring parades, special guests, family fun and games, live entertainment and much, much more.

The Vintage Village – Browse the classic traders catering for lovers of nostalgia and the vintage lifestyle as well as the usual motoring products and services, and the popular Retro, Auto and Aero Jumbles.

Whats On - Entertainment

Musical Interludes
Enjoy live musical acts all weekend - day and night as we've lined up some fabulous musical entertainment...

Elle & the Pocket Belles, an all female harmony group, will be bringing the glamour as well as the sounds from the 40's right through to present day with their own unique interpretations of some modern hits.

The Hound Dogs, a three piece rockabilly band, are guaranteed to get things rocking as they belt out the hits from rock 'n' roll giants such as Elvis, Buddy Holly and The Stray Cats as well as their own original songs.

The Swinging Blue Jeans will make Saturday night one to remember as they perform in Hangar One at our Swinging Sixties party. Famous for such hits as Good Golly Miss Molly, You're No Good and the unforgettable Hippy Hippy Shake, the Swinging Blue Jeans are bound to have visitors rockin and rolling in the aisles.

Sounds Force Five, stars of pirate radio, TV and Liverpool's famous Cavern Club who have appeared alongside such 60's icons as Cream, Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix, will be making sure the party finishes in style on Saturday evening as they play all the hits that are bound to get the dance floor filled as campers and exhibitors join to celebrate a great weekend.