You can't do that.

More inspirational words were never spoken to Melissa Hart, aka Midnight on the www.CDHM.org galleries.

"I wanted to make a 2mm mermaid and I was told 'you can't do that.' For me that statement was a challenge. So one day I sat in my craft room and made a 2mm mermaid. I was very proud of myself for accomplishing it. I showed my husband and he said I don't know the meaning of 'I can't.' We started to laugh because every person who told me 'I can't'; I show them I could or at least I tried. To me there are too many who say 'I can't' and not enough 'I can,'" she stated.

Now, this Carbondale, KS resident will wake up in the middle of the night with miniature ideas and jot them down. One project frequently suggests another to her active mind.

"I was told that my brain never rests; it's always going 90 mph all the time," she admits.

As a wife, mother and home-schooler of a nine-year-old boy, Midnight stays busy, but that doesn't mean she neglects her minis or stops yearning for the next challenge.

"I like the 1/12th scale, but I'm also starting to look towards the 1/144th scale. I like to challenge myself, see how far I can push my skills," she said.

Like many miniaturists pre-mini hobby, Midnight was a hobby-jumper, starting and stopping many crafting enthusiasms.

"I used to be so bad about moving from one hobby to another that my husband and I agreed I would have to sell everything from the last hobby before I could start another. He never got mad though, he always told me 'at least you can tell people you tried it once.' But then I made my first miniature and loved the challenge of it. I have no thoughts of changing hobbies now because I have so many miniatures I want to create," she said.

Her favourite genre, as her name implies, is Gothic minis.

"Sometimes I have to make a different style like Christmas or something fantasy just to keep my imagination going. But Gothic is where my heart is." Funny, given that the artist and her family live in a ranch style house.

"So on the outside it looks what we are trying for is a log style home, but on the inside it's Castle style. So I guess I collect pieces that give an old castle style feeling," she said. "Someday I would like to make a miniature house or castle, whichever comes first."

She is lucky enough to have a room devoted to crafting, but will often work as she teaches her son.

"My family says I'm addicted to multi-tasking," she added.

Multi-tasking is the best method for can't-wait-for-it-to-dry artists.

"To me some days the paint just can't dry fast enough. My husband has watched me pull out a fan to dry the miniatures," she said with a laugh.

Her items are available in her CDHM gallery, Etsy and Ebay at $3.99 and up.

"I want it to be affordable to people who like my work. I've always thought what's the point of making my miniatures if people can't afford them for their collections? I have been told by my customers that I charge too little for the work I do. I see it this way, there have been things I wanted to purchase, but the price was way too high for me to afford it. I would rather make someone happy at a price we can both live with, than put a huge price tag on it and no one is happy," she explained.

With a fan base already started, her dream is to become a well known artist.

"I want to make my miniatures very life-like creations. I hope to take my miniatures to the next level. I would like to see how detailed I can become and how realistic I can get the pieces to be.

"I have handcrafted most of the tools I use because of how small I get on some pieces. If I had to choose a favourite I guess it would be the straight pin. Yes, I said it, the straight pin. I have painted many projects using only a straight pin. I was told someday I should teach a class on straight pin painting," she said.

Maybe someday she will lead a CDHM.org tutorial on pin-painting - it's all another brick in the road to becoming a well-known artist who 'Can Do'.

Explore the haunted and spooky creations that Melissa makes here.

Explore the Haunted and Spooky Galleries