Cheri: There is something about hidden picture games. I just have a great time trying to find hidden objects in pictures. I think that is probably why I am so drawn to making dioramas.

When I decide to make a diorama, I go through this process of thinking about what I would like to relate to someone. The piece must be relatively calm on the surface and a shocking surprise below. It must use very basic materials, like a box and cardboard, crayons, markers and glue.

When I decided to make the Halloween diorama, I knew that I wanted the surface to be a grave yard and what in my “wildest dream”, could possibly be going on under that surface. I spent quite a bit of time dreaming and thinking about what I wanted the lower level to look like, I also wanted some fun surprises, like the coffin in the back acting as a buffet table, or the ghosts that are transparent and seem to float.

When I make a diorama, I am able to connect with the child-like imagination I used to experience when I was a kid. That makes all the painstaking detail worth it.

Lynne: I just wanted to add that this diorama is all Cheri’s doing. She draws and colors the pieces, cuts them out and glues them in. We’ve tried to do a lot of photos to show the amazing detail, but they are so much more in person. There is something new every time you look.