MINI BONZAI MODELS - TREE-MENDOUS
These are the fascinating pictures of miniature table sculptures molded around bonsai trees that take up to a painstaking 18 months to create. Japanese illustrator Takanori Aiba, 58, has built the intriguing scale models of windmills, lighthouses and even the Michelin Man.He delicately uses craft paper, plaster, acrylic resin, paint and plastic to create the host of sprawling miniature communities that wrap around the tiny trees.Following his work as an illustrator for Japanese fashion magazine POPYE he has spent the last nine years producing the detailed mini worlds.The creations take at least three months to construct with his Ice Cream Package Tower taking an astonishing 18 months work. Since 2003, he has made eight models, with 10 more planned over the next few years.
Other great stories
BRITAIN'S LOST MILITARY HOSPITAL
WELCOME to all that remains of Britain's once state-of-the-art military hospital where plastic surgery was pioneered for injured WW1 troops who survived the SOMME .
MY 20 YEAR SECRET - IT'S NOT ALOPECIA OR CANCER, I HAVE TRICHOTILLOMANIA
A mum who has hid behind the hair loss condition alopecia for the last 20 years has bravely revealed a secret compulsion to tear out her own hair that has tormented her since she was a child .
ADORABLE NEWBORN SEALS PLAY IN SNOW
WITH THEIR adorable big round eyes and fluffy white fur, these baby seals are cute enough to melt any heart .
FAST FOOD FISHING
THIS is the awesome moment an Osprey catches its prey travelling at 50mph, giving new meaning to FAST FOOD .
A BUG'S LIFE
LIKE A scene from A Bugs Life, these ants work on creating their own mini community .
SUMMER ARRIVES AT LAST
Britons have finally received some good news about the weather with temperatures expected to reach 30 degrees this weekend .
HUNGRY HIPPO MISSES OUT ON LUNCH
A hungry hippo is seconds away from catching a bird in its gigantic jaws .
HOW DEEP IS YOUR LOVE? COUPLE TIE THE KNOT UNDERWATER
A diving mad couple have finally taken the plunge, having tied the knot 30ft underwater .
SEALED WITH A BUBBLE KISSED
MEET the underwater British seal who is so friendly he loves to grapple divers like a friendly puppy dog .
MIRACLE MAN SURVIVES 13,000ft FALL WHEN PARACHUTE FAILS
A skydiver cheated death after plunging 13,000 feet without his parachute opening but survived after landing in a bog .
WOMAN LOSES 11ST AFTER BREAKING TOILET SEAT
A 23st woman who was left humiliated after breaking a TOILET SEAT has lost an incredible 11st .
POLAR BEARS HAVE A SPLASHING TIME
Playing, splashing and generally messing around, these polar bears show they certainly have a soft spot for the water, and not just each other .