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
'DYING’ SCARE SAVES 3ST ANOREXIC

AN anorexic woman whose heart stopped after she starved herself to 3st has revealed that ‘dying’ for a minute helped shock her into recovery .

KISS OF LIFE TODDLER

A toddler has shrugged off death an incredible 10 times thanks to his parents who revive him with the kiss of life every two weeks .

BUDGET DIY: MUM-OF-FOUR ADDS OUTDOOR LOO LIKE BECKHAMS FOR JUST £60

A mother-of-four has revealed how, like the Beckhams, she’s added an outside toilet to her home .

HYPER-REALISTIC DINNER IS ACTUALLY DESSERT

From a platter of finger licking chicken wings to a bowl of Chinese noodle soup, these foodie snaps are enough to make your savoury saliva glands drool .

ABANDONED CALIFORNIAN GOLD RUSH TOWN

A once bustling gold rush town in Mono County, California now stands completed deserted .

WORLD'S MOST IDYLLIC BOMB SITE BEAUTY

WELCOME to the Hidden Beach - the world's most idyllic BOMB SITE .

STOLEN £2K BULLDOG REUNITED WITH FAMILY VIA TWITTER

STOLEN £2K BULLDOG REUNITED WITH FAMILY VIA TWITTER - A £2,000 bulldog puppy snatched from her home by burglars has been reunited with her family thanks to Twitter .

BRAZEN COPS PARK IN RESTRICTED BAY

Pic By HotSpot Media - GAME, SET-TEE AND MATCH: COUPLE INSTALL TENNIS COURT IN LOUNGE- In Pic - Ben Walters’ message to West Midlands Police via social media .

SPLASHING KINGFISHER

CAUSING a splash, this determined kingfisher goes hunting for dinner .

CHEETAH HUNT

Hot on the heels of a little rabbit, this cheetah is on a mission to catch his prey .

RARE BRONTE POEM FETCHES £92K AT AUCTION

A rare manuscript of one of Charlotte Bronte’s earliest poems went under the hammer today and fetched nearly £100,000 – double what it was expected to get .

PRAYING MANTIS MAKES AN UNLIKELY FRIEND

A brave praying mantis makes an unusual friend in an Oriental garden lizard .