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.
A lazy tree frog, tired of hopping along a branch, chooses the slowest form of transport when it jumps on top of an unsuspecting snail .
A mother-of-one has revealed how a neighbour’s friend ‘mauled’ her face, leaving her scarred for life .
AS graffiti goes, this giant mural of a sweet little girl tenderly watering a tree beneath her is a far cry from what you usually see emblazoned across cities .
A survivor of abuse has bravely waived her anonymity to tell how she was sexually assaulted from the age of nine - by her depraved grandad .
STAR-TI-LING: 40,000 STARLINGS MIMIC HITCHCOCK'S THE BIRDS- This could be the fearsome scene from Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds as a flock of 40,000 starlings bask in the heat of a wonderful British sunset .
Pic By Graham Gibson/ HotSpot Media - SHARK HYPNOTIST BALANCES SHARK IN PALM OF HIS HAND- In Pic - Diver Tom and Caribbean reef sharks in the Bahamas- A SHARK hypnotist balances these predators in the palm of his hand by sending them to sleep with a gentle nose rub .
A TAXIDERMY truck spotted in America’s Deep South could be the most gruesome wagon on the road .
LIKE A scene from A Bugs Life, these ants work on creating their own mini community .
Aged 27, I was swept off my feet by my gorgeous husband, Lee, now 42 .
A woman who has suffered over 200 allergic reactions in seven years, has been crowned a BEAUTY QUEEN .
BALANCING on top of a tree, this bear cub puts her climbing skills to the test .
A once bustling gold rush town in Mono County, California now stands completed deserted .