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.
FROM A mini table and chairs to a detailed violin, it’s hard to believe these incredible sculptures are all carved into the nib of PENCILS .
MEET the underwater British seal who is so friendly he loves to grapple divers like a friendly puppy dog .
An intrepid photographer travelled to the abandoned ghost town of Bodie in northern California to capture the historic buildings that are trapped in time .
SPURTING water 20ft into the air, this is one well you wouldn't want to dip your bucket into .
FROM a HOLLYWOOD actress to the face of an innocent child, these are incredible drawings with an unlikely twist .
A nine year old girl nearly lost her leg after doctors initially misdiagnosed her bone cancer as a pulled muscle .
SWIMMING next to 40 tonne whales, dare-devil divers take the plunge with these gentle giants of the sea .
BEHIND the doors of this building, with its stacks of mattresses and discarded remains of wheelchairs, lies another victim of austerity cuts .
A Hereford woman has lost 10st 3lbs after ditching her £260-a-month takeaway habit .
An adorable orangutan named Pongo celebrates his first birthday at Zoo Atlanta, Georgia, America .
SOARING through the air, this is the moment a hungry tawny owl arrives home with dinner .
USUALLY full to bursting, these London Underground stations stand silent and completely commuter free .