A grandmother with incurable cancer has created an adorable custom-built mouse house on one of her staircase steps – and her grandchildren love it.

Amanda Northey, 63, was gifted a small mouse bear from her uncle last autumn after she was diagnosed with incurable blood cancer.

She also received a few miniature canvases and a box of paints, so she decided to make tiny paintings as though the mouse, named Sesame, was creating them.

Amanda, who is an artist, also made the mouse his very own gallery and found a spot with the perfect height for his short stature – a staircase step.

“I decided that if I wanted a space with a door that would open, the stairs would be the only place in the house where that could be achieved,” Amanda said.

“The idea for the house grew over time by first putting in a ready-made fairy door that I bought online.

“Once the door was installed, I painted the space inside the stair and hung some paintings.

“I added a light inside and a window bought from a dollhouse supplier so that when the grandchildren visited they could look in and see what Sesame was doing.”

The project expanded when the grandmother-of-12 purchased a dining table for little Sesame, as well as a telephone and bookshelf.

Amanda added: “It became a house rather than a gallery."

She has spent £25 herself, with family members contributing items including potted plants, a miniature wheelie bin, a china tea set and even a BBQ.

Amanda said: “The whole family has enjoyed the process of seeing the mouse house develop.

“When the grandchildren visit, they look to see what changes have been made and I now have a collection of dollhouse miniatures so that I can change things around and make it more interesting.

“The grandchildren love the mouse house, especially the lit-up interior and all the details.

“They look through the window and see if there are any new accessories or changes in décor.”

Sesame’s house even got a festive makeover at Christmastime with a wreath on the door and a tiny Christmas pudding.

Although not all of her family have been able to visit yet due to lockdown restrictions, Amanda has no doubt they will all be “delighted” to see the mouse's spot in the house.

The lucky rodent even has his own cheese board and jug of juice – perfect for entertaining friends.

She said: “It’s a fun ongoing project that doesn’t use a lot of time, money or energy to achieve.

“Like everything else at the moment, the project depends on my health and energy levels.

“Having blood cancer that is incurable is a challenge – I have good days and bad days depending on what stage I am at in my treatment cycle.

“It's on the good days that I'm able to think about my art and other creative projects including the mouse house.

“It’s good to keep active and have interests to focus on, and spending time doing things with and for my grandchildren is very fulfilling.”

Amanda’s daughter, Rebekah, shared pictures of the sweet set-up on Facebook, where she has received more than 15,000 likes and 2,000 comments so far.

A grandmother with incurable cancer has created an adorable custom-built mouse house on one of her staircase steps – and her grandchildren love it.

Amanda Northey, 63, was gifted a small mouse bear from her uncle last autumn after she was diagnosed with incurable blood cancer.

She also received a few miniature canvases and a box of paints, so she decided to make tiny paintings as though the mouse, named Sesame, was creating them.

Amanda, who is an artist, also made the mouse his very own gallery and found a spot with the perfect height for his short stature – a staircase step.

“I decided that if I wanted a space with a door that would open, the stairs would be the only place in the house where that could be achieved,” Amanda told Jam Press.

“The idea for the house grew over time by first putting in a ready-made fairy door that I bought online.

“Once the door was installed, I painted the space inside the stair and hung some paintings.

“I added a light inside and a window bought from a doll house supplier so that when the grandchildren visited they could look in and see what Sesame was doing.”

The project expanded when the grandmother-of-12 purchased a dining table for little Sesame, as well as a telephone and bookshelf.

Amanda added: “It became a house rather than a gallery."

She has spent £25 herself, with family members contributing items including potted plants, a miniature wheelie bin, china tea set and even a BBQ.

Amanda said: “The whole family has enjoyed the process of seeing the mouse house develop.

“When the grandchildren visit, they look to see what changes have been made and I now have a collection of doll house miniatures so that I can change things around and make it more interesting.

“The grandchildren love the mouse house, especially the lit-up interior and all the details.

“They look through the window and see if there are any new accessories or changes in décor.”

Sesame’s house even got a festive makeover at Christmastime with a wreath on the door and a tiny Christmas pudding.

Although not all of her family have been able to visit yet due to lockdown restrictions, Amanda has no doubt they will all be “delighted” to see the mouse's spot in the house.

The lucky rodent even has his own cheese board and jug of juice – perfect for entertaining friends.

She said: “It’s a fun ongoing project that doesn’t use a lot of time, money or energy to achieve.

“Like everything else at the moment, the project depends on my health and energy levels.

“Having blood cancer that is incurable is a challenge – I have good days and bad days depending on what stage I am at in my treatment cycle.

“It's on the good days that I'm able to think about my art and other creative projects including the mouse house.

“It’s good to keep active and have interests to focus on, and spending time doing things with and for my grandchildren is very fulfilling.”

Amanda’s daughter, Rebekah, shared pictures of the sweet set-up on Facebook, where she has received more than 15,000 likes and 2,000 comments so far.

One person said: “Magical – will create amazing memories for the little ones.”

“Love this, the kids will be amazed,” another person agreed.

Someone else commented: “Love this so much, his little wheelie bin is class. Hope he has a blue one to put his recycling in.”

Other people were inspired by the “adorable” project and said they wanted their very own stair mouse.

“As a kid this would have been a dream come true for me,” one fan commented.

Another person said: “Omg his little wheelie bin, too cute… I won’t be happy in life until I have one too – fabulous idea.” [sic]

“This is the cutest thing ever – I want one, for a real guitar-playing mouse,” someone else said.

One person was fooled and believed Sesame was a real mouse at first glance.

“This is the best thing I have ever seen,” another person said.

Someone else commented: “Love it – what a original, brilliant idea, well done.”

Health permitting, Amanda now hopes to expand Sesame’s home with a second storey to give the mouse a bedroom.