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You are here: Home / Archives for Claudia

From My Desk

September 1, 2013 at 9:26 am by Claudia

colorfulpens

Good morning. We had big old thunderstorms last night, with lots of lightning and cracks of thunder. I awoke to no internet this morning, which had me a wee bit worried. It was soon back on, however, so all is well. It’s a little worrisome that my first reaction upon failing to connect to the internet is “What will I do?”

Uh….Claudia? The same thing you did for all those years pre-laptop and internet. Read a book. Slowly sip your coffee. Thumb through a magazine. Meditate. Do a crossword puzzle. Somehow I managed to fill my time for, ahem, decades without automatically checking my email or surfing the web.

The other day I saw a commercial for Angie’s List where a woman was talking about the rescue dog she adopted and how she found all sorts of references for reliable Vets, groomers, etc., through that site. The rescue dog’s name was Riley. I was immediately in tears. I cried again yesterday, just thinking about the commercial. I miss my boy.

I thought I’d share a few interesting links for you today. I routinely bookmark all sorts of things that strike my fancy, then I promptly forget about them. Yesterday, I was cleaning out and deleting some of those bookmarks and I found a few that might be of interest to you.

• This piece, written by Tom Hanks for the New York Times: an ode to the typewriter. He loves them, collects them and I found myself smiling as I read it. I bought Don a vintage typewriter a couple of Christmases ago and, though it’s not the same vintage that Mr. Hanks raves about, I dream of owning an IBM Selectric. I typed on many of those in my temping days and there is nothing like the sharp rat-a-tat-tat sound that happens upon touching the keys. It’s on my wish list.

• These sheds, called Studio Sheds, that I think are so nifty. I’d love to have one. It could be a retreat or a studio or an addition. I love the modern design and they seem relatively affordable if you have some extra cash. Which I don’t.

• This great tutorial on the Simple Details blog for creating a concrete garden sphere. I want to do this next year.

• This armchair. I want it. It would be a beautiful replacement for my blogging chair, which, under it’s ratty slipcover, is not only quite old, but is slowly falling apart. Maybe this will go on sale some day? I keep clicking on the site and hoping.

• And finally, this interview with one of my favorites: Joni Mitchell. Oh Joni, you are amazing. (I saw her in concert in an outdoor venue on the night that Richard Nixon resigned. She announced it from the stage. I’ll never forget it.)

There you go. Enjoy.

Happy Sunday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Filed Under: life, links 31 Comments

A Not-So-Blank Canvas

August 31, 2013 at 8:43 am by Claudia

It’s a holiday weekend, but not for me. I work today and tomorrow. Monday is just another day off, since it’s always our day off. So I will continue to merrily tap away on the keyboard of my laptop and write posts to share with you.

I suppose if one wanted to call it that, I have a logo. Or to use Big Bloggers’ Speak: a Brand. I’m talking about that little lamb with the party hat that you see in my header and on my watermark. It’s also on my blog/etsy business card. I certainly didn’t create it with a plan in mind. I just took a picture some 4 years ago of a little lamb and the party hat I created for her.

But she stuck. She wormed her way into my heart. She landed in a couple versions of the header I used on the Blogger version of this blog. When I made the move to WordPress, I decided to go with clean and simple and there she is, right there among the letters that spell out Mockingbird Hill Cottage.

Well, all this recent talk about that little partying lamb got me thinking. Look what arrived yesterday:

canvas1

I ordered a wrapped canvas version of my photo.

My stars! I’m in love.

It’s 16 x 20 inches. There was a special offer from this particular company and I got it on sale. At deep discount.

I like whimsy. This, to me, is exceedingly whimsical. I might hang it in my studio at home. Or in the den where I blog. I’m not sure. I just know I thought it would be really cool to have a canvas version of My Little Lamb with the Party Hat. I’ve never had a canvas version of one of my photos. This might well become addictive.

I decided to hang it on an already established hook here in the apartment. I’m sure the landlord here wouldn’t appreciate me adding a largish hole to the wall. Little pinholes, fine. Big ones? A no no.

canvas2

She’s hanging above my desk, where I can see her as I blog and surf the web and type up notes for the actors. She is making me smile on this early Saturday morning and that’s no small thing. I’m still groggy with sleep and I’m in the midst of my morning coffee ration. As Don knows, getting any sort of reaction out of me when I first get up is tricky at best.

canvas3

Love, love, love this canvas. I ordered it from this company. It was created and shipped within a couple of days of placing my order. It took about 3 days to arrive here in Hartford.

Here she is this morning:

canvas4

There are different options available as to the actual wrap, but I chose to have the photo on top of the canvas and to have the sides wrapped in aqua.

Is this temporary apartment in danger of becoming too warm and cute and cheery?

Nope. I need all the warm and cute and cheery I can get.

Happy Saturday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Tagged With: Easy Canvas PrintsFiled Under: blog, blog design., decorating, Mockingbird Hill Cottage, On The Road, sheep 45 Comments

Hand Quilting, Scout and Moving On Stage

August 30, 2013 at 9:08 am by Claudia

quiltonsofa

I have to admit, I haven’t been getting as much hand quilting done as I would like to. In fact, I’ve only had one stab at it this week. I’ve been getting home around 7:30 and, after making some dinner and tending to blog comments and emails, I have been too pooped to tackle it. My eyes get tired from following along in the script, writing tons of notes for the actors, and sitting at the computer screen.

Here’s what I’ve done so far:

quiltdesign

I’m going to hand quilt random, interlocking, different-sized circles all over the quilt top. A simple design and that’s fine by me. I like to do something curvy when a quilt is very linear in design. The circles will also spill into the white borders on each of the blocks. I started in the center and will work my way outward. Today I will have some pockets of free time and I’m looking forward to a bit of meditative stitching. Looks like rain today.

Sob. I finished watching the last episode of House of Cards last night. It’s so, so good! Now I have to find something else to watch and, thankfully, several of you have made suggestions! I’ll have to go back and read them all. We had our last rehearsal in the rehearsal room and both run-throughs went very well. Today, La Dispute moves onstage with what is called a spacing rehearsal. The director and actors spend time adjusting to the set and the demands of the set. I’ll drop by to check on their voices in the space and offer advice as to the vocal adjustments that have to be made.

I thought I’d share a photo of Scout when she was here in the park a couple of weeks ago. Look closely and witness the hyper, slightly crazed expression on her face. She didn’t want to stay still and she definitely didn’t want me to hold her in place. She wants to get going! She makes me laugh, that little sprite. At the age of 14½, she is still up for adventure. Gosh, I miss her so much.

scoutieandmeinthepark

Maybe Don and Scout can come for a visit next week? Fingers crossed.

Happy Friday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Filed Under: On The Road, quilting, Scout, theater 28 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

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The Dogs

The Dogs

Scout & Riley. Riley left us in 2012. Scout left us in February 2016. Dearest babies. Dearest friends.

Winston - Our first dog. We miss you, sweetheart.

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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