Claudia — Page 1692

Vignettes, Part One

April 26, 2010 at 6:59 pm by Claudia

My one and only day off is today. I ran some errands and then drove out to Ocean Beach to visit my favorite antique stores. After a somewhat stressful week, I needed to treat myself. Of course, I stopped in at Vignettes and took some photos to share with you.

A fabulous prom dress and a cabinet full of sparkly things.

Look at this mirror – it’s huge! You can see the reflection of a gorgeous settee, as well.

The cherubs remind me of the ones in my cherub painting – bought last year at Vignettes. I love, love my painting – it is hanging in our bedroom.

There are so many gorgeous mirrors here. I’ve been looking back home for one like the rectangular gold mirror or the oval white mirror in the upper left hand corner…to no avail. I’m afraid to buy one and ship it back home. Darn it! It would so wonderful over my piano. I’m also thinking about a hanging a lot of mirrors on our stairway wall – they would reflect the light from our skylight. Several bloggers have done that and it so striking.

The chair and the painting are fabulous.Do you see the chandelier? Lori just got it – it is Italian and exquisite. She has two. This one has pink glass and

this one has aqua (be still my heart.) As I said to Lori, “Why aren’t I independently wealthy?”

Speaking of Lori, who says she is my ‘friend’ – why did she schedule an afternoon with Rachel Ashwell one week to the day before I was to arrive in San Diego? Anyone? Yes, Ms. Ashwell came to Vignettes and everyone is raving about what a wonderful experience it was. Except me.

Boo hoo.

Lori gave me some of these chocolates – she had wrappers made up for them that were a miniaturized version of Rachel’s book cover. I’ve already eaten one, I confess. But I saved the wrapper.

I have more photos to share with you. I will save them for another post in the next few days. Truly, if you are anywhere near San Diego…you have to visit Lori’s stunningly beautiful shop. Everyone who works there is wonderful. It changes constantly…lucky for me!

Long Days and Tulips

April 24, 2010 at 10:13 am by Claudia

Thought I’d say a quick hello to everyone. The days have been long here. The artistic director arrived in time for Thursday’s rehearsal. Everyone is treading very carefully; that’s about all I feel I can say. I will be in for a lot of coaching work next week. I’ve felt that I should be there most of the day this week, so I couldn’t attend the Barn Sale. Do you remember the Barn Sale from my stay here last year? Linda has now moved it to a permanent location and it is called the Urban Barn. The good news is that the store is open 5 days a week, but the special sale is still once a month. Next month…

I’m still adjusting to the time difference. That, along with long days at rehearsal, has made me very tired. I’ve been trying to visit everyone and leave a comment but I must confess that some nights I just can’t do it. My brain won’t let me form a sentence. So, I apologize and assure you that it will get better.

I did have two free hours in the middle of the day yesterday which I used to do laundry and run to Trader Joe’s. My food supply was dwindling quickly. These tulips were $3.99. I love the pink and pale yellow combination.

I’ve been walking to and from the theater every day. I think the distance is about 2 miles. Maybe I’m getting in shape?

Have a wonderful weekend.

How I Met My House

April 22, 2010 at 11:03 am by Claudia

AnNicole at Our Suburban Cottage is having a How I Met My House party today.

We had been looking for houses in about 3 different areas of the Hudson Valley in New York. Some were on one side of the Hudson River, some were on the other. Each time we saw a listing that we liked, we would get excited because the photo of the house would look so charming. (We were in the market for something older with charm.) Inevitably, we would finally visit the house and it would smell, or be about to fall down, or be on a busy corner. Each time, disappointment.

We had been renters for years: both of us moved around a lot before we got married. Having a house in the country had always been my dream. So, we kept looking.

Finally, one Friday my agent sent me a photo of this house. I fell in love – could we see it right away? I didn’t want to miss out – the price had just been lowered. No, she was going away for the weekend and couldn’t show us until Monday. I showed it to Don. He loved it.

We waited through what seemed like an endless weekend and finally saw the house on Monday. The property was overgrown. No matter. We walked up to the house and I fell in love instantly with the wrap-around bluestone porch. While I was rhapsodizing about the porch, my husband walked in and saw a house flooded with light and a kitchen that had high ceilings (he’s 6’4″.) This little farmhouse had recently been gutted and taken down to the studs because a previous owner had been an eccentric cat lady. The downstairs was open, the pine floors were wide plank, and the den was two steps down from the rest of the first floor.

I had had a wish list – storage, a basement, 3 bedrooms. This house had no storage but there was a shed on the property, the basement was entered from the outside and believe me, nothing could be stored there, and there were only 2 bedrooms. But when you fall in love, you fall in love.

I complain about the lack of space all the time – but each time I do I immediately say “But I love this house.”

We named it Mockingbird Hill Cottage. I’m away right now for 10 weeks working across the country. I keep my home in my heart, counting the days until I can be there once again.

Vignettes, Part One

Long Days and Tulips

How I Met My House

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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