decorating — Page 76

Accumulating Stuff

August 23, 2010 at 1:18 pm by Claudia

I am someone who loves to decorate. Who loves peeking in windows at night to see what the owner has done with her home. When I lived in Philadelphia and Boston (cities where I could walk for hours) I loved nothing more than getting a glimpse inside someone’s home in the evening. When my favorite decorating magazines were still being published, I looked forward to sitting down and looking at every story, every detail. Blogs have taken the place of magazines and windows for me. I get to travel the globe, peeking inside people’s homes…with their permission!

I love the all white and cream look, but it isn’t practical for me. Both my husband and I have a tendency to spill things. I have two big dogs with lots of hair. I never tire of seeing it, though. I love those bloggers’ homes that are spare, with hardly any excess stuff around. I admire them. I wonder how they do it. Do they continually purge? Do they have lots of storage space so they can rotate things in and out of rooms? Do they collect just one thing? Do they read and collect books? If so, where are the books, the magazines, the “things?”

Friends, I am not that sort of person, though I wish I could be. Yes, we live in a tiny cottage with no attic or usable basement. But I suspect I would still be dealing with the same issues even if I had tons of space. I love my collections. I love books. I have piles of things.

This pile is on the old wicker ottoman that is just to the left of my chair. Very typical, I might add. I’m reading the paperback on top, there is a book by Kelly Rae Roberts about the creative process just below it, the new Country Gardens is just below that. Then we come to the book from my giveaway which I have to send out to Tracie this week. Below that are books to read and review in the upcoming months. And on and on it goes. If I dared to show you, you would see a stack of books and papers just to the left of this under the table. Oh, and my Nook is on top of the table along with a sampler pattern I have yet to start embroidering.

This cabinet is jammed full of china and pottery, plus a few wedding cake toppers. I have one other cabinet in the den – and that is full. And I need even more display space.

A somewhat grainy photo because it is so dark and stormy today – but it will do. All table tops are crowded around here. This table has become, through no plan on my part, all things sea. There is seaglass, a boat assemblage from Linda Crispell, and a Roseville dish loaded with seashells from my recent trip. I just added the dish the other day. There is a shelf beneath that holds some favorite CDs.

I seem to spend a great deal of my time making stacks of things to sort through. What do I get rid of and what do I keep? If I keep it, where do I put it? I’m not a hoarder. I’m pretty good at purging when the need arises. I can be ruthless. But….not with the things I love. Not with my books or my china or my pottery or my paintings or my music or my little treasures.

So here is my question: Do you suffer from the same problem? Am I the only one in a mass of spare decorators out there who has stuff? Are there kindred spirits out there in blogland?

Around MHC West

June 8, 2010 at 5:47 pm by Claudia

We all know it’s the little touches that make a house a home, right? MHC West will never be the same as my real home, but I have added a few little things that cozy this place up. Some are things I’ve bought or brought from home, others are from my sweet friends.

My ribbon board: I bought 2 of them last year and took one home. Since I’m in the same apartment, the other was still here. You can see notes and cards from friends and family, my 39 squares project, Elyse’s wonderful clothespin, and some prize ribbons.

The two prize ribbons were snagged at Vignettes.

That’s my furry nephew, Max, next to the ribbon. He sent me a Mother’s Day card. He is, along with my dogs, the sweetest dog in the world.

My blog ribbon from Jeanne. Terri sent me the postcard from Paris. She had a fabulous adventure there.

Gorgeous ribbon and seam binding and a vintage Paris medallion I bought from Vignettes when I first arrived. And my vintage doll clothespins.

The first two fabric hearts I ever made – they have their flaws, so I kept them for myself. I like having them around.

:: I finished reading Anne of Green Gables on the Nook and am now reading Anne of Avonlea. Like many of you, I saw the television series based on these books and own the DVDs. When I’m reading, I hear the voices of Megan Follows and Colleen Dewhurst in my head. I wrote about this last year, but I’ll say it again for those of you who might not have been reading this blog at the time. I had the great good fortune to work with Megan Follows several years ago. She was in a production of The Sea Gull right here in this theater. I don’t talk about these things often, but I’ve worked with a lot of well known actors. I think I was most excited to meet Megan. When we had our first work session, I said that I hoped she didn’t mind but I was a huge fan of her work in that series – that she must hear that all the time. She immediately said that she didn’t mind at all. She never tired of hearing how powerful that series was for so many. Megan was a delight. She was all grown up with children of her own but she’ll always be Anne, won’t she?

:: I had the strangest dream last night. I’m a big Gregory Peck fan. I was lucky enough to hear and see him in person when he was doing his one man show. He had the most glorious, deep, resonant voice. In this dream, there were several people in one room. We were all crying – were we in mourning? I don’t know. Suddenly, Gregory Peck came in the door. He was wearing a checked flannel shirt and was as handsome as you might imagine. I hoped he would come up to me. He did. He leaned down to speak in my ear. And out of him came the most nasal, high-pitched, southern twang you’ve ever heard. He might as well as been a cast member on Hee Haw. And then I woke up.

Aren’t dreams fascinating???

A Hidden Treasure

June 5, 2010 at 5:01 pm by Claudia

On my way back from the theater after dropping off notes for the actors, I finally checked out this tiny complex of apartments/cottages that I pass daily. I usually pass by the rear of the buildings. Today, since I had my camera, I decided to take a peek.

These buildings are just off Balboa Park. I don’t know when they were built, but they are definitely vintage. That makes me happy. San Diego is lovely but sometimes all the buildings look like a sea of new beige stucco. Fortunately, the neighborhood surrounding the park has many wonderful old buildings. From the rear, these apartments look very nondescript, but when you look through the front gate, you see 2 rows of cottages (they are all attached) with beautiful landscaping and such charm! I took some photos.

This is the view as you come in the front gate.

One of the adorable cottages. Each front door has the look of a french door.

Can you see the little bridge? I’m in love.

This is the rear of the complex – where the 2 rows of cottages meet.

Each apartment owner has plants and flowers everywhere.

This is a busy neighborhood, especially on the weekend. Today, cars were backed up trying to get to the Zoo. But when I walked in the gate, it was quiet. There was a fountain gurgling, plants were blooming and each little cottagey apartment was utterly charming.

I chatted with a woman who lived there and was outside pruning her plants. She said the apartments were quirky – as all older apartments are – but that she loved living there. She had been there 8 years.

I’ve always been so drawn to cozy, charming little places like this. When I first moved to San Diego in 1993, I lived in an old building with Spanish influence. My particular unit still had hand stenciled beams in the living room. The kitchen had all the original tile from the 20’s. I loved that apartment. It only had one drawback – the busy corner it was on with a school right next door. I would have stayed there had not Don arrived in my life. Eventually I moved into the home I shared with him for 6 years, an old Craftsman home. Can you tell I go for old?

It struck me today that I would have snapped one of these units up had I known about them when I was new to San Diego. It might have made it harder for Don to woo me away. What a hidden treasure – a quiet little enclave in the middle of the city.

By the way, I got such a laugh when some of you said the heart shaped rock in an previous post looked like a piece of toast when you first saw it. I can see that. Perhaps you were also hungry?

Accumulating Stuff

Around MHC West

A Hidden Treasure

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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