Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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You are here: Home / Archives for Ikea

Some Breathing Space for the Girls

March 8, 2023 at 9:16 am by Claudia

The girls watching yesterday’s activity in the den.

Yesterday was about assembling my purchase from IKEA. I did most of it myself, but Don helped out when two people were needed. It took longer than I thought. I chose a narrow Billy bookshelf unit that is about 19 inches wide. I also purchased a glass door for it. I had doubts about the door, knowing that the light from our big picture window would cause reflection on the glass, so I’d have to keep the door open when I was in here. But then I thought – what if we get a dog someday? Would they be safe? That’s why I got the door.

The Billy choice was inspired by another Blythe collector who has the narrow unit, plus a large unit. She has a much larger collection than I do and she obviously has more space! But I recognized the shelves immediately and knew they would be perfect.

Anyway. Almost impossible to photograph from my vantage point in the room. This is the best I can do at the moment, but I promise to get better photos in the future.

And from a lower angle, shooting up:

The unexpected problem we encountered? The back of the unit has a cut-out at the bottom to accommodate a baseboard. The unit fits over the baseboard and is flush with the wall. But not our baseboards. Our baseboards are about a ¼” higher, so the cut-out doesn’t fit over them. We considered removing the baseboard and made a few tentative attempts, but we knew that would ruin the drywall – such as it is. (Every day I notice more and more cheap tricks that were used in the flip of this house. That’s another story entirely.)

The unit comes with braces to attach it to the wall. But we couldn’t use them since it isn’t flush. They’re meant for the weight of books, and Blythe dolls aren’t books, so I think we’re okay. We had to shim the base because this house is 132 years old and the floors slant and no wall is perfectly straight. This is another reason why we didn’t use the door. The weight might have been too much.

I briefly wondered if I should have installed shelves like the ones we use in the den for books. But I really wanted a “cubicle” with walls to support the girls. Plus, I like the bright white in this little niche.

The bottom two shelves.

Middle shelves.

Top shelf.

There’s one additional shelf that I didn’t use but I will in the future.

We finished in the afternoon and the sun was streaming in and it was so bright in this corner! Don went on and on about how much he loves this change. I feel the same way. (We still have to move the music cabinet upstairs, but after a morning of being on my knees putting this thing together, that was impossible.) Right now, it’s right outside the entrance to the den.

I quickly arranged the dolls and all of this will change depending on my whims, but there’s a lot of potential here! I can decorate the cubes, or leave them the way they are. Temporary tweaks would be fun. Most every girl’s eyes are looking to the left because I did that to all of them so I could take the photo of them on the sofa. That will change soon.

The best thing is that the girls are no longer jammed together. Their hair, especially, needed some breathing room!

Today is mostly cloudy but in the next few days I’ll try to grab some shots when the sun is shining.

Now, all the big and little girls, as well as their pets, are in one place. And there is a wee bit of room for additions.

You can see a little video tour of the shelves on my IG Blythe account:  sophieandherpals.

Stay safe.

Happy Wednesday.

Filed Under: Blythe dolls, Ikea 49 Comments

Overstimulated

March 7, 2023 at 8:20 am by Claudia

When I go to Trader Joe’s – and that is a rare occurrence these days – I have to buy flowers because they’re so inexpensive. This bouquet is currently brightening up the kitchen. But, in actuality, there’s not much that interests us there. We did buy a few frozen things to have on hand for when we can’t squeeze in a trip to the grocery store. The fact is, Don’s cooking is so good for us and our needs that we are no longer drawn to Trader Joe’s.

Except for flowers. And our favorite black bean and cheese taquitos, which we love to have on hand. We did stock up on them, as well as a few other items and some almond milk for me. And their lavender soap, which I love. This particular TJs is always SO busy. The parking lot is a madhouse with every driver out for him/herself, desperate to find a parking space. Yikes!

IKEA was fun, but exhausting. It wasn’t crowded, so it’s not as if we had to deal with too many people. But it’s so overwhelming – so much stuff! To be fair to IKEA, it’s because of me. I have very little patience for shopping in a huge store – or any store, to be honest – anymore. After a while, the lights irritate my eyes, the displays everywhere, the sheer amount of items to ‘take in;’ it’s all too much. Plus, I was a bit dehydrated after having had two large mugs of coffee. There’s only so much water I can drink when I know I’m going to be in the car for an hour and a half, so I hadn’t had my usual quota.

All that being said, what IKEA does is really marvelous. And their displays are so well done. The arrows that direct you around the store, the fun little things you find along the way, the information on each item and where to find it, all of it is impeccably done. What did we grab along the way? Only things that we needed and had needed for a long time: new potholders, a steamer insert, a cooking pot, some pads for the bottom of furniture legs, 6 extra spoons (hurrah!) And the mystery item, which will be revealed in due time. We were going to eat there, but we wanted to get going, so we grabbed a veggie hot dog or two at the Bistro right by the checkout and ate them in the car before we headed back north for Trader Joe’s and the thruway. We love where we live, but most any sort of adventure involves a lot of driving time, so when you add 3 hours on the road, two hours in IKEA, and about 30 minutes in TJs, it all adds up. Just as when we have to go into the city for an audition or work – the bus commute alone takes about 3 1/2 hours, the drive to the bus station from our house is about 40 minutes round trip, and then you add in the additional time needed to do business in the city. It’s a long day. There’s usually not any time available for anything else. I’m not complaining, it just comes with our choice to live where we live.

Today, I plan to tackle the project, which will require some help from Don. I didn’t start it yesterday because I promised him I wouldn’t. Turns out I was too tired to do that anyway. We have to move a piece of furniture before I can start.

Oh, the pair of Carolina wrens appeared again this morning, but this time, one of them flew up to the top of our porch light and then walked around the top of the front door. Both of them were on the porch for a while, but no visit to the bird house – at least, that I saw.

Okay. Have to get going!

Stay safe.

Happy Tuesday.

Filed Under: birds, Ikea, Trader Joe's 28 Comments

Errands on a Monday

March 6, 2023 at 7:22 am by Claudia

We both woke up early today. Don woke up coughing, which is quite rare. Usually the one coughing is me. Much of the snow has melted. In fact the driveway is now completely clear – without any shoveling! That’s my kind of snowfall.

We’re going to head out to run some errands this morning. I have found a solution for displaying my girls. It’s inexpensive, it’s at IKEA, and eventually, I will have to move some things around. In a small house, anything new that’s added ends up being a game of dominoes. IKEA is south of us, in New Jersey, and on the wary home is a Trader Joe’s, so we’ll stop and get a few things there. Don has to go with me because we need his larger car. Mine is not the best for furniture components.

Ah…a mini adventure. We usually see IKEA from the inside of the bus that takes us to New York. It’s always fun to actually go inside and see everything that’s on display there. However, we’re going to be very efficient about our shopping. No meandering – it’s a long drive there and back.

It’s sunny at the moment but sunny doesn’t last all that long lately. Hopefully, it will hang around a bit as we set off on our drive.

Okay, my friends.

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

 

 

Filed Under: Blythe dolls, Ikea 24 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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