Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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You are here: Home / Archives for miniatures

A Little Bit of Everything

November 26, 2016 at 9:43 am by Claudia

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On our second gloomy day in a row, I thought a sunny picture would be in order. Hard to believe, but I just took this about 3 days ago.

Low-key is a perfect description for life here in the cottage these days. After my spurt of energy sorting and purging the closet on Thanksgiving, I have reverted to my inclination to be lazy. I did rouse myself to drive to our local jeweler yesterday to get the battery in my watch replaced – a favorite watch that I had lost track of, but found – you guessed it – in the midst of my cleaning and sorting on Thursday.

And, on high alert, I stopped at the grocery store to get some more Peet’s French Roast. I’m not exaggerating when I say we go into a mild panic at the thought of running out and finding that our closest store is also out.  And that has happened, my friends. It isn’t pretty. We’ve tried just about every other French Roast out there, most often when we have no other choice, and while some are okay, none equal Peet’s.

Don’t you think Peet’s should hire me as a ‘brand ambassador?’

I’ve been reading the latest Lee Child, but – and I’m going to be frank here – I’m just not that into it. That is the first and only time I have ever said that about one of his thrillers. This one takes place in the past, when Reacher was still an enlisted man, and the premise is intriguing, but for some reason this one just seems too formulaic. Maybe it’s my mood, maybe because I’ve read all of the Reacher series, but I’m having to force myself to finish. I will finish, if only because I bought the darned book, but it is definitely not my favorite.

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The latest SquintBox, which arrived in yesterday’s mail. The theme is ‘Good Cheer.’ Christmas presents, holiday cards, a shopping bag and box from Paris, a Plum Pudding Cake, and a glass bowl of holiday candies. My stash is growing monthly due to this neat subscription service!

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Mini Pottery collection update. I’ve had to move some of the pieces to the top of this shadow box because I’m running out of room! (I’m not complaining.)

We watched Top Hat  on TCM yesterday. As the world’s biggest Fred Astaire fan – really, I am! – I’ve seen this movie many, many times. But I never tire of it. I’ve been an Astaire fan since I was a kid. There’s not much I don’t know about him. My dorm room and student apartments were dominated by a huge poster of Fred and Ginger dancing Cheek to Cheek, Ginger’s infamous feather dress looking gorgeous (and somewhat dangerous for Fred, as feathers flew everywhere.)

In times of stress and worry, which, let’s face it, this particular time is, a Fred and Ginger movie is the perfect prescription. There’s a reason their movies were such a hit during a time when the country reeled from The Depression.

Another movie that makes me happy? Tootsie. And that’s on TCM tonight at 8.

Another happy thing: our new weekend home delivery of the New York Times. I signed up for it at the beginning of the week. We now get the Friday – Sunday editions delivered to our little cottage. And they’re out there on the driveway early! We get up around 5:30 or 6 and the paper is already there.

I’m making good on my promise to subscribe to a newspaper or two as well as magazines that feature investigative journalism. Supporting a free press is imperative.

Happy Saturday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Filed Under: books, coffee, collecting, media, miniatures, movies, pottery 33 Comments

Thoughts on Saturday

November 19, 2016 at 9:07 am by Claudia

It’s one of those days where I want to block out all sound. Since early this morning I’ve heard the sound of rifles. It’s hunting season. You know how I feel about that, so I won’t go into it here. Suffice to say, I keep chanting, “Miss! Miss!” and silently willing the deer to take cover.

I’m heading more and more into veganism. I’m not quite there yet. But I’m eliminating butter and cheese as much as possible, as well as eggs. I’m not perfect; I have leather shoes and leather bags, but as I move forward, I am going to try to make better, more humane choices.

From our walk yesterday:

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The building on the left is part of a rather well-known company that has its headquarters in our little town. They make natural products; makeup, soap, cleansers, etc.

It’s November 19th. Time to remove our window air conditioners, don’t you think? Yikes. We seem to do this later and later every year. But today is the day. And tomorrow night the temperatures are going to plunge at night and stay there consistently throughout the next week, so I’m bracing myself to say sayonara to my porch plants. Sigh. It really is the end of the season here at the cottage.

A month from today we start rehearsals for Comedy of Errors. Suddenly, I’m aware of all I have to do before the 18th, when I will travel to Hartford. Since I have been either stressed or down and somewhat unmotivated for the past couple of months, I guess I needed something to kick me in the tush, and this is it. We had planned on traveling down to Florida for a visit, first in October, then we pushed it back to around Thanksgiving. But, after much discussion, we made the decision this week not to go. It just seemed to be too much for us at the present time and my gut was telling me it wasn’t the right time to travel. So we’ll go sometime after the first of the year. Meredith was disappointed, I know, as are we. But I know we made the right decision, hard as it was.

Barbara sent me a birthday card and this was enclosed:

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A mini Nancy Drew mystery! The Hidden Staircase, with a Russell H. Tandy cover. Let’s get a closer look:

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I love it. Thank you, Barbara! Yesterday, I found it on this chair, which sits in the living room of Hummingbird Cottage. Obviously, Caroline has been enjoying some vintage Nancy Drew! (Have you noticed we have a lot in common?)

Happy Saturday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

 

Filed Under: books, dollhouse, hunting, miniatures 33 Comments

Petite Gifts

November 18, 2016 at 9:09 am by Claudia

A few weeks back, Denise (a longtime reader of the blog) wrote me and asked me for my mailing address, as she had something she wanted to send me. I’m always taken by surprise when that happens, and of course, grateful that anyone would want to send me anything.

Denise alerted me that she had sent the package last week, so Don stopped off at the post office and brought it home. She wrote a lovely note in which she said she had been the full-time caregiver for her mother, who passed away two months ago. She was now ‘paring down and simplifying the home we shared.’ How hard that must be, grieving and sorting through things, everything evoking a memory.

She said that she had known that she wanted to send this gift to me.

I opened the box and gasped when I saw the contents:

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Petite Princess furniture! I’ve written about it on the blog many times. It was made by Ideal and was sold from 1964 to 1968. I was a big fan when I was a girl and asked for it for my birthday and Christmas, but Mom was having none of it. (See? I wanted something ‘dollhouse’ even then.)

I found a couple of pieces several years ago that I used in the dollhouse; two dressers and a lamp.

These pieces were Denise’s when she was a girl.

As I told Denise, each time I unwrapped something, I gasped. Don was here at the time and I kept gasping and he said, “Wait until everything is opened and then  show me.” (I think my gasps were interrupting his concentration.)

Above, the dressing table, seat, and three tables. Wouldn’t every little girl want a dressing table like that one?

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Gasp! The piano! What can I say? It’s gorgeous! (Denise told me the piano is her favorite piece.)

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Gasp! A lovely curved sofa and another dresser.

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Gasp! Another coffee table and phone and some lamps (the bird lamp is the same as the one I have in the dollhouse), another table, statues, a lamp and some paintings. And there are more accessories, too –  statuary, vases, dishes with fruit, tiny glasses – amazing petite beauties.

That Denise would think of me as she, still in mourning, sorts through things in her home moves me beyond words. This is a treasure trove and I am so honored that she would pass it on to me.

Thank you, Denise. I will take good care of it, I promise.

It’s Friday. Yesterday, I thought it was Saturday for half the day and then I thought it was Friday for the other half. Now it actually is  Friday. Soon I will have to start working on the text for Comedy of Errors, which starts rehearsals in mid-December. Yes, what seemed so far off is now fast approaching.

Don has told me he will be out and about most of the day. I know what he’s up to, he’s going birthday present shopping!

Happy Friday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

 

 

Filed Under: collecting, dollhouse, gifts, miniatures 50 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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