miniatures — Page 71

Top Secret Project: Oh, That Orange!

April 18, 2016 at 9:11 am by Claudia

Don: Do not read any further!! Stop here. xo

Don was out and about yesterday morning, so I took the opportunity to work on the TSP, along with cleaning out the big garden bed. Spray painting was on the docket, which has to be done outside, so I painted, then started raking out the big garden bed in between coats of paint. I managed to get it done and hide all traces of my activity before Don came home. (I even finished raking out the garden bed.)

When I went to Lowe’s the other day, I was also looking for just the right color of spray paint for this:

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Do you remember this little project that I made last year? It’s from a tutorial by Kris at 1 Inch Minis.

As I was ready to dip my toes into the TSP once again, I thought this would be a good start.

I taped off the interior of the fireplace, went outside with spray paint in hand, and sprayed two coats of orange paint. After it was all dry, I hand painted the interior.

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To my surprise, it worked! I love, love the way this looks!

The paint is by Valspar. It’s Premium Finish Interior/Exterior High Gloss (paint and primer all in one.) The interior paint is from FolkArt – Black Metallic. I already had that on hand.

When I look at this fireplace, I see an A-Frame house built in the sixties – perhaps a ski getaway, or a house on a lake. It brings back memories, that’s for sure.

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Now, doesn’t that just make you smile. I love the way the orange shows up in the Beatles canvas. On Paul, of course – my young girl crush.

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The pipe will look straighter when I can attach it to the roof, which has yet to be painted. To be honest, I love the way the light pours in the TSP without the roof. I’m not sure yet if I want to put it on! I’m pondering that one.

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In the TSP: a mini guitar. Outside the sliding doors: Don’s real-life guitar stand. Real Life meets Miniature Life.

I told Don I was real excited about ‘a secret thing I worked on while you were away.’ He is eager to see the finished product so we have now set a deadline. I will have it done by June 24, his birthday. I mentioned that it would look finished but that I reserved the right to tweak it as necessary.

So now I’m making lists of Must Haves.

It felt good to do something, to accomplish something. Ever since my dad died, my creative spark has been missing. It’s slowly reemerging. Slowly. That makes me happy.

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A late afternoon shot of Caroline’s living room with Roseville pottery.

I have a book review up on Just Let Me Finish This Page: I Let You Go by Claire Macintosh. I won’t give away anything except to say the this is an incredible read. Stop by.

Happy Monday.

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Mini Gifts for Caroline (I’m Not Jealous. I’m Not.)

April 16, 2016 at 9:10 am by Claudia

I guess it’s no secret that Caroline has a boyfriend. This is rather a big deal because she likes to stay unattached. She has a busy schedule. She’s fiercely independent. She earns a good salary and bought her house a few years ago. She travels. She likes her own company.

She’s kept the whole thing fairly quiet (she’s very private.) I respect that, having been through much the same thing when I first met Don.

However, yesterday she called out to me and asked me to drop by Hummingbird Cottage. She wanted to show me something. She was clearly excited. I’d venture to say she was almost giddy.

He had given her a present, seemingly out of the blue. “Look!” she said. “He gets me!”

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Oh my goodness! Bravo! He definitely gets her.

I can see why she was so excited. Two beautiful pieces of Roseville in the White Rose pattern. I have one piece in White Rose. Caroline now has three!

They’re beautiful.

I watched as she walked around the living room, searching for the best place to display each piece. The shelf that holds four pieces of Roseville is rather crowded, so she needed to branch out.

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She moved some things off that little blue table and replaced them with the salmon colored jardiniere. She thought, and rightly so, that it worked with the rug and the Aubusson pillow on the sofa. Beautiful, Caroline. (She does have good taste, doesn’t she?)

Now for the vase.

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Ah. The mantel. It looks lovely there. (We won’t go into my jealousy over Caroline’s mantel. It doesn’t speak well of me.)

A closer look:

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I love it. In fact, (yes, the green-eyed monster is rearing its ugly head again) I’m rather coveting that vase. Note to self: must check out White Rose patterns on eBay. STAT.

I tried to get a good photo of the living room this morning so I could show you how the Roseville is placed throughout the living room, but the light is lacking. I’ll get one this afternoon. I have to say that the Roseville adds a lovely, warm, vintage touch to the room.

This guy sounds like a keeper.

Happy Saturday.

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Caroline Wants Equal Time

April 13, 2016 at 9:01 am by Claudia

Yesterday, as I was wandering around the downstairs, I thought I heard someone talking.

But Don wasn’t home and it wasn’t me, so how could that be?

Curious, I tried to find the source. As I moved nearer to the den, the voice grew louder.

I might have guessed. It was Caroline and she wasn’t happy. Once I got her to calm down and speak clearly, I understood. Apparently all these posts of mine about Roseville Pottery and my growing collection have ticked her off.

“Where are the photos of my Roseville? And why do I only have four pieces?”

“Well, Caroline,” I said, “The answer to your second question is simply that it’s very, very hard to find miniature Roseville Pottery. There is only one source and I think I’ve found all I can find.”

She wasn’t happy.

I quickly interjected, “But I can take a few photos of your Roseville and some of your other pottery. I’ll post them tomorrow, okay?”

This seemed to do the trick. At least, for now.

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There you go, Caroline. She does have some pretty pieces, doesn’t she? Like me, she prefers to display them, rather than actually use them to hold flowers. “They’re works of art,” she says. “They don’t need flowers.”

Left to right: Bleeding Heart vase, White Rose vase, Columbine vase and Fuchsia vase. (These are exact replicas of life-sized Roseville vases, by the way. I looked them up in my reference books.)

She urged me to take more pictures.

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She loves this vase in the den. Barbara gave it to her.

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And she loves the pottery in her cabinet. Although I should urge her to straighten that cream colored vase on the right. It’s going to tip over.

Am I stating the obvious here when I say that Caroline seems to be modeling her collection after mine? Right down to the Singing Bird? They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. I guess I should be flattered.

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I used to have a couple of these Fiesta pitchers. I regret selling them.

Hmmm. I wonder if I should collect them again?

Then it would be me copying Caroline who originally copied me. If you know what I mean.

I wrote a post about beloved children’s author Beverly Cleary’s 100th birthday, which was yesterday. I’d love you to come by and share some of your favorite Beverly Cleary books with us.

Happy Wednesday.

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Top Secret Project: Oh, That Orange!

Mini Gifts for Caroline (I’m Not Jealous. I’m Not.)

Caroline Wants Equal Time

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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