Don: You know the drill. Keep Out!

There were only two items in the mailbox yesterday; two boxes designated for the Top Secret Project. As it happened, Don wasn’t home so I didn’t need to sneak them into the house.

First up: I ordered a couple of items from Brae’s Etsy shop. Brae, if you remember, is the brilliant miniaturist who blogs at Otterine. Brae told me she was throwing a few extra items in the box along with the order. She’s a gem. Here’s what I ordered:

I fell in love with these wonderful pillows that were made by Brae. That shot of orange in the modern print is perfect for the sofa, don’t you think?

And these lovely potted boxwoods, also made by Brae. I love the way she’s aged the pots. These have been on my Etsy wishlist for a long time, so when I decided to order the pillows, I added them as well. I’m thinking one will be on the front porch/deck – maybe both of them.

Here’s what she added to the package.

This wonderful bamboo rake, which is now residing in the Roof Garden on Hummingbird Cottage

Bottles of wine and a magnifying glass – wonderful!

And this print, taken from a calendar, which I would love to use as artwork in a future project. (Yes, I’m already planning one.)

Thank you, Brae!

The other box was from a company in England, Tumdee Dollshouse Miniatures. Love the name ‘Tumdee’ – it sounds so whimsical!

Could you die? Oh my goodness. Don would love a life-sized version of this guitar. It came in a mini guitar case, but the case is out of scale, so I’m stowing it away. I’m going to hang the guitars on the wall, I think.

And the other item, which turned out to be a bit disappointing, was a microphone.

The stand is fine, but the microphone itself is huge. I am sort of a stickler for things being in scale, or as close to scale as possible. It matters to me. I’ve seen another microphone out there that is more accurate in terms of scale but it’s really expensive and I’m not going to pay that much money for it. So, I’ll have to figure out what to do. (It’s looking more like a megaphone to me than a microphone!)

Yesterday’s instagram photo – isn’t this cool?

Gosh, I love this project!

Next project – the desk/work table. I’m going to start on that today. I’m debating whether I will stain the wood top or paint it aqua (a color Don really likes). I might paint it because I’m thinking the other side of the room, which is the recording/working/singing area needs a shot of color.

Here’s my big challenge, trying to make something like this:

This is from B & H Photo/Video’s site. FYI, it’s the Solid State Logic DAW Controller. I’m using this just as an inspiration photo. I need to build a tabletop version of something like this, so it looks like the resident musician is mixing and doing all sorts of technical stuff with his recordings. Any ideas on how to construct this, fellow mini lovers? Any ideas would be MOST welcome!

If it’s too difficult, I’ll have to come up with another idea. But I’d sure like to pull this one off.

Happy Thursday.

Don: Stop here. Do Not Read This Post.

Gosh, I love the fact that I can go upstairs to the office/studio, shouting to Don as I go up the stairs, “Keep out!” and then shut the door, turn on some music, and play with the Top Secret Project. That’s precisely what I did yesterday.

Although this particular addition was put together a few days ago.

It was a frustrating day to take pictures, so this is the best of the bunch. Well, there’s another one that might be a tad clearer. Anyway, I made this counter top. I had envisioned tucking that mini refrigerator under something and this is what I came up with. It couldn’t be simpler. Simple, my friends, is my particular skill set. It’s made out of mat board. The microwave sits on top, along with a box of Pepperidge Farm cookies and a canister. I’ve ordered an espresso maker that will also sit on top of the counter and a retro looking stool, so that the guy that uses this space can sit at the counter if he has a desire to.

Musicians have to take breaks, you know.

I’m sure there will be other snacks on the counter and in the fridge. And some mugs for coffee.

I almost tossed this little countertop because the end result wasn’t what I had envisioned. But I’ve changed my mind for the time being.

Excuse the blue painters tape, but I’ve been painting some areas that needed paint and I’m also painting the deck outside the sliding doors.

There are several things coming in the mail, some of them from across the ocean, so it will take a while for them to get here. Oh, the excitement of anticipation!

I moved the stereo over to the lounge area. Most of the time, I have no patience with trying to get the perfect picture, as you can see by the evidence of Don’s guitar stand just beyond the sliding doors and the fact that it is gray and rainy out there and I had to use artificial light so the edges of everything are slightly blurred. It is what it is.

Basically, I just wanted to show you the stereo.

I also cleaned the windows in the TSP. The clock is ticking on this project and I have more coaching to do on Anastasia  as well as a couple of days on another production. Chop, chop, Claudia!

Today, more painting – I’m taking advantage of Don being in and out of the house today and also of the fact that I can’t do anything outside because of the rain.

Thank goodness for the rain! We have been in an unusually dry period here – there have been No Burn warnings for weeks. The humidity has been very low. So, the fact that the wildfire took off like it did is no surprise. Thankfully, this rain today should greatly aid the firefighters up on the Ridge.

We took a drive yesterday and could see the tall plumes of smoke coming off the mountain ridge. You could smell the fire everywhere, including here at the cottage.

Praying it will be extinguished today.

Happy Tuesday.