Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

  • About MHC
    • Disclosure
  • Dollhouses/Minis
    • Hummingbird Cottage
    • The Studio (Formerly TSP)
    • Dove Cottage
    • The Lake House
    • The Folk Art Dollhouse
    • The Modern Dollhouse
    • Dollhouse Source List, Information and Tutorials
  • On the Road
  • Collecting
    • Roseville Pottery
    • McCoy Pottery
    • Egg Cups
    • Bakelite
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy
You are here: Home / Archives for oil painting

Rain (Dreaming of Provence)

July 12, 2021 at 8:56 am by Claudia

In process. It looks lighter in color than it actually is due, I suppose, to the light coming in from the kitchen door. More tweaking today before I add the background color.

And the rain continues. It rained during the night, was raining when I woke up (way too early, by the way) and then turned torrential for about 45 minutes. Thunderstorms are predicted for later in the day. And this same weather forecast could be repeated for most days in the next week. Also flash flood advisories and warnings everywhere. I don’t remember the last time we had this much rain.

We are fairly positive people, but this endless rain is bringing me down. Don’s a bit better with it, but not much. Lord knows how long the grass will be by the time this is finished!

In the midst of the torrential rain, there was mama robin, patiently sitting on her eggs. She is amazing.

I cleaned a lot yesterday and washed the sheets. Then I rewarded myself with a session at the easel. I always feel calmer after painting. It centers me. It’s the result of my entire focus being on one thing. The rest of the world goes away and I can feel my tension and worries melting away. It may be only temporary, but it’s lovely, nonetheless.

Oh, for a little stone house with pale blue shutters in Provence. I will transport myself there in my daydreams and smell the lavender and wander little streets in very old towns, visiting the markets and buying fresh flowers and french soap.

It works for me!

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

Filed Under: France, life, oil painting, rain 18 Comments

An Emotional Reaction

July 11, 2021 at 10:01 am by Claudia

I’ve been working on the shape of this vase for 3 days and I’m still not satisfied. I’ll be at the easel later today.

I grabbed some time with no rain to mow part of the yard and weed whack yesterday.

Record heat in the southwest, endless rain here in the northeast. We had one day with no rain – yesterday – and now we’re facing at least 5 more days of rain. I feel for everyone dealing with high temperatures and all the restrictions as to water and electricity. It’s alarming. And I feel for everyone dealing with floods and water in basements and all the damage from the hurricane and too much rain.

Please take care.

We had an interesting discussion yesterday. It was generated by an invitation to visit with a former student of mine, who is staying with Rick for a few days. He’s one of my favorite students and normally I’d jump at the chance to see him. But, in different ways, both Don and I felt uncomfortable with the idea of visiting him. Don’s initial reaction to the invitation was that he didn’t feel comfortable going because of COVID and an earlier discussion we had about variants. Both Rick and Doug have been traveling lately. They’re very careful, of course, but they’re out in the world and therefore cannot help but be exposed to a lot of people. My former student lives in NYC and has also been traveling, and living in the city, he’s definitely out in the world. And with the news about variants and breakthrough infections and the fact that – let’s face it – there’s still so much we don’t know about this virus, I had an emotional reaction that surprised me – I ended up crying. When Don suggested that I might enjoy seeing my former student and Rick without him going along, I grew a bit panicked. And I cried some more.

We made a somewhat difficult decision to pass this time around and I responded to my student’s text and explained why we couldn’t make it. He understood, thank goodness. It may seem over-the-top, this reaction of ours, but in talking it through yesterday, it became very clear to me that there is much I am still uneasy about, that, after a year and a half of the pandemic, there are emotions beneath the surface that I’m just now acknowledging. Our home is our safe place. Don  is my safe place. We’ve gone through this together. When we go to the grocery store – or any store – now, there are less and less people wearing masks. This is a marked difference from a month ago. No one hassles us when we choose to wear a mask, but the fact is, we are now the exceptions. I wonder if people are getting too complacent. Or are we overreacting?  I don’t know the answer, but the advice I have passed on to others during this time is what I now need to follow: Do what you feel comfortable with. If you’re uncomfortable, don’t do it, and don’t apologize for being cautious.

Yes, we go out and shop and run errands, but we’re masked. It’s controlled. As people travel more, are exposed to more people, I can’t control the history of where they’ve been and who they’ve been exposed to.

Are we a little shell-shocked? No doubt. But, as Don said this morning, “I’m going to wait a couple of months and see what happens with the variants and with the spread of the virus.” I think that makes sense. If we’re offered work, we’ll take it. Otherwise, I think we may continue to shelter here at the cottage.

Oh, these are strange and unsettling times.

Stay safe.

Happy Sunday.

Filed Under: life, oil painting 54 Comments

Mid-Week Minutia

July 7, 2021 at 9:15 am by Claudia

I’m using my vintage Vernor’s crate to hold my painting supplies. It’s portable, should I need to move to another part of the cottage. Plus, I really love this crate, having grown up in Michigan where Vernor’s Ginger Ale (the best, in my opinion) was manufactured. When I lived in downtown Detroit, I used to drive by the main plant on my way home.

We seem to be in a humid/thunderstorm weather pattern here, with more on the docket today. I keep a close watch on our mama robin and the nest, though in reality, there’s nothing I can do. So far, I’ve learned that the female robin builds the nest, lays the eggs (of course) and keeps them warm. Ahem. Where’s dad? I have to give it to the Carolina wrens: he build the nest, she approved it, did the egg laying, and they both fed the babies. I know that papa robin will step in once the babies are born but so far…he’s an absentee father.

I have a book arriving today that I’ve long wanted to read. It’s by David Sibley, an authority on birds. Title: What it’s Like to be a Bird: From Flying to Nesting, Eating to Singing–What Birds are Doing and Why. I can’t wait to start reading it.

One of Don’s birthday presents from me was the new biography of famed director, Mike Nichols. (Sort of a present for me, too, as I can’t wait to read it.) He is devouring it. It’s written by Mark Harris, who I follow on Twitter. He is married to Tony Kushner, who wrote the prize winning play, Angels in America. There’s a lot of talent in that family.

It’s a gorgeous, albeit humid, morning. The light is beautiful, everything is blooming, mama is sitting on her eggs right outside our kitchen window.

And the mullein, or verbascum, that grows wild here is all over the back forty. I think we have more plants than we’ve ever had before. It sometimes grows to over 6 feet tall and has an almost ‘forest primeval’ look to it. These are the flowers. There are splashes of yellow everywhere. Mullein is often used as an herb.

I’m starting a new Roseville painting today.

And that’s it for today!

Stay safe.

Happy Wednesday.

 

Filed Under: birds, flowers, garden, life, oil painting 27 Comments

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • …
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • 9
  • 10
  • …
  • 16
  • Next Page »
  • Email
  • Instagram

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.

Thanks for stopping by.

Searching?

The Dogs

The Dogs

Scout & Riley. Riley left us in 2012. Scout left us in February 2016. Dearest babies. Dearest friends.

Winston - Our first dog. We miss you, sweetheart.

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

Thanks for visiting! Feel free to browse, read and enjoy. All content is my own; including photos and text. Please do not use anything on this site without permission.

Disclosure/Privacy Policy can be found in the Navigation Bar under ‘About MHC.’

Also, I love receiving comments! I do, however, reserve the right to delete any comment that is in poor taste, offensive or is verging on spam. It’s my blog. If you’re a bot or a troll you’ll be blocked. Thanks!

Archives

All Content © 2008 - 2025 Mockingbird Hill Cottage · Log in

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Reject
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT