snow — Page 50

Shutters

February 3, 2011 at 8:38 am by Claudia

When I’m not in the city, this is my schedule: get up, drink coffee in flannel pjs, put on old clothes and don’t take a shower yet because I will be shoveling, shovel, come back in the house, go back out and shovel some more, work on dollhouse, shovel some more, come in and take a shower. By this time it’s 4:00, so I put my pajamas back on and drink hot chocolate.

And there you have it.

I have to post this quickly as I am going back to Manhattan today. I painted shutters yesterday and glued them on in the evening.

What do you think? I’m really happy with the result. Now I am thinking about the new door and what color it should be….decisions, decisions.

Hope everyone has recovered from the ‘snow event.’

I’m Over it

February 1, 2011 at 11:25 am by Claudia

Looks like the birdbath will soon be totally covered in snow. I have had it. I woke up to at least 5 inches already on the ground with many more to come. We will have well over a foot more of snow by the end of the day tomorrow. I just started rehearsals yesterday and now I can’t get in again until Thursday or Friday. It’s too dangerous. Fortunately, my work doesn’t require me to be there every day. But I constantly have to think ahead and create a schedule that accomodates this endless, endless snow.

Look, I know I’m not the only one who is sick to death of this stuff. But let me whine a little. It has really impacted our lives. We’ve had to cancel or rearrange so many things since this all started on December 26th. I’ve really never seen anything like it. It’s depressing. I try to stay positive, but let me tell you, today is a day I just can’t get there. We’re struggling with a lot of worries right now, but somehow I think they might seem a bit less daunting if we could just catch a break with this weather.

That being said, those of you in the Midwest are really getting walloped. Please stay safe, stay off the roads, and be careful. My thoughts are with you.

And, I can’t seem to get a good photo of the dollhouse. I’m not sure why – whether it is a combination of the white color or the lighting in the den or something else. I’ve played and played with my settings this morning. I am frustrated! If any of you photographers have a suggestion or two, would you be so kind as to leave a comment? I’d so appreciate it. I’ve shut the blinds, opened the blinds, turned off the lamps, turned on the lamps, played with white balance, aperture, ISO – this was the best of the lot.

My order arrived yesterday from an online miniatures site. Can you see that the dollhouse is sitting on my new turntable? I love it. It will make working on it so much easier! My new shutters arrived as well. The shutters that I had on hand weren’t tall enough, so I’ve been using them to test some paint colors.

I started out with the turquoise on the right, but I think it is too bright. I added some gray to it and came up with the color on the left. I could just go with gray shutters, but I think that would be too matchy-matchy with the roof. What do you think?

I suppose I can paint some shutters today, when I’m not shoveling. And I will be shoveling most of the day. These are the times that I need to be reminded why we moved here from San Diego. At the moment, I have no idea why we made that decision. But yes, I know that come Springtime, I’ll remember exactly why we moved here.

Gifts and Snow

January 28, 2011 at 11:14 am by Claudia

A package arrived in my mailbox the other day – from Italy! Dear Monica, of The White Bench, had a giveaway and I was one of the lucky winners.

It was wrapped in this lovely handmade bag. The image is so beautiful it breaks my heart. The words “Tendre Souvenir” are stamped on a piece of fabric attached with two buttons. Utterly charming.

Inside were 3 beautiful examples of Monica’s photography and a lovely handwritten note. The present was wrapped in tulle with a little bundle of dried lavender. And here is the treat that was inside:

One of Monica’s beautiful hearts. Oh, that girl is talented!

I’ve hung it on the hutch in the kitchen. I think we need a little pink in that corner. Thank you, Monica. I treasure it.

My pal, Rizzi, sent me an email recently. In it she asked if I wanted some dollhouse hutches that she’d had around the house for a while. Of course! Yesterday, a package arrived in my mailbox.

That cutie wrapped everything in Valentine’s Day paper, along with a sweet card and some candy hearts. Here’s what was inside:

Wow! I’m going to have some fun with these. Thank you, Rizzi! By the way, Rizzi is Frog Hollow Farm Girl’s aunt. If you remember, FHFG sent me some of her late mother’s embroidery supplies a while back. Generosity clearly runs in that wonderful family.

Speaking of the dollhouse, I put the first coat of white paint on it the other day. Today I’ll do the second coat. I was hoping some of the supplies I ordered would arrive in time for me to do some more work this weekend – but alas, they aren’t going to arrive until Monday. Monday is the first day of rehearsal. Darn it!

Snow. It has taken over our lives and the lives of many, many others in the Northeast. I’ve spent most of my life in the upper Midwest and in the Northeast and I’ve never seen a stretch like this one. Seven major snowstorms in a month’s time and snow as far as the eye can see. Please cross your fingers for me. As I have to start traveling back and forth to the city next week, let’s hope the snow only falls on those days I don’t have to be there. Or better yet, how about no more snow???? I think we’ve had enough.

“Winter is not a season, it’s an occupation” – Sinclair Lewis

Have a great weekend!

Shutters

I’m Over it

Gifts and Snow

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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