We will not say anything about the hard freeze and the death of my plants. Or the fact that it will be close to 70 degrees this week. Yes, I know it happens. It just shouldn’t happen in mid-October. I also watched the catalpa drop every one of its leaves yesterday. All of them. I’m wearing black today.
Don was away in Massachusetts and didn’t arrive home until the wee hours, so I consoled myself with a little creative work on the Top Secret Project.
Don: Stop here.
I’ve had this project bookmarked for a long time. I just had to gather all the supplies I needed. It’s a tutorial from Kris at 1 Inch Minis – a great site, by the way, full of incredible tutorials that Kris generously shares with her readers. I saw the project and thought it would be perfect for Don’s Studio. After having read the post, it turns out Kris is using it for the same HBS ‘Denise’s City Cottage’ project.
It was too perfect not to try. I needed mat board, card stock, a 3/4″ dowel and glue. I’m getting a bit better at these things, but I admit that I curse like a sailor when doing them.
This is the fireplace I’m going to place in the corner of the room. I love these retro fireplaces that remind me of the A-Frame houses that sprung up in the sixties. They were often a bright orange, and I’ve obviously not painted it yet and there are some tweaks I want to make, but here it is in its unadorned state. (Paint color to be determined later – maybe a metallic black? Should I use spray paint? So many questions.)
I think it will sit in this corner. I will determine the exact height of the stove pipe when I put the roof on, so I’ve left it the way it is until then.
My creative space at the top of our stairs has been altered for mini work. The sewing machine has been put in the closet since I’m not doing any sewing at the moment.
As you can see, there’s not a lot of space available, and truth be told, when I’m working on this stuff, I’m often using the kitchen table or the top of the kitchen island (which was the case yesterday.) I did all the painting and trim on the TSP right here in this little niche. Just depends on the project. I have supplies stashed in bins which are stashed in closets, in a soda crate under the table where my dollhouse is perched, in shoe boxes, in cupboards…everywhere. I’ve tried to corral together the things I need for this project here in this space.
Wood, trim, dowels – all of it in tubes stashed in this wicker flower basket. Card stock and mat board stored in a cardboard ‘file’ next to the table.
Paints and glue in a vintage egg basket. Bits of sandpaper stuffed in the little shelf. Ruler, pens, pencils and bits of wood trim are in a piece of McCoy and a vintage wall pocket. My cutting mat is stashed between the table and the wall. Clamps are on either side of the table. (The shelf of mini pottery moved upstairs when we moved the dollhouse back into the den.)
Foam board stashed against the wall behind the vintage flowered fireplace screen.
This space was highlighted in an article in Studios magazine a few years back. That particular issue concentrated on creating in small spaces. This, my friends, is a very small space. We simply don’t have the room for an entire studio/office for yours truly, though I can’t help but dream of one off on the horizon, somewhere, someday. So, like so many others, I make do with what I have.
It’s sunny up there, I’ll grant you that. So sunny that taking photos is problematic! I do love my little creative space at the top of the stairs.
We often wish we could get rid of the bed in the guest room and then Don and I could share that space. We’ve had a couple of overnight guests lately, but months and months will go by where no one is using that bed and in a two bedroom house, that matters. Meredith tells me we should get a futon and she’s right. It’s not in the budget now. Even so, we have Don’s dresser in there and a cupboard that serves as a linen closet, along with chairs, a desk, file cabinets and my grandmother’s trunk….Oy. It seems impossible, or at the very least, overwhelming.
I’ve rattled on long enough.
Happy Monday.
I love small spaces. They are cozy and the creativity used to make them come alive is generally very interesting.
Your fireplace is amazing. I love it. The TSP is looking very nice!
I hope you have a wonderful day.
Thanks so much, Sue!
Love the fireplace. I remember when searching for an apt in the late 60’s I found one with a fireplace like this. It was so modern at the time and I loved it but alas, not in the budget. Don’s little studio is going to be a dream come true in miniature! I have a bed in my spare room I think I’m going to sell and have more space in there. The only overnight guests are usually the grands and now that I have a sofa bed that takes care of that. I could use more storage and another crafting area! Enjoy your day. It’s sunny and cool here. I’ve got to haul off the recyclables and a load to the thrift shop today.
hugs,
Linda
Have a good day, Linda. If we could replace the sofa in the den – which is very old – I think I’d replace it with a sofa bed.
Marvelous work! Paper and mat board projects always make me swear, too. I think it’s in the list of materials needed. :D I would recommend spray paints for a smooth finish. Since you don’t want to practice on your final piece, wind up some paper and mat board shapes to practice on. Use a primer for sure — the solvents will soak in differently so watch for that in your final finish. You’ll likely have to brush paint the interior. I did all that for my mat board stove in The Artist’s Studio.
Thanks so much, Brae! It’s all new to me, so I need to get my skill set sharpened. A great idea to practice on some paper and mat board shapes – thank you. By the way, I loved that stove in The Artist’s Studio. xo
Hi Claudia, Don’s TSP is larger than I realized. We had a fireplace like that in our first home. It was black and we loved it. Enjoy your day, Doris
I know! It’s larger than even I thought it was. I’ll have to pack it full of goodies.
In the 70’s, I so wished we could find a place that had that kind of fireplace…but it was not to be. Love it! I have no suggestions as to how to paint it…but the idea to practice definitely sounds like a sound one. The TSP is coming along nicely…I bet you’re glad you started as early as you did! I think you’ve managed quite nicely with your given work space….even though tiny….it’s very creative! ;)
I’ll never get it done in time for Christmas. I have very limited funds, so I’ve already told Don it will be delayed. He’s fine with that, thank goodness!
I’m sure he’ll appreciate it all the more! ;)
xo
I can understand your pain of losing the plants to an early freeze, much like I’ve lost too many new plantings due to California’s horrible drought when we rehabbed our yard last year. I, too, have mourned the loss of them as I’d studied and studied to get the right drought-resistant/low-water plants and my husband and I were both sort of emotionally invested in planting/growing/nurturing, just to have them not make it under water restriction/lack of rain. And I can’t now afford to replace those plants, so we have a lot of holes we’ll hope to address next spring. You were getting such enjoyment out of the late blooms…and winter will come too-soon enough. It’s unfair; DARN! You are so tuned in to your environment, which I think is wonderful, when so many other people don’t look to the left or to the right, not seeing the beauty all around them.
The guest room: I guess it’s somewhat the same thing…I don’t really know how futons work…but I had a friend in high school who was from a VERY large family who lived in a not-overly-large home and, when she was a teen, she wanted to carve out some sort of ‘private’ space for herself, so they rigged up a corner of her lawyer-dad’s ‘library’ (it was sort of a right-angle shape, so she took part of the angle which was kind of out of the way of things…although the home ‘library’ itself was not a huge space)…and they bought a pull-out sofa for her bed. It was something we could sit on when her dad was gone during the day but then, of course, it would convert to her sleeping bed at night. What do you call them? Sofa bed? During the day, you’d walk through and never know she was sleeping in there. There was a large cupboard right near the sofa that they gave over to her and inside was her turntable, bulletin boards with decorations, books, etc. and the typical teen stuff, at least away from the prying little hands of her four sisters (AND her brothers!). My husband and I had a full-size sofa which would convert to a double bed that seemed more like a queen-size…bought it used from a friend…and it came in very handy in our family room, oh, some 3 houses back in time, when we’d have people staying over, which was sometimes, say, a family of four (and where the heck do you put everybody…air mattresses??!). One drawback is that the thing weighed a ton when we moved it to clean. Maybe a futon would be lighter…
It’s good you’re organized about your craft supplies; it’s the key to living in a small space…that, and space-saving/double-duty furniture (and constant edits to one’s ‘stuff’). I wish I was better at all of that, and I’m not. Did you guys put in that skylight or was it a ‘remodel’ item from the previous owner? Do you lose heat in winter with it, just like it may bring in more heat with summer? We had a skylight in the living room of aforementioned (rental) house and that’s what we experienced even though we don’t have your severe winters. It had a sort of frame around it and I’d cover it with mylar, cloth…anything…to try to cover it in summer because the house had no A/C and the sun would pour into that living room making it so hot but, you know, it was a homemade job, not UV glass, etc. Oh, and by the way, that house’s family room had a stove EXACTLY like the one in The Top Secret Project. I knew the people who owned the house, and they’d built on the family room in about 1966-68 or so, which is when they put in that stove for it; they called it a ‘Swedish stove’ and it was avocado green which was a popular color in the late 60s/early 70s for home decor (and clothing!) as you no doubt remember (my parents even drove an avocado green CAR).
We had an avocado green car, refrigerator, stove and, in our travel trailer – avocado green appliances there, as well. As well as an avocado green sofa and chair in the living room. Can you see why I don’t like that color any more???
The skylight was there when we moved in. It gets very hot in the summer – it’s a hallway, not even a room. I haven’t noticed a lot of heat loss in the summer. We tend to keep the thermostat down upstairs in the winter and just turn it up when we want to warm it up for a bit before bedtime.
Kris is so creative and so generous – I just love reading her tutorials. You did a really good job with the fireplace – I’m looking forward to seeing what colour you choose. Are you going to make tiny logs? Your creative corner is so pretty. My easel is set up in our loft to face the best light, but most of my mini endeavours are done at the kitchen table. Fortunately we have lots of storage, so it all gets stashed in the ‘craft closet’ at supper time.
More space, more storage….that’s what I need! I will probably make tiny logs out of twigs of some sort…and I’ll need a screen, as well. I don’t know what color to paint it. Do I go with bright? Or do I make it gray or black?
This is just a minor space saver, but I had an storage ottoman in front of the pull-out couch in my “computer room/guest room (one of 2, we’re lucky) and I put a rack for hanging file folders in it and that’s where our home files are now, meaning we do not need a file cabinet. I am always trying to downsize our belongings, if not our house. Could you do this with the trunk? (Since the ottoman is in front of the couch, we put wheels on it too.)
It’s a good idea, and I’ve seen it done, but the trunk has other things in it! Storage is at a premium here and everything already does double duty. I’ve thought and re-thought everything here, which is not to say that there aren’t other solutions, when funds allow.
I love those fireplaces! It fits so perfectly with the vibe of the TSP!!! xx
I think it’s sort of perfect for a guy’s retreat! Thanks, Amy!
Got so caught up in TSP that when my husband came in the room this morning that I jumped and tried to hid the computer screen. Guess I love that you share Don’s TSP that I “make believe I’m working on it with you. Your blog is my escape to another world……..love it! DEB
What a lovely compliment, Deb! Thank you!
I’ve always LOVED that little space – but it’s easy to see how tiny and awkward it is for spreading out your work. BUT it’s such a cute and charming little spot! The fireplace looks great, can’t wait to see how you finish it up.
I don’t know if this would work for your guests, or not, but I use a blow up camping mattress. The one I have looks like two stacked mattresses. It’s full size, uses regular sheets, and came with a battery operated thing to blow it up. It stores in it’s own bag and doesn’t take up much storage room. Adults who’ve slept on it tell me it’s very comfortable. I’ve only ever lived in one bedroom homes, so it’s kind of been my only option – but it’s worked well.
We have one of those and we’ve used it before. But Don and I used it once and it felt very uncomfortable. Maybe it wasn’t as effective with two people using it? I don’t know. But ours has an accessory to blow it up, as well. I’m wondering if we should get a new one and try it…
As someone who has been the houseguest using a futon, let me tell you, they are not comfortable. I had back problems the entire time I stayed there. As I recall you purchased your mattress from QVC. They have a large selection of air mattresses you could check out to see what is available now.
I feel your pain in losing your flowers. I went out after dinner last night to cover two of my large planters with a tarp. The plants are loaded with flowers and I’m trying to keep them alive as long as possible. We actually had wet snow yesterday mixed in with intermittent rain!
I used a futon myself for years. It didn’t bother me at all but that was over 20 years ago and I might not find it at all comfortable now.
We also had snow yesterday – rather shocking!
Snow! Wow. WOW.
And I just read that the Northeast is supposed to be relatively ‘warm’ through November but with just small bursts of cold here and there. Seems kinda nuts.
There are chair beds too that are kind of inexpensive. I’ve seen them on Amazon. A little over $100
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005SF6PVK?keywords=chair%20bed&qid=1445537309&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1
Cheryl
Whoops that just the price for the mattress but I don’t think the entire chair is too bad.
Cheryl
Thank you, Cheryl!
Love the new addition to your secret project Claudia – how clever!! And, catching up on weekend posts, that must have been a fabulous party on Saturday night. What fun!
It was wonderful, Vera!
The newer ones, the Aero beds, are really great. They stand about 24-30 inches off the floor which is really nice, especially if you ever have older guests. They do cost a bit more than those sold at WM, etc., but when you consider getting a room in exchange, it does have value. Futons are nice, too, but because they are a piece of furniture it does take room every day, where an air mattress is only brought out when you need it. I know places do put them on sale in the next 8-10 weeks because of holiday visits. QVC used to carry them, too. That is where we got our Aero bed several years ago.
The TSP is just wonderful. When I picture that stove in black or white or orange as so many were in the 70’s ~ I picture a guy with long hair and a mustache lounging in front of it. Must have been lots of ads, magazine pics like that which I am recalling. :-) (And, of course, a long haired blonde at his side.) Those were the days, my friend!!
The one we have is an Aero Bed. The problem is that one time, Don and I used it (when we were worried about Riley, so slept downstairs) and it was very uncomfortable. I’m wondering if it’s more comfortable for one person than for two. I’m pretty sure we got our Aero bed from QVC as well.
Yes, we didn’t want to say anything when my husband’s sibling put us up 25 years ago (in the moldy-smelling basement) but the good-brand/not-cheap (“quality”) air mattress was a nightmare for the two of us, and we had to sleep on it for almost a week. It seemed cushy and substantial enough, quite high off the floor…and we were average height/weight people…but it was one rough week; we were so achy and also weary by the time we flew back home. I don’t want anybody to ever go thru that at my house; in fact, when THEY came to visit, we gave up our own bed for them to ensure their comfort. When I was a kid growing up and my folks had overnight guests, I can remember them borrowing cushions from the neighbor’s chaises they kept out on an open porch. The adults got the available beds in the house…and we kids got the chaise cushions for beds-on-the-floor sleeping. Seemed like a big summer adventure at the time!
The TSP and the fireplace are looking good…I always loved those fireplaces,,but never lucky enough to have one…can’t wait to see it painted…it would be so great if you two could use the spare bedroom for a craft/creative/office room…
Hi Claudia, Often the more space we have, the more spread out and disorganized it can become. It is the big purse vs the small purse problem. The bigger the handbag , the more stuff you can carry around but then you can’t find it when you need it because so many item need to be sorted through… Extremely Frustrating. HOWEVER, because a handbag may be too small, the stuff that is in it is compartmentalized so well that to get to ONE item- ALL the contents have to be removed and then carefully put back like a puzzle, so that it can all fit in again.
I’ve had both Big spaces as well as small spaces and I’ve found that the following statement to be true.
…. YOU JUST CAN’T WIN :((
but I sure like your retro fireplace! :D
Hi Claudia!
I love seeing the miniatures. You’re doing a great job on the projects! Sorry the plants were put to bed so early in the fall. Time to enjoy the fall colors now, huh?
Your studio as small as it is, still makes me envious ! I have always loved your creating space!
Great looking kiva! Who would have thought you could fabricate that yourself? Great job. Would it be a shame if it were a modern color? Does it deserve vintage glory? I look forward to seeing what the designer selects!
So cute! If I had a little red TSP, it would definitely contain that fireplace in bright orange…just sayin’.