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
    • The Beacon Hill Dollhouse
    • Dollhouse Source List, Information and Tutorials
  • On the Road
  • Collecting
    • Roseville Pottery
    • McCoy Pottery
    • Egg Cups
    • Bakelite
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy

Tuesday Thoughts

January 28, 2020 at 9:59 am by Claudia

I quickly took this photo this morning, not realizing until I took it that we’re coming up on the fourth anniversary of Scout’s passing. I know because it was less than four months after I lost my dad.

Can’t go there right now. I just read the post I wrote the day after Scout died and was in tears.

Let’s see. What’s new? Not a whole lot, though today and tomorrow, I have Skype coaching sessions with the cast of Jane Eyre. Fingers crossed that we have a good connection! Most of the afternoon today will be devoted to checking in with the actors. Next week, I drive back to Hartford for the day to watch a run-through. The following week, I go back for one night to watch a preview and give notes the next day. And then I’m done.

I’m reading The Night Circus, which I find utterly fascinating. It’s very different than my usual fare and I’m enjoying the change of pace.

I had to call our local post office and complain about one of the carriers yesterday and I never like doing that. Our main carrier is wonderful. The guy who substitutes for her is nice, as well. He always delivers the mail on Monday. I was expecting a priority mail package yesterday. I took note of the time he delivered mail across the street and quickly calculated that he’d be coming by our house in 2 or 2 1/2 hours. I told Don that I was going to be on stand-by around that time because I knew the box was too big for our mailbox and for some reason, I didn’t trust that this particular carrier would deliver it. Sure enough, when he approached our mailbox, he put envelopes in our mail box and started to drive on. I ran outside and sprinted toward his truck. He had just finished putting mail in our neighbor’s box and was starting to drive away. I was shouting loudly (all that voice training pays off) and he heard me and stopped, pulling up in our neighbor’s driveway. When I asked him if he had a package for me, he pulled it out of the truck, saying that he was wary of driving up our driveway. There’s no snow. No ice. The driveway was totally clear. It’s just a gentle slope. And he’s done it before. I assured him he could drive up there, turn around at the top and go back down quite easily. He thanked me for stopping him and I moved on. I would have let it go at that point, but when I went to the mailbox to get the rest of the mail, I discovered that he hadn’t even left a yellow slip saying that he had attempted delivery. That’s what did it for me. How would I have known what happened to the package? And it had a tracking number on it, so it was clearly supposed to be delivered that day.

I called the post office and explained the whole thing, making sure to say that he’s a nice guy and please don’t be too hard on him, but really…that was ridiculous. Our usual mail carrier will often pull up to the box, tap on the horn, and wait for me to emerge from the house. Or, if we’re not there, she’ll pull up in the driveway and leave the package on the porch. I told the supervisor that we’re semi-retired and there’s almost always someone here.

Anyway, the supervisor was kind and understanding and assured me he’d be gentle with the carrier. Gosh, I hate complaining about anyone.

Sigh.

It’s not like we live on top of a mountain, although it feels that way sometimes when we’re shoveling snow!

Okay. Hopefully, that won’t happen again.

Happy Tuesday.

 

Filed Under: books, Scout 18 Comments

Art: Living Room

January 27, 2020 at 9:58 am by Claudia

Monday morning – a cloudy one, at that. Most of the snow has melted because of a combination of warmer temperatures and rain. That’s good and bad. Good because the young deer can eat our grass on the front lawn again. They like to feed there during the winter. Bad because it looks gray and blah out there again. The snow was pretty!

I know, be careful what you wish for, Claudia!

More artwork, this time we’re back in the living room.

You know all about our vintage lithograph on the left. We purchased it on our first Paris trip and finally had it framed this year. We are completely besotted by it. It’s an ad for a coffee that was made by monks and this particular illustrator loved to use children in his work. It’s delightful, it makes us smile, it’s a tangible memory of Paris, it’s in French…what more could we want?

Next to it, one of my two vintage Maxfield Parrish prints. These are not modern reproductions, they’re vintage prints that were sold soon after Parrish painted them for publication. I have loved his work for years, dreamed of owning one of his creations, and it was only in the past 8 years or so that I was able to acquire two. This was the second of the two. It’s called Dinky Bird  and it was part of a commissioned set of illustrations for a volume of Eugene Field’s poems. The original oil painting was purchased by multimillionaire Henry Russell Sage, was put in storage and disappeared for  years until one of his grandchildren discovered it. It was painted in 1904.

I love the colors in this one. Parrish’s blues were rich and unlike those of any other artist.

My first Parrish, found at a local antique store and part of the collection of a longtime Parrish lover, is next.

Pierrot’s Serenade, one of Parrish’s illustrations for The Golden Treasury of Songs and Lyrics.

Trying to capture the golds in this print and the blues in the other print is impossible via the camera. They are gorgeous. The original was painted in 1908.

It’s funny. I wanted some of Parrish’s work for so long. Now that I have these two, I don’t feel the need to collect any more.

Well, let me correct that. If I found a vintage print of The Lantern Bearers, my favorite Parrish, I’d snap it up in a second. It is simply gorgeous. So far, I have never seen one.

Okay. Business: The winner of a copy of The Overstory  is Leanne Shawler. Leanne, I’m going to send an email your way, but if you see this in the meantime, send me your mailing address and I’ll pass it on to Barbara. Congratulations!

Happy Monday.

 

Filed Under: antiques, Maxfield Parrish, Paris 16 Comments

Sunday In the Kitchen

January 26, 2020 at 9:43 am by Claudia

It’s Sunday morning and we’re heading over to Rick and Doug’s for some yummy French Toast. We’ve all been busy lately and haven’t seen each other in a while and they’re going on a trip next week, so today it is.

A couple of things from the kitchen:

This sign above the kitchen sink. It was hand made by someone I found through blogging. Darned if I can remember who now (if I find the name, I’ll add it here.) Another blogger that I followed had one made and I loved it, so I put in my request.

We really love it. We sometimes forget it’s there as it’s high above the sink.

And this sign:

Sorry, it’s a cloudy day today. You can see from these two photos how greatly the yellow on the kitchen walls can change during the course of a day.

When we moved in here, I knew I wanted a vintage sign for this section of the kitchen wall. It would have to be long and horizontal. We looked and looked but never found anything we could afford. Vintage signs – at least the large ones – are expensive. One day, while working in Heidi’s shop, I was looking through a catalogue and found this. Made to look vintage, but new. It may be a reproduction of an actual brand. Frankly, I’ve never bothered to look.

I decided to go for it. We’ve never regretted it. We really love it.

Okay. Got to get moving!

Happy Sunday.

 

Filed Under: kitchen 14 Comments

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • …
  • 601
  • 602
  • 603
  • 604
  • 605
  • …
  • 1843
  • 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 - 2026 Mockingbird Hill Cottage · Log in