around here

Well friends, it appears as though I have traded one hobby for another.  That being making miniatures for my dollhouse project for blogging.  Oh and let's not forget picture taking.  I hardly even do any of that right now... even of the project at hand.  I just get so excited about my tiny creations that I plum forget about documenting anything to share with my friends online.  Now my friends in person... no problem.  I seem to mention my dollhouse and pictures on my phone to everyone I see.  I am probably going to have to find a miniaturist support group... maybe we will make things together!  (I just got a really wild look in my eyes) 

Around here... within two Saturdays we went from twelve inches of snow to seventy degrees and no more snow.  That's Tennessee for you.  But the snow allowed me to cover a front wall with skinny sticks in the living room of my dollhouse and also start on the hardwood floor in the kitchen.  And also wallpaper the house.  All the while I was watching movies from the library.  One in particular I have watched at least five times since.  I still haven't taken it back! This past weekend was productive in a different sort of way.  I had to pay attention to the big house... the one we live in that needed floors cleaned from all the snow and mud and laundry caught up. 

I've also picked up a new favorite food... homemade pimento cheese.  My friend Rhonda made some when we were all sharing a four wheeling cabin over the Christmas holidays.  I have never liked pimento cheese to my knowledge but tried it anyway because everyone was chowing down on it.  I loved it!  It is so easy to make and an easy go to for lunch or a snack.  I have made it twice now.  The first time it was too runny and the second time too thick.  The third time will be a charm!  I am going to take some four wheeling with us this weekend.  Shaun is even hooked on the stuff.  It is simply shredded cheddar, mayo, a jar of pimentos, a dash of sugar and a dash or more of cayenne pepper.  Sooooo good!

We also invented a new snack at the day care.  A saltine cracker spread with peanut butter with a slice of banana on top.  Add a spec of sprinkles and you have happy smiling kids!  They aren't bad at all.

It may not look like much to some but you can't even see where the driveway is!

 

I finished the whole front wall but apparently didn't take a picture.

 YUM

 

 Little books I actually just made this morning.

 

The Oasis doesn't look near as inviting during the winter but I love this picture.

Here are two dollhouse pictures of stuff I made but only got a picture on my flip phone.

 

My little cactuses and aloe vera.. and little Katie Bug photo bombing.

And this chair was actually a lot of fun to make although I was terrified to do it until I got started on it.  Sometimes I get a point where directions are too much info for me so I go my own route and it works out.  It is all sewn together, sides, bottom and back.  Who has time to wait for glue to dry when I can whip stitch?!?!  I already have the wood cut out to make another one.  Oh and you can see the floor in this pic too.  I am having so much fun with this.  I haven't a clue what the outside will look like yet.  I am taking it one step at a time and doing it however I want.  Oh I also made the tiniest little lamp (nonworking) out of beads.  Shaun was pretty impressed.  



A Saturday Funny

 

I came across this book the other day while looking up books for miniatures. 

While the author is serious as a heart attack I think it is hilarious. 

I reckon it's something to do with all the cat hair instead of sucking it up in the vacuum!

 

 

But wait... when I looked up the book cover to show you... it also showed some of the projects.  I've never understood how to felt but this book shows you how to do it with cat hair for sure.

 

 

If there is a fuzzy cat on my Christmas cards next year you will know where it came from!

 

HERE is a link to more pictures.  Wow... the things these creative people come up with are amazing!

 

 

P.S. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARY EVELYN!!!!

lettucesubatus

I don't know where or why I made that word up... lettucesubatus.  It just goes together in my mind somehow... twisted I know.  I felt the need, and mainly since I have the covering over the back porch now at the DC, to begin lettuce seeds.  Some of them do great in the colder climates and don't go to seed as fast.  Especially if you can keep the frost off of them.  So I started what lettuce seeds I had hanging around the day care last week in little paper Dixie cups and a plastic zip up thing to make a little greenhouse.  This was towards the end of the week and by Monday I had completely leggy sprouts.  Not enough so that I felt I needed to start over.  I am excited for the new growth though.  I planted Red Romaine, Spinach and some purple lettuce that I saved the seeds from that I can't remember the name of.  It will be several weeks before they go outside.  Even them though if we have a bitterly cold night I can bring them inside.  Kind of a perfect little plant world... someone looking out for them.

One of my kids at the DC gave me this for Christmas.

I also started some wheat grass for Tommy.  It sprouted in just a day or so.  I took the seeds last year from my father-in-law's field by our drive way.

Woops!



around here

As I sit here, during naptime at the day care, with paint on tiny aloe vera leaves drying in front of me I felt I needed to check in.  I will admit that this blog of mine is not my priority hobby right now although I am anxious to share what I have been up to and my dollhouse progress.  Actually, the dollhouse itself still sits as it was on my last post.  I dare not bring it to the day care to work on the interior and exterior  because the kids would get away with any and everything and probably wouldn't eat lunch.  So, I am saving it for the weekends at home.  I have however managed to build up furniture and accessories and loads of ideas while here.  I have a bed frame drying as I type... I never really liked the old one... it was too clunky and too big for the bedroom so I hope this one fits.  And that's the other thing.  I am totally winging the little pieces I make and get so giddy to go home at the end of each day to see if what I made will fit.  I have currently made, furniture-wise, a farm kitchen table and one chair, a fireplace and a kitchen hutch.  All of the measuring sure has taught me a lot.  What seemed to be "too much trouble" before has begun to be fun.  Especially since I have been happy with the end results.  I am still getting a lot of the paint job ideas on CinderallaMoments.  Since she has tutorials on how to do things I figure it's ok.  Plus I don't intend to sell the work as my own creation through and through.  I am thankful to this lady because without her inspiration I wouldn't be having all this fun!  Here are pics of my latest things minus the clay items like plates, bowls and picture frames.

The hutch was my first big furniture piece.  I wasn't sure I even wanted a large item in the kitchen.  But as it turns out I do really like it.   I do wish the doors and drawer opened.  I found the tutorial for it HERE.  I finished the bottom half first and took it home.  I was disappointed at how large it was until I added the shelves up top.  Now it seems right for the room.

I admit I wasn't totally happy with my fireplace.  Another creation done without proper measurements. I was impatient with the glue drying too so it is crooked here and there.  Since I felt I might make another one I painted this one whimsy.  I like the addition of the yellow flowers.  I've only used pinks and reds so far.

I am aging most of the furniture in the house.  I like the shabby "used" look.

I found a table on etsy that I liked and winged the measurements from scraps of balsa wood.  I bought a pack of various sizes at Hobby Lobby and have used the fire out of it.  The little chair tutorial I found HERE.  It literally weighs nothing because I used some of my thinnest scraps.

Aloe Vera leaves before baking.  I found the tutorial on MiniEden.