Close But No Cigar...

Hi Everybody! Is anyone else as shocked as me that it is JULY ALREADY??? Time has begun to feel as though it is at warp speed! Anyhoo - let's just talk about things we can control. Kind of...

I didn't meet my goal for the week with the amount of things I got finished on the cottage. I spent a lot of my mini time on décor selection and arrangement, flower making, floral arranging, rug making and creating baskets that, in the end, were too big and I can't use. 🙄 

Ah, well. I enjoyed every mini moment! Though I do want to see this cottage completed very much, when I do finish, I will probably be a little sad. 

Her majesty, Camellia

Luckily, I had flower/plant kits on hand which included roses, tulips, daisies, eucalyptus and ivy. It took me a couple of my days just to make all the stems. Then, I still had to put them into vases/pots. I used paperclay in the glazed pink vase and UV resin in the glass vases to secure the stems.

I placed the pots/vases in various spots in the living and dining rooms. I also placed many minis that I have saved for the cottage for a long time. It is so great to see them finally displayed!

Deciding what would be displayed on the mantle and on the shelves took me a long time and several auditions. I guess having so many amazing minis to choose from is a great problem to have! There are things from Veronique Cornish, Ina Williams, Kay Lewis, Janice Crawley, Valerie Casson, Philip Grenyer, Megan Schetsche, and transferred to me in stewardship from Keli Minnick's Charlene collection. If you are a blogger OG, you may remember Keli's I See Cerulean blog and the story of Charlene. Because the blog has been retired, I can only share the lovely minis that were entrusted to me. It is a good reminder to all of us to think about who we are going to entrust with our treasured and special minis when we pass on.

Some of you may remember Camellia, Rose's gorgeous companion. She was created by Julie Perrott and I have often been asked if photos of her are actually photos of a real cat. She is stunning! It is so wonderful to see her lounging again in her favorite spot on the window seat. From this vantage point, she can nap in sunlight and keep an eye on the front door. Rose's visitors often bring treats to her majesty. 

You might have noticed the empty cubbies in the photo above just under the window seat. I was supposed to make and finish the baskets this week, and I did! I just made them 1/4" too tall!!! 🙄

Just goes to show you... measure three time when Mercury is in retrograde!!! 🤣🤣🤣 I'll be working on attempt #2 once I get dinner in the oven.

Just a wee bit too tall.

The final thing I did manage to accomplish this week were the area rugs. I normally print them on fabric that you can run through your inkjet printer, but my usual brand has become so, so thin over the years and hard to find in stock. There is a thicker one by a different manufacturer, but it is very cost prohibitive. I had some inkjet printable canvas leftover from when I made Lex's roombox so I thought I would give that a try. I LOVE IT! Looks like a rug, looks thicker on the floor, has much more intense color and it stays in place very well with museum wax.

I'd like to experiment printing on the other, more textured side in the future. I imagine you'd want to increase the ink saturation, but it looks like it would be an even more realistic looking end result.

So that is all, my friends! I won't be celebrating with a stogie, but I enjoyed every second that I got to make progress. Maybe the coming week will be more productive!

Happy 4th to my American buddies, and best wishes for finding mini time to the rest of you! Man, it is so great to have a hobby you love!!!

xo xo,

Jodi