Thursday, February 3, 2022

Clothes Brushes in My Collection


These brushes are near my clothes closet in the bedroom I use as a dressing room. It has taken years to put together and I am finally satisfied. The one on the far left is my latest acquisition and my favorite. It has a long wooden handle that will reach behind me to brush off my clothes from one shoulder to the other. The long soft bristles pick up any hairs that might be there. My mother used to brush me off whenever I asked her and now I have the perfect brush for doing that myself. The brush beside it has stiffer bristles and is made by "Stanley". It's good for pilling on sweaters and dust on suede shoes. The tiniest one has very stiff bristles by "Coach" for shoes and handbags too. The long brush next to the tiny one by "Mohawk" is sometimes used with the dustpan for floor spills. The two at the top have natural Ebony handles and pure bristles. They are made by "Royal" in Japan. My mother spotted them for me at an estate sale long ago.  



Now you know what to look for if you want to expand your own collection of clothes brushes for good grooming. It is very foggy this morning and very warm with a soft rain. The rain will continue all night with warm temps above freezing. There might be some ice on Saturday morning. Take care if you are in the path of this winter storm. xo

Wednesday, February 2, 2022

Inside My Cottage


Just a random shot inside my cottage on my way to the kitchen for more coffee and an English muffin. I can't even watch any more weather reports. My phone says we are having rain all day Thursday and Friday starting after midnight tonight. Maybe all the snow will melt before it gets cold again and turns to ice over the weekend. If the dreadful winter storm is in your area, be safe. Just stay inside if you can. I am extremely fortunate to be able to do so and I can always find something to do. xo

Tuesday, February 1, 2022

A VALENTINE CARD to Make DIY Free Pattern


Hello February. My month of no holidays is over and there is plenty of time for making Valentines. I found this free download and I love it.



I have always loved "hand in heart" Valentines. 
Send to someone you love. 
❤️xo❤️ 

Monday, January 31, 2022

1938 Box of White Chalk: Clever Packaging🤡


Isn't this fantastic packaging? 
It made me smile when I saw it on Instagram a while back. @anonymousworksinc It's a wonder this 80+ year old box survived in such good condition to make us smile on the last day of January. xo

Sunday, January 30, 2022

Firewood Quote

I've never heard this firewood quote.
found on Tumblr


The Henry Ford quote is more familiar.


Image found here.

Saturday, January 29, 2022

Saturday Snow: Not Too Bad

View from my pantry window.


View from my Living Room window.
I am going to wait until the flurries stop this afternoon. Then I will shovel my front walk and clean off my car. I don't have to go anywhere and there will be bright sun all day tomorrow. It is cold and windy and would probably blow back if I do my walk too quickly. I did all of my errands yesterday requiring a car trip and made a new pot of soup. That's about it for my Saturday morning. Be safe and snug if you are snowed in too. xo

Friday, January 28, 2022

Two Rose-ringed Parakeets Peeking from Tree Cavity


Isn't this a spectacular photo of two beautiful birds peeking out of a tree cavity where they are nesting. It's Mother Nature at her best. Photo found here. The snow that is supposed to be coming my way hasn't started yet. It might be a little or it might be a lot. I'll just have to wait and see. xo

Thursday, January 27, 2022

Currently Watching: Inspector Alleyn on Tubi


I am watching on Tubi
The aristocratic Detective Chief Inspector Alleyn and his Scotland Yard assistants investigate a series of crimes with the detective moving casually through the world of high society. Each episode is a complete murder case that is solved so you can watch and not have to keep up with the previous episode.  DCI Alleyn wears the most beautiful double-breasted suits and he is never disheveled. He's very well educated with impeccable manners and a keen eye for detail. His love interest, an artist named Troy, is in every episode.

Please note that the lead actor that plays Alleyn in episode one is replaced by another actor in all the subsequent episodes. When BBC picked up the pilot the actor from Season 1, Episode 1 was not available. This confused me no end so I will spare you from wondering what happened. 

Brenda recommended this series in the comments below my post about MONARCH OF THE GLEN. I finished that series and LOVED it and now I am loving Inspector Alleyn Mysteries. It is free on Tubi. I think it's on Amazon Prime too and maybe YouTube. I promise you will like it.

Wednesday, January 26, 2022

Bathroom with Painted Floor




This bathroom is pretty wonderful, right? See the entire Rustic Mountain House here. Gil Schafer, architect.

Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Dachshund Love Posters




Both of these posters appeared on my Pinterest feed this morning. I will keep you posted on my vacuum cleaner repair later today.

xo

Monday, January 24, 2022

Taking Apart My Vacuum Cleaner


The brush roller stopped working on my vacuum cleaner last week and I decided to try and fix it myself. I found a wonderful YouTube video that taught me how to take the base apart. There was one screw I never would have found by myself. I have it all apart but I cannot find my wire strippers anywhere. I called a friend who often helps me with my tractor and he's bring his over tomorrow. Fingers crossed it will work after this small switch is disabled by cutting the wires. Every video I watched said this was the most likely problem. So many people thanked this wonderful man for making the video and everybody was able to make this simple repair. xo

UPDATE: I did it. Vacuum cleaner is better than ever. Now the brush roller spins all the time but that's fine. I couldn't be happier. I made a template of the base out of cardboard and pushed the screws in the correct location as I took them out. This made reassembly a snap. I had to use three different screw drivers but I have a zillion tools so that was not a problem. I called my local vacuum repair store and he said Shark vacuums didn't have very many replacement parts. They want you to replace the whole base. He offered to look at it but I decided to keep looking for a tutorial and lucked out. I have lots of attachments and this vacuum cleans really, really well. It is a "lift away" and would still have worked without the base but now I have restored it back to better than NEW condition. xo

Sunday, January 23, 2022

Small Brown Transferware Dish + A Shell


I was rummaging through a large storage bin in my attic looking for something I could not find but discovered this display stand instead. I remember finding it at an estate sale thinking I could find a use for it and I finally did. It was designed for displaying a cup and saucer and this shell fit in the cup holder very nicely. My shallow transferware shallow bowl/dish with an Aesthetic Movement design fits nicely in the saucer holder. 

I found a link describing this pattern called Beatrice.



Larger view on my small bookcase.

Have a great Sunday.

xo

Saturday, January 22, 2022

Birds and Icicles


I don't have icicles but I my land is like the frozen tundra from so much melting and freezing. I'm not complaining though since I have no place I have to be and can enjoy a lovely weekend inside. The path to my mailbox is clear and so is my front walk so I am not in any danger of slipping and falling. Stay safe and warm and be careful if you venture out. xo
photo found here

Friday, January 21, 2022

Free Online Book Borrowing Site


Open Library is an open, editable library catalog, 
building towards a web page for every book ever published.

Promise me you will click on this link. You will be blown away by the variety of books to borrow and read on your iPad, computer, laptop, phone, or Kindle. 


Browse by subjects using the above link. 


This is just a screenshot I made to make you smile. xo

Thursday, January 20, 2022

Today's Snowfall at My Cottage


All of the previous snow melted completely yesterday and I went to the grocery store for the first time in 2022. It rained overnight and turned to snow at dawn. It stopped around 11:00 and I cleaned everything in a jiffy. I walked around outside taking photos and this is the only one I really liked enough to share. So far, so good this winter as far as I am concerned. If I don't have to call anybody with a snowplow, it's a good day for me. I made a big pot of soup yesterday so I am all set for several days of not having to cook. Happy Thursday. xo

Wednesday, January 19, 2022

Book About Cats Trying To Be People


"Little purr-purr people, and how they tried to be folks"
Published in 1887








This charming children's book has been digitized. 
You can read it online. 


Enjoy it yourself or read it to someone! 
xo

Tuesday, January 18, 2022

Hand-Written Recipe for Meringues




These are the best meringues you will ever make.



V is for Vanilla



Always have paper and pen at the ready in case someone wants to share a recipe with you! Charlie McCormick is my favorite on Instagram. He grows and exhibits the most beautiful dahlias ever. And he bakes the most spectacular things for teatime! Here is his Instagram link. https://www.instagram.com/mccormickcharlie/
Here is the link for this particular recipe: https://www.instagram.com/p/CMZ3HvqhlRP/

Enjoy! xo

Monday, January 17, 2022

Free Sewing Pattern for A Lamb


Aren't these lambs adorable? The only thing you have to stuff is the body. All the other parts are one layer of black felt! You could get started now and have a pile made for valentine's day gifts. You could sew or embroider  a little red heart on the body. These are supposed to be ornaments to hang and the pattern includes two sizes. They would be great for Easter too. Download free pattern here.

My winter storm overnight was snow when I went to bed. Later it turned to rain and wind. Luckily it is MLK Day and there isn't much traffic so people can stay home. My front walk looks like a layer of ice covered with slush. There is no snow on my car so I don't have to clean it off and that makes me happy. I'm staying inside until the warmest part of the day and then I will give the front walk a quick shovel. Be safe. xo

Sunday, January 16, 2022

Cecil Aldin Dog Etching🐾🐾




I have always loved Aldin's dog etchings.♡
This one, "Ready for Mischief", was sold by Christie's.

Saturday, January 15, 2022

Still Life Saturday in My Kitchen

A grouping of some favorite things on my kitchen counter.

A French Faience lamp with a shade I made.
A Dutch bulb forcing pot.
A white lidded container found while thrifting.
A rosemary cutting rooted in water, just repotted.

Have a great weekend. xo