New Rooms for Old Homes / Great Book

This is another favorite coffee table book that is in my collection and is currently off the shelf and at hand. 

NEW ROOMS FOR OLD HOUSES

Beautiful Additions for the Traditional Home

by Frank Shirley

Published by THE TAUNTON PRESS

"Inspiration for Hands-On Living"

All of the books by this publisher are wonderful.

Back cover. Mine has the dustjacket. 

The hardcover binding is plain.

Retail $40. My used copy from local bookshop $15.
Gold Seal on front dustjacket from

NATIONAL TRUST FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION

I did not know the term "monitors", did you? Such an interesting architectural detail for raising the roof and getting more light into a room without adding a skylight.

The pleasing addition is on the far right. Note slight color change in roofing material.

Have a great weekend. By now you know how to order used books, right?

xo

More about Monitors and Cupolas. Unknown left a comment about a monitor barn in Shelburne, Vermont. I couldn't find it but found a 1903 barn in Richmond, Vermont that was moved and beautifully restored with the monitor spanning the entire roof ridge and a cupola too! It's fabulous as is the article by KNOBB HILL JOINERY Preserving New England's architectural legacy for future generations with photographs of the entire process.

Read the article and see the amazing photos HERE. 
The barn is home to the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps.

Isn't this barn beautiful? Everything old is new again.
xo

The Winter Garden / Great Book

What I'm reading now. One of my favorite gardening books.

THE WINTER GARDEN

Structure, planting and romance in the garden in winter.

Eluned Price

Photographs by Clive Nichols

Author's dedication:

In memory of my beloved parents

Corinne and Justin Price

who taught me how to look

CONTENTS

Introduction

Structure in the Winter Garden

Planting in the Winter Garden

Romance in the Winter Garden

The Plant Directory

Index

Mine is a hardcover first edition published in 1996 with the destjacket. It's a large, beautiful book that is still available used. 

Search for it HERE and fill out form yourself. 

Search for used hardcover editions HERE with title and "hardcover" requested in search parameters.

xo

Birds and Yesterday's Snow.

Tufted Titmouse?

Black-Capped Chickadee

I think this is the Tufted Titmouse again.

Jd commented with a correction.  This a NUTHATCH.

Thanks, Jd.

The snow had just started when I took these photos yesterday and we got a couple of inches that required no shoveling at all. It changed to rain and everything melted overnight. It was fun to watch knowing it wouldn't last.

The clouds are lifting and the sun is coming out. 

This was my sky earlier this morning.

Have a great day.

xo

Porch with Window Box and Bench

This addition is very sweet, isn't it? It seems very roomy because there is no enclosure across the front as it's only a couple of steps off the ground. I love the bench near the front door and if this little window box were mine I would fill it with herbs for the kitchen. photo source

Stay safe if winter storms dump lots of snow your way. My area is expecting less that an inch but lots of heavy rain and wind later in the day and all night. Wind scares me the most.

weather update

Downy Woodpecker before the snow.

Here is a link for a documentary on PBS about Woodpeckers. Get an intimate look at what makes woodpeckers so special. Explore their unique abilities and intimate stories from around the world. Narrated by Paul Giamatti. 

WOODPECKERS THE HOLE STORY

It snowed furiously for a while and I got about an inch and then it got warmer and turned to rain. The temperature will keep getting warmer and will rise to 52° by 2am. Such strange weather. It's beautiful and the perfect amount of snow. 

xo

Shredding Marathon in my Attic Office

This animated live photo is set on LOOP. I filled up one bag last week and am working on a second one. Let me know if you find this annoying. It wasn't very effective on the BOUNCE setting.

I am taking this bag to our DIY recycling center in case we get snow tomorrow. I got this blue denim bag ages ago and it's perfect for shredding. I have rigged up my shredder on its side so it feeds directly into this container via a paper shoot. I do this every year in January. As you can see, I am not paperless yet. I still like a paper version of my bills, even if I have to print them myself. Have a great Tuesday. xo

Red Cardinal Monday

Mr. Cardinal this morning in my front garden enjoying his perch under the bird feeder in a softly-falling rain. His mate is with him but I can never get them together in one photo.

You can see the falling raindrops in this animated photo.

Enjoy your Monday.

ONE MORE added at 4:00 in the afternoon.

This one shows a chickadee at the feeder, 

the cardinal on the cement ball, 

and a ground feeder. 

xo

View My Blog with a WHITE BACKGROUND

Click HERE to view my blog with a White Background

I added this feature to my computer view in the sidebar.

The white background shows automatically if you are viewing my blog on a mobile device with a small screen.

If you are viewing my blog on a computer and find my gray background hard on your eyes you can change it to a white background. I have had my blog since 2008 and I like my original design to this day but have had a complaint about the gray background.😢

Now you have a choice.

GRAY background here with sidebar.

WHITE background here with no sidebar.

xo

ONLINE: Audubon Guide to North American Birds

Pileated Woodpecker

I am so excited to find this!

I put a shortcut on my desktop

Audubon Guide to North American Birds

Click on the link above and scroll down until you find the bird you want to know more about.

Here is what you see when you click on AMERICAN ROBIN

I hope you love it as much as I do. 

xo

You're welcome!

Watercolor Over Pencil Drawing Beatrix Potter

Drawing of the kitchen at Spout House (Far Sawrey): background study for The tale of Pigling Bland (1913), watercolour over pencil, by Beatrix Potter, probably 1910. Victoria & Albert Museum I love that she used real interiors as backgrounds in her stories. xo

Darling Canvas Tote -- Thrifted

I bought this darling canvas tote yesterday on my home from getting my new title and plates for my car.

It's a vintage Boston Hand Print.

My laptop fits perfectly inside.

I love it and it will be perfect to take to the office when I'm planning to come home afterwards. If I have to go somewhere after my office meeting I will bring an insulated bag for my laptop. I don't like to leave it unprotected in the car when it's hot or cold outside. I don't think extreme temperatures are good for electronics. I am so happy with this $2.00 purchase. I don't think it was ever used even though it's vintage. I wish I had owned it yesterday. It would have been perfect for my paperwork and tools at the Department of Motor Vehicles.

xo

Here is a black insulated bag like the one I have for cold or hot car travel. Mine has black leather strap and trim and the body is olive green. It is designed for two (or three) bottles of chilled wine. I have never used it for that purpose. I got it at an estate sale with only my laptop in mind and it turned out to be perfect. Repurposing an item is always on my mind whenever I go hunting. xo

Maple Leaf on Blue Board

An old photo after a very busy day. I decided to buy the car I have been leasing for the past three years and did all the paperwork and legwork myself because the leasing company wanted too much to do it for me. I started two weeks ago sending forms and final payment to Philadelphia for the title that came in Tuesday's mail. That seems like an age ago but it was only yesterday. I left home this morning at 9:30 for a trip to Motor Vehicles to turn in the old license plates, get new ones, and get the new Title and Registration. I removed the plates in the parking lot and thankfully it was a beautiful day and wasn't too cold. It took a while waiting in lines once I got inside but I am a patient person and I had all my documents filled out. I put the new license plates on in the parking lot and it was pretty easy requiring two different tools. All in all it wasn't as stressful as I thought it would be and I'm so glad it's over and now I can relax. I only have a little over 5,000 miles on the car because Covid hit two weeks after I bought it and you know how the last three years have been with staying inside! Now I feel like a free bird. 

xo

Jane Allen Boyer illustrations: So Charming

Making toast looks very dangerous, doesn't it?

 I stumbled on the first photo of the young girl sewing and I had to know more. That was my childhood -- in the sewing room -- my favorite room in the house and we always had one wherever we lived. 

Jane Allen Boyer (1875-1940) was from Riverton, New Jersey. She illustrated several WWI era books for girls. See the article I found here written by the Historical Society of Riverton NJ. It shows the book covers of her five books. Enjoy.

UPDATE: Here is a link for used copies of The Mary Frances Sewing Book

"The Mary Frances Sewing Book 100th Anniversary Edition: 

A Children’s Story-Instruction Sewing Book with Doll Clothes Patterns for American Girl and Other 18-inch Dolls"

You can refer to the link for the Historical Society above for all the other titles of the Mary Frances books and search for them HERE.

Happy Hunting

XO

Deer in my Back Yard

A little excitement at 4:45 this afternoon. These deer stayed for quite a while because they weren't bothered. This live photo (set on bounce) had the most action. I took it from one of my attic windows where the screens are still out from having the house painted in August. I couldn't get any good shots from my living room because the balcony railing was in the way. I hope they will be frequent visitors.

xo

A Corner of My Livingroom

I just looked at the clock, and yes, it's still morning for 10 more minutes. I moved this cast iron squirrel pushing a container so I could enjoy it more. I filled his little container with a tiger's eye or Agate polished egg-shaped stone I have had for ages. I wish I had a giant acorn but I don't. We have bright sunshine today and it's very welcome. Enjoy this Sunday and the long MLK holiday weekend. 

xo

Beautiful Woodblock Flower Print

Vase with white flower and leaves, circa 1900

colored woodcut engraved 

by Andrew Kay Womrath 1869-1939

American Woodblock Print Artist

British Museum

I love this so much.

Found here.

I moved mountains today and feel so good about some quality work and lots of paper shredding in my attic. I will continue tomorrow. Hope you have a great weekend. 

Brittany, #20/35 by Andrew Kay Womrath 

ex. collection of Yoshijiro Urushibara 

Courtesy of the British Museum 

(woodblock print)

Found here with many more examples of his work.

Gravestone found in France correcting his death date as 1953.

Have a great Sunday.

xo

A Collection of Small Shells I Just Purchased

I have another small jar of figural shells similar to these in the 6" dish. They are somewhat larger too. Found before Christmas in a charity shop. I am just now looking at them and admiring these miniature miracles from the sea. Aren't they beautiful? I wonder how long it took to collect them? Are they easy to find? I have no idea since I haven't had very many seashore visits in my lifetime. My family vacations were always in the mountains. I'm having a rainy Thursday with a repeat tomorrow but both days are in the 50s and mild with no sunshine until Sunday and Monday. I keep looking for things to do so I won't have to deal with my mess in the attic. Hope you enjoy these shell photos.

xo

A Bookshelf Full of Friends

I made this illustrated quote about books long ago and just ran across it again and I still love the play on words. Is there any home decoration better than a bookcase full of books? I think not. I have been putting things away and my kitchen table is completely bare once again. Tomorrow I want to work on organizing upstairs in the attic. Wish me luck.

xo

 

Cat Sleeping with Seagull Teddy

So adorable. Do you think Santa brought this stuffed seagull? Don't you love photos of animals with their stuffed toys? via

xo

After reading the comments about this photograph I learned there is a children's book THE STORY OF A SEAGULL AND THE CAT WHO TAUGHT HER TO FLY by Luis Sepúlveda 

A cat. A seagull. An impossible task. A worldwide bestseller and the subject of a feature film, THE STORY OF A SEAGULL... is finally out in paperback! Her wings burdened by an oil slick, a seagull struggles to the nearest port to lay her final egg. Exhausted, she lands on a balcony where Zorba the cat is sunning himself. She extracts three extraordinary promises from him: that he will watch over the egg, that he will not EAT the egg, and that, when it's time, he will teach the baby gull to fly. The first two promises are hard enough, but the third one is surely impossible. Isn't it?

Interested? Search for a copy using my favorite book search HERE.