Easter Adventures

Getting ready to host Easter dinner. We heat with wood, all winter long. By this time of year the surfaces, in the the house, are coated with a fine layer of soot. So tradition is to vacuum the whole house from top to bottom. Shake out the rugs and wash the windows.

Gather all the pretty plates and glassware and wash them in hot soapy water, drying them by hand so everything sparkles.

Make sure to buy the grocery store tulips and arrange them in vases all around the house.

If a pot of Hyacinths jumps into the cart, buy them. They make the cabin smell so fragrant. 

Last but not least, bake the cake! Birthday cake for the girls. Always a lot of fun to have the prettiest smiles around my table. 

Who has more fun then us?

Spring is here and the Daffodils have poked their heads above the ground. Crocus here and there around the lawn. Robins, big and fat, making nests over the light fixtures and in the eves. 

Sunshine and warmer days are on their way!

 

The Listening Room

 

I have never, that I can remember, attended a true "listening room" experience. A handful of listeners, counted seventy or more, seated in church pews. The performer standing in front of us singing his songs.

The one man show brought his drum, harmonicas, his guitars. The piano came with the venue. His twelve string ringing off the old wood floors. He did stop at Target to buy an equipment table.

Tenderhearted Boys by Will Hoge.

It was a fun date with my mate! He drove us down to "20 Front Street" to hear our favorite story teller and balladeer. 

Stepped Outside

Sitting at the computer, this morning, looking at the photos on my camera download from this week. My sweet little Snowdrops in the corner of my garden.

Took a walk on a brisk early afternoon. Saw the North Manitou Shoal Light Station across the way. I looked up the proper name. We always call it "the lighthouse".

Turned around and there she was! Devils Elbow at the old Sugarloaf ski resort. I can't even tell you how many times I skied that run.

Around the corner is Pyramid Point.

So close to South Manitou Island.

The bluest, coldest, rockiest piece of shoreline in the county!
That's just my opinion.

On the way back to the Jeep. 

Today is a snow day, everything is covered in white. Turned my clocks ahead and now I'm late! Time for breakfast. If I ask my husband, really nice, if I can have pancakes this morning, what do you think he'll say?

"Do you want sausage?" "Yes I do!! Thank you!"

 

Life Is Too Short To Miss A Beach Day

Look at all the stones under the water! Didn't have my waterproof boots on so I went looking for a piece of driftwood to help scoop them toward shore. 

You would think that there would be enough stones along the shoreline to search out some winners to put into my pockets!

I mean look at them all!!

Found a stick to wiggle that five pound hard head into shore. I put it in my hood of my jacket to carry it back down the beach.

Look up from the stones and you can see forever.
 

It was still, not a ripple on the surface of the water.

What a day! Walked up to the car fifteen pounds heavier!
A rock in each pocket and one in my hood!

 

 

The Sun Is Out!

The sun is shinning today. Hooray!
 

My all time favorite lamp and fabric combo! The fabric, I found, in a resale shop. It was only eighteen inches wide and nine feet long. I was able to match the pattern and make these twenty two inch pillows for Steve's sofa. The, Dana Gibson, lamp I sold in my shop at one time. 

 The two Chinese pillows, that I made, are some of my favorites. When you only have three feet of trim and a quarter of a yard of your hoarded fabric this is how you do it!!

The bright sunlight makes everything perk up. 

If you are a "color" person and you like your color primary, give me a call. Nothing pleases me more than mixing it up. Patterns and colors galore!

It's all about the sunny day.

 

Fourteen Years Of Blogging!

In the blue light of the early morning.

Hoot's Holler heeds storming.

A cover of snow to make everything cozy!

With boots up to my knees and coat sleeves pulled down tight I make my way into the light.

Feeding the birds their breakfast delight. Suet and seed and whatever else they need! This was a wonderful surprise when I opened my eyes! All the trees coated with a frosting of snow. 

So, on February 15, 2010, I posted the first blog, in this journal, of Anchor Cottage.  Fourteen years later I still have something to say!!

 

Looking Forward To My Purple Garden!

Never got around to posting these photos!

Giant Allium bulbs in a row.

Purple Petunias.

New Guinea Impatiens.

Tri Color European Beach Trees.

I never planned on having a "purple" garden. I had planted the Allium about five years ago. Then, I planted the Beech Trees to help, visually, heal the gouge in the side of the hill where we excavated dirt for a project. The purple Petunias were the brightest color at the garden shop that day! I had to move the pots of Impatiens to a brighter space for maximum blooms. 

By the end of the summer I had the ultimate "purple" garden. That may be why I waited to post these pictures, because, I was waiting for the end of summer shot! I forgot to take it!! The blue Hydrangeas were spectacular last summer. 

Cannot wait to see if I can recreate this garden even better. I was always a red Geranium/yellow Petunia gardener in my former summers. LOL

 

Work To Do

 

Yoo-hoo! Steve, where are you? 

There you are! See that bench over your left shoulder? I need to match a paint color to the new fabric, we are using to upholster the cushion, to paint the frame. 
You are good at matching paint colors, what do you suggest?

I have a whole basket of ideas! For upholstery and paint choices. Mostly all tried and true. I like large fabric swatches and equally large painted boards so I can show the customer what it will look like when applied. 
 

I also need to match a clear cedar and a maple island top. I heard you are the fellow to see! 

Looks like SRS painting is busy busy!! 

Steve and I have work to do! Anchor & Paint is what this team calls itself. It seems that Steve and I have progressed to a new level of decorating service! Repair, paint and upholster. 

Who has more fun than us!

Wrapping Up A Week In January

This was a labor of love. The "shield" mirror we found at a salvage business in North Carolina. We bought the grates, in the windows, there and had them powder coated in Lake Ann. Steve made the sink top from a walnut table we found, in a salvage shop, in DeLand Florida many years ago. The fabric for the vanity skirt and shower curtain we discovered at World Market in South Carolina! Steve and I gathered the pieces and called the plumber and the tiler to pull it all together! Tim says, "Beautiful color palette, and not at all cookie cutter. Unique and classic". Tim can write my copy anytime! 

Blue and white seem to be on my color wheel.

Went back and bought this chandelier west of Cedar. It is freshly wired and awaiting paint in Steve's studio. Painting it black with gold leaf details for a customer's dining room. I love how "French" it is!
 

I have started a new painting. Fresh paints, brushes and paper.

How about the snow mushrooming over the Uwharrie Chairs!

Stained glass window, from our travels, hangs over my studio desk.

Meeting with customers on Friday. Then on to the weekend.

Stay cozy!

 

A Touch Of Winter

Gently gently the snow has fallen.

Softly touching the surfaces of bark and seed heads.

Clinging, for the moment, in time and grace. 

Slight is the wind.

From the sky to the ground the snow landing soundlessly.

"Chick Chick Chickadee", says this tiny little snow bird.

The grayed light defining the most minuet structure.

Dancing in the garden.

The tools of summer hibernate under the eaves.

The soundless exhale of the winter time.