working, working, working

- studio cleaned out and spiffy (except for the floor) - check
- living/dining rooms cleaned out and spiffy - check
- master bedroom spiffy (almost) - check
- 2 spare bedrooms spiffy - check
- laundry room floor installed - check
- new 'flooring' in the cupboard under the kitchen sink - check
- furniture going to kids moved - check

STILL TO DO:
- wash & wax studio floor
- install carpet piece in downstairs closet
- get rid of more furniture
- clean windows
- fix chipped paint
- finish cleaning out the garage (already one truck load ready to head for the dump)

- get rid of one rather largish clotheshanger (better known as a treadmill) that absolutely nobody in their right minds seems to want

And how was YOUR week???

It's not true!!

Reports of my having fallen off the face of the earth are not true.

We are getting down to the crunch time with putting the house on the market and are narrowing in on the major things we needed to get done.  I'm still going through 'stuff' and getting it gone in one form or another.  The garage looks like a cyclone hit out there and I know I will be spending a number of days setting up for a massive yard sale.  

In the meantime, I'm also doing such delightful things as touching up paint (open jar, stir, find paint brush, dab on a little paint in a couple of spots, close jar, wash brush.....rinse and repeat).  

We get the apartment on May 1st and will start moving some things then and will make the final move when the house sells.  Maintaining two homes will be a chore because I just know that we'll have taken something over there that we find we need more desperately NOW.  Just hope the house sells really fast.

Oh  yeah - and getting ready for the weddings too!

Needless to say my posting might be a little sporadic over the next few weeks.  Rest assured I'll be back with regular doses of mumblings before long and in the meantime, I'll post as I can! 

Please feel free to mumble amongst yourselves!!

Journal for Prince Charming

Robyn's Prince Charming has a wonderful scroll for his journal...great fun to work on although it was a little bit outside my comfort zone.  I like to do whatever it is I'm adding separately and then attach it when I'm done (less chance of mucking it up that way and easier for a do-over if need be).  With this scroll, it needed to be worked on directly.  I"m pretty pleased with the way it turned out....

Hopefully you should be able to click on it to see more of the details.  I found a wonderful quote from Kermit "Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection - the lovers, the dreamers and me".   I also added "It's not easy being green" (which is, I think, another Kermit-ism)..... "Time's fun  when you're having flies",  and "A frog he would a-wooing go, whether Venus would let him or no".    Venus was referred to by one of the previous artists as being the one that was keeping him in his frog state.

The background was already a lovely mixture of print and gesso (?) so I simply used some acrylic stain and over top of that drybrushed a bit of green for highlights.  Then I added the stencils and the paper ephemera and finished the whole with another coat of antiquing.

There's only one doll left to work on, and I'm sad.

Frog Prince - reveal

Sorry about being missing folks, but this having to get the house ready for putting up for sale is taking more time than I anticipated!   We're getting there....slowly.

I HAVE been playing a little too!
Here's the wonderful Frog Prince
the latest in the Art Doll Coolaberation 2010
dolls to come to visit...

Remember that odd-looking wooden 'thing' I posted about last time?
Well, it was the base for this....

Yes, it's lurking under there!  It's been painted green and has been given a fabric 'skirt', held on with upholstery tacks.  A little bottle full of flies (for his lunch) has been added and I added a dragonfly charm to the lily pad Talitha made.  He's also sporting a new balloon, because after all, what self-respecting frog at the fair, wouldn't have balloons to attract the ladies?

Tomorrow I will show you my journal entry.

Twins!

Now don't go and get all exciting thinking I'm
making any sort of 'announcement'!!

These are two baby dolls (twins actually) that were dressed by my friend who spends literally hours crocheting lovely outfits for dolls and then gives them away.  Each of these dolls has a dress, a slip, an undershirt, underwear, bootees, a hat and a coat....all crocheted and designed by her.  She is in her 80's and credits the miles of crocheting she does with keeping the arthritis at bay in her hands.  She wanted me to buy these dolls and she would dress them with instructions that they are to be put away for my grandchildren.  Don't know what I'll do if we end up having boys!!

Finally, here's what I've been working on lately - wonder what it will turn out to be?