Dollhouse dreams.

Well, I did it. I bought the unfinished wooden dollhouse that's been calling to me for a couple of weeks now. The one asking for $25.00, a not inconsiderable sum for me. It's now in my home (a home within a home!), throroughly inspected by the three resident cats. (It would have been fun to take a picture of a cat face through the tiny windows ... but the camera is on the fritz).

No matter. It's still here, and it's officially mine!

It will, of course, be painted pink. My favorite house color is actually a pale butter yellow, but this one is calling out for pink.

Can't you hear it?


Laurie

Picture this.

I love to go on ebay and search for vintage photographs. I own several, and will someday have them matted and framed for hanging.

This little sweetie is sitting out there waiting for someone to take her home. Would that I could! The holidays have nearly emptied my pockets.

Such innocence.

New & Improved! Photos, blogs, etc ...

I can't believe it's been two months since I posted an entry here. I seem to have a mercurial relationship with my blog, and blogs in general. Why that is, I'm not quite sure ...

... though it might have something to do with my short attention span and generally on-to-the-next-thing nature. Perhaps!

Right now it's back to the blogs, and I have seen so many new (to me) gorgeous ones, of late. Among my new discoveries:

Pretty Little Things: http://prettylittlethings.typepad.com/lori_marie/

What am amazing little cottage/studio this gal has. I could easily step into that space and not leave again for oh, I don't know ... a week? Her posts and pictures on dollhouse-related things are a special treat. (Dollhouses = my latest obsession).

My Romantic Home: http://www.romantichome.blogspot.com/

This one is more on the fancy-schmancy side than I normally like, but one look at the gorgeous photos of white and silver XMAS stuff all around and I am a goner. For years I was a faithful reader of Victoria magazine, and this blog reminds me of why. My tastes run just about even between elegant/romantic and cute/cozy. This blog is a winning argument for elegant/romantic, though I daresay there is both cute and cozy to be found, too!

My Cottage of Content: http://mycottageofcontent.blogspot.com/

This beautiful blog is an armchair journey into gorgeous, inviting and cheerful rooms of pretty little cottages ... and the heart of a woman who loves them ... how irresistible is this? There is even a soundtrack to the blog (I think it is from a recent Austen film, though I can't place which one). What a photo album! What's not to love?! (On the masthead photo: a pink teacup and saucer, a rosebud teapot, a piece of cake frosted pink, pink heart shaped petit fours ... get the idea?)

Rachel Ashwell, eat your heart out :).

Movies ... were we talking about movies? There's never a bad time to talk about movies! I watched (three times in two days) the 2005 adaptation of Pride & Prejudice. Good grief, has a movie ever been more romantic? Keira Knightly lights the role of Lizzie Bennett from within. Her fiery, confident portrayal of the oldest sister of five is winningly watchable. The film is so pastorally pretty it almost hurts (well, in that good kind of wistful, melancholic "hurt" that a certain kind of soul lives for).

(Altogether now, ooooohhh!)

And of course there is the English countryside, pre-Industrial Revolution (glorious!), the merry dancing, the sumptuous halls of the rich, and most of all the charms of a one Mr. Darcy, who -- though he is nearly too late in revealing said charms -- turns out to be a princely one, in the truest sense. It doesn't hurt that his long lashes clump together so fetchingly in the rain, either. (What is it about those English men?)

Well. I find once again that I cannot apologize for my sappy heart. It keeps me alive and interested in life, hope and possibilities when little else can.

First real snow here today in MA (for my town, anyhow). The world is sugar-powdered ...

Remember to take a moment to treasure and honor yourself today.

And every day.

Nesting.

It's officially Fall!

I know it not just because the air has (finally) cooled off and the calendar said so, but because my nesting instincts are kicking in something fierce.

It has been many months since I did any knitting (and I'm a rank beginner there). But at night when I have to close the windows to stay warm and that second blanket is suddenly not just nice but necessary, my mind wanders to that blanket I've got going. Well, all 10-so-far squares of it anyway ...

And I am thinking of cups of tea, after all the months of iced coffees in those nasty plastic cups. Cups of tea, which means -- of course -- the sugar bowl and the creamer, the clink of a spoon against china. Even if it's just for myself, it's a sweet and simple ritual.

Although my "pattern" is Queen's Rosina Hooker's Fruit, specifically in the black cherries and plums, I have always been enamored of the Polish Pottery from Boleslawiec, Poland I so often see remaindered in the off-price department stores. It's heavy, lots of blue, and not generally my style, but I found myself giving in the other day and purchasing the cutest sugar bowl. It was practically a giveaway at $4.50.

See the little bird finial on the lid? And those two handles, and that graceful shape? I had no choice, it practically leapt into my hands.

Hello, Fall. It's been too long.

Match, set, game.

When a designing mind meets an ordinary matchbox, sparks fly.

Driscoll Designs makes these little lovelies, as well as cards, boxed notes, invitations, and calendars. I'd say these matchboxes are Officially Too Cute for the junk drawer.

My kind of pie.

The season premiere of Pushing Daisies is tonight!

That's Lee Pace, a.k.a. Ned The Pieman. I am pie-eyed for him.

How can I possibly feel guilty about watching TV when it looks like this?

I can't.

So I won't.

So there.

Rebecca Purcell

I've just picked up the October issue of Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion and as usual, it's full to the brim with the best stuff. This magazine makes me so happy I could cry (true story).

This month, the NYC apartment of artist Rebecca Purcell is featured. These are her own creations, and they are fantastic! Dogs, birds, cameo style frames ... these hit all the right notes for me.