June 2009 – Karla's Cottage

Ghosts of the past?

By Karla Nathan / June 29, 2009

We're back! Great Aunt Caroline's funeral was simple and touching. She chose everything in advance herself. Lots of pinks, whites, and roses, all just as lovely as she was herself.

It wasn't easy, but I got up to speak at the funeral. Because my mother adored her aunt so much, I felt like I needed to say something from my Mom, since she has passed away and wasn't able to tell everyone how much Caroline meant to her. And since I was talking about Mom, and thinking about times with her, it was doubly hard to speak without sobbing. I was facing lots of overwhelming emotions, but it was something I had to do.

Whether anyone in the funeral home could understand what I was saying through the tears or not, at least I said it.

Sissy and I stayed on the beach in Sarasota, taking a memory tour of places I used to go with my grandma years ago. One of my favorite places in the world when I was a kid was Siesta Key Beach and I was glad to see that the sand is every bit as soft and powdery as I remembered!

We walked on the beach at night as the sun was setting, then drank wine on the balcony and ate a feast of breads, cheeses and fruits for a picnic. When we left the hotel room in the morning, this outline of my fat little Fred Flintstone shaped foot was on the carpet outside the door.

We also hunted for and found the old trailer that Grandma used to live in! At least we think this is it….

Before the trip, I had my hair colored, trying to get it back to natural. I thought the highlights had gone so far, that they looked more sun damaged than sun kissed. Sugarwings noticed right away and said, "Grammy did you get more hair?"

I'm not sure about the color yet. It might need to be brigther, or darker or redder or something less boring.

One thing I remember about my Grandma's trailer from when I was a kid, is all the lizards in the yard. And this abandoned trailer had plenty of lizards. I thought about trying to break in to see inside, but couldn't get the doors open. And when I saw this guy trapped between the window and the glass, I had 2nd thoughts about going in anyway.

Maybe it was all the talk of the past and people who were long gone that influenced my Sissy when we checked into this gorgeous old hotel in Mt Dora. She was feeling "not right" about it. We checked right back out again and moved to another place.

The place seemed quaint and inviting to me, but I could tell she just was not happy there at all. Maybe it was haunted? That is my theory! I might have enjoyed staying with ghosts.

It all worked out for the best, the hotel we moved to was where my other sister and her hubby were staying. There was a free breakfast, and a little gazebo on the lake right outside our back door, where we could sit and sip wine and watch the sunset again. Of course, that is a big part of vacationing for us, sipping wine and watching the water.

And the hotel was not far from the funeral home where we said goodbye to our Great Aunt. Family had laid out photos of her, including this one taken in her 90s. I hope I take after her at least a little bit! I'd love to look this great in my 90s!!!!!!!!!!!!

We don't know what year this photo is from, only that it captures some of the tranquility and beauty that was such a part of her.

Thanks again for all of your condolences. And once again for all your help last year in making the hundred plus cards that helped mark her 110th birthday!

A garden Journal for Randy

Travel

By Karla Nathan / June 28, 2009

Here is another post that I did up ahead before going out of town—

While I am in Florida for my Great Aunt Caroline's funeral, I'll be driving up to Jacksonville to see my sweet and silly brother-in-law, Randy. He is having a birthday party, and I have to tell you, his parties are the BEST. Always great food, great company and soooo entertaining. Randy and his husband, Kevin know how to entertain better than anyone I've ever met!

Randy and Kevin have a delightful backyard, spiffed and spruced up and planted and planned down to each and every inch of it. A large segment is devoted to butterflies, so these guys don't use any pesticides at all.

I thought I'd make up a little garden journal/ art book for Randy as a gift. Using a simple notebook on sale at Michael's for 50 cents as a base, I added vintage papers, some cute images I got in the En Le Jardin swap, and a few hand drawn details.

Oh, and envelopes! I love to add envelopes to journals, they are so handy for tucking away notes, receipts, etc.

And I use vintage envelopes when I can. I buy so many old greeting cards, and some come with envelopes that are just perfect for this.

This list of important holiday dates is from a Hallmark book published in 1949, so might not be quite accurate… Still, interesting. And Randy is a guy who never misses an occasion to send a card, so it seemed appropriate.Although if he uses this guide, he might be sending cards on the wrong dates.

I also used these antique French cards with his initials. Although, I wonder why I bought French cards, when all they show are single letters? Its not like it is a French word. No one will ever know that they are French, huh?

And of course, a butterfly for the butterfly garden. I also drew some here and there in the book.

Now, I am off to pack for my trip. I found a solution for keeping track of all the pages I printed for various hotels and addresses and other info, I made myself a folder to hold them all. I usually have pages scattered around in my purse and am always digging through trying to find the info I need.

This folder is two sided card stock, folded into pockets, and then sewed. I stitched on some heavy duty, old velour ribbon to keep the edges from getting bent up, and glued another soft ribbon on to use as a tie.

It only took a few minutes to make and the stitching is horrid, but it really will be useful. I printed all my Travelocity, rental car, and other confirmations, then highlighted the addresses. Then folded them up, and wrote at the top of each, what day it was for and what place! I've really impressed myself, I've always had a hard time finding what I need on trips. Hopefully, this will solve that problem!!

Dorkiepalooza (this one has gone to the dogs)

By Karla Nathan / June 27, 2009

I thought I'd write a few posts in advance to pop up while I am in Florida. And since I'll be missing my home and family, and the dorkies, I thought I'd have something on here that would pick me up when I look at it on the hotel lobby computer. Thursday's post is all about the garden (and hoping the brand new baby plants survive on their own with out me)

For today's, I went back into my photo files and found some of my favorite dorkie pictures.

These are all taken from various cameras over the years. But I have re-edited them in Picassa. That editing system has really improved some pictures taken with my older cameras too!

Picassa is free, its a quick and easy download from Google. Its simple to use and did I mention it was free???

Photoshop is much better, of course. I've never tried it, but I have seen others use it and have been very impressed with all its tricks. But did I mention that Picassa was free and simple and anyone can use it? No lessons, simply download and start editing?

Everyone of these older photos has really been improved with this editing. Previously, I used the basic editing that came with the computer, so I guess anything would have been an improvement.

Photoshop is something I'd love to learn how to use. Just like I'd really love to learn more about the Canon Rebel camera that I got for my birthday this year. But I have to face facts, and know that there is only so much time in a day and my days are pretty packed.

I adore the photos taken by my friends, Tiffany and Carol. Those two taught me a lot about my new camera when we were together in Macon at En Le Jardin. But they spend at LOT of time on editing (it shows, wow, they have knockout photos!!).

This new editing system has helped me a lot. And I do LOVE my new camera!! But I doubt that I'll never have the time or dedication to become a pro like Tiffany and Carol. I just want some pretty pictures, they don't have to be perfect. So, I'm pretty happy with this new tool, even on some of the older photos taken with a not so great camera.

You might have noticed that I tend to have a ton of photos…. So, I have to be quick with them. I'd say I spend only a couple of minutes at the most on each one.

Maybe because I have this little one in my life? Yep, my time at the computer is quite limited since she has come around, but we're pretty happy with our time together. I'm going to be missing her while I am away!

Better late than never

Chandeliers, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), flowers, show and tell

By Karla Nathan / June 25, 2009

Before leaving to go on my trip to Florida, I pre-posted some pictures of my garden to show while I was away. Now, I am wondering if these are worth showing… I got such a late start in planting that these are not very lush plants yet.

But they were all half price! By being a month (or more) behind, I was able to buy clearance priced plants. I just hope they are going to live till I get back, since they are not well established, I hated going out of town and leaving all the "babies."

The perennials that were planted years ago, will be fine, of course. Especially things like yarrow. The weather could be 100 degrees and no rain the whole time I am away and this plant will thrive.

Just like all the ground cover here. I like to use perennial plants that do well in Kansas with little care, or water. Then, I scatter annuals around in pots to brighten the garden.

Begonias are always a favorite here, because I can depend on them. They aren't fancy, but they grow well in my soil and need very little attention, but provide lots of pink prettiness all summer long.

Well, they don't look like much yet.

I set out about 3 flats of pink begonias, 1 of pink rose moss, 1 of mixed rose moss, and 2 flats of bright pink vinca. Along with that, are some lavender dahlias, two colors of sweet potato vine, and lots of herbs.

This planter used to be the water heater of this old farm cottage. I set out the herbs earlier than the flowers, so most of them are filing out now and looking good. These are right by the back door, so I can snip what I need for meals.

This Rosemary topiary tree was a treat for myself. Since it was a late season purchase, it was half price and I thought $20 was a good price for it. I also got a planter box filled with herbs half price (we can't have too many around here!) and divided them up to plant around the base of this topiary, and added some to a few other pots too.

This basket full of herbs was a birthday gift, and I set it down into a larger pot and planted some begonias around it.

But some pots stayed empty. I kind of like the look of stacked terra cotta pots.

Especially in groupings.

And I love to fill my yard with junk I buy at garage sales. This chandelier was $5, because it's wiring was all cut out. I'll add a candle to it for evening garden parties.

This 1960's wall plaque was multi colored, so I primed and painted it white, then hung it on a garden wall to age, about 5 years ago. I had no idea it would last this long. But I only paid $1 for two of them at a yard sale, so it was worth the gamble. Sometimes, I just use things outdoors knowing that it might only last a season or two, and enjoy them while they last.

This is a cabinet door that I painted on, and hung by the back door to my studio. I know that the weather will rot the wood eventually.

The hot pink watering can came with a pink gerber daisy in it, and was half price too. But Sugarwings immediately claimed it as her own, so I removed the plant and let her have the can. It seemed more important to her than to me.

Plus she lets me use her tools. Last year, we got pick plastic garden tools meant for kids, at Target. But her little shovel is my favorite one to use, so we take turns.

My favorite flower this year, is this Knock Out Rose topiary (also half price). First of all, Knock Outs are miraculous roses, they are the only ones I have ever been able to grow. But I didn't know I could have a topiary one! I was thrilled to find that.

But my over all favorite of the yard? The veggie garden! I'm hoping to have some tomatos soon, the plants are looking great so far. It shouldn't be too much longer. Can't wait!

Farewell

family, Travel, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / June 24, 2009

There's no place like home, there's no place like home….

I'm getting ready for my trip to Florida and have been busy chasing down the details and making reservations. I snuck in some time to make a few little pretties too.

Here are a couple sneak peeks at what I've been doing. There are a few odds and ends left to finish on them yet, and since I leave for the airport at 4am tomorrow and haven't packed yet, well, I guess I won't be finishing up the batch of pretties and listing them in the shop till I get back.

I've pre-written some posts that will pop up while I am away, so please do check back. And when I return, I'll let you know who the winner is for the June Giveaway- which you can still enter, of course.

Thanks for all of your kind words about Great Aunt Caroline. She will be missed.

Blue Birds, Blue Berries, and talking about beautiful gifts till I am Blue in the face!

celebrations, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), fairies, family, show and tell, the Boutique at Karla's Cottage, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / June 23, 2009

Thank you for all your kind comments about the passing of my Great Aunt Caroline. She was a gracious lady who led an interesting and full life. I hope I can inherit some of her longevity genes! Not only did she live to just a few days short of 101, she did so in excellent health up until the very end. And she passed away quietly in her sleep with no trauma. Not a bad way to go, at all. Lucid and no pain.

My flight to Florida is Thursday, and I am trying to get caught up before I go. I added this pearl collar to my Boutique, and have been making some projects to add too, but most likely, will not be able to till I return.

One thing I needed to be caught up on was showing off the pressies I've been getting! It has been feeling almost like Christmas around here lately and I haven't had a chance to get pictures of the lovely loot till now.

My friend, Jenn Queen of the Garden Fairies sent me this Millinery School book. I wish I could really go! And not to a modern one, I want to go back in time and attend this school and play with all the flowers and trims there.

And at our Blogger's Shopping Day in Leesburg, VA, there was a flurry of gifts being exchanged. Amy Powers created the sugared and framed bluebird, that is so cute next to the minuscule flowers that Robin crafted from coffee filters and sticker dots. Can you tell what she has used for a vase? The lid to a spice bottle!

Andrea gifted us with gift tags, all sparkly and pretty and packed in a tin.

Please excuse Twinkle's vanity, but she insisted that I pay attention to her instead taking photos of everything else…

Most of these gifties have been used already, so I can't show you how cute Heather and Stephenie's little straw basket was when it was filled with blooms, or the hand knit wash cloth that Bethmade. I saved the packaging she made for it, (the tube covered in ephemera) but the wash cloth has been hard at work already. She has given me a few of these over the years and I just love to use them. I keep one in the kitchen to wipe the fairy grand baby's face after meals, because the cotton yarn is just right for a baby's soft skin.

In a previous post, I mentioned the great idea that Pamela had for the travel folders, filled with tags to tie to our packages, room for receipts and business cards, etc. And Hope gave us post cards from her shop, that I just can't use, I will save in the folder Pamela made along with other mementos of the day.

You are probably thinking that is all I have to show you???? No way!! It has been a gift-a-thon around here!!!

In today's mail, these wonderful Blue Bird plates arrived from Jenny!! I quickly filled them with fresh, hot blueberry muffins. Don't things taste even better off of pretty plates? It was so thoughtful of her to send these to me, after she saw the post about my mini collection of this china.

Jenny has an antique shop in Raleigh, and I just found out that my husband has that city in his region now. Hopefully soon, I'll be able to travel with him there and check out her store and thank her in person.

And there is more…..

Andrea sent a voluminous bundle of beauty my way! Full of vintagey tidbits and treasures. Including a hand made frame, for a photo of Sugarwings. And out of old pastel wallpapers and glitter. Now that even more yummy than a fresh muffin!

But wait, I am still going- yes there is MORE. How lucky am I?

First of all, pretty lucky to have a friend like Beth, who sent me this wallpaper pack from Holly's shop after I mentioned how much I loved the chocolate brown paper. I am beyond lucky, don't you think?

And so lucky that Sugarwings is fine, no problems from her episode of mushroom munching in the grass. The poison control center thought that the mushrooms were dangerous and sent us to the ER, but a specialist in mushrooms happened to live in the area and came in to inspect them and told us that they were a safe variety.

Thank you all for your concern about her. And now, she has a fairy guardian on the shelf above her bed, a gift from Lori,that is just about as precious as little Sugarwings is!

Thanks, everyone for the fantastic gifts! And don't forget that I have one for you, this month's gift drawing will be on the 30th and is one of my tag journals.

Remembering

family

By Karla Nathan / June 21, 2009

This time last year, I was gathering up the 100 plus cards made for my Great Aunt Caroline's 100th birthday and heading down to Florida for the birthday bash. She was to turn 101 on the 26th, this week. I have my plane tickets ready to go, so I could be there for the big day.

Sadly, I got a call today, saying that she passed away last night. I'm still traveling to Florida this week, but now it is for a funeral instead.

She was a gracious and classy lady who could really tell a story and had a lot of stories to tell. I'm so sorry that I won't get to hear another one from her.

Thanks again to all of you who sent cards last year. They were a huge hit at her party! If you'd like to see the cards that generous readers made for Caroline, click here.

Today, I am also remembering my dad. I love this old photo of him from my scrapbook. He sent it to me years ago, with a note on the back telling me how many crappies he'd caught at his favorite fishing hole.

Its been an up and down Father's Day weekend for us. Lots of fun times, out on the lake, but also the sadness of losing Caroline and remembering Dad. But we had a frightening moment too, when Sugarwing's mom told us she had been snacking on mushrooms growing in the yard! After calling poison control, we were told to bring in a sample of the mushrooms to the ER (and the baby led us directly to them in her mommy's yard).

A mushroom expert examined them and said they weren't poisonous, but the Dr. had Sugarwings drink charcoal in chocolate milk.

She's fine now, just a few tummy rumbles here and there. It could have been much worse, I shiver just thinking about anything bad happening to my fairy grand baby! She doesn't even LIKE mushrooms, and will not eat them on her plate. What goes through kid's heads when they put stuff like that in their mouths? Or noses for that matter, she had a big marble up her nose yesterday too.

I told her to never, ever, ever eat mushrooms out of the grass, because then the fairies will not have any place to sit.

I hope all of you are having a good Father's Day, and hopefully one less eventful than ours.

Flower bed visitors

fairies, family, flowers

By Karla Nathan / June 19, 2009

Finally! I was able to do some yard work. Normally, I am way too early with my plants because I just can't wait to get the blooms started. This is the latest I have ever been in setting out annuals. But I discovered if you wait till this late in the season, all the plants are half price! That made me feel a bit better about it being so far behind.

Sugarwings was quite the helper. She discovered how easily the plants popped out of the ground and right back into the divided plastic trays they came in. So, we had to elaborately tuck the new flowers into their "beds" and pat the soil around them to distract her from replanting them right back into their previous containers. After giving them plant food and a drink, I think she got the picture.

Did you notice this unusual planting in the first photo? My first reaction, was, "oh no, the Lamb's Ear will be smashed!". Then I realized just how prolific this flower is, and how hard to kill. Plus, who could blame her for wanting to pull off her dress and sink down into soft, fluffy leaves of Lamb's Ear?

In the past, I've been quite a flower lover, but for now, I think I'd rather spend my time growing fairies.

It was the day for soft and fluffy.

This little guy was hopping around in the flowers too. We held him for a while, then sat him down to hop on home to his family. That wasn't easy to do, Sugarwings was pretty fond of him. When I asked her what his name was, she said it was "Mine".

Daisy Fresh

flowers, housework

By Karla Nathan / June 17, 2009

It was such a joy to get home from Virginia to see that the floor in Sugarwing's room was finished! My Handyman brother-in-law, ripped up the nasty carpet that had been in that room since her daddy lived in it years ago, and replaced it with laminate.

The clean fresh feeling of a shiny new floor threw me into an over-drive mode of Spring Cleaning. All of the bedding and curtains had to be sparkling clean to go along with the glistening floor, of course. And after washing the quilt on the day bed, I flipped it over to the opposite side I usually display. This side was whiter and brighter, perfect for my mood.

The frenzy continued through out the house. Freshly washed slipcovers now grace the sofa. And I bagged up about half the throw pillows and put them in the closet for the summer.

The bathrooms got lots of shining up too, and the rug in my bathroom is all fluffy and clean.

And to top it all off, I picked some flowers from the garden. "Fresh as a daisy" suited me just fine today.

So, the floors and surfaces around the house are clutter and dust free. Seems like I normally pick up here and there, but it is hard to find a big block of time to really get into the corners and clean the whole house all at once. I have about 2 more hours to enjoy the triumph of having everything all spiffy, then Miss Sugarwings arrives. She is a master at re-cluttering! In no time flat, the house will be knee deep in magic wands, books, and giggles.

I just can't wait!!

By the way, you still have about 10 days to enter the June Giveaway drawing for this tag journal. All comments, all month, are entered!

Girls Trip times Three

antiques/junking, celebrations, Food and Drink, Moving to DC

By Karla Nathan / June 17, 2009

Washington, DC is a beautiful place to be. Even if you are not a huge museum fan, simply wandering about is pretty entertaining. Our Girls Trip was such fun. I even let them drag me from one museum after another with few complaints. One thing that surprised me, was how much I knew about the exhibits. I guess from reading Time and Newsweek, I see reveiws of art and absorbed it without even noticing.

One of my pals had lived in the area previously and knew where to go and what to do. Of course, I kind of live here part time, but I sure didn't know much. I can tell you where the best antique shops are, though.

Her advice on lunch? When you go to Chinatown, don't stop on the first block, like a tourist. Go down a block and over and get deeper into the area. Seemed to work for us, my lunch was delicious!

Even though we had some gloom and rain, we kept going. We didn't get too wet. And luckily, we changed our schedule to go and see the Portrait Gallery before the Haulocast Museum. Because if not, we'd have been there during the tragic shooting. That is the stuff that nightmares are made of.

No tragedies in our group! Even Jen's lost wedding ring turned up in her suitcase later on. My husband had to go out of town at the last minute, so it was just us girls. We stayed up late, sipping wine and telling stories all night. Now, to me, that is the best part. It doesn't matter what location you are in, where the trip takes you, it is who you are with that counts.

While we were exploring the Adam Morgan (?) district -in a down pour that kept us from seeing too much- we did get to see some Hollywood set crew guys taking down a scene from a movie being filmed there. I guess we were a bit late to see Reese Witherspoon, but it was still interesting to watch a fake brick store front being carried away.

This week has been extra special to me, not only did I get this Girl's Trip with my friends from Lawrence, and the Blogger's Day out in Leesburg with those pals, I had Beth come to hang out too. It was like a Girls Week on steroids, three gatherings in one!

After dropping off my first set of pals at the airport, I picked up Beth for the 2nd leg of the journey. We explored Baltimore a bit, drove down to the Wharf and ate crabcakes and walked through Little Italy.

With a GPS, you can go just about anywhere! I had some time between dropping the first batch of friends off and picking up the 2nd, so I drove around a bit all by myself too. Then, on the way home from the airport, Beth and I took a little side trip to Kennsington to look at the old Antique District there.

My husband got back in town just in time to take Robin, Beth, and I out to the Tower Club for an extremely schmancy dinner. I usually photograph the gorgeous food there, but my new camera is so much bigger and brighter, it seemed a bit obnoxious. So, my husband reminded me not to disturb the other guests and to be polite. That isn't easy for me…

Its also not going to be easy for me to get back into a routine of being at home and doing my normal chores, not being wined and dined daily while giggling with girlfriends. But, Sugawings is around and I have a feeling there will be plenty of girly gigglling time with her!