cottage – Page 15 – Karla's Cottage

Valentines on the Mantle

By Karla Nathan / February 10, 2019

After spending so much time on spiffing up the studio for A Lovebird's Song, I kind of called it in for the rest of the house.

I added vintage candy boxes to white flower pots that were already on the mantle and hung a bit of lace with some old Valentines clipped to it.

The lace had hearts on it, and the cards were the 3-D, folding kind.

Those are so pretty, simply hanging them up made it all look special.

I did a bit more for the guest bathroom, it got some rosy curtains that used to hang in the studio at one point, and some new towels.

Well, I guess that isn't a whole lot, is it? But it was a refreshing change to get me out of a mid-winter, post Christmas, decor slump. A small change can do big things for a room when you are cooped up inside on cold days.

Sprucing up in the Studio for my Galentines

bird song art event, cottage, holiday decor, housework, parties, studio tour, Valentine's Day

By Karla Nathan / February 3, 2019

While getting ready for A Lovebird's Song, I did a full on, happy new year, delve into the corners, serious cleaning.

I even washed and changed the curtains.

And rearranged some of the storage cabinets.

I went so far as to take everything off the tops of the furniture pieces, wipe it all down, and rearrange them too.

Originally, I was going to box up things to get them out of the way, and just set out some Valentine decorations.

But I got started on cleaning and just couldn't stop. I didn't even fill a single box of stuff to get things out of the way, I took care of each item by putting them away properly or getting rid of things I didn't want.

I even dusted branches on the ceiling. That is a rare occurrence.

(or should I say, a singular one?)

Afterwards, it felt so fresh and bright, I was pretty happy with myself.

The studio is basically just a workroom most of the year, and gets neglected when I am busy crafting.

I should invite people over more often, maybe I'd keep it tidier.

Because I sure am enjoying having it detailed!

Although, I have to admit, I was beyond exhausted when the party ended. I threw myself into prepping and cleaning for days ahead, then had an emergency with an icy driveway that had me spreading numerous, 40lb bags of salt on it, out there in the dark, cold, night before everyone arrived the next day.

And of course, I didn't have my trusty sidekicks, Terry and Guncle Randy to ease the labor load while I was teaching the projects.

And each year, I do get a teensy bit older…. That is a very hard one to admit. But I was feeling it!

Still, I adore doing these classes, even if I am a worn out, old lady when they end.

Food full of love, with a room full of hearts and roses

bird song art event, cottage, flowers, Food and Drink, Valentine's Day

By Karla Nathan / January 31, 2019

As always, I got a bit carried away with the theme for the party….

Hearts, EVERYWHERE!

The freshly baked rolls were baked in heart shaped muffin tins.

As were the cupcakes. But it wasn't all that clear unless you looked at the bottom of them.

Rainbow carrots were even cut into hearts.

(That might have been the moment when I realized it had gone over the top, it took longer than I thought it would, even with Kia helping. But it was kind of fun, even if it probably was not a good use of my time)

Of course, there were cookies cut out as hearts.

The Dove chocolates and Cadbury eggs aren't hearts, but they are "lovebird" themed.

The treat cabinet was strewn with hearts and roses from top to bottom.

Red isn't typically my color, but I do enjoy pops of it at Christmas and Valentines.

Especially when the red is rosey.

And while this calendar page on the Treat Cabinet door isn't purely Valentine's themed, it is from Jan.-Feb. and seemed to fit in perfectly.

Hearts made by Beth are hanging on the other door.

And LuWanda is dolled up in rhinestone birds on lace with a flocked wallpaper heart.

We had fruity iced tea in the Treat Cabinet, and in the kitchen, I set up a hot cocoa and hot tea station.

But to be honest, this is always here. We like to have the ingredients we need for tea or cocoa ready to roll. And the lace hearts? Those are year round too. I hung them up for Valentines Day a couple years ago and couldn't bring myself to take them down.

The chair covers were a very lucky find. I was at an estate sale for a closed catering business, and these brand new, never used, pink, pretties were only $1.50 each!

I almost didn't buy them, then came to my senses.

They were exactly what I needed, right?

Beth had just given me the pink napkins that match them, and the Guncles gifted me with the plates. Lots of sharing and love went into the table top.

Including flowers from our newest Peep, Amy.

Now that our day full of Peeps has passed, I think I need to throw a Valentine dinner party to enjoy all the decor some more.

I do love Holidays and all the pretty things that come with them.

A Garden of Memories for a Fairy

bird song art event, cottage, fairies, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / January 25, 2019

My friend, Beth, gives me cool stuff she finds at estate sales. A while back, I got this domed piece from her, and tucked it away, not sure what I’d be using it for. When my studio got a deep cleaning in preparation for A Lovebird’s Song, I came across it and promptly sat down to make something from it.

Because what is more inspiring than a chance to avoid cleaning?

Sorry, no before pics. (I was excited to get busy avoiding my chores and couldn’t wait to start)

I’m sure you can picture it, plain, blonde wood base, with scraggly bits of floral foam glued to it. I painted the base and glued an old, metal lid to the center. The lid is covered in wallpaper. Around that, I drizzled a ton of glue and pressed moss into it. I cut small millinery blooms to add to the foreground, and larger ones for the back. They are all standing on their wire stems, not glued flat against the moss.

“Garden of Memories” was clipped from sheet music. I make a habit of cutting out interesting phrases from old text to have on hand when I need just the perfect words. These words were ideal for this garden, because the photo I used was from a fun play date with a friend, Karen- a lovely memory!

A couple of vintage butterflies were added the same way as the flowers. I glued their wires into the moss, instead of sticking them right onto it. Then, I bent the wires to make it look like they were flitting about.

The faye child sits on a wooden spool, covered in blooms, with a teensy bluebird of happiness by her side. Her dress is netting cut from a vintage gown, her antennae are flower stamens, her wings are old text.

She has added a little bitty, bright spot of spring to this gloomy, winter day.

But now, I need to go clean after this refreshing break from work!

A pretend Christmas gift

cottage, flowers, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / January 8, 2019

My husband loves recliners. I hate them, but love him.

We found a compromise! I love these chairs- and they recline!!

They are from Pottery Barn (typically out of my budget, but these were worth it). They have velvet fabric in a neutral tone, and each are big enough to hold an adult watching a show with a grand fairy next to them.

Much bigger than what I'm used to in this cottage, but I think they will fit just fine when the trees are down, those take up some space. I ordered them a couple of months ago, but they arrived a couple of days before Christmas, so I pretended they were a gift.

Thank you, Santa!

Christmas is all tucked away now, safely resting until next year.

The new chairs have helped distract me from being sad about my house going from light, bright, shiny, and decked from top to bottom, back to non Christmas normalness. And I've added some greenery to the rooms to bring back brightness in a different way. There is nothing like a fresh house plant to make you feel better when winter is at its darkest.

PS- I am thrilled to announce that I will be teaching a class in Florida at Karen Hillman's Cozy Castle!!!!!!!!!

Details here

I'll be posting photos and more info soon. I hope to see you in sunny Florida for a day of friendship, creativity, and fun with my ruffly wings and romantically inspired autograph book projects.

Also, the ruffled crepe wings and the signature book workshops will be offered in my Cottage Studio on Jan. 26th. Email me if you want to come and play!

Karlanathan@sbcglobal.net

Fluttery wings and a book full of sweet nothings, two classes two ways- in Florida and Kansas

cottage, holiday decor, Valentine's Day, vintage paper/collage art, We're having a party, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / January 4, 2019

Are you up for some romantic crafting projects? I have two opportunities for you to join me in creating ruffled, lacey, crepe paper wings, adorned with vintage millinery along with a charming autograph book, inspired by a very old and uniquely shaped signature book. The book will be made from the ground up, you will learn how to construct the covers from chip board and paper.

One set of classes is being hosted by the lovely, Karen Hillman, in Deland, Florida. She will serve a luncheon to us in her impressive and gracious style and we will create both the angelic wings and distinctive booklet.

Info on how to sign up is here: Cozy Castle Events

Did I mention it was Reninger’s Antique Extravaganza weekend?!?!

While the flea market adventure isn’t exactly part of the workshop, I highly encourage you to attend it and shop to your heart’s content at one of the South’s top fleas. The classes are on Saturday, and the market is in full swing Friday thru Sunday, just down the road in the delightful town of Mount Dora.

I used to spend some time in the area back when I’d visit my Great Aunt Caroline (who lived til the day before her 102nd birthday!), so I became familiar with the joys of antiquing there, way back then. I fell head over hills for the hidden gem in the heart of Florida, and have filled my suitcase many times with precious goodies from shopping sprees while visiting.

The signature book and angel wings have a romantic feel to them, but are not necessarily Valentine decor. I hung some wings in the cottage for Christmas one year, and decided to leave them up for Valentines', then liked them so much, they stayed up year round. Who doesn’t need a sweet reminder of heavenly blessings nearby?

The book also, can be filled with sweet nothings and love notes, or used as a mini scrapbook, art journal, diary, or simply enjoy as a display piece and reminder of a day of creativity with other talented friends. Here is a page from my inspiration book (a gift from the Guncles that Karen and I both freaked out over and wanted to copy). I will be including a vintage calling card and other pretties for each kit.

Karen’s gathering will take place on February 16th, which makes it even more special to me. It is my mom’s birthday and she adored her Aunt Caroline. I’m excited to be spending her day in an area she loved.

I've been busy hand dying crepe paper and sewing it into yards and yards of ruffles for you.

No two kits will be exactly the same, since vintage materials will be used. I'm supplying roses for each set of wings, in your choice of color. Tiny vintage flowers will top the album also. Crepe paper is available in cream and white or pink.

The classes at my home will be on Saturday, January 26. You can choose to make the wings in the morning, the book in the afternoon, or stay the day and do both. Lunch is included.

Both cottage workshops are $55,

but if you sign up for the set,

you’ll save $5 on each

for a total of $100 for the day.

(I hope you will stay all day, I’m looking forward to spending it with you!)

We will have a Valentine themed luncheon and the Treat Cabinet will be stocked with chocolatey, yummy, sweetness. If you’d like to be part of this party, you can email me at karlanathan@sbcglobal.net for an invoice. And please let me know if you’d like white, pink, or red for your wings.

I could possibly do blue or lavender if you wish also. Ask for your fave and I'll see what I can find for you. My cottage does hold a couple of hats to choose from….

And if you like to go to the Florida and Kansas versions? First of all, I’d be thrilled! Second, I can make you two different colored kits.

Merry Christmas!

cottage, holiday decor

By Karla Nathan / December 25, 2018

I hope your day is a blessed one.

The Cottage Living Room at Christmastime

cottage, holiday decor

By Karla Nathan / December 22, 2018

My holiday foofiness was hung around the cottage early enough that I've had plenty of time to enjoy it this season. But with Christmas just around the corner, I'm already starting to be sad about seeing it packed away.

Maybe I will leave the lights and ice garland over the window? It can be a "winter decoration" instead of a Christmas one.

For now, I'll be savoring it all for the time left with the sparkle and glitz.

It certainly makes me happy to see.

Maybe what I need is something new to set out in January, something to look forward to?

Isn't it silly to be missing it before it is even put away? It could be that I'm already missing my Dewdrop, who will only be home for a short time to celebrate with us. And missing all of the fancy, cocoa parties, outings, and gatherings.

Honestly, I just LOVE the entire season soooooo much, that I hate to see any of it go! Next year, I really need to plan a Snowbird's Song art weekend again, so I can squeeze even more festiveness out of wintertime.

A Book Club Christmas party

Books, cottage, holiday decor, We're having a party

By Karla Nathan / December 16, 2018

I couldn't remember if it was my 4th or 5th annual holiday book club party, so I looked back at my blog (which is my journal, and the only way I ever know when I did what) and saw that I'd started hosting these in 2011!

Here are some past parties:

This year, I was inspired by a pot of glittered, blue poinsettias to tend toward being a little more colorful than the typical gold and white color scheme of past parties. Our white tree has multiple settings for color choices. On a daily basis, I set it on white and twinkling. But the minute Sugarwings walks in the door, she resets it to rainbow. I thought I'd use her favorite setting for this night too.

Aren't the flowers wonderful? I always buy a pot of poinsettias, and try to purchase the one with the most blooms, and normally choose ones with just white. This year, I saw a glittered, ocean blue plant, and had to go for it. Especially since it had over a dozen flowers on it. (or to be correct, I think you are supposed to say "brackets" for these plants, not flowers, right?)

I always cut the blooms off and put them in vases, instead of leaving the plant as is. They last quite a long time and I can spread them around the house, using them in many spots.

And lately, I"ve been finding crystal wine glasses on sale for pretty cheap and they have been multicolored too. So, heck why not go with it? It ended up being a change that I really enjoyed.

I even added some pink and blue shiny brites to the gold and silver ones on the chandelier for the night and like it so much, I've leaving them for the season. They look nice with Sugarwings' favorite light setting on the tree, too.

Since the party was for the book club, I added some vintage books to the tablescape.

Dinner was a rainbow spiral pie (that suited the colorful room, didn't it?), baked parmesan chicken, greenbeans with potatoes and mushrooms.

And two kinds of homemade bread.

I had such a lovely time with these bright and interesting ladies.

After dinner, we draw names for gift wrapped, used books that everyone brings to swap.

I ended the night, looking around the room, and enjoying how clean and festive the house looked. I adore the holiday decorations and seeing all of the lights, but our cottage isn't always as tidy as it should be.

While decking the halls, I do a deep cleaning and at first everything looks sparkly and spiffy. Since I do the decorating early, messes have a chance to encroach December passes and having a party midway through the month is a great excuse to get a fresh start and bring back that sparkling feeling. It isn't often that the whole place is all cleaned up and shiny at the same time. We have 5 dogs, heat with wood, and have a craftaholic kid who creates clouds of paper flying around her like she is Edward Scisssorhands.

As I said goodnight to my husband, I commented on how happy I was to have had such a pleasant evening and to have clean, pretty surroundings.

Then, I woke up about 1am to a dog crying hysterically to go out. And then to be let right back in. And again a couple of times that night. I drug myself out of bed each time, half awake, not realizing that she had such a tummy ache that she'd made a mess, and paced around, walking through it.

Not so clean anymore….. I didn't even get a full 24 hours of spotlessness.

Mopping and sanitizing after a sick dog isn't nearly as much fun as cleaning and spiffing to get ready for a party.

Honey Harvest

cottage, family, flowers, Food and Drink

By Karla Nathan / October 2, 2018

Last year, we hit the honey jackpot.

This year?

Not so much.

I'd prepared for another huge harvest, and bought not only our normal sized jars, but also these mini bears to give as gifts.

We only filled one of these, (to save for Dewdrop) and very few larger ones for the family this year.

The set up isn't any easier to get an abysmal number of bottles than it is to have a bountiful harvest. It took a day to get it all ready then cleaned up for this slow trickle. And this year, there were 3 hives instead of just one.

I guess the drought over the summer was hard on these poor little gals.