The Little Menagerie

Days are busy when you have a little menagerie. Not only do you have the indoor crew, but others are waiting at the door.

New ones in baskets.

Medium ones on a leash.

Getting into things.

They do have intelligent creatures...very well read.

Better have some resource material.

Look who's outside!

No room inside, but there is food for them on the porch.

The idea for this came from my son, Will. We were starting to collect lots of little animals and they were just too cute not to use in a scene. Will gave me the Playmobil mother bunny and the basket the rat is in for my birthday....that made the scene imperative. Also, it is he that put the bunny by the front door...also the Playmobil unicorn.

Pre-teens and Horses

I decided to use an item I had not used before in a scene. It's the desk. Also, two of my work colleagues have a daughter who is into horses and my sister-in-law is an accomplished horsewoman. So here's to them.

Granma sent the letter writing poster...blatant hint.

I guess dogs are cool, too.

And koalas.

Mmmm...comfy bed.

I had not used the desk as it is probably not my favorite, but it's fun to use something you don't particularly like to see what you can make of it. 

Don't Want To..Can't Leave

Lovely Living Room...NO way out.

Where's the door knob?

And here's how the whole house is looking. Some mess noted in attic..proper.  Mess in kitchen and bathroom not so much.

Cozy

The Seasons...Summer

Ah, summer! I do love summer. Summer in Greece would be even better. So here is a wonderful room with a glorious view of the Aegean.

Ok, I have used samples from the Shade Store for each of the seasons. I loved this particular one as the design is so cool and it's big. Also got some wonderful sample fabrics from The Scrap Box, the local re-use store that has industrial and other discards. I'll be using them before long.

Drinkin' Alone

I like to drink...beer, wine, mixed drinks (even coffee and tea)....but I rarely drink alone and not that much when I do. Well, last night my husband went to bed earlier than me...very unusual...and I was not tired as we had a good long nap. So I stayed up 'til 4AM watching an English TV show I remembered from the 70's, Poldark. My husband was not interested in it, so I watched a LOT of episodes and drank a LOT of wine. Makes me wonder what I would do if I were single. Anyway this post is an ode to drinking by yourself. And, I just finished painting the wineglass silver (with a recommendation for using Tamiya paint..from The Shopping Sherpa)..so there ya go.

Also the floor coverings are samples from the shadestore.com I picked up for a song...got that senior discount...at the PTO Thrift Shop. There is even one Chilewich sample...I have been coveting those placemats of hers for mini floorcoverings for awhile now, but cannot afford them. The Chilewich is the one on the far left.

Maison Edwards Roombox

We went to see our friend, Chuck, at his smoke shop, Maison Edwards.  It is an Ann Arbor institution in Nickels Arcade, one of my favorite places in the city.  There are always regulars at Chuck's sharing philosophies and jokes under his welcoming proprietorship. His colleague gave me this cigar box and I had to make a scene in it in Chuck's honor.

Roombox is a Nicaraguan cigar box. Chair is Reac. Table is spool and wood block.  Ashtray is shell, cigarette is rolled paper dipped in coffee for the burnt end. Matches are re-ment. Ashtray is a shell. Coffee cup is from Oese. Buddha is from a local Tibetan shop. Lamp is AG Minis. I made the pillow.

I Enjoy Being A Girl

Sometimes being 13 is not all that great. But, with a retreat like this one in your favorite colors with cool furniture and your friends (alive and pretend) to keep you company, things could be worse.

Credits: Furniture is Plan Toys bunk bed painted white; Modella chest (one of my new favorites) and bubble chair (clever Monika uses a craft ball for these...they are usually very expensive!) from my friend, Monika; AG Minis desk, chair, and side table; CB2 ornament chair. Bedding and pillows are made by me. Accessories are Barbie; teenager and backpack from my work friend, Maria; erasers; cute characters, plant, and shoe from my friend Neomi; AG Minis; books and drink container from my friend, Oese; bulletin board from Michaels; re-ment; spray bottle lid, and Disney. Garfield is from my son's old toys...Garfield was one of his favorite comics/cartoons when he was little.

Funny, this is a scene that took me longer than any other I have ever done. I had to find all those pics to put up on the bulletin board. I remember what being 13 is like...though it was a loooonnng time ago. I had to make the silly pushpins by cutting pins and gluing on a bead...beastly, messy job. Tried to make the comforters look both downy and still hang right...lots of try and fail. I would have loved a room like this, especially the cool chairs.

After A Nice Night Out

You come back home after a nice night out and what do you find?  Your babysitter has let the kids run wild.

"Who me," he says innocently?

Mom throws her purse down and starts to clean it up.  

What's dad doing? "Hey, look, I can balance the ball on one hand!"  

I just had to use the little Fisher Price popper I found today at the Kiwanis Thrift Store; it was on a keychain. My husband said he used to hate this toy...noise, you see. Room is the Ikea Lekman box. Couches and coffee table are Kaleidoscope House by Bozart. Vintage German credenza is from my childhood. Rug is my husband's mousepad. Accessories are AG Minis, Barbie, craft store flowers, some of my son's old toys, small Buddha from my collection, erasers, part of a consignment store tea set, and re-ment. Wall art is upholstery scrap from The Scrap Box.

Action figures are Rose Tyler and Doctor Who (yep, who me?) from "Doctor Who." Dad is Nick Cutter from "Primeval." You can tell I like BBC shows.

Going Into the Anomaly ala "Primeval"

Nick Cutter and Stephen Hart get ready to go back in time through an anomaly. They figure it would be a good idea to take along strongman, Colossus. They gather their gear and food and plan their foray into the unknown.

Colossus checks the weapon box. Professor Cutter does some research.

The little creature watching is one they brought back from the past without realizing it and now is a beloved pet.

Stephen shows Nick things he brought back from other trips back in time.

Note the figure of his favorite movie character, Indiana Jones.

Nick checks out the artifacts.

Professor Nick takes a pic of Colossus with his favorite weapon, a shovel. Colossus got the idea from The Shoveler in the movie, "Mystery Men."

So, what do the men take along for food? Stephen asks Nick if they should take his favorite, sardines.

They end up with the sardines and lots of cheese. The beer is just for the planning meeting.

All packed up.

Stephen checks the anomaly detector one last time to make sure they know when it will be opening up.

I owe this post to three things/people. 1. One of my favorite British TV shows, "Primeval." 2. My son. It is his toys I found when cleaning out the shed that inspired this. 3. My darling husband, who suggested I use his shop light and even got it for me from the garage. Thanks, my boyfriend of 25 years!
Nick and Stephen are action figures from "Primeval." Colossus is one of the X-Men. Furniture: black shelf is a dollar store find I spray painted black; chair is reac; cabinet is re-ment; I made the bed cover hardly visible at right; table is Plan Toys. Floor covering is a banana leaf. Mirror is from Treasure Mart, a local consignment store.
Things from my son, Will:  Playmobil chest; backpacks, one of which I know is GI Joe; GI Joe shovel; various weapons; Indiana Jones figure; Colossus figure; ice pick; and the thing with the antenna that I am calling an anomaly detector.
Artifacts on the shelf are nature items Will or I have collected. The lantern is from my siblings' childhood. Moss pots are bottle tops; moss is from dollar store. Food is re-ment; the reason they are taking a lot of cheese is because I don't have much more food.  Spiral notebook is AG Minis. Buddha figure is from a local shop specializing in Tibetan items. Little creature is a turquoise bead. Camera is Barbie.