The Studio/Office Makeover continues...

 This is the biggest change to happen... 

... since this room became my studio/office.

Our plan had always been to eventually move the bookcases that we've had in the hallway of our small split entry for the past several years (where they blocked an air intake vent) into the office.

Well, "eventually" came sooner than we'd expected. This is now the view from my desk. It's beautiful, and I love it...

... but how I wish this sweet girl was still my view. Every time Tiger would go up and down the 'stairs' to get into her bed, she'd pause and look out the window.

It's two days shy of a month since we lost our Tiger girl. She was my office-mate and my muse. She loved watching me at my desk from her bed, the same one she'd slept on for 22 years.

It was her spot from the time she joined our family as a tiny little kitten until the day she left us.

It took several weeks before I was ready to disassemble the bed and move the bookcases in, but I finally felt it was time to do so.

Some of you might remember that we used to have a baby gate on the office door. (You can even see where the bookcases used to be, down the hallway.)  The gate kept Mr. J from having access to the office. When Tiger just didn't have the strength to go up and down the stairs to the basement where the litter box was kept, we put one in here for her. Well, apparently what is deposited in litter boxes is a big treat to all dogs (yuck!), including Mr. J, so we definitely needed to keep him out!

So the gate has now been removed...

... and Mr. J is having a grand old time visiting me in the studio/office whenever he wants.

This is the view looking toward the window.

I hope to get rid of the clutter on the floor and in its place put either a small reading chair or the mannequin from the bedroom.

Right now I have my paints stored under my desk. I'd like to find a better storage solution for them as well, but for now this will do. 

Some of the books on the shelves are mine, but most are (or will be) for sale in our Etsy shop. 

Some shelves have family photos.

And, of course, sweet Tiger's comb and urn are also on the bookcase shelves.

And then, some things never change. Baby is Baby. She looked deep in thought when I snapped her photo today.

She had been staring at the window and eventually went over and stretched out on the window sill. Today was GORGEOUS here in New England - low humidity and a lovely breeze. All the windows were open and Baby really enjoyed it. We were all sick of having the AC running constantly, and there is nothing more enchanting than billowing curtains!

And always the clown, she loves to make me laugh!

Wishing you all a beautiful weekend! The next time I post it will most likely be September!! Hard to believe!

Donna

Our sweet Tiger ... one heck of a cat...

Amanda came home last weekend ...

... and I took photos of she and Tiger napping on the sofa together...

... as well as a closeup of the mani Tiger got at the Vet's earlier in the week.

Little did I know when I took these photos, that they would be the last pictures I would ever take of our Tiger.

We lost our sweet little girl this past Wednesday.

(Photo taken Apr. 4, 2015)

She would have been 22 years old this month (August).

Amanda and Tiger go way back. In September of 1993 when we were looking to adopt a kitten, we somehow came home with two, a brother and a sister from the same litter. Amanda chose Tiger while Courtney chose her brother Spotty.

From that very first night until many years later when Amanda left for college, Tiger slept with Amanda on her bed... every single night.

In Tiger's younger days, she was quite a wild child, even managing to get up onto - and walk across - the beams in the family room.

When Amanda made her home in the city after graduating from college, she thought Tiger would be happiest in the house she had always known. Amanda's old bedroom became my studio/office... 

... and Tiger became my roommate. Amanda and Tiger's bed stayed in place as that was Tiger's comfort zone and the place she continued to sleep every night. This was the view I had from my painting desk. Little Tiger. I could not have asked for a more perfect view.

In recent years, Tiger preferred to spend most of her time in the bedroom/studio/office...

... with just occasional jaunts down the hallway to see what snacks were being served in the kitchen. She and Mr. J had a lot in common, nothing more so than their love of treats.

When we first became roommates, I jokingly referred to Tiger as my muse. Sometimes she'd sit under my desk, just looking up at me while I painted. One time I put her on my lap and she kept studying the 'work in progress.' She'd then turn and look up at me. That went on for quite a bit. I found her 'advice' very helpful while I worked on that piece, all the more fitting now considering the quotation I used.

I will miss you my sweet roomie. We all will. The room seems so empty without you.

(Tiger in her new bed, Apr. 2, 2015)

This was a bed on top of Tiger's big bed. She was able to get into it and stay warm.

We were so blessed to have had you in our lives for so many years.
Love you, Tiger.

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Mary, you don't have a blog so I wasn't able t visit you, but thank you for your sweet comment. We're also in New England. And to answer your question, when Tiger was young she was an amazing climber/jumper. She would jump from the back of our sofa to the top of a hutch. From the hutch she would jump onto the top of one of the built-in closets in the Family Room that had a flat top rather than extending all the way up to the cathedral ceiling. From the top of the closet she'd jump up to one of the two beams that run across the entire span of the family room. She was an incredible kitty. And I know what you mean. My whole life I've said, "never again" when we lose one of our fur babies because the pain is just too intense. But, like you, we then think of how many more fur babies are out there who desperately need a loving home... 

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Laura, thank you so much for your kind comment. I wasn't able to figure out how to visit you (or even if you had a blog) as I've never updated my Google. I believe some day we will be together again, too!!! Thank you.

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Jeannine, thank you so much for visiting and commenting on our sweet Tiger. I love how you described her, "a fine lady." That she was. Thank you.

She's of legal age...

That's what Tiger's vet says. I love it.

Yes, our sweet girl officially turned 21 years old this month!

We adopted both Tiger and her brother, Spotty, in late September of 1993.

Amanda picked Tiger and Court picked Spotty.

They were so tiny they both fit into a Trick or Treat bucket!

The cutest little kittens ever!

By December they had outgrown the pumpkin bucket and moved into the spacious Barbie horse barn!

When Tiger was a young cat, she enjoyed leaping atop several pieces of furniture to reach the beams in our family room. She loved to hang out there and watch the comings and goings below!

Of course all that activity can make a girl tired, so she'd curl up on a pillow in the LR bow window and take a cat nap.

She is such a gentle, sweet cat.

For the past several years, Tiger has chosen to spend most of her time in Amanda's old bedroom (which is now my studio office).

So Tiger and I are now roommates. 

And she still sleeps on the same twin bed...

... that she slept on that very first night, 21 years ago.

And Tiger's very special person often comes home from the city to visit, and once again, they both sleep in that very same bed!

So Happy 21st Birthday, our sweet little Tiger!!!!!! We love you so very much!

Donna

The studio window is a hit with the plants and kitties...

The large window in my new studio office is proving to be a hit 

with both the plants and the kitties!

(watercolor filter)

I picked up this cute "Blue Chalk Sticks" succulent the other day.
It was the perfect fit for this little blue green pot I've had for quite some time now.

The Infant of Prague might not stay here permanently as Baby tends to like this spot. And even though the statue is vintage and already quite chippy, I don't want Baby adding any more distressing to it!

This is a perfect window for Baby to sit in as she watches the buds burst forth as spring arrives! As you can see, I keep rearranging things in here to make sure
everything is Baby-proof!

I purchased this jade plant last fall when Amanda and I took a trip to Woodstock, New York. While there, we stopped at a yard sale and the woman was selling TONS of plants she'd started herself. She clearly had a green thumb as everything was gorgeous. I'm happy to report that I've not only not killed it, but it is thriving. I do need to find a nice pot for it, but it's an odd size so I haven't found one yet.

Until I do, it sits in the original black plastic pot in a tinfoil dish.

Tiger also enjoys looking out the window. On her trips back from the litter box 

(located on the floor in the corner of the room)...

...  she always pauses on the top step to survey the goings on outside of her little world.

If something of interest is occurring outside (dogs being walked or cars going by), her attention stays focused on that even when she has returned to her bed.

As Baby was looking out the window today, she got spooked. 

Baby does not like it when the UPS truck or the garbage truck...

....  or the street sweeper comes down 'her' street. Here in New England, after tons of sand has been dumped due to the many winter storms, the street sweeper is a sure sign that spring has arrived.

Of course as soon as the street sweeper was gone, she was back up on the desk checking out the smallest details of 'our' new studio office!

Click here to see previous posts about the progress of my new studio office.

I'm joining Debra at Common Ground for Be Inspired, and
Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show & Tell Friday this week.

Donna