Sweet Serenity ... my growing collection

My collection of Madonna statues began with a wall hanging of Mary that belonged to my mother.

(click any photos to enlarge)

It hangs in my studio office along with this beautiful cross swag that I purchased from the lovely Lori at Katie's Rose Cottage a few years ago.


Over the years my Madonna collection has grown to include planters and statues found at second-hand stores. The one thing they all have in common is the sweet facial expressions... a sense of calm, of knowledge, of wisdom. I love how each artist or sculptor uses their own distinctive style to capture that sweet serenity...


My most recent thrift store find...



There are chips on baby Jesus' hand and on Mary's nose... Neither detract from the beauty of this statue.

Amanda saw this planter in a consignment store last year and bought it for me, knowing I would cherish it. I do.

The gold is worn along the edges of her veil in one area... I wonder if someone rubbed a finger along it while saying a daily prayer.

Chips on the halo add to the character and charm of this statue, found in a New Hampshire second hand store a couple of years ago.

One of my all-time favorite movies is "Under the Tuscan Sun," starring Diane Lane as Frances Mayes. At one point, after moving to Italy, Frances talks about her relationship with Mary. I love that piece of dialogue:

"Signor Martini wants me to have faith. Something I've never been good at, and now I'm even worse at. Not that I don't want faith. I'm jealous of the believers. But as a fallen-away Methodist, I do not expect to emerge from all of this a Catholic, although I admit some interior juggling is going on. To my surprise, I have become friendly with Mary. It started the night she stood by me through the storm, knowing full well I'm not a Catholic. Yet, somehow, she seems more like Mary, my favorite aunt, than Santa Maria. Aunt Mary is everywhere here, her calm presence assuring us that all things will go on as they have before."

Mmmm... a calm presence... That's how I feel about my little collection of "Mary's, Aunt Mary's, Santa Maria's, Madonna's" ... they are, indeed, a calm presence.

Happy Monday, everyone! And thank you ALL for the wonderful birthday wishes for Courtney!!!

Donna

The birthday girl...

Is it possible my baby turned 21 today??

It must be so because that's what the candles say!

Wasn't it just yesterday that she looked like the cake topper photos??

...and wore fancy red sunglasses at her birthday party?

Tonight we made a special trip into Boston to visit both girls and to celebrate Court's 21st birthday! Here are the girls at the lovely little Italian restaurant we dined at.

When we got back to Court's apartment after dinner, her roommates presented her with a bright pink birthday crown and had decorated the apartment, including Court's bed, with streamers!

And then it was time for the carrot cake (Courtney's favorite!)....

... which thankfully survived the car trip into Boston despite numerous potholes and flood detours! We were treated to an incredible day - sunny and in the mid 60's - heaven after all the gray, rainy days we've had lately!!!! Happy birthday, honey!!!

Love Mumsy

Cottage bluebirds...

"About the time we first hear the Robin's ringing welcome to spring we may listen for the Bluebird's more gentle greeting. No bird's song is more associated with the return of Spring than the Bluebird's."

(Frank M. Chapman, Birdlife, 1897)

I've never actually seen a bluebird in our neck of the woods. Do they visit tiny suburban lots smack dab in the middle of neighborhoods? If they do, we've never been graced with their presence.

I have a variety of bird statues throughout the house but, to me, the queen of the cottage is the bluebird.

I love this old gravy boat. Yes, the gold is chipped with age... even worn off completely in some areas...

And yes, there is a significant chip at the end of the gravy boat...

All the more reason to love it...

Bluebirds = the promise of spring. What a lovely thought after such a long winter!

Right now we're being soaked with torrential downpours over the past several days, a "Nor'easter" of rain and high winds... But the robins are everywhere, loving the warmer weather and all the worms that the rain brings to the surface!

Happy spring!

Donna

milk glass, tulips, and a tiger cat

Life has a way of sometimes throwing us curve balls... or at the very least, keeping us on our toes. I'm sorry I've been so bad about blogging lately. Nothing catastrophic has been happening, but lots of little things have just required so much of my time lately that my blogging, I'm afraid, has been put on the back burner so to speak. I'm sure many of you can relate... There are only so many hours in a day, right?


In one of my last posts (which was weeks ago), I mentioned that I had decided on a different vase for my supermarket tulips... Oh, spring, can you come quick enough for me? I don't think so...


We get teased by temperatures that climb into the 50's only to be hammered the following day by late season snowstorms and dropping temps. But we're now in March. There is light at the end of the tunnel, both weatherwise and in many other ways, hopefully.


Tulips and milk glass.. Is there anything more spring-like? A perfect combination in my eyes, and oh-so-cottagey (is that even a word?)...

And while I was arranging tulips in the vase, sweet Tiger, who spends 95% of her time sleeping on Amanda's bed, climbed out from beneath the covers to pay a visit to the family room.

She tells me she has a bad case of spring fever and is very anxious for the days of open windows and warm, billowy breezes. We actually spotted the first chipmunk in our yard today - a sure sign that spring is just around the corner!

Wishing you all a wonderful transition from winter into spring...

Donna

the promise of spring...

Everything is relative... If this were the middle of August, a day with temps hovering in the mid-50's would send me scurrying around the house closing windows...


But since it's the middle of February, where the temps for the past 3-4 months have been in the 30's, 20's, or lower, a 50+ degree day sent me scurrying around the house to open windows!


Come on, Spring!!!! I'm ready when you are!

Donna

The storm that wasn't...

This was the scene at our little cottage yesterday... I'd made a quick run to the supermarket to pick up a few last minute items in anticipation of the major snowstorm due to start around noon. Schools had even cancelled classes the night before due to the dire predictions of driving conditions and anticipated downfall. I thought some fresh flowers would make the storm more bearable...


So I arranged these pretty pink tulips in a vase and set them on a table next to the family room window, just as the first little flakes starting to fall from the sky...


And while looking out the window, I noticed something else... Someone was admiring my tulip arrangement through the window... Here, let me get closer to the window and I'll show you.

Do you see him up there? He was clearly giving me a nod of approval....

I think he liked the bright pop of color from the tulips because everything outside had turned to shades of gray and white as the snow started.

Yup, he was definitely admiring the flowers through the window.

This is not the same hawk that has been visiting my yard lately. Although he looks large in these photos, he's quite a bit smaller than the large hawk that hangs around. As a matter of fact, I'm not sure he's even a hawk. I've heard what sounds like a falcon outside from time to time. Maybe someone with more expertise in identifying predatory birds will have a better idea? He finally got hungry and flew off in search of food, no doubt...

...which left the coast clear for Sammy to come out of hiding. He happily chowed down on peanuts I'd tossed out earlier in the day. Just be careful, Sammy. Mr. Hawk/Falcon was on the branch right above the old swingset you're sitting on!

Oh - and the storm? It fizzled out. Less than an inch where we live, and it didn't even stick to the roads.... A mere dusting.

Children: ecstatic at the no school or early release day...

Parents: not so much...
Weathermen/women: mea culpas

So today is sunny... I changed the tulip vase and had another visitor... I'll share that in my next post.


Donna

My brown thumb.... or why I love faux...

Brown Thumb: (noun)

Definition: Lack of skills at growing plants; something possessed by a poor gardener.

Used in a sentence: I have a terrible brown thumb. I could probably kill silk flowers.

Brown thumb images: see An Enchanted Cottage's 1/29/2010 blog post

We won't even get into the layer of dust on the ceramic bird or the dead leaves all over the battenburg table runner. Wait a minute... do I still see hints of green in there? Let's see if I can bring these babies back to life (running to get the watering can).

While taking photos of the "brown thumb" gang, the bluejays kept a vigil on the deck, waiting for peanuts (it is bitter, bitter cold in Massachusetts today)... So I tossed out several handfuls of peanuts to the birds and squirrels and then stepped back and took this photo of the first bluejay that swooped down to grab a treat as reflected in the family room mirror. (Ignore the wayward peanut that rolled under the carpenter's bench.) I didn't even notice it until I up?/down?loaded the photos onto my computer. It has now been tossed out on the deck as well...

I hope you're all staying warm (at least in our area where we're experiencing the coldest weather of the winter season)...

Donna

snowbirds...

In addition to the beauty of a winter's snow (as you can see, I'm really trying to focus on all the positives of winter since it will be camped in my back yard for at least another month!)...


...we're treated to the sweet little juncos that arrive along with old man winter.


This is the view outside my dining room window. The ivy covered chimney and old picket gate, the arbor and fence were all coated with a heavy white snow after our last storm.

The juncos love to perch on top of the gate pickets between trips to the screen feeder which is located right outside the dining room window.

Another reason to embrace winter ... juncos.

Donna

a game of cat and mouse...

...or in this case...

... hawk and squirrel. I've seen this big guy in our yard several times over the past few weeks, often because I hear the ruckus being raised by the crows. But this time, it was the frenzied scattering of birds from the window screen feeder that caused me to look out.

My worst fears... One of our Sammies, who are like our outdoor pets, was being swooped down on by the hawk. Luckily, Sammy was able to get away...

He hid out on top of the tree house...

...while Mr. Hawk hung out on the lower rung of the tree house after Sammy's great escape.

They stayed that way for quite some time before Sammy finally ventured into the trees. Mr. Hawk stayed on the treehouse a bit longer before spending some time on a fence post and then flying off...

This was the view out my window yesterday... the second snowfall in as many days.

I'm trying to live in the moment and enjoy the beauty of this latest winter storm... and I really do appreciate the cloak of white that covers every shrub and tree in our yard. It's breathtakingly beautiful. But that doesn't mean I can't be counting the days until little buds are bursting forth from those same shrubs and trees.... right?


Donna

with heart in hand...

I promise this is the end of the handmade Christmas gifts! I'm sure you've all seen the jewelry hands for sale in a variety of stores... I decided to buy one for each of my girls, but in keeping with our handmade Christmas, I gave the hands a makeover and personalized them.


And since "hearts" figured prominently in the makeover, I thought I'd share them with you in case any of you are looking for Valentine gift ideas!


The hand on the left was stark white with silkscreened green vines and pink roses... The hand on the right was matte black with an ornate gold cuff. The first thing I did was apply sealer to both pieces and paint the hands creamy white. I then 'tattooed' a little black heart on each palm.


Left: With the help of a little craft paint, the gold ornate cuff was transformed into a blue-green/turquoise-ish cuff (Amanda loves all shades of blue). Right: I glued inexpensive pearl beading (a junktique store find) around the wrist of the other hand to dress it up a bit (Courtney likes pearls). Amanda's hand got a coat of clear pearlescent paint on the nails because she rarely wears nail polish; Courtney, on the other hand, is always applying nail polish so the nails on her hand got a coat of pretty rose pink paint!

The final touch was this quotation that I painted on the bottom of each hand, which fit right in with the "hearts" and "hands" theme.

"A mother holds her children's hands for a while, their hearts forever."

And there you go - that's the end of the Christmas gift posts... Promise!

Good luck to all of you who are going to be making photo canvases! I hope you have lots of fun! Let me know how they turn out! .................. Donna