Linda's new chandelier!

Linda's 'before' light.

Yesterday, Duane and I met at Linda's house to help replace the builder's light in Linda's master closet with a beautiful chandelier she bought from Pottery Barn.  Linda's original light wasn't really a 'boob' light like my builder lights were.  Her's are just round lights that you often see on ceiling fans.

Unlike my ugly popcorn ceilings, Linda has a lovely handfinished ceiling that her new chandelier pools with light at the top.  Linda's master closet is about the same size as mine but it's shaped like a square to my rectangle.

The light she chose is called the Clarissa.  She ordered it from Pottery Barn and was really pleased with it when it came and she had it assembled.  Although to be truthful, much of it had to be reassembled again after the three of us finished installing it.  The crystals kept falling off and, luckily, hitting Linda's carpeted closet floor.  It was much easier for Linda to put the crystals back where they belonged on the chandelier after we had finished hanging it.  Here is a picture from the Pottery Barn website of the light Linda bought along with a dramatic photo she took after she had 'reassembled' all of the crystals.

From Pottery Barn site.

Here's the chandelier in all it's glory lit in Linda's closet.

Light in Linda's closet.

Quite dramatic!  You can't tell from the photo but the light shows off her nice ceiling texture, too.  I should also add that we basically turned the light into a semi-flush mount.  Even with an 8 foot ceiling, if we had used the chain, Linda might have been knocking her head on it since the light itself is about 15 inches high from top to bottom.  Without the chain, it brought the light to a nice height unless you're Paul Bunyan or someone else vertically blessed.

Linda has made other changes to her closet but she's still deciding if there's some way she can add art or if she wants to paint the pristine white walls.  Her master bedroom is a beautiful blue with white door and moldings so the closet color looks lovely.  I'll certainly post here if she decides to 'take the plunge' with any more upgrades.  The three of us were pretty sweaty and sore after hanging onto the light while standing on a step stool, a chair and a ladder in order to install it.  But, as you can see, it was worth it!  Also, Linda made homemade chocolate chip cookies so the three of us scarfed those as a reward for a job well done.

Tea Room Estate Sale

The estate sale that was advertised as a three estate sales in one turned out to be a large tea room that was going out of business.  I went to this one on my own since it was really out of the way for Duane and Linda but I did manage to pick up a little something for both of them.  This place was an Anglophile's dream.  Loads of beautiful English china, teas, and framed reproductions of famous scenes associated with the UK were abundant.  There was quite a bit of Limoges, too.  Everything was priced to sell from sterling and silver plate to the furniture -- large and small pieces.  Everything was very nicely laid out.  I immediately found something for myself.  I love enamel and there was a beautiful serving plate with a swirled enamel finish.  Sold!

I also picked up a tea tin for both Linda and Duane.  These were the empty tins left over from tea being served at the business.  This particular tin (I bought two of the same) was for a tea created in celebration of Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee.  I think the girls will like these.  Not quite as good as having a go at the merchandise but...



I also found several items that will be gifts for family and friends who read this blog so, sadly, I can't give a description or show pictures of them.  However, I was really glad I went to this sale.






I checked the address the night before and knew that it had been a tea room.   A family owned it and they were very nice.  I didn't ask them why they were closing.  Although there's nothing about this location (there's more than one) closing on their website.  The menu is also still up and it wasn't inexpensive to dine there.


Anyway, it got me out of bed bright and early and I love the enamel serving plate I bought!  Can't wait to use it.  I'll take the tea tins to Duane and Linda tomorrow.  We're getting together at Linda's house to change the 'boob' light in her walk-in master closet to a beautiful chandelier.  Can't wait to see it!

My buys.  (At least the ones that I can show here.)

Latest recording for sale on Audible

My recording of the classic short story Long Distance by Edna Ferber has now been released for sale on Audible.  The devastation that war wreaks on the human mind and body is a theme that resonates today just as it did when Ferber wrote this story of a World War I soldier.

You can find this recording for sale here.


I've also been busy editing my recording of the historical romance Franklin Loves Lucy by Mary Matthews.  It should go into post-production by next week.

AND if I can get my sorry rear out of bed very early tomorrow morning, I'm going to try to make it to a triple estate sale being held in one location.  Gotta pump myself up because it's an early one!

Recording news

Well, I'm finally back to recording.  I just finished a short story by Edna Ferber called Long Distance.  It should be for sale on Audible in a few weeks.  I plan to record more of Edna Ferber's short stories.  I've found that the themes of her stories are just as relevant today as when they were first published.




I've just begun prep work to begin narrating a historical romance called Franklin Loves Lucy by Mary Matthews.  This book tells the story of the love affair between Lucy Mercer and President Franklin D. Roosevelt.  Lucy was the social secretary for Eleanor Roosevelt.

I'll post here once this book is in post-production and also when it goes on sale on Audible.

An Amigurumi Pumpkin

The past couple of weeks have been kind of hectic.  I finished up hanging new blinds on all of the windows -- followed by some tedious work with a small brush with touch up paint in some spots.  The my mom had surgery for a torn rotator cuff.  It's her right shoulder and she's right-handed so this has not been fun.  The surgeon was able to repair it via arthroscopic surgery along with a tear on her bicep that he didn't realize she had.  She'd been in a lot of pain and had begun driving with her left hand, etc.  After three days in the hospital, she was sent home and has had an occupational therapist and nursing care in her home.  My sisters and I have taken turns staying with her.  We stayed overnight for the first full week she was home.  Now she's OK as far as having health care people and us going to her house to work with/check on her and see if she needs anything.  Recovery is a hard road for this type of surgery, especially for a diabetic in her 70's but considering the pain she had already been experiencing, she knows that this will get better. 

I also finished up a book for LibriVox and just began auditioning again for paying jobs late last week.  While I was at my mother's house, I began working on making something for Halloween for my three nieces.  They're now 4, 6 and almost 7 years old.  Last year I crocheted pieces of candy corn.  For this year I decided to make Amigurumi pumpkins.  The first pattern I started I ended up ripping out because it just wasn't working out.  So I switched to a simple pattern by Lion Brand called the Amigurumi Happy Pumpkin.  The pattern can be found here and it's free.  The first one whipped up pretty quickly.  I shouldn't have any problem making the other two.  I'll send these to the girls with the obligatory Halloween M&Ms.  Now I have to get back to working on items for The Humble Stitch Project.  I have a small pile of items finished for them that Linda and Duane and I had made but I started a scarf and another pair of fingerless gloves.  Between items for them and friends and family, my hands aren't idle for long.    Here's a pic of the pumpkin I finished.

My latest solo now in the LibriVox catalog

During the down time I've recently taken in order to get some DIY projects finished, I did get around to recording another solo audiobook for LibriVox.   The book is a mystery aimed at young adults and teens called The Secret Mark by Roy J. Snell.

Student Lucile Tucker works part-time at the library of the large university she attends in Chicago to help pay her tuition. One night, while closing the library for the evening, she glimpses a small child – a girl – in the stacks. Carefully following her, Lucile can’t believe her eyes when the child, unaware that she has been seen, manages to steal a valuable book from the collection and practically disappear from the library right before Lucile’s eyes. This is only the beginning of her search for why this child took this book (and others). Lucile enlists the assistance of her good friend and roommate Florence, a fellow student, to attempt to solve this mystery on her own. She can’t bear the thought of this sweet-faced child being turned over to the police despite her apparent thefts. Enter the world of these college women as they brave the city streets at night in unsavory sections of Chicago on their quest. Who is the elderly man in the crumbling cottage? What is the significance of the ‘mark’ inside the front covers of the books? Has someone been shadowing the women on their search…

This book, like all LibriVox audiobooks, is free and can be streamed or downloaded from here.