Order Status/House Progress

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Worked really hard all last week and a bit before to get orders 100% back on track...and yes, finally they are shipping in pre-november'06 shipping times (5 to 10 days for most orders). International orders will all need to be processed through me personally from now on, and are no longer available through checkout--not really that big a deal and safer for International customers in the long run.

So, this weekend I worked on the house. Sometimes it feels like we won't get done here for another year, but this weekend the task is beginning to feel less daunting.

Progress thus far in the Living Room:

The mantel, which has already changed a million times, is done done done:



I will have to post a better picture of the full fireplace/mantel once I get the fire screen I am making done.

The Modiano print I have had for about 10 years and I re-found it all rolled up in a tube during the move. The mirror is just as old, and was raw wood--painted it black last week. The bird in glass case I made over the weekend..and have several more ready ideas along these lines.
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The glass bird:



This was so easy and inexpensive to make. I have a little obsession with old taxidermy, and antique glass encased birds are a favorite of this little obsession. In lieu of dead birds and dropping $500, I constructed this little glass bird for under $12 and in about 20 minutes.
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Finally put some shelves up (still looking for the perfect bookcase though).

Found a bunch of neat older things for these in the move as well...zinc letters, Blue Delft Rynbende house liquor bottles my father used to bring back from Holland (and I apparently loved these as a child b/c they looked like tiny dollhouses), and new Finnish wood bunnies and german animal nodders.




...my huge black swan planter I found a few weeks ago at a trash or treasure place for $10! and 3 framed pictures I adore: a 1930s girl and fawn silhouette, framed deco gazelles in black silver and gold, a photo of my brother and aunt from the 1960s:




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View from kitchen window *note how wooded and long this back yard is:




It ends at a lake:



And yes, its pretty and I love it...but it is very dark out there at night--so dark, you can't see a thing past your own hand...and we have french doors in the living room which lead out to the back yard. While I would love to keep them as is, with nothing covering the window panes, it just isn't possible with this yard...at night.

So, I looked and looked and didn't like much of what was available--and decided to make something myself. For $19 total and about 1 hour of my time, I made these coverings from $8.00 worth of vintage fabric I found on Ebay (and I have enough leftover to make 1 to 2 pillows for my sofa, once I eventually get one):




(no, the baseboards aren't bright blue-its just painter's tape..still haven't finished that just yet..)