Merry Christmas to all! And it is most DEFINITELY winter, now...

The shed wore a festive wreath for its photo op!

...and here's hoping you all have a wonderful Christmas season, with friends, family, warmth and comfort; solace for those that need it, as well.  God's blessings on you, today and always, and best wishes from us to you.  May 2014 bring all the love and creativity you could wish for!

Joseph makes sure the little cousins are fed...

I get some sketching in...

 

You can tell this is a faux woodstove.  (Too bad I didn't leave it on overnight!)

And brrrr!  -8 when I got up this morning; just about zero, now.  Went out to the shed to bump up the heat with this little beauty this Christmas Eve morning, and it was 32 degrees in there WITH the tower heater set at 60+!  Cats' water is frozen on the floor; Belle went out, briefly, and right back in, crying and complaining LOUDLY.    So, time for more dependable heat, I think.

Thinking baseboard heat...the shed needs a Christmas present, too!

It's Winter!

First snow, the other day...and 10 degrees!

...and my old heater just wasn't cutting it any more...it was 38 degrees in there that morning, so we are REALLY glad we bit the bullet and decided to go for the new faux woodstove, on sale at Plow and Hearth!

You may remember I'd been wishing for a stove like that for three years now (check out this post)...but why make any sudden moves, right?

The Shed in Context

People sometimes wonder where the shed IS; it looks like it's out in the woods, and feels like it too, sometimes...if you look in the right direction.  Here, the outlines of the old raised beds that get too much shade to be gardens now, the white martin house just visible at the top of this shot, and the shed, in autumn gold.

The old yellow Victorian to the left is where we live...the shed's only a few steps from the back door...and food, and running water, and all the comforts of home.  Unlike our original cabin, I can get there in all seasons, and do.

The blue house at right is our neighbor...the shed's on a vacant lot I bought when the house there burned down.  It was my garden for years, till the trees grew up too much.  Now it's a lovely jungle and a buffer from the street.

So my "tiny house in landscape" is a tiny house in an URBAN landscape!  Glad Joseph got these shots today...

Autumn at the Shed

It's a golden year, with the roof and deck a tapestry of yellows and golds, citron and ochre and cadmium...

This was a few days ago, when it was more lemon than cadmium!

The deck is covered with maple leaves...

A gentle rain has invited us to spend the days indoors, reading, venturing out on occasion for photos...

Even the alley looks beautiful!

We've been winterizing, simplifying, doing maintenance and generally hunkering down.  I still want to figure out a passive solar panel for the south-facing wall, and perhaps, this year, baseboard heat?  Still making do with the little portable heaters, and the larger one has gone on strike; it will only stay on 11 seconds at a time, then off for 19, then on...

Not so great...fungus among us!

This is not really want you want to see INSIDE your living space...

Sort of looks like the Starship Enterprise, doesn't it...and it colonized the inside of my shed with millions of little white spores...

See, I'm not making this up.

SO.  What to DO??  I need to make sure the door jamb is good and dry (good luck with THAT, it catches every splash from the roof when it rains) or kill off the spores, but I don't like poisons.

Any suggestions?

We get around...again!

It's always odd to me when I find my life Out There on the 'net.  This morning I was poking around the various "tiny house" links and saw one called Tiny Creative Cabin.  Hmmm, says I, right up my alley!

And so it was--literally! I originally provided these photos for something or other, can't remember what, now, but it wasn't Tiny House Swoon. 

But you know, sharing and inspiration WAS the point, so it's no big deal!  This is my original cabin, built in the 80s and in sore need of repair... http://tinyhouseswoon.com/tiny-creative-cabin/

Some things move slower than others...

So.  Sometime in the fall of 2010, I wrote in this blot that I was thinking about--yea, even PLANNING to-- making the trim a soft gray blue instead of the white that was in such sharp contrast with the wood siding.

With my frequently lightning-like speed when it comes to things like this, I thought about it.  And thought about it.  And TALKED about it.  And meant to get AT it.  When our friend Don Dickerson was here painting the trim next door, I thought okay, this is IT.  Finally bought the paint.

Then Don got a different job in CT, so there he is, and there I was, and it was a perfect, glorious fall day and I felt pretty decent.  J's working next door, and here I was...

THE TIME IS NOW!

Simple little window first...yep, yep, I like it...

So then I got more stuff together and started the door...J. did the very top rail for me when he stopped over for a conjugal visit... but you can see the little green stool I used for a stepladder for the rest of the taller stuff.  I am SO short...

Oh yeah.  I like it.  A LOT.  It could have been a shade darker, but you know what?  Talk to me again in another three years!

Nice, yes?  Not such a contrast.  Softer...

And yeah, I wore out before getting to the multi-paned back window.  Manana.  Or next week.  Or when Don gets back...but NOT three years from now!

A wonderful little fairytale house, and a wonderful tale to go with it...

This beautiful little cottage featured on the Tiny House Blog last year was created for a little boy with leukemia who only dreamed of a fairytale house; it was larger and more expensive than the Make a Wish foundation could manage, so his parents refinanced, hired friends to help build, and made it happen, anyway.

It's built as "clean" as possible, to avoid environmental problems with his cancer (mold and mildew are particular problems with leukemia); she even chose a copper sink for anti-microbial reasons.

Building this little treasure was a distraction and a joy for all of them, and is large enough to be enjoyed for many years to come instead of a child-sized playhouse he would outgrow. Christopher Robin would approve...

More pictures of the building of the cottage and of the interior here.

It made a lump in my throat and I thought you'd enjoy it, too.  Magic.

We get around!

Funny, just found the Shed on Tiny House Design's Facebook page, then Tiny House Living AND Tiny House Swoon...thanks for liking us, all!

The photos were from a couple of years ago...

Yet another link...a gorgeous little vardo...

Oh, my, I believe I'm in love...again.  Check out this place featured in the Tiny House Blog:

http://tinyhouseblog.com/vardo/zyls-little-bird/

Though I would NEVER trust a woodstove that close to a wall or curtain.  EEEEEeeeek!

What a fascinating blog...

Check this one out: Life in 120 Square Feet --it's inspiring!

We don't LIVE in the Shed of Reality, though we could.  We have heat, a source of water, a hot plate for tea or cooking.  We even have AC, which is a necessity for me after a bout of heat exhaustion a few years ago.  I do spend hours a day here, year round...it's sanctuary, studio, sacred space, wonderful for entertaining a few friends, healing, peaceful, challenging, and always something to see beyond those big windows.

It makes me aware of what is actually necessary.  For me, that means books and art supplies and a comfortable chair (or two, for sharing).

Mindfulness is almost inevitable, here.  It's a great place to meditate, exercise, paint, journal, or make music.  I've never been sorry we spent that IRS refund to make all this possible!

And another fun link...tiny homes around the world!

...with lots of videos, interviews and inspirations.



From Natural Homes, at http://naturalhomes.org/tiny-world.htm --click the link for lots more!

Another cool link!

I like the concept AND the execution here:  http://tinyhouseblog.com/stick-built/ecopod-holidays-homes/

And I'd love to have some kind of passive solar heat in the winter...

Life at the Shed

Planting more seedlings and transplanting the ones I have...

And making a right mess!

This morning's wet view...lots of standing water!

Pepi thinks a bridge is in order...most of the bark path has washed downstream!  We need a landscaper with a strong back and river stones...

The old leaky Freecycle aquarium acts as mini greenhouse in front of that big French door!  I'll be planting more soon...

For some reason Belle and Pepi aren't bothering the seedlings like the house kitties would, so they get to live at the shed till planting time.  Who knows when the last frost will be THIS year, it hasn't gotten above 46 degrees all day...

Well, OUCH.

I was finally going to allow myself to get the little secondhand rug I've been visiting for almost 3 years...it's got that antique William Morris/Renaissance feel I love, subtle colors, a nature theme...lots of the soft greens I already have in the shed...I took these photos in December of 2010, so you can see how long I've been drooling over this thing!

It was $85 when I asked about it 2+ years ago, but I was feeling kind of snug...I decided to wait.

Today I decided I'd been working hard, the class was going well, and that was going to be my reward--if it was still there in the Olde Towne Mall.

It WAS...but it was owned by another dealer and they had to call to confirm the price.

I just called to find out.  $250.00 ?!?!?!

So no.  Not for a rug in a shed.

What was up with THAT??  Besides the price, I mean.

Fine, I'll just look at the photos I took 2 years ago and enjoy the rug I have.  The poor mall owner was really apologetic; she knew I wouldn't fib about it. Not her fault!

You know what they always say...if you see something you love in an antiques mall, get it THEN.  When it cost a quarter of what the owner wants now.

OK, I'll quit pouting now...

Oooh, a new shed and cabin blog...and PROGRESS at MY shed...

Look what I found!  Yummy...http://thecoopercabin.blogspot.com/2012/10/san-juan-island-cabin-by-david.html

Actually, I'm just bookmarking the whole blog, it's delicious!  http://thecoopercabin.blogspot.com/


Meanwhile, I'm still writing and illustrating art classes and shooting videos at my beloved shed...and thanks to my friend Marc Taro Holmes of Citizen Sketcher (DO check out his blog if you like sketching and watercolor!).  He suggested this multi-arm that will suspend the camera over the table out of my way (HOORAY) so I can shoot better and more comfortable videos!  No more reaching around the tripod.

Now all I have to do is solve the lighting problem...next up!

You can see the seedlings I started in that sunny window at lower left, too...a multi-purpose shed.

The new mini-class is finished  and up on my website, on Ink & Watercolor...and life continues busy but grand!

Charles Finn's micro-homes on the Tiny House Blog

Be sure to click the link for some wonderful (tiny) eye-candy!

http://tinyhouseblog.com/stick-built/charles-finns-microhomes/

More links to tiny house blogs!

http://www.dwell.com/post/article/tiny-house-small-house-blogs-sites

More Winter Birdwatching...

Couldn't resist this fluffed-up spiky starling!

Loving the little juncos

He was TOO comical!  Look at that grumpy face...

Still loving the wrens...

Birdwatching in the snow

The snows we've had lately have really brought out the birds in numbers!  I didn't get a thing done one day but watch the snow, watch the birds, and sketch...the shed is a great place for that.  I am SO glad I chose the big French doors and the window on the opposite side so I can watch from both directions. 

Our feeders are getting a workout! 

Winter Robins

I love seeing these guys in the winter!

Happy New Year, all!

May 2013 be the best ever for you and yours--and if a shed's in your future, may this be the year!