weekend wanderings and wonderings

in which our plucky heroine is feeling rather flat...

... and in response, dives further into the miniature reality where there is more delight and less travail and troubles. I feel grateful to have discovered that this kind of activity is renewing for me, at least right now. I cannot help wondering if I am being peculiarly self-protective, by not simply returning to the externally social life, filled with unmasked restaurant eating and event going that I see so many of my peers returning to, despite the actual statistics of the pandemic. I cannot help but fear that I will never feel like it is okay again. This is not my phobic attempt to stave off inevitable decline and death, but what I see as a realistic response to the situation. I don't know how to answer those in my circles who ask me, a little peremptorily, when I will rejoin the larger world. 

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time in the tinyworld:

This weekend I made some more tiny books, most of them using images that were downloaded for the covers, and blank interiors. I also printed out two books ("Beautiful Birds volumes 1 and 2), that one of my Tiny Rag Doll Nation friends sent me as a pdf, which have lovely and colorful illustrated pages. So there are a bit more to put on the bookshelf.

This last week I finally worked on creating Kenya Ogidni, (Nandina's mom)... I'm pretty happy with how her face turned out, and with the new method of attaching yarn hair.

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~ creativity challenge ~

Stopped in today at local art store to get some papertape, since I couldn't find the roll I know I have somewhere, and in their free box were small offcuts of soft printing plates. I want to try using some for block printing tinyworld textiles, either for soft furnishings, or even for clothing. Why do I want papertape, you may wonder... well the redoutbable and renowned Ann Wood presented it to the world on her blog as her new secret ingredient in making cardboard houses! Since I have been struggling to figure out how best to move forward on Caer Cardboard, I think this will be ideal for filling in the many corrugated gaps in the layered laminations that are visible on the edges all over the house. Then I can finally get it painted, start decorating, and finding places for various small furniture bits and bobs.

I also have the IKEA faux greenhouse, SENAPSKÅL which will be an "outdoor space" between Caer Cardboard and the Tudor cottage. I intend to make an egg carton cardboard stone flagged floor, to bring it all up to level with the house floors, and the whole "neighborhood" is actually going to live atop the tansu (箪笥) chest in my closet. Hmmm... perhaps I should call their street "Tansu Terrace"

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April SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	tiny Euphorbia	jacket snaps added	yard waste bin
2	tiny moth orchid	moar wood chips in planter	recycle bin
3	Countess scroll	weight closer for back door	tax forms mailed
4	Laurel enamel	tiny drawer handles	broken tree parts
5	sunflower enamel	tiny trowel handle	CrankyTooth
6	tiny cutting board	x	yard waste bin
7	x	x	recycle bin
8	x	x	-
9	x	x	-
10	x	x	x
11	x	x	x
12	x	x	x
13	x	x	x
14	x	x	x
15	x	x	x

today's gratitude - Friday I found out that, fortunately, the peculiar mole on my arm turned out to be benign. This was a big relief.

Time of Isolation - Day 770