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Source: MrVictorian.co.uk |
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Source: MirandaJaneMills.com |
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Source: MrVictorian.co.uk |
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Source: MirandaJaneMills.com |
I'm writing this blog post stolen from the wee hours of half past three in the morning.
Once upon a time, in my little one-horse town of Brooksville, you'd be capable of walking anywhere a house dwelt; walk right up to a porch, and there would be nothing but an unlocked old screen door keeping you from your neighbours. There were no detained doors or ceiled shut windows with heavily draped window treatments. So you knew ole' Ms Sady was frying chicken, or you'd smell freshly baked apple pie scents from the window sill following the dirt road.It also reminds me that I began pondering on Tasha Tudor and her artistry workspace as early as two weeks ago. She vowed by a large wooden table in front of a window in her kitchen which she said tale it reminded her of a tiny chipmunk's nest. As I was grappling with a 'feel' I was desperate to gain whilst painting illustrations for my little storybooks (most especially The Tale of the Christmas Bunnies), I felt such a lack of reasonable provocation. So I had to think of a solution. I began moving about tables and furnishings from one corner to the next in my folk's cottage, where I once had my artistry materials. I then moved things back and forth from Scarlette Rose to the main house, and in the midst of this, my temperamental frustration began to build. For an artist, environmental surroundings are of utmost significance. Then one day, I had the idea from my girlhood to pack a basket of my particulars and go outside and sit on the garden lawn to paint. That notion inspired me to place my painting desk right in front of the open double doors of Scarlette Rose cottage. I've never been more inspired to paint since that day, so I plod onward. Each morning the first thing in my diary is to see my beloved husband off to work. I perform my daily tidings and domesticated achievements and then stroll out to Scarlette Rose cottage for the day. I have been saving up for a big beautiful wooden cook stove (rather than the one currently in the house), and I also have my eyes peeled for a Victorian toilet. Initially, I was plotting to turn to a modern commode and build around it to feature an outhouse; however, upon hefty thinking, I would rather keep on with the cottage's appeal of the Victorian era.
The weekend came and went like a shot.
I have a nice little post for the blog about some sprinkled ways to help you dear folks like me that have also lost someone very special to your heart. But alas, I didn't want to come with hefty feelings of woe on a Monday. So I feel that sharing tomorrow might be a better selection for posting. So shall we have a chat and a cuppa and talk about the weekend.
I've been spending every moment working on illustrations for our bunny book, so I thought I'd show you one of the sketches. The enjoyable aspect is that I feel ridiculously thrilled about painting as Beatrix Potter did when she was alive. She painted her environment and often improvised, such as in The Tailor of Gloucester. Beatrix went to the V&A Museum to sit and paint the pretty fabrics. I recall once when I was researching and found that Beatrix wrote The Tale of Peter Rabbit; she hadn't yet bought her home at Hilltop. She often would improvise this many more times, such as in The Tale of Two Bad Mice. Norman, her beau, had a niece, and Beatrix borrowed her dollhouse for the scenes with the dolls and mice. The green and white Tower Bank Arms village pub in Sawrey is in perfect detail in The Tale of Jemima Puddleduck. She did it again in The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin. The scenes from Squirrel Nutkin show the squirrels rafting across a lake to an island in the centre around Derwent Water.
Where was I?
Oh yes.
A few months ago, I was sipping tea in the cottage, and the thought wisped over my mind. I think Sir Oliver Twisty Topsy needs some new friends; he seemed awfully sad staying sat in one spot all day; he looked dreadfully lonely. However, I placed the thought on the back burner (because Jeffrey Shawn and I) are still living with my folks. (My mum isn't too keen on inside animals. However, we moved in shortly after Sawyers murder, and my folk's sentiments waned. In other words, they felt horrible at what had transpired; they happily took in me, my hubby, chickens and house rabbit.)
Although I had sent the intention out into our forest of fools (the world) that I wanted: two more bunnies, must be boys, a similar docile breed as Oliver, had to be babies, so that they came with no previous issues and I wanted a black, and a mixed colour different in appearance to Oliver's colouring, I thought no more about it. I had felt it and let it go because of my circumstances. Then, a fortnight later, I was picking up rabbit's Buckaroo and Chappie. So one day, in a tea fuelled frenzy, my way of expressing the elated joy I felt was to sit and write a darling little story. I manifested my dream regardless of circumstances. Tasha Tudor always had the motto "Take Joy", so I also adapted the phrase to emulate her when Sawyer passed. I had managed to manifest my dream of having three cottage bunnies, and it made me feel as if I was in the likeness of my other favourite hero, Beatrix Potter.
For reasoning, only the spirit gods know I simply followed my inspired heart. I'm halfway through the illustrations now, and the book's release date is December 15th, 2021. I am delighted about this charming little Christmas bunny book.
My inspiration for the cover art of my book is an ode to Charles Dickens. Have you ever researched his backstory of how and why he wrote A Christmas Carol? It is rather quite an inspiration for authors.
Do you like the cover?
Most affably yours til my next swim, Raquelxxx