The Three Hares AKA Tinners Hares/Rabbits

Happy Easter!

It has been close to two years since my last blog post. I just wanted to share one of my favorite historical and mystical images with you known as... The Three Hares. Sometimes called Tinners Hares/Rabbits. 

It truly has a fascinating history. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_hares I will leave the historical telling of it to those who have made a great effort to research it. https://hyperallergic.com/311482/the-mystery-of-the-three-hares-motif/ One of the earliest examples of the image is from the year 581 found in Buddhist cave in China. 

Many years ago I sent photos of it to Linda Master http://miraclechicken.blogspot.com/ asking her if she would be interested in carving it in miniature. We brain stormed it, thinking of how many ways it might be used in 1: 12 scale. I thought of pargeting it to the exterior of a cottage, she had several ideas of her own. There are as many uses in miniature as there ever have been in real life throughout the centuries. I can see it on garden walls, painted on porcelain tiles, sculpted terracotta tile, the list is endless but Linda's specialty is carving wood.

Recently we started talking about the image again. This week I received a 1:12 scale piece from her of it. It is 44 millimeters in diameter a little over an inch and a half.  I wanted it to look like it was  old, possibly an architectural salvage of some sort.  I couldn't have been more pleased with her rendition. She did an absolutely beautiful job. It was carved out of a special piece of pear she had been saving.

How I will use it remains to be seen. It needs just the right setting. I think it will fit in perfectly with the other things I have collected. The Three Hares would make a great name for a tea shop.

Mean time.... I am embroidering the hares it on a denim shirt, using a needle painting technique. I think 3 inches diameter is a good size for over the left breast pocket. What have you found to do while spending so much time at home during this quarantine? 

Good Bye Kilmouski. Rest in Peace

For anyone who truly loves animals and has ever had a pet, you know they are more than that. They are part of your family. In my case Kilmouski was my only living family. I loved him a heck of a lot more then some human ones that went before him.

Now might be a good time to run for it if you don't want to read my tribute. 

Me on the left waiting to pick up my new kitten with a friend at the airport

My first look at Kilmouski

Riding home in the car. his front legs over my arm

We spent 15 years together in this house. From the day I picked him up at the airport and brought him home he decided he would always have to be next to me wherever I was. So I made a "highchair" for him from a kitchen stool with a huge wood tray bungee corded under the seat. The cords went over the scalloped edged corners of the tray. It had a thick foam mattress in it covered with the cotton baby blanket he arrived with in his crate (washed once a week). He wasn't allowed on my sofas or upholstered chairs. If I moved to a different room, he told me to go get him his "highchair." He did that by pawing my leg or meowing until I went and got it. He slept with me every night right from the beginning. Not something I was happy about at first. I gave up on television long ago. When I bought an IPad I usually watched a movie at night. Laying on my side with my arm stretched out and my head on a pillow, he had to have his two paws over my upper arm while laying right next to me. If I wasn't in the mood for that or if it was too hot, he would fight me for that position until he won the battle. I watched most movies with an ear or two at the bottom or in the middle of the screen.

                                                      Totally relaxed in his "Highchair"

Killy was extremely dog like. He never failed to come when I called him. He met me at the door when I came home.  He knew a lot of language because I talked to him all the time.  He knew what was meant by... "OK, Lets go." He knew we were moving when my computer (AOL) said "Good Bye" and jumped down. Linda Master would tell you I could get him to say hello to her when we were on the phone by saying  HELLO. He would answer with a loud MEOW! Making her giggle.

When people talk about intimate relationships they are usually talking about a partner, husband or wife. None of which would rush into the bathroom to sit at your feet just to be close to you. I think I just heard a loud chorus of ... Thank god for that! No matter what you are doing, privacy isn't an issue with a furry friend. So if you are alone you can make up silly songs or games for their amusement. Or whatever else might make the world think you were totally insane.

Whatever you give all of yourself  to has enormous power. If you have ever experienced grief so deep,  so profound that you thought it could crush the life out of your body, then you might know how I feel.

Thank you all for following Kilmouski & Me.

Killy, you will live in me always.

    

   

                                                  

Around the garden today.

Finally spring has arrived. The beginning of April felt more like January or February. All it has taken is a few warm days and suddenly everything is starting to bloom. The clematis and azaleas look happy. The huge pink dogwood in my side garden is just getting started.

I love having fresh peppermint. I cut the bottom out of the flower pot and buried it half way down so the mint doesn't spread. I think it is the best medicine for indigestion too. ;-)

Sadly no miniatures are being made. Life has changed and I have been very busy!

Starting out 2018 with a big BOOM! ;-(

Wishing you all a Very Happy, Healthy 2018 

My city rarely gets extremely cold but as many of you have heard or are experiencing yourselves, the USA is having some rather unusual temperatures at the moment.

Last night, the coldest for me so far was 8 degrees Fahrenheit or -13 C. It was at about 9:30 PM when I heard it.... a big BOOM and then all the lights and the heat went off. I looked out my up stairs window and the neighborhood was totally dark. A few minutes later I phoned the power company to report an outage. They said via a recording, there were 13 outages, 1,875 homes. I can tell you truthfully it scared me to the core of my being! I have lived in this neighborhood a very long time and the longest I went without power was for three weeks in the summer, after a really bad storm.  That storm destroyed houses and took down trees all over the city. We had a bad ice storm about 15 years ago and I lost power in the winter for a week. Right, no lights, no heat! Last night was really odd because other than being very cold there was nothing extraordinary happening with the weather, no snow no ice.

I got more blankets and went to sleep. I was VERY happy this morning to find the heat was on and the house was warm! I frankly didn't expect it.

So...  if you are in the FROZEN USA I hope you are inside and warm. 

Winter Carpet Picnic

Last Spring when I was at the Tom Bishop Show in Chicago I met Lidi Stroud for the first time at her table. It was a real treat to see so many of her gorgeous baskets in person.  I was going to buy one of my favorites but instead we started talking about a trade. Lidi told me she liked my walnut shell cottages. Over the next few months a trade was never discussed again.

In November I emailed Lidi to let her know I had sent her a parcel. She wrote back and said... "Now isn't that strange, I sent you one yesterday." Strange indeed!!! I was sure she had forgotten all about our discussion.

I was thrilled to bits when her French picnic basket arrived! It has been a favorite since the first time I saw it on her blog. http://basketcase-miniatures.blogspot.com/ You can't really appreciate how fine her work is until you hold it in your hand.

Thanks again Lidi! I love it! XXX

Happy Thanksgiving!

 My neighbors asked me if I would collect their mail and parcels while they were out of town. Sadly the people who sent them these lovely flowers didn't know they were leaving for a 10 days.

They sure look nice in my dining room. The colors are perfect!

                                     
   

                                         

Happy Thanksgiving to all who are celebrating today!

Lots of Flowers

As you can see I have been busy.

 

There are a few things I would rather do then make flowers. Like spend the day with my tax man or go for a colonoscopy. The entire time I kept thinking of dear Elizabeth making that garden all around her house. How did you survive that I wondered?  http://studioeminiatures.blogspot.com/  I survived by listening to one of the Outlander audio books. Good thing it has 47 disks!

 

Still, I have to admit miniature flowers have loads of charm. I am going to have to work on the color combinations.  I wanted some sort of setting for the French flower buckets, watering cans I made. I am hoping to start making those to sell next year. And yes... this project will have walls. ;-O

 

I think a cat popping out of a bigger flower pot might be fun next.