Just because the concrete stairs were ugly, the bodega held more tile, Nalo is a maestro…
and what’s a little more talavera between friends?
The end, I promise!
Posts Tagged ‘Casita Colibrí’
Talavera transformation, the end
Posted in Casita Colibrí, Creativity, Renovation, tagged Casita Colibrí, Mexico, Oaxaca, photographs, photos, renovation, stairs, Talavera on August 20, 2014| 11 Comments »
Talavera transformation, part 2
Posted in Casita Colibrí, Creativity, Restaurants, tagged Casita Colibrí, counter construction, kitchen, kitchen counter, Mexico, Oaxaca, photos photographs, renovation, Talavera, tile work on August 19, 2014| 11 Comments »
Initially, when I came face-to-face with the kitchen at the bigger and better Casita Colibrí, I was convinced there was NO way I could make it work and that IT should be numero uno on the make-over list. A double sink, but no counter space? A grungy ancient copper-colored stove that may or may not have been safe to light? A cabinet door that couldn’t be opened, because said stove was in the way?
With a little pleading (whining), management replaced the stove with a new one that had been hiding in the storage shed. I installed the shelf unit I’d gotten for my old apartment and I had the cabinetry painted white — making it more functional and easier on the eyes — and I was happy. Hey, a friend even wanted to practice using his new fisheye lens.
(photo by Alan Goodin)
However, the talavera transformation in the bathroom turned out so well, I was inspired, plus the cement at the base of the kitchen sink unit kept falling out. Thus, talavera transformation, part 2 began two weeks ago.
The old cabinet was demolished (oh, the polvo!) and the new counter, with new sink, began to materialize from the dust and debris.
Again, I scavenged tile from the bodega. Luckily, there were several boxes of russet orange tiles, but they were slightly smaller than most of the other orphan tiles, making finding accent pieces a challenge. I didn’t want to introduce another color into the blue/cream/orange mix that already tiled the walls and so was hoping Nalo and crew could salvage some of the old tile, but it proved far too time consuming.
The result? I love the cleaner, less busy, look for the kitchen. And, the crew took about 6″ off the top of my old shelf unit, so it would fit under the new counter and I wouldn’t lose the storage space. It’s faintly visible on the right behind the blue plastic curtain.
One of my grandmother’s oft-repeated sayings was, “You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear” — but I’m trying!!!
h/t Chris for the shower curtain idea.
Talavera transformation
Posted in Casita Colibrí, Creativity, Renovation, tagged bathroom counter, bathroom sink, Casita Colibrí, counter construction, Mexico, Oaxaca, photographs, photos, renovation, Talavera, tile work on August 18, 2014| 10 Comments »
For those of you who may not be aware, most Mexican bedrooms and bathrooms are small. In the US, it’s what I grew up with and lived with most of my life, so I’m cool with that. However, what has driven me nuts is the lack of a bathroom counter. How does one handle toothbrush, tube of toothpaste, and water bottle, without at least one of the items ending up in the sink or on the floor? And, forget trying to apply makeup!
So, when I moved into my bigger and better, but also with the aforementioned deficiency, apartment a year and a half ago, it became number one on my “find a way to fix” list. Serendipity motivated me into action, when I happened upon a talavera sink and surround on sale AND discovered a treasure trove of leftover talavera tiles in the bodega (storage shed) here at my apartment complex. Project proposed and permission given by the property’s owner (thanks Doug), I hired a contractor, and work began.
Being completely ignorant of construction of this type, I was fascinated by the process.
Once I’d received the okay for the project, I began hauling up buckets of mismatched tiles from the bodega and laying them out on the floor of my main room — in an attempt to create some sort of unified design — it was exciting to see it materialize.
The finished project…
And, take a look at the side — it’s what one see’s when opening the bathroom door. I think Nalo and his crew did a super job!
What a difference a bathroom counter makes. Form and function!!!
A little birdie told me
Posted in Animals, Casita Colibrí, Gardens, Science & Nature, tagged birds, bougainvilla, bougainvillea, Casita Colibrí, daylight saving time, Mexico, Oaxaca, photographs, photos, sparrows, Tulsa Time song on April 7, 2013| 5 Comments »
Sparrow came by for a late breakfast on the bougainvilla this morning. Guess, like my neighbor, (s)he didn’t realize Mexico “sprung ahead” last night to Daylight Saving Time.
Or, should I say, most of Mexico. Teotitlán del Valle follows the sun and doesn’t set their clocks back. Let the confusion begin!
So, maybe Sparrow is…
Living on Teo Time.
Living on Teo Time.
Gonna set my watch back to it
‘Cause you know that I’ve been through it.
Living on Teo Time.
(With apologies to Daniel W. Flowers, songwriter of Tulsa Time.)
Lluvia!!!
Posted in Buildings, Travel & Tourism, Weather, tagged Basilica de la Soledad, Casita Colibrí, Mexico, Oaxaca, photographs, photos, rain, weather on April 4, 2013| Leave a Comment »
Was it December? Maybe it was November the last time the city saw rain… until this afternoon. Those specks you see are very welcome raindrops on my window.
It brought thunder and lightning, but fell gently. It only lasted an hour, but cooled and cleansed the air.
I can see clearly now…
Oh, what a beautiful morning!
Posted in Churches, Gardens, Home, tagged African Tulip trees, Basilica de la Soledad, Casita Colibrí, Mexico, Oaxaca, photographs, photos, Templo de San José on November 15, 2012| 3 Comments »
Size matters!!!
Posted in Animals, Gardens, Science & Nature, tagged Araneidae, Argiope, Casita Colibrí, dragonfly, garden, Mexico, nature, Oaxaca, orb weaver, orb weaver spiders, photographs, photos, spider on September 6, 2012| 5 Comments »
Monday morning, I went out onto the terrace to hang the wind chimes back up (too loud for sleeping), pick up spent African tulip tree blossoms (20 to 30), and say buenos días to Argiope (previously mentioned spider).
Hmmm… all was definitely not “as usual” in the spider’s web. Argiope, what in the world is going on?
Good grief, she had caught a dragonfly! It must have been quite a battle, as her web was a mess and now she was trying to wrap it up.
This was serious business for her and she worked at it most of the day. However I had to chuckle, as sayings from childhood rose up from the cobwebs in my brain — Your eyes bigger than your stomach. Have you bitten off more than you can chew? Pick on someone your own size!
Monday evening, she finally gave up and let it loose from her clutches. When I retired for the night, the dragonfly was hanging by a thread.
By the next morning, the remains of the dragonfly had fallen onto the patio and Argiope was sitting happily in her newly repaired web with a more appropriately sized breakfast.
Mother Nature is amazing!
Argiope’s daughter
Posted in Animals, Gardens, Nature & Science, tagged Araneidae, Argiope, argiopes, Casita Colibrí, egg sack, garden, Mexico, nature, Oaxaca, orb weaver, orb weaver spiders, photographs, photos, spider on August 30, 2012| 5 Comments »
Warning: If you are an arachnophobe, read no further!
Remember Argiope, one of the orb weaver spiders who hung around Casita Colibrí’s garden from September of last year through January of this year? When last seen, she was laying eggs on my screen door. Alas (or perhaps, thank goodness), a workman who was coming in and out of my apartment must have brushed her and her eggs away, thus relieving me of answering the question, “Do I really want thousands of little spiders beginning to explore the world from my screen door?”
However, I suspect that wasn’t her first attempt at motherhood. One day this past June, I was surprised to find…
Argiope’s daughter? That is what I would like to think! And she is just as beautiful as her mother…
… both back (above) and front (below).
And, she is just as good as catching her lunch! I watched as she finished wrapping up the unfortunate fly above. I guess she needs all that nourishment…
Another generation of Argiopes in waiting! And, as I write, the hunting continues…
More to come? La vida may be loca, but on it goes!
Dying day
Posted in Creativity, Home, Textiles, tagged Casita Colibrí, cotton dying, cotton yarn, dye bath, Mexico, Oaxaca, photographs, photos, textiles, yarn dying on July 13, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Have I mentioned there is a weaving business that operates out of the apartment complex where I live? Most of the operations have recently moved offsite — apparently, not so the dying.
I returned home on Tuesday to find a fire roaring…
A dye bath roiling…
Luci and Luís rinsing and removing excess water from newly dyed cotton yarn…
And, a new view from Casita Colibrí…
Hanks now just “hanging out” above the looms…
Room with a view
Posted in Buildings, Churches, Gardens, Weather, tagged African Tulip trees, Casita Colibrí, garden, Mexico, Oaxaca, photographs, photos, Templo de San José on July 4, 2012| 4 Comments »
Late yesterday afternoon; outdoor room (aka: my terrace) with a view. Ahhhhh….
And, despite the clouds above, this morning I can report, no rain for 36 hours!
Countdown to colibríes
Posted in Gardens, Nature & Science, tagged African tulip tree, Casita Colibrí, colibrí, Flame of the Forest, Flame Trees, hummingbird, Mexico, nature, Oaxaca, photo, photographs, photos, plants, Tulipan on May 15, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Just before this afternoon’s rains came, Casita Colibrí’s first African tulip tree blossom of the season.
And that means, colibríes (hummingbirds) won’t be far behind!
Frangipani, ahhh…
Posted in Gardens, tagged Casita Colibrí, flowers, frangipani, Mexico, Oaxaca, photographs, photos, plumeria on February 7, 2012| 4 Comments »
Full moon hiding; overcast tonight. Sheesh, I’ve been cold all day! However, my Frangipani is blooming…
Going forth and multiplying
Posted in Animals, Gardens, Nature & Science, tagged Araneidae, Argiope, Casita Colibrí, Mexico, Oaxaca, orb weaver, photographs, photos on January 13, 2012| 4 Comments »
Remember Argiope, from my September 20 and October 8 posts? She has continued to hang around, catch flies, and do all manner of spidery things. However, four days ago, her web was abandoned…
Apparently, my screen door is the perfect place, in her mind, to lay her eggs!
A friend asked, how do I feel about having hundreds of little Argiopes hatch practically INSIDE my apartment?
I’m trying not to think about it, says I.
A shell of his former self
Posted in Animals, Gardens, Nature & Science, tagged Araneidae, Argiope, Casita Colibrí, garden, Mexico, Oaxaca, orb weaver, photographs, photos, spider on October 8, 2011| 4 Comments »
Remember Argiope from 2-1/2 weeks ago?
Turns out, she isn’t as sweet as she looks. Today, HE came, HE saw, and SHE conquered!
Leaving him a shell of his former self…
Within a half an hour, she had finished him off… leaving not a trace that he had ever existed.
And, she was alone again, naturally! Alone, that is, until their offspring hatch…
She’s baaack…
Posted in Animals, Gardens, Language, Nature & Science, tagged Casita Colibrí, film, garden, language, Mexico, movies, Neoscona oaxacensis, Oaxaca, orb weaver, photographs, photos, spider on September 27, 2011| 3 Comments »
Argiope’s neighbor (of Orb Weavers blog post fame) has returned! Two days ago I spotted the Neoscona oaxacensis (Ms Oaxaca, to her nearest and dearest) nestled among the leaves of a succulent in the pot next to her original home. However, no large round insect catching web was seen.
Apparently, last night Ms Oaxaca must have stayed up pretty late. This morning, when I came out to say, “buenos días,” I found her happily sitting in the middle of a brand new web.
According to SpidCat, the range of the Neoscona oaxacensis runs from the USA, down to Peru and the Galapagos Islands. They are not only beautiful and harmless, they keep the flying insect population down. So, if you’re lucky enough to have one in your garden, leave her be. If you don’t want to take my word for it, there was the study published in the California Avocado Society Yearbook (1980) that concluded,
…the significance of the orb weaving Neoscona in avocado orchards is probably not that they prevent dramatic population increases in the pest population or control the pests through the year. Instead, the presence of spiders, even in years of low pest populations, may dampen the increases in pest species during the later months of the season and serve as stabilizing agents to restrain the pest outbreaks during the interval between pest population increases and the numerical response of more specific parasites.
Anything that is good for avocados, is okay by me!
(ps) And now for something completely different… The answers to the Name that film quiz are:
- Birds of America = Vecinos y enemigos
- Brokeback Mountain = Secreto en la montaña
- Easy Virtue = Buenas costumbres
- Midnight Sting = El golpe perfecto
- People I know = Noche del crimen
- Tenderness = Asesino intimo
- That Evening Sun = Una historia de traicion
- Up in the Air = Amor sin escalas
Sorry, no prizes… just this bonus bizarre title translation my Spanish teacher contributed: Mrs. Doubtfire = Papá por siempre. Definitely a case of, lost in translation!!!
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