Christmas Trees....

 

 And The Nativity....

I Don't know about you, Dear Readers, but with Christmas falling on a Saturday this year, it somehow feels to me as though there aren't enough weekends before Christmas to get "everything" done! So I have been rushing around trying to make sure the Christmas Trees are all decorated in time. Over in the Lovely Old Dollhouse, Charles has managed to put up the "same old tree" in the same old corner of the living room. He knows what he is doing after all these years so it looks just as good as always. There was a brief moment of panic when the lights did not turn on right away...! But with a little jiggling of the wires and plug connections the lights flickered to life! Ahhh...! It is always such a satisfying thing to see the Tree lit with those beautiful lights!

Helen is so relieved that the lights still work!

 It would be terrible if they had to try to buy new

 ones with so little time left!

And shopping is still a "risky" thing... 

so ... she is very relieved!

"It looks wonderful, Darling," she says to Charles.

 

 

"I always feel so peaceful once the tree is up." she added.

"Now we are ready!"

 

And In the Shabby Sister House, 

Sally May and Chip have put up the Silver Glitter tree

 in the same corner of their living room. 

But Blanche and Ernie, Chip's parents, are the ones 

spending most of their time gazing at the beautiful lights.

Sally May is too busy baking for Christmas

 and Chip and Annabelle are "helping" her in the kitchen.

 

"Let me help you, sweetie," 

says Chip, reaching for a cupcake.

"I'll tell you if it needs anything...." he adds.

"Can I have one too?" asks Annabelle.

"Okay, just one...." says Sally May.

"But you have to eat all your supper too!" she added.

 

And the Cloud Palace gang had put up the Silver Tinsel Tree.... 

yes, it is also in the same place as always!

 

 All the Beareys had gathered around to see the beautiful tree!

Alas, nothing new had been added this year.... 

and there was even a suggestion that the lights

 were not at their brightest....!

 

 

"Nonsense," said Blue.

 "It is just that the sun has not gone down yet!

 They will shine perfectly at night!"

(Sir Orion thinks he will check on the batteries later!)

 

But meanwhile, back at the Lovely Old Dollhouse, Dear Readers,

 Pollyanna has been reminded that the Nativity has not been set up yet! 

"How could I forget...?" she wondered.

It didn't take long to put all the familiar figures

 into their accustomed places.

"Doesn't that look lovely?" she asks.

"Do you think the camel should go with the Donkey?" asks Charles.

"Well, he never seems to fit

 on the side with the Kings..." replied Pollyanna.

"Maybe the cow would be happier with the donkey..." suggested Charles.

"Well, I suppose we could give it a try..." says Pollyanna,

 moving the cow and the camel.

"But it means the cow is not showing her best side...." she adds.

"And the camel is looking a bit lost way back in the corner...." she says.

"But at least he is with the Kings.." said Charles decisively.

"Well, that settles it! " said Pollyanna happily.

(She was in no mood to argue with her Grandfather!)

Helen heaved a big sigh. 

"Now we really are ready!" she declared.

And I don't know about you, Dear Readers, 

but I am not yet ready for Christmas... but I am working on it!

The Annual Christmas Card will be late again...

As usual!

I hope you all are enjoying your Holiday preparations,

 whatever they are!

Ceiling Details....

 

 More Rocks...

You Might not have noticed, Dear Readers, but I have always felt the the arched ceiling "ribs" of the Castle Great Hall Ceiling were too skinny to adequately support such a vast ceiling! It has always been my intention to make them more robust, but the method of doing so has not always been clear. As I have worked on all the other parts of the Castle that needed strengthening, I have figured out the method I should use. I would just cut a whole bunch of those little "rocks" and apply them along each side of the existing arches! The problem being that the stores are having difficulty stocking the wood I had been using (a Pandemic problem, it seems) and so I had to use a slightly different stock. In any case, when I was originally painting the ceiling, I forgot to leave all the edges with an unpainted border that would get covered in the end, so in some places the rocks do intrude on the paintings! (But who is going to notice this except me?) Above you can see the very beginnings of adding these "rocks". I started in the center for symmetry's sake, and because the way the rocks need to be fitted at the ends where they meet the wall is going to be complicated.

Here you can see even closer, where the "rock" covers

 the top of the head of that angel who is peeking in through the gap....

But since the idea is that they are peeking in through a gap... 

they don't mind being partly covered!

Here you can see that I am leaving the very bottom ends

 without the "rocks" until I can fit them while the ceiling

 is in place in the Great Hall....

Like this!

The bottom ends on the front section are even less finished

 because the front wall connection is only partly designed...

and still could be changed.

Here is a slightly closer view of the ends where they join the wall...

I will fit them very carefully!

These strengthening "rocks" also needed to be added along

 the edges of the ceiling where it meets the end walls.

And in order to get them to be positioned correctly, 

the ceiling needed to be in place while gluing them.

This meant that I needed to get the arched sections of the ceiling

 to curve properly before I could add the "rocks".

(This has been a complicated process!)

And once all those "rocks" were added, Dear Readers, 

the "ribs" all needed to be repainted!

Because I had already painted the "darker" edging

 of all those new rocks where they abut the ceiling,

 I didn't need to worry about getting paint on the ceiling part.

Only the old part of the ribs needed repainting.

And because all those new "rocks" were so symmetrical,

 I could easily repaint the ribs with an alternating "stone"

 pattern of dark and light stone...

creating a wonderfully dramatic effect!

(If you can see it in that dark old Great Hall....)

Above it is mostly painted.

Here you can see it from a slightly different angle.

I also needed to repaint the end wall "arches" 

so they would match the vaulted ribs.

(Sorry for the dark photo...)

This is testing it in place before I painted the grout lines...

That very necessary step!

Starting the process.... slow and steady...

And on the end wall arches too.... 

partly done so you can see the difference it makes!

And here we are testing it in place again with the grout lines done!

You can also see I have fitted the end "rocks" 

where the ribs join the back wall.

The front wall ones are still not finished.

That wall is a whole other chapter still to construct!

 

And now, Dear Readers,

 after adding all those "rock" details

 I think the ribs finally look strong enough

 to hold up this ceiling!