My Creative Space VIII

Today is my birthday and I'm having a little morning celebration with tea and blackberry croissants and watching Anne of Green Gables while I embroider hearts. Life could not be sweeter.

Well, it would be if not for the arrival of my second wisdom tooth overnight- a sure sign that I am getting older.

I can feel the beginnings of it cutting through and it's rather tender indeed.

I'm planning on setting off later to use my Birthday ticket from Palace Cinemas to see Terry Gilliams new film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.  Although Gilliam's last film Tideland was a freak show, Imaginarium's cast includes Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp and Jude Law so it simply Has to be wonderful.

Does it not?

I'm playing along with Kirsty again today, here is my Creative Space:

 

Lately I have been enamored with the idea of Bird Girls and Bee boys and Rabbit hearted girls.

These are some pictures of Bird girl.

Some of the dolls I have given as gifts in the past have had compartments that unzip to reveal their hearts and I'm designing a new doll that is similar but has a string of hearts hidden inside. I will let you know if I have any success with my plans.

Until then check out Kootoyoo for lots of fabulous Creative Spaces.

Le Monsieur and the Pussy cats...

My little Monsieurs have developed into full grown Rabbits this week and they seem to be getting along really well with the Pussy cat sisters.  A little too well it seems, I'm fairly certain that shortly there will be a whole bunch of little babies running around, hopping and purring all over the house.

They are for the upcoming Thread Den market and hopefully will be as popular as Monsieur was last time he made an appearance. I have been flat out sewing and mothering and driving all over the place that I totally forgot that it's my birthday this week and I'm wondering what I will buy me???

Every year I receive something special from myself and I'm seriously thinking that it could be an amazing Nancy Bird bag this year.  Well I'm hoping so.  Fingers crossed.

Bon Voyage Pierre...

Where oh where has little Pierre gone?...

Oh where oh where can he be?

Missing: One Frenchman called Pierre.

First Introduced: Here and Here in April 09.

Last Seen: The Greek Islands July 09.

Known For:  Incident at the Parthenon.

Reward: The happiness of a 2 year old.

Pierre (right) pictured here with Fi Fi "just a friend"

 

There can only be 3 explanations for his disappearance:

1. Unzipped bag on plane, parachuted into Turkey, possibly captured by pirates?

2. Under the cloak of invisibility he travelled to London and is now dating Prince Harry?

3. He never left Greece and is currently teaching French to young Greek orphans on
Mykonos by day and working on fishing boats by night?

Or perhaps even a Fourth explanation:

4. Was sent home via post to make extra luggage space and was  Lost by Australia Post and will remain forever in the murky depths of the dead letter office.

I'm quietly betting on possibility number 3.

If you see him, Love him.

Or....Remind him of what home looks like.

Home looks like this:

Pierre how I miss thee.

My Place & Yours- On the Shelf...

Have just arrived home from seeing Woody Allen's hilarious new film Whatever Works where the absolutely talented and fabulous Patricia Clarkson completely steals the show.
And I'm sitting at home and thinking what to do now? Thinking....thinking....thinking....when I suddenly discover that Pip from Meet Me At Mikes has gone and got herself a cool Saturday night Meme called:
My Place and Yours....
And todays theme is What's On the Shelf?

So I'm playing along and I think everyone should, just cos its awesome (and she says the word 'totes' which never ceases to amuse me and is in fact a word I hate to love or love to hate).

Here is a shelf....

It is the shelf in Little Jim's room, my friend Macca put it up when he began his apprenticeship as a carpenter.  He really took his time and given the nearby powerpoint, I'm Amazed he didn't electrocute himself. It is also slightly on an angle, yet secure nontheless.

It could be pride? Or a workman's insecurity? But he checks it Every time he's over.

On the Shelf are my original Enid Blyton books my Fairy Godmother gave me as a child.

There is also my beloved copy of Charles Perrault's darkly imagined Little Red Riding Hood which is pictured here with Old Foxy- the squeak toy, who is totes cool.

I have a lovely collection of rubber toys, perhaps I will show them to you sometime.

 

The feature of the shelf is undeniably Train Night-light, he is freaking awesome.

I found him after 10 years of searching from the Lost and Found Market in Collingwood.

The fact he is a Train is important!

My father Jimmy was a diesel engine train driver for over 30 years and my six siblings and I love trains.

We Heart Trains!

Trains are one of the ways we bring our father alive again.

So that is my Little Jim's shelf, photographed stealthily by me while he is sleeping.

For more On the Shelf action be sure to visit Pip.

Creative Space VII

My Creative Space began in a garden beside a beautiful rare Ombu tree.

We call it the Faery Tree because of all the winged creatures we imagine inhabit it's branches.

An inspirational space for drawing faces of particular creatures.

Today it is Monsieur and a feline friend.

I believe it is possible for a bunny rabbit and a pussy cat to fall in Love.

But time will tell.....

Under the watchful eye of Kameko, I finished the embroidery this morning.

Kameko has lately been under the weather, but thankfully using grey wool won her over.

I now have 6 faces covered in a mass of white cat hair, waiting for me to select their wardrobe.

Stay tuned for the next exciting chapter where hopefully these faces find bodies.

And check out Kootoyoo for more Creative Spaces...

What's Hot + What's Not....

I have recently discovered this great blog Loobylu and I'm loving 'What's hot and whats not Wednesday'. Also loving that this week we can all join in. Yay! Ok so here we go.

HOT!

Fashionista Friends, 

I spotted these two ladies leaving the metro in Barcelona and was imediately struck by the awesomeness of their outfits.  Friends everywhere should unite in fabulous fashion because that is Hot.

Cups of Tea are Hot.

Most notably Natures Cuppa Organic Earl Grey Tea.  Forget Twinings, it is forever rendered meek by comparison.

Friends winning the Vogel literary award is Hot!

This year beautiful Lisa Lang was a joint winner of our nations most prestigious award for young writers.

Being around talented creative people is very hot indeed.

Florence.

Ah this album renders me speechless & awestruck in its Hotness.

The mechanism on my Canon camera called Colour Accent that allows me to do black and whites featuring one colour is really really hot.  I know most people just use photoshop for effects but it is quicker this way.

I don't think I could ever get sick of this feature.  I'm obsessed!

Ok Now.

NOT HOT!

The Birman.

Between the vomiting, frequent indoor urination and constant meowing my little Kameko is most definately Not Hot!

Poor little pussy cat.  I would be a lot more sympathetic if she were not so gross.

Another thing that is terribly, most hideously Not Hot, is when friends drop you like a hot burning coal the minute they get into a new relationship- as if love is the all sustaining, one and only nutrient necessary for life?

Mmmmggh!

(That little rant was an ode to people everywhere that have had that happen to them.)

Tonight, rushing into my sons bedroom annoyed that he is noisily playing instead of sleeping only to discover that he WAS sound asleep until I woke him and it was, in fact, the washing machine making all the noise.

Is utterly NOT HOT.

And what a fool I am.......

Lastly I find sometimes the photos I upload to blogger have an annoying ghostlike way of moving themselves around when my back is turned and then utterly Refusing to go back to their rightful spot.  They may only go left when I want them right, they may only go small when I want them big, they disappear for days on end only to reappear when I'm on someone elses computer complaining about their disappearance.....Occasionally I have been known to 'ask' an online forum for assistance.  In the lamest of lamens language I will seek my answers out only to receive a reply in some freaking computer psycho-babble, heavily reliant on the use of strange unknown terms or quaint known terms such as 'cookies' but disturbingly out of context. Or I'm told to change my template which takes forever only to have the same thing keep happening, strange gaps, flying photos, its like Alice in Wonderland in here some days.

Drives me CRAZY

Definately NOT hot.

Check out Loobylu for more Hot + Not Hots....

The Court of Versailles...

I finally went to the Nova to see The September Issue tonight and I absolutely loved it.  The film is a behind the scenes look at the enigmatic personalities that create American Vogue, most notably the legendary Editor in Chief- Anna Wintour.  My favourite scene was when Grace is styling a photo shoot at the Palace of Versailles and is spellbound by the majestic gardens.  Watching her excitment build as she walks through the vast rooms admiring the ornate splendour, reminded me of my own wanderings through the Palace and I have been inspired to share my photos with you.  Such a perfect place to photograph.

 

Opulently constructed in the 17th Century to fulfill King Louis XIV's vision for a new royal court, Versailles is incredibly elaborate and so exquisite in detail.  I love the bust of Marie Antoinette and the king and queen bedrooms respectively (below), the ornate chandeliers, the gardens, oh I love it all.  So totally appealing to my girlish sense of history and romance, life and death, just as any good palace should.