Valentine Tokens of Affection

Sweet Valentine candy hearts.

How lovely to arrange a heart on each spoon.

A little extra pretty at the table.

They have a vintage Victorian look.

Drop a candied heart into your tea cup!

Our sweet teacups from Anthropologie.

Connecting with:

French Country Cottage

Common Ground

The Charm of Home

The Romantic Home

The Picket Fence

Stuff and Nonsense

French Shabby Chic Roses ACEO Painting

Our pink peonies and roses will soon be jolting to life again and making their magical 'parfum!' The bare-leg roses have some swelling leaf buds now. Gardens that overflow with fragrant peonies and roses transform us. They take us to Versailles, France. We feel like we are princesses out for a walk, even if we're muddied up standing with a shovel in hand, clothed in white victorian/edwardian lacy dresses. We feel elegant and light headed...all because of the natural beauty around us. Gardens are magical and enchanting and ours is just starting to wake up.

I painted this oil aceo above titled Blossoming French. The softest colors and brushstrokes were used to portray the romance that gardens make. It is for sale on ebay.

Alice in Wonderland Movie Costume Designer Colleen Atwood

Just one week left before Alice in Wonderland comes to town. Colleen Atwood the movie's costume designer has already won two academy awards for best costume designs in "Chicago" and "Memoirs of a Geisha." She has been nominated a number of times...Little Women, Sleepy Hollow, Beloved, Todd Sweeney, and Nine to name a few.

Tim Burton's 3D Alice in Wonderland movie is set in Victorian times with lots of fabric, trims and details and both imaginary and real. Alice is not a child, but a young woman. Can't wait to see the movie stills. The movie trailer teaser is just that. Hardly shows enough to satisfy our curiousity at all! We want to see more of the fabrics, clothes and hats!

To quote Colleen, "It's going to be amazing!" Read her interview here.

Pretty Vintage White Dresses and Costumes

Polonaise. I didn't know the meaning of the word until today. One is pictured above from the 1800's. Lots of details, but in simple white fabric. I think I might like one. It is a beautiful white dress worn over a long black skirt or a white skirt. There were strings hidden underneath that were pulled to form this nice gathering of fabric in the back. I love the cuffs on the sleeves. This overdress was popular in American from 1869-1875.

There is such a wealth of costume information on the web. A great wealth of inspiration for dollmakers to venture out a bit with their dress designs. (I'm speaking to myself here.) Did you know there is a costume society of america? They have a wonderful website. Also the Smithsonian Museums here in Washington D.C. have a costume collection.

All we have been seeing is white designs outside of our windows. This is little tiny footprints on top of the snow. Every little impression make a pattern. It won't be long before we will be bringing out our linen clothes...or sewing some new linen skirts or blouses.

Victorian Houses Frosted

I love old victorian houses. We have some older ones here close and since the snow has frosted them all I took some pictures. Wouldn't you love to sit up in that top window with a book or a painting easel? I would.