Toute Droit

Laughing through the Lavender fields....

My past trips through the south of France have been about the beauty of the ancient architecture....this trip appears to be about eating, laughing and having the time of our life!

Gentle rain on the rooftops.....

awoke to gentle rain on ancient rooftops.....thoughts of cafe creme and croissants...walking among ruins....laughter and discovery.....ah, joy....

a long long journey.....

Gosh, I didn't remember the journey being so long.....geting to the airport, waiting for delayed flights, flying to Chicago, rushing to get our light to London, rushing to make our connection to Nice....trying to fnd the rental car place...taking the bus to it....trying to figure out how the car works....driving.....about 3 hours.........

Exhausted, but thrilled to have arrived here in Oppede!

Tomorrow, refreshed and revitiliized we start exploring......much more to come!

Off to France!!

3 generations.....me and my shadow...my 3 daughters....and Aidan, my granddaugther.....off to Provence!

Hydrangeas

Oh my goodness...it's been almost a month since I've posted!
And Saturday I'm off to France!   I will share my journey with you.....stay tuned!!

New class opened in Creating Faerie Thrones!

My class in making a little precious Faerie Throne has just opened up at That Creative Place.
It's a really fun, simple and easy class and very affordable at $20!!

The class can be downloaded from the site whenever you want to make this.  There is no set class time and I'm always available either through the forum or through email. :)

New online class begins May 17th!

Announcement:  
My class in creating a perfectly balanced flying faerie is now open for registration and the lessons and forum begin on May 17th.
http://www.aforartistic.com/flying-faerie.html 
I have separated it into two Lessons.  
First creating the armature and then sculpting, and then painting and costuming.  
What's great about online classes is that you can download the lessons with all the photos and work at your own timing...jump right in, or save the lessons for another time.  
And I'm always available through email or the class forum to critique, answer questions, or just share in your process. :) 

I can't tell you how many of these faeries I had to create before I figured out how to easily get one who balanced nicely. 
The first ones tilted to the side....made a nose-dive to the front or the back or just hung in a completely wacky way .
So in this class I will share that secret and all that I learned, and we will create a lovely flying fae. 
 
Creating a grouping of 3 faes hanging over your bed, art table, or in the corner of a room where the sun comes in, makes an inspiring display.  
Mine hang over my art table and shower me with their inspiration.
Hope to see you in class!
Marilyn

My Shadow and Sleeping Beauty's castle....

We got into our cottage late last night....it's always, always hard to leave the beauty of Kawela Bay.   It was dark when we opened the door to the cottage, but hmmm....what sweet smell as we arrived home......

This morning when we opened the door to a bright beautiful warm morning .....our cecile brunner rose vine had almost covered the doorway and was in full bloom....stretching onto and over the roof top!

The smell, in the warm morning air was intoxicating!  I have to admit....I immediately forgot all about Kawela Bay!

The weeds are high and abundant too, adding to the look of abandonment and mystery. It's so quiet here.....and I realize how loud the sound of the surf, waves and trade winds are.  Nature is strong and powerful in Hawaii....this morning Nature has whispered in our ears and presented her sweet scents as her calling card.

View from inside looking out through the door....

My hedgehog's crowns are covered in cobwebs......

Evidence that the whole castle must have fallen asleep during the winter .....

My shadow has arrived home.....inhaling the enchantment around me...I just can't stop smiling. :)