I Love Halloween

I love Halloween.

Halloween Postcard

 I have loved it since I was a kid when Trick or Treat meant just that. My trick which I was asked to do many times was a cartwheel. I wonder what would happen if you asked for a trick now. The parents would probably panic and the kids would look at you in total confusion. 

Bellingham, WA (Fairhaven)

Halloween In Bellingham WA

Awesome Date Night

Halloween in Bellingham WA

Halloween is still a great day full of smiles and candy. How much better can it get? 

  

Happy Halloween!

Pumpkins for My Boys

Even though my boys are off at college,

 I still love to give them fun silly treats.

This is how I made Rice Crispy Jack-O-Lanterns.

Rice Crispy Jack-O-Lanterns

Make rice crispy treats then mold them into pumpkin shapes. 

 Cut out their faces.

Coat them with icing.

Cover them with marshmallow fondant.

Rice Crispy Jack-O-Lanterns

Use fondant to add color to their faces. 

Rice Crispy Jack-O-Lanterns

I use marzipan for the leaves and stem. 

Have a fun Halloween. 

Free Wallpaper For Your Phone

I took these pictures and I thought I would share them with you. Please feel free to use them as wallpaper for your phone. 

This is the one I'm using right now. 

Phone Wall Paper

 Just copy them and email them to your phone. 

Phone Wall Paper

Then enter them to your gallery and select them.

Phone Wall Paper

Phone Wall Paper

A Wedding Arbor

It’s fun to live in a neighborhood for a long time, you get to watch all the children grow up around you and start their lives. So when I found out one of the girls I watched grow up was getting married and needed an arbor for her wedding I was excited to help.

 She had some flowers in her colors and some greens but not enough to fully cover the arbor. So her mother and I went through our yards gathering what we thought would last.

 We gathered evergreens and boxwood. Then I thought apple branches would be great woven through it. I started a few days before the wedding building the greens, but when it came to the day of the wedding they looked a little wilted.

 Undaunted we gathered more greens and layered them. I then added the flowers, apples and butterflies. 

A Wedding Arbor using many things from the garden.

This is how it came out. 

A Wedding Arbor using many things from the garden.

 The bride loved it, thank goodness.

A Wedding Arbor using many things from the garden.

This Will Make You Smile

In Portugal they have this dancing traffic light. 

What a creative idea. 

Have a great day!

Mosaics-L’Esperance A Beautiful Angel

Made by Atelier Guilbert-Martin 1867-1914

L’Esperance 1897-1898

I love mosaics and I've been seeing many of them in Paris this time. So I will be sharing them throughout the year. I’m going to start the series with this beautiful angel. I hope you enjoy it.

Made by Atelier Guilbert-Martin 1867-1914

L’Esperance 1897-1898

Made by Atelier Guilbert-Martin 1867-1914

L’Esperance 1897-1898

Made by Atelier Guilbert-Martin 1867-1914

L’Esperance 1897-1898

Tiny Shops in Paris

Paris Oldest Candy Store

There are many tiny shops in Paris. There are cheese shops, wine shops, bakeries and meat shops. That's another one of my favorite things about Paris. 

Paris Specialty Store

There are no big-box stores. So part of your day is gathering your foods and visiting along the way. It’s very charming. The bonuses in this are very fresh food that the store owner stands behind and a pleasant walk.

Paris Boutique

Paris Boutique

Paris Butcher 

There are also shoe shops, clothing shops, button shops, hat shops you name it, it’s here.

Paris Condiment Store

Paris Cheese Store

Having so many small stores makes your neighborhood safer. The owners really know what’s going on.

Paris Olive Oil Shop

Chocolatier Paris

When entering a boutique or store be sure to always greet the owner. After looking around make sure to thank them and say goodbye. This is common etiquette in Paris it's important that you do this.

Painting flowers with watercolor

I’m the first to admit that I’m not that great with watercolors but everyone has to start somewhere. And sometimes it’s fun to see people grow rather than be perfect at it. So I’m sharing my process with you.

1)      First I drew a light outline just to get my shapes in the right proportions.

 2)      Then I started adding a little bit of color to determine more shape placement.

               

     3)      Now I use my color to make the angles of the pedals and some of the shapes in the vase.

    4)      Then I determined how much background I wanted to give my piece. I also started defining where I      wanted more color in my pedals. My paintings always look worse before they get better.

                        5)      I just kept adding color and using my strokes to define direction.

    6)      Now I added more darks because in watercolors you have to start light then add the dark's.

     7)      To get my finished piece I used a thin paint brush to go back in and define the pedals with a little darker color and then I added a white where my reflection would be on my vase. Adding white was a cheat if you’re good at watercolor you would've left the white background. (But then again rules are made to be broken and when you’re painting and enjoying yourself  who cares how you get the result you want.  :)

Paris the City of Flowers

                                                                Flower stores in Paris

One of my favorite things about Paris are the flower stores.  They are not like the ones in the United States where all the flowers are locked inside. In Paris the flowers actually drift out into the streets. The flowers are placed like little gardens all along the front of the stores. There are so many flower stores it’s hard to believe that one city can support them all. I guess flowers are part of the romance of Paris. They definitely add beauty to the streets. Here are some of my favorite flower stores.

Paris Flower Stores

Paris Flower Stores

Paris Flower Stores

Paris Flower Stores

Paris Flower Stores

Paris Flower Stores

Paris Flower Stores

Paris Flower Stores

Paris Flower Stores