Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Some pictures to share

Here are some pictures of Paris that I took

This is Place de la Concorde



This is the famous wide avenue Champs Elysees it was a cold and windy day but not so cold as England
Another view of Place de la Concorde a bit brighter now



A street artist at work

Had to rest my legs after all that walking

Who could come away without the picture of this famous landmark? Whenever I have been to Paris I have always taken one picture of it.

Tuesday, May 30, 2006

'Paris' magic never wanes

I got back last evening from Paris. I have always loved Paris so the magic never wanes for me whenever I visit it. I love the lovely tree lined boulevards the beautiful buildings and the soft french accents.
We just walked and walked and didn't actually visit any museums or other places of interest as we had seen those already. I would have liked to have gone to a museum but thought I wouldn't put my husband through that as visiting museums is not his favourite pass time. We did go to Pompedu and looked at it from the outside. My husband was quite intrigued by the building.
On Monday I met up with Isabelle. I was so thrilled to meet her. She was exactly as I had imagined her to be. Petite, lovely and has such beautiful hair and above all as a person she is lovely. She made special time to take us to some of the lovely fabric and trim stores inspite of her tight schedule.
We met at the Opera metro station. I was so scared that I would miss her that I kept staring at every girl that resembled even remotely like Isabelle. At one point I nearly ran behind a girl who had beautiful hair like Isabelle and was petite and wearing glasses. Whew! it was a close call I am sure I would have freaked that girl if I had approached her. But Isabelle was so sure she would recognise me that she didn't even say where at Opera we would meet. Suddenly I saw her appear beside me like magic and all was well from then onwards. She took us to Bouchara and the other fabric shops. The trims were lovely in Bouchara but I had to restrict myself to a few since they were pricey. I did manage to get some lovely fabrics and suede from Sacré Coeur fabric shops. The choice there was amazing and all under one roof. Isabelle bought some lovely fabric for herself as well. All too soon it was time for us to part. I do wish so much that we had had more time Isabelle. Next time when you come to London we can perhaps have a meal together and chat or if you have time you can come home. If we come to Paris we will make more time to spend together and we would love to meet Seb too.
Here is Isabelle and me outside on the street where they sell trims and fabrics

Gifts from Isabelle
Isabelle gave me this lovely antique lace. I simply adore it. I wanted something like this so much but because they were pricey I didn't buy any. Isabelle you must have read my mind.

This is a lovely scented box of soaps. I don't think I can pick up the courage to use them. I will perhaps put them inbetween my cloths. That way they will keep my cloths beautiful scented and will not melt away.



Earlier that weekend my husband and I went to one of the big flea markets. It was very interesting. The antiques section intrigued me a lot. There were so many things I would have liked to have bought but ended up buying some antique lace and tiny silk buttons. The silk buttons are a bit soiled but I think I can dye them since they are white. They should be ok then. I would like to wash the lace but I am not sure if I can do it with out spoiling it. Will have to ask the experts if it is ok to wash. If anyone knows could you tell me if I can wash it.

Thursday, May 25, 2006

Paris here I come!

I am going to Paris for the weekend. This weekend is the Bank Holiday week here. Everyone just waits for the long weekend. It sort of puts everyone into a summery mood. Although the weather has not been anything like summer. It has been raining, windy and cold. There's nothing new about that I guess. It is a typical English weather. I hope the weather will be a bit better in Paris. I am so looking forward to the weekend. The icing on the cake will be I will get to meet Isabelle. We are going to meet up and ofcourse visit the fabric shops. Isabelle has been kind enough to fit me in in her busy schedule on Monday. In France it is a normal working day.

I would like to thank everyone for visiting my blog and putting some lovely comments. Take care all and I will be back with some more pictures and stories from Paris.

Sunday, May 21, 2006

Pottery and heads





Well I have not been doing anything very interesting lately. So many other things on my mind. Just showing you a couple of heads of which one is for a swap and the other for a project I can't tell you about yet. Some hand made pottery that I got from Italy. I liked those very much as they were hand made by this artist who litterally worked behind the shop front. I saw many pottery shops but they all seemed to be made commercially. These have the natural blemishes that one would expect when they are hand made which makes it all the more interesting and quaint. The artist has taken some of the designs from old Roman tile patterns that were found in some ruins.

Monday, May 15, 2006

Blooming


Yesterday I looked out of my window and saw this creeper in full bloom. It looked so pretty so I thought I would share. Unfortunately I don't know the name for it but it is fairly common in this part of the world.

Friday, May 12, 2006

Free pattern links

Ok yahoo is being funny again so I am posting these free pattern links here.
I like the one with the pincushsion very much.

http://www.marcusbrothers.com/makeit/projects/gypsy_pin_cushions/index.html

http://www.caron-net.com/designerfiles/desmayfiles/maychrt.html

http://www.sewing.org/enthusiast/html/esb_man_in_the_moon.html

Saturday, May 06, 2006

The Italian experience

We drove a lot around Amalfi Coast which has some spectacular scenaries. The roads were very windy and narrow and the drivers as mad as the Indian drivers but we survived and here I am all in one piece to tell the tale LOL!
Here is a typical village narrow road and the people still park on the road even on bends!


This is Positano a typical village nestled on the cliff side.


Another view of Positano. Residents living here generally walk up and down the steps that are built on the cliffs to get to the main town down below. It keeps them fit I guess.

The Church in Amalfi.

This is Capri where the rich and famous live. We had some delicious Icecream here but paid double the price for it than in Sorrento.



We visited Pompei and just thought it was amazing.
This is where the gladiators practiced.

These are the bodies of people found during the excavation. They are preserved by casting them in plaster.

The arena where all the important events took place


A fresco so beautifully painted



The Vesuvius in the horizone


View from Sorrento of Vesuvius

Thursday, May 04, 2006

I am back

I got back on Monday from India. I am slowly catching up with things. I must have got some sort of bug on my way back as I have been feeling pretty grotty for the past few days. The weather in Chennai was too hot. The temperatures were soaring and touching 105 degrees. May be I have got a touch of that hot sun. My head keeps aching and my limbs too and I have lost appetite. Keep wanting to drink something as my throat keeps drying up. So I am trying to drink lots of water and juice.

My trip to Sorrento was wonderful. We had a great time going around the Amalfi coast and visiting Pompei. The scenary is absolutely stunning. Have many photos and I will post them a bit later when I feel up to it.

For now I have a picture of the handmade paper that I bought in India. The cream one is made with banana leaves and the other two have boughgenvillia(wrong spelling) leaves embedded in it they are lovely.





My sitting room at last has curtains. Not a good photo but here it is anyway.



Will post more once I am up to it.