Have you recovered from the madness of the holidays? I'm glad they're over. Now if only I could muster the motivation to take down the xmas tree...This morning, I finished reading Madame de Staël, by Francine du Plessix Gray. It was a wonderful little book about one of France's most charismatic Revolutionary figures, Germaine de Staël. Napoleon tried to exile her. But she always managed to slip back into Paris where she found new ways to torment the emperor, usually by writing books and pamphlets that mocked him. She hosted one of the most exclusive salons around, where intellectuals and artists met to discuss politics and culture. Think Arianna Huffington, but with petticoats.
Now I want to read every book I can find about her! Hope you're having a lovely day! I'm suddenly on deadline on a story..will be back shortly. Xmas tree will have to wait till tomorrow...xoxo
Hello my dears, I'm just returning from a long weekend with family outside Sacramento! I hope you had a lovely New Years. I'll resume blogging tomorrow, once I get my act together. xoxo
Well there's no sense in recapping all the rotten things that happened in 2009. I'm just glad to be looking at 2010...Thank you for reading my blog. You kept me going this year. Here's to a better year for everyone!!
PS: This lovely photo is by Persisting Stars.
Gold ballerina flats with gold grosgrain ribbons. (The rest of the outfit is over here!)
Happy New Year!!
PS: The photo above was taken with an iPhone and then polarized with the free desktop application, Polardroid! Can you tell the difference??!
The sorts of things I collect and can never part with no matter how useless they are.
My dears, I wanted to tell you that I'm guest blogging this week at Daydream Lily! Please come visit. I just posted a really sweet Vimeo film featuring Peppermint magazine covergirl Rhiannon of Liebemarlene Vintage (that's her in the photo above).
Let me know what you think of the film!
....blissed from holiday loveliness. Like this:
A camellia, plucked on a Christmas walk.
Finding a wonderful new blog, the Little Deer, featuring this beautiful photo of a girl in sunlit hallway filled with paintings, drawings and photographs...And this charm to fight the blues:
Saying goodbye to my friend Liss at Daydream Lily. I will miss her during the several weeks that she's traveling...
But I will think of her visiting this exotic and beautiful place.
I love holidays for the simple pleasure of listening to gorgeous music, like the harp masterpieces played by Catrin Finch...
A sample: Aria Mit 30 Veränderungen ...
The perfect music to accompany an afternoon of reading. Yesterday, I re-read a few of my favorite stories in this book, Interesting Women...
Andrea Lee writes so beautifully: "We pause alongside the back garden wall, where the stone urns are full of yellowing geraniums. From here, on those rare clear blue days that sometimes descend on Turin without warning, one can see green slopes sweeping down to the city; streets and buildings and factories as if in a diorama; and beyond the Po, rising into the sunlight, the snowcapped wall of the Alps."
Love.
PS: I'm very proud to tell you that I took the top photo of the camellia with my iphone camera!
I went out searching today for an open coffee shop to get my afternoon latte. I happened upon this little alley garden. A few snapshots:
The camellias are already blooming, along with the last roses of the season...Hope you had a lovely holiday...
Sending you warm holiday wishes! Thank you so much for visiting my blog this year. I started English Muse in November 2008, but I didn't really start blogging on it until Christmas week last year. So, I guess it's my blog's first birthday, as well. I'm sending you all virtual hugs for helping me through one of the hardest years of my life. May 2010 be a year of wonderful new beginnings! luv u.
Photo above from the Cherry Blossom Girl's Christmas in Paris set.
In addition to being a fantastic, award-winning photographer, my friend Lori Shepler is turning her artistic abilities to another medium: painting.
Examples of her colorful work:
And one of her celebrity portraits (my favorite!) of the singer Shakira:
Lori was caught up a year ago in the insanity of the ongoing layoffs at the Los Angeles Times. But she, too, is creating a beautiful new life. Her paintings are for sale and you can see her full portfolio {here}!
A week or so ago, I asked everyone what they were reading. And now, with all your responses reviewed (and savored), I'm happy to announce that the official English Muse reading list on Amazon has been updated! It's in no particular order and there are now more than 160 books on the list. But I think it reflects the breadth and depth of your interests. I feel very, very lucky to have such smart readers.
Many among us are Janeites, of course! But you're also interested in a mix of modern literature, current affairs (like the treatment of women in the Middle East) and the gorgeous and colorful culture of India. My little graphic above -- featuring model Karlie Kloss from the August 09 issue of French Vogue -- includes a list of all the books on my nightstand at the moment.
My wish for you for this holiday is that you have plenty of time to read whatever you find interesting, beautiful and thought provoking.
Here's our Amazon link: English Muse wishlist.
xoxo
