Friday, July 31, 2009

botanical garden yumminess.

happy friday everyone!

today i want to share some amazing photography of botanical gardens around the world. personally, i am daydreaming about a peaceful stroll through each and every one... enjoy!

montreal botanical gardens (via rifle)

glasgow botanical gardens (via nytimes)

bordeaux botanical garden (via tamara rigney)

birmingham botanical gardens (via john)

to read more from me, visit naturally nina. cheers!

Thursday, July 30, 2009

A Tiny Perfect Loft






Hello — Lori of automatism here again! Today I'm sharing an amazing space that I featured a while ago on my own blog, but one definitely well worth a revisit. This stylish mini-loft is, amazingly, only 57 square metres in size, but it feels as airy and bright as one four times bigger. Architect Philippe Harden bought a partitioned, narrow corridor-like apartment because he loved the view from the large windows, which open onto a park. After two months of work (spent mostly removing doors and walls) he has what you now see here — a serene, light filled environment. Look carefully and you can see how he makes every inch of space work, yet it still feels relaxed and effortless. One of my absolute favourite spaces from Marie Claire Maison.

A Study in Color; Pink


via Glamour (?)

via W Magazine, July 2002


It is certainly a pleasure to guest-post on The English Muse; a blog that has inspired me for many months with its eye-candy. I hope to be able to return the favor and inspire you!

Allow me to introduce myself: I am Alison (aka Mademoiselle Frou Frou) from the Frou Frou Fashionista, which is a luxury lingerie blog that features upscale intimates as seen in photography and in my boutique, Faire Frou Frou (which my mom and I own)!

This post is simply a dedication to the color pink. I think pink gets a bad rap for being too girly or 'frou-frou' (that shouldn't be a bad word!), but the reality is that it is sweet, soothing, and undoubtedly feminine. From fuchsia to pale pink, there's a shade that can work for everyone. Don't you agree?

See you next time with another color dedication!
xox

P.S. - Tina, best wishes to you as you take this time off. Nothing is more important than family.

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

A Visual Cookie Plate









A little pick-me-up for this afternoon, lovelies.

Photos all found on fffound.

Kisses,
Julia

a little bit of love.

hello, hello!

i am so honored to be a guest on tina's fabulous blog today. my name is nina, but my mother almost named me tina, (true story) so we are definitely kindred spirits.

on my own little blog, i write about life's little pleasures, inspiration, but most importantly, love.

and so today, i've decided to share a love note that i wrote to my boyfriend last valentine's day. forgive the schmultz, but he's pretty cool. (p.s. you can click on the image to make it bigger.)
isn't love fun? happy wednesday! so nice to meet you all.
xoxo.

magical photographs.

hello pretties!
first off, i'm so excited to be guest posting on english muse 
while tina is away. i think tina is just a doll 
and like you, i'm a big fan of the blog.

by the way, i'm naomi {known from my blog as taza}. 
you can find out more about me in my little space, 
it's where i blog about my life adventures, 
the man i get to spend forever with & the little things i adore in life.

today i thought i'd gather up my most favorite images 
from around the web to share with you. 
these are the photographs i keep coming back to 
when i need inspiration. the color, the details, the beauty...
to me, they are magical. don't you agree? 

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Women Writers in Photo

Hello Readers of English Muse,

I am Maggie May from Flux Capacitor, married to my love Mr. Curry with whom I have three children- Dakota, Ian and Lola. I am a novelist and poet, so I thought it fitting that my guest blog be full of photos of amazing, fascinating women writers. Let's begin with Queen Poet, Sylvia Plath, and this lovely color photo of her and her children, Frieda and Nicholas. Look at her hair, the braids! I wonder if they're real? Did they even have fake braids back then?





This is Marguriete Duras, the French novelist. I found my first of her novels in a pee smelling used book store and fell in love with her surrealist, gorgeous, engrossing style. She wrote ' The Lover ' , a novel based on her life experience that was turned into an erotic and gorgeous movie. She was a beautiful woman, with a lovely wide brimmed hat here!



I can't tell you who this is! She's the makings of many a post on my blog, my newest hero and obsession....


Anne Sexton! I remember the first time I read the Collected Works...I was in heaven. Her subject matters are nothing less than life, sex, love and death (what else is there? really-) and her poetry is so interesting, so passionate, so good to the brain. She was gorgeous and mysterious and gave readings to throngs of women who were feminists or becoming so. She inspired us and she showed us a way to self expression. She wrote a wonderful poem about women, ' Her Kind '



The glorious, brilliant Joyce Carol Oates. Ah. I remember reading ' We Were the Mulvaney's ' and feeling intimidated: Holy Hell! How could I ever hope to measure up the scope of information on human life in this novel! And so I fell in love. Her novels are a.ma.zing. She has a terrifiyingly human and tactile grasp on life, on our experiences and the ways we fail, the ways we love. I think she looks like a silent film star! Of course, this picture is from the sixties.

Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside!

Hello! My name is Becka, and I will also be guest posting here while the lovely Tina is taking her much deserved break! I am really excited to be a part of such a beautiful and inspiring blog, and to meet all you, dear readers!

A little about me...I am originally from New Zealand, and after a stint in London, I am now living in Vancouver, B.C. with my husband, two cats and lots of art supplies. I split my time between working as a doula and running a little store online with my husband called Bliss In A Teacup. I write a blog of the same name, where I chat about yummy baked goods, thrifting finds, yarn, feminism and the like!

Right, the seaside. It is rather hot here in the Pacific North West at the moment, and I find myself dreaming daily of a trip to the seaside to cool off. Here are some of my favourite shots from a new favourite Flickr pool, Vintage Seaside to swoon over until my next day at the beach!


I love that even in era's where photography was often a traditionally somber affair, there is something about candid seaside snaps that have an inherent exuberance and excitement. So lovely!

Photos via hastingsgraham, lovedaylemon, lance & cromwell, ozfan22 & ioffas