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

GreatFull and Graceful

Hello to my new friends who read this fabulous blog!
I'm so happy to be joining the talented bloggers who are helping take care of English Muse while Tina's away. First things first...allow me to introduce myself!

My name is Lindsey and I am a graphic designer turned wedding photographer. I blog about all the things that make my days great and full at A GreatFull Day. I love all things pretty and swoon over ruffles, lace, bows, ribbon, frills and the like. Recently I did a fun little post with more about me that you can check out here.

So without further ado, let's get down to the good stuff! From the age of two years old until I was eighteen I danced at a local studio. I loved all styles but the days of the week when I did ballet were always my favorite. Something about putting on a pair of pointe shoes makes one instantly feel pretty and ladylike.


Can't you just imagine she's adjusting a pointe shoe here?

When I found Caroline Seikaly it was like finding a designer who customized her line with my loves in mind! Her gowns remind me of pretty ballerina costumes--so delicate, shimmery and feminine all at once. Gorgeous photography, intricate details, and timeless designs really seal the deal. Do you think that a vow-renewal after only 3 years is an option?



Do pretty dresses, girly frills and all things lady-like make your heart flutter too? Who are some of your favorite designers? I hope my first post adds a little happy to your day. Thanks for having me here...see you soon!

Record The Day

Hello darlings! My name is Alya from Pomegranate and Patchouli and I’m guest blogging here for the lovely Tina. I hope you enjoy my posts over here. Moving on..

Record The Day is a beautiful blog that posts daily collages using images from magazines, scraps (if that’s what she wishes to call them) of paper and jotted notes fastened to record cards that are then stamped with the day’s date.

I love love love her collages. It is such a creative process and each one is better than the other. Think of it like a diary but instead of writing, she uses images.

Take a look around her blog. I promise you, you will love what you see. I’m also a big fan of her other blog Lobster and Swan, which is devoted to her photographs and findings from around the web.

All images from Record The Day

Janne Peters Photography

Hello all — so lovely to meet you! It's Lori of automatism today, happily taking a turn as guest blogger on the always inspiring English Muse while Tina takes a well earned break. In my non-blogging life I'm a collage illustrator — you may have seen the lovely post Tina did about my work a couple of months ago — but in the blog world I'm devoted to whatever I find inspiring, interesting, or simply beautiful in design, art, illustration and other creative fields. Today I'd like to share with you a series of gorgeous magnolia-themed images by one of my favourite photographers, Janne Peters. I hope you enjoy these as much as I do.

LA, from my view.

Hello, I'm Julia, Tina's friend in Paris. A few months ago, Ms. Tina very graciously helped me design my blog, Sugar Pop Tarts. When I heard that my old friend from my days in LA needed help, I wanted to volunteer.



I decided to pull together some pictures that remind me of our hostess' hometown,
Los Angeles.



They were taken by photographer Sam Hessamain.



Aren't they fantastic?

I would love for you to visit my blog, but beware. Don't do it at work. It has the Blogger warning on it...Merci! -- Julia.

Black + White

Hi Everyone, this is Crystal over at Plush Palate - where I blog about fashion, interior design, and style. As you know, Tina will be taking a much deserved little hiatus in the upcoming weeks. So, while she's gone I'll be contributing as a guest blogger! I'm super thrilled to be part of English Muse and to meet all of you!!

For the sake of getting acquainted with each other, here's a little bit about me. I'm a girl who grew up in Seattle, then went to college in Boston, who most recently lived in Italy, and now finds herself in Chicago. I work in publishing during the day and devour all things design in the evening :)

So let's get started with a little inspiration! Where do you find yours? For me it's fashion and interior design. But above all, it's the collision of the two as they inspire one another and endlessly intertwine.

The other day I overheard a conversation on how artists always wear black and interior designers always have all-white homes.

Those words stuck with me and inspired my current color obsession, black + white.

A timeless palette, the two together will never go out of style and always make a strong impression in a home or with an outfit.

In a world full of ambiguity and grey, there's something empowering about surrounding yourself with the confident contrast of these two.

How about you? Do you do black + white?

*images via Skona Hem, Corrie Bond, The Sartorialist, Busy Being Fabulous, emmas designblogg, Porch Light Interiors, From the Right Bank, The Kitchen Designer, Lazareva Valeria flickr, Stockholm Street Style

A little break

My dears, I'm taking a little break from the blog for the rest of July and August. I wish I could tell you that I'm going away to somewhere marvelous. But I'm not. Just staying put amid my ongoing family matters. (Nothing terrible has happened. My dad came home from the hospital today.) I'll still be carrying around my Blackberry, so email me! Meanwhile will you promise to meet me back here after Labor Day? Will miss you...