Still life

                                                                

This place is still alive, I think. I want to do more, always, more creation, more writing, more reading, more music but work and worries have drained me empty those past few months. I'm back from a break in the countryside and hopefully worries are to be over, so now I can focus on what I want to do. And I feel an urge for art, I want to go back to Orsay and go to the Art Nouveau section as soon as I can, I want to go to the Louvre and see the Egyptian animals exhibit and I have a list of exhibits for 2015. So there should be art and design coming soon. Keep an eye open. I hope you all have a wonderful time with loved ones, celebrating Christmas or not.

Practicing, playing, writing

As soon as I have a moment alone in the flat, that's what I've been up to. I really hope something is going to come out of it this time!

Golden hour

Try a little bit of kindness

This is from a few months ago and from the other side of the world, quite literally as it is coming from Australia. It was sent to me by Ally from The Vintage Valley who I have been following her for quite some time on Instagram - how, I couldn't tell, from following someone who liked someone pictures who's following someone else I found her, you know how it's like - and I remember talking to her for the first time at New Years Eve. I was in London, coming home late and it was already the next day for her, recovering from her night out, that's what fascinates me and excites me about the Internet, being in touch with people from all around the world, from the other side of the world. And when your own neighbour will ignore you, someone hundreds of miles away will be kind to you. But Ally tries to bring that to her own Australian neighbourhood by dropping 'love letters' in people post box. I love it! I told her so and a few weeks later - it takes time to cross the planet - I had my own in the post. And when I deal with everyday life in Paris and the stress of living in a big city - it's not a rough place but I constantly see people being attacked verbally, emotionally and shockingly more than you would expect, physically, those acts of kindness are good for the soul.

Weekend en Bretagne

I haven't been up to much lately apart from work, work, work and more work, which led me to be too lazy in the evenings to do anything (it does pay off though and I have had a lot of exciting news in the past few days). I don't get any holidays this summer but I managed to get a long weekend to go back to Brittany. I hadn't been back to the house since we left and it felt a bit odd to go back to what use to be our bedroom, our stuff, our life not so long ago. It feels like it has been a lot more than 8 months, it all went so quickly in Paris, so much has happened and it's a bit terrifying to be that young (well young enough) and feel like Time is slipping away at an incredible speed. Those four days in the countryside were a well needed break from work, city madness and Time. Four days of stillness, wind, waves and foxes. They are my all time favourite neighbours, except when they cry/scream in the night and they become the most terrifying, creepy, making-you-feel-uneasy type of neighbours. Oh and the ocean, I simply can't live without it.

Back from the dead

Since the last time I've been on this blog, I could almost say on the Internet full stop, I had my mother in law visiting, went to London for my best friend's wedding, I worked a six day week, saw Jack White live twice, carried on working the following week as normal with the flu and I have been napping ever since as it seems I cannot catch up on very much needed sleep time. I can now fall asleep anywhere, anytime. Except in my bed at 4am. Obviously. I have also managed to get a few days off work for a very much needed trip to Brittany and the seaside in August, spent too much money in American Apparel, considering spending far too much money in my own shop - do I need a 275€ midi length leather skirt? Even though it's absolutely stunning and perfect? - and I have been thinking about carrier moves and about the fact that I love fashion more and more lately, I'm excited by it again. I think the previews of the coming collections have something to do with it.

What have you been up too?

Three.

Time flies. We didn't do anything special this year, just time together, nice home cooked dinner... I guess now the wedding anniversary beats this one. We have champagne ready for the 18th of August! I hope you all had a beautiful day with the ones you love.

Two years on and a song

Two years ago I wrote on this blog for the very first time. I was sitting on the edge of my sister's bed who wasn't home, using her computer as I didn't have a working one at the time while my - now - husband was laying on a couch with a migraine. I was in North London. It's an odd feeling to be able to know exactly where you were and what you were doing two years ago. Well at least on such a random day, I guess wedding days and such don't count here. I can't really remember why I started a blog. I was reading a lot of them at the time and I guess I wanted part of it. I didn't know where I was going with this, I'm still not sure, but it's amazing to be able to keep track so clearly of those past two years. So much has happened. I got married, went to Tennessee for the first time - and hopefully not the last - moved from London to Brittany in the hope to farm, moved from Brittany to Paris for the time being. I often feel like I'm not doing anything with my life but I guess I'm not doing that bad. But I know there is so much more I need to do. But for now I'm tired from a busy day at work finishing at 9pm so I'm off. Thank you for coming by and reading. I'd love to hear from you!

The Black Belles - Velda

Turning 26

Another year has past. I cannot believe that this was already a year ago. I hadn't imagined back then that a year later I would be living in Paris once again after all this time in London. This year was different, I got up to go to work in the morning, went home to our very own place, and was greeted by a birthday lunch and champagne. This year was supposed to be a no gift year, I guess buying a fancy pants sofa and coffee table was part of the gift. But I still got a lovely cactus, named Lenny, and a book I've been wanting for a while. How I love 50's design. It seems that the Ladurée cake, le Divin, and drinks at Le China have become a tradition. Is it a tradition after two times? Birthdays for me are like a January the first, now is the time to make a resolution, be a better version of myself (I gave up on trying to be someone else, a healthier, more positive and less procrastinating person, that is not just me). Chocolate detox is the first step, but I keep wondering if I'll ever feel like an adult. I am married, I am 26, I have a job and a flat in Paris, responsibilities and I still feel like a terrified kid!

No more rain please

I've been wanting to take pictures of our flat for a week now. We have three windows, which is a lot for a room that size, but it also means that we always have light coming in. So I thought pictures would look great. It'd be true if it would stop raining and if the sun would come out. So instead I've been lightening candles and drinking tea. We have things to do, we're still living more or less out of our suitcases and we really need blinds or curtains or something for those three windows, but it's a pre-birthday weekend so I'm allowed to just enjoy and relax. I'm looking forward to finally be a bit more settled on those shores and get back into a routine, having a working Internet connection is surely going to help. I have many outfits I want to draw and many pictures I want to take. So hopefully it'll soon be up on here!

Moving In

We've got the keys to our flat. Busy week ahead, we are moving in Sunday, so exciting!

Studio living

All pictures are by Hilda Grahnat. I do not own the rights, please visit a wonderful blog.

So we are searching for a flat in Paris. We settled on a studio rather than two rooms, simply because we can't afford a big place and one big bright room makes more sense than two cramped small rooms. We saw a place on Tuesday evening and we want it, we've been waiting to hear back - paperwork and all is as usual a joy, France administration has a serious problem - and we are anxious. We want to move on with our lives and for the first time - we are going to celebrate our two years anniversary in a few month ahem - have a place of our own. Sure we are living just the two of us right now, in a 12 square meters room with a shower, a table, a bed and a sink. Toilets are shared with the other rooms on the floor. Ah the charm of Parisian life. So yes, the flat would be good, the kitchen is tiny, the bathroom is tiny, but the main room is bright and clean, with three windows and a view. And a lift, those seven floors here are soon going to be the death of me!

Now that we saw a place, we are starting to mentaly furnish it. The kitchen is fitted so no need to worry about a fridge and hob, no oven though. So it's all about the main living space. We want to keep it minimalist with clean shapes and cuts but we also want to thrift for chairs and a table. When I think of furnishing a small space I think of Hilda's beautiful place. I've been reading her blog for so long now - I think it was even before I moved to London four years ago - and I always loved her flat. I'm ready to move in. I love the feel of it and I want to have that feel in our flat. We are planning on investing in a sofa bed to make a big living room out of the room, somewhere we can have people coming around, somewhere we don't feel like we are living in our bedroom. Oh and the light coming in! I really hope we are getting it. Meanwhile I'll keep looking up for inspiration. Any tips on furnishing a small space?

Birds and flowers

Life seems to be slowly falling into places. Very slowly as we still don't have a flat, but I guess the main reason – besides the fact it's the hardest thing to do in Paris – is that we needed to figure out if that's what we wanted, if we wanted to stay here. It seems that for now it is, work is giving me opportunities I'm quite exited about so I'm curious to try that path into the fashion industry before going to our farm dreams. People sometimes laugh when I talk about that, it's the last thing they expect, but then I talk about the ocean, the salty air and the fields and they understand. I still wish I could have it all, a couple weeks in Paris, a couple weeks in London, a couple weeks in Brittany. I must remember to buy a euromillion ticket tomorrow...

The pictures are from last weekend at the bird and flower market near Saint-Michel on l'île de la Cité. It is no Colombia Road though, and the birds in cages were just too sad. I love birds too much to have them in a cage.

Le Château du Taureau

Photos from last September. Photos of a sunny day on which we drove to the coast to take a boat. Early morning in the cold foggy salty sea air. The best kind of mornings. Memories of a day with people that are important to me, my other half and Aurélie, we share the same aching soul. Memories that will stay with me.