My Little Paris

My Little Paris…

One thing guaranteed to put a lump in my throat or bring a tear to my eye, is the emotional, astounding magic of Paris. To think my first visit was only 5 years ago, and now I am in love. this post is an ode to all things Parisian that capture my heart in some shape of form, my own little mood board of Paris..I ope you enjoy looking at it as much as I do

Since starting this post, I have been collecting beautiful and inspiring images on my Pinterest from more stunning visuals a have a look at:

http://pinterest.com/georginahooper/a-n-o-d-e-t-o-p-a-r-i-s/

http://pinterest.com/georginahooper/s-i-m-p-l-y-c-h-a-n-e-l/

Sephora

…And here are a few of the things I love about Paris and all things Parisian.

Sephora, yes I know it is a French brand, but it was originally founded in Paris in 1970. By Dominique Mandonnaud. What do I love about Sephora, the in house brand, the colours, scents, neatness and simplicity of the design would make anyone fall in love with it, and it comes in every colour of the rainbow!

Laudree Macaron

How beautiful are these little creations, and such decadent delicaices . the best bit? The fact that with each new season, Ladurée pays tribute to its most famous creation by creating a new flavor, with this seasons flavor being….

Amelie

One of the most magical, whimsical films I have watched, it’s probably my favorite along with Hugo! Set in Montmartre, the scenery is stunning, breathtaking in fact. The story is about a young waitress, and how her imagination kept her company as an only child and into her adulthood. The regulars in the café she works in are so interesting and eccentric the story line feels closer to home than you first might think....It is beautiful, quite simply beautiful.

Crème Brûlée

Just simply Crème  Brûlée… my little wold wouldn’t be the same without it…mmm

Escargots at Le Procope, in rue de l'Ancienne Comédie

At first I didn’t realize there were two entrances to this magical, enchanting and historical restaurant. The main entrance on the rue de l’Ancienne-Comedie and a “back” entrance that is part of a charming and intricate passage called Le Passage de Cour de Commerce Saint-Andre.

Le Procope is a magical place to experience the tradition of Paris and the decadency of the 18^th century.  I felt like I had been transported back in time, it helped that I experienced this in in the throws of the moonlit night, taking in the scent of perfume and dreamily people watching the elegant Parisians walk by….

Edith Piaf….La Vie En Rose

The song is one of the most moving I have ever listened to, the minute I heard it at a very young age I was hooked. Edith Piaf; one of the most talented and inspirational artists of all time to me

How very beautiful is Paris at Christmas.....

Cottage Industry: Polka Dot Cloud: important info update

Hello everyone, it appears that I didn't set up my Facebook page for Polka Dot Cloud properly! Silly me. So if you have looked at it and liked it can you pop back on and like it so you get all the lovely updates of the latest creations!  

Here is the link:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Polka-Dot-Cloud/249474715173763?ref=hl

Love for Liberty

I love Libertys, to me it is one of the most magical places to visit, with a rich sense of antiquity, creativity and decadence all encompassed under one very, very stunning roof.

As you can see, I have started, slowly to archive and categorise my posts and blogs into some sort of coherent order, and this one is my very own ode to Libertys and all things wonderful about it.

First on my agenda….

Professor Richard Weston

How AMAZING are these scarves?? 

They are so unique, I love the fact that they are based upon scans of minerals, fossils and stones, which professor Richard Weston has found in Wales.

The fusion of science and fashion, is fast becoming a fundamental in fashion design, with sustainability and new innovative approaches to the fibres that even make up the fabrics being a large factor.

With scarves being a must have item in the British weather, I think I had better get saving for one!

http://www.liberty.co.uk/lifestyle-fabrics/article/fcp-content

http://www.vogue.co.uk/news/2011/04/21/professor-richard-weston---designer-interview-and-profile

http://www.liberty.co.uk/blog/5039/meet-richard-weston/

Exhibitions...Exhibitions...Exhibitions...

My Favourite Toy: Hove Museum & Art Gallery

'My Favourite Toy'... instantly the name appeals to me and my little world of quirky creations. . I went to see this at the beginning of this week (the exhibitions ends on the 6th of november 2012)

Its so true, our toys from our childhood, do inspire our imagination, I remember my favourite toy was a hand puppet, that was a hedgehog character, and I cherished and adored her, she went everywhere with me, so much so that she was unrecognisable as a hedgehog after lasting a whole childhood with me, with many bald patches and worn trims! My aunt even knitted her a little blue scarf and hat one Christmas.

This exhibition, will re-ignite the nostalgia and cherished memories of your favourite toy.

http://www.brighton-hove-rpml.org.uk/whatson/pages/myfavouritetoy.aspx

Make Believe Land

Toy Thetare

 Punch &Judy at Brighton Museum & Art Gallery

 Burma Puppet

 My little Theatre: the Owl and Kitty Cat..

...and their friend Cerius the Centipede...

The Imagination: the most bespoke and tailor made theatre you will ever experience…

I love the Theatre; I find it the one place I can dissolve and become anonymous and yet able to watch an incredible story come to life before my very eyes.

The thought of being able to recreate any dream, thought or story to life though props, and a theatre set sends the mind into array.

It is such a beautiful make-believe land, in winter and on most rainy days I like to spend my time wandering through the second floor of Brighton Museum and Art Gallery.

The Performance Gallery is a place where your imagination can really come to life, it’s as if life is still breathed into these puppets, the water puppets are amongst one of my favourites. But the richness of the round the world culture in the array of puppets is truly astounding, Punch and Judy have some great friends in this galley!

And who could ever forget Pinocchio?

So a few weekends ago, I made my own maquettes for my own Make-Believe Land and theatre and these were the results, its work in progress, but ignited the imagination…so watch out for puppet posts soon…

Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations

"Tear" dress

Skeleton Dress for the Circus collection

 "Bug" necklace

Café Society

What a beautiful whimsical era…the café society. How decadent and carefree the 1930s were.

I wish I could visit The Met's Spring 2012 Costume Institute exhibition, Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations, gives a superb insight into this, I feel like I’ve been transported into one of the most superb and magical eras of all time…

Fair enough the Italian designers are both from different eras, but truly their work is breathtaking! Simply breathtaking…

I love the fact that the galleries are set out into 7 themed sections/galleries: "Waist Up/Waist Down," "Ugly Chic," "Hard Chic," "Naïf Chic," "The Classical Body," "The Exotic Body," and "The Surreal Body.

Ever since I first saw a piece of Schiaparelli’s craftsmanship in a fashion design book in the library many many years ago, I have adored Schiaparelli (with my love of all things Parisian, she worked in Paris from I think the 1920s until the fashion house closed in the 1950’s)

What I love the most and find the most inspiring is that her work was closely associated with the Surrealist movement, my favorite piece being the "Tear" dress, the Skeleton Dress for the Circus collection  and "Bug" necklace she created in 1938…stunning…simply stunning…

http://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2012/impossible-conversations/about-the-exhibition

Hugo

I had the privilege at the weekend of being introduced to the film Hugo by my twin…it is amazing!!!

Truly one of the most inspiring and intriguing films I have watched. (Probably also something to do with my undying love of Paris and all things Parisian)

So much so it has inspired my latest collection of collages…. coming soon… these are my favourite images of Georges Méliès Work, so beautiful...so, so beautiful

A cottage industry in the making...

My Little Cottage Industry

Having researched, pondered, tried and tested many different approaches to getting my little toy factory off the ground, and boring my poor dad, child and partner (and anyone that came in a mile radius of me) senseless about how frustrating it all was, my lovely dad mentioned the phrase Cottage Industry, which pretty much sums it up!

A Cottage Industry is where products are made at home rather than in a factory, thus allowing them to be more bespoke and not mass-produced on such a high volume, as it literally is handmade at home.

And with that in mind, I would like to proudly launch my (revamped, renamed, restructured) Cottage Industry!!! Allow me to introduce Polka Dot Cloud!!!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Polka-Dot-Cloud/352438334831992