Le Petit Theatre & A Little Love Affair

Hello Boys and Girls!

See how you beam of seeming white,

Is braided out of seven hued light,

Yet in those lucid globes no ray,

By any chance shall break astray,

Hark, how the rolling surge of sound,

Arches and spirals circling round,

Wakes the hush'd spirit through thine ear,

With music it is heaven to hear!

With that go fast into the night,

A moments haste, the slightest fright,

A curtain rises on the two,

She's dressed in pink,

He's dressed in blue.

With love at every corners turn,

Delight!

Good night!

True love doth burn!

Mademoiselle Angelique Du Parc is the object upon which the affections of Monsieur Armande Fleurant are fixed at

the present moment.

He met her, I believe, while she was attending school in the city last winter,

and what with accompanying her to matinees,

taking her to church

and lingering by her side in the parlor,

oftentimes in the evening,

with the gas turned low,

the heart of Monsieur Fleurant gradually was induced to throb

only for the pretty lass from Luxembourg.

She has been very gracious to him

during all the time that he has devoted himself to her,

and has seemed to like him so well that there is really no reason

for doubting that when the climax of the little drama is reached,

and the question asked, she will droop her eyelids,

crimson her cheeks with blushes and whisper "Yes!"

It seems I am busy working on projects that are destined to fly away, by that I mean, a piece be either for a special customer or a variety of publications, and while I am honored and beyond thrilled to be able to create these works for others, when I can create a little piece for my very own collection I am just tickled pink! This is such a piece, I have been trying to finish my Petit Theatre and it's tiny patrons for nearly 2 years now! I would work on it a bit, constructing a wooden shadow box, wallpapering it with 150 year old blue and grey striped silk, wiring it for electricity, weaving a miniscule chandelier, then it was back to "real" work! I smooshed together the teeny Mademoiselle's and Monsieur's, cooked them up and dressed them in my finest bits and scraps and was finally able to finish it up last month!
Note: My next post will be on July 13th, at which time I will share more exciting news!
Adieu, my Lovely Friends, until next we meet!

....and Bullwinkle said to Rocky:

"Watch me pull a rabbit out'a my hat!"

My world is spinning faster and faster all the time!

But I'm loving every minute of it!

Shouting out to the conductor, "Don't stop the merry-go-round, I don't want'a ever get off!"

Back in the fall of 2006 a magical little book was being put together, Crowns & Tiaras, and I was so delighted to have the

opportunity to contribute several of my fanciful headdresses to it.

The theme for this particular paper folly seems a perfect fit for so many of us nowadays, Multitasking!

To quote directly from the book "This tiara is a tribute to all of you who make magic happen every day!"

This piece was constructed entirely out of recycled paper, lots of love and caring, some heavy cardstock,

then embellished with the tiniest bits and pieces of old passementerie, freshwater pearls, lace, millinery flowers and antique rhinestones, there is even the tiniest heart shaped amethyst stone nestled on her stomacher!

This busy lady has three miniature niches built right into her skirt, specifically to house the little ones, to keep them under foot, all the while allowing the children to go about their day and keep up

with the very important business of childhood, reading books, playing music and scattering flowers about!

A sturdy paper head band keeps her tiara securely fastened in place and as you can see, she did very well pull that

proverbial bunny rabbit out of her hat, "Oh, it was nothing, just a little simple everyday magic that's all!"

So when things start to get hectic, and it's looking like you need a tiny break to unwind from it all,

don't be afraid to kick back, put your feet up, break out the champagne and gumballs,

spread a blanket on the lawn and count blades of grass, ( when I lollygag, I really do it up right! )

Just do whatever makes you happy! Take a little "ME" time!

For complete and detailed instructions on how to create this and many more wonderful designs by a host of fabulous mixed media artists, pick up a copy of Crowns & Tiaras. It is one of my most favorite books on the shelf and believe me, you will be ever so glad you did! And on that note: my schedule of late has gotten so full, in order catch up, my next post will be on June 29th, 2 weeks from today. There are some very exciting things in the works, a whole new chapter in my creative career is unfolding and soon I will be able to share them all with you! Adieu my friends, until next time!

A Small Tall Tail

Sometimes my mind starts talking and I miss everything I'm trying to look at, or listen to because I always inevitably, eventually join in on the conversation. I am my own worst distraction!

That being said, let me tell you a small story, a happy story, one with no sorrow or sadness or despair, only loveliness and lovely things. Written upon pink paper with the pinkest of inks.

There once was a Duchess long ago who in the third year of her reign, resolved that she simply must acquire some of those miraculous,

marvelous, large and healthy South Sea ones... pearls you know,

ever since she had passed by and heard the faint murmurs and laughter coming from the other room,

the news travels fast, it always does... you know, thanks to the girls whose job it was to spread it!

It was carried on the trade winds, across the wide world, straight from her favorite cousins tongue, Dowager Pomegranate... you remember, the one that collected the most beautiful garnets from only the richest and deepest mines, just because those precious gems

looked just like her name sounded. Red, red...you know. But how did she know of the splendiferous morsels?
Yes, shall I tell you, then tell you I will, it just happened that they were riding upon the back of a two humped camel that came lumbering over the stretch of sands most commonly known as Time.

Her favorite Auntie on her fathers side, Empress O'Luster did pass it along swiftly, only moments after she over heard.

Secretly the Empress O'Luster wished for them too, and would gladly toss aside the miniscule, but very rare Pink Bay pearls she wore.

Knowing this she sought to make a bargain with her two favorite nieces on her mothers side... called Rose and Dahlia... you know, the ones with the sweet little puppy... Juliette II !

But as luck would have it, that pup had a mind of it's own and those girls wouldn't dare take a step with out first passing it by her, the tiniest and wisest of all the good royals, not to mention 4 pounds of cuteness!

"I will not trade my priceless black pearls for those! These for those?! Oh no, not I !"

You see they are special, special indeed, and were passed down to me through the ages by my favorite Lady, the beautiful temptress, the Lady McRedress,

and were passed down to her by her very own mother... you know, the one that ran away with the King! I suspect it was because you just know, she must have felt so beautiful in that dress and who could resist?! He could not! He was weak!

But way before her they belonged to the one that she trusted, the one that was true, the Countess VonBluedress! And it is to say, to say that they may have even been worn by the Grandest and fairest of all, the one we remember the most and the best, Great Grand Duchess, yes, Great Grand Duchess Juliette III !

So you see they will stay, safe here with me and never shall I regret, of a trade on the wind or a slip of the lip, I'll be happiest to THE END!

Moral of the story: sometimes the best things in life are right under your nose! For me it's my tiny crown jewel, a blue eyed chihuahua named Juliette!
Visuals details: A pair of antique pearl and rhinestone grape cluster shoe clips, fancy collars I created using garnets, pearls and various other gems I purchased from a traveling salesman.
A circa 1902 robins egg blue cotton baby doll dress, in just the right size for her tiny highness! The portrait board in the Victorian gold leaf frame was created from an 18th century engraving, applied to a board canvas with a hole cut out where the face would be, then lightly embellished with a few scattered millinery flowers.
Note: Art comes to me in free flowing streams of rushes and gushes. In abundant, tingling electrical currents, in darting flashes of energy, like lighting in a bottle. Meaningful, bountiful, always a plenty. Perfectly formed fantastical tiny droplets of dreams waiting to be transformed into tangible objects!
Disclaimer: I am writing this at 4 in the morning, be gentle, I plead!