forest magic, tents, a bit of HP and a sneak peek

It's been three years since the last time we went camping and I have been dreaming about pitching a tent among the redwoods again.

These pictures of our tent are from my favorite camping trip to Big Sur four years ago. We went in November and it was just beautiful. I love camping in Fall when the weather is cooler and the leaves have already turned colors. Big Sur is the quintessential California coastal town. Quirky, artsy, down to earth and curiously magical. It's one of my favorite places.

We had the best campsite on this trip. Tucked away in a quite spot between giant redwood trees. Our family tent is HUGE. 'Too big to be allowed', lol, which is why my son and I named our 10x16 Coleman tent 'Hagrid'. But I love this tent...well I love all tents. It has a hinged door that swings open, these huge wings that make a cozy front porch and 2 dividers inside that create 3 separate areas.

When you camp here in Fall the entire forest floor is covered with dried leaves instead of dirt, creating a soft carpet that is magical against the lush evergreens. I remember sneaking out of our tent early in the morning...probably to go to the restroom, and taking this picture of our campsite. And I think my most favorite part of camping is waking up as the sun comes up and watching the sunlight slowly filter through the walls of our tent and then stepping outside and breathing in the crisp forest air. Pure bliss.

But I also love to stay up at night, curled up in a blanket just outside of our tent with my candle lantern and watching the little village of campers nearby. Tents of all sizes and shapes softly lit by fading campfires fascinate me. I imagine all sorts of fanciful things...like finding a circus tent deep in the woods!

Anyway I have been crazy busy. Making lots of out of town trips, painting a little and most of all being immersed in all things Harry Potter as Sebastian and I gear up for next week's opening day for DH2. We have our tickets to the movie marathon. Yes...we will be watching 8 films back to back! Movies 1 to 4 on Wednesday, then 5 to 7 on Thursday and finishing with DH2 at midnight. It's going to be insane but we had to do it of course.

Oh and here's a little sneak peek at the fairy shoe I made for Wendy's Fairy Shoe Swap. I wanted to have it done early because of all the stuff I have going on this month. I'll post more once all the swapping is done.

Here it is all wrapped up and ready to send out.

Wait...one more thing. Yesterday was the London premiere for DH2. We watched a 4 hour live stream and this is a video of the very end when the cast, filmakers and JK Rowling gave their final speeches. It was amazing, touching and it made me cry. I don't know how I'm going to make it through the movie next week!

I hope you're all having a great Summer so far!

signs of the season

I know it's early August. I can tell  by the sounds in my neighborhood....kids enjoying their summer break, lawnmowers breaking the early morning silence nearly everyday, some sort of motorized watercraft reving it's engine down at the river...it's clearly the middle of Summer.

But I mentioned before that we're having a milder than usual season this year and that's added to my ever growing anticipation for Autumn. Maybe it's our Practical Magic Fall Blog Party. I've been brewing up all sorts of ideas for my post as well as trying to come up with a party giveaway. Both would have a Fall theme so I've been going through old magazines and books for inspiration.

Michael's already put out their Autumn things a few weeks ago although surprisingly they don't have as much Halloween out as they normally would by this time (or is it just me?)

I broke down during yesterday's visit and bought this year's first addition to my crow collection. How could I resist a glitter covered crow and I HAD to use that 40% off coupon for something! Plus, doesn't he look fab on this wire candelabra I found at the thrift store for $3? I think I should be truly inspired now and those ideas will start pouring out like warm cider and hot buttered rum any minute. And just in case you're dreaming of a Halloween Soiree in the woods like I am here are a few of my favorite inspirations from Country Living.

random thoughts, happy places and the one that got away

Oh nooo, lost 1 follower. Where do lost followers go I wonder? Hmmm. Is there a bus or ship for lost followers? Do they give you peanuts? Is the water free?

Do they get on a stagecoach and head west?

Just being silly.

I've told my husband that if he ever discovered I've run off somewhere there are 3 places I'd probably run away to. I've had an odd obsession with these for a while and when I'm having one of my yucky days these are the happy places I drift away to. Of course I'd take my son ( if he's still young enough that is) and my kitty Luna. I'd live the life of a brilliant artist (most likely a starving one) and give a home to all the homeless kitties I could find. Long shot but I can dream. These are my 3 happy places:

1.San Miguel de Allende

An artsy Spanish colonial city in Mexico filled with American, Canadian and European expats.

2.New Orleans, Louisiana

Mmmm...beignets at the Cafe du Monde.

3.England

Land of Jane Austen and Harry Potter.

And because it's my list I'm cheating and adding a 4th one!

4.Big Sur, California

Almost in my own backyard. The classic California bohemian town.

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Well I think I signed up for enough challenges the next few months.  I'm hoping they'll give me the creative push I'm looking for. I'm working on the paper dress challenge this week and since we had another rainy day today I worked on my Mad Tea Party setup.

Okay, time to scrounge up dinner for everyone. What about you?

Where's your happy place(s)?

daydreaming in tomatoland

Well I've thoroughly changed things around here and I think that's part of what I was looking for. A change.

The doodle and daydreams theme surprisingly proved to be very enlightening. I've  been trying to figure out what my creative 'thing' is. I have a bad habit of comparing my work to other people's work. Usually people I really admire. Then I start to feel doubtful. Inadequate. Insecure. Uninspired. And it all goes down from there.

I like to craft and make sweet pretty things. But only every now and then. I don't think I'm sweet enough and sometimes I start to feel lace overload. I've done mixed media collage and lately I've tried to push myself to learn new techniques. I think I'll gain more confidence as I go along.

What I really like is Photoshop! Taking pictures, editing them and telling a story. And I like to doodle and create graphics in Photoshop. So for now I'm going to follow what I like. Doodling and daydreaming.

You can see the doodle part everywhere and here is a bit of daydreaming. I've had it tucked away in my blog for a while so I thought I might share it now. You can find it here.

Hint: Turn your volume up just a smidge.

gypsy dreams

I hope everyone had a lovely Easter weekend. We went to visit our families, ate lots of delicious food, were blessed with endless hugs and kisses and returned home safely after a 2 hour drive in the rain.

It's always nice when my husband drives because I get to sit back and daydream. I've always liked roadtrips. I have a wanderlust spirit that comes from growing up in a military family that moved all the time. I'm fascinated by RV's and love to go camping so I always check out the RV's driving by. Being on the road also lets me daydream about my other love.

Original image source unknown.

Gypsy caravans or vardos! When I was a little girl ( well, I'm still little) we lived in a small town in the Philippines for a few years. It's the town where my parents are from and where some of my fondest and most magical memories happened. My 'lola' (grandmother) had a house that sat on top of her shop on a busy main street. I remember watching festive church parades and happy groups of market shoppers passing by on any given day. One day a caravan of  covered wagons strolled by with sellers hawking colorful wares hanging and overflowing from noisy carts. I was mesmerized! It was everything I loved. A portable home a movable shop, being on the road and billowy, colorful clothing! Over the years I became fascinated with gypsys and vardos which remind me of those caravans I first saw. I truly dream of having one sitting in my backyard one day that I can use as my workshop and hideaway.

If you happen to live in the south of France you can order your own vardo from artist Jeanne Bayol who restores and decorates these magical jewel boxes. Her book Les Roulottes is filled with images of vardos she's restored. The book is very hard to find. I've just located one in Canada and it's a bit pricey too. Still it's definitely on my wish list.

Jeanne Bayol lives the perfect dream life I would love to have. She also creates yummy and scrumptious clothing, bags and other decorative art.

All roulottes photos property of Jeanne Bayol

You can visit Jeanne Bayol to see more amazing vardos. If you're ready to buy visit Les Verdines and get one of your very own! If you do I'll be the first one over bearing pots full of tea and cupcakes for days!