To Another World

There's no hiding the fact that I like to daydream.

My mind wanders easily, and goes on little adventures throughout the day. I mostly think about pretty projects I want to work on, grand holidays abroad, or any one of my kajillion larger than life aspirations. It takes up a big chunk of my day. Some people call it procrastination - each to their own, I guess, hehehe. Maybe that's why I like peeking through blogs so much - there are so many pretty images that fuel my daydreams.



And I know that's why I like An Angel At My Table so much. It is a lovely, whimsical store owned by Abi. Peeking through her shop reminds me of a lovely wedding, or a peaceful tea with my girlfriends. She carries beautiful clay sculptures, lavender sachets, jewelry mannequins, and a lot of other gorgeous items to pretty up your world.



In addition to creating the sculptures and art dolls for her store, Abi also enjoys taking care of her growing animal sanctuary - doesn't that sound amazing? It's those passions in life that propel and inspire her creativity. With her favorite colors including duck egg blue and cream, you can see that her loves in life really are reflected in her art. As well as at her Etsy store, you can also catch Abi at her blog right here. And I know - now you want the million dollar answer - her favorite dessert is a chocolate brownie. Delicious!



Our lovely Abi is giving one lucky reader their choice of Jewelry Mannequin from her store. To enter, please leave a comment here telling me which mannequin you would like if you won, and also where your Daydreams take you throughout the day. I will announce the winner next Tuesday.
*product photos courtesy of An Angel At My Table.

Please note that I won't be blogging until Tuesday the 1st of December (my birthday!!), so since I won't be here before then, I want to wish you a safe and happy Thanksgiving. That first week of December is going to be a big giveaway week to celebrate my birthday and the upcoming Christmas Holidays - so stay tuned....

Feast of Flowers

Brian and I dined on the loveliest roses this weekend.



Lasagna Roses, that is.

I was preparing to make lasagna for dinner, and as I watched the lasagna noodles in the pot, I noticed how pretty they looked standing on their sides. And that's when inspiration hit me. So I busted out my ramekins and decided to bake the lasagna in individual ramekins standing on their sides, wrapped around one another to show off their lovely edges. After the layering and arranging, it reminded me of a lovely rose.



See here for my recipe (I put the recipe in the photo comments in that link).

(PS. The winner of the Wren Giveaway is Squidart, hooray!)
(PPS. SoCal Bloggers, if you haven't already, email me at spotty_zebra@hotmail.com and you are free January 3rd. We are meeting up!)

Cooking With Clive

I love to entertain.

Cooking and baking, and sharing those passions with the people I love makes me happy.

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Last night I had the privilege of attending a Tasting Presentation by fabulous Chef Clive Berkman. It was fascinating hearing his story and also his tips on cooking. It was great to hear him talk about how the root of his cooking passions correlate to relationships, and to me, that's what cooking is all about, too. Spending time sharing a meal with friends, or cooking with loved ones - that's one of my greatest passions.



The food, of course, was all MAGNIFICENT! Clive emphasized the use of fresh, local ingredients, and each dish had a unique flair to it. It was a lovely time with great food and great company.

Train Ride Purse Giveaway

Whenever I think of trains, I think of romance.

I know that a lot of other people think of grimy city subway trains, but not me - my first thoughts flash to romantic getaways. I imagine pretty, dolled up ladies, armed with lovely bags and suitcases, headed off to a new adventure.



My friend Kelly did just that recently. Instead of a traditional wedding, she and her fiance boarded a train and toured San Luis Obispo and other areas of California. I was so excited for her - it sounds like such a great adventure to begin married life together. The above train drawing is a slight variation of a little illustration I did for her Wedding Announcement design.

So yes, while some people think of work and the office when they think of trains, I associate it with excitement, new beginnings, and a bag packed with all my favorite things. And The Wren is just the shop I would want those bags to come from.



The Wren is a darling store based in Cape Town, South Africa. The lovely Wendren has created a gorgeous collection of bags, pouches and clutches to fill her pretty store, and there is definitely a style of bag for everyone here. I love the texture and color she uses, and the style of each bag is absolutely darling! I could see myself with every single one of her bags!

Living in such a gorgeous city, Wendren is surrounded by a canvas of natural inspiration. With muses like the mountains and diversity in weather, it's no wonder Wendren's bag-designing talent is so impressive. Wendren says that the unpredictable weather in Cape Town "keeps you on your toes and always aware. Noticing and being aware of your surroundings is so important because there is so much inspiration to be absorbed if only you notice it."

I love Wendren's taste and her eye for color. Her bags feature so much color, and yet it all flows seamlessly together. Her favorite color is natural indigo, and her favorite desserts are Peppermint Crisp Pudding and Apple Crumble with ice cream. You can catch Wendren at her blog here.



And guess what? Wendren is kindly giving away her Purple Blossom Bird Purse to one lucky reader! Perfect for your romantic train ride, or your long commute to work, or even just for a coffee date with friends. I have a serious crush on these darling purses. To enter, please leave me a comment here letting me know what you think of when you think of trains.

(Product photos courtesy of The Wren).

The Nutcracker Market

Did you ever read the story of The Nutcracker when you were little?

I remember my parents gave me a lovely book, rich with vibrant illustrations that came with a cassette, so I could read along with the narrator, with beautiful notes of Tchaikovsky playing in the background. I LOVED that book. After reading that book, I always imagined that the Nutcracker that we pulled out at Christmas time would protect all the Christmas cookies we had.

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This weekend we went to Houston's Nutcracker Market. It's a yearly Holiday Market that gives the ticket proceeds to the Houston Ballet Company, and different Arts Scholarships around Houston. I was so excited to go - and it did not disappoint.

There were merchants from all around the world selling their wares. Everything was so bright and enchanting. There was the smell of the Ethiopian Coffees, the tastes of the delicious French Jams, the softness of the woven blankets from different parts of Africa... it really was quite the sensory overload!

I hope you all had a lovely weekend too, filled with lots of sensory delights!
(PS. The winner of the Olive Giveaway is Simply Mel. Yay!)

Fresh Appreciation

Often I need to scold myself because of my lack of appreciation.

I easily take things for granted.

I forget that beauty and grace is a gift.

I recently saw Earth the movie. It gave me a renewed appreciation for this magnificent planet. It reminded me how the conditions are perfect for life to exist because of the meticulous placement of Earth's location and angle. Everything about our planet is so intricate and so brilliant. It reminded me of God's sheer and utter brilliance and magnitude.

I actually got a little misty-eyed while I watched this movie in awe.

This movie makes me want to go on a worldwide safari.

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On another note - SoCal Bloggers - the Southern California Blogger's Meetup will be on Sunday, January 3rd some time in the afternoon. It will most likely be in the city of Pasadena at some coffee shop or restaurant. I will give you more details soon, I am just trying to finalize a location. I know that a lot of you have already told me you are interested, but now that I have given you the date and time, if you could email me at spotty_zebra@hotmail.com if you are free that day and want more info. Thanks!

Slumberland

I have always loved my sleep.

If I am in a car, or train or plane and am sitting in silence for more than ten minutes, I will fall asleep. A fire alarm went off when I still lived with my parents, and I slept right through it. Me and Sleep are definitely old friends.



Some of my friends call me a "Sleep Snob", because when they want to go to midnight showings at the cinema, I would rather stay home and sleep. I can catch that movie the next day at a reasonable hour that wouldn't jeopardize my time of slumber.

And since I love my Sleep Time so much, I love the idea of adorning my bed with lovely pillows - and I have just the place to find such Sleepy Pretties: Olive.


Olive is a beautiful, whimsical land of pretty textiles and pretty sleepiness. Owner, Fallon - has stocked her darling store with her beautiful pillow, brooch, and wall-hanging creations. Her gorgeous textile masterpieces are inspired by fresh scents, her love of decorating, and good music. Fallon is attracted to the whimsical, and colors reminiscent of a glassy ocean from a beach from a dreamworld - aqua, mint green, white, and mustard yellow.

Fallon lives in the busy city of Las Vegas. Since living in the city that never sleeps, she has grown used to everything being open 24 hours a day, so whenever she travels, she has to remember the Real World time. Perhaps that's another reason why she creates such pretty sleep accessories - because she feels that her sleep-deprived city could use a few z's? But then, a few miles away is the quaint little town of Boulder City - a lovely historic town with charming homes and little antique shops - so Fallon likes to head out there for a fresh injection of inspiration whenever she can.


The great thing about Slumberland is that you can eat whatever desserts you like, at any time of day. Fallon chooses chocolate brownies, cheesecake and berry cobbler with ice cream. I think I'll take the same!

Fallon is generously giving away one of her darling pillows to a lucky reader! To enter, please leave a comment here telling me about your favorite place to take a nice long nap, and then also let me know which of these three pillows you would like if you won: 50's Birdcage, Beautiful Rose, or Keys. I will announce the winner on Sunday.

(PS. For all of you creatives out there who sell your art and crafts, please check out the new blog Meylah. Check out my article, it's the latest one today about Marketing your Craft. Please stop by and leave me a comment if you get a chance!)
(PPS. My Etsy Team is having a huge giveaway this month. To enter the team CAC giveaway, go here.)

Vanilla Business

Who was the clueless person who first called vanilla boring?

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I always hear people use the word "vanilla" for bland or boring - but I really don't understand it - vanilla is ANYTHING but boring! If I could, I would go campaigning for Vanilla. I want to make a bunch of cool campaign signs, and make a whole lot of vanilla desserts to wake people up and see how versatile it is. It's sooooo good! But don't worry, I am still only having one dessert a week!



This weekend I made a Vanilla Berry Tea Cake. Wanna hit the campaign trail with me? What vanilla treats would you contribute?

(PS. The winner of the Petite Minx Giveaway is Lovely Scribbles, yay!)
(PPS. My Illustration Print sale is on until Wednesday evening. Read here for more details).

For You

Guess what?

Last night I was on the Etsy Front Page! Woo hoo!

For those of you who aren't too familiar with Etsy, it's pretty exciting. Etsy features 12 items from different stores on their front page, so it gives the featured stores lots of exposure. Different people create "treasuries" of some of their favorite things, and if Etsy likes their choices, they pop it on the home page for everyone to see. Glasfaden was the lovely Sweet Pea that included my Simple Joys note cards in her collection. Isn't it a pretty bunch?



So in celebration of being on the coveted Front Page, I am having a special on for my lovely blog readers.



If you like any of the illustrations I have done for any of my posts in this blog, you can buy a print of it for only $5.00! Most of my blog illustrations aren't available in my store, so it's a really good deal. The print will be a 6 x 6 image area on an 8.5 x 11 sheet. Shipping within the US will only be an extra $2, and for those outside the US, it would be $4. So if you are interested, shoot me an email at cityofdionne@gmail.com and let me know what you'd like!

Mixed Tape

Did you ever make mixed tapes?

I remember when I was in middle school, I would tape songs off the radio that I liked as they aired, and then I would rock out to it in my bedroom, playing my ever-so-awesome air guitar. I would sneak my walkman to school in my bag, and pull it out at lunch-time and play my little soundtrack to my friends.
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Today we call that a Play List - but I loved the idea of hearing a song on the radio for the first time and taping it because I loved it so much, and sharing it with my friends who had never heard it before.

If I made a mixed tape for you right now, it would definitely include music by The Colour Elect. Have you ever heard of them? They're an up-and-coming band based in Los Angeles that have a really unique sound. Their music has a rock sound to it, but then you're totally caught off guard when the lead singer (Josef Gordon) sings, because his voice sounds more like something you'd expect to hear in an R & B song. It's such a standout sound, with influences from as broad as Mariah Carey to Metallica (don't you just love a group of guys who admit to being inspired by Mariah Carey?).

The band comprises of five lads, and started with two friends - Josef Gordon and Kellen Mills (Lead Guitar) - wanting to do what they love most, making music. Later on, the three other lads (Robb Hutzal, Chris Wrate and Leo Budirahardjo) joined the team and since then, they've been creating quite a buzz.

If you wanna check them out to see what all the hoopla is about, they are on Facebook and Myspace, and for you SoCal folk, they are playing at The Mint on Sunday November 15, and also The Roxy on Saturday November 28. So yep, this band would take up a huge chunk of my mixed tape.

What about you? Who would you put on a mixed tape and rock out to with your air guitar?

Tour Of Pretty Giveaway

The other day I blogged about Hot Air Balloons. Lovely, floating puffs of color.

Don't you agree that they are the ultimate mode of Pretty Transportation?

Back when I lived in Australia, John Travolta was made an Ambassador for Qantas Airlines. He went on what they called a "Friendship Tour", and flew around the country, greeting passengers as they boarded. I think that's such a fun idea. I would love to see a Tour Of Pretty.



A convoy of hot air balloons would tour the country, equipped with petite, pretty snacks for the passengers. The on-flight music would include a few songs by Zee Avi and Maria Taylor, and the balloons would stop at many pretty locations across the world - Paris, Florence, Noosa, Santorini, Solvang...

And the passengers would be adorned with jewelry from Petite Minx.


Monica is the owner/artist behind Petite Minx - one of my favorite jewelry stores ever! I have bought a number of little pretties from her collection, I just love her creativity, originality and style. Her jewelry is the embodiment of pretty - I just can't rave enough about how much I love her delicate pieces.

Five years ago, Monica was planning her wedding, and just couldn't find the right wedding jewelry for her big day - so that's when she decided to make it herself. And then from there, she started making jewelry for others, and thus the Petite Minx journey began! Drawing inspiration from different forms of visual art, Monica has cultivated a style that mixes a feminine presence with an edginess to it - she is able to take on classic inspirations, tribal influences, basically ANYTHING, and put it all together to make something truly gorgeous.

Monica's favorite colors are also things that I would like to see along my Tour of Pretty journey. She is drawn to jewel-tone colors, like amethyst, emerald and topaz, and also bright, airy colors with hints of grey. And even her favorite dessert is pretty - "Fauxstess Cupcakes" from the Vegan with a Vengeance Cookbook. Also make sure you check out her blog here - it's the perfect stop for a Virtual Tour of Pretty.
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Monica is generously giving away this Sand Dollar Necklace to one lucky reader! To enter, please leave a comment here letting me know what your Tour of Pretty would be like. I will announce the winner on Sunday.

(PS. SoCal Bloggers, if you haven't yet, comment here letting me know if you're interested in the SoCal Bloggers Meetup).

Sweet Weekend

Why do I feel like my weekends lately are measured by how much sugar I consume?

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After my first taste of yummy macarons a few months ago, today I decided to take a stab at making my own. They did not turn out as perfect and pretty as the ones I got at Farmer's Market, but I took a photo for you to see anyway. This was after a bevy of desserts over the weekend including chocolate cake, hazelnut bread pudding, and chocolate gelato.



I know that too much sugar can be bad for you - and while I love the taste of it soooo much, I feel like I need to cut back. One of my friends has curbed her sugar intake, and I think it's a smart thing to do. So I am jumping on the Less Sugar Bandwagon. Desserts for me are from now on going to be once a week. I wonder how long I will last!

(the winner of last week's Lanyapi giveaway is Tali. Congrats!)

To all Southern California Bloggers. I will be in California again late December through early January and was thinking of doing another SoCal Bloggers Meetup. Let me know if you are interested and I can give you more info!