Decadent readings under the evening sky...

Good Wednesday dolls...mid-way through the week! Happiness for most as it brings them closer to the weekend once again. I thought today, I would share a spot that I go to sometimes to read. It's the little courtyard of the museum near my home, it's surrounded by a high up stone gate, so you're closed off from peering eyes. I sit amongst the flowers & read or daydream. Oscar Wilde used to come & give lectures for the Philosophical Society a long time ago...so it seems fitting to read here.

I was asked, what do I wear or do when I want to relax since I wear dresses or other bright things most days. Well if I'm tired, been working a lot or need to clear my mind I tend to wear something simple with not a lot of colour...I see it like a chalkboard or new canvas...you wipe away all the colours & start again. Sometimes I'm doing so many things & my head gets filled with too much, so I strip everything away & start again. This is usually when you'll see me in something sort of monochromatic with only a touch of colour. I like it though & it works for me, because as soon as my mind is clear, a flood of new ideas come & I pile on the colours once again. I also go and read or listen to instrumental music like violins! I hope I've answered that makes sense. I love anything with heart shapes & patterns too :)

Happy Wednesday darling ones
xoxoxoxo

{Dainty Boudoir: Navy Heart Trousers - TKMaxx ; Flower Hair Clip - Temptress of Waikiki ; Suspenders - Ebay}

In case you were wondering...I was reading some short stories by Guy De Maupassant.

I'm crazy for suspenders, since a child. Though, back then mine always had some kind of superhero on them *wink*

♥

{Artist} Audrey Kawasaki

Step inside...into a world only understood by few...mysterious yet lulling...dark and seductive...curves and shapes of sensuous moods dashed with a touch of melancholy to capture and enthrall. Figures peering, grasping out for the reach, yet only existing in another dimension. Captivating the viewer with their come hither stare.

This magnetic theme of Audrey Kawasaki's work, touches both sides of the coin...innocent yet erotic, light yet dark...one glimpse and I felt myself drowning in their contradictions. I believe that is what I find myself loving the most, the use of opposites to make completion as one would be lost without the other...unbalanced in ways. That and her influence by both manga and Art Nouveau, two worlds I love very much!

Audrey paints these images on the warmth of wood panels, the combination of the natural grains in them adds yet another dimension to her work & most of all to the viewer's eyes & feelings. I'm completely in love with them, in fact I'd hang them all over my home if I could. Just sublime...To see more of her work and believe me you should, visit her website & behind the scenes glimpses on her other pages too. I hope you enjoy them & wish you a wonderful Monday beauties!

Loves & Loves
xoxox

Audrey Kawasaki's Website / Facebook / Shop 

P.S. A few pieces below are graphite and ink on paper, I couldn't resist adding those in as well.

'Lost in Thought'

'Lillian'

'Okimiyage'

graphite on wood

'Under The Full Moon'

'Blue Lacy'

Graphite on Paper

'Enrapture'

'String'

Graphite on Paper

'Wanting'

Graphite & Coloured pencil on paper

'Where I Rest'

'Lili and her Ghosts'

'Talisman'

 'Here For Now' 

Graphite & Ink on Paper

'I Know'

'Offering' 

♥

{All images are copyrighted to Audrey Kawasaki, these are for display purposes only. They have not been altered or changed. Please contact Audrey for more information, thank you}

A deeper shade of blue...

Hello dollfaces! Well, this week zipped by with the extra days off due to Easter. The sun has been shining brightly, so I'm a very cheery doll! I hope you had some sunshine too. I'm excited today as my oldest comes home, she was only gone for a short while, but it felt longer. My youngest kept me busy as she always does though *wink* This is another dress from Whistle & Wolf, it had been sold out for a bit, so once it came back, I wasted no time in snapping it up as blue is my favourite colour. The necklace is something my husband brought back from Brazil for me, I love it's colours. It's hand made as well, which makes me love it even more.

This Saturday is another Share-in-Style & this time around it's 'Accesories', I'm a big fan of accessories, my desk at the moment is cluttered with a lot of them that I need to organize. Some of my favourite pieces to add to an outfit is quirky earrings - like my heart ones here, bangles, patterned tights and a bright necklace - sometimes the bigger the better *wink* I hope that you will join in, you can do so on Sacramento's blog, don't forget to say hello & visit the blogs of others joining in too!

Have a marvellous weekend dolls

hugs & loves

xoxoxoxoxo 

{Dainty Boudoir: Electric Blue Dress - Whistle & Wolf ; Tights - Falbala ; Shoes - New Look ; Necklace - Present from Brazil ; Earrings - Ebay ; Bracelets - Old}

Photos by Gorgeous Gavin. 

And ta-da!! I discovered if I flip it upside down, I can fashion it into a head piece...win!!

I'm adding this into Share-in-style & also partnering up with dear & beautiful Elena from My Name is Peggy Sue - doesn't she look amazing!?! Love this look. You can join us here if you wish!!

http://www.inlinkz.com/cs.php?id=397503 www.inlinkz.com

♥

Sweet Dainty Wishes for Springtime Dreams....

Hello dollipops!! I hope your week is going wonderfully so far. I thought since Monday's post was quite heavy, a nice and easy one was called for. Plus, I've been busy packing things for my oldest daughter's school trip and been rushed off my feet. These are some lovely things I've been keeping my dainty eyes on lately. I enjoy the array of different things, colours and textures. Perfect for me...I hope you enjoy them too & wish you a wonderful day dolls, I shall be around to visit you all soon.

xoxoxoxoxo

An easy way to have your 5 a day of fruit with this marvellous retro-style dress from Modcloth...perfect to wear in the warmer weather while eating icecreams :) 

Let's continue on this fruity adventure - I would over the moon love this whole entire look (and accessories/banana head gear/shoes too) from Laurel & Hector - it's wonderful <3

Craig & Carl sunglasses to keep the rays out of my eyes but look super cute as well :) Love the colours! 

I've loved these brooches for a very long time. A lovely lady named Sarah from Bristol, England handmakes these along with many other beauties like dolls for her shop Curious Pip and I'm besotted with them. These brooches are actually quite big, which I love. I'd quite enjoy one that looked like my girls :)

Oooh let's let the fruity times roll on... I love me some strawberries, so this necklace & bracelet were a must from Collectif!! They will work in perfectly with my 50's dresses that I like to wear in the summer time :)

I love cherry blossoms, so as soon as I seen this dress I loved it. I first seen this dress without a collar, but Whistle & Wolf have recently added this one with the collar addition & I love it even more. It has a very sweet 60's vibe to it now!

And below...how fun are these leggings!?! Adore the sweet colour and sparkly clouds and rain. Perfect for brightening up the rainy days we've been having here on and off!! You can find them here from Camden Town.

{all images via website links, I take no ownership of them}

♥

{Wonder Woman #10} The Colourful designer Anne Sophie Cochevelou!

Hello dolls, I hope you had a marvellous weekend...Happy Easter Monday! I'm back here with another out of this world - marvellous Wonder Woman!! And this one is a definite favourite, you may have seen her in another post I shared of street styles that I loved, this time Anne-Sophie was so kind enough to let me interview her for my dainty blog here. Not only is she colourful, creative, & beautiful, she is also very kind & intelligent. Her contribution to the Artistic world is one of bright colours, different ways of thinking, happiness & most of all for me - uniqueness! When we live in a world that we're constantly pushed to be the same...it is refreshing to find someone who breaks free of that & let's her creative nature run wild! I hope you enjoy her as much as I do (I adore her really)...feel free to say hello to Anne-Sophie, she is very lovely. Have a marvellous day dolls!

Loves & Loves
xoxox


Anne Sophie Cochevelou's Shop - Cycle in Heels / Facebook / Blog

  Ksenia Gladysheva

1. Did you always want to create or was there another job you wanted growing up?

Since the age I was able to hold a pen or a brush, I have been creating, painting, drawing, doing theatre, DIY. When I was a child I wanted to be a vet part time and an Opera singer, I always wanted to do several things at the same time because I felt it was not enough to have just one life.  When I was a teenager I didn't really know what I wanted to do and my parents took me to a guidance counsellor and she told me I had the "Jesus complex", I was convinced that I had a mission on earth.  I thought she was lying but now I know my mission is to make the world more joyful with my art.  (I know it is quite ambitious but why not think big?) Because I grew up in a family of engineers, I thought they wouldn't be happy with me becoming an artist, (whereas have always been supportive for everything I was doing). So I did a literature degree in Paris to become a teacher.  But the leopard can't change its spots, creativity was stronger and I applied for the M.A in Performance Design in Practice at Central Saint martins....and here I am! 

2. Because your creations speak before the person wearing it does, have you ever come across people who didn't understand your work or reacted in a negative way to it?

Sometimes people don't like the doll creations and find it creepy and disturbing. In London you can dress the way you want, but in Paris people stare at you more in a negative way. I don't want to be provocative but if people look at me in a bad way, I just look back, chin up, looking very proud, as a statement of my right to be different and to express myself. But in general, people's reactions are really positive and enthusiastic. Using common references in my design like lego or old toys creates social links and engage conversation.  People always admire individuals who dare to be different, they wish they could do the same! 

3. If you were only allowed to create using two types of materials, what would you choose?

I think it would be Barbie heads and Legos!

4. How does art or creating make you feel?

The creative process is like a phenomenal energy, an obsession, when you create you can stop sleeping or eating, it is what makes me feel alive! For me artists are people who see the creative potential of reality and see the world as transformable.

5. Have you felt at any time, being a woman has made it harder or different for you to be taken seriously as a designer? 

I had the privilege to grow up in an environment where girls and boys have the same education and opportunities, and I have never been treated differently. But rampant machismo is always there, sometimes in little comments. At the same time,  having a strong personality as a woman is not always seen as a good thing.  Even if I'm not a strong militant there is feministic statement in my work, questioning the status of femininity and a woman's body in the modern society.  My vision of feminism is not that women should be the same as man, but they should be able to do the same as men but they can remain feminine.  For example, I can carry heavy stuff wearing lipstick and high heels! 

6. Who are the women - past or present that you have felt inspired by?

I am inspired by a lot of strong and talented women like the American artist and curator Sue Kreitzman, Lady Gaga, Fridah Khalo, Josephine Baker, Wonder Woman, Pina Bauch, Ariane Mnouchkine (French stage director), Janis Joplin, the performer and artist Orlan, the French actress Anna Karina… 

 Picture by Richard Kelly.

7. Art in all its forms, stir emotions and reactions, what reactions or feelings do you hope your work will make others feel?

social link

8. Just for fun...what is your favourite colour?

I don't really have a favourite colour, I like colour in their context or how they match together. For example I love a fierce apple green jacket but I wouldn't like it on my wall.  I love colour as long as they are intense, bright and flashy! 

9. There is a magic genie & she has given you the chance to work with one artist or designer (dead or alive) to create something amazing with - who do you wish it to be? 

I would love to work with the French designer Jean Charles de Castelbajac or create stage-costumes for Lady Gaga. I also went to the the exhibition of Jean Paul Gauthier at the Barbican in London and if he needs an assistant for creating more amazing garment I am up for it! 

10. And lastly my sweet...if you could leave every woman in the world 3 things to have for the rest of their lives, what would they be?

-passion, daring and creativity! 

As a little bonus, here is just a taste of the creations you can find in Anne-Sophie's online shop & Etsy shop:

{All photos of Anne Sophie Cochevelou are from her facebook page with permission. Please ask her permission also to use, thank you}

♥