Giveaway winner and spring in the neighborhood

In the Paris bookmark calendar giveaway # 124 came up.

The winner is Lyneen who wrote:

"How fortunate for you that you live so close to Paris you can visit. I LOVE Paris and buy everything I can get my hands on that has to do with PARIS. I am so excited about your drawing. THANKS FOR SHARING!!!"

Hooray -- congrats Lyneen!

This group of statues can be found at the opera building in Paris. Anyway, spring has finally come to my neighborhood. It's wonderful to see trees blooming.

I found this cute feather stuck on the blossom -- what a lovely detail.

More awesome blossoms.

Some in white.

A pretty garden fairy.

There are a couple of magnolia trees blooming in my neighborhood --
so very gorgeous.

The sunset was beautiful, too --
those shades of pink. Perfection!

A big thanks to everyone who took part in the giveaway
and left a comment!

Divas Las Vegas

Welcome to Pink Saturday hosted by Beverly! This time I am keeping it strictly pink -- in the form of an awesome book cover:

Isn't that fantastic? Pink with glitter and sparkles!

Divas Las Vegas by Belinda Jones.

So what's this book about? Here's a review I wrote for amazon.de/com in January 2003:

5/5

Get ready for a wild ride in Las Vegas

Jamie Miller and Izzy Ingham, British girls, best friends, and 27-year-old singles, are determined to kick "Project Presley" into action -- they fly to Las Vegas to find a husband there. No matter that Izzy already has a fiancé back at home or that Jamie is still haunted by the memories of her first love, the girls finally want to meet their dream man. While Izzy seems to be content with any rich man, Jamie wishes for a soulmate. On their "manhunt," the girlfriends fall for strippers, businessmen, Elvis, a knight, and a merman -- but does each of them end up with their Prince Charming?

Divas Las Vegas is the first book of the British author Belinda Jones -- and what a debut novel she wrote! She captures the essence of Las Vegas as entertainment capital of the world, using that extraordinary city as background of her protagonists' quest for love -- and for finding themselves. The result is a hilarious, romantic, and utterly entertaining book which I read twice in the same year even though romances aren't my first reading choice. Throughout the story, Belinda Jones often refers to current popular culture, thus making her novel more authentic and easy to relate to.

The book's bright pink cover with its title written in capital pastel-colored letters and the glittering stars are a real eyecatcher -- the first hint of glamorous Las Vegas. Normally, I don't choose (or judge) books by their covers, but Divas Las Vegas did spark my interest because of this outstanding cover. Fortunately, the cover holds its promise, so don't hesitate to pick up your own book copy.

In fact, I well remember seeing, buying, and reading this book after all those years. I definitely plan to read it again one of these days. It's one of those carefree chick lit books which makes you smile -- or even laugh out loud. If you give this book a try (or already know it), I would love to hear from you.

PS: Last chance to win a bookmark calendar of Paris!

Happy Pink Saturday!

Owl

Theme Thursday has an interesting theme -- red and black. It's always a challenge to be limited to certain colors. I certainly like owls. (I just noticed that the image seems to be unsharp -- please click on the picture to get a bigger view. That one is sharp!)

Dancing on eggshells

Gothic Arches seems to be still in Easter mode and has thus settled for the theme "Eggs" for its new challenge.

Mimmie, Kimmie, and Ginnie gave the phrase
walking on eggshells a whole new meaning.

Walpurgis Night

Think Monday Think ATC's new challenge calls for a triangle form on an ATC. I created a couple of vector triangles which reminded me of stylized mountains. From there it was just a small step to a digital ATC dedicated to Walpurgis Night. After all, April 30 isn't too far away.

April breeze

I recently came across a challenge blog named "Challenge Up Your Life." The current topic is April weather. Here in Munich, we have definitely had April weather so far -- sunshine, rain, wind, and even the first thunderstorm of the season. For my digital ATC I used the oil painting "Boreas" created in the Pre-Raphaelite style by John William Waterhouse in 1903 as well as two of my photos taken this month -- a dramatic sunset (see photo below) and a daffodil from the garden (daffodils can be found in the original painting, too).

The dramatic sunset of April 10th.

In fact, I used an altered version of the sunset photo for this ATC, too:

Golden evening light at home

Have you ever noticed how the golden evening light shining through the windows changes parts of your home in an almost magical way? The shadows are deep and special -- like the blue one on the photo below showing some feathers of a dream catcher.


Here the shadow was very deep, adding drama to the simple dream catcher.


I am not sure which object caused the shadow on the door frame to my kitchen, but I definitely like the effect very much.


I have a München (Munich) sticker on the wall above my computer desk. In the golden evening light, it shows all those beautiful colors. The figure on the sticker is the Münchner Kindl (Munich child).


There's also a plastic Gummibärchen (gummi bear) hanging on the wall. I love its orange shadow.


On the same wall there's this awesome Texas Cowgirl tin plate which I got from my dear friend Kim. A British lady -- Lara Croft -- stands nearby.


My Galileo thermometer looked stunning in the light of the setting sun.

Another view of the thermometer.

Don't forget to look around your home next time when the sun is about to set -- you might discover some magical things.

The Young Gardener

I combined the two last challenges of Fun With ATCs -- a given sketch and the theme "Spring."


The painting is titled "The Young Gardener" and was created by George Dunlop Leslie in 1889.

Pink Saturday in Sauerlach

It's time for another Pink Saturday hosted by Beverly. This time I take you to Sauerlach, a town near Munich. Currently, there are the Frühlingstage (Spring Days) -- an exhibition for handicraft. There are a couple of booths outside and many more exhibitors inside. This pretty ornament looks lovely in the sunshine and spins around in a breeze.


Metal art objects right next to a place where you could buy plants and herbs.


The owl and the witch were among the greatest ornaments.


A view over the market -- what wonderful spring weather we had.


Now you surely wonder where the pink is hiding. No fear -- here it is:

I asked the seller if I could take a photo of the pink caps and scarfs for Pink Saturday. She certainly was amused and kindly gave her permission.

At another booth you could see how prints are made.


Another scarf lady also offered a pink silk scarf among many other colorful scarfs.

So what did I bring home? This beautiful gecko...

... and the stunning owl:

They surely love their new home and the beautiful spring flowers including the pink hyacinths.

Don't forget to take part in my Paris bookmark calendar giveaway!

Happy Pink Saturday!

Pink Saturday in Paris

Welcome to another Pink Saturday organized by Beverly! This time I take you to Paris for some pink. The cute little cancan dancer by Dragonne Luxe wearing a pink skirt was one of the many things you can buy at the department store Galeries Lafayette in Paris. The pink candy below was another one of the various goodies.

The flavor of this unique pink bubble bath was "chocolate dipped strawberry." Yummy!

If you now want to see more of Paris, please feel free to read about my weekend in Paris. I am sure you will be thrilled by the ceiling lighting of the restaurant Le Comptoir du 7ème. And if you want to win a bookmark calendar of Paris, take part in my giveaway.

I didn't get around to post my Easter photos in time for last week's Pink Saturday, but maybe you still want to see my pink bunny and pink egg candle. Just in case you want to see everything, don't hesitate to read all about my Easter.

I am sure many of you enjoy crafting and creative projects. Do you happen to know Mind Wide Open? Gail organizes a monthy challenge, always providing an image to use as well as a word prompt. Here you can see my digital collage. Be sure to check out Mind Wide Open for more eye candy and maybe vote for your favorite creation. Who knows? Perhaps you will even join the fun next month.

Happy Pink Saturday!

Giveaway - Paris Bookmark Calendar

Since I had such good luck to win a weekend trip in Paris, I decided to organize a little Paris giveaway. This giveaway is for everyone who loves Paris or bookmarks or great black and white photography. You can use the calendar pages either as bookmarks or for your artwork. Have a look at the short movie clip below showing many of the beautiful sights of Paris.

So how can you win this calendar? Simply leave a comment below and make sure that I have a way to contact you if you happen to be the lucky winner. The giveaway is open until Saturday, April 24. I will use the random generator on Sunday, April 25 to find the winner.

*** Good luck! ***

Weekend in Paris

Spring in Paris. Who wouldn't dream of that? In fact, I even made a digital collage with that theme last year. The universe has obviously listened -- I won a weekend trip to Paris! So my mom and I boarded this Air France plane in the morning of Friday, March 26.


The world surely looks different from way up in the sky. In only 1 1/2 hours we made it from Munich, Germany to Paris, France.


We were picked up at the airport by a friendly driver from Sri Lanka who brought us to our hotel near the Eiffel Tower. It rained for a few minutes (here you see the Place de la Concorde), ...


... yet we had a clear view when we first drove down the Avenue des Champs Élysées with the Arc de Triomphe in the background.


At the hotel, the other winners from various parts of Germany were already waiting. We left for a fragrance workshop at Givaudan which is according to Wikipedia "the world's largest company in the flavor and fragrance industry, creating and manufacturing taste and smell solutions." It was exciting to learn more about how fragrances are created -- we could even try our hand at mixing a fruity fragrance. The sponsor of the weekend in Paris was a company who produces laundry products among other things. One of the employees at Givaudan had created the different fragrances of their new fabric softener. That look behind the scenes was priceless for sure. Anyway, on our way to Argenteuil, a suburb of Paris where Givaudan is situated, we passed the Arc de Triomphe...


... as well as the Grand Arche in the middle of the picture below which is a monument in the business district of La Defénse.


On the way back to the hotel we drove over the River Seine. In the meantime, the sun had come out.


Our room on the fifth floor of the Hotel Le Walt had a big painting over the bed -- talk about classy!


The view from our hotel room was wonderful as well -- it felt as if you could touch the Eiffel Tower standing right behind the roofs of Paris with their many small chimneys.


For dinner our group went to the restaurant Le Comptoir du 7ème right next door. The ceiling lighting is a league of its own -- and the food was plenty and delicious.

On a short walk after dinner we admired the illuminated Eiffel Tower.

We could spent the following day to our liking. Thus we first visited the Opéra de Paris on Saturday morning.


A bunch of young people were driving around on bikes, yelling and ringing bicycle bells. They were advertising for the department store Galeries Lafayette -- La mode voit rouge (the fashion sees red).

A close-up of one of the golden statues on the roof of the opera.

A view of the beautiful opera facade with one of the gorgeous street lamps in the foreground.


As we walked towards the Galeries Lafayette, we passed several of these street lamps.

A station of the Paris Métro(politain) near the Galeries Lafayette.

That's the beautiful glass dome of the department store.

A detail of the exquisite Art Nouveau artwork.

Those sparkling mannequins were a hoot.

A view of the store's balconies -- at the ground floor there's the world's largest perfume department.


The Galeries Lafayette department store actually consists of three different buildings. The one on the opposite side of the street sells home accessoires like these colorful lamps.


The Boulevard Haussmann is also known for another department store -- Printemps. The window decorations were one of a kind.

The Art Nouveau facade of the Printemps.

Then we took the metro to the Musée du Louvre.

A first glance at some statues -- I loved how the man and the statue seemed to look at the same spot.


If you read or watched The Da Vinci Code, you will immediately recognize the glass pyramides in the inner court of the Louvre Palace.

Here we are already in the basement, looking up through the pyramide glass.

One of the most famous paintings is the Consecration of the Emperor Napoleon I and Coronation of the Empress Josephine by Jacques-Louis David which was completed in 1808. It's amazing how big the painting is.


In fact, the architecture of the Louvre is as impressing as its many paintings and statues. In the background you can see the Nike of Samothrace.

A view towards the pyramids.

No visit of the Louvre would be complete without seeing the Mona Lisa or La Joconde.


The details of the various statues are stunning -- and, obviously, flip-flops have been in style for centuries.


A group of Japanese tourists looks around in awe like everyone else. Can you see Hermes in the background on the right side?


The sun shining through the window made the white marble statue of Psyche and Cupid come alive.

Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss by Antonia Canova -- a close-up of the heads.

I loved the play of light and shadow -- the statues are put into scene very well.

Then it was time to say good-bye to the Louvre. We walked along the River Seine towards the Île de la Cité, a natural island in the Seine. In the foreground you see the Pont des Arts, a metallic bridge for pedestrians.

Love notes on a tree.

There were many booths selling vintage magazines, books and the like.

Here's Pont Neuf, the oldest bridge across the River Seine which we crossed to get on the island.


Our first destination on the island was the Conciergerie, a former royal place as well as prison. The most famous prisoner was probably Marie Antoinette. The Hall of Guards with its medieval architecture is very impressing.


Then we went to Sainte-Chapelle, a beautiful Gothic chapel which has a lower and upper level. Here's a column in the lower chapel with the fleur-de-lis.


The stained glass windows and the rose window in the upper chapel are considered to be the best of their type in the world.

A detail of a column on the entrance of the chapel.

Our last stop was Notre Dame de Paris, the famous Gothic cathedral.

A close-up of the gargoyles on the facade.

After a short stop at our hotel -- here a view of the street below (Avenue de la Motte Picquet) --,


... we left for dinner at the brasserie Boeuf sur le Toit. For dessert I had a crème brûlée which is one of the most famous French desserts and tastes just delicious.


The restaurant had a great atmosphere, elegant decor, and live music -- a wonderful chance to relive all the adventures we had had that day.


At night we had this beautiful view of the Eiffel Tower from our hotel window.

On Sunday morning we had a relaxed breakfast in the hotel's lovely breakfast room.

As we had still time before taking the bus to the airport, we walked to the Invalides.

That's the entrance of the domed chapel which is the burial site for some of France's war heros.

The most famous tomb is the one of Napeoléon Bonaparte.

The floor of the chapel is amazing.

Angel statues near the altar.

The altar canopy.

A view of Napoléon's sarcophagus in the crypt. Twelve marble goddesses surround the sarcophagus. They represent Napoléon's twelve war victories between 1797 and 1815.


In an alcove there's the tomb and statue of Napoléon's only legitimate son, Napoléon François Joseph Charles Bonaparte, Duke of Reichstadt.


All too soon the time for flying home was there, but the memories of that March weekend in Paris will linger on for a long time. Au revoir, Paris -- à bientôt!

If you now want to have a piece of Paris yourself, be sure to take part in my Paris bookmark calendar giveaway.