a creative mint

A Visit to Marrakesh

Hello Friends,

I am home after a week in Marrakesh, Morocco and a couple days in Amsterdam (I will post about that later). I did something different and attended one of Angela Ritchie's Ace Camps. Of course the camp was lead by my friend Holly of decor8 and another good friend of mine, Julie came along too. Still, I do not usually do group travel events, this was a first. All I can say is try one of Angela's camps if you have the opportunity to do so. There is nothing like dedicated creative time. Space to notice the colors of the details around you. Travel where everything is planned for you and you just need to show up. What a delight. Angela runs all kinds of camps all over the world, led by many interesting artists and writers. We stayed at the gorgeous Peacock Pavilions and Holly did a wonderful post on our rooms that you may find interesting. I had a great time and met some fabulous new friends. Marrakesh is the kind of place that stays with you.The senses remember. 

Have you experienced a place like this? One you cannot forget?

Have a great rest of the week. xoleslie

Friday Flowers

Hello Friends, here are some flowers to start your weekend off right. No matter what you have planned I wish you happiness and some relaxation time. I am on the road again, looking forward to sharing my travels back here with you soon. xoleslie

Blues, Lemon, Lime & Guava

Hello Friends, I wanted to share this collection of photographs with you. I know it is not really "Fall" feeling but I am not there yet. It was at least 85 today and it felt more like summer in LA with the dry warm winds blowing through my studio. It is difficult to think about wool and hot drinks when I am dreaming about a fan and cool breezes. I love blues, lemon and lime together but I decided to bring in some guava (bright warm pink) because the heat is still on!

There are a few flower images here as I wanted to share with you some different ideas for floral arranging. Sometimes it can be more about the container than the flowers. Even the simplest of cuttings can look nice in some cylinder vases or bottles wrapped together with a ribbon or two. I like this idea because it is unexpected and you do not need many cuttings or flowers for it to look good. I also find colored glasses that compliment a few blooms in each one looks really lovely. It is perfect when the glasses are different but if you have a set that would look good too. They can run simply down the center of a table, on a mantle or clustered on a shelf. I also like using bright colored bowls for floral containers and this time I filled a small turquoise bowl with some roses and greens from my garden and a few yellow dahlias leftover from a bouquet. I like how floral arrangements in bowls can be lower and easy to talk over on the dining table. Don't you love how flowers can brighten up a home in an instant?

I hope you got some ideas today for your own creative projects. Have a great week ahead and thank you for visiting me here. xo leslie

Friday Flowers

Hello Friends,

Have a great weekend and a Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadians!

xoleslie

Violet and A Little Silver

Hello Friends,

How are you? I am sitting here watching the rain drops fall and the fog move past my window. It feels like I am home on Vancouver Island, but no, this is LA. It was 107 degrees a week and a half ago and now I am transported to the Pacific Northwest. I love it.

I have my Color Me Pretty photos here today. Lots of lavender and violet tones mixed with white and silver grey. It seems like everywhere I turn this palette keeps showing up. As you can see, I used lots of tear outs in my photographs from the JCrew catalog (hard to resist), the beautiful Himla catalogs I picked up in Stockholm and from an older dreamy Noa Noa catalog.

I had fun painting on the kraft/butcher paper to make some gift wrap. The inexpensive paper works very differently from watercolor paper but I kind of like the haphazard way it turned out. I want to try using some watered down silver acrylic paint on it next time for some special holiday wrapping. Maybe some big circles or stripes, the key is to do it quickly as the paper absorbs the moisture like a sponge. 

The last image shows some small watercolor studies I did to get me in a violet purple kind of mood. Sometimes I need to start with a small gesture in order to get myself moving and feeling creative. You know how that is? The small steps are easier to manage and then they usually lead to something larger. Similarly, I cut a few small sprigs from my garden and popped them into some tiny bottles. No elaborate flower arranging, just a simple, pretty display for my kitchen window sill. 

Thank you for stopping by here to visit. I know how busy life gets and I appreciate you taking time out of your day. xo leslie