PamelaAngus

Christmas Magic in Riquewhir ..

2011-12-21T15:22:00.000+01:00

On Monday we drove to Alsace to visit one of the famous Christmas markets in the region, in the medieval town of Riquewhir. It was a magical way to start our Christmas holidays - the place is like a Santa's grotto for grown-ups :) Here are some pics I took of visit ...

this shop was gorgeous - it even had gold glitter sprinkled over the steps ...

a proper toy shop!!

and snow arrived overnight :)

I'll Be Here ....

2011-12-15T12:42:00.000+01:00

at my local Christmas Market on Sunday 18th December :)

Display for the Christmas Market ...

2011-11-29T12:26:00.001+01:00

a work in progress! I'll have a stall this year again at my village Christmas market .... this is my display for the little dandy birds.... will add some more little lights to the centre and more birds are waiting :)

Fairy Lights ...

2011-11-16T13:25:00.000+01:00

As all girly girls know a fairy light is not just for Christmas but I must admit these are selling like hot cakes at the moment. The lights are little silk rose 'minis' - battery powered LED's so very safe and great for kids bedrooms and nurseries. I've had customers buying them to decorate their craft stalls too (again battery powered means lots of versatility and no leads to trip over!!)

you can buy my rose fairy lights online here

The Palace of Versailles

2011-11-09T10:53:00.001+01:00

It was a very quick trip, a speed visit. We only had a couple of hours before leaving to stay over night at Chartres but I told myself I see more when I visit again. sometime :)

I love a French chateau and I'd been dreaming of seeing Versailles for years. It was jaw-droppingly beautiful, I must have looked like a startled bunny walking through the rooms, but was it my fav Chateau experience? Sadly not, putting all the gorgeousness aside it was CRAZY!!! This was on a quiet day because there was no queue for tickets, or to get through security but still it was mayhem :D In particular the Hall of Mirrors and Marie Antoinette's room .... I couldn't even get a look at her bed ...just the canopy. Still maybe next time!

Anyway here are some photos I took

it's HUGE

checking out the cracks in the ceiling

I was surprised at the really bold colours - beautiful looking through one room to the next.

I want that!!!

I call this the Mr Kipling French Fancy Room .... part of a side exhibition of how the palace might have looked today ...

The Hall of Mirrors - soooooo gorgeous but I wish all those people weren't there lol! ruining the aesthetic :D

Tried to take a photo of me and hubby in the mirrors ... didn't really work :)

Marie Antoinette's room (I think - I didn't reading any of the info .... like I said it was a rush visit) Couldn't see a thing !!!

Will go back in a year or so and see the Trianon and the gardens and maybe take a breath to enjoy it :) But Langeais is still my favourite chateau visit ever

Fusing Adventures

2011-11-07T12:36:00.000+01:00

I can't remember if I blogged about my glass fusing before? If not, I'll tell you that last Christmas I was given a little microwave kiln and loved the whole alchemy thing so much that this summer I bought a great big glass kiln so I could have even more fun! I still haven't had time to try large pieces but have had lots of fun making small little jewels

In December when I close up my shop for the month, I'm hoping to get some more time to try larger pieces without the distractions of selling :)

These are some of the things I've been making so far...

fused glass sewing buttons

earrings

pendants

necklaces

bobby pins

rings

you can find more of my fused glass pieces in my shop section "Fused Glass Things"

Make a Wish .......

2011-11-02T14:47:00.002+01:00

For a spell I like to work in colour (usually Springtime!) and then I go through a spell of wanting to work with more fairy tale things like mirrors and ethereal white glass .... I'm going through one of those phases right now :) and wanting to play with wire and paper and whimsical things ..... Why do I always want to play when things start to get busy????

I made this little mirrored star with mirror on both sides so it can be hung from a chandelier for example. Then added some hand cut antique glass beads from an old chandelier - they're various sizes and maybe a little chipped but doesn't this add to the romance? Topped with a little wish banner.

Wish Upon a Star is available here

Pretty Sweet Things

2011-11-01T15:20:00.001+01:00

I've been meaning to blog these gorgeous little needle felted flowers for quite literally months now and today seemed like the perfect day because the colours totally reflect the landscape here this morning, with the autumn early light hitting the leaves in our garden.

needle felt flowers by Steph McEwan

These were made by my mega talented niece Steph McEwan and we've all been trying to persuade her to open an Etsy shop but she's kinda busy at Art College and Irish Dancing. You can go see her compete at the Oireachtas in Ottawa next week and cheer her and the other girls from Diaga Irish Dance in Halifax NS !!

Good luck girls!!! x

Steph McEwan pic by Lorena M Johnson

Just checking...

2011-10-31T12:23:00.000+01:00

my blogs still alive ..... I think I must only enjoy blogging in the winter :D As I'm sans television this week maybe this is the excuse I need to get blogging again .... oh and I visited the Palais de Versailles *squeeeeeeeeeeeee* last week so I'll have to share some pics :)
We also visited the Catacombs in Paris ...very appropriate for the time of year! and worth the 90 minute queue to get down to them :O

meantime HAPPY HALLOWEEN !!!!

A corner of my studio ..

2011-09-08T23:49:00.001+02:00

has a cluster of stars ...love these grouped together :)

Choosing colours ....

2011-07-28T17:36:00.000+02:00

This afternoon I was trying to decide on the colours for a new mobile. Reds are always beautiful in glass, so I thought some orange and yellow maybe too, and placed them up by the window in my studio.

But then I had my doubts.

As you do.

So whilst I was getting a little stressed from the decision making and maybe a little too much coffee too I glanced down at my basket of paper patterns and flowers and the decision was made - reds, oranges, pinks and peaches.

Tomorrows work all sorted :D

One of my studio windows last Sunday

2011-06-29T09:23:00.000+02:00

Chambord Chateau

2011-06-20T10:29:00.000+02:00

Some pics from our visit to Chambord Castle a couple of weeks ago. The architecture is so ornate and fabulous that you really don't know what to photograph - it's just too much!! You can find lots of information about the chateau here

A Thank You Note :)

2011-06-13T12:46:00.001+02:00

A few weeks ago illustrator/artist Pamela Bates sent me this sweet artwork for notecards inspired by one of my 'Poets and Writers' quill ink bottles !! Very cute and very usable!! I just need to get some new printer inks / and card and then I'll be adding these as little 'thank you' notes with my bottles :) Thank you Pam!!! (I always find it really strange when writing about someone else with my name ...why is that lol ??)

You can check out other work by Pamela (and some vintage goodies) in her Etsy shop Bates Mercantile Co. Also on Facebook

Fairylights

2011-05-11T08:35:00.000+02:00

Since I love fairylights SO much I decided to make some - romantic, shabby chic girly flower ones just to be predictable :D They're in my Etsy shop here

Thank You!!

Many thanks to Alena at Oh, It's Just Perfect for a lovely feature recently!! - you can read it here

The Guestroom is FINISHED!!!!!!

2011-04-28T16:53:00.000+02:00

Well it's finally finished (ish) - remember last Spring when the room looked like this? It a little cheerier now thanks to some thrifty purchases and a little fun DIY :)

I have to say that I love love love the chest of drawers now that I gave them some colour and TLC

and I love my pompoms too - bought from Pom Love on Etsy

and the painting may not be finished but I don't care! it's up and doing it's job of calming down some of the 'over-the-top' elements of the room :)

For the bed I just added some IKEA cushions and throw ...

I clipped some silk flowers and ribbon to the existing lamp

The silk on the wall behind the bed was one of those bad purchases from about 10 years ago - it's a really beautiful embroidered throw from Monsoon but totally impractical and after rescuing it once too many times from the cats, it was put in a drawer and forgotten about - but at last it's found a (safe) use.

I added some mirrored bunting along the top of this wall and added the 'blinged' sconce that I blogged about last year here

painted and recovered the old 80's grey chair

and added a final bit of twinkle :)

I know it's a room mostly for girls, but boys, TOUGH! ;P

You'll Probably Find Me Here ;)

2011-04-26T16:46:00.000+02:00

I treated myself a few weeks back to a beautiful handmade hammock from Hamanica , a small craft collective in Nicaragua. I love it! I originally bought it for our terrace, but typical me, never measured to see if it would fit. Alas, unless I wanted to hang it across the kitchen door it wasn't going to work. So it's found a home under the little cherry tree, and as it happens this has worked out very nicely because from here I can still chat to whoever is sitting in the shade of the terrace or up by the quince tree , or I can be anti-social (usually am) and face out to the view of the valley and the Chartreuse ... although I'll probably be snoozing in minutes...

Anyways, my new hammock required suitably comfy (but pretty) new cushions so over the Easter weekend I rummaged around the house for some fabrics to recycle and found a vintage hand embroidered table runner in a drawer in the guestroom. I've no idea where it came from but probably my Mum-in-law gave to me with a bundle of other vintage things. I usually shy away from cutting up perfectly good vintage pieces but as it was hiding in a drawer unloved and rather frumpy looking I don't feel too guilty :)

I teamed it up with a fabric remnant I bought in a Grenoble interior's shop a few years back and some old white Irish linen given to me by my neighbour in Ireland back in the 1990's (when vintage was still called "second-hand")

So I cut them up, appliqued a little, sewed on some velvet ribbons and hey presto, some perfectly cute vintage pillows for my summer afternoon siestas :)

No.5

2011-04-25T10:51:00.001+02:00

Another in the Poets and Writers series .... available in my Etsy shop

THANK YOU!!

A few weeks ago photographer Rhiannon Connelly commissioned a glass garland - you can see it on her blog here. Many thanks Rhiannon for such a super feature too!!

Flower Bomb Hits the Garden

2011-04-14T18:01:00.000+02:00

I came back from a trip to Ireland this week to find that the garden had exploded !! Not even 6 days away and WHAM!! colour and fluffy stuff everywhere ....and those pesky nettles :/ I wonder if this year is going to be a bumper year for the plants? The lizards are like Godzilla and the bumble bees HUGE ... just hope the snakes and spiders don't follow suit !!

some pics I took yesterday

under the apple tree is starting to look wild!

forget-me-nots are are spreading everywhere

cowslips and violets have replaced the snowdrops

pear blossom

cherry blossom

plants are sprouting up everywhere! I'm thinking a gardener would be nice luxury!!!

Yay ! The Garden is Emerging Again!

2011-04-03T10:10:00.001+02:00

Spring really is incredible! You can practically see the garden transform in front of your eyes :) We are always 2 or 3 weeks behind the gardens down in the warmer valley, so our tree blossom has still a little way to go but buds are shooting everywhere :) In just 3 weeks our garden has started to ' green up' ...

from this barren mess of dried leaves and dead grass ...

to this sunny (almost) lush little corner of peace + tranquility (it got it's first strim yesterday!!)

and from this snowdrop woodland scene under the apple tree ...

to this pretty fresh array of daffodils, hyacinths and emerging tulips

and this weekend it's not just the flowers enjoying the fabulous weather :)

In Progress ...

2011-03-29T14:12:00.000+02:00

I'm still working on the chair painting for the guest room ... the one that was supposed to be finished about 11 months ago ... the room is almost done but it needs this painting to counter balance the pink fluffy pompoms and chartreuse green dressing table. Maybe male guests will look a little less 'bemused' when this gets added into the mix :)

Artisans at The Village Fair

2011-03-28T11:45:00.000+02:00

Some of the local artisans at the Peony Fair on Saturday - when I was last here a few years ago the stalls were outside and it was cold and wet so I didn't take part - kinda regret that decision now as the organisers did a great job this year!

I should have taken more photos but I ran out of space on my camera card :(

Anne-Louise Vidal

Des Points et des Couleurs

Sophie Dody

and our next door neighbour - beekeeper Jean-Francois Marmet

Foire à la Pivoine - St Pierre d'Allevard

2011-03-26T16:29:00.000+01:00

Today our local village had it's annual Foire à la Pivoine (Peony Fair) and it was a perfect Spring morning (usually it rains!)

Warm sunshine, soft little lambs, the woolliest pig in the world and super artisans (I'll blog them later) - it was a proper country fair :)

Here are some pictures ...

Cherry Blossom Mirrored Garland

2011-03-11T18:07:00.001+01:00

Getting set for Spring!! I've been working in the garden this week and excited to see little knobbly buds on some of the cherry trees!! If, like me, you can't wait for the real thing, I made this mirrored bunting with pale pink fluffy cherry blossom blooms :)

available here

Poets and Writers no.3

2011-03-09T17:04:00.001+01:00

This bottle I've kept much plainer because it has such a great look just as is - a 1900's octagonal green ink jar which I've decorated with a feather made of very fab green antique glass.

available here

***thank you *** thank you *** thank you ***

A big MERCI! to Janae for including my glass on Pink Dandy Chatter and also Lindy for including my glass on A La Mode Stuff

Antique Ink Bottles - my new love :D

2011-03-07T13:52:00.000+01:00

I decided that the perfect bottle for my stained glass feathers would be ink bottles - it's very obvious really! So I've bought a few and have been playing ... and today I got a delivery of some more .... squeee!!

there's nothing quite like getting a box of supplies in the post ...

little surprises :D

all are different (sometimes quirky) shapes.

and different shades - I love this green one.

and different sizes - this has to be the smallest little ink bottle ever!!

I love them all!!!!

some finished bottles in my atelier - filled with sea glass and beads and decorated with glass feathers and ribbons and flowers.

and a couple of bottles that I've listed in my Etsy shop ..

aren't they cute ??

Bunting, oh, and more blog neglect....

2011-03-04T08:11:00.000+01:00

I struggle to blog when I'm not working, and I struggle to blog when I am working! Ergh! By the time I've Facebooked, Tweeted and Flickr'd any new work I feel sort of 'socially networked out' .

Not good :(

But I'm not going to bore you or me now with my new stuff from last month, let's keeping moving on, and I promise to post all new things here as of today. really :)

Yesterday we got some sunny weather, which after 3 days of dead calm, frozen, n foggy, totally perked me up! And I got some new garlands photographed and listed in my Etsy shop :)

The first is "Frozen in Time" (hmmm inspired by outside much?) a wispy white bunting with parchment coloured silk n tarnished vintage gold glass glitter flowers and sparkly glass beads. This one is very 'me' I think, definitely the colours I'm drawn too personally.

and also "Blush" in sweet palest peachy pink and pinky cream with flowers in pink and cream and rosaline glass beads - perfect for decorated a wedding arbor or top table. I recently had two brides-to-be purchase garlands for their summer weddings - hope to get some pics to share here :)

These are both available in my Etsy shop - which the keen eyed amongst you will now notice is in euros (hooray!!) non eurozone customers fear not as you will still see approx prices in your chosen currency :)

Mr Lawrence's beauty secret :)

2011-02-06T10:59:00.000+01:00

I thought you might like to see Mr Lawrence's favourite grooming treatment :) He's particularly fond of an eyebrow massage (loses a few in the process sometimes ) but a good general all over hoover is always a treat for him. He'll follow the hoover around the room looking for more attention, the fact that the vet confirmed our suspicions this week that he's now very deaf explains why the noise isn't a deterrent :)

Fairytale Living

2011-02-01T17:51:00.000+01:00

Part of my new range of 'open edition' mirrored garlands to complement my one of a kind pieces.

Tied with soft grey rayon ribbons and decorated with glass beads and handmade organza flowers ....

Working with vintage in February

2011-01-31T11:15:00.000+01:00

Some of the vintage things I'll be working with over the next few weeks ...

bottles for decorating ....

buttons for adorning ....

valves for punking ...

and huge skeleton keys for hanging .... just as long as I can get to a DIY store for a new dremel bit .....

Shadows in a Jeweller's Garret ...

2011-01-28T17:58:00.000+01:00

When I was making this piece I had those beautiful old European buildings in mind - like the ones I saw in Budapest - with the loft rooms windows edged in stained glass, dust mots floating around and a jeweller / watchmaker sitting at a table in the corner.....

I used 15 colours of glass in blues, teals, rich greens, mauves and topaz and 24 different glass beads ranging from Swarovski to vintage european and contemporary beads.

It moves very softly in a gentle breeze from a window - the feel is very light and dreamy I think ..

You can find it in my Etsy shop here

The new deco garland in the coppery stuff :)

2011-01-27T08:23:00.000+01:00

Isn't it romantic ? !! :) because the glass is rippled it catches the light really well, even Aaron noticed that and he's usually devoid of any opinions regarding garlands (something about them being too girly ...... )

available to order from my Etsy shop

THANK YOU !!!! THANK YOU !!!!

The 'Let Then Eat Cake' bunting was featured on Hundy & Undy last weekend :D Thank you so much Sam!! you can see the post here

Let Them Eat Cake

2011-01-21T15:38:00.000+01:00

It's been awhile but I just made another Marie Antoinette inspired garland (yes yes I know she probably never said "Let them eat cake" but we're all allowed some artistic license especially when we can't think of anything else ....)

This is a slightly deeper seafoam colour than the Waiting For Fersen I made a few years ago (sadly I've only the tiniest little piece of that glass left and this is the closest we could find to replace it ) but saying that this glass is very gorgeous and delicate - it's hand blown and has loads of sweet little air bubbles.

The faceted golden glass beads I bought whilst in Florence last year, I think they were waiting for this garland :) The shabby pink millinery roses are the same sweet flowers that I used in the Fersen garland.

very tempted to make some stars to match this bunting ... I wish I'd stop getting distracted to make new stuff before I've finished everything else that's sitting on my bench!!

One Late Afternoon - a mellow vintage feel garland ....

2011-01-18T15:54:00.000+01:00

This is the first garland I've made using this rippled, coppery mirrored glass and I have to say I love it ! It gives off a lovely mellow, warm glow and works great with these seafoam greeny blue velvet millinery leaves and the tea stained flowers :)

the ribbons are seafoam satin and a hand dyed rayon ribbon in pinks and taupes

The beads are 3 shades of blue glass 'tulip flowers'

available in my Etsy shop here

Some new work for the new year :)

2011-01-14T18:58:00.000+01:00

After a slow few days at the start of the year, I'm busy busy busy in my atelier again.

About time.

I've listed a few new garlands in my Etsy shop this week, including a totally new design - The French Deco Garland, unlike most of my other garlands, this is 'open edition' so you can have as many as you like :)

So far it's just available in mirrored glass but I'll be listing it in a super copper mirrored glass and a gun metal grey mirrored glass too in the coming week. Then I'll think about some coloured stained glass ones (although I'm leaning towards textured colourless glass first ) ...

The other new pieces are "Magical Realism" - In amethyst, magenta, purple and cinnamon glass, each with different textures/patterns for ethereal shadows.

and "Miss Austen's Lawn Dress" - in the in the palest peachy pink and light rosaline coloured glass.

you can find my Etsy shop here

a few Pretty Fabulous Things ..

2011-01-05T15:26:00.002+01:00

some pretty things from a few of my Etsy favs :) click here

Stylish Blogger Award ! or 7 things you really want to know about me :D

2011-01-04T12:23:00.003+01:00

I have been given the Stylish Blogger Award by sweet Ayça @ Aya Wedding

MERCI Ayça !!

Here's how it goes

Thank and link back to the person that awarded me.
Share 7 things about myself.
Pay it forward to 3 (or 15 if you have time!) recently discovered bloggers.
Contact those bloggers about the award!

7 things you really should know ....

1. I dream of living and working in Venice for 6 months

2. I barely understand a word French people say to me

3. I'm addicted to vampire romances

4. I've seen 2 ghosts

5. Last week I mistook a pile of snow-capped horse manure to be a shetland pony. (this fact may or may not influence your acceptance of point 4 )

6. I like eating sausage rolls squashed in bread baps

7. When I rule the world, hair straighteners, over-plucked eyebrows and tweets about Justin Bieber will all be banned. oh yes.

(want more? here are 7 things for a few years back ! )

3 stylish blogs I chose ...

One Crafty Fox

Avant Fae

Simple Little Joys

Back to work Missy ...

2011-01-02T14:07:00.001+01:00

It's nice to get the decorations put away again - the tree (complete with it's droopy rigamortis that set in week 2) is in the garden waiting to get recycled into firewood poor thing.
I'm hoping to get stuck into some work again on Monday (over the holidays I managed to grind a few token pieces of a panel I've been trying to finish for quite literally years ) Anyway I feel as enthusiastic as these girls look which is pretty sad for day 2 of 2011.

All images by the fantabulous Tim Walker for Vogue

Happy New Year :)

2011-01-01T00:01:00.002+01:00

"Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail" ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Best wishes for 2011 everyone ♥
Pam x

Angels make a return ...

2010-12-30T11:41:00.000+01:00

I'm hoping 2011 is my year for angels so I'm finishing 2010 with stock of Versailles Angel and all it's twinkly sparkle.

Available here

One winter's day in Annecy ..

2010-12-15T16:38:00.001+01:00

I've never been to Annecy in the winter before - at least not in December - and I'm sure I've blogged about the town before when I visited with family over the years. But a town always looks different when dressed for Christmas, and the below zero temperatures kind of give a 'Brothers Grimm' feel to some of the medieval buildings. We visited yesterday ....

The flower shop above always looks as pretty as a picture but never more so than this!

It's not called the 'Venice of the Alps' without good reason...

It looks cold, it was cold ....

I love this photo!

'shabby chic' gone terribly wrong?

market stalls on the bridge covered in colourful tarpaulins to keep the chill at bay still look pretty ...

bundles of mistletoe and holly - for me this is Christmas!!!

gingerbread treats at the Christmas market ...

... as well as pretty textiles ....

.... and total cuteness!!!

Cafe Saint Antoine is definitely worth a lunchtime visit - but get there early for a table!!

I'd never seen a french bottle dryer used as a light fitting before - definitely a glass chandelier with a difference :)

no town in France is complete without a carousel .. I think it's law :)

an old fairground organ..

The very fine La Cure Gourmande shop was the icing on the cake for my visit - just how pretty is this ?????

.... lollipops...

.... biscuits....

... chocolate olives ...

... and boxes and boxes of toffee ..... *sigh*

and then it started to snow and it was time to go home :) * I love Annecy*

Snapshots of Budapest - Part 3 - Boscolo New York Palace Hotel

2010-12-14T21:26:00.000+01:00

Before travelling to Budapest I joked to Aaron that I'd probably be happy not to leave our hotel for the 48 hours we were in town. Well the thing is, now that we're home again, I'm plotting an anniversary trip so we can do just that :) This place is gorgeous!!

Anywhere with lots of twinkly fairylights and huuuge glass chandeliers wins my vote :)

Christmas shopping and the baltic windchill looks as if it's taken it's toll on this fellow guest :)

the stairs were impressive ...I just looked and took the lifts ...

the central atrium ( which was decorated like an advent calendar) from our 4th floor ... Aaron had to take this picture because my vertigo kicked in :S

the lights in the bedroom were gorgeous too.

The cafe and restaurants were exquisite !!

Not many hotel restaurants are this fabulous - the service was faultless and the food amazing, it was here that the hotel really won us over !!

oh and the ceiling was quite pretty too :)

noooo !! not ALL mine ... just sampled a few Hungarian wines.... as you do.

Snapshots of Budapest - part 2 - St Stephen's Basilica

2010-12-13T11:05:00.000+01:00

We visited the Basilica just before leaving for the airport - we had decided not to visit any museums, churches etc on this visit and just enjoy wandering the city, window shopping and people watching but it was so cold we came here to get a little shelter ... and it was stunning. a little garish but stunning.

Snapshots of Budapest - Part 1

2010-12-12T12:56:00.000+01:00

This week we visited Budapest. It was beautiful. But I have to say it had a windchill that could've cut you in half - next visit will be in summer! Here are some snippets from the trip.

The first evening had an atmospheric fog which softened all the lights and made the city evening more magical and pretty :)

A downtown restaurant had this great chandelier made from forks with glass crystals glued to the tines

The Christmas market

Carousels, fluffy woodland creature automatons and Santa Claus in his flash little Merc - what's not to love about this window!!

pure fairytale - the entrance to this Swarovski shop is encrusted with crystals - it looked so good against the old romantic doorway

This stall wafted scents of cinnamon and orange around the market - beautiful earthy garlands and wreaths of dried spices, wonderfully displayed.

My favourite stall at the Christmas market sold marionettes and paper theatres ... one day I'm going buy one of these!

FolkArt Craftman's House sells traditional Hungarian crafts. Loved the cushions on the top shelf.

The architecture of the city is stunning - it was easy to miss a lot of the little details because there is so much restoration and building work currently going on that you have to take care whilst walking along the pavements.

We were told this fabulous old, almost derelict, arcade was for sale - what a project!!!

there was two of these old telephone kiosks in the arcade - were all telephone boxes once like this in Budapest?

the huge stained glass dome in the arcade

A couple of other places deserve their own posts. I'll add them this week.

a little tour in the snow this week .....

2010-12-05T15:07:00.001+01:00

Some pics of this weeks snow .... starting in the garden ....

a peek at the hamlet from the garden....

and the side garden ... at the bottom of the pic you can just see the little trench Aaron dug out for Mr Lawrence ... a spoilt cat :D

looking down the garden and across to the Chartreuse mountains .... lots of snow fell in the valley too .... lots of chaos Wednesday!!!

and then into the car......

the road into the hamlet ...

some of the cute barns on the road that zigzags up to the hamlet.. I do love these ...

the view down the valley from the road

a glimpse of the neighbouring hamlet of Le Feyjoux

and on down the mountain towards the village ... we just missed a tree falling here, on the return journey it was lying on the side of the road .....

the road has lots of twists and 'blind' corners ... I dread meeting the wood lorries or coaches coming from the nearby cross country ski station .... not fun when there are few barriers and steep falls!!

arriving down to the village of St Pierre d Allevard....

and around the lake to the town of Allevard on the other side ...

Allevard .. the mountain on the left leads to the Collet d Allevard ski resort at the top .. it has lots of floodlit night skiing ...fun if you do that kind of thing ... unlike me :)

and our mountain as seen from the road heading to the valley ....

et voila, finally our mountain as seen from the valley :)

and decorated the fireplace too :)

2010-12-02T09:57:00.001+01:00

but as you can see I don't go OTT with the christmas decorating lol ! Mr Lawrence just had to get in the picture of course, although he was getting distracted by the birds on the apple tree outside :)

I love this room on winter nights, the woodburner and candles makes it cosy.

Christmas Tree :)

2010-12-01T16:12:00.000+01:00

Today we're well n truly snowed-in here in the Alps, luckily I finished most of our christmas shopping yesterday (I'm scaring myself with how organised I've been this year!) We also bought our fat little christmas tree yesterday afternoon and I finished decorating it today. Now just to finish wrapping the remainder of the gifts and hopefully get them posted off to family tomorrow - as long as the snow stops that is... which I doubt!

we'll not be having lunch in the garden any time soon!

our neighbour's barn - his little bread oven chimney's looking cute!!

Pretty Fabulous Things

2010-10-14T11:42:00.002+02:00

Chunky Snow Gloves - Grey

I love mittens, I really really do. It's almost time. In a couple of weeks it'll be mitten weather. I can't wait!!! I. must. be. strong. and. not. buy. any. more. ahh but Afra's mittens on Etsy are quite possibly too cute to deny myself one wee purchase. hmmmm but which one's???

Olive Green Blended White and Brown Chunky Gloves

Wool Gloves With Recycled Suede Fringe - Ivory - Cream - Brown

Citrine Cable Knit Gloves

more Fragments

2010-10-11T14:26:00.000+02:00

This week I'll be listing a few more pairs of earrings in my "Fragments" series to the Etsy shop. These new pretties are slightly smaller than previous so much cuter :)

The glass I've chosen for the pair shown here is a pretty transparent pale pink with a flash of opaque purple blending to a creamy white.

The glass hangs from handmade, sterling silver earwires.

available here

In the Studio

2010-10-06T12:02:00.001+02:00

These pics were taken in my atelier Monday - I'm only getting a chance to post now because my internet was down since Monday afternoon. All sorted now :) for awhile ... my online shop is also 'down' at the minute because I made an update without properly saving my originals ...and lost all my settings.... I was / am so annoyed with myself I can't even start to look at it again for awhile lol. It'll be back and it will be better :) just not this week :S anyways ...

Here is some 'work-in-progress' I'm making this up as I go along which is sometimes the only way to work ...although it's slow :) it's looking much better than this already lol

waste not, want not. I keep my little pieces in drawers.

and the little slivers get brushed away after each cut. the teeny tiny pieces are so pretty. I used to save them in small glass jars but failed to find a use for them so now they get wrapped up in newspaper and thrown away.

decisons decisons :)

and then I get v. easily distracted - the little leaves for the new piece are cute. maybe I'll shuffle over to the beads and play. These would make sweet earrings?

Mr Lawrence wakes up and shouts that it's time for his 5pm treat ... at 3pm. Chancer.

Montresor, a Chateau and a Fallen Angel

2010-08-31T19:45:00.000+02:00

A week or so ago we were back in the Loire valley looking around a few more towns and villages. We visited Montresor for the second time, although last year we never got to visit the chateau (due to culture fatique). It was a great way to spend a morning :)

The town has everything we love about the area ...

a river ......

a chateau ....

and a sense of pageantry .....

and tourists for my work ....honestly ..... this was early in the morning :)

Gotta love a chateau visit ..... preferably we arrive early to miss the families with screaming children. We saw 5 other people whilst we looked around but by the time we'd finished walking the garden, guided tour groups had started to descend. Timing is everything :)

I quite fancy one of these chairs from the music room :)

The chandelier is made of wood .... much prefer crystal ones myself ..

and love this fabric!

At the edge of the garden we found this derelict summer house - there was no notice to say access was forbidden .... and it was just too tempting ...

Aaron told me not to go in as the roof looked ready to collapse. I knew that only 3 things could possibly make the ceiling cave in right at that very moment.
1. an earthquake
2. a lightning bolt
3. if I touched absolutely anything in there ...

the old carriages inside were worth the fear of spiders ....

Aaron did come in too once I went back outside and told him about the glass cabinet of discarded taxidermy. We all have a tipping point....

I didn't have the stomach to go around and look through the front of the glass, I could see the backside of a wild boar and god knows what that thing on the right was in the 19th century. No doubt there's a few birds of prey under there and a pine marten. There's always a pine marten.

But my most favourite thing in all of Montresor is this beautiful fallen angel in the chateau garden. He's Italian (obviously). I can't imagine he's a drag-your-entrails-out-through-your-nose kind of fallen angel, I'm sure he was just too much of a party animal. swoon. I want one.

The Frida Kahlo Garlands ....... colour colour colour :)

2010-07-11T10:03:00.000+02:00

I thought since I blogged about the 'making of' in my 'creative space post awhile back, I thought I'd post the finished garlands here too. They are available in my shop here.

they have colour ....

they have roses in red, fuchsia and pink.....

they have hand carved bone skulls .....

they have pretty beads .....

and filgree .....

they have twists of beautiful ribbons ...

the most gorgeous glass ....

some of it is handmade antique glass....

and they are available here :)

oh and here's Frida and me in New York :) ......

Woohoo!! New Shop is OPEN!!!!!!!

2010-07-08T14:21:00.000+02:00

Finally! To say there was a few last minute hiccups is an understatment but as of an hour or so ago, Pamela Angus Studio is open for business!! It will be a selection of my decorative (mostly one of a kind) stained glass and vintage inspired jewellery and accessories.

mirrored garland @ Pamela Angus Studio

stained glass garland @ Pamela Angus Studio

stained glass pendant @ Pamela Angus Studio

romantic vintage inspired butterfly rings @ Pamela Angus Studio

Please pop over and have a browse and let me know what you think :)

www.PamelaAngusStudio.com

Some Happy Stats

2010-06-26T10:13:00.000+02:00

i need a holiday - enchantedpond

Some of the happy things!

- planning new adventures :)
- finding out a chum ran off + got married (congrats F. !!!!)
- the return of fabulous summer weather:)
- having freedom :)
- 3 goodnight's sleep in a row!!! :)

wherever you are in blogiverse have a happy weekend :)

My Creative Space Today ..

2010-06-24T14:12:00.001+02:00

The weather has been awful in this part of France recently - we escaped the floods of the cote d'azur but up here in the Alps it's been cold, wet and miserable. The woodburner's been lit most nights and I'm back to eating stodgy winter comfort food - dieting disaster! But the sun is back - hurrah! so I'm making the most of it and bringing some work out into the garden today. Later, a chum is coming over for an aperitif and I'll try to get an hour of reading here too this afternoon. If you like stained glass you may like The Glass Painter's Daughter by Rachel Hore too :)

to see more creative spaces pop over to Kootoyoo !

Little Wedding Gift Mirrors

2010-06-21T12:24:00.001+02:00

I was asked to make a couple of my little boudoir mirrors for wedding party gifts. Half the fun of making these is in the gift wrapping lol! stamping, bows and flowers = frou frou fun.

New Kitschy Pendants :)

2010-06-19T11:37:00.002+02:00

Some fun kitsch little pendants that I've been making. I'll be listing a few of these online soon.

My Creative Space Today ..

2010-06-17T11:46:00.001+02:00

yes, yes, I know - another 'creative space' photo of garland bits. I will show some finished ones v. soon, honestly. I'll be working on this one later this afternoon after I've finished some customer bits and pieces. Do you like my little bead tray? I picked up a pile of these vintage patisserie trays in Chambery last weekend - they're so sweet :)

for more creative spaces today pop over to Kootoyoo's blog here

Pretty Fabulous Things

2010-06-16T11:40:00.001+02:00

Oh I love love love the amazing work of artist Lee Renninger. Lee uses porcelain clay and fiber to create these stunning pieces. beautiful.

Couture: Wrap

porcelain, fiber

34" x 8' x 2" (86cm x 2m x 5cm)

Lacet de Chanvre

porcelain, fiber

34" x 8' x 2" (86cm x 2m x 5cm)

Lacet de Chanvre (detail)

porcelain, fiber

34" x 8' x 2" (86cm x 2m x 5cm)

Boho

porcelain, fiber

60" x 60" x 60" (152cm x 152cm x 152cm)

For more works and info visit www.leerenninger.com

A Room With a View

2010-06-14T15:51:00.000+02:00

I spotted this notsolittle cat in Chambery on Saturday. He was taking great interest in the goings on in the street below. I'm quite jealous of his residence actually :)

Our Wild Garden in France

2010-06-09T16:02:00.000+02:00

I thought I'd share some pictures of the garden again this year - as ever it's a walk on the wildside :) I took most of them today but the quince blossom and long shots were taken a couple of weeks back. The garden probably looked best last week when the wisteria along the terrace was in full bloom and we still had the remainder of the lilacs. It is all organic and wild and perfect for our neighbour , the beekeeper :)

this is where I sit and have lunch, looking down the valley and across to the Chartreuse mountains

My Creative Space Today ..

2010-06-03T11:59:00.000+02:00

Yep, I'm still in garland mode - and very excited about this mirrored bunting with a new distressed blue patina, and the gorgeous fairytale handpainted ribbon and the tea-stained flowers ..... I'm just very excited about work full stop at the moment (I don't get to say that very often)

Oh and I'm off to Florence, Italy for a few days. Quite excited about that too :)

Visit Kootoyoo for more creative spaces today.

Ciao !

Pretty Fabulous Things

2010-05-29T10:54:00.002+02:00

Fluttery Breathe of Life necklace - made to order

Long Fluttery Cluster Earring

Single Long Butterflies Earrings

These stunning ethereal creations are by California based, Turkish jewellery designer Derya Aksoy. Perfect for a summer wedding or party or even just for hanging up on your dressing table mirror! You can find these and other gorgeous designs in her Etsy shop Jewelera

Derya is very kindly offering 15% off anything in her Etsy shop to my blog readers! simply put 'Pam's blog' in the note to sellers box at checkout. Thank you so much Derya!!

My Creative Space Today ..

2010-05-27T12:28:00.000+02:00

Today I'm working on garlands - including these Frida Kahlo inspired ones. I've been intending to make these for ages but you know how it is - sometimes you just need to wait until the right moment :) I'm having great fun with the colours and how often do you get to make anything with little bone skulls these days ? :) They'll be for sale probably in a few weeks, when I come back from Florence ready to open the new shop :)

to see more creative spaces today pop over to Kootoyoo's blog here

An Enchanted Garden Blooms and Grows

2010-05-24T19:56:00.001+02:00

Photo by HarrietsImagination

I just discovered that one of my mirrored garlands is in the UK edition of The Storque today (That's Etsy's blog !) v. nice little surprise :)

You can see the Chelsea Flower Show inspired article here

Weekly Happy Stats :)

2010-05-22T10:24:00.000+02:00

part of our garden yesterday

happy things this week include

:) garlands getting featured on Apronstrings and Pretty Things - thank you Tammy!!

:) watching Mr + Mrs Lizard meet each other on the balcony, Mr Lizard shuffled across to hold Mrs Lizard's hand and after a minute they shimmy so that Mrs (heavyly pregnant it would seem) Lizard can snuggle up beside her hubby and rest her chin on his leg. aaawwwwww :D I was so excited to see this all unfold!!

:) it's shorts weather again

:) the garden is looking fresh and lush

:) my not very flat tummy looking flat yesterday - only a glitch lol!

For The Paper Doll Project

2010-05-21T10:37:00.002+02:00

Artist Anastasia Shookaty's Paper Doll Project is such a fun idea - she created a paper doll based on herself and is asking people to dress her :) I have her preparing for a masked Ball in a fairytale dress of aluminium foil and acrylic rosebuds - she has lacey stockings but can't decide on her shoes - there might be alot of dancing but flats are going to ruin that dress!!!

To see some more dresses or to download the paper doll and play visit the Paper Doll Project here

My Creative Space Today ..

2010-05-20T18:12:00.000+02:00

I ache all over right now! This is my 'creative space' today - not my studio but the living room! Aaron just finished putting down the 1 ton of oak flooring in this room and his adjacent office and cloakroom and today I started to apply the tint and wax. I feel slightly high from the fumes (there has to be some advantage right?) Some friends think we're a little insane for putting this floor down when we don't plan to stay so long but I think the house deserves it and hope it will last for another few centuries more :) .... time for a glass of wine and a long soak in the bath methinks .....

to see more creative spaces today visit Kootoyoo's blog here

Weekly Happy Stats :)

2010-05-15T10:07:00.000+02:00

some Johnny Depp always makes me happy :D

This week has been full of computer woes and I'm not even going to mention the weather so here are some of the things that made me happy this week ...

:) our anniversary

:) gorgeous supplies in the post

:) finding a flyer in the mailbox for a "fantasmagorique" cabaret act coming to town - ooooooo magic is in the air!!!

:) Aaron coming home

:) sweet customer feedback

want to read more happy stats? here are some from mamutopia

Pretty Fabulous Things

2010-05-13T16:23:00.000+02:00

For the last few weeks,at 5.05am, the first little bird starts tweeting (v loudly!) outside our bedroom window - it's not even dawn yet! About half an hour later there's cocophony of clashing birdsong and fluttering birds to-ing and fro-ing from the eaves. In our room, Mr Lawrence is running around totally tormented by the activity ...or else he's dead to the world in the middle of our bed ...there's no inbetween :)

Anyway, I hope our little feathered friends have built homes just as beautiful as these painted by Pittsburgh based artist Jennie Kay Snyder. You can find these and others works in her Etsy shop Jennie Kay Designs

nest with eggs by Jennie Kay Snyder

robin's nest by Jennie Kay Snyder

Weekly Happy Stats :)

2010-05-08T10:42:00.000+02:00

squirrel in New York photo by Aaron

I first heard about 'happy stats' from Artmind but I think Mamutopia started the whole thing on her cute blog. Every Saturday you write a list of the happy things from your week. Simple and v. sweet. so my happy stats are:

:) dinner with friends

:) receiving a very late birthday card in the post

:) a friend being given the all clear from cancer

:) work starting on a new wooden floor

:) still being childish enough to learn a new swear word and finding it hilarious :D

want to read another list of happy stats? here are some from Huismus this week

And the winner is .........

2010-05-07T17:24:00.001+02:00

Hurray !! congrats Karen at Elsie Eleanor Designs !! You win the poster in my giveaway :) email me your address and I'll send it off to you asap :D Thanks to everyone who entered!

I'll be having another giveaway later this month ..... some of my glass next time

My Creative Space Today ..

2010-05-06T10:06:00.001+02:00

In a corner of my studio I have a little pile of 'pretty new things' some are complete and some just placed together waiting to be tweaked and changed around each time time I pass by. like this flower. I'm cutting, grinding, copperfoiling and soldering as usual this week. Grinding and foiling especially takes it toll on your fingertips and every so often I need to take a break .... and I'll be over in the corner, lifting up a bead and changing the centre again! ...

to see more creative spaces today visit Kootoyoo here

An Exquisite Thank You

2010-05-04T09:23:00.002+02:00

I read somewhere recently that letter writing and journal keeping are expected to make a comeback again . The secret of good letter writing is to blind the reader with such beautiful stationery that they won't even notice the rusty handwriting or the absence of a spellchecker. And just how amazingly gorgeous is the thank you note above? Think you could make similar? You can find instructions here . found via a faerietale of inspiration blog (it's fab!!)

and I send an exquisite thank you to Nat at MaxiTendance for featuring my glass a few days ago - you can see the post here

A Candle Sconce Makeover

2010-05-02T16:42:00.000+02:00

I love candle sconces and chandeliers - when in New York recently I stood like an idiot in the lighting dept of ABC Home and drooled over the crystals and bling of the fabulous chandeliers there. So when I spotted this 'second' candle sconce in a brocante store, here in France ,I thought I could add a bit of sparkle and pizazz and it would be perfect for the guest room

It was quite pretty already but not girly enough for this new room :)

So I added a little metal paint, wiping off the excess before it dried to give a bluish vintage look.

I picked out some beads and vintage chandelier parts - in the end I didn't use all of these. I attached the glass beads to wire and then tied the strands to the sconce, glued on some jewellery jump rings to hang the drops from, disguising them with some more glass beads and then glued on some enamel and lucite flowers with trusty e6000 adhesive. and ta daa :) some bling for my guests :D

Jean Cocteau poster giveaway :)

2010-04-28T16:39:00.005+02:00

GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED

Last week I travelled up to Evian to see the Jean Cocteau exhibition - it was wonderful and v. inspiring!

Whilst there, I bought myself a little souvenir of a film poster ( Le Testament d'Orphee ) and then, just as I was about to get back in the car I ran back and bought another just for you ... well one of you. I'm that nice :)

To enter the blog giveaway simply leave a comment at the end of this post. You can enter more than once - to do this simply Tweet or post on Facebook the link to this giveaway or give it a mention on you blog each time you leave a comment :) easypeasy. The giveaway is open until 5 pm (CET) Friday May 7 2010 and then I will choose a number from one of those little online random no. generator websites :) I'll announce the winner online! good luck!!!!!!!!!

Cherry Blossom

2010-04-27T15:49:00.005+02:00

It's that pretty time of year again when the peach and cherry blossoms are out in full bloom and the apple and quince blossoms are yet to bloom in our garden. But there's been blooms indoors too as I got a custom order to make a cherry blossom stained glass garland. I thought I'd share it with you :)

The Things I Loved About New York

2010-04-23T11:32:00.002+02:00

in no particular order ....

photos by Aaron btw ...except the cafe reggio one :D

spotting Antony Gormley's Event Horizon statues in Manhattan

the water tower things on top of the buildings ... all looked a little bit 'wild west' :D

The french rooms at the Met Museum of Art's decorative arts dept - beautiful, pristine and nicely lit (you don't get recessed ceiling spotlights and backlit windows in the real thing !) definitely not 'shabby chic' chateau style here :D it did have creaky wooden floorboards but no peeling paint work or that slight smell of damp but most of all it lacked the 'goosebumps' factor of the real chateaux but I really loved them!! GORGEOUS!!

actually, I think this chandelier is in the Italian bit ...

jazz in the park

waffles with strawberries, walnuts and syrup at Cafe Reggio in Greenwich Village - this cafe reminding me of Venice :)

the feisty little squirrels!

the fire escapes!

Anthropologie's shop at the Rockefeller - no photos but got lots of birthday treats there :D

The Low Anthem at the Bowery Ballroom - I'm madly in love with this band

New York and Back

2010-04-21T08:06:00.001+02:00

We were in New York for my birthday last week - and luckily managed to get home on Friday just before the airspace was shut due to the volcanic ash cloud.! Timing is everything :) and I haven't had the time to sit down and look at my photos let alone blog about it! This photo was taken by Aaron in Washington Park Square - kinda sums up the trip, we sat in parks in the beautiful spring sunshine for many hours just watching squirrels, people, dogs and listening to music :) more tomorrow ....

Happy Easter!

2010-04-03T11:44:00.002+02:00

While I was out picking these little Spring flowers I noticed that our peony roses are emerging - hurrah! and there are little buds on the apple trees, fingers'x'd that the snow and frosts we had this week haven't done any damage.

I thought you might like to see the (almost finished ) dressing table, just a touch up to the handles required and a little work around the drawers. I'm really happy with it and it's put me in the mood to do some more. but maybe not just yet :)

The fabric on top is for the chair which I've started to paint this morning - my weekend project :)

Have a super Easter weekend!

My Creative Space Today ..

2010-03-25T08:43:00.001+01:00

a little sneak peek at the dressing table progress - only the fun (but still time consuming) bit to go - adding the indigo wax gilt into the mouldings and then a light distressing so doesn't look so 'new' :)

to see other creative spaces today visit Kootoyoo :)

I'm sorry I neglected you Little Guestroom - let's kiss and make up :)

2010-03-20T11:16:00.001+01:00

God this room is Dull ! I apologise to all friends and family who have stayed here, in this room, over the past couple of years. I simply ran out of decorating steam, and I think, fell out of love with the house a little.

But I'm going to make amends for my indifference and selfishness - this room is getting a makeover!

Now before you get excited and carried with calls of "dump the 80's bed" and "get some bloody colour on the walls" I must tell you that some things are staying ... most notably the early 90's (not 80's!!!!) bed and the paint colours ... and the curtains .... possibly the lampshade, it's early days though.

As we are planning a move at some point (.... in our lifetime I hope) I'm not investing megabucks ...and anyway I have several other rooms requiring even more attention *shameface on*

The very 80's chair (Aaron's from his teenage years) is getting painted (again) and new covers, the salvaged,painted sideboard is getting moved to another room (can you tell we hate to throw away furniture!) I'm making some garlands, some mirrors etc. there'll be textures, textiles galore....

And in my new found enthusiasm I went off shopping in a Grenoble Troc a few days ago and came home with this dressing table - the mirror and drawers were obviously not born together but it's pretty and serves my purposes :) This will be painted Chartreuse green (see there will be colour!)

Oh yes, how could I forget, I'm waiting on these to arrive :D *squeeeee*

Pretty Fabulous Things

2010-03-16T12:40:00.002+01:00

Edible Butterflies - 20 small Pink

These rice paper butterflies are so totally magical! Made by Sugar Robot in California, USA - her biography profile on Etsy reads:

"Behind every sugar robot there's a sweet chick.

That would be me, Lisa. I live and create out of Ventura, Ca. I'm an aspiring Chemist who has a passion for baked goods. I took my first decorating class over 8 years ago and have been hooked ever since."

"Making the world fun.....one cupcake at a time"

Edible Butterflies - 20 small lavender

I want to make cupcakes more than ever now ..... I should really get on with it !

Edible Butterflies - 20 small blue

Thank you!

Thank you to Diana of One Crafty Fox for including one of my garlands in a beautiful collections of finds on her blog a few days ago. Diana is also running a giveaway there at the moment too!

and thank you Mimoza for including one of my garlands on her blog also - her post made me smile :)

I'm off now to have lunch in the garden - yes really! snow has all gone except for a few patches, snowdrops are out, a few primroses and crocus and the blades of daffs and tulips are 2 or 3 inches high. So we have bright blue sky and yesterdays north wind is gone - lovely ...except it's too early for butterflies yet ...must get round to ordering some :)

My Creative Space Today ..

2010-03-11T11:07:00.000+01:00

I'm STILL working on wings ... this pair has proved rather a struggle but I'll spare you the details... I've still to grind over half the pieces before wrapping the copperfoil, soldering etc. The studio is so cold though that it's difficult to work comfortably ... as it looks like we'll not be moving this year I think we'll get the rest of this room double glazed for next winter!

I have some ideas for garlands propped against a window ... these may or may not see the light of day because I'm already planning something else next ... as always :(

you can see more creative spaces today on Kootoyoo 's blog

Vancouver 2010 Mittens have landed in France!!

2010-03-03T15:18:00.000+01:00

albeit for just one day and then they fly off to Ireland to my Mum lol! I was so excited to win these coveted mittens on Cafe Cartolina's Great Canadian Mitten Giveaway a week or so ago. My sis in Canada has been trying to get some too and they are like hen's teeth so I feel really lucky! and I know my Mum is going to love these! Thank you Fiona for running such a great giveaway!!

If you haven't already checked out the gorgeous Cafe Cartolina blog please do so - I can honestly say it is the one blog that read everyday - it's a daily dose of beauty and inspiration!

Oh! and Moo Cards !!

I finally got around to ordering some Moo cards - and I'm really delighted with them, totally sweet little things that I'll use as mini business cards until I can come up with a design for business cards that I'm happy with ...