the light and color of Provence

As a young art student, I often wondered why so many of the great artists came from the same location in the world...Provence.
Van Goh, Picasso, Chagall, Monet, Cezanne, Degas, Boudin, Renoir, Matisse, ....  
Some of these artists were born in Provence.  Many (more than listed here) came to the region because of its beauty.
Until I visited there I did not fully understand this beauty.  
It starts with the light.  The light there is amazing.  It is hard to put into words. 

Next, the colors of the landscape, the skies and the nature are breathtaking!  

The color of the soil, the crops, the towns and villages are beautiful.  

These famous artists chose these towns and villages and the landscapes because they make beautiful subjects for their paintings. 
And these paintings have become some of the most famous paintings in our lifetimes.


All of these pictures were taken with my cell phone...  Can you imagine if I had my good camera with me?!  

mission accomplished! ETSY!

Well I finally did it!  I listed my first items on ETSY.  I no sooner placed my first item, and I went back to my home page to see what it looked like and it showed that I didn't have anything listed?
I was so confused until I figured out I had sold it almost as soon as I posted it.  Literally, less than two minutes after I posted it!!  I guess I must have priced that one too cheap?! lol!
here is the one that sold right away...

A vintage French embroidery sampler.
Here are a couple of other items I have posted...

a couple vintage French legal documents from the 1800's.

and some really cute vintage sock monkeys!

It takes a little while to figure it out, but once you do, it is pretty easy.

So for those of you that want a fix between Barn Sales visit us on Etsy!  We will continue to add to our Etsy store.
First New Years resolution completed!
Yea! 

new years resolution... french charm bracelets

One of my New years Resolutions this year...(among many) is to get things listed on Etsy.
I am going to start with some of my past finds from the wonderful French Flea markets that I have visited over the years.

I am going to be making charm bracelets from these...old french key chains.....

 I will be transforming into these....
Fabulously French, one of a kind, fun charm bracelets made from the cute bottoms of the french key chains!
There was a booth in Clignancourt that had walls of these old key chains.  I looked at them and thought "what could I make out of those?"  I had walked by and came back trying to think of what I could make.
There were some really cute ones, some weird ones, but they were all French.  
Surely I could figure something out.  So I bought bags of these.  Bags and bags.  Wasn't the smartest thing to do, as I then had to carry these heavy bags around the market.  I thought my arm was going to break off!
I think they are really fun, and fabulously French!
I will be sharing some of the other goodies I will be putting on Etsy later this weekend.

french market

I recently just got back from Paris.

One of my favorite places on earth.  
Everything about it is beautiful.

I thought I would share a few of my favorite pictures.

I love the markets in France. They make you want to buy (and eat!) everything.
Being a farmer and an artist, I really appreciate the beauty of the food displays.

It is amazing to me that they can set up for just a couple of hours in the morning and look this amazing! Yum!! 
 The bread, the fruits, the wine, and oh the cheese and butter!!