It was an Art-full Holiday

Here I am, in front of the wonderful, and wonderfully named, Palais des Beaux Arts (the Palace of Beautiful Art) in Lille.  The building itself is a work of art, and typical of what I would call the "wedding cake" school of architecture so prevelent in France.  In other words, elaborate and richly detailed.  None of that "clean lines" nonsense!

                    I know, I'm just a tiny figure, but the "star" of the photo is the building.

 The Palais des Beaux Arts had an enormous ceramic collection, and I especially liked these casks that had taps coming out of them.  No idea what they might have been used for.

We also enjoyed looking at the exhibition of the artwork of Hieronymus Bosch, who is a particularly favourite of Gorgeous Husband's.  Bosch loved to paint grotesque, over-the-top figures in heaven and hell situations.  For a fellow born around 1450, he had quite a warped imagination.  Also, we were amazed how close we could get to the actual work, as they were not roped off.  Bosch was a master of painting detail, so much so, that a fox no bigger than a grain of rice, still had a recognisable expression.

 We also discovered this upside-town house, which was an example of modern art.  Everything in the house was upside down, in that the plumbing and furniture was all on the ceiling.  You could go in and walk around, which we thought would be neat.  As it turns out, I could only stay in the house for a few minutes before I began to feel woozy.  Something about the slant of the floor, and seeing everything topsy turvey had an adverse affect on me and I had to get out of there right away.  It just brought home to me how much I rely on my sight to make sense of the world.

This jolly "cat on a bicycle" fellow was in another modern art gallery, that I forgot to check the name of.  They had a lot of papier mache figures and expensive handcrafts and paintings.  A feast for the eyes, if not the wallet.

This collection of psychedelic flowers is a sculpture close to the Eurostar train station.  Notice I am actually wearing a hat!  The weather was somewhat drizzly, not a proper rain, just a bit of a whimper with not enough energy to collect itself into actual rain drops.

We walked down this street one morning, and it seemed that there were lots of artists and craftspeople out with their wares, in addition to the cute little boutiques that were open.  This particular shop had a white cat outside that the owner had taught a trick.  If you walked up to the cat, held out your palm, and said "merci!" the cat would put its paw in your hand.  Ever so cute. You will appreciate this if you've ever tried to teach a cat anything.  They are not particularly good pupils!

Oooh, I'm in Love!

Yes, it's official.  I'm in love with Lille, France.  You didn't really think I'd chucked in Gorgeous Husband, did you?  We had such a fabulous time in this French city, that is so near to England, yet so distinctly French.  I look a little pale in this shot, as it is night time, and we had to use the flash.  My real colouring was actually quite normal.

 Who couldn't love a city that has such fabulous fashion shopping?  A hat shop!  The Style Crone would absolutely love it.

 Here is a knitted dress in the window of a chic little boutique not far from our hotel.  Or "chick" shop as Gorgeous Husband liked to pronounce it.

 When I die, you can just scatter my ashes here in this incredible shoe shop.  Everything was so yummy, I thought I would pass out.  Not that I bought anything here, but I did succumb to buying 3 pair of boots elsewhere.

On our last day, we went to the Sunday market, which not only had all the fabulous food you would expect of a French market, but someone also playing the accordian.  Plus I found some wonderful colourful leather bags.  I didn't buy one for the following reasons:  I was greedy and already had 3 pair of boots, Gorgeous Husband would have gone pale at the thought of more purchases, no room in the suitcase, and to be honest, the colours weren't exactly what I wanted/needed.  There was a lucky escape!

Do you feel guilty if you think you have bought too much at one time?  (Like 2 identical pair of boots in black and brown?)  I blame it on Gorgeous Husband.  I said, "would I be a greedy pig to buy another pair of these wonderfully comfortable boots in brown?"  And he said, "do what you like."  I rest my case.  Who could resist that?!

The Art of Life, the art of Death

It seems like it has been a long time since I've posted on my blog, so I will have to do better in future!  In my defence, I must say I have been on holiday in France, and that had taken me away from the computer.  (Not being savvy enough to have a laptop/travelling technology with me.)

In order to give ourselves some time in London before catching  the Eurostar go over to Lille, in France, Gorgeous Husband and I decided to stay overnight in the Big City and tootle around a bit.  Although we have been in London lots of times, this time we decided to amuse ourselves almost exclusively by going to the British Museum.  What a treasure house that place is!  A real visual feast --a complete banquet for the eyes.  Thank goodness I couldn't buy any of the pieces or I'd be broke!

The atrim of the British Museum

                               This is a ram in a thicket, an Egyptian piece from 2500 B.C.

                          These fish amulets were found on Queen Puabi of Egypt's right arm.

Some more of her fabulous jewellery.

I forgot to note where this is from, Mesopotamia, I think.  Love it!

This fabulous brass horse was used on a horse harness, and comes from Bologna, 750-700 BC.

Gorgeous Husband and I were all agog at the incredible craftsmanship and also the great age of the pieces.  We loved the Egyptian gallery, looking at the items put in the graves, the jars for the internal organs, the mummies, and the elaborate decorations that were painted within the wooden sarcophagus itself.  All beautifully detailed and as colourful as if they were just finished, yet had been sealed up for thousands of years.  Slightly spooky!  I can hardly imagine the excitement the first Europeans would have felt when they unearthed the coffins.

After we had worn our feet out at the British Museum, we decided to take in an art exhibit that we had chanced upon, which was in the crypt of St. Pancras Church.  It seemed a bit appropriate after looking at all the grave finery in the museum.

This exhibiton was called "Dare to Wear" which was a wildy exuberant, colourful display of "outsider art" (for want of a better term.)  It was curated by Sue Kreitzman and incorporated the works of 26 individual artists who embraced colour and energy and verve and pizzazz as if they were no tomorrow.  Indeed, the sign outside did warn: "Don't wear beige, it might kill you!"

For myself, it was like unexpectedly meeting a rock star.  I had seen the works of Sue Kreitzman on the internet, and to meet her in person, was like, well, wow!  (This also stands for Wild Old Women, so a pretty appropriate all round description of my experience!)

This is the link to Sue's website: www.suekreitzman.com.  (Once again, I hope I had managed to add the link correctly.)

Here I am with Sue Kreitzman, which was a real thrill for me.  I loved the fabulous coats, both the one on the mannequin and the one Sue is wearing.

This is a close-up of Sue's necklac.  Doesn't it look great with the coat?

This is what Sue Kreitzman wrote in the catalogue about the exhibit, DARE TO WEAR:

Don't leave art to lanquish on the walls.
Wrap yourself, festoon, engulf and adorn yourself.
Glory in texture, colour and spectacle.
Erupt into the world: brash, glittering, bejewelled, and multicoloured.
Dare to be a graffito, a collage, an assemblage.
Burst into art, and you will change your world forever.

Wow!  What a concept!!  Talk about kicking the idea of the timid older woman wearing pastels into next week.


Here are some more images from the exhibition, which runs at St. Pancras Church, Euston Road, London, NW1 2BA until November 4, 2012 (closed Mondays).  If you want to have your eyes electrified with colour, by all means go.  No, really, I mean it: GO!   If you're brave enough, there is a special evening event on November 1 (Dia de los Muertos-- the Mexican Day of the Dead) from 6:30 til 9:00.  It should be a riot!

Sue Kreitzman finished off the introduction to the exhibition's catalogue with these words, "Because we are exhibiting in a crypt, we continue to mull over the most fascinating wardrobe conundrum of all: what will we wear in the Afterlife?" 

It certainly boggled my mind, and with the grave imagery from the museum still whizzing around in my head along with the art exhibit, I found it difficult to get to sleep! Too much excitement for one day!



Would You Do This?

Every once in a while, I do something which, strictly speaking, does not make any sense.  Although it does if you follow my logic.

For instance, would you pay £14 to have the toes and heels of your favourite cowboy boots repaired, given that the boots only cost £9 to start with?  These are the type of things that make economists shake their heads and go, "tut tut" over.  Where is the sense in it?

Well, they are comfortable, go with everything, and if I didn't repair them, soon they wouldn't be good for anything.  Now I can get many more cowboy miles out of them.

I took them to my favourite cobbler (well, one of only 3 in town) who I have been going to for the past 16 years.  My nickname for him is "Mr. Smiley" because he never does.  Or at least he didn't use to smile, hardly ever.  He was the Basil Fawlty of customer services.  But after years of dealing with him, we have a laugh now.

I took in the boots and said, "Can you do toes and heels on these, please?"

He looked at them duviously and said, "Where's the metal toe studs?  You've lost the metal bit."

"They didn't have any when I bought them."

"I don't know how I can fix them."

"But you can, can't you?"

"Well, maybe."

"Don't you like a challenge?"

"Me?  No, I hate 'em."

"So can I pick them up tomorrow?"

"Day after."

So, when I went back to collect them, he had done his usual fine job.  "That's great!" I said.  "Yeah,  well, now you can get back to your horse," he said.  I think he even smiled.

Church with a Difference

This Sunday morning, we had a church service with the Christain Motorcycle Association, along with the regular parishoners.  It was great to see the church so full.  The organ music was replaced with guitar, and the hymns were more modern, rock 'n roll versions: Jesus is Lord! Majesty and In Christ Alone. 

About 60 or so motorcyclists arrived on their bikes, wearing leather, tatoos and several with white crosses on the back of their black leather jackets.  In his opening statement, the leader of the group said that sometimes people have trouble accepting him, because of his "rough appearance" (tatoos, leather, beard, long grey hair).  He looks like he may have been in many a tough spot in his past life.  Then he said, "if people give me a hard time, I say, Jesus accepts me as I am.  Why can't you?"

Gathering outside church before the service.  They had travelled from across the Midlands, Berkshire, Wales, Cheshire and Merseyside to be here.

Many had slogans stitched onto their jackets: "Jesus is Lord", "Be an Organ Donor; Give your Heart to Jesus", "These ARE my church clothes" and "WWJD" which stands for "What would Jesus Do?"

 Here I am with two bikers.  Never thought I'd be saying that.  Rubbing shoulders with guys who had been the "bad boys" of their generation. The fellow on my right had spent time in prison, and he was the one giving the sermon, who fully credits God with turning his life around.  "God is good," he kept saying.

 One of the bikers who had travelled from Northwich (about 40-50 miles).  Lots of tatoos.  In the past, lots of attitude as well I would imagine.

 It was very touching to hear the testimonials of these bikers, who had once been the original "hard cases" but were now disciples in the modern sense.  They go to motorcycle events, passing out coffee and teas, talking to people and sharing the Gospel to any who are willing to listen.  Sometimes they just do the listening and let God do the rest.

They hand out Biker's Bibles for free to anyone who wants one.  It is the New Testiment and true life testimonials of people who have been about as low as they could be before discovering Christ.  One young man admitteed he took the Bible just to use the pages as cigarette paper for making his own handrolled cigs.  Then he read one of the prayers and decided he would "come along" and check out this Christain group, so unlike anything he had ever thought of as "church".  Is he a convert?  Not yet, but he is certainly welcome.  Time will tell what path he choses.

Close-ups of my outfit:

 Bangles I wore with the green dress.

My animal print scarf.  I think  it looks a bit like python.

World of Polka Dots

Honestly, I don't know where the last couple of weeks have gone.  I seemed to have slipped into a hole called "I'll-do-it-sometime-soon".  Except of course, the soon is a pretty elastic term!

 I discovered that I had some nice navy polka dot items in my wardrobe that I had forgotten about, so I decided to fix the skirt and wear it to church one Sunday.  I adore these polka dot shoes, but they are quite tight, so I only wear them for limited periods at a time.  It doesn't show up too well, but one of the bangles is polka dot too.

 I'm waiting for my capuccino on one of the outside patio tables at a lovely farm shop not far from home, where we often go after church.  There was a swarm of wasps all making camp in a bowl of sugar cubes on the table, making quite a nuisance of themselves.  I moved the bowl, only to find that the wasps then buzzed around even more threateningly, as they were looking for their sugar treat!  When they discover where it had gone (only the next table over) they lost interest in me.

This lovely cafe used to sell a huge slice of brownie with whipped cream, dusting of icing sugar and a sliced strawberry, all for £1.29. Unfortunately, they've wised up that that was way too cheap, and I don't even remember seeing it on the menu anymore.  What do they say?  Good while it lasted!

This is almost the same outfit, adding a polka dot jacket and dress and a black sheer hat to the same shoes when we were at a wedding earlier in the summer. They did a lovely job of decorating the lych gate with flowers.  (How I love weddings!)

 I also got these lovely strappy sandals for only £6 at New Look.  I didn't plan on buying them, as I don't really have anything in the coral shade.  It would have been better if they had just done the shoe in beige patent, but hey...they ARE comfortable and cute, and when you see such a bargain, you have to buy them.  It's the law.

Does anyone else discover they have hidden treasures lurking in their wardrobes?  Things you haven't been wearing because it needed fixing, or in the case of my polka dot shoes, they were just in an old suitcase.  Isn't it nice when an archelogical dig of the wardrobe yields something?

Ludlow in Summer

                    We went down to Ludlow the other day, enjoying another train journey, although this time I managed not to fall flat on my face on the platform.   It was one of those rare beautiful late summer days, and we decided that a stroll around Ludlow's interesting little shops would be just the thing to do on Gorgeous Husband's day off.

We had morning coffee in this lovely little cafe, which was new since the last time we had been to Ludlow.  It was tiny and delightful, and they served my cappuccino with amaretto crumbs on top, instead of chocolate or cinnamon. Delicious!  It was a very old building, with a small fireplace, and exposed beams on the ceiling.  I think it used to be someone's living room at one time. 

                        Isn't this window seat delightful from the interior of the cafe? 
                                      How I would love to have one in my home!

 The view from outside.  Gorgeous flowers, and a tiny table and chairs outside on the miniscule patio.
Wish I could have such a fantastic blooming garden.  Most likely you have to take care of it for it to look like this.

              My bangles.  Photo a bit blurred, as I was taking it myself and stretching my arm out.

 This is a detail of the necklace.  I'm not sure it is supposed to be a necklace, as it is quite large.  I think it's one of those things you hang up somewhere.  I added it to the fish necklace I already had, and I like the effect, although it may not be everyone's cup of tea.

This lovely shop was across from the cafe.  It had lots of contemporary crafts, and I was particularly taken with the knitted outfit by Alison Dupernex, hanging on the front door.  I know Alison from years ago, when I was arranging art exhibits of British crafts.  I met her at a Contemporary Craft Fair in Hereford and she very kindly let me take home a cardigan without paying for it, on the understanding that I would send her a cheque for it in the mail later.  It was all pastel ice-cream coloured stripes, and I wore it to death.  This is her website: www.alisondupernex.co.uk  (I hope I've done the link right.)

If you are interested in history, King Henry VIII's older brother, Prince Arthur used to live in Ludlow Castle with his bride, Catherine of Aragon.  Arthur died before becoming king, so the crown went to Henry -- as well as the widow!  She was the first of his 6 wives.  Ludlow Castle is genteely crumbling at the present, but still impressive looking, and a great tourist attraction for the town.

Details of the outfit:

Mustard coloured jacket, cream skirt, bangles, and necklace: charity shops

Striped tee shirt: New Look

Shoes: fake snakeskin sandals, charity shop