Let There Be Light

Let There Be Light

The lack of light in November is driving me a little bit kooky this year. It’s dark out when I go to work and it’s dark out when I come home. I feel like the sun only comes out on the weekends. Darker moods are knocking at the door. And then I was talking to a friend on the phone on my way home from work this week, complaining [ ... ]

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San Gimignano

San Gimignano

(As I finish up my thesis this month, this blog will be temporarily transformed into Garlands in Florence with posts about summer in Italy) We were going to San Gimignano for the day. We were right by the train station in Florence, and this clueless young couple, obviously in town just for the day, came up to us, and [ ... ]

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Giardini di Boboli

Giardini di Boboli

(As I finish up my thesis this month, this blog will be temporarily transformed into Garlands in Florence with posts about summer in Italy) I had to wake up early for a drawing class field trip. We went into Florence to the Boboli Gardens, the Medici’s massive formal gardens behind the Pitti Palace. They were lovely [ ... ]

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The Artsy Squares of Saint-Germain-des-Prés

The Artsy Squares of Saint-Germain-des-Prés

Église Saint-Germain-des-Prés is easily one of my favorite churches in Paris. It feels ancient; a reminder of the past in the midst of contemporary Parisian life. The structure is surrounded by two little squares, each tucked in against the church and chock-full of art. These modest parks have their own distinct character [ ... ]

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Easter Picnic Pins

Easter Picnic Pins

An Easter picnic in Paris practically screams for tissue paper flower pins. At least, that’s how I felt when getting ready for an Easter picnic in a park in the Marais last Sunday. I happened to have a lot of leftover tissue paper from my Tex-Mex dinner party decorations, so I got busy making tissue paper flowers. It was an easy and relaxing project: cutting out flower-shaped layers, stapling them together and then fluffing [ ... ]

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