What do the Eiffel Tower and Top Gun have in common???

You will find out hereunder... thanks to Marloes for tagging me!
I'm supposed to tell you all my secrets about...

4 Jobs I've had:
* Harvesting strawberries when I was 12
* Gardening in my grandma's garden
* Helping my granddad fixing his clients' shoes and handbags
* At present: driver of our nearly 9 years old son (and mom too!!)
(I used to work in marketing & communication!)

4 Movies I like:
* Top Gun
* House of the Spirits
* JFK
* Message in a Bottle

4 Places I've been:
* Cape Town
* Jakarta
* Dubai
* Buenos Aires

4 Places I've lived:
* Chelmsford (UK)
* Cagnes sur mer (France)
* Cambridge (UK)
* São Paulo (Brasil)

4 TV programs I watch:
* Project Runway
* Tennis and golf tournaments
* Extreme Make Over
* Changing places

4 Radio programs I listen to:
* Alpha FM (Only in the car)
* That's it...

4 Preferred food items:
* Crême brulée
* Foie gras
* Milk chocolate
* Champagne

4 Places I'd rather be:
* On the beach
* At a golf course
* On top of the Eiffel tower
* In New York

And then 4 people I tag... let me think... there are sooooo many interesting blogs and I would love to know more about the writers behind them... (curious??? me??? nóóóóóó!!!). Ok, here we go:


* Marjolijn from Something White
* Solange from Celebrating my home
* Mirka from OPRIKKA
* Aina from Modern Country


Sorry girls ;-)

Have a great weekend!

Love,
C.

Painted... ceramics this time!

A baiana on a small plate

During my ceramics painting classes I have made some cute little things lately. I love to do this, but my cupboards are nearly falling apart from all the new items I made in the last months (I could easily start a shop...). So for the time being, these are my last painting projects:

Easter Egg with butterflies

Filled with goodies... (but for how long??)

Painted black... ehhh...silk!

A while ago (somewhere in January) I blogged about my silk painting class. Back then, I promised you some pictures of the things I had made... well, finally, I made some pictures, so have a look:

I wish you all a very nice and sunny weekend!
Beijos,
C.

Last night's creativity

Home alone (dear son already in bed, husband out to play tennis) and pouring rain...

This is the result:

'homemade cards'

Blueberry muffins

preparations

Did some baking last night... Blueberry muffins.

Delicious! And an extra hour of tennis today!

Wish you all a very nice weekend!

results

Good things in life

Last night was one of those cosy, warm nights in São Paulo, the temperature didn't go under 25 degrees (Celsius). So we sat outside (on the varanda as it was pouring rain, warm rain I must admit!), played a game of darts and had some glasses of cool white wine. Nothing fancy, just having fun with my own little family, what else do you need?

Guests... I love them!

I love to have guests over, either for a longer period or just for lunch or dinner. They're always welcome!

And I like to do my best to offer them the best.

These two books are very inspiring and have nice, sweet ideas.

'A gracious welcome' shows you how to create well-appointed guest spaces (either in a tiny appartment or a roomy vacation cottage) furnished with everything necessary for comfort, plus those extra-special luxuries that show you care.

'Outdoor Entertaining' is all about planning, decorating, and organizing an outdoor meal anywhere (from a picnic dinner on the beach, a poolside cocktail party or an elegant brunch in the garden). Any outdoor meal, no matter how casual or spur of the moment, can have a sense of style and fun. And this book shows you how!

Have a look & enjoy it!

A gracious welcome by Amy Nebens (ISBN 0-8118-4083-2)

Outdoor entertaining - Williams-Sonoma (ISBN-10: 0-7432-7873-9

The streets of... São Paulo!

After spending a morning at the day care center (my voluntary job in a poor and violent neighbourhood - a favela - in the south of São Paulo), we met these 'amigos' in the streets. Even after 4 years of living here, it still amazes me...

This morning I went out for a walk with our dog and saw a lot of big trees in full bloom. They're just gorgeous. The green scenery and the early sunlight give some extra to it!

Went out again with a camera to make some picuters to share these with you.

Have a look (these are the streets in our little, green neighbourhood in the immense city of São Paulo):

You make my day!

I was pleasantly surprised when I received a sweet note from Isabel from Tarte Tatin. Thank you so much Isabel for this 'you make my day'-award! I'm very happy with it and you certainly make my day!

To continue this chain I have the pleasant 'duty' to grant this award to 10 other persons/blogs that often make my day! A message needs to be left on their blogs.

So here I go:

* Monique from Thyme and lavender, what an inspirational blog!

* Yvonne from Yvestown for the beautiful pictures you show us and you often make me laugh a lot with your personal stories!

* Marloes from Tante Tee, for sharing your beautiful creations

* The citygirl from Sanctuary, great pictures

* Tante Freddy from Tante Freddy for sharing your stories with us

* Elisabeth from Sweet roses & vintage chic, a very busy lady (I admire your guts to go back studying!) with a lovely blog and inspiring pictures

* Monika from Country living in the City, for her vibrant blog and colourful pictures

* Minna from Blomsterverkstad, although I do not understand a word of the written part of the blog, I love the pictures, they say more than a 1,000 words!

* Outi from White Country, another Scandinavian blog (fortunately it's in English!!) with a lot of inspiration

* Fred from Fred's world, finally a manly touch in the world of interior blogs! Love the 'write as I talk' way of sharing things and thoughts!

Congratulations to all of you, you all have such a wonderful blogs! Keep on going!

I will enjoy the rest of a day on the deck chair, with some inspiring magazines, a fresh 'abacaxi and hortelã' juice, the sun and the 'you make my day' award right next to me, a lazy Wednesday afternoon!

Love,

C.

Healthy...

What's a day without fruit?

Especially here in Brasil, there are plenty of delicious fruits available year round.

Breakfast at our house always includes a bowl of fresh fruits, a healthy and tasty way to start a brand new day!! Enjoy!

Soft tones...

Vibrant colours have always been my favorite. The furniture and paintings we have are rather lively! Our previous house I painted with all kinds of colours (red, blue, lime, pink).

In our current house however, I didn't touch a paint brush (yet?). For the first time I'm happy with just the plain white walls. Should it be the age??

Anyway, I pampered myself today with new plates, bowls, a table cloth and napkins in... soft tones! Tomorrow we'll be hosting a diner at home, for sure I'll use the new arrivals!!