The Palace Church

 A few more snippets from our Mystras trip.

 Agia Sophia, the palace church, was built between 1350-65 and is situated near the Mystras palaces. This is where the emperor and the court would attend mass and religious functions.

(Some interesting information on Christian monasteries during the Byzantium era from a sign found on site.)

The once-brilliant frescoes inside the church have not survived the centuries unscathed (they were whitewashed under Turkish occupation and the church turned into a mosque) but even in their deteriorated state, they are amazing. This one is the best pictures I took of the interior. 

And here's a view from above.

Some links for you: 

Mystras, more Mystras, Byzantine citadel map (Agia Sophia is No.11), archeological site, images of the palace church , the palaces of the Despot, Mystras engraving of 1686, amazing pictures of the Peloponese.

Linked to:
The Dedicated House, Homework

July Wedding

More custom ordered flowers. These are already en-route to New York for a July bride.

Linked to:

Annemarie's Haakblog, I Heart Naptime, The Dedicated House, Homework

James M. Cain and Mildred Pierce

A year or two ago I discovered HBO's Mildred Pierce and through that I came to discover the author of the original book, James M. Cain.

Having already seen and loved the mini series -which is one of the truest book-to-film adaptations of that I've ever seen- I quickly fell under the author's spell.

These are the 3 James M. Cain novels I've gone through so far: Mildred Pierce (1941), Serenade (1937) and Double Indemnity (1943). I've enjoyed all three and I plan to keep reading more.

Mildred Pierce remains my favourite so I couldn't resist adding some pictures of the super-talented Kate Winslet from the mini series in

glorious 1930s-1940s attire.

You can find some Mildred Pierce links that I enjoyed here, here and here.
For beautiful images of Kate and the mini-series, click here.

Black Flower Boutonniere

I don't know if I've already mentioned this, but I just love making boutonnieres.

And this one was an instant favourite.

I'll be trying it out in other colours soon.

Linked To:
The Dedicated House, Maybe She Made It, Annemarie's Haakblog, I Heart Naptime, Homework

Etsy Favourites - Wanderlust

Wanderlust Art Print - TwoBrushesDesign

Washington DC Skyline Art Print - ArtFilesVicky

Travel Journal - AshleyCaitlinCrafts

Bon Voyage Card - EmmaMooreID

Wanderlust Necklace - TravelDrifter

Greece Vintage Travel Poster- Blivingstons

Vintage Harem Girl Costume

Vintage dancing girl costume pattern Butterick 6344 from 1952.

Did you notice that headdress?

Linked to:
I Heart Naptime, Annemarie's Haakblog, The Dedicated House, Maybe She Made It

My Creative Space - Teal Chrysanthemum Hair Pins

Linked to:

Homework, The Dedicated House, I Heart Naptime, Annemarie's Haakblog, Natasha In Oz

The Acropolis Parthenon

Last Sunday was the perfect day to take a stroll up the sacred rock of the Acropolis of Athens.

The Acropolis is an ancient citadel located on one of the highest hills of Athens and has several ancient buildings of great historical as well as architectual significance.

The most famous of these buildings is, undisputebly, the Parthenon -seen here in these pictures.

The place was abuzz with tourists from all over the globe, marvelling at one of the most awe-inspiring sights in the world.

You can tell that there's a major restoration project  going on but even that cannot diminish the beauty and sheer awe induced by one of the most important monuments in the world. 

I've got lots of pictures to share of the other buildings too but that's for later.

Please click on the various links throughout this post for more information about the sites mentioned.

See more images for both The Acropolis and The Parthenon, watch an amazing video clip showing the whole history of the Acropolis rock in just over 6 minutes and another video with what the ruined buildings of the Acropolis used to look like.

Linked to:

I Heart Naptime, The Party Bunch, Annemarie's Haakblog, Homework, The Dedicated House, Natasha In Oz

Rose And Ivory

 These were a custom order for Melanie.

Rose and ivory hair flowers for a July bride...

Linked to:

Maybe She Made It, Homework

Vintage Pattern Giveaway Stash

I won these lovely patterns on the vintage sewing pattern giveaway that Kerry had last month over at Kestrel Makes.

Aren't they lovely?

These 3 are my favourites. Style 1903 is my top pick and I hope to be making it for the Vintage Sewing Pattern Pledge soon.The others are really cute too...

As are these 3, though the 80s are not my favourite fashion decade. But the more I look at them, the more they look like they could make a great summer dress in the right kind of fabric. The fact that they look so easy to make is also very appealing.

Here's a close-up of Style 1903. Such great 1970's fashion. Though it's a hooded dress I plan to shorten the length and make a top version first.

And I'll leave you with some more close-ups...

Thank you, Kerry!

Linked to:
I Heart Naptime

Grrribbit!

More toilet paper roll animals from our tp menagerie.

These frogs are not only fun to make but they can provide hours of fun because they are also a toy.

After a proper amount of practice, you can

catch the fly in the large, gaping mouth.

I'm pretty sure I saw a version of them somewhere on Pinterest but try as I might, I cannot find the link.

If someone can provide me with a link, I will gladly add it here.

Interested in more tp animal crafts? Click on the following links to check out some fish, a bat and a penguin.

Linked to:
Today's Creative Life, Annemarie's Haakblog, Get Your DIY On, The Dedicated House, Maybe She Made It

Trekking Up To Mystras Castle

Last weekend was a long weekend for us here so we had the opportunity of taking a little trip. Among other wonderful sites we went to the medieval fortified town of Mystras or Myzithras.

To get to the very top of the mountain, to Villehardouin's Castle you have to hike up winding, cobbled paths, ascend centuries-old steps, go through magestic arches and try not to forget to look back and take in the magnificent views behind you.

I have so many pictures of amazing historical sites and rugged natural beauty that I want to share! I hope I can restrain myself from posting too many in the days to come.....

Linked to:
Homework, I Heart Naptime, Maybe She Made It