in provincetown we stayed at the tucker inn. it was the perfect B&B . . . clean, dog friendly, 2 blocks from the beach, they put out fresh baked chocolate chip cookies every night, and had an amazing chef who cooked anything you wanted EVERY morning. as someone who often skips breakfast, it was a treat to have a leisurely al fresco breakfast every morning while catching up on world events (isn’t gabby amazing ?!).
i was extremely drawn to this building i saw on a pier in provincetown. such beautiful weathered faces on the sea. i later found on the internet the story behind it, which made me love it even more . . . “they also faced the sea.”
june 2012
vallauris, france
the fruit in the mediterranean is incredible. that dry hot heat grows such beautiful sweet fruit. i grew up with figs. in fact, it was an enormous fig orchard where our high school would go to “party.” it was simply known as “the figs.” but here in france (and now that i’m a grown up), i prefer my figs on a baguette with strong cheese and a drizzle of honey.
we are in provincetown for a few days before we head to vermont. there are such similarities between provincetown and provence that i now understand why one of my friends, who lives in cannes, comes here for a month every summer. there are beautiful garden paths that connect houses, incredible seafood, beaches galore, AMAZING light, and i could collect sea rock all day (though in the south of france it’s sea glass) and the colours are fantastic.
june 2012
antibes, france
i am not a big pastry eater (my sweet tooth is usually reserved for chocolate) BUT i do love to draw pastries. france is packed with pâtisseries that house the most beautiful perfect colourful jewel-like pastries that i have ever seen. i was usually the girl standing outside of the pâtisserie looking in and sketching the merchandise in the window at a rapid speed. i could spend hours doing this. to me, it is much more satisfying than eating them.
we are leaving for vermont soon and will be gone all of august. PLEASE NOTE that if you order something now from my online shop, it will be sent to you early september. we will be getting back to nature and spending much of the time swimming, hiking, sketching, and painting. this is one of my favorite times of the year to regroup and reboot. prepare for some transition upon my return . . .
june 2012
antibes, france
i must admit that these are not the cutest of shoes, in fact they border on pure ugly, BUT for comfort they rate number ONE in my book. and though many (ok, most) of my fashion forward friends would not be caught dead in them, i am not afraid to dress for comfort. for traveling where space is an issue, for off roading (beaches, long walks, hiking, rock climbing, working in a studio, etc . . . ), for wading IN fountains (oh, yes i did), for wearing with shorts, dresses, and pants, these are the perfect shoe. plus clean up is a breeze: just hose them down or wear them IN the shower. and some people DID in fact write to me in france to inquire what brand they were. i should be the national spokesperson, i truly love these shoes.
the brand is CHACO.
i’m setting up my show today for this weekend’s ACGA festival in palo alto. i’m bringing a herd of these vessels that i made in france + a few teapots. mind you, it was no small feat getting these home from france. i knew my suitcase would be “over weight,” but when i hoisted it on the scale, the ticket agent was mortified. “NO NO NO, THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE” she kept saying over and over. i had to open my suitcase right there and then to lighten it’s load (embarrassing, yes). i ended up having to hand carry 15 lbs of ceramics on the plane and was still charged $75 for an overweight bag.
the only other thing in my suitcase, aside from my tiny pile of clothes, was 8 jars of caviar. i even left 2 pairs of shoes in france and shipped a box of books, heavy leather bag, and coat home. it’s times like these that i wish i was a jeweler and NOT a ceramic artist.
(p.s. the box that i shipped home made it there door to door in ONE WEEK. amazing. i think it must have been on the same flight that i was on !)
june 2012
vallauris, france
i love living with minimal wardrobe choices. in france, i knew how big (or rather how small) my closet would be and so i packed accordingly. by bringing just a few of my favorite pieces, i became apt at the art of mixing and matching. getting dressed in the morning was a breeze. i yearn to pare down my closet at home. i would love to have only 5 or 10 beautiful items hanging in there. less is definitely sometimes more. i think it’s time for some summer spring cleaning . . .
i made a few of these leaves in france using the equistie french limoges porcelain. i also collected a lot of sea glass on my daily mediterranean sea visits. i’m offering this duo on my etsy shop while the supply lasts (there are only a handful left).
june 2012
(the mediterranean sea)
antibes, france
i realize that my friday sketch posts have been severely lagging. this is mostly because i was watch-free + phone-free in france for 6 weeks. i never knew what time it was or even what day it was. this was so wonderfully freeing. i existed purely on my own body’s clock. ate when i was hungry, slept when i was sleepy, worked when i felt moved to work, etc . . . every whim was met and granted with no questions asked. and so i ask myself why life can’t be like this always ? certainly we do need clocks to make our dental appointments and catch our planes, but honestly, shouldn’t we rely more on our own instincts and intuitions in life ? i vow to make even more of an effort to live my life in this way.
for me, it’s about slowing down and existing for the moment in time. not hurrying ahead and not being slowed down by the past.
(p.s. . . this was painted on eden roc using the mediterranean sea as my water with the water colour paints. it was a perfectly profound moment in time that i will always remember fondly)
on my last day in france, i woke up at 6am to go for my final run + swim to the mediterranean sea. this is the beach in golfe-juan where i ran to + swam every morning that i was here. on this morning, i had the entire beach to myself to say my goodbyes. my favorite body of water. oh how i will miss this perfect ritual that eased me into my day . . .
and just a few hours later, i was flying away with this beautiful view of the french riviera below me. until next year, france . . . au revoir (or more appropriately, à plus tard).
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