Place-a-day project, may 2011.

I always forget about thing-a-day, the yearly creative sprint that occurs in February, so all I do is watch the beautiful people that contribute and plan what I would do next edition (when I forget again).
But I had the greatest idea some days ago: I invented place-a-day!
I'm going to travel, photograph, sketch and talk about a place worth visiting in the area that I live. It's going to be one place each day for the following month, all shared with you.
I hope the trips will be interesting, I want to meet nice people, get to know more stuff and last but not least I wish the way will be paved with surprises.



I hope place-a-day will be entertaining and inspiring for you too.
Have a happy May Day!

Summer dreaming.

The fresh scent of mornings, sparkling tan, reading fashion magazines on the beach, sun dresses loose allover the room, pink kissed nail polish, cats bathing in the sun, late nights out, making new friends and feeling the grass with bare feet, these are a few of my favorite summertime things...


... and these supa dupa dresses from romwe. com became my favorites too, I can't even begin saying how I would wear and accessorize them! By the way, check the chica-bonita shoes too, the collection of gotta-have-them-all leggings and don't-hate-me-cause-I'm-beautiful jewelry.
I've already ordered some cuties and until they get here I'll be dreaming some more of how cool this summer's going to be.
Wishing you a we-are-golden good time!

Later edit: they have a hot campaign on facebook so first off you Like the page, then you begin the hunt for product pictures up to an amazing 90% off! Check out the Finding Coupons and click it to Shop (main page, on the left) - you get even more surprises there!

facebook page

All the details in the fabric.

I recently discovered spoonflower in my quest to find lovely fabric at reasonable prices, and I am so excited cause not only they print your creations but there are also big contests almost on a weekly basis.



All fabrics are natural - cotton, organic cotton, silk - I already received swatches and they feel very nice to the touch. Not actually cheap, but quite affordable when you want to see your own designs printed, right?
You even don't need to know the ways of designing or editing programs, all it takes is creativity and the will to have some fun, as you can see in the following video:



Yay or nay?

The message.

As we spend a lot of time indoors, I believe we should make our space comfy and cozy, a shelter where we feel nurtured on love and peace. I thought pillows can be so close and tender: we rest with them while napping on a Sunday afternoon, we hug them when we listen to our best friends adventures, we even throw with them when playing pillow fight with our better halves.



I called this particular collection The message, as and it showcases lovely realities that we need to be reminded of everyday or fragments of our favorite things to say all in the purpose to brighten our days and make them better.
I painted the characters and text on cotton and linen and they are very very soft to the touch. With the risk of repeating, I'm going to say again that the textile paint that I use is water-based and contains no solvents. Their sizes vary, as some pillows are singles and some come in sets of two.
You will find the entire collection for sale in my online shop or by simply writing to me.


Caution: powerful emotions attached!

Superheroes.

I wanted to take part in a handmade fair here in Cascais and people showed me two women that were chatting by a jewelry stand. They said they are in charge and I should speak with them.
'The bosses' were two old sisters fearful that someone would bring in more competition for their jewelry - so their nice way to connect was 'if you are making jewelry you'd better go away'. When they found out about what I do they 'instructed' me to speak with an overlord a colleague that apparently had the final decision in everything (?!).
I've met with this woman at eight in the morning and after a brief presentation (in which I've been told business cards are overrated) I began to pull out t-shirts from my backpack watching the reactions on her face.
Have you ever walked into a store or an office and began to ask 'Would you...?' and you were told 'No!' before you finished the sentence? Well, people act a lot like that here where I live. You can confirm if you live or lived here for other than a touristic experience and interacted with locals more than 'Hi, what a nice day, thank you'.
Back to our 'comrade' who was supposed to approve of my creations, she started to ask a long list of conditions to fulfill (more like Hercules's labors) in order to be able to take part in the fair. At one time I thought 'hey, this fair is owned by mobsters' and I left with a bitter taste of positions in opposition, abject attitudes and negative energy overall.
I felt down in the last days and I didn't even know why. Last night I finished the project I told you I was working on, I showed it to Marco and he was very impressed. He asked me when do we go to the fair and I answered that I didn't want to be a part of the 'comrades' community. He hugged me and said that flowers bloom wherever we go and we shine even under five layers of clothing. He even lent me his magic bracelet so I wouldn't be afraid anymore.



So I fell asleep and I dreamed that I was a superhero going to do the trick to a powerful monster that was terrorizing the city. It would appear at a fancy cocktail party so I went there. I was dressed in my stay-at-home-leggings, a t-shirt and sneakers and I was a bit afraid from time to time: I was saying to myself gosh I'm small, but then I remembered the strength of my kicks and punches would smash the monster into the nearest wall (I forgot to mention that in my dream Marco was a superhero too and we made a team, but he had something else to do so I was facing the villain by myself).
I got to the party and I asked a woman about the possible ways to the roof of the building. She looked upon me with scorn, but I was smiling knowing 'hey, if it wasn't for me you would be monster's supper tonight'. I went on to the roof constantly visualizing the might of my actions.
The dream ended here, but even without the actual fight I felt great when I woke up.
You know that confidence feeling that makes your heart burst with enthusiasm? The bad news is that we sometimes lose it cause of one monster or the other, the best news is that it's always there with us, we can use it to overcome any problem we might have and go forward with our heads up.

Let's party like it's 1995.

One of my best friends and her 2 year old daughter, Andreea & Maia have been kittnized recently wearing their custom Loves me, loves me not Bear t-shirts.
Andreea and I were classmates in high-school sixteen years ago when we were recording mix tapes from the radio, wearing platforms and sharing love stories.
She is one of the most fun people I know, but she is also very loving and trustworthy. Her confidence and determination always inspired me, I hope she remembers these wonderful qualities each time things get tough. And you know what else she can remember? That she will always be special in my heart...
♫ I swear by the moon and the stars in the skies... ♪

Purrfect.

I don't have a perfect life, oh, I am far far from that.
I weigh six kilos over the point where my figure would be curvy, I live with my in-laws (insert holding breath here) and I feel vaguely detached from my own self most of the time.
I'm thirty years old and I haven't had a sense of direction in life ten years ago, nor do I have now (actually, I think of myself as being two times fifteen, it's more fun).
I started a handmade business almost four years ago and financially I am at the same level. I seem to cut my shoulder-length hair short all the time just to convince myself that I was on the right track growing it in the first place.
My workplace and room always look way past fashionably distressed (I particularly have a special relationship with socks that appear everywhere at most unexpected times).
And there would be a few more discontents I live with daily (or traits that one doesn't brag about so much) but you know what, f... orget that, I am happy to show you a few images from the project I am working on and I hope will be out in one week.

What would YOU change about your life?