Hey Everyone,

Hope everyone had a great Halloween! Things have been super busy for me lately as I have been making plans on moving back to Canada. Just thought I would post some more inspirational images before I get too carried away with my work and forget all about my poor blog, which has been very neglected lately. I have some big changes planned for my website/blog/shoppe that I will hopefully be able to implement in the next couple of months - when things calm down. So stay tuned!

I found this awesome photographer today - Billy & Hell's. Their images are very dreamy, a bit dark and gothic. I love the technique they use with the darkened lines and high contrast which make the images look more like paintings then photographs.

Hi Everyone, back again this time from my trip to Switzerland. I had a great time and would like to share some of my pictures and experiences. My husband's mother lives in a small town near Geneva, on the French side. I had heard of Switzerland's natural beauty but I was stunned by the looming mountains and the brilliant greenish-blue, jeweled lakes.  living largely in London the past few years I forget how diverse and amazing Europe is and wish I had a chance to travel more. The air there was so delicious - flowers, mountain air and fresh smell of the lakes. My London abused lungs found the air nicely rejuvinating and the weather was perfect for exploring the little villages around the lakes.

Here is a picture of Maya, my mother-in-law's cat (pictured here with our travel pet Gordon). She is a tiny and sweet siamese cat who loves to talk and snuggle under warm blankets.




Our trip began exploring the town of Geneva, home of the United Nations and CERN laboratory. It is situated on Lac Léman also called Lake Geneva. The water as mentioned above is just so beautiful, a light blue green which is crystal clear. It reminded me of the glacial lakes in Canada however much warmer and even on a mild day in September people were still swimming.  Geneva itself is a smallish but interesting town. We only had time to visit the Natural History museum (super amazing) and the local botanic gardens.



The famous Geneva Landmark, Jet d'Eau (left) and a young swan (right).



Botanic gardens, amazing lilypads (left) and one of the many wild lizards we saw running around the park (right).


The Next day we visited Chateau de Chillon near Montreaux. This is on the other side of Lac Léman. The castle itself was well worth the visit but I was especially impressed by the nearby village and how it sprawled up the steep cliffs.. I am really in love with French architecture and really adored how the german style also influenced the buildings here into something uniquely Swiss. It also really reminded me of the fantasy village featured in Hayao Miyazaki's Kiki's Delivery Service (one of my favourite of all time movies) and I kept thinking of that while the little villages passed me by.



Chateau de Chillon

Probably my favourite part of the trip was visiting the picturesque town of Annecy on the French side. The little village with its own castle and little canals on another brilliant green lake. The mountains are beautiful here and it was the first day where they were not partially covered by mist... I love the houses here and was sure to pick up a couple of local french interior design magazines that featured residencies in Annecy.. The people that live here are truly to be envied.



Me and the Canals (Top left), Birds flying over (Top Right), a curious little hole in the wall (bottom), I couldnt help but wonder if the water ever rises above the top step that looks like someones front door there.

All in all it was a beautiful trip and I can't wait to go back to Switzerland again to explore more. As usual we took hundreds of photos so sorting through them is going to take some time.  More posts shortly and I will be adding new items to my shop!

take care, ^_^

Hey everyone, I just got back from an amazing trip along the coast of England. I have been living in London for the past few years now but never had the opportunity to explore the countryside. This week I embarked on a whirlwind trip by train. Our stops included Southampton and the Isle of Wight where we visited Queen Victoria's Osbourne Castle, we stayed at a haunted hotel in Exeter and detoured to Exmouth for an amazing trek along the Jurrasic Coast, We stopped by the Eden Project at St. Austell and finally ended our journey in Penzance where we stayed with a family friend and visited a enchanting castle! Phew... I have been recovering the last couple days from this journey and my feet have just started to forgive me for all the abuse I put them through but it was all extremely worth it. We took hundreds of pictures which I will be posting on our travel blog but here is a few to look over... Already missing the fresh air..

Above Pictures - Top two pictures are taken at St Michael's Mount. A beautiful  fortress on an island only accessible at low tide or by boat.  It was incredibly misty that day so it gave everything a very haunting quiet feel. The castle itself was first built in the 12th century but the history and legends of the island go well before that and  even into prehistoric times.  There is a small village along the base which houses about 300 people, really beautiful beyond words.

Bottom picture above - Stone fountain base at Osbourne Castle on the Isle of white.

The Eden Project was also amazing and I highly recommend it for anyone travelling out to the west coast of England.. I have some beautiful pictures from here but I had to post these creepy rabbit heads..

 The plants were huge.. I feel like Alice.

One last picture... Our hotel in Exeter I am standing where many people have said to have seen a ghostly lady dressed in grey. Supposidly the hotel used to be a  jail where lots of horific events occured. They still have some of the old dungeon cells in the basement where more strange occurances are still happening. My husband had a fun late evening in the hotel bar talking to the owner. I was luckily sleeping and didn't hear these stories till after we departed.. Otherwise i might have had trouble sleeping.

I just ordered a new printer and can't wait till it arrives later this week. Until then my cards/prints are on hold so I have decided it's time to do some more paintings. On my search for inspirations I came across so many wonderful artists, more so then can fit in one blog, but I would like to share a few with you now.

1. Hadley Hutton - sweet and colourful illustrations

2. Chelsea Green Lewyta -   dreamlike imaginings, sometimes disturbing but always interesting. Reminds me slightly of James Jean.

3. Jenni Saarenkyla  - a newly graduated artists with a definite fantasy bend.

4. Rikka Sormunem - this piece is unique amongst her body of work which is both strange and interestingly abstract.

5. Jia Juan Li - Beautiful almost childlike paintings of scenes of a fantasy China. I have yet to find her website if it's up but a search of her name will bring up several galleries featuring her work.

6. MarmeeCraft - Amazingly cute illustrations and fantastic blog everyone should check out featuring all her highly imaginitive creations.

That is all for now.  ^_^

I have been working steadily on several different projects lately and haven't had much time for my blog.  I wanted to share a little bit of yumminess though with some pictures of Matcha Cupcakes I made this Christmas.  Made by adding matcha powder to  vanilla cupcake recipe.  The topping is a no fat, vanilla matcha marshmallow topping you make by adding hot melted icing sugar into beaten egg whites, vanilla extract and more matcha powder . It's actually quite delicious.  The cupcakes were put into fancy asian tea cups and sprinkled with chocolate.. mmm.. cupcakes *drool*

Hi everyone! I am back in London after my trip home to visit family in Canada. My husband and I spent Christmas in Kitimat, BC which was amazing. Even though I am not a fan of the cold weather, especially the rather chilly -20 C Kitimat winter, I couldn't help but have fun skiing, tabogganing and snow shoeing. My husband Hans built an impressive igloo which later got into the local newspaper. I set up a little ice shelf inside where we placed lit candles. It was incredibly beautiful and peaceful inside.

Click here for more pictures of the igloo. 

Hi guys, This is my first post from Canada. I am here visiting friends and family for Xmas and trying hard to get used to the 8 hr time difference. I am still waking up at 3 am wide awake and feeling hungry. It's nice to breath some nice Canadian air again though and be around some beautiful nature. It was so foggy and lovely out the other day that my mom and I took some pictures. The first few pictures were taken by a lake near my parent house. There is an eagle on top of the tree in the first picture. The Squirrel was across the street from my house and clearly visable from my bedroom window which Seraphine, my sisters cat, watched out more then a little interested.

Photographs copyright Maria Miranda Lawrence and Corinna Jasmine 

1. BotanicalBird - Rust Red Raven Locket Necklace $22, 2. Ibride - The Liu Tray $90, 3. Alexander McQueen - Fairy-tale print strapless dress £1,820, 4. Tarina Tarantino - Wizard of Oz Poppy Anywhere Clip $88

John Galliano Spring 2009

Inspired by James Gillray, a British caricaturist and satirist during the late 1700s and early 1800s, and the Queen mom, Galliano put out a show of characteristic exuberance.  Despite the amazing but somewhat overtop styling the collection was subdued and wearable. Many fashinistas the world over will be dreaming of the candyfloss colours and sparkly, seethrough party gowns. See entire collection here.

Sonia Rykiel Spring 2009

In reflection of Sonia Rykiel’s 40th-anniversary, the Knit-Queen put on a spectacular fun and flirty event showcasing a retrospect of her fashion house. The surprise came at the end, however, when many of the industry’s most notable designers created their own Rykiel looks in homage. check out the show here.

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Hanii Y Spring 2009

Hanii Y has created a quirkily cute collection filled with smartly tailored seperates with cool styling. See entire collection here.

Marchesa Spring 2009

Georgina Chapman, designer of the-almost-couture line of Marchesa has created 24 perfect and intricately constructed garments. See entire collection here.  Equally as inspiring is her Resort 2009 collection line which references Greek goddesses and Egyption detailing. See the Resort collection here.

Erdem Spring 2009

With eye-catching colours and textures, Erdem Moralioglu is an artist who paints with fabrics. His collection is full of romantic victorian tailoring and pastel watercolours creating the feel of a dreamlike spring garden.  See entire collection here.

Wunderkind Spring 2009

Wolfgang Joop is the creative mind behind Wunderkind. His collection, this season, inspired largely around sculptor.architect Isamu Noguchi and pre and postwar Japan, mixes military references and feminine tailoring in a quirky and fun way. See entire collection here.

Fashion week is finally upon us and I am eagerly awaiting the creations of many of my favourite designers. This will be the first season I will be able to attend and participate in London Fashion week and will be working behind the scenes with Louise Amstrup, Can’t wait! Here is the Spring/Summer 2009Fashion week line-up, click on the links for more information.
 

Berlin July 17-20
Miami July 18-21
Tokyo September 01- 07
Barcelona September 03 - 05
New York September 05 - 12
London September 14 - 19
Milan September 20 - 27
Vancouver September 22 – 26
Paris September 27 - October 05
Los Angeles October 12 - 16
Athens October 15 - 19
New Delhi October 15- 19
Toronto October 20- 2
Moscow October 21- November 04

More info to come 

So I am back! I had an awesome time and had a amazing week full of adventures. We visited all the major monuments in Paris, Notre Dame, Sacré-Coeur, Paris Catacombs (unfortunately just as it was closing), The Louvre, The Natural History Museum and Zoo, Disneyland! (Wee we were such kids) and my favourite Chateau de Versailles! As a huge fan of Marie Antoinette this was a little dream come true to me and Versailles was so much more then I was expecting. The palace itself is incredibly grand and to the point of being overly opulent with ornamentation. And I was so absolutely shocked at how enormous the palace grounds were. We had a lot of fun exploring the little hedge labyrinths and I especially loved Marie Antoinette’s little theatre and her country village ‘the Queen’s Hamlet.’ I have 1800 photographs to sort through but once I do I will be posting relevant pictures here and on my travel blog. I honestly can’t wait to go back to Paris I am so in love.

Painting of Marie Antoinette's Temple of Love

Painting of Marie Antoinette's gardens and music house.

On a side note I was interested to see that Karl Lagerfeild had a photographic mini exhibition at Versailles named Versailles à l’ombre du soleil (Versailles in the shadow of the sun), a nice black and white architectural study of the Palace and grounds.
 

Well I am off to Paris for a week, returning July 31st. Hoping this time around i'll be visiting the Louvre, Versaille and even Disneyland yaa :) I do not know if I will have internet connection so posts are suspended till I return. Love to all my family and friends ^_^

 This is my beautiful cat Noke. She lives with my parents back in Canada and I really miss her. Isn't she lovely? ^_^

Viktor & Rolf are among my top 5 favourite designers along with Lacroix, Lagerfeld, Galliano and McQueen.  I marvel at the way they can easily shift from elegant, formal tailoring to innovations so conceptualized they edge on the absurd. One thing is for sure though; this Dutch duo takes the cake for some of fashions most memorable moments. Now the masters of surreal and distorted construction are currently the subject of a retrospective exhibition at the Barbican Art Gallery in London. 

Photography was strictly forbidden and unfortunately I was not brave enough to do any stealth photography myself but I found a couple of images of the dollhouse here and here. Also there are some nice pictures of the construction of the event here.

For those in the London area the Barbican Gallery hosts several fashion industry workshops be sure to check out their schedule! The show runs 18th of June - 21 of September tickets are £8/6

Watch the video here!

So.. My blog is finally up! Special thanks to my husband Hans-Christian for all his work with the blogs back-end programming he is the sweetest man and a genius :)  Please forgive all the empty links I will be adding lots of posts soon and updating. Also thanks for all those who have been patiently waiting for the site to go up I hope it doesn't disappoint.  ~ Cori ^_^