Monday, March 03, 2008

A Decent Spoon

Confiture and Breakfast Tea, original watercolor,

When a girl goes off to Paris, she's got to have a decent spoon to take along.

A decent knife and fork is fine to bring. But if she plans to paint Parisian still lifes she needs a decent spoon.French Breakfast Tea and Toast, original watercolor

And it should be the right size to go with the rest of her china.
I was hoping this spoon would be the ONE.
But too fussy and not your everyday kind of spoon at all.Look at any good painter's work and you'll see plenty of good spoons. Wayne Thiebaud tosses some nice spoons around. Master still life artist, Fantin-Latour knew a good spoon when he saw it and he knew what to do with it.The all-time master spoon artist is of course Chardin. A reader suggested this is evidence of an early macaron next to this Chardin's cup.I did some spoon research yesterday. There are all manner of spoons. But Re-ment miniatures is not very strong on spoons. There are souvenir spoons, Sipping spoons, Serving spoon, Absinthe spoons, Caviar spoons, egg spoons, cocaine spoons, grapefruit spoons, marrow spoon, ladles, sipping spoon, salt spoon, runcible spoons to name just a few. A silver spoon is given to a newborn child to ensure good fortune; used as a metaphor for someone born to riches. A Love spoon is a carved wooden spoon given as a token of betrothal. BTW Eric Piatkowski is the master of playing the spoons.
I remembered noticing this toy shop window on 1, rue Cassette at Il Etait Une Fois (Once Upon A Time...) And you can find a similar Lady Bug set of silverware with matching teaset on Amazon.I should be doing my taxes today. But a small diversion never hurt anyone and I found the perfect spoons on Ebay. Little Bear will have to wait till they arrive.
Ice cream scoop, mini shovel, honey swizzle stick, soup spoon, ladle. I don't see a decent spoon to eat this %$#@! tarte with!

20 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:25 AM

    You bring the spoons and I'll make you dessert when you get to Paris. Gros Bisous, Ms. Glaze

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  2. Anonymous12:00 PM

    No you bring the desserts!
    You're the Dessert Queen after all.
    And I'll bring the spoons :)
    xxx
    Annie

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  3. Who would have thought it would be so hard to find a decent normal looking mini spoon. Good ole eBay.
    Will you be taking any minis to Paris with you?
    Love the paintings. Really like the first one with the chair peeking over the table. Love the Toast and Tea subject.

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  4. I ADORE this post. Thiebaud, Fantin-latour and Chardin -- all in one post --heaven. I had the great fortune to have dinner with Wayne Thiebaud on Friday night--ok, it was Wayne, me and about 100 other supporters of the San Jose Museum of Art, but I did get to speak to him for a moment and he was beyond charming.
    I love funky flatware of all types and ages -- may your spoon quest ultimately be successful.

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  5. Thanks for entertaining us with those pics, the spoons are fascinating

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  6. Anonymous1:37 PM

    Poor little bear. Won't a silver baby spoon or sugar bowl spoon work?

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  7. Love today's spoon blog, and in particular, your paintings today; each very different! All that implied space, with the chair and table edge, and then in contrast, that 2nd one; a wonderfully designed pile of interlocking shapes, colors, and textures.

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  8. Hi Carol,

    Love your site! I've visited from time to time and had you in my faves. Really enjoyed your whimsical take on spoons ~ hope you find the perfect one!

    Smiles...Bebe :)

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  9. Anonymous2:19 PM

    I have no doubt that you'll go about locating the perfect spoon with your usual gusto, Carol. I'll anxiously await your paintings featuring the ones you've purchased. Meanwhile, these latest are delicious--nice compositions, colors, abstractions. tres jolie indeed...loved your inclusion of the other beautiful artists' spoons, too.
    sue

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  10. Anonymous7:46 PM

    An Elfin spoon surly takes precedence any day over taxes!! May this particular spoon support you now, in every way!

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  11. Love the antique spoons. I need them!

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  12. Anonymous8:45 PM

    Nice to reduce life's complexities to finding the right spoon..
    Maybe that's what it's all about anyway.

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  13. Anonymous8:46 PM

    Bravo on keeping your site fresh and bubbling everyday like a glass of champers.

    Always a treat to open it up every morning.

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  14. Anonymous9:50 PM

    I am right with you on your judgement about those mini spoons: they have a terrible pebbly, dull finish, no SHINE. No shine, no beautifully painted reflections. No beautifully painted reflections and it won't matter how many macarons with hot chocolate you paint! We must have our dear PB's shiny spoons!

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  15. I love the little poodle!

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  16. Just to go off on a tangent, in Hindi-Urdu slang, a chamcha (spoon) is also a sycophant -- movie stars, for example, have entourages of chamchas. I believe it derives from the idea that the chamcha is always feeding the ego of the object of his chamcha-giri

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  17. Oooh, you've got a mini Pierre Herme Ispahan!
    I grew up eating cake with a cake fork, do the French use them?

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  18. What a fabulous blog! Love your paintings!

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  19. Anonymous12:34 PM

    What about a demitasse spoon? Just a simple one - the proportions are right and the size may work with your mini china.

    Just a thought...

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  20. The quest is always the best part. I loved this post.

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