Sunday, April 30, 2023

April in Paris Letter

 

In February at the C'est Bon le Japon event,I picked up a cherry blossom ๐ŸŒธ drinks coaster. I showed it to Bonnie, my chief letter idea consultant and said, “Wouldn’t this make a great April letter!” She agreed ๐Ÿ‘

When April rolled around…I forgot about cherry blossoms ๐ŸŒธ 
I was caught up in painting mono-product pastry shops in Paris…
Like madeleines
, meringues de Fred, Popolino chou…

Eclairs, Pavlovas, macarons, meringues, gaufre. Maybe with tiny figures. Or maybe floating on the sky like balloons๐ŸŽˆSo much for planning ahead๐Ÿ˜ต‍๐Ÿ’ซ

Then I saw on Instagram Shakespeare & Co with pink umbrellas ☂ & cherry blossoms ๐ŸŒธ Hmm…

Ah the wonders/wanderings of the ADHD mind. Life is full of endless surprises ๐Ÿ˜ฎ 

At the copyshop, while blowing up the Shakespeare sketch, as an afterthought, I blew up the cherry blossom ๐ŸŒธ drinks coaster. It was obviously the best image. An instant smile ๐Ÿ˜Š on copyshop guy’s face said it all. 

Back to the drawing board ✏️ I remembered a notebook cover with cherry blossoms, birds & the Eiffel Tower I’d seen somewhere…

Was at the Hiroshige Fan exhibit at musรฉe Guimet
 I forgot to tell you about?

Loads of letter ๐Ÿ’Œ inspiration at the exhibit, but skip their so-so lunch 

At the museum restaurant
It used to be much, much better…but I digress

The Hiroshige birds ๐Ÿฆ in the fans were a reminder 

Of the daily Hallelujah chorus outside my window ๐ŸชŸ from 5 - 5:30 am.

Birds ๐Ÿฆ must be included in an April in Paris letter = a sure sign Spring has arrived ! 

Of course I had a consultation with Jill & Solli over tea at Mado. Happily I got positive feedback ๐Ÿ™ ๐Ÿ‘ ๐ŸŒธ

The couple in the rain are from a really old photograph of mine 

Hopefully Kirin Beer will not sue me for being inspired by their Sakura beer coaster ๐Ÿ˜จ๐Ÿ™

Yesterday, on a stamp run, I went looking for more pink inspiration

More Cherry blossom ๐ŸŒธ inspiration. 

Don’t ask me why I’m hunting cherryblossoms? Since
the April in Paris letter is finally done ๐Ÿคธ‍♂️ & ready to post ๐Ÿ“ฌ 
                          What a long shaggy dog story. 
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18 comments:

  1. Anonymous2:10 AM

    So beautiful how the Shakespeare and Co pink umbrellas and the cherry blossoms all came together. You are a great artist!

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    1. Anonymous3:50 AM

      ❤️๐Ÿ’‹❤️๐Ÿ’‹❤️๐Ÿ’‹❤️๐Ÿ’‹❤️๐Ÿ’‹

      Delete
  2. Bonnie L6:55 AM

    SO gorgeous…I am going to add this to my Carol’s Eiffel Tower Collection! I don’t know how you come up with new ideas month after month. May Paris, your muse, continue to inspire you.❤️

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    1. Anonymous8:26 AM

      Dear Letter consultant, Bonnie,
      What would I do without your input?? Your ideas, your feedback???
      My touchstone ๐Ÿ‘
      Although mapping out all the Asian restaurants in Paris would be quite an undertaking…

      Delete
  3. This is so beautiful Carol. I love how you have added color in the couples clothing, the street light and the ever wonderful Tour de Eiffel! You go through a lot of steps to reach the final product.๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ—ผ❤️

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    1. Anonymous8:29 AM

      Thank you for your observations
      Only Through trial & error ๐Ÿ˜ต‍๐Ÿ’ซ I realized using black outlines was a no-no & went with colored lines instead for a softer feel ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿคธ‍♂️

      Delete
  4. Love the post, especially the Kirin beer coaster. Looking for some for our town's cherrry blossom days. Thanks.

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  5. Love umbrellas..:). I remember an arrondissement in Paris full of them..Here also one area has had them the last few yrs..

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    1. Anonymous10:18 AM

      It’s a passage off rue Royale, though umbrellas ☂ now popup all over France.

      Delete
  6. April in Paris is pretty darned beautiful! Love those blossoms and oh, the sweet treats!

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  7. Anonymous10:23 AM

    I love seeing your process. Thanks for sharing.

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  8. Anonymous11:07 AM

    Carol, you draw the BEST figures/people! Always wonderful.

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  9. Anonymous11:50 AM

    Loving all of the ideas in this post! I am especially fond of all your little test drawings, the birds especially! I laughed when I opened the hallelujah music!! So you!!!

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  10. It's so fun to see the developmental stages of your letters and maps and how one small change here or there can make a huge difference in the final piece.

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    1. Anonymous11:22 PM

      It’s true ๐Ÿ‘ I was about to run out the door to the printers and I thought,
      L”Too Pink. What if I make the falling petals white?”
      Out comes the liquid white-out - it made a Big difference.
      Sigh of relief.
      I took the white-out with me in case I had another revelation on the Metro. The lighting is much better in the Metro ๐Ÿ‘

      Delete
  11. Anonymous6:46 PM

    Hi Carol. Love your process! annie

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    1. Anonymous6:48 PM

      It is kind of torturous…I’m never sure it will work out๐Ÿ˜ต‍๐Ÿ’ซ

      Delete
  12. Anonymous11:11 AM

    What can I say? I Love your work Carol!

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