I made me a bag...

This cushion cover I made some years ago and I intended to sell it at Art in the Park.

However, though many people looked at it and said they really liked it, it still was there at the end of the day.
Because I usually just make what I like myself, I did not mind at all, can you imagine? So when I needed a bag to carry my I-pad, I thought of this one. It was soft, it was padded, both important for the new to make bag, plus it was my favorite for the fabrics and colours.

This was the original cushion cover.

The 'African' fabric is much used in my home, it originates from a tablecloth I bought years ago in a health food store. I made stamps of the figures and have been using it in some of my art... Next to the black strip is hot pink fabric I dyed myself, then a decorator fabric and a lovely bedstripe in greige/white.

I folded it in a way that gave an idea how it could be, and liked both sides, the front and the back


I took out the zipper from the back of the cushion case, closed the opening by hand and sewed the zipper back again for its new purpose. Just zigzagged the edges, no difficult sewing it was what I was after and here is the result:

A bag for my I-pad, my fabrics, my style, I'm happy with it!

Today I am off to Marigot on a photo mission, more on that in a future post...

Have a great Wednesday and thanks for visiting (and I would love your comment!)

Regina

Market day in Marigot

I am a real market lover and the one in Marigot on the French part of the island is my only possibility here. So on a recent visit I made some pictures to show on this blog:

this great statue sits at the beginning of the food market. It is made of concrete by a local artist. I like the style, it really represents the strong Caribbean women in my opinion...

A few days a week there is a tourist market as wel close to the food stalls. Like at so many places elsewhere, jewelry is very popular. This is something that strikes me also at art festivals. Artists almost starve (if they have to make a living of their work), but jewelry is most important!

In this case I doubt if there is any local jewelry artist involved, the goods are probably being made in and imported from the Philippines

now this is the real stuff: delicious herbs and other stuff from our region in beautiful 'sacs'. You sometimes still can see ladies wearing dresses of these fabrics

just a Caribbean building in the center of Marigot

these ladies are looking at something 'exciting', I absolutely did not get it at that moment. Must have been something local...

At noon all businesses close for lunch: this lovely restaurant serves a Caribbean menu and you can enjoy a wonderful view on Marigot Bay with all the catamarans and yachts.

Thanks for visiting, I hope you enjoye this little trip to the market!

Regina

A bit of Paris in the tropics

It was not until Rayna Gillman sent me an e-mail that I came into action for posting on my blog, shame on me... So I had an unofficial, unsceduled blogging pause and will explain about that, bc I think I owe you that, a little...
This year, you may know, we will leave this little Caribbean island and move to Spain. Easily said... However, it meant and will continue to mean to us: selling the house, holding open houses and yard sales, presenting everything 'spic and span' (which is not always easy here in the heat). It also means packing already my art materials, since I don't have tranquility and inspiration to make any art at present. Gathering as much information as possible about our new country is another activity, planning the move and oh, learning Spanish! Who said one is old at almost 62???
By missing the art aspect in my future blogposts, I felt there was not much to blog about!
It seems that I was wrong in thinking this, so I came up with an alternative. The subtitle of my blog being: the sea around this island, my art, my life, I can post about the Caribbean life that I am living at present, you might possibly like to see pictures of that...
So from now on the focus will be on that, as I am gradually saying goodbye to St. Maarten, over the remaining months here.
Let's start with a trip I have taken many times and don't get bored with: shopping in Marigot!

The center of Marigot (St. Martin, french), is a tropical mix of Paris and the Caribbean. We mostly start with a cappucino in one of the restaurants at the Marina Royal and then the party begins...! Notice the palmtree behind this model. And yes, that's me shooting the picture...

it was carnival time in French St. Maarten while we visited. On the Dutch side of the island they celebrate this festivity at the end of April, the French follow the religious 'calender'. Thus there will be parties during twice the time, talking about a party island...

just a window downtown

yes, we are in France!

unfortunately many shops have been closed. The financial crisis has hit here also, I think... This is in one of the main shopping streets of Marigot.

At noon it is time for lunch, all shops close and people head to the many, many restaurants along the waterside. We had lunch in this one with real French Caribbean menue: yummie...

Bye for now, I hope you liked this visual tour to this peace of Paris in the Caribbean!

Regina