FLOWERS AND FASHIONS

As you may have guessed, we are once again safely home in the Red Cardinal nest...

where the red geraniums on the deck remind us of Italy..

and the rose bushes are happily in bloom -

obviously didn't miss us at all.

Spring has arrived in our absence.

I didn't spend all my time in the Art Museums of Europe, you know:

Padua: shoes, bags, and creamy cupcakes - what's not to love?

I was also out there taking really bad photos of the Fashion Shoppes..

See the Spanish steps in the reflection?

Ah, Valentino..

Apart from the red leather jacket in Florence, it was so hot in Rome I bought a Tee shirt at Desigual:

which reminds me so well of the architecture and the streets of Italy..

Loved Desigual so much, I bought this huge scarf, because I love it,

and because I need another sewing project.

Be warned scarf, you are going to become a dress..

Of course, we were determined to keep the weight of our baggage down,

but earrings don't weight much - gold copies of ancient coins from Rome,

and blue Murano glass from Venice..

Scarves are weightless, and when I saw this near the Ponte Vecchio, I knew it would be happier living in Australia with me..

We loved eating strawberries and cream in Italy;

bought a little ceramic reminder, and this fruity length of tablecloth fabric in Florence - so cheap compared to here.  

I enjoyed visiting the Petty Guggenheim Collection in Venice so much,

I bought this yellow coffee mug as a reminder..

A couple of weeks ago I enjoyed a post on Handmade by Carolyn

about the 'Travelling Yellow Skirt Freak Show'..
a long yellow skirt which has been going around the world from one sewist to another,each one adding their own slight embellishment.
At that point in time, I had never noticed anybody wearing such a skirt -
but then came Rome:

I saw this one in the Roman Forum, standing on the Via Sacra,
and five others in two days.
Wonder if they'll turn up in Australia?

It could work with this indulgence,
found in a foreign airport duty free, a long way from home...

Have a great week

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