Studio Mantle and the Garden Fairies

One of my paintings on a little easel

a sheep

a cake

a gilded mirror

reflecting the chandelier

I thought I'd share these images today,

what I want to show you are the two new fairy gardens,

which will be in my next post!

Here are a few fairies that have

come to enjoy the garden

She loves the roses!

 and the bunny king in one of my fairy gardens!

this little guy was found in a garden center

I added the crown

and made the 'pond' from a mirror and moss.

{because he needed a pond to row upon!}

Favorite Roses

Love Song

Rio Samba

Intrigue

Intrigue and Rio Samba

~ in a crystal bowl ~

Sugar Moon!

~ and the Queen herself ~

We've planted 4 rose bushes this week

and there are several others that I've had to

resist thus far but if I can figure out where

to put more ... my choices are from these:

Easy Does It, Livin Easy, or Colorific

{all three if I had space}

Girls Night Out

Love's Magic

and

Over the Moon

In our various moves over the years,

leaving my flowers,

planted so small and then flourishing as

mature plants, has been harder to leave than the house.

We have a smaller yard than ever before

but it's amazing how many flowers one can fit.

What are your favorite roses?

Tea Party

An Impromptu Tea Party

created a fun and beautiful day

The menu : cashew chicken salad on greens

embellished with orange slices

{daintily gobbled up before I thought to take a photo}

...with fresh fruit, lemon and cream or honey for tea...

Inspired by pink

while gathering up items for decor

A Vintage Child's Dress

'Think Pink' Fairy

Lovely Lynette Enjoys the Fairy Garden on the Patio

(she found that fabulous dress at a thrift store for $6!!!)

Calligraphy Place Cards in Miniature Frames

Tea served in vintage tea cups

Decor on entry table.... child's gloves and a pink fabric flower

And for dessert

~ Strawberry Shortcake with Whipping Cream ~

{She and I both wore pink }

close up of the fabulous hat

{we needed an excuse to play dress up}

~ Four Ladies ~

Participating in the Fabulous Balm of Laughter,

{and then solving the worlds problems}

Stories of Our Joys and Sorrows,

Talk of Movies We've Enjoyed,

Sharing our Hearts

and Encouraging One Another in Love

{and more laughter til we cried)

A Tea Party to Remember!

So delightful to wear a pretty dress,

put on high heels and a lovely hat

and enjoy the beautiful personalities

of the sweet girls I call FRIENDs.

Perhaps we need a 'world wide blogging' tea party event?

~ Violet ~

French Lilac and the Winner of French Inspired Art

 A Favorite Color

to enhance this metal table and chair set I've had for several years

"French Lilac"

In Satin Rust-Oleum Painters Touch Spray Paint

... And planting flowers to match ...

Delphiniums are a favorite!

I found 5 little fruit bowls in the exact color

at an antique store

~ love those giant strawberries! ~

happy happy happy .... flower induced joy!

I suppose it is just a coincidence

that the tea cup in the following photos are of a similar color...

My 'Violets' tea cup and saucer, a gift from a dear friend

is filled with numbers representing each blog comment,

for a drawing for a print of one of my

paintings shown in my previous

French-themed blog post.

~ a random drawing ~

{is anything more random than a two year old?!?}

The winner is the sweet blogger of comment # 21

Congratulations to Sheri of Red Rose Alley!

Thanks to everyone who came by for a visit during the week of

the French blog party of Castles Crowns and Cottages!

French Gardens and Landscapes {and a give-away!}

"Gardens and Landscapes Inspired by the French Countryside"

My theme for the Castles Crowns and Cottages

"France, Simply Irresistible" blog party hosted by Anita.

At the end of this post will be a link to her blog where all of the participants will be found.

Please bring along your straw hat,

as the weather is sunny and warm!

We'll be traveling through these garden landscapes

and pausing to smell the flowers along the way.

We will meet new friends and discuss the growing of the plants,

which are blossoming so abundantly,

we'll want to come home and embellish our own gardens!

If we get tired on our journey

we can stop in one of the gardens, to rest and read a bit

The sheep are grazing, and feeling lazy in the sunshine

I'm so glad we brought our bikes on a day like this!

We've received an offer to pick bouquets,

and the gardener has given us notes on how to achieve

these luscious blooms!

{and today, like Anita, we can read and understand the French language!)

We see sisters out picking blossoms for their dinner table,

and wish we could join them,

for by now we have worked up quite an appetite!

We probably should sit and rest a while before we continue on

and enjoy the baguettes and cheese we brought along,

and of course some 'bubbly'

It's been such a lovely day

and as evening approaches we near the end of our tour

inspired by the beautiful countryside

on a gorgeous day in France

Thank you for coming on this journey with me!

And there is so much more,

please visit Castles Crowns and Cottages

for the links to other bloggers who are participating.

{click here}

And I hope you will leave a comment

so you will be included in my give-away of a print

of the last image, an oil painting named "Garden Path"

{randomly picked next week}

These paintings and more can be found on my website

Violet Skiles.com

~ Enjoy your adventures through France this week! ~