Shadow Shot Sunday

Welcome!
While looking at some pictures from our trip to China, I found some shadows that I had not noticed before....

Shadows at the Summer Palace....

Shadows in the little town of Suzhou...

and some shadows at the magnificent Wall of China...

Since I started participating in Shadow Shot Sunday, hosted by Hey Harriet!, I started to look at objects and pictures! a little different...you might want to give it a try...it's fun!

Coming up roses...

Guess, what was the first thing we did on our first day of "retail retirement"????

If you said Shopping:
1- You really know us well
or
2- You are just like us: can't pass a vintage goody in need of a good home

Here is what we found...

A group of darling china pieces with the sweetest roses...


A sugar dish...(wouldn't this be cute on a lady's desk holding pens?)..
...dessert plate...perfect for mix and matching!

A Victorian creamer...
A dessert platter perfect for the glass cloche shown in the first picture!

As we were putting all our goodies away, we could hear this little voice saying:
"Etsy or Show??"

Oh Oh!! Did we hear show?? (Hint, Hint!)

Well, let's say that for now our pretties will have to wait a little while inside the cupboard..(unless YOU really need to have something!)

Hey, our retirement needs to last at least a few weeks!!!

Pink Eye Candy...

We are not really into pink.
We don't wear it,
we don't have much pink in our own homes,
but we do, however, carry some in our store....
and we have to admit:
nothing beats the pink sweetness found in antique china...

And because today we are feeling very feminine...
very shabby chic...
and very inspired by Lori's pink beauties....
we made this Pink Collage to share with all of you,
the Girls in our cyber-world...

And because you Ladies are so special,
so understanding
and always willing to share a good laugh, here is some feminine fun...

"They call it PMS because Mad Cow Disease was already taken"
~Author Unknown~

Have a happy Pink and very girly Day!!

We are back!

Well, we are back and even though we are fighting a bad, bad jet lag we couldn't wait to share with all of you our wonderful trip. From the moment we arrived to the beautiful and brand new Beijing Airport we knew that we were in for an awesome adventure....

A very cold morning (cold not just by California standards, we might add) found us running around the Olympic Nest and Cube.... No, we were not training, we were trying to prevent Frost Bite..











After visiting the Pandas at the Zoo, we visited the Huton, the old part of the city, with 500 year old houses, where we had lunch in a Chinese home and learned about the daily life of the Chinese families before Beijing became the modern city it is today....

The following days were full of history and spectacular views. From the Summer's Palace to the Forbidden City, from Tiananmen Square to the Ming Tombs. Ancient buildings with stunning and meaningful architecture, where vibrant reds and sunny yellows taught us about the Emperor's life, desires and myths.









We were travelling with teenagers, so, of course we made time for shopping, walks around the city and some weird snacks: silk worms (not their favorite), centipede and sea horse!

On January 1st, we visited the Great Wall and climbing to the top became the most exciting thing each one of us has done. A beautiful, warm day made the visit memorable!

Two more cities were included in our tour: Suzhou, the Asian Venice, where we visited exquisite Chinese gardens and cruised the Grand Canal....


...and the invigorating Shanghai....where spectacular skyscrapers, bicycles and 18 million people shine under millions of lights. A city so clean that is almost impossible to describe...


























During our trip, we met and spent time with some wonderful people....

We learned about Chinese culture and traditions. We learned about embroidery and jade, cultivated pearls and handmade rugs too beautiful to put on the floors. We also learned that after 4 days of real Chinese food, even Pizza Hut sounds good! We had lots of tea but we also confirmed that there is a Starbucks no matter where you are in the world...

But most of all, we learned about the warmth of the Chinese people, about their love for their children, and we learned how a simple word spoken in a horrible "chinglish" brings a friendly smile in every Chinese person. They made us feel welcomed and safe, and for that, we are eternally thankful.

"The world is like a book. If you don't travel, you only read one page"

This post is dedicated to our Tour Guides: Tom (Beijing) and Tiffany (Shanghai). Thank you so much for your fantastic job and patience dealing with the 9 of us!!

Leaving Town...

We will be leaving town on December 28th for our Annual Family Trip. We'll be back January 7th 2009 ready to share with all of you our China Adventure.

Until then, big, creative hugs!

Clara & Marcela

Christmas with a Chinese twist!

If you follow our blog you know that I have been patiently waiting to see Clara's 2008 Christmas Dinner place cards, and to my surprise, we (you, the reader and I) don't have to wait until Christmas Eve, she allowed me to take pictures and blog about them, Yes! ....let me explain first that she made these cuties inspired in our upcoming and very exciting trip to China...Here they are: Clara's Fortune Boxes:

She used clear 2" tall Chinese boxes, (Michael's) half filled with uncooked rice to add weight and keep them in place and a Fortune Cookie.

Clara decorated the front of the box with pretty red and green papers, the Chinese symbol of the guest's Chinese zodiac and the English translation, in this case, Rooster. I love this idea because having this instead of the guest name, becomes an instant conversation piece, a total ice breaker...not that we need one in our family: as typical Argentinians, we all talk at the same time and at the same volume.... (yes, loud)

A red satin ribbon in a delicate bow and a little card reading Shen Dan Kuai Le (Merry Christmas in Chinese) finish her adorable creation.

Remember this project if you are having friends over for Chinese food. Keep in mind that even something simple and casual can become a memorable night...like Martha says, it's all in the details: dedicate a couple of hours to make Clara's Fortune Boxes, get rid of the take out containers, lit a couple of candles and you got yourself a magical night!

You can find the complete list of the Chinese zodiac at this site and the Chinese translation to any phrase: Happy Birthday, Love you, Have a good trip....etc here.

On Christmas Eve I'll bring home my own Fortune Box, it will remind me of my Sister's creativity and dedication to our family, it will remind me of another magical Christmas, a night when we loudly love each person in the room and silently miss those far, far away....