PRETTY THINGS

Have you ever thought about how many times every week
things cross our paths that we fleetingly acknowledge as pretty
and then go on about our lives?
Maybe we should start a PRETTY journal,
sort of like the better-known grateful journal ...
to make note of all of the many lovely things that
we notice on any given day.

I can't imagine a world without pretty.
They don't have to be big dramatic things ...
even though they sometimes are.

Here are a just a few of the pretty things 

that have met my eyes and were remembered lately ... 

My first pretty thing was SO pretty
that I had to illustrate it ...
this gorgeous glazed and dreamy Christian Dior floral skirt
reminded me of watercolors the moment I saw it on Pinterest,
so you know I had to create it in watercolor.
This bit of prettiness is from 

Paris Fashion Week, Spring 2013
and the tight black tee and flouncy black scarf

are the perfect accompaniment ...

For a different type of prettiness,
if you follow me on Instragram 

you may have seen two of the following three
personal photos of pretty things
snapped in the last few days ...

In the first,
as the sun was setting one evening, this crabapple tree in my backyard
with all of its white flowers seemed to glow
as I watched from the side porch swing ...

... and when those white petals fell, it looked exactly like big handfuls of confetti
being thrown and landing on the backyard path ...

Sometimes even a mid-afternoon snack can
beg to be photographed ...
this glossy and juicy pineapple was as pretty
as it was delicious ...

Speaking of Instagram,
three of the lovelies that I follow there
 never fail to fill my i-phone screen with
NYC PRETTINESS on a regular basis ...
I love their snapped glimpses of New York
(a city you know I adore).
Following are the Instagram links to each and
a photo that they recently posted ...

The first of these is @jessikaholiday ...

... the next is @iviwolf

and the third is @katiearmour ...

And we all know
there's so much beauty on Pinterest,
I had to include just a little of the prettiness that I've pinned lately ...

... you may think these gloves are real, but they're not ...
they're the decorations on the top of a cake ...

via

... what is it about macarons that makes them so pretty? ...

via

... I love a photo that makes you wonder what the accompanying
storyline would be ... and whatever the storyline would be for this image,
I'm sure it's as deliciously pretty as the picture ...

via

If you're like me, chocolate is always pretty ...
and this pretty Chocolate Truffle Tart is a good example ...
 
via

Whatever the new week holds,
I hope it's filled with pretty things!
Till next Monday ...

OOH LA FROU FROU

is the blog of illustrator SANDY M

For custom illustration inquiries
contact Sandy here

INSPIRED: PAPER DOLL LIFE

Have you ever imagined what you'd look like
as a paper doll?

How would you imagine your hair styled?

What pose would you be in?
Which outfits would you choose for your paper-doll self?
Maybe you'd even go so far
to create a backdrop of a chic room to pose in ...
and let's not forget all of the accessories that would make up your
paper-doll life.

It's rather inspiring to imagine yourself not as your real self
but as a paper self ... with paper clothes ... and paper accessories.

Do you think that by letting ourselves
dream of what we'd choose to wear in a paper-doll world,
it may just open up a world of ideas
and styles that we may just want to keep an eye out for
in our real-life world?
Here's just a sample of pretty things I might choose
for my paper-doll self ...

Leopard Sunnies ...

via

Soft Pleats

via

Bows ...

via

This Dior Skirt ...

via

A Little Chanel ...

via

This Lovely Mimosa Bandeau Maillot
(because it looks like it's splashed with watercolor) ...

via

Some pointy toes ...

via

And For My Paper-Doll Fingers ...

via

Of Course, Something Pink ...

via

And since we're dreaming ...
when my paper-doll self is dressed in a sparkling paper-doll evening gown ...
I'd probably be walking up these paper-doll stairs ...

via

And, of course, when I left,
I'd leave in this paper-doll car ...

perfect, don't you think? Haha!

via

Thanks for joining me for a little inspiration this week, loves ...
I hope your week is paper-doll perfect!
I hear we're supposed to have temps in the mid-80's here by mid-week ...
and that would be just the perfect temperature ...
I couldn't think of anything more perfect,
even in a paper-doll life!

See you next Monday!

OOH LA FROU FROU

is the blog of illustrator

SANDY M

For custom illustration
drop her a note here

COMMISSIONED {plus a little weekend fun!}

Aren't you so happy that it's May?
I hope you had a great weekend!
Mine included an ice cream sundae,
and two alfresco dinners in the sunshine,
some lake-gazing in the backyard,
and even {just because it was magical} ...
a carnival ride!
Sometimes it's good to be a kid again ...
here are a few snaps from the impulsive stop by the roadside carnival.
The tall ferris wheel was the ride that we bought tickets for ...

Who says sparkle is only for fashion?


Snapped while waiting in line ...

... and then while on it ...

Can you almost smell the cotton candy?
It was a perfect first weekend of May!

~ And Now ~
 moving on to two new illustration additions to the
COMMISSIONED
series of posts!

~ Illustration One ~
The first illustration I'd like to introduce you to is one that I was 

commissioned to create for a fabulous skincare spa
located in Canada called:


The illustration I created is to be used on a variety of things,
including Bella Clinique's bags.
If you follow me on Instagram,
you probably saw the following photo that I shared
of the beginning stages of painting the illustration ...

And here's another peek of the illustration-in-progress
with the background further along ...

The star of this BELLA CLINIQUE illustration
is the new logo girl that I was asked to design for them
and she is named ... Bella!
She is modeled after the lovely owner,
Jennifer Brodeur (@jenniferbrodeur on Twitter)


As is my standard practice with my lovely clients,
e-mails flew back and forth between Jennifer and I ...
it's all part of my preliminary process
in order to capture as many little details as I can ...
things that make the illustration very personal.

Some of the details that Jennifer mentioned she'd like to see
on Bella were:
long ombre hair, like hers;
a sleek black dress, as she wears black most often;
 a specific Tiffany bracelet on her wrist;
a Bella Blue scarf that was a gift from a friend;
her Louis Vuitton Galleria handbag;
spa shopping bags;
her lovely dog Sisu;
and two magazines tucked into the handbag (Vogue and Clin d'oeil)
that Bella Clinique has appeared in.
Also, I decided to illustrate a row three crystal pendant lights in the window
after seeing the actual light fixtures photographed inside the spa.
And, here's the finished illustration ...

You can catch the illustration
on the Bella Clinique Facebook page right now!
Thank you, Jennifer!
A pleasure to work with you.
~

.~ Illustration Two ~
I'd like to introduce you to a second illustration this week.
This is an illustration that was recently commissioned
by the
MICHEL GERMAIN
perfume line
for their Mother's Day campaign.
(You can read about Michel Germain's beautiful perfume line
called "Sexual" and how it came to be here.)

This is my second illustration for the Micahel Germain perfume line.
{See the holiday illustration created for them in a previous post (here).}
That first holiday illustration for them was featured
on their website for the holidays
 and on holiday gift boxes in stores
(Bloomingdales and Macy's).}

The new Mother's Day illustration shows a
luxurious boudoir in a luxe Paris apartment,
where the SP logo girl that I designed for them
(and that appeared in the first illustration)
appears again (on the right) ... and this time, she is with her mother
as they are preparing to head out to a Mother's Day brunch ...
and, of course, they're spritzing on only ONE perfume
as a finishing touch before they leave!
I think you'd love the fragrance "Sexual Sugar" ...
I was sent one of the beautiful pink bottles
and everyone asks me what I'm wearing!




You can catch this illustration right now
on the Michel Germain website here!

It's always a delight working with fabulous clients like
Michel and Norma Germain.

Thanks for joining me this week, everyone!

These are just a taste of what's been on my
illustration calendar lately ...
hope you all have a wonderful week!
See you next Monday!

OOH LA FROU FROU

is the blog of illustrator
SANDY M

The carnival photos above are property of Ooh La Frou Frou.
The photo of Jennifer Brodeur via Bella Clinique.
Bella Clinique illustration and Michel Germain illustration
by illustrator SANDY M, (c) 2013 SANDY M ~ all rights reserved.

For custom illustration inquiries,
drop a note to Sandy here.

POODLE-ISCIOUS

 

  

 

Happy Monday, darlings.

One of the "chicest" things on the end of a leash
has to be a poodle, don't you think?
With their luxurious and sometimes curly manes
and sophisticated long noses,
there's just something about them.
Maybe it is simply the fact that they are often seen
"walking" some very chic owners.

One of those owners is a 65 year-old former fashion model
named Linda Rodin ...

{she currently has her own praised skincare line}

  

Not long ago in this post,
I mentioned that Linda was recently
featured in the Coveteur and that
there was also a very charming photo in the feature
of Linda's sophisticated poodle, Winky,
sitting on Linda's pretty pink chaise
and surrounded by her shoes, clutch and scarf.
I had also mentioned
that I hadn't been able to resist 

whipping up a little painting of
Winky but that it wasn't quite finished ...

Well, Winky is now here to
send you off into a brand new week ...

Winky's obviously "in the pink" ...
and we're both sending wishes that your week
 will be "in the pink" too!

If you missed this post last week, I announced
a new summer schedule for the blog
and as a part of that schedule,
I mentioned that until the end of May
Ooh La Frou Frou will be Mondays only
{due to an illustration calendar that thinks it's a jetsetter!}.

See you next Monday, lovies!

OOH LA FROU FROU

is the blog of illustrator

SANDY M

To reach Sandy regarding
having a custom illustration created,
drop her a line here.

Poodle photos above via Pinterest.
Photos of Linda Rodin walking Winky
via Google image search.

Illustration of Linda Rodin's Winky
by SANDY M