I  decided that tomorrow has to be a portnawak Day. Portnawak is old Parisian slang for "whatever". We are getting into fall now, and soon it will be winter and we are all getting serious and grumpy. We have to prevent that. I makes tomorrow a good day for doodles without meaning. So if you feel like it, just have fun and post doodles tomorrow!

Je viens de decider que demain devait etre un "Portnawak Day". Nous rentrons dans l'automne et bientot l'hiver, tout le monde devient serieux et grognon et tout et tout,  il faut reagir. Donc demain est un bon jour pour gribouiller sans queue ni tete et poster sans remords. A vos crayons!!

Puisque Miss Trop me passe le flambeau, je reponds tres vite avant d'oublier...
DelphinE a poste sur ElleBloGue un questionnaire en image dont voici mes reponses. Prenez le temps d'aller voir les siennes et celles des autres participants!
Histoire de corser l'affaire qui demandait deja du doigte, j'ai decide de repondre en photo, puisque les questions sont posees par une photographe ( de talent en plus, heureusement ceci n'est pas un challenge) et puisque l'unite d'action est respectee, j'ai aussi classiquement decide de respecter l'unite de lieu ( chez moi) et de temps ( les photos ont ete prises en moins d'une heure).

A qui le tour? A Adelie, si elle veut bien...

(cliquez sur l'image pour voir les reponses)

I did these sketches last year, at the restaurant, and at work, and in the streets here. What I like about Halloween  in San Francisco is that sometimes you are not really quite sure if people are dressed up or not. I love this city!

J'ai fait ces dessins l'annee derniere au boulot et dans la rue, et puis au restau ici. beaucoup de gens se deguisent, non ce n'est pas une fete commerciale mais bien une bonne occasion de s'amuser. Ce dont je raffole par dessus tout c'est qu'ici a San Francisco on est jamais bien sur si quelqu'un est deguise ou pas. J'aime  cette ville!

Today is also a special day because it's Julia's Birthday. Happy birthday Julia!

Vous etes de nombreux a venir vous faire briller les mirettes ici...peut-etre vous demandez-vous ou vais-je chercher le bonheur bloggesque quand il s'agit de me rejouir les yeux en quete d'inspiration?

Here are my favourite blogs for creative inspiration:

Print and pattern
The author of this blog is even more passionate than I am about patterns. Lovely!

Paper Forest
About paper art and paper Automatas.
L'auteur de ce blog sauvera tous vos mercredis pluvieux, je dis bien tous. Armez l'imprimante.

Cute Overload
Get your daily dose of cooing.
Comment vous ne connaissiez pas cute overload?  Allez voir, et n'ayiez pas peur de faire gouzi gouzi a votre ecran, personne ne regarde.

  kokeshi 
 

I just realised I never followed the Chiyogami Monday's subjects, shame on me!

So I made this special kokeshi pattern for our October theme "dolls".

Do you like it?

more chiyogamis:

my chiyogamis:

It's been a while I haven't posted patterns...This one is inspired by the traditional Japanese Koinobori, those fabric carps people hang proudly on their roof on Boy's day...It's not a very feminist tradition, I know, but the fabric fishes are so beautiful!

You can use this pattern for personal use only.
No commercial use, thanks.
 

L'eau etait si transparente que les poissons volaient...                     .
Retrouvez les posts sur Moorea en cliquant ici

Last year at the same moment we were preparing our trip to Tahiti and  Moorea...One of the details I loved the most there were the colourful fishes in the transparent blue water, and yellow hibiscus flowers gently flotting on it. So beautiful and peaceful, I miss it.

3Colours
A yellow hibiscus
On the blue water
A red mullet twirl around.

The water is so transparent, fishes look like flying.

He oui il va falloir attendre lundi...

Weather report : monday under water (the translation is almost impossible from French, sorry)

what do you really like here?
I don't know, maybe the light.

And if you see Morris, think about my lemons:
These lemons will probably remind you something if you are a fan of Charles Morris patterns, especially one called "fruits". I spotted it in a book about patterns, didn't buy the book, but felt like sketching this while waiting in the subway. I find the Arts & Crafts movement very interesting, but I can't help doing it my own way...is that a good definition for inspiring?

Ces citrons vont probablement vous rappeler quelquechose, surtout si vous etes interesses par les motifs de Charles Morris, dont un plus particulierement qui s'appelle "fruits".
Je l'ai vu dans un bouquin, ca m'a paru un peu demode, j'ai laisse le bouquin, et ces citrons ont fleuri sous mes doigts en attendant le metro.  J'aime bien le style Arts & Crafts, mais je le trouve un peu desuet, je ne peux pas m'empecher de redessiner tout ca a ma facon...Est-ce que c'est une bonne definition de l'inspiration ca, ne pas pouvoir s'empecher de refaire a sa facon?

I just can't help it :  I love to glue tickets on my sketch book and draw on them. Sounds like realtime Photoshop layering to me, how exciting!
I should always remember, though, that I have to wait to the end of my commute to do so (yes I always carry some glue with me)...I'm lucky the driver laughed when I tried to transfer with a glued one the other day!

Je ne peux pas m'en empecher. Si ca se colle, qu'on peut dessiner dessus et que c'est rigolo, poum ca finit dans le carnet magique. Et si par malheur je n'ai pas attendu la fin du trajet, pourvu que le controleur soit de bonne humeur et tout ira bien!

Je faisais de meme avec les etiquettes de bouteilles dans les cafes, mais quelques amis horrifies m'ont fait abandonner cette mauvaise habitude...Quoique. Je sens que ca me demange la. C'est un tic ou du toc?

I'm not a posh girl, and when I have questions about food or want advice about where to eat , I usualy check my favourite Bay area food blog, Becks and Posh. "Il n'est de bon bec que de Paris " isn't always true.

Still, I love to escape from my computer and walk in the city in search of the perfect cheap eat, perfect mocha, perfect cheese cake...And it's been a while I had a special craving. I needed to find where to enjoy both good croissant and delicious hot chocolate. I wasn't  as picky as I would be in Paris. I didn't ask for perfection. Dipping a crunchy croissant in hot milky creamy chocolate is not a bay area traditional treat...I guess some people would even find it disgusting. But still, I'm an old Parisian girl and I need it from time to time. Call it culture, Madeleine de Proust or special need for comfort food, these days I was craving for my treat!

Quite often we go at Delessio for brunch. It's not the best brunch spot in town, but they have a nice buffet and good pastries, and we like the laid-back ambiance. We already knew about the hot chocolate. It's good, creamy, tasty, lovely. Not as good as Cafe de Flore's hot chocolate, but Flore is 5577 miles away, so let's not be picky. This hot chocolate is not watery, and the chocolate doesn't look like coming from an awful "just add water" mix. Yesterday I tried the Delessio croissant to go with my happy chocolate mug, in the usual desperate and almost suicidal attempt. Even in France it's difficult to find good ones, so I wasn't expecting too much.

My point of view about a croissant, is that it has to be  lightly crusty outside, to the point to flake in large pieces when you brake it in bites size. Then the inside must be thick and supple, buttery but not greasy, and when dipped in chocolate, has a distinctive almost almondish dough taste. Croissant here (and  in France) are often too big, buttery-greasy on the outside and dry inside. Yucky.

To my great surprise, the Delessio croissant was just perfect.  I had two, and I'll come back with delight for more. Yeepee!

Delessio has a website if you want to know more about them:

http://www.delessiomarket.com/