Wallpaper Giveaway - Winter is Here

That's it guys, it's the last day of November and we can't avoid the fact that Winter is well and truly here! It gets dark at around 5pm, there's frost on the grass when we wake up, and sometimes, you can see the cold on your breath when you're outside.

It's been a little while that I didn't do a wallpaper giveaway and I felt quite inspired to do more of an illustrative one rather than a typographic artwork like I often do. I went with a cold emerald green and decided to draw some elegant and fragile flower and leaves, along with some snow to be totally in the theme.

I secretly hope there will be some snow where we live in the thick of Winter as the whole village would look kind of magical. Plus, it doesn't matter if we can't use our car as we're working at home so as long as our internet connection is still operational (and we have enough food obviously), I'll be a happy girl!

Download:
WHOLE SET // PHONE 1 // PHONE 2

Auray in Autumn

We visited Auray a little while back and we instantly loved it. It's one of those small port towns in Brittany that still have a traditional feel with its old bridge and cobbled stone streets. You can also find a lot of renovated old houses with their wonky wood beams that I can't help but taking loads of photos of.

It was really nice to stroll around the town at a really quiet time and the Autumnal sun was just perfect. They started to put up the Christmas decorations but sadly the lights weren't on. Well, I guess we're not quite ready for Christmas yet... Right?! More photos below!

See what I mean when I said it was empty? I think we just timed it right as when we decided to head back home, we realised it was getting busier and busier by the minute.

Because the atmosphere was so nice and relaxing, we felt like we could take it slow and decided to go for a walk along the river. I had the brilliant idea of stopping by Maison Georges Larnicol to get some treats though so that we could stop and savour them on a bench when we were ready for a little break!

We got four little Kouignettes (which are basically small versions of the traditional Kouign Amann) and they were delicious. Our favourite was the orange/cointreau. Yum! I have to say though, I've tasted them back in Nantes as Larnicol has a shop there too, and they were definitely nicer over here! Maybe the fact that the lady at the shop warmed them up for us just before we ate them helped a bit ;)

We really felt like treating ourselves that day so we also went for a nice coffee (and a beer for Jason) at L'Epicerie. Not only does the outside of the café look great, but the interior is also really welcoming and cosy. Loved it! No wonder they've got such good reviews on Trip Advisor. The cream on my coffee was homemade and it was the most delicious and thickest cream I've ever had! Honestly, you have to taste it to believe me.

No doubt we'll be back very soon! But for now, get ready for more festive posts next month as we're heading into the season of Christmas markets and I'd like to visit one or two pretty soon :)

Coup de Coeur - Heikala's Art

Hey guys! I've decided to start a new series of blog posts called 'Coup de Coeur' (a French expression that can translate to 'love at first sight', something that literally captures your heart). I'm seeing so many artists and designers that I admire and inspire me everyday in my work that I thought it was about time for me to actually share it.

I'm opening the Coup de Coeur series with an artist that I've discovered very recently whilst looking at tweets from the Inktober challenge. She's known as Heikala (her first name is Laura), and I straight away fell in love with her illustrations. I started to follow her on Twitter where I've discovered the short videos showing her process. So clever! Also super relaxing. I could watch her illustrating those magical scenes and characters all day! Laura's talent is just so amazing and I've been obsessed with her artworks.

What I love about her work is the fact that it makes me think about all the magical worlds of Studio Ghibli but with her own style and imagination. Some of the characters she paints have a bit of a mystical quality and most of her artworks have such a peaceful, otherworldly feel.

A few examples below!

See what I mean?! Make sure to follow her on Twitter and have a look at her shop! I'm SUPER excited as she's announced that all her Inktober illustrations will be available in an art book at the end of the year. Her originals sold out super quickly and I think this is a brilliant idea if you'd like to have a collection of Laura's work all in one book.

I'd love to know if there are any creatives out there that you admire and would love to be BFF with! In the meantime, I'll try and share a Coup de Coeur every month or so. Keep your eyes peeled ;)

Domaine de Suscinio

When my brother was staying with us last month, we had some amazing weather during the weekend so we thought it was a very good excuse to explore somewhere new with him. We drove about an hour south of where we live and arrived at the Domaine de Suscinio with its beautiful castle surrounded by the sea and its wildlife park.

The castle itself was stunning and really well renovated. It has this typical French castle vibe that is sometimes hard to describe, and we discovered that some of its decorations were typically Bretonnes and authentic.

The most amazing part though was this room on the last floor where they reconstructed the original floor from the chapel that the archeologists discovered in the 70's when they started off the renovation. The great thing about it is that they didn't try to make it look like a floor but more like a piece of art 'hanging' on the wall so that everybody can see its full extent.

Dreamy isn't it? We even went to the beach for a little break before going back home. You wouldn't have thought it was late October and a couple of brave people were actually having a dip in the sea!

It was such a good day and I would definitely recommend it if you're visiting Brittany and the Golf du Morbihan area. And if you're into bird watching, then it will be heaven for you ;)