It is a tradition to honor the first blooming rose of the year. This tree grew from a cutting I took from the original plant which was growing on the wall of an old lovely cottage neighboring our house. The property was bought recently and the new owners destroyed the cottage to replace it by a modern ugly bungalow.
Le furlane di Venezia known as venetian slippers.
Born at the end of the second world war, these shoes were and are still produced in the countryside of the close Friuli Venezia Giulia region, using offset materials such as old bicycle tyre for the waterproof sole, jute sacks for the sole cushioning, fabrics and rags coming from old dresses, today it is velvet, for the shoe uppers. Home made at no costs, substitute of the longed for but too expensive leather shoes, they began to spread in Venice where, among others, were worn by the gondoliers because the rubber sole didn't ruin the gondola's varnish. Soon enough the furlane were adopted by the British visitors and became many a Lord's favorite slippers and can still be purchased in a charming little shop at the foot of the Rialto Bridge.
Dogs in Vogue by Judith Watt.
Page 277, my modest contribution to the subject with a portrait of Luna, Jonathan and Ronnie Newhouse's dog on Manolo Blahnik's lap.
" 8 episodes in the life of a sailor ".About the spirit of the sea,
a friendly follower of this blog recently placed an order for a print of a sailor saying she had a thing for the sea.
That is something we have in common. I'm haunted by the sea and had a very romantic idea of life at sea until I experienced it. Though I have countless photos on the subject, here is a collection of sketches I did almost 15 years ago after my first transatlantic. Looking at them again, reminds me that whatever you do at sea, you do on a moving floor and like my fellow sailor once said 
