Celebrating Spring at the Festival of Colors

This weekend I did something I never thought I would. I attended the Festival of Colors near my home town and got covered with chalk powder. Let me explain:
This Indian tradition has been imitated on this side of the Rockies for quite a few years now. It celebrates the beginning of spring by throwing several colors of chalk powder into the air (and everybody else around you). The different colors represent the flowers soon to bloom.
The MC starts a countdown at 20 and when it gets to 0, it's sort of insane. Chalk powder and screams everywhere accompanied by very happy music. I have no clue what the song is all about. I have to confess I am not familiar with their religion, but let me tell you, it is fun!
I was surrounded by thousands of people....crazy.

My daughter Camilla is an amazing professional photographer. She was brave enough to be in the thick of it with a rain guard-covered camera. She was able to take these pics, which by the way, don't have any special effects. What seems impressionist art, is actually what happened. So, here's to colors, fun, and a lot of chalk on our hair, clothing, face, etc. My white tennis shoes are now a beautiful purplish-pink shade. But I had a blast:

Now you have to understand: I detest getting sweaty, uncomfortable, or dirty in any way, so this is out-of-this-world unlike me. That is probably why it was so much fun! And oh yes, the chalk is edible.
Happy, happy week, lovelies! May you dare to try something new that brings joy and a touch of spring to your lives.

Yay for Yellow

It's so interesting to realize that as we focus on something, we sometimes start seeing more of it. Since the yellow post on Monday, I saw girls wearing interesting yellow shoes, plants with brilliant yellow flowers, a sweet elderly lady with a big yellow flower on her hat, and tons of yellowish purses at the mall. In what universe they were before last week, I don't know. Glad they magically appeared in my world.

I want to end this busy and fun work week with a touch of sunshine. I'm granting myself the wish for a tiny bit more yellow before we move on to something else. Aren't these pretty?:

Not a fan of wallpaper, but this seems the perfect place 

to have breakfast with friends
on a Sunday morning. Pass the maple syrup...

Adore the Chippendale-style mirror in the background:

                       

I just want to play house and have make-believe tea with friends 

(but real cookies) when I look at these...

Love the assortment of yellow porcelain vases 

on this dark wood dresser:

Can you believe these are made off fabric remnants? 

What a cool idea..

                                   

Don't know about the walls, but I am totally loving the yellow tub.

The accents around the yellow door are actual seashells, yes..amazing.

This has to be one of my favorite color combinations to WEAR.

Imagine...a black skirt, a yellow sweater and a turquoise 

summer shawl.  Neat. I love the elegance of black and yellow.

Look at the effect obtained from choosing one of the 

background colors in a much bolder shade:

Thanks, lovely yellow, for your sunny disposition.

May your weekend be full of sunshine and happiness. Viva el color amarillo, chicas! (for my Spanish friends).

Love and hugs,

CREDITS: dinning with white cabinet; dinning with sunflowers; chippendale-style mirror; dishware set; chair; sunflower plate; patterned sheets; yellow porcelain vases; breakfast nook; striped curtains; daisy frames; small pictures; bathtub; door frame; yellow and turquoise; secretary; tangerine pictures; yellow and black.

Colorful Fotopastele

If you haven't visited Fotopastele yet, you may want to check it out.
This is my first time featuring someone else's blog, but I think it's a very good one to start the trend.
I have no idea where the author is from as I don't understand her language. I'm in love with her colorful images. Look at her most recent post:

 

I mean, honestly, don't these pictures inspire you to go grab a bunch of tulips, wear soft pastels, eat marshmallow Peeps, and decorate your entire home for Easter?
The colors just jump out of her photographs and they scream happiness to me. Kudos Fotopastele. Though I don't understand your language, I appreciate your talent.

Happy Friday, Lovelies!
Muchas Gracias...

Happyness Award

It's taken me a couple of weeks to finally make the time to thank the wonderful Jeanne at Collage of Life for honoring Casa Bella blog with the "Happyness Award". How sweet!!! If you haven't visited her blog, please do so today. She's lived in New Zealand, Australia, and the USA before deciding to settle in the UK. She's a great writer and her posts are full of beauty. Thanks so much, dear Jeanne! What a gal!

So I decided to pass along this award to the blogs that make me happy everyday:

One Crafty Fox - Thanks Diana!

Lovely Clusters - thanks Rachel!

Camilla Binks Photography - Thanks Camila!

La Maison des Lilas - thanks Flaviana!

A Page of Inspiration - Thanks Kristin!

Design Darling - Thanks Mackenzie!

A Dairy of Lovely - thanks Helena!

Little Emma English Home - Thanks Zaira!

A Room for Everyone - thanks Rachael!

El jardin de los muffins - Muchas gracias!

A tranquil townhouse - Thanks, Kerry!

Cozy Little House - Thanks, Brenda!

Cottage and Vine - Thank you!

Bluebird Notes - Thank you!

Decora Tu Alma - Gracias Elisa!

Moth Design - Thanks Erica!

Bonjour Romance Merci, Mimi!

Hamptontoes - Thanks Lisa!

Burlap Luxe - Thanks, Dore!

Porchlight Interiors - Thanks Tracey!

Butterflies and Dragonflies - Thanks Martha!

Homely One - Thanks Amanda!

Secrets of Domestic Bliss - Thanks Ashlina!

The Zhush - Thanks Sue!

Coty Farquhar - Thanks Coty!

Life in Lake County - Thanks Megan!

La Dolfina - Thanks Therese!

Two Ellie - Thanks Paula!

Little Blue Deer - Thanks Shari!

Decorating Tennis Girl - thanks Robin!

Mostly Older than me Thanks Julienne!

Design Esquire - Thanks!

Living it at Home - Thanks Jamilyn!

Bright, Bold, Beautiful - thanks Laura!

I wanted to add a few more but I think that would turn this list into a very long post!
I know, the list contains a lot more than the 10 blogs I was supposed to choose. I seriously couldn't choose just ten. All of these blogs and a few more (sorry if I haven't mentioned you, you know who you are) make me so happy! I giggle with enthusiasm when I see your posts on my reader, or when I read your comments on my posts.

If we lived closer, I would celebrate you by inviting you to tea time...

with some French macarons, of course...

But because you are far away, I want to give you this award for

FOR BRINGING SUNSHINE AND HAPPINESS into my everyday life:

And to all of you who are so kind to leave comments on my blog: THANK YOU. I love reading them and linking back to your wonderful blogs. Gotta love this blog universe...
Take care,

Here comes the sun

It looks like a few of us in the blog universe are in love with yellow this week. How can we not be? Even if yellow isn't your favorite color, you can't deny that it evokes sentiments of sunshine and warmth.
These beautiful tulips I got this past weekend are my inspiration for this week's posts:

  Aren't they pretty?

So let's get started with happy yellow week.
How about this fab yellow print? 

I love that it covers the wall almost completely.
A very unique focal point:

      I love the golden yellow on these walls and how they cast 

a shade of warmth and sophistication:

I don't know if I would be brave enough to paint 

my walls dandelion yellow, would you? 

The white trim offers a soothing contrast:

I've got to admit I want this chair, yes I do:

And wouldn't mind whipping up a nice meal in this
French-inspired yellow kitchen:

Love this Victorian-style chest:

and wouldn't mind sleeping here, gotta love the bed skirt:

The Psychology of yellow:
1. described as cheery and warm
2. most fatiguing to the eye due to the high amount of light that is reflected
3. can increase the metabolism. Seriously. There are studies to prove this theory.
Want to feel more active? Paint your room yellow if you can handle it
4. most attention-getting color so it is perfect to be used in small amounts for focal points

More yellow tomorrow.
Have a fun Tuesday, dear Lovelies! Thanks for stopping by!

CREDITS: big yellow wall print; staircase; chair; pillow; French-inspired kitchen; Victorian chest; bed skirt.

Poor Cinderella...it's Monday

The weekend was lovely...I attended a beautiful wedding, found a really nice pair of jeans, but then...Monday suddenly came and I got lost in meetings, phone calls, and responsibilities. You can say I feel mostly like this:

My goal of blogging today got delayed by Monday's challenges, but then again, I feel thankful that it is springtime on this side of the world (my gosh, finally) and that I'm...well..alive. So, here's a little peek of this week's theme:

More to come.
Happy Monday, lovelies!

The veredict is in: We love green!

Thanks to all of you who posted comments on Casa Bella's green week. Apparently green is a crowd pleaser.
It can be happy (think avocado, citrus or lime green, or my absolute fave chartreuse!), subtle and serene (sage, olive, soft shades of ivy and grass green), or bold and vibrant (jade and emerald, for instance. I am not going to mention hunter as it reminds me of the early 90's. Sorry hunter green fans!)
This weekend, SPRING BEGINS! Green has been the most appropriate color in my humble opinion to receive this wonderful, happy season...

Still loving green with a few gold accents:

                                                  If you like chickens, why not one in green?

                                                            Love this Anna Karenina print:

                                                And here it is, the KitchenAid mixer in green:

So there you have it, my dear lovelies: A week of wonderful green.

Lots of love and muchas gracias!

Credits coming soon.