MDS (My Digital Studio) - Scrapbooking My Trip to Italy MDS style!

Where Has the Time Gone 

With my trip to China getting closer and closer I am reflecting on my last trip with Ali Edwards to Italy and all the beautiful pictures and places I have been but have still not scrap booked. I am feeling so guilty because I know that other people have done their books and they look fabulous and mine not so good.  

Yes I am still working on scrap booking my trip to Italy circa 2011. I am so ashamed, it isn't like I don't have any paper, stamps embellishments etc etc. I mean my friends call my place the store. But I have gotten lost in so many other things that it is time for a kick in butt. So I have decided along with the traditional way of scrap booking I am going to do digital pages too. From now until I leave for China I will posting scrap book pages of my trip to Italy using of course Stampin Up's MDS. Seriously it is super easy and isn't cheating.

The following is Vernazza a town and comune located in the province of La Spezia, Liguria, northwestern Italy. It is one of the five towns that make up the Cinque Terre region. And a most amazing place to visit. 

We had been there less than a week before the big flood that destroyed the town, covered with mud from a terrible slide.

Tivoli: Villa d'Este, Rome

Happy First Day of September Everyone! 

Today my share is from my trip to Italy last October with Ali Edwards and a group of wonderful new friends! One of my favourite things we did was the Tivoli Gardens just outside of Rome. This beautiful garden was so lush with greenery and history. A definite place to visit if you are ever in Italy.

Tivoli: Villa d'Este, Rome

In 1550 Cardinal Ippolito d'Este was appointed Governor of Tivoli. He wasted no time in taking possession of the Governor's palace, located in a former Benedictine monastery which he asked Pirro Ligorio to remodel to his taste.

The Villa d'Este's fame, however, is due more to its gardens than to the building itself. Each alley, path or avenue reveals a new mossy fountain in a carefully landscaped vista: there are supposed to be five hundred fountains altogether. This most famous of Italian-style gardens, which has been widely imitated, reverberates with the sound of so many fountains that it inspired the Romantic composer Franz Liszt to write a piano suite called "Fountains of the Villa d'Este".

The layout of the gardens

To clear space for the gardens a whole area of the town had to be demolished, many inhabitants being forced to sell or face expropriation. Due to the steepness of the terrain, enormous earth-moving works were undertaken in order to create alternating terraces and slopes. In addition, the site had an irregular shape.

The overall layout, designed to be seen from the original entrance at the foot of the hill, had to achieve two main purposes: to create the illusion that the villa was centrally placed (it is in fact slightly off-center) and to set it back by visually increasing the depth of the property.

The means chosen to achieve this were unusual for the time. A central alley prolonging the loggia, known as the Avenue of Perspectives, was made to intersect with five paths linking the monumental fountains; these were mostly positioned toward the sides to give the effect of an enclosure in relation to the surrounding landscape.

Have a great day!

Good Finds - Finding the Joy - Decorating for Christmas

Your probably wondering where Day 5 -13 has gone from my trip to Italy but I have to tell you I have thousands of photos and of course I love them all, want to print them all but it takes so much time. How did I think I was going to do this while I was on my trip I really don't know. What makes it worse all of my other projects are getting behind which then throws me off. So I am going to be posting some of my projects and then some of my trip and so on.

Lately I have been humbugging about Christmas on Facebook. It's not the celebration but the speed to which things are moving. All those commercials are freaking me out, they all sound like you have no time and have to get it done now. I want to enjoy the season, slow down the pace, enjoy the moments that happen. Not run around with my head cut off.

So I am slooooooooooooooooooowing down and to do this one of the new projects I am taking on is Ali Edwards December Daily 2011 I love her "Capture Life" Create Art" its so true. I have been struggling with doing this because I don't have children that I can capture day to day things about. But during my trip to Italy I had an opportunity to sit with her and discuss what I thought was a dilemma, how do I "Capture Life" when it's just me (my husband, 3 dogs and 5 birds). True to what I already knew but seem to not realize is that I do matter. Just because I don't have children doesn't mean I don't have joy, my joy is just different. There are moments, there are things, there are feelings that I feel and can capture and create with. So I am taking the challenge and I am doing it. My book is going to be December Daily 2011 - Joy in My Life. Twenty-five days of joy through the eyes of a camera. I am so excited! So stay tuned

NOEL in Shadow Box

For today's project I used a shadow box I found at where else HomeSense and of course this one was in Barrie, Ontario when I visited my old but favorite neighbour Lee-Anne in August. Again when you find a good find don't hesitate buy it trust me you will use it eventually.

For this project I used a complete Christmas kit with everything matching the rest of the supplies I will use later for presents that I will be making.

This was a red shadow box that I found at HomeSense size is 10 x 10. Door opens on the side with two hooks on the back in case I want to hang it on the wall. I rubbed chocolate ink on it to give it a rustic look and some age. I will be adding this to my tea cup cupboard on the top with some other items but will take a picture so you can see the final project.

I only adhered the page with two way tape so that I can change it up if I wish. My kitchen is chocolate and red with a Parisian twist and I just might change it up and use it in there when the holiday is over.

The picture does not do it justice maybe you will have to come for a visit to see it live.

Part II

San Donato Winery Sienna, Italy

In the afternoon after a fun filled morning in San Gimignano we headed to San Donato Winery a short distance away from Sam Gimignamo. The winery is a family owned business which was once a small town with its own church, the farm home Fattoria San Donato is located in a small medieval town, surrounded by the green hills of San Gimignano.

Strategic position, in the heart on Tuscany - 4 km from
San Gimignano, 15 km from Volterra, 35 km from Siena, 55 km from
Florence and 60 km from Pisa.



Love the US Mailbox tucked in the wall.



Church Steeple in the back ground of this small little town.

Reminds me of the the seen in "Under the Tuscan Sun"



Beautiful roses growing wild.

Such a beautiful walk way, all it needs is a table and

chair and a glass of wine.



Back of the main house.



Getting ready to enjoy an afternoon lunch at the winery.



Great food great friends!



Yummmmmm



Beautiful large medallion of Mother and Child

A Study of the Surrounding Yard



Though I know that these items were just placed

here they make such a wonderful photo opportunity



I imagine wonderful tasting wine being
created in this old bottle



Love the different textures, from stone to
wood to glass



I just love this shot, so beautiful





I was so excited with this shot,
can you say magazinead.

I love how the light plays on this planter, beautiful

Our visit to San Donato Winery was fantastic, from the wonderful food and wine to the beautiful scenery, fresh air and of course that fantastic sunshine it can't get any better than that!

 



6:30 - 7:30 - 8:30 Italian Style - Day 2

Citta di LUCCA

6:30 - 7:30 - 8:30

Today, following breakfast, we boarded our motor coach and drove to the medieval town of LUCCA. The first thing you will see arriving in Lucca are the town walls which are very well preserved and still today surround all the old town. Lucca is the only town in Italy entirely surrounded by walls.

Imagine a beautiful little Tuscan town protected by massively thick 16th-century walls, featuring some of Italy's finest medieval and Renaissance architecture. Lucca is one of Tuscany's best-kept secrets. Lucca is also the birthplace of the famous composer Puccini, here we met our local guide Ellen, who took us on a fascinating tour of the city.

Lucca is situated 19 m. above sea level on an alluvial plateau, to the left of the Serchio river, not far from the Tyrrhenian coast. The town lies within a circle of 16th century walls which, in the 19th century, were transformed into a tree-lined avenue; it has therefore maintained its characteristic medieval structure.

The following are a few pictures that I captured during our short visit. One of the things I love about Italy is the fact that all your senses are given a very good work out. From the bright colours, wonderful smells, sounds, and of course touch.


Sense of Sound

One of the many sounds I heard was the sound of horns and the speed of motor bikes. In fact I think I saw more Vespa's than I did of actual cars. There bright colours and shiny chrome made a perfect picture opportunity. Why they even have a perfect little parking spot!



Other things I heard, were church bells, children laughing, especially when we walked passed daycares. Children would be at the wrought iron gates saying "Ciao" or "Hello" with big contagious smiles on their little faces. And lets not forget the many conversations in many languages, Dutch, German, Chinese and of course Italian.



Sense of Smell

How is it that our sense of smell always make us feel so good or reminds us when we were children. Lucca took me back, from the markets with fresh fruit to the meat and cheese shops. Lets not forget the bakeries with there fresh baked breads with oils and vinegars. I am certain that no one who visits Italy cannot find something delicious that delights their palate.

Can you say Balsamic Vinegar, so many to choose

from and so many pretty bottles.

This particular market had so many wonderful smells,
from aged cheese, to meats hanging from

the ceiling. I could have stayed there all day!

Sense of Colour

The first thing that struck me while strolling through Lucca was colour, from buildings to flowers to fashion. Italians love colour and even more they love fashion. I have to say I have never seen so many beautiful shop windows, with colour and elegance. Seriously I was addicted to the fashions that I saw and how much more advance Italy is than we are in North America.

Italian fashion isn't limited to adults, there were
just as many children's boutiques,
even boutiques for pets. Bella Bella Bella...

This shop window was a good example of
how fashionable Italians are. I love the dress with
the fur and the coat if I could I would have bought

everything in this window.

Again so lov'n this both the colour and

the style and doesn't this mannequin look
like one of the mannequin's from the
movie Confessions of a Shopaholic?

I love how stores look like personal homes, using
furniture that can be found everyday, so charming.

Need I say more COLOUR and leather a great combo,

I bought a purse from this store in chocolate, orange

and turquoise, I could just eat it!

The San Martino Church

Duomo di San Martino ? This Romanesque cathedral contains a famous relic, the Volto Santo (Holy Face), a wooden figure of Christ. The Volto Santo is believed to be the true face of Christ, carved by Nicodemus who was present at the crucifixion.

The Cathedral was completely rebuilt between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries; in 1261 it was joined to the adjoining bell-tower, hence the unusual asymmetry of the facade and its smaller arch to the right.

Some of the carving dates back to the fifth century and some work has been attributed to Nicola Pisano.

The tomb of Ilaria is the work of Lucca's famous son, Matteo Civitali, and dates from the fifteenth century. The Volto Santo (Holy Face) is a wooden effigy that is said to be a true image of Christ, carved by Nicodemus at the crucifixion. Once a year the revered effigy is removed to head a procession through the streets of Lucca. Cathedral Museum. Rising alongside the Duomo, the museum is located in a complex of medieval origin. It houses a patrimony of inestimable artistic and historical value. Included in the collection are miniature codices, jewelry, paintings, liturgical dress, sculptures and wooden crosses, organized according to a chronological and didactic order, belonging as well to the Cathedral and the Baptistery of S. Giovanni. Admission is charged; closed Mondays

The San Martino Church



The San Martino Church


Town Shots - A Day in Lucca

Walking through the streets of Lucca you can't help but find so many wonderful images that need preserving. From simple street shots to flower stands, quiet streets, beautiful doors, even little dogs in bike baskets. I simple loved Lucca!









 

  

The San Frediano Church

The facade of the church is decorated with a lavish thirteenth century mosaic; the interior is worth seeing and houses a richly carved baptismal font as well as a shrine to Lucca's saint, Santa Zita. (details) Instantly distinguishable from other Romanesque churches of Lucca by its golden mosaic high on the facade, the church of San Frediano is also of interest internally. The huge twelfth century baptismal font, the Fonte Lustrale, lies immediately at the entrance and is decorated with biblical scenes attributed to three different craftsmen. The church also houses a shrine to Santa Zita, Lucca's saint, whose mummified body is brought out once a year when she may be touched by the devout.

The San Frediano Church

"Piazza Anfiteatro" Piazza of the Amphitheatre

Built on the site of an original Roman amphitheatre, Piazza Anfiteatro is another ‘must-see' in Lucca. Some original Roman elements remain, particularly within the outer walls. This ancient site constitutes one of the most characteristic and original monuments of the city. The ancient amphitheatre dates from the 2nd century A.D. It was built on an elliptical plan with two rows of 54 arcades and a maximum capacity of 10,000 spectators. Beginning in the Middle Ages, houses were built over the ruins. Over the course of time the piazza developed its characteristic elliptical shape, with buildings all around it. The ancient remains are still quite evident today. The colorful piazza was restored in 1830. Enlivened by shops and cafes, it is still at the center of cultural activities, music festivals, and fairs.

I love how this arch frames the piazza enhancing the colours and the blue sky.

Inviting cafe waiting for guests in the Piazza Anfiteatro.

I love how the buildings here are round with beautiful
green shutters many of which have laundry hanging from them.

First cafe in Italy in Piazza Anfiteatro.

Lunch in the piazza yes that is me eating tomatoes
but they are so different in Italy sweet and organic so delicious.

It Brought Tears to My Eyes - Pisa, Italy

As I turned the corner my eyes gazed upon something so beautiful it brought tears to my eyes.

Pisa, renowned worldwide for its Leaning Tower, definitely deserves more than the usual day stop which traditionally occurs on tourist routes. The city boasts an ancient history which was at its most splendid during the era of the Marine Republic. For tourists, Pisa is a treasure chest full of surprises; from the bright Lungarni quays walled by noble buildings, to the web of narrow, medieval alleys leading to the famous Piazza dei Miracoli. Home of Galileo Galilei, Pisa is today an important university city and offers a lively student lifestyle.

One of the things that I found surprising in Italy is the fact that buildings are so close together, I mean really I thought the Leaning Tower was on its own but was pleasantly surprised that it sat against the spectacular Cathedral of Pisa.

What do you say but WOW!

I love how the sun reflects off the Tower and gives a
kaleidoscope of colour. At first I thought there was
something wrong with my camera, not realizing what
was happening. So perfect so beautiful.



Cathedral of Pisa



Can you imagine having these for your front
doors so beautiful Cathedral of Pisa 

Amazing example of  Corinthian Columns.