March 30, 2011

Star Cat of the Day : Eugénie

Let me introduce you to Eugénie McBain. Little Eugénie (yes, she may look big but it's mostly hair) didn't have a fun start in life. She is Persian and her previous owners used her as a breeding cat. She was in a house where she was mostly neglected, never being groomed nor much looked after. Over time the previous owners got tired of her and let her out (she was locked inside before that)...and Eugénie found the way to my house...Where she mostly hid in various places. I let her in because she was limping...I quickly found out it was because of a huge tick on her paw. For a while it was like that, Eugénie would come and hide in my house, and the previous owners would come and get her back. As she was not neutered, she had kittens quite often, and the first time she came in my lap was to give birth. When I moved, the previous owners just told me I could have her...though their nasty brat was adamant they had paid for her and that they should just keep her :/ Eugénie gave birth again, on the second night in the new house. On me again...while I was sleeping. That's how I ended up with 3 extra kittens, Bob, Frank and Zoé (on the top picture). Eugénie stays a very aloof kitty, she never asks for cuddles, never sleeps near me. She hates being groomed so she usually is a big mess of tangled hair in the winter (I shave her in the summer). She is no longer hiding though, now she prefers to sleep on her back in the middle of the room, the more in the way, the better. She is neutered now, and though she always looks grumpy I think she must be happy ^_^

March 29, 2011

Banana muffins

Some of my favorite muffins. I love them because they are not too sweet and the banana taste is subtle. I know it's a lot of ingredients for muffins, but they are worth the trouble!

Ingredients : 240 gr white flour
75 gr oat flakes
3 coffee spoons baking powder
55 gr brown sugar
75 gr dry dates (cut in small pieces) soaked in hot water
40 gr pecan nuts (small pieces)
2 coffee spoons cinammon
salt
190gr Greek yogurt
115 ml sunflower oil
75 ml coco milk
60 gr honey
3 eggs
1 coffee spoon vanilla extract (I use a small pack of vanilla sugar)
225 gr banana (squished)

Mix all the dry ingredients together and the wet ones together, then roughly mix both dry and wet mixes. Preheat the oven at 180° Bake 20 to 25 minutes.

March 28, 2011

Monday moodboard Slightly Nautical

The sunny weather makes me long for some exotic trips... A few of my European favorites 1. violasboutique 2. LucieTalesVintage 3. Linocutgirl 4. Bijouxdellostregatto You can view more moodboards on FleurFatale's blog

March 23, 2011

Star Cat of the Day : GP

GP McBain (also known as Pounet) is the ultimate rescued kitty. GP stands for "grosses pattes" (big paws in French), as he has a strange disease that makes all his white cells accumulate in his lower limbs.
GP belonged to someone else but he occasionally came in the garden, I noticed him because he has a "bad" eye, he got wounded and it never properly healed. Obviously he was not much cared for .
He looked nice enough, not picking fights with my own cats. Then one winter I noticed that he was in the garden a lot, and that he walked funny...so I tried to to pet him and catch him to see what was wrong. Poor GP not only had this uncurable paw problem, he also had coryza and looked really thin and...well about to die really.
So I took him in.
The vet was not very hopeful, on top of his various health conditions, he also had a broken tail.
Well, we are now 3 years later. GP has good days and bad days, he sleeps a lot...but he seems happy, "I won the lottery" happy actually ;)
He eats well, and likes cuddles too...and he is the ultimate sunbeam napper :) But what I like best about him, is the way he looks at me with adoring eyes.
And the vet can't believe he is still with us!

March 22, 2011

Spring is here

Spring is here :) To celebrate I planted an apple tree and a raspberry plant. And I took some pictures of the garden in the first warm sun of the year!
On top photo, Philibert McGregor, a visiting neighbor kitty friend.


The askew bunny...about the only thing I kept from the junk the previous owners of the house left behind.
Hopefully many raspberries to come!

And the apple tree! Granted it doesn't look very impressive...but even the largest baobab was once a baby tree!

March 20, 2011

Euro Week on Etsy

Yes, it's that time of the year again! European week on Etsy !!!!
To celebrate, 15% off my whole shop until friday March 25th with coupon code "EUROPE"
Read more info about Euro Week here

March 16, 2011

Star Cat of the Day : Doudou aka Kevin aka Voldemort

I don't really remember how Doudou McBain became my cat...or rather how I became his human. Voldemort, his first name, just popped in the garden once in while. He seemed rather aggressive toward the other cats...but I am not sure whether he really was mean, or if it's just his imposing stature that made me think so. Yes, Voldy IS huge, a lot bigger than my other cats. He got his Voldemort name when the kittens flocked around him like little deatheaters ;) It was very sweet to see him being all shy around those tiny kittens.

When he decided to stay around, he got his second name, Kevin. Why Kevin you may ask? Well, it's from a sketch from a famous Belgian stand up comedian. He has recurring characters named Kevin and Nathalie (my name).

He got his third name, Doudou, when I found out he has no teeth left. My poor fearsome grumpy "little" Doudou won't bite you.
He kept his 3 names, and I use all 3 depending on my level of annoyance with him.
Doudou is very clingy, especially in the evening, when he just HAS to sleep on someone, and I can tell you it's not terribly comfortable to have that giant kitty on your stomach and lungs.

March 09, 2011

Star Cat of the Day : Zouzou

Zouzou Pitchoune McBain is Daget's (whom we met last week) sister.
Zouzou is one strange kitty if there ever was one. Like her siblings she was born feral, and until the age of 1 (and spending a winter outside) she absolutely refused to come in the house, or be touched, or even be looked at for too long.
As a result I couldn't have her spayed, and she had babies when she was 1. Her mom Boudine had kittens at the same time, so I never knew who was the mom of whom from their 7 kittens.
Then, one cold night she decided she liked being inside the house...and that sleeping on a bed was not completely uncomfortable...as long as she was not looked at.
But once inside, and with the use of many kitchen ustensils (long story) I managed to catch her and take her to the vet.
Then she went back to being the wild one...inside ;)
Years later she broke one of her back paws...so I had to catch her again, which was not easier than the first time...And she must have remembered the vet pretty well because once her carrier was opened she jumped out on 3 paws and hid inside the X-ray machine .
And what fun it was to try to get her out.
So you have now to imagine me, completely lying on the floor, with my arm stretched inside the X-ray machine...with the vet saying "you'll never get her out, you'll never get her out!"
I got her out!
Back at home, with her paw in a large plastic thingy, she was not any nicer. She escaped, and she bit me while I was trying to get her back. That resulted in a doctor visit and 2 shots for me. I guess she had her revenge ...and she just limped back inside in the evening as if nothing had happened.On this last picture, Zouzou, Boudine and the 7 kittens.
But that's not all...for some unexplained reasons, when she turned 8 or 9, shortly after her sister Norbert died, Zouzou, the not-to-be-touched kitty, became Miss Clingy. She now adores hugs and cuddles...and is very vocal too. She also started to tip over all glasses within her reach, something her sister did all the time too.

March 08, 2011

Canapés

I had guests on sunday and I like making little "canapés" to have with the "apéritif". I made 6 types this time.


1. Salmon "rillettes" with cherry tomatoes
2. Boiled eggs, mayo and dry sausage
3. Goat cheese with fresh pear and paprika

4. Avocado puree with smoked salmon and lemon
5. Pâté de foie (homemade) with mayo and pickles
6. Cherry tomatoes with salmon rillettes (those were and "afterthought" as I had too many tomatoes and too much salmon left)

March 07, 2011

Monday moodboard


It's a kind of magic...
A few of my favorite Euros on Etsy.
1. RenatheS
2.Kreativlink
3.Leelabijou
4.vKnit
You can view more moodboards on FleurFatale's blog.

March 04, 2011

I have decluttered my bag

Spring time! Time to clean up my handbag again.
I'll spare you the "before" photo with its pile of used tissues, candy wrappers and grocery bills. It's back to the essentials (believe it or not all those cute pouches have an actual use)! All clean, lean and most of all LIGHT!

March 03, 2011

My favorite films

I love films. I am a film maniac. And some movies just stick with you forever. Blade Runner is one those films for me.
Over the years Blade Runner has achieved a cult status, and quite rightly too as it is a master piece.
Yes, it is grim and gloomy...but each and every single shot was carefully thought of and is like a little painting.
Yes, maybe Blade Runner appeals to me more because I love science fiction, and Philip K. Dick is one of my favorite writer (he wrote the orignal novel: Do androids dream of electric sheeps?)
It is also very much influenced by the film noir genre which I love.

But most of all, Blade Runner is about mood, and yet still has a story.
Deckard, the main character (?) is not a hero, he barely makes it to the end. Though we're uncomfortable identifying with him all through the movie, we can't help feeling his pains and conflicts. It took me many viewings to realize that Deckard was not even human, and that was a mind blowing experience for me...and made me watch the film a few more times.
"More human than human" is the motto of the Tyrell Corporation which engineers those "fake humans"...and it's the whole plot in one sentence. The "fake humans" turn out to be just as human as anybody , wanting and longing for the exact same things: to love and be loved.



*all pictures and clip belong to Warner Bros*

March 02, 2011

Star Cat of the Day : Daget

There was once a female kitty named Boudine (Tummy) who was feral and lived in my garden. Boudine was pretty wild and I couldn't catch her to have her spayed. So once in a while she brought me back her kittens. Daget is one of those kittens.
Daget McBain was from a kindle of 4, she had a twin sister Norbert (on the picture above, who sadly passed away a few years ago), a brother called Buffy (who was very wild and died young) and another sister Zouzou (who is still here). As you probably noticed I managed to give boy names to girls and vice versa ;) Norbert and Daget are the names of cartoon beavers.


Daget is very shy...and came into the house only because her twin came first. Norbert was not shy at all. Though she lived inside, I couldn't touch her. And then one day she got attacked and wounded by a dog when she was a few months old.
Somehow, while I was looking after her and treated her, she became a bit less shy...and now she is a very sweet kitty. She likes cuddles and snuggles...but only if she is sure she is not in the way...which makes her even more endearing. She is 11 going on 12.

March 01, 2011

Art on Etsy

One of my favorite things to browse and buy on Etsy is art print. There such a wide selection of different styles and techniques. Here are a few of my favorites.
The two bunnies there on top are by naokosstoop.

This cute bunny girl is by Matilou.

This adorable kitty (who reminds me of my cat Le Quart d'Une Noix) is by helendardik.

And this incredibly funny and witty wrestler doggie (La Muerta Rosa) by chetart. If you're not familiar with him, go check his shop. You'll find series like "the Wrestle Pets", but also "Union of the superlatives heroes", "Literary Pets" (with the cutie cute Jane Pawsten) and much more.