• Sandra Heffernan
  • Sandra Heffernan

La vie en vert

Along the river Seine at Marnay SS, Nogent & Paris & to the Marne river. From Roscoff across English Channel to Devon & Cornwall & along Tamar river to Callington and Bude. Finally, to Bristol's Avon, to Amsterdam & Amstel river to the Seine, Paris Read more
  • Trip start
    August 16, 2025

    Houghton Bay > 19,000 kms

    Aug 16–17, 2025 in New Zealand ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    Houghton Bay to Auckland to 38C in Houston. From there a great view of some of Dad & Lorraine's fav music places..... Memphis, Nashville, Jackson, Louisville & the Murray River. Then au train du vie In Paris at the corner of Rue de l'Alsace and Rue des Deux Gares while I await the Gare de L'Est train to Nogent Sur Seine.Read more

  • Reflets de la Seine , Marnay

    Aug 20–Sep 10, 2025 in France ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    A walk along the Seine in Marnay Sur Seine near Le Prieuré from la Maison Verte & La Jardin Botanique. The Abbey of Saint-Denis, the Roman church built in the XII by the monks of is half-ruined at the end of the wars of religion. In the seventeenth century, the reconstruction of the vaults and the building of the tower gave it its present appearance. Originally, the church was decorated with paintings that were whitewashed in the eighteenth century, according to the religious instruction of the time. Le Prieuré has a wooden children's playground was built by a NZer, Sam who also honed some of the beams for Notre Dames restoration.Read more

  • La Belle Dame & Saint Aubin brocante

    August 22, 2025 in France ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Finally lunch at La Belle Dame after John & I missed out last year. Beside the Seine in Nogent, the restaurant dates back to the time of the tudor style Henri 1V building next door, 1932. On my cycle route along the Seine, so no beer just another lovely sign, a sewing machine like my Nan's & geraniums Mum style. A last brocante...a kilo of locally made pigments!Read more

  • le paysage du pli

    August 23, 2025 in France ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    Inspired by folds in plants at La Jardin Botanique Marnay Sur Seine. I'm trying to discover new forms & ideas transforming, unfolding & making new configurations. The results...maybe a naturally coloured collaged style folded landscapeRead more

  • Oranger des Osages

    Aug 27–28, 2025 in France ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    A row of Oranger des Osages near the train station in Troyes. ..5 bus journeys to reach Châlons-en-Champagne 32C, via Romilly Sur Seine & Troyes for overnight stay. First a walk along the old Roman Road, Via Agrippa (now rue de la Marne) then across the Marne river, canal Lateral to the centre of the city known for champagne, circus (Cirque du Soleil) and home of French Croix Rouge ( Red Cross). It was a garrison city during WW1, rail hub and hospital which received 35,000 injured soldiers in 2 weeks between September-October 1915.Read more

  • Le déjeuner..Marnay

    August 28, 2025 in France ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    Lunch for the village attended by 150 people at the home of a couple who have a decorative arts shop in Paris. The menu started with a selection of 50+ salads including those brought by guests, lamb on a spit with 5 different potato dishes and ratatouille, then 2 tables of desserts and cheese. And champagne...or an array of wines etc. Impressive end of summer event and nice to meet friends again. From a sunny & busy indigo day in my outdoor studio at La Maison Verte
    Early evening invitation to view the Claude Domec art collection. His works in wax+pigment followed no particular style, but many have Marnay nuances some held in Dijon Museum. Saturday evening the cafe was closed so Nicole (who owns a fashion shop in nearby Provins) and her husband invited all the Saturday night cafe crew to her place for music, food and wine in her lovely garden. A quick stroll along the Soak at Jardin Botanique, and Rue du Four to the Seine.
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  • Marais Galleries, Paris

    September 2, 2025 in France ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    Visits to some favourite Marais, Paris galleries and Marché Couvert des Enfants Rouges. In photos: first stop Maria Wettergren- Hanne Friis, Margrethe Odgaard 'FOLD Unfold', then Suzan Frecon at David Zwirnir; Norbert Prangenberg at Karsten Greve & Georgia Russell 'The sea around us' at Karsten Greve paint + organza.
    During a late morning walking pause in a beautiful Rue de Turenne Marais garden I noticed a steady stream of people stopping at the entrance to take a photo and walk on without even stepping into the garden. Just a 30 second photo pause. A mystery, but I decided to follow suit and take a photo from the entrance.
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  • La Pausa Paris

    September 4, 2025 in France ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    A day in Paris soaking up the beauty: my favourite 'pausa' is the Bibliothèque nationale de France-stunning reading space & beautifully fragrant perfumed convenience areas. & Monmartre via Ultramod haberdashery/millinery, Mokuba, to the Louvre Gardens. All on foot on a lovely summers day. & Bourse du Commerce Pinault collection.Read more

  • la fleur de zucchini fanée

    September 4, 2025 in France ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    The wilted zucchini flower was smocked, pleated, stitched using antique Japanese silk. The weathered canvas was exposed to south coast Houghton Bay, Wellington weather & kanuka tannin for 12 months then revived with indigo at La Maison VerteRead more

  • Indigo

    September 5, 2025 in France ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Pleat challenges..Fold-Unfold & dye. Maude updating her wardrobe with indigo

  • Auvoir France

    Sep 10–12, 2025 in France ⋅ 🌬 17 °C

    Crossing the Atlantic from Bay of Morlaix, Roscoff to Plymouth after having travelled through Paris the day before the protests. Very nice walking across the sand, warm water and very tactile seaweed and a relaxing evening in the wooded garden of the C19 Hotel d'AnglaterreRead more

  • Byenleigh, Luckett, Tamar River

    Sep 12–19, 2025 in England ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    Relaxing in Luckett near the Tamar river in Cornwall, staying in a home which began with a structure beside a large rock in the 13th century. It still has 3 Clome ovens in the walls, and was updated 5 decades ago. Our daily walks (include) along the Tamar River through the very nearby Greenscomb Woods and to The Royal Hotel (2 miles away) which was a Nunnery until the C15 when Charles 1 visited and changed thingsRead more

  • 2 Go on a GWRail adventure

    Sep 16–29, 2025 in England ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    Tamar Valley - Cornwall - Devon
    3 Great Western Rail Journeys to collect a rental car in Newquay. Firstly, from Gunnislake Station along the picturesque Tamar Valley to Plymouth- Plymouth to Par - Par to NewquayRead more

  • Morwenstow, Cornwall

    September 25, 2025 in England ⋅ 🌙 12 °C

    Morwenstow church & graveyard, a few miles from the source of the Tamar, high on the treacherous cliffs of the wild Atlantic coast. Many shipwrecks were cast on the rocks in the storms.
    Revd Hawker buried more than 40 mariners from the shipwreck Caledonia of Arbroath, 1843 in the graveyard.
    His hut was a sanctuary from the elements where he wrote much of his poetry. Ollie in the hut enjoying the view. Some of John's Harris relatives are also buried in the cemetery.
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  • Bristol- Alex, Louis...

    Oct 1–2, 2025 in England ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    In Bristol visiting Alex & Louis, their wedding venue, Alex's parents Barbara & Jonathon & their home and a special 16 flavour wedding cake tasting at Bristol Observatory with views of Bristol's Suspension Bridge over the river AvonRead more

  • Full speed through Paris

    October 8, 2025 in France ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Homeward bound..a lovely sunny afternoon in Paris..time for a museum visit, view of Eiffel Tower, the Police boat lashed to tourist boat ( something we avoided in Amsterdam!) then off to Roissey Aeroport Charles de Gaulle. First, Sheila Hicks' 'le film voyageur' -the travelling Thread Exhibition is a conversation with her 99 year old friend Monique Levi Strauss recounting their artistic friendship and between her 'minimes' tiny pieces of tapestry and works from the Peruvian collection of the museum. Such a fantastic museum which I have fond memories of delivering a 2012 conference paper and making some of my best coloured cloth sales at a Musee QB Sunday lunch sales event. The Amazônia Exhibition A major exhibition of contemporary and traditional art from 9 Amazonian countries. And memories of 2012 Shibori conference & paper & works sales at Musee QB.Read more

  • Trip end
    October 10, 2025