Sorry no translation today. I'm going to sleep!

Non contente d'avoir, dans une journe deja bien remplie, passe un certain nombres d'heures a dessiner une dizaine de designs pour mon nouveau boulot que j'ai (croise les doigts pour que ca se passe bien XXX), tout en m'occupant de mon fils cheri ( "ma maman maa ma ma " il m'a a tous les coups huhu) , puis le fils couche m'etant occupee du futur site du pere, apres une bonne quatorzaine d'heures de boulot, je me suis dit que tiens vu la tete que je fais, je ferais bien de vous dessiner Miss Fraise en gachapon*, comme ca on est assorties toutes les deux.

Dont acte.

*Je denie toute responsabilite quant a l'addiction qui pourrait suivre si vous avez le malheur de suivre ce lien, ou encore pire, celui-la.
Addendum: Aaaargh j'avais pas vu. Ils ont deja tous les accessoires de miss Fraise je n'en crois pas mes yeux...
 

I will be back soon to miss Fraise, but I've just read something and I wanted to share it with you. Since I'm a mother I read every freaky thing I can find about hygiene. I open my fridge with fear, expecting germs and molds to attack me if I left a piece of sticky cheese  unwrapped. I was delighted to find this very well made Real Simple article "Surprising expiration dates". They give a nice list of how much time you can keep groceries. May I quote one item?
Marshmallows
Unopened: 40 weeks
Opened: 3 months

When I was a teenager I loved to spend rainy afternoons reading the old "Semaine de Suzette", and "Lisette" magazines, from my grand mothers. I would snuggle cosily with my cat in an old armchair and read till I felt exausted from reading so many sad and sanctimonous stories. But I would continue anyway because I loved the illustration style so much. I wanted so bad to be able to draw like  that!

Often people tell me "Your style reminds me something but I don't know what?". I studied a lot of different style very closely to build my own personal style. I truly believe that you need to nuture your imagination by studiying and copying art you like. If you don't pratice you'll only create cliches.

I left my "Semaine de Suzette" in France. Silly me! I'm so stupid. I'm terribly sad I don't have them anymore. I tried to make a version of Miss Fraise 1940 but it was too difficult to do it without documentation. I put that aside and worked on some other versions.

Then...

Two days ago I got a parcel from France. Angel had found "a treasure" and wanted to share it with me. I couldn't believe my eyes  : she sent me a whole bunch of my beloved "Lisette" magazines !  I came back to my illustration and redid it entirely.
It's a very difficult style. Proportions, movement, everything is so different from the way we work now! I had the hardest time trying to create movements and strokes...Until I looked closely at the pictures and noticed that most faces were facing right, and most movements too...Were all the illustrators left handed? No!

The impression process reversed the picture. So I did, and bingo, it helps a lot!
Thank you so much Angel, you gave me something to help me improve, the best gift ever!

LA VERSION FRANCAISE ICI

Miss Fraise #3, version "Pomme d'Api 1973"

Avec mon meilleur souvenir.

Par ailleurs: J'ai un conseil a vous demander.

For this one, I got inspired by the children magazine I used to "read" whem I was a wee tiny girly thing.

Miss Fraise #2, version "chibi"

Miss Fraise #1

Today I'm beginning a new series. Kinda different one, since I intend to post always the same character in the same position, but...Wait and see! It will be fun !

Aujourd'hui je commence une nouvelle serie, mais sur un principe un peu different. Je vais poster le meme perso dans la meme position mais...Attendez de voir, ca va etre rigolo.

I was surprised to discover that San Francisco parks and gardens are a dog thing only. Except in a few concrete areas to park the children, the whole place is granted to dog owners and their animals. Not that I have anything against dogs, actually I quite like them. I'm just not very fond of sitting in dog pee and poop and I like to relax with my baby without checking all the time that no untamed canine creature is about to grab his toys or my lunch or both. I wish there was some place where people can enjoy sitting in the grass on their own, away from the foul smell of a full trashcan of dog poop in the sun.

I think we need room for doggies, but it would be nice that they share the space. There is enough room for dogs and people, isn't it? Not everybody enjoy to have a doggie peeing less than a foot from his feet/baby/bag. Even if its the cutest dog of all.

After explaining to various uncompassionate dog owners that I perfectly had the right to sit on the gazon and enjoy my lunch all by myself without sharing it with a dog  while my baby was grabbing grass with delight without being bothered by a dog, I quit.
Now we play in the concrete and sand playground, and I wait impatiently to be able to plant my garden. Maybe I'll throw a tuna melt party to celebrate when it's done. Please bring your dog!

(the French translation gives a recipe of the Tuna melt, believe me or not, this pure delight is unknown in France)

Comme les innombrables lecteurs de la Trollette le savent deja, il est impossible de s'assoir dans l'herbe a San Francisco sans qu'un chien ne vienne mettre son museau dans votre escarcelle, votre sandwich, ou participer de maniere totalement unhygienique a la toilette de votre bebe si vous etes accompagne. J'ai du arreter d'emmener mon fils au parc, c'etait trop dangereux, la plupart des chiens ne sont pas dresses!

Je vais planter le jardin, ca ne faisait pas partie de nos primes priorites, mais il va me falloir de l'herbe sous mon palmier si je veux pouvoir sacrifier a un de mes pechers mignons, le "tuna melt au jardin".

Le tuna melt ne fait pas partie des coutumes francaises et c'est bien dommage...Cliquez pour avoir la recette:

Translation: Mamzelle Plum is a graphic designer
-Did you really buy celery? I thought you didn't enjoy it much.
-I took my pink bag and the green leaves are so lovely with pink. I couldn't help it.

-And what do you do when you want to buy radishes?
-In this case I would always take my orange mesh shopping bag, wouldn't you?

Le sac rose et le celeri appartiennent a Mlle Adelie. Je m'excuse ici publiquement aupres de ma famille et de mes amis, qui font les frais en croquis de leurs bourdes (parfois) et de leurs fantaisies (souvent).

Et j'ajoute que je n'ai pas l'intention d'arreter...Mamzelle Plum, nouveau personnage, est inspiree de mes coupines graphistes et de moi-meme, un peu, quand meme.

Faut que j'arrete avec les addenda, c'est addictif.

Sorry no translation today, it's about French cooking!

Bon, en vadrouille dans la cuisine ca donne ca...Il faut savoir qu'a la maison je cuisine seulement pour mon fils!  Ou alors je fais des pates, mais des bonnes hein... La rape c'est un des cadeaux oh merveille de mon frere et de ma belle soeur. Mon frere a le chic pour le cadeau qui tchue juste comme y faut. La petite rape cherie est toujours en expo, malheureusement je vais bientot devoir lui trouver une place dans une armoire, mon fils la couve du regard lui aussi et ce n'est pas un jouet pour bebe houla pas du tout.
Le canard sur la sippy c'est super important, ca fait 3 mois que mon fils louche dessus avec un air de concentration intense, on dirait son pere en train d'etudier une etiquette de vin. Ca me met en joie a chaque fois.
Cette image pour Clo, et le grand inventaire,  j'adore l'idee et je suis ravie de participer :)

Et surement pas pour le raleur qui reclamait dans les coms ...Non mais ca va pas la tete, tu fais ca chez les gens que tu connais pas pour de vrai  aussi? Genre tu t'installes dans la cuisine et tu rales "ca vient ce cafe?" pfff.

addendum: du the pour Drenka

Ⓒdel4yo-Delphine Doreau 2007

Cette illustration est particulierement dedicacee a Ol et Adelie, qui savent tres bien pourquoi :)

translation in English on the lower part of the post.

En cherchant des images je me rend compte que j'avais oublie de poster ca, pfff.

While  organizing pictures I realised I forgot to post this one. It's about the tag on all babies' pajamas "NOT FLAME RETARDANT" . They really insist on it and on the fact a baby should never ever ever wear a loose pajama for fear of fire. Since I dont let my baby play with matches, or cook flambéed bananas or smoke in bed, I really wonder why they insist that much about it. The only reasonable answer to that question is:

Babies can ignite spontaneously.

My oh my, and nobody told me!