February 28th Today, I am...

...this beautiful Cinderella castle!

I am a fairy tale castle, located at the two Disney themed parks, The Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort (Bay Lake, Florida, since 1971) and Tokyo Disneyland in Tokyo. I was inspired by lots of different palaces, real and fictional, such as Fontainebleau, Versailles, Neuschweinstein, Alcázar of Segovia (the oldest of them all), Moszna Castle and others. Herbert Ryman, the chief designer is also the original creator of the castle in the Cinderella film and the Sleeping Beauty Castle (California). Inside the castle, within the main corridor, there are 5 handcrafted mosaic murals, containing 14-karat gold and silver plus more than a million pieces of glass in 500 different colours, which tells the classic tale of Cinderella. Cinderela's Royal Table lets you dine with Disney Princesses inside of a storybook setting for breakfast, lunch and dinner. There is also a Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, a beauty salon where girls and boys are magically transformed into little princesses and knights.

other Cinderella castle pictures:

 

interesting Cinderella facts:

* Cinderella is the second Disney princess (1950), after Snow White (1937), also the second orphan
* the symbolic message of the glass slippers is that Cinderella is so delicate that she can walk in glass shoes and not break them
* Cinderella is derived from the French word Cendrillon, which translates in English as "little ash girl"
* Cinderella, being at 19 is the oldest Disney Princess
* Cinderella is voiced by singer and actress Ilene Woods. She was chosen after more than 300 singers had auditioned for the part
 * Wicked Stepmother Lady Tremaine was voiced by Eleanor Audley, who also provided the voice for the villainous Maleficent
* Cinderella's shoe size iz petite 4 and a half

(facts found at Fanpop and Flavorwire)

February 27th Today, I am...

...this incredibly gorgeous corset!

My name is "The Crown Princess", a "richly embroided couture outfit, consisting of an underbust corset panty, a matching neck corset and strapless bra." You can find and purchase me at Royalblack. "The corset pieces are made from sheer strong mesh and are elaborately decorated with synthetic leather cutwork, silver beads and Swarovski crystals." All the corsets are handmade in Vienna by a designer and master tailoress, Barbara Pesendorfer. What makes them so special, are the "perfect fit, exquisite fabrics and workmanship at highest stage meet sensual classiness, aesthetic extravagance and timeless silhouettes." You can find all sorts of different collections, such as Glorious Empire, Royal Black Reloaded collection, Enchanted Garden, Festival collection and Various Couture Designs.

other Royal Black corsets:

interesting corset facts:

* corsets were once a symbol of status; he higher the class of the lady, the heavier the corset and the more confining (this was because a lady of wealth did not need freedom of movement for household chores)
* even girls as young as three wore laced-up corsets in the 1830; it was believed that the corset would hold up a fragile body
* the Guinness Book of Records includes a “smallest waist on a living person” category of 14 and 15 inches
* medical conditions including spinal curving and internal injuries can be helped using a fitted form of corset to immobilise and protect the body; one famous medical corset wearer was Andy Warhol
* women were thought of as the weaker sex, therefore their minds and bodies were weak, so the corset was deemed morally and medically necessary

(facts found at the Corset Memoirs and Victoria's Past)

February 26th Today, I am...

...this beautifully decorated perfume bottle!

I am Limoges style figural enamelled black ground scent bottle from 1870 (Limoges is known for its medieval and Renaissance enamels on copper, for its 19th-century porcelain and for its oak barrels which are used for Cognac production). "Perfume containters emerged as an art form in the 18th century, many different types of bottles were created such as those of cut glass, silver overlay on glass, porcelain, crystal and others. In the 19th century, bottles were being made of different materials like opaline, a special type of crystal that was colored by adding tin oxide and calcified bone that gave the bottles a milky quality. Large bottles were designed to be placed on dressing tables to hold Eau de Cologne; smaller containers were carried in handbags or worn on chains (as in picture). While during the 18th century it was mostly the wealthiest in the society who wore perfume bottles, in the middle of the 19th century, due to the industrial revolution, this changed forever. Synthetic perfume became popular and manufacturers began to produce perfume flasks in mass quantities, lowering the price of bottled perfume and enabling all types of people to indulge in what used to be a luxury"

other 19th century perfume bottles:

interesting perfume facts:

* one of the most valuable raw materials in perfumery, ambergris (ocean-y and sweet), is produced in the intestines of sperm whale
* in 1921, Molinard released a fragnance that was intended to scent cigarettes - you placed the satchels in your cigarette case or applied it directly to your cigarette for a delicious, lasting aroma
* famous French perfumer, Jean Carles (created Miss Dior), was said to have insured his nose for one million dollars
* in 1920, a Parisian butcher started a collection of 11 essential oils with the essence of bacon, thinking they could dramatically lift his customers' mood

(facts found at: Byrdie)

February 25th Today, I am...

...this beautiful carving!

I am located at Musée du Louvre, Paris, which is one of the world's largest museums (60,600 square meters; not quite the largest but has the most visitors) and a historical monument. The museum in its classic baroque style is a part of the Louvre Palace complex, originally built as a fortress in the late 12th century. Louis XIV from the Palace of Versailles chose the Louvre as a place to display the royal collection in 1682. Inside, you can find around 35,000 pieces of art from prehistoric era to the 19th century. The most comonly known amongst them is defenitelly Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, also The Wistler's Mother (which you can remember from a Mr. Bean's episode), Venus the Milo, The Coronation of Napoleon and other remarkable paintings and sculptures. In 1983, a new design for the entrance was built (the Grand Louvre) as an underground lobby and modern glass pyramid structure in the courtyard. It is impossible to see all of its sights in one visit because it's so big.

other sculptures and carvings of Louvre:

interesting museum (in general) facts:

* the Museum of Death in Hollywood includes a head severed by the guillotine in France and Liberace’s stuffed cat
* the Phallological Museum in Husavik, Iceland, is the world’s only museum of penises
* the Garbage Museum in Stratford, Connecticut, closed in 2011 after 16 years exhibiting rubbish
* there is a dog collar museum at Leeds Castle in Kent

(all facts found at Express)

February 24th ~Today, I am...

...this gorgeous Victorian bag!

I am not actually from that area, just a remarkable copy and you can purchase me here. But as for the Victorian style purses goes, their history begins with Queen Victoria of England; that is from 1830 and until the end of the 20th century. It was not until her reign that the woman's fashion came into focus before men's. Victorian bags are full of exquisite lace, decorated with ribbons, flowers and special trims. There can also be a lot of glass or cut-steel beading (as in this picture, but those are plastic). That's why needle skills were very popular and appreciated at the time, there were also a lot of magazines women could learn these skills from. Accessories were made in different colours of pastels or darker shades, green was very popular. They were a perfect combinations to satins, silks and heavy velvets women wore at the time. You can buy a replica of such bags for 30-50 dollars, but the originals cost several hundrets or more than a thousand dollars!

other Victorian handbags:

interesting Victorian handbags facts:

* the finer sewings were made of at least 900 stiches per square inch, some of them consisted even up to 3,000 stiches per square inch
* these highly esteemed works of art are still hand made in Austria and sold for thousands of dollars (more than originals)
* tapestry handbags were often constructed from earlier tapestry cloth
* before the retucules (decorative bags) came into fashion, women store their belongings into dress' pockets, but the form of the dresses eventually changed so the pockets ruined their lines and couldn't be used for some time
* the French often parodied the women who carried the delicate bags that resembled previously hidden pockets as ridicules
* women spent an enormous amount of time embroidering bags to show off for potential husbands, often marking the date and their own initials on their bag
* in keeping with the ideals of domesticity of earlier times, many women wore chatelaines that attached to the waist belt by a large decorated clasp

(facts found at Antiques of Broadway, Random History and at V&A)

February 23th ~Today, I am...

...this 18th century chair!

I am Bergere a la reine, which means there is only one pair as a part of a set of me made. I was made in 1785 by Jean-Baptiste-Bernar Demay (1759-1849), which was a french carpenter from Paris. My structure is of carved and gilded walnut, decorated with modern silk lampas (lampas is a type of luxury fabric). You can find me at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The period of art I belong to is the 18th century Rococo, or "Late Baroque", which was created as "a reaction against the grandeur, symmetry, and strict regulations of the Baroque (especially of the Palace of Versailles). Rococo artists and architects used a more jocular, florid, and graceful approach to the Baroque. Their style was ornate and used light colours, asymmetrical designs, curves, and gold. Unlike the political Baroque, the Rococo had playful and witty themes. The interior decoration of Rococo rooms was designed as a total work of art with elegant and ornate furniture, small sculptures, ornamental mirrors, and tapestry complementing architecture, reliefs, and wall paintings."


other Rococo style chairs:

interesting Rococo facts:

* Rococo comes from the words "rocaille" which means stone and "coquilles" which means shells
* the word Rococo was used to mean frivolous by detractors of the style
* during a revival of the style in Britain during the 1800s, it was mistakenly called the Louis XIV style

* many churches of the time did not allow the style because it was considered to detract from the solemnity of prayer

* Rococo painters used pastel colors and curving shapes and typically paintedintimate mythological scenes, love scenes, and images of daily life

(all facts found at: Wiki Art)

February 22nd ~Today, I am...

...these beautiful amethyst arches!

You can find me at the Nasīr al-Mulk Mosque, also named the Pink Mosque, a traditional mosque in Shiraz, Iran. We are under protection by Endowment Fundations and were built by one of the lords of the Qajar Dynasty in 1888 (the whole building process lasted for 12 years). "The mosque extensively uses colored glass in its facade, and it displays other traditional elements  in its design". These stained glass windows capture the morning light which create a magnificent colourful light structure on the floors (therefore the name Pink Mosque came up, althought it consist of almost every imaginable colour).

other pictures of the mosque:

interesting MOSQUE FACTS:

* outside or inside every mosque there's a place where worshippers can remove and leave their shoes
* there is a place where they can carry out the ritual washing required before prayer 
*  there are no pictures or statues, because Muslims believe these are blasphemous (there can be no image of Allah, who is wholly spirit)
*  everyone sits on the floor and everyone in the mosque is equal in status
*  a niche in one of the walls, called a mihrab, shows the direction that the worshippers should face in order to face Mecca
*  women sit separately from the men out of modesty and to prevent any distraction; it is more usual for women to pray at home

(all facts found at: BBC site)

February 21st ~Today, I am...

...this exquisite fork!

I was produced in 1902 as a serving fork for high class. I am made of silver with beautiful delicate decorations. I belong to artistic period of Art Nouveau (meaning "New Art"), which is a modern french style in its finest during 1890 and 1910. Art Nouveau "was inspired by natural forms and structures, not only in flowers and plants, but also in curved lines." It was found in all forms, such as furniture, buildings, accessories, perfume bottles, dresses and so on. Periodically, it is very close or even overlaps with another interesting, but a bit more graphical style, Art Deco. We will be seing a lot of these two styles on this page!

here are some other forks in Art Nouveau style:

interesing FORK FACTS:

* it is against the law to eat chicken with a fork in Georgia, the "Chicken Capital of the World"
* in the 11th century the Christian Church was opposed to the use of forks; when a Byzantine princess who used a 2 tined gold fork died from the plague, her death was called "a just punishment from God"
* forks were initially used for the carving of meat
* the fork was very important in Germany because they believed eating with your fingers was very rude and disrespectful