iStyles Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus Clip Case design of Illustration, Fractal art, Art, Cg artwork, Sky, Organism, Psychedelic art, Graphic design, Graphics, Octopus with black, gray, blue, green, red colors. Model SGS8PCC-FTDEEP.
Added From the Deep Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus Clip Case to your shopping cart.


text:
Magnolia was once known as Mink's Prairie (in the 1840s). The name was shortened to Mink in 1850, but it wasn't until 1885 when the town was granted a post office under the name of Mink.
By 1900, the population of the Montgomery County town had swollen to 25 people and two years later, with the arrival of the International-Great Northern Railroad, tiny Mink moved to the tracks, creating a new town.
The railroad wanted the town to be named Melton, which was too close (in spelling) to Milton, Texas. So to keep things simple, the town was named after the abundant Magnolia trees – and the new post office was so designated in 1903.
reprinted from Texas Escapes | photo by photomajik
Residents pronounce the name of the town, Tow, as if it rhymed with "cow," rather than "toe" as might be expected. Tow is...
Medina is an unincorporated community in Bandera County, Texas. It is part of the San Antonio Metropolitan Statistical Area. Medina is famous for its...
Fulton is a town in Aransas County. As of the 2010 census, this South Texas coastal fishing community had a population of 1,358. The town is named...
Located in Gillespie County, Fredericksburg was founded in 1846 and named after Prince Frederick of Prussia. Old-time German residents often referred...
New Braunfels is situated in Comal and Guadalupe counties. Braunfels means "brown rock" in German; the city is named for Braunfels, in...
Hempstead is in Waller County, Texas. The community, located at the junctions of U.S. Highway 290, Texas State Highway 6, and Texas State Highway...
East Texas • Trips • Videos
East Texas Road Trip with Mary and Mac
I had to get out of the city, and discover a bit of East Texas...
The Twisted Sisters aka The Three Sisters

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Sterling Silver 17x23.6mm 19 gauge Large Flower Earwire, 15.1mm Hibiscus with 2mm Open Ring ID. Order 2pcs to get one pair of earrings.
I was surprised how pretty these are in person and by the size. Once I made the finished product with them I was very pleased. They are big but I find them to be a real statement piece. I don't use them often but with special items.
The pictures online of this ear wire don't even begin to compare to show how pretty this ear wire is in real life. The flower is large so it may not be suitable for all. It will be the focus of any earring made. The only thing I would change about this ear wire is to make the leg of the actual ear wire just a bit longer.


THE METROPOLITAN Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has recommended to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) the narrowing down of lane width along EDSA to give way to an additional one as part of its traffic solution scheme.
"There was already a discussion with DPWH… The existing lanes will be narrowed to accommodate one more lane. So probably next year, if there will be a program and be included in the budget of DPWH," EDSA Special Traffic and Transport Zone chief Edison Nebrija, speaking in mixed English and Filipino, said in a phone interview with BusinessWorld on Thursday, Dec. 27.
Highway lane width around the world vary from 2.5 meters to 3.7 meters. According to a study by World Resources Institute in 2016, cities with travel lane widths from 2.8 to 3.25 meters have the lowest crash fatality rates per 100,000 residents.
The MMDA official said the additional lane is eyed to be for private motor vehicles only.


text:
Plant a Tree for Leilani
Leilani M (Booska) Norman
September 9, 1941 ~ January 12, 2022 (age 80)
Monson-Leilani May Norman, 80, beloved wife of 62 years of Harold Richard Norman passed away on January 12, 2022. Leilani was born September 9, 1941 in Montague, MA to the late Alfred F. Booska and Mary L. (Sawyer) Keller. It is hard to summarize a life well lived in a few paragraphs. Leilani and the love of her life, Harold, were married in 1959 and the adventure began. She started knitting at the age of 6 and never stopped. You could always tell that she was feeling good when you saw her knitting, or doing any of her other crochet, needlework, or sewing projects. She always had multiple projects going and often was making things for family or charity projects, including the military.
Leilani was an avid enthusiast of life, and a lifelong learner. She always wanted to be better at whatever she was doing, and was a great example that a woman could do anything that she set her mind to. This made her a powerful role model to her children and grandchildren and made them all strive to be better and make her proud.
Leilani and Harold built a house in Montgomery, Ma, started a family, and moved to Monson, Ma in 1969. After Harold took a lapidary course, he taught her, and she went from there to become an experienced stone cutter, gemstone faceter, silversmith, goldsmith, and lost wax caster. They formed the Aloha Rock Shop aka/ Aloha Gems and Minerals. They were members of the CT Valley Mineral Club, and collected and sold at gem and mineral shows for many years. Following back surgery, that limited her mobility, her interests expanded to orchids. Harold had made the "mistake" of giving her a couple of orchids, and so started her obsession with growing them. They were members of the CT Orchid Society and joined the Amherst Orchid Society in 1987. The American Orchid Society was later joined and they traveled to attend conferences, meetings, and events connected to orchids. Their business became Aloha Enterprises, when they added orchids to their sales. They became exhibitors and vendors at the Amherst Orchid Society Spring shows, winning many awards for their exceptional plants and having many returning customers, this continued until Feb. of 2020, which was their final show. They were vendors at the Brimfield Farmers Market in the summers and had added perennials to their other offerings. She always asked people who purchased her plants to call her if they had questions or if their plant did not thrive, as she wanted to make sure that they were successful at their growing. She always felt that you could never have too much education and strived to learn something new every day.
She leaves her loving and devoted husband of 62 years, Harold R. Norman; their children; Tracy A. Norman and her husband Edward Shearer of Northfield, MA, Richard F. Norman and his wife Rosa of Goldsboro, NC, and Renee M. Lagacy and her husband John of Tehachapi, CA; a brother Steven Booska and his wife Amanda of CA; a sister Betty Moore and her husband Larry of CA; twelve grandchildren and three great grandchildren.
Leilani had always requested that she receive flowers when she was alive, and not after she had passed. She wanted to be able to enjoy them. Please honor her wishes. In her memory, in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Shriners Hospitals for Children, 516 Carew St. Springfield, MA 01104.
All services are private.
To send sympathy gifts to the family or plant a tree in memory of Leilani M (Booska) Norman, please visit our tribute store.
Services are to be announced


text:
Family from Holland
Originally from Spain
"...[they] settled in Amsterdam after the expulsion."
"As far as I can tell from the genealogy records, [my mother's] family came from Holland in the mid-1850s and settled in the central London area in the Jewish district. My [maternal] grandfather was a cigar maker and also worked with stained glass, so he was an artisan. He did spend time in the Merchant Marines during World War I, but the family name, Decker, is most likely Dutch, and it was, I believe, originally Dukker, d-u-k-k-e-r, until they spelled it the English way.
I don't have any direct evidence, but from what my grandmother shared from her knowledge, it's believed that they were originally from Spain and settled in Amsterdam after the expulsion in the late – excuse me—in the early 1490s."
Painting of an Ashkenazi Synagogue in Amsterdam ~ Source: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/history-of-jews-in-amsterdam ~ Date: 17th century
David Jacobi, "Family from Holland," Georgia Journeys, accessed January 29, 2022, https://georgiajourneys.kennesaw.edu/items/show/189.


Welcome to Castle Lock Self Storage! Castle Lock Self Storage is a locally owned and family operated storage facility offering the best accommodations for storage in Castle Rock. We have two new storage facilities conveniently located in the center of Castle Rock, CO which offer new and clean storage units at competitive rates. We are located directly across Interstate 25 from Douglas County High School right next to historic Scott Ranch. We offer a wide array of storage unit sizes as well as outdoor parking spaces for RVs, boats, and trailers. Our goal is to help our customers find the right storage unit to meet their needs and give our tenants the best self storage experience. We look forward to serving you.
Great storage facility, easy to use, good customer service and the best part for me is that they keep the place very clean.
This place is great! Nice fellow up front and great access!
I concur with other's that said the staff is great. Place is clean and easy access.
Kyle and Mike are very easy to work with and great at communicating with their customers.
We were so impressed by Castle Lock Self Storage. The staff was very friendly and the facility was secure and extremely clean. Everything was in like-new condition, aisles were always clear, and it was easy to enter/exit. Such a pleasant experience! We will definitely use them again for any future storage needs. Highly recommended!
I can't tell you how wonderful the staff is!!! They went out of the way to show me around. When my sister had trouble getting into the unit, they were very patient and helpful! The BEST experience!!!!
Awesome place. I went in workout an appointment and still was able to get everything I needed same day . I got to meet the openers and their dad-super nice, funny family.
Great location in Castle Rock and the price is fair. We sleep better at night knowing that my personal and household items are in a secured and clean storage facility. The staff are very friendly and very helpful. I give them five stars, keep up the good work.
Excellent new facility that is family-owned and operated. Service-oriented and super nice.


text:
Sixth Annual PBS Online Film Festival
Posted on: Monday, July 10, 2017
The Festival Returns to All PBS Digital Platforms July 17 – July 28
PBS announced that the Webby Award-nominated PBS Online Film Festival will return for a sixth year July 17 – July 28, 2017, featuring 25 short-form independent films from POV and a broad spectrum of public media stations and partners. The PBS Online Film Festival is part of a multi-platform initiative to increase the reach and visibility of independent film on PBS and its member stations, and to promote unique, diverse content on the web. The PBS Online Film Festival showcases powerful and engaging stories from filmmakers across the country. The festival has become a popular annual online event, attracting more than 4.5 million views since the first festival in 2012.
Beginning July 17, the Festival will be available via PBS and station digital platforms including PBS.org, YouTube and PBS social media channels. The films will also be available via the PBS app on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku and FireTV devices.
This year's lineup features films from the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM), Latino Public Broadcasting (LPB), National Black Programming Consortium, Pacific Islanders in Communications (PIC), POV, and Vision Maker Media, as well as PBS local member stations including Alaska Public Media, South Dakota Public Broadcasting, South Florida PBS, WHRO, ITVS, Detroit Public TV WTVS, KTTZ Texas PBS, WPT Wisconsin, KLRU-TV Austin PBS, KQED (San Francisco), Louisiana Public Broadcasting, Twin Cities Public Television, and Vermont PBS. Promotional partners for the PBS Online Film Festival include Independent Lens and World Channel.
Viewers are encouraged to vote for their favorite film to win the "Most Popular" award. And, for the first time ever, a distinguished panel of eight jury members will select their favorite film of the festival for the "Juried Prize". For updates on the festival, follow #PBSFilmFest on Twitter.
"PBS and its member stations are thrilled to kick off another year of excellent independent films," said Ira Rubenstein, Chief Digital and Marketing Officer, PBS. "The PBS Online Film Festival provides PBS and its member stations the opportunity to provide a diverse group of independent filmmakers a chance to share their stories with a highly engaged audience. This year brings another impressive lineup of powerful and moving films that will transform perspectives and encourage important conversations."
Short films featured in the PBS Online Film Festival include:
Digging deep into family history for answers to questions about his identity, Cyrus finds some things might be better off left in the past.
Detroit Public TV WTVS
A woman gets a new lease on life when she meets someone less fortunate.
ITVS
"Guns on Campus"
Fifty years after the first recorded mass shooting in U.S. history took place at the University of Texas in Austin, a new "campus carry" law allows people to carry concealed handguns on all public university campuses in Texas.
KLRU
"The Secession"
A story about two Texas boys, a secession, and egg rolls.
"U R a Dial Tone"
A sign language interpreter is emotionally and physically sucked into her clients' lives.
KTTZ
A girl receives a mysterious gift that will unravel secrets from the past.
Latino Public Broadcasting
"Amigas with Benefits"
Amigas with Benefits is a short dramedy about an elderly bride-to-be who nearly has her wedding day ruined by an uninvited guest.
Louisiana Public Broadcasting
On the verge of her mother's death, Addie returns home to shed light on her dark past.
Si, a temperamental six-year-old, gets a goldfish after begging for a puppy.
NALIP
In the course of a difficult day, Maria, a creative young girl, and her hardworking father must discover a way to mend love and memories while confronting loss.
NBPC
A short profile piece that showcases the charismatic and talented drummer Kojo Odu Roney. In this exclusive interview Kojo offers his thoughts on Jazz, being home-schooled, traveling and his biggest influence, his father Antoine Roney.
"You Can Go"
A high school administrator talks down a troubled student.
When a family crisis strikes, an ailing Polynesian matriarch must find the strength to lead her family one last time.
"Our Voices Are Rarely Heard"
A visceral snapshot of how inmates survive solitary confinement.
"A Thousand Midnights"
Chronicles the contemporary manifestation of the economic and social histories of Black Americans who came to the north during the Great Migration in search of economic opportunities. The implications of their migration, and the lack of economic opportunity they encountered, has far reaching consequences for Black America today.
South Dakota Public Broadcasting
"Black Hills Canyon Skating"
While the Black Hills of South Dakota may lack the elevation and snow that makes for skiing, they make up for it with ice-providing intrepid winter explorers with miles of canyon streams on which to ice skate.
South Florida PBS
"SunGhosts"
A mini-documentary about SunGhosts, an up and coming indie rock band from Miami.
Twin Cities PBS
"Rogue Taxidermy Artist Sarina Brewer"
From goats with fishtails to cats with wings, Sarina Brewer celebrates animals in her art.
"Syrian Photographer Osama Esid"
Photographer Osama Esid seeks connection from his American neighbors to Syrian Refugees.
"The Collinwood Fire"
A news reporter and a filmmaker turn a 1908 elementary school fire into a media sensation.
A prisoner acts out his guilt, anger, and fear through dance.
Vision Makers Media
Nikki Lowe's journey of being a mother, daughter, sister, and Native warrior.
WHRO
An African-American boy in Norfolk, VA in 1915 confronts racism in The Birth of a Nation.
An animated spoken-word piece that tells Steven Rodriguez's experiences of being an elder brother, son of a drug addicted mother and struggling but dedicated college student.
"Finding America: The Fresh Prince of Anacostia"
Kymone Freeman keeps his D.C. neighbors strong by helping them tell their stories.
PBS, with nearly 350 member stations, offers all Americans the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television and digital content. Each month, PBS reaches nearly 100 million people through television and nearly 28 million people online, inviting them to experience the worlds of science, history, nature and public affairs; to hear diverse viewpoints; and to take front row seats to world-class drama and performances. PBS' broad array of programs has been consistently honored by the industry's most coveted award competitions. Teachers of children from pre-K through 12th grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom lessons to life. Decades of research confirms that PBS' premier children's media service, PBS KIDS, helps children build critical literacy, math and social-emotional skills, enabling them to find success in school and life. Delivered through member stations, PBS KIDS offers high-quality educational content on TV – including a new 24/7 channel, online at pbskids.org, via an array of mobile apps and in communities across America. More information about PBS is available at www.pbs.org, one of the leading dot-org websites on the internet, or by following PBS on Twitter, Facebook or through our apps for mobile and connected devices. Specific program information and updates for press are available at pbs.org/pressroom or by following PBS Pressroom on Twitter.
Eighth Annual PBS Online Film Festival Showcases The "Power of Community" Seventh Annual PBS Online Film Festival College Town Film Festival Fosters Relationship Between Filmmakers, Students Film Festival To Showcase Developmental Disabilities


text:
Carla Grima
Founder of Carla Grima Atelier
Carla Grima specialises in the creation of prints, using an experimental practice of watercolours, photography and digital technology. She chooses to work with natural fabrics in the strong belief that there is unique beauty in natural imperfection. Her vision is threefold: exploration, the Mediterranean and the cosmic harmony of shapes.
She graduated in Fashion Innovation and Management from UCA Rochester, and spent a year in Paris, building her knowledge of textiles, fibres and cloth cutting through exposure to French couture techniques. After receiving an invitation to exhibit at London's Graduate Fashion Week, she went on to work for Marc Jacobs and gained further experience working for London based brand's; Aminaka Wilmont and Junky Styling, as well as collaborations with independent stylists and photographers. She then became a pattern cutter for Jonathan Saunders and a mentor for BA fashion design students at UCA.
Carla set up her own label in 2014 and maintains an international network of suppliers and collaborators. She has chosen to base her studio and her practice in Malta because there is nowhere else like it. An island of enchanting colour and light that serves as her primary inspiration.
Website and E-boutique: Carla Grima Atelier
Instagram: Carla Grima
Facebook: Carla Grima
Rossella E. Frigerio
Founder of One Blue Dot
With both Italian and Maltese heritage and a childhood spent living and travelling across the Far East, Rossella has been a third culture wild child since she first stepped on a plane at age four.
A graduate of University College of London and the London School of Economics, her inquisitive spirit has led her down diverse professional paths that have taken her everywhere from London to Bali and Milan, all whilst picking up languages as varied as French and Mandarin Chinese.
Formerly one of Dame Vivienne Westwood's legal advisors and co-founder of luxury niche accessory brand Sofia Capri, Rossella is currently based on the Mediterranean isle of Malta. A strong believer in positive, genuine collaboration, Rossella is also a member of the UWC Malta Committee and a world curator for creative platform Ballpitmag.
Website: One Blue Dot
Instagram: One Blue Dot
Established in 2014, A Collective is a Malta-based architecture studio founded by Steven Risiott and Patricia Grech. The duo crossed paths in 2012 with a common love for architecture, design and the Mediterranean. The collaboration was a natural consequence. With varying experiences both locally and internationally, Steve and Patty's approach to design and architecture compliments each other in a seamless manner.
The studio is growing into a collective group of creatives and passionate individuals with a love for design. The architectural team seeks to create spatial experiences moulded by fundamental architectural parameters such as space, proportions, light and materials through the disregard of stylistic materiality. The studio roots itself in contextual design, hoping to enrich the local architecture scene and enhance the quality of life of the end user. The approach is purely architectural, concerned with the infiltration of natural light and its resulting play of shadows, shaping spaces through an eclectic palette inspired by honesty, purity and nature.
Website: A Collective
Instagram: A Collective
Facebook: A Collective
Hangar challenges what a creative agency can do and be. It doesn't just promote brands — it works collaboratively with clients to improve brands, because the people at Hangar know from experience that the long-haul matters.
Hangar's vision has always been clear: it is an agency that focuses on quality rather than quantity. It is selective by design, right down to its name. A hangar is a place where engineers and designers meet to attain a high level of precision. It's a place where big things happen and ambitions are high; where it takes skill and craftsmanship to survive. That is Hangar.
Originally launched in 2012, the agency has grown to embrace an experienced and diverse team of Maltese and international talent that collaborates alongside both niche and global brands such as Lavazza, Onvoy and the Valletta Design Cluster.
Website: Hangar
Instagram: Hangar
Facebook: Hangar
Craig Macdonald & Andrew Farrugia
Co-Founders of Te fit-Tazza
Te fit-Tazza was founded in 2015 by Andrew Farrugia and Craig Macdonald, two bosom buddies with a penchant for design and all things beautiful.
The Maltese islands boast a wealth of identity, evident to the eye in how we act and we interact and, to an extent, how we present ourselves both socially and visually. It would be fair to state that this abundance of distinction may be rooted in a strong sense of tradition, pride and patriotism.
The studio began as a project aimed at showcasing Malta, her culture, her aesthetic and her beautiful landscape through minimalist illustrated prints. In 2018, Te fit-Tazza acquired the souvenir brand, Souvenirs That Don't Suck, with a store situated in Sliema. The aim is to further widen the spectrum of creative avenues that the studio can explore, whilst still celebrating the Maltese Islands and their beauty.
Websites: Te fit-Tazza and Souvenirs That Don't Suck
Instagram: Te fit-Tazza and Souvenirs That Don't Suck
Facebook: Te fit-Tazza and Souvenirs That Don't Suck
Natalie Rose Vella
Founder of Natalie R Vella
Natalie has been tutored at both the Academy of Freelance Makeup – one of the industries' most recognised fashion and bridal makeup academies in London and New York – as well as at The London Hair Academy for Professional Hair Styling.
What type of beauty does she pursue through her art? The effortless, raw and unrefined kind. Even dramatic looks under her makeup brushes will hold slightly natural and 'rough around the edges' qualities. For Natalie, natural can still mean bold and striking as ultimately, it's all about balance.
In 2012, Natalie relocated to London to launch her career, where she had the opportunity to work with the some of the most talented creatives and brands in the field, including London Fashion Week, NET-A-PORTER Magazine, Estée Lauder, ELLE, and Harper's Bazaar.
Natalie has recently returned to the sunny isles of Malta, where she is continuing to do what she loves through collaborations with key brands and spreading her grounded, genuine and balanced beauty aesthetic through her Instagram and YouTube channels.
Read Natalie's interview as part of MCC*'s Creativity Chronicles series headed by collective member Lorinda Mamo here.
Website: Natalie Rose Vella
Instagram: Natalie Rose Vella
Facebook: Natalie Rose Vella
YouTube: Natalie Rose Vella
Inigo Taylor
Founder at Inigo Taylor Photography
Inigo is an English photographer based in Malta who has been working on a long-term social documentary project on Malta since 2007. This continuing body of work looks at contemporary Malta and Maltese identity through colour photographs that have until now been an initial survey into Maltese society. As the project evolves, new approaches are being utilised to take the project further and look closer at the changing social landscape of the country.
Inigo graduated in 2010 from the University of Lincoln with a BA in Photographic Studies. He has photographed in countries around the world, but Malta is still his favourite subject. His main influences are British social documentary photographers including Chris Killip, Martin Parr and Paul Graham, whose unique approaches have helped guide his exploration of Malta. He is currently looking to show his work so far in an exhibition.
Website: Inigo Taylor
Instagram: Inigo Taylor
Faceboook: Inigo Taylor
Gulja Holland
Ġulja Holland is a local contemporary artist notable for her psychologically-charged paintings. Her work drives through experimental styles that push through conventional aesthetic boundaries and which are themed around self-identification and socio-political issues.
In her recent portraiture series, photography and paint are combined to create what the artist refers to as 'photo-paintings'. In fusing together a realist and abstract style, the artist seeks to represent the identity as a tangible extension of one's outward appearance. Here, the influences of Neo-Expressionism and Pop Art are most evident in her work; in her use of colour, gestural style as well as in the repetition of photographic imagery; radically altered in each work in order to convey an ever-shifting stream of consciousness within her subjects.
Following her graduation from Leeds College of Art with Honors, she has recently exhibited at several international shows, including the Paragon Europe Art Exhibition at the Press Club Brussels Europe, the London Free Range show and the International Art festival Chrom-art Exhibition, London. Holland currently lives in Malta where she continues to participate in both local and international exhibitions.
Website: Gulja Holland
Instagram: Gulja Holland
Facebook: Gulja Holland
Maria Shebets
Founder of Maria Shebets and My Maltese Kitchen
Travel, Photography and Cuisine
Maria Shebets was born in one of the most beautiful cities in the world – Saint Petersburg, Russia. After high school, she continued her studies at the Academy of Applied Arts in the field of antiques, after which she began dedicating time working in this very field of expertise.
Although she had always loved cooking, Maria began to realise that it was a deep-rooted passion during her numerous journeys across the world. She enjoyed tasting new ingredients, local dishes and learning how differing cultures influenced various cuisines.
It has been over seven years since Maria and her husband left their country and settled in Malta after traveling for a year in Europe. Maria had two children here whilst she continued her gastronomical journey exploring local culinary products and the Maltese food scene. This inspired her to launch a blog that is dedicated to food and life in Malta, in which she shares her recipes and local restaurant reviews with food-lovers both in Malta and beyond.
Over time, she has become even more interested in ways she could use what home-grown ingredients Malta has to offer for creating dishes she truly loves. Such dishes are not as heavy as the traditional ones but "contemporary Maltese" as Maria loves to call them. Her latest venture – My Maltese Kitchen – is a website and a book-in-the-making which aims to pay tribute to the local produce, explore the local food traditions and create new recipes.
Website: Maria Shebets
Instagram: Maria Shebets and My Maltese Kitchen
Facebook: Maria Shebets
Francesca Pace
Founder of Gaia and Nina
Ethical kidswear
Francesca Pace began her career in the Tourism Industry after graduating with a B.A. Hons in Geography in 2002. She explored a number of different roles and her creativity, coupled with her entrepreneurial flair, led her to head a very successful team as business development manager in the holiday ownership industry.
In 2012 she married fellow local entrepreneur Sharlon Pace; in 2013 she became a mother for the first time, to Gaia, and is now a mother of two with the arrival of Nina in 2015. She launched the blog Gaia and Nina in December 2015, and has since garnered an international following in the world of children's fashion with photos from her blog shared by numerous brands across the four corners of the globe. She then launched Flatlay Photography in November 2016, after noticing a lack of professional flatlay photography on the market.
In June 2018, Francesca launched her ethical label of childrenswear, Gaia and Nina, which draws inspiration from the Mediterranean.
Website and e-boutique: Gaia and Nina
Instagram: Gaia and Nina
Facebook: Gaia and Nina
Eliza Costabel
Creative Director at The Garden Studio
After an upbringing in North and East Africa, the Far East, Europe and the US, Eliza returned to her birth country of Malta 4 years ago and set up The Garden Studio in an effort to combine her love of nature and outdoor spaces, and her background in interior architecture.
A graduate in Interior Architectural Design from California State University, Eliza lived 15 years in Los Angeles starting her professional career in corporate interiors and later setting up her studio dedicated to smaller scale projects in residential and commercial design. This is when she discovered her passion for designing outdoor spaces as she delighted in the pleasure and speed (compared to architecture and interiors) it takes to create a beautiful green oasis
The last 7 years in Kenya further cemented her passion for nature and environmental consciousness and upon moving to Malta she saw the opportunity to set up a professional all-round design/build studio dedicated to outdoor and landscape design "the idea was not to merely plant anything green and place some outdoor furniture, but to come up with clever, innovative design solutions, styling and landscape designs to really maximise any outdoor or interior space".
Since its setup in 2015, The Garden Studio has been steadily growing its team of landscape designers, horticulturalists and builders as well as enlarging the scope of its projects and services to encompass the supply of plants and everything that is needed to create a professionally designed green space, from furniture to pots and everything in-between. Eliza and her team are regular contributors to the gardening section on local media and attend all the prominent landscaping seminars and tradeshows to keep abreast with the latest trends in the field.
Website: The Garden Studio
Instagram: The Garden Studio
Mark Pace
Founder of Saint Paul Valletta
Design & Hospitality
Mark holds a distinct eye for design that is at once both rooted in his Maltese heritage and immersed in visual elements influenced by Dutch form. A purveyor of authenticity, Mark's design vision looks to beautify through the natural and balanced. In this spirit and through Saint Paul, Mark brings to light Valletta's genuine, lesser-known soul to share with urban explorers from across the continents.
Recognised as a leading figure of the Maltese design scene, Mark's portfolio of work reflect a grounded spirit of harmony that bridges the contemporary with the authentic.
Website: Saint Paul Valletta
Instagram: Saint Paul Valletta
Robbie Mazzaro
Founder of RO Art Ceramics
Artistic Ceramics
Robbie was born in Venezuela – where she spent her childhood – and moved to Italy at the age of 18. Everywhere she went, she would take her with her her love for nature and for local artisanal crafts, seeking to develop these influences in her work later in life.
As a child, Robbie's mother would call her Ro, hence how the name Ro Art came to be. Robbie's passion for art started at a young age, and over the years, she has found it essential to keep her artistic passion alive. Following years working in the corporate sphere, a Ceramics Masterclass in Rome re-ignited her creative spirit, and it was then that everything clicked into place. She decided to leave her career and immerse herself solely in the world of ceramics, falling in love once again with the versatility of the clay and the entire creative process.
Robbie's inspirations are drawn from nature itself. She is fascinated by the complex and beautiful natural structures and textures found in plants, bark, seed pods, corals and shells. She loves the contrast between the rough texture, clay colour and the glossy shades of blue that speak of sea water on white sand and rocks.
Each of her pieces are hand-built with the technique of coiling or slabs in a range of different kinds of clay. Each coil is melded into the coil below, pinched, squeezed, moulded and scraped into shape. Robbie has exhibited her ceramics at trade events and contemporary ceramic and craft fairs throughout Europe, and since moving to Malta in 2014, the natural beauty of this Mediterranean island has been an additional source of inspiration for her work.
Website: RO Art Ceramics
Instagram: RO Art Ceramics
Facebook: RO Art Ceramics
Gioia Clavenzani & Ivano Ghinelli
Co-Founders of JAD Jewellery
Hailing from different work experiences – one as a psychologist and psychotherapist, the other as a stone setter and goldsmith – Gioia and Ivano first met in Città della Pieve, Italy. In the quiet countryside between Umbria and Tuscany, with a common love for jewelelry, design and contemporary art, they opened their first Italian studio in 2011: La Fonderia dell'Oro – a big, bright workshop with fittings made from old pallets, barrel hoops and paper.
In 2015, Gioia and Ivano moved to Malta. Today, these two countries' art and nature are infinite sources of inspiration. Art and design are their "fuel", whilst the sense of nature is also part of their jewels through their rough and dull surfaces and irregular edges.
Gioia and Ivano believe art and beauty have to be easy and present in people's lives; approachable and available for the ones who search for them. Working with their hands – with art, beauty and nature always on their minds – they seek to make their lives better and to try and give back through crafting beautiful jewellery, not common but easy to use, enjoy and wear.
Website: JAD Jewellery
Instagram: JAD Jewellery
Facebook: JAD Jewellery
The Authentic Brief
Founded by Rebecca Barbaro Sant, The Authentic Brief (tAB) is an innovative concept creative partner which offers clients a unique edge through its pragmatic and wholly authentic strategic processes, doing away with the more traditional approach to marketing and PR. A hands-on approach as well as the vital emotional connection with clients, is key to its success.
Effective communication has become quite a cliché, but is still the most valuable link for companies and brands to gain maximum exposure and generate sales. tAB communicates a client's particular story and gauges the needs of the audience to translate into a resonating response.
Website: The Authentic Brief
Instagram: The Authentic Brief
Facebook: The Authentic Brief
Julia Barker
Founder of Zen With Julia
Julia is Malta's first and only KonMari consultant in training.
A recent arrival from London, where she worked in the education sector, Julia was inspired to make decluttering and organisation her career after successfully completing the KonMari process in her own family home. A long-running love of good interior design and a deep interest in the sustainability of our home and creative spaces complemented this move perfectly.
When starting out in her career as a tidying consultant, Julia was inspired by the positive aesthetic changes that were sparked in her and her clients' personal spaces. As her practice has developed, she's found the most wonderful part of her work to be seeing the confidence of her clients increase after even one tidying lesson.
Julia's tidying lessons involve working first with clients on their vision for the ideal life, home and creative space. After using a welcoming ritual to open the space to being tidied, Julia then coaches her clients to hone their sense of personal style and joy as they work through each item in their space. Identifying creative ways to store and style possessions with her clients means that they quickly find increased mental and physical space to pursue their own creative interests more fully.
Read Julia's interview as part of MCC*'s Creativity Chronicles series headed by collective member Lorinda Mamo here.
Website: Zen With Julia
Instagram: Zen With Julia
Facebook: Zen With Julia
Sergio Muscat
Founder of Sergio Muscat and L'Orrse
Art, Photography and Fashion
Sergio Muscat's art is one that looks closely – that approaches, associates, combines and recombines. As inspiration for his works, he creates an ever growing digital photographic archive of the world he encounters (everyday objects, artworks, architecture, technology, nature). Sergio's archive bears testimony to the way he appropriates the world: His camera registers a subject, looks at it closely, distorts it, changes viewpoint or swirls around it. That work is then combined into his final artworks, which themselves are re-introduced into the archive as source for future work. He renders the result into both traditional fine art prints and everyday objects such as silk scarves and architectural elements, reminding us that the world is something every individual constructs from exposure, experience, memories and interests, as well as preconceptions, biases and worldviews.
Apart from, and in complement to his art, Sergio has also had an extensive career within the technology industry, which he has partly put aside to explore his own path, by founding L'Orrse, a fashion brand creating silk scarves and accessories, and recently also moving to Gozo to run Tan-Neputi Bed and Breakfast with his life partner Anna.
Website: Sergio Muscat and L'Orrse
Facebook: Tan Neputi
Olivia Levelt
Founder of Marquis De Vissac
In 2014, Olivia Levelt arrived on the island of Malta along with her partner, and opened a concept boutique in the capital city Valletta dedicated to selling quality, hand-made espadrilles. Over time, they have expanded their range of accessories to include the products of talented designers from Malta and across the world.
Olivia is a true lover of fashion that is all about quality and comfort.
Website: Marquis De Vissac
Instagram: Marquis De Vissac
Facebook: Marquis De Vissac
Youtube: Marquis De Vissac
Lorinda Mamo
Founder of A Bird With A French Fry
Co-Founder of Belle & Beau Handmade
Creative writer, Designer and Maker
Lorinda Mamo was born and brought up in Toronto, Canada. While her formal education was based in the sciences, her heart and passion was always in art and design. She taught herself graphic and web design over the years and in 2010 she took a leap and opened a creative advertising studio (Design Chronicle Studios) with her husband. Two years later she was pregnant with her son and when she found a lack of local mothers sharing their experiences, she started her blog A Bird with a French Fry to share her journey of pregnancy and things for kids. When she found out that there was a problem with her baby, her posts started to dwindle as it was a difficult time and nothing like she expected.
One day she took the plunge to continue sharing her story, despite it not being the ideal situation. The positive and encouraging feedback she received gave her the courage to continue writing. This was even more so when she was diagnosed with cancer when her son was 10 months old. Her writing was her therapy but the lack of creativity was still lacking in her life. While waiting for her son to have his kidney transplant in London she needed to occupy her mind and began designing and creating cute accessories, gifts and home decor for little ones within the brand of her blog. Returning happiness and joy back into the world from an otherwise scary time, helped her cope with the difficult times as well as bring creativity back into her life.
In 2018, she co-founded and launched Belle & Beau with her friend Emma Diacono. This collaboration has allowed Lorinda to design and create their own line of designer bows, bow ties and other fine accessories and apparel for children. Fueled by her design and sewing skills this has continued to fulfil her love of building her own children's brands.
Lorinda continues to design and create items for both brands, manages and writes for her blog, works on freelance design jobs while taking care of her medically complex son. She is inspired by all things happy and spreads positivity through her designs, creations and written word every day.
A Bird with a French Fry Blog and Shop: A Bird with a French Fry
Facebook: A Bird with a French Fry
Instagram: A Bird with a French Fry
Belle & Beau Handmade: Shop
Facebook: Belle & Beau Handmade
Instagram: Belle & Beau Handmade
Emma Fsadni
Illustration, Printing, and Painting
Emma Fsadni was born in Braine-l'Alleud, Belgium and educated in Australia, the Netherlands and Malta where she recently received her B.A. Honours in Fine Arts from the MCAST Institute for Creative Arts, (First Class).
As an adolescent, Fsadni was absorbed in all things materialistic, however, with age came awareness, recognizing the frivolousness that such a lifestyle brings. As a result, her work addresses contemporary ideas and conflicts concentrated around society's superficiality and constructed realities.
Developed from self-reflective experiences, which are then applied in a social context, she addresses contemporary observations and conflicts surrounding themes such as idealization, habits, and perception. Fsadni translates the complexity of her concepts through means of minimal aesthetics; condensing her ideas visually, while maintaining levels of intricacy in process. Fsadni tends to gravitate towards two-dimensional media, namely illustration, printing, and painting. She finds that such mediums allow a level of sensitivity in execution to be maintained. This element of sensitivity often goes beyond this aesthetic value and extends into her works' concepts.
Following her studies, Fsadni has already taken part in a selection of collective exhibitions. She is currently working towards materializing an ongoing series of illustrative editioned gilcée prints titled REPOSE.
Read Emma's interview as part of MCC*'s Creativity Chronicles series headed by collective member Lorinda Mamo here.
Website: Emma Fsadni
Instagram: Emma Fsadni


When you visit friends or go shopping in our villages it is often possible to take a much shorter route on foot then would be possible when driving, if you use the extensive network of public footpaths and snickets that provide short-cuts between streets.
See the map in the Civic Society newsletter for more information about these routes. Whilst we believe the snickets marked on this map are of long standing use by residents, we are not claiming a public right of way. Thank you to all the members who contributed their local knowledge to this project.


That is the question on everyone's mind about the upcoming weekend. Though we're dead smack in the middle of winter, there is no lack of festivities to keep you entertained. From group activities to hanging solo, there is an answer to that dreadful question leaving no excuses for your state of boredom.
3) If you are a busy body and lucky enough to have snow in your area, you can't go wrong with winter activities such as sledding, skiing, snowboarding, or snowmobiling. A favorite of is to pack the kids in the car and drive up to them hills, have a snow ball fight, drop down and make snow angels, and then build a huge snowman.
4) Last but not least; www.eventful.com is a great resource to find out what is happening in your area. The website lists concerts, performing arts, movies, family activities, great places to eat, and nightlife.
Next End the Cycle NOW!


Learn about the unique ecosystem that is the Long Island Pine Barrens during this guided hike at Quogue Wildlife Refuge. A walk in the beautiful Quogue Wildlife Refuge is a short course in Pine Barrens ecology. You'll see wetlands, creeks, ponds, tall lowland pitch pines, and dwarf pines. Tour is guided by naturalist and Pine Barrens Society board member, Tom Casey. Inclement weather cancels this hike, registrants will be notified by email. Cost is $5 for adults, $3 for children.


(Fundació CatDem) As matters currently stand and pending the discussion of some outstanding issues, the referendum for the independence of Scotland is likely to take place at some point in autumn 2014. This is, without a shadow of a doubt, a historic moment, not just for Scotland and the UK, but also for the European Union. A positive outcome would lead to a process of negotiation between the UK and the Scottish governments which, ultimately, would result in the first truly internal enlargement in the history of the European Union –not taking into account the reunification of Germany back in 1990-.
It is true that polls currently indicate that there is not a clear majority for independence in Scotland. However, it is also true that neither in 2007 nor in 2011 polls ever indicated the extension of the victories that the Scottish National Party (SNP) achieved in the respective Scottish Parliament elections. In light of the SNP's past results, we should not underestimate the Scots' capacity of medium / short-term reaction. This is more so if we take into account the long distance that the Scots have walked in just 13 years of self-government and we compare it against the distance that the Catalans have walked since the second restoration of the Catalan Generalitat, 35 years ago.
The movement for self determination is supported by Scottish Greens and Scottish Socialist Party in addition to the SNP. There is sufficient time for YesScotland campaign to gain a majority.


Are Pollen Allergies as a Kid Linked to Adult-Onset Food Allergies?
What Can I Do to Ensure the School Bus Ride is Safe for My Allergic Child?
How Do I Recognize an Allergic Reaction in a Baby?
How Do You Figure Out if a Rash is Actually a Sign of Food Allergy?
How do I Help a Young Child Understand and Tell About Food Allergies?
Why Does Eating Raw Fruit Cause an Allergic Reaction?