Casteleaux and Quincetree Archives {Dec 8th}

  • Damn, it looks so good!

  • alt text

    I did really good on my new years resolution right? Let's just pretend that it's still January and that I'm not a total failure....please I'm just a really really forgetful person and a little crazy, well more than a little but I'm super sorry! :joy:I love this little blog so much, its super inspiring and one of my favourite places on equus to visit and it kind of feels good that its only January and I have the whole year left, I can accomplish so much!! :grimacing: :sparkles:

    @Alexa-la-Coupe said in Casteleaux and Quincetree Archives {June 10th}:

    may the flowers remind us why the rain was so necessary

    { }

    I love LOVE this picture, it's so peaceful and speaks to me in so many ways and the mare is just so dreamy, I think I may have found another favourite horse although Morgana has still stolen my heart! :heartpulse: :sparkling_heart:

  • Replies!

    I'm awful and slow but you all knew this already. The next (real) post is in the works, and it's fairly long and content-heavy compared to my usual drop-a-picture-and-run method. :pray:

    @Kára-Evans + @Vera-Alvarez + @Lauren-Goldtree thank you!!

    @Annalena-Voigt a lot of time my color palettes are very happy accidents, but this one was intentional and i'm glad you noticed it! thank you for your continued support!! :tulip: :heartpulse:

    @Elizabeth-Hall first: I'VE BEEN MEANING TO COMMENT ON YOUR BLOG FOR AGES BUT I'M SLOW AND AWFUL. I'M VERY SORRY FOR THE DELAY. second: thank you so much! that's exactly what i was going for. am i a genius yet? :kissing_heart:

    @Jill-Hendricks thank you! i like to wonder how the photographer took this shot (and most of my other jumping shots, for that matter). i imagine them lying on the floor, waiting for The Moment to take the shot, and then scrambling to the next jump to lie on the floor to wait for the next Moment all over again. it's probably not very safe.

    @Ashton-Mills i repeat: i'm awful and slow! seriously though, thank you so much!!!

    @Rena-Cort nothing's stopping your pixels from doing the same :kissing_heart:

    @Maya-Lilly that was the comment i never imagined i'd get

    @Tasha-White said in Casteleaux and Quincetree Archives {June 10th}:


    I TOO AM VERY GLAD IT'S STILL JANUARY. i have twelve whole months left to comment on your blog! and also congrats on keeping your resolution. it takes strength :pensive: :pray: :sparkles:

    thank you so much, as always, though! :sparkling_heart: i know that everyone can definitely agree that you're a tremendous-fantabulous-spectacular-amazing inspiration, so your comments mean so much to me. :revolving_hearts: :relieved: :heartbeat: you should stay tuned for the next post, though. i know you've already seen it on tumblr but it's got a liver chestnut arabian whose name starts with an M and ends with an A. :grin:

  • Development Committee

    Okay so I am a month or 5 late but let's ignore that and let me give you this long ass comment that you'll only get once or twice a year. :imp: It's beginning now okay. Here's a little treat for you :strawberry:

    I. Lambretta AT
    asdhdfhggkafrikkinhell you crazy girl. The colours. The mood. The mane and tail. The freakin' pedigree for that mare. You're a lucky kid. I'm officially envious of you, of everything. :sparkles:

    II. Greenness
    Wow. I could barely say that word title thing out loud. Seems like someone is tired today :face_palm: Can I just say, I absolutely love the layout you have going on there? I just think it's so awesome to hear small details like weather and location, makes me cry it's so cute 😭 And Victoria is so cute, I love her face and her little flying hair details. Omg. How do you even think about all these little details, like weather, placement of those lovely tree bushes things and you even remembered stirrup leathers!! I can barely open my game, put on my reshade, pose a horse, take the picture and post the damn thing. I can never think of small details like that!! ugh. Your pictures are so well done and I just love all these little details you put into your posts and pictures. Over to Valentia: Holy wow. her coat is just stunning, she is a true beauty. I just love everything about her. And she just reminded me, you promised to make me a horse around Christmas time because I had too little horses back then :angel: you should definetly do a late christmas present for me now instead!! Don't go look for Valentia in my stable if she suddenly goes missing btw. :eyes:

    III. Travel
    this one is just truly the cherry on top :cherries: Have I ever told you about my passion for France and the language? I barely know some words, but I absolutely love France and the sound of their language. There's just something about this country that makes me want to pack my bags and just live there forever. I've always wanted to visit Paris but I think I'm one of the few that hasn't yet just because of my fear of flights. :airplane: Anyway, I just love how you put the eiffel tower in the background and the birds. I just love the atmosphere in this picture, the colours just give me this calm and safe, still romantic mood. How can you be so creative?! And Emmaline is so cute, is she french? She should meet my frenchie, Emeline, they'd be besties with those cute names!! :hugging:

    I've been screaming so much through these gorgeous pictures of yours and suddenly my eyes just fell out and my jaw is broken!! You broke me with all of this beauty...😭 I just love your editing and the mood in all of your pictures. They just.. always leave me speechless. It literally took me almost an hour to write this little thing because I had to find back my words no alexa, I was not building my new facilities while writing this. I really did spend a lot of time on this comment and only because I was speechless. Okay jokes. but really. I actually spent time on this and it DID make me speechless. Even when I was building at the same time. Anyway, I just love your style as I mentioned hundreds of times now. It's perfect. And I want to be as skilled as you! Can we please just switch skills?

    I'll stop writing now, otherwise this post will end up being enormous. Just know that I love everything okay :heart:

  • @Diana-Sæterbakken said in Casteleaux and Quincetree Archives {June 10th}:

    Here's a little treat for you :strawberry:

    :strawberry: :strawberry: :strawberry: :hugging:

    :sob: :sob: :sob: OK BUT YOU PUT SO MUCH THOUGHT INTO YOUR COMMENT AND IM DECEASED;;; :sparkling_heart: :heartpulse: :gift_heart: :revolving_hearts: :heartbeat:

    asdhdfhggkafrikkinhell you crazy girl.

    That being said, you're the crazy girl. It's the truth :kissing: :strawberry:

    I. She's adorable and I'm so lucky to have her :cry: I promise you'll see her around more once I can pull myself together! (Hopefully that's soon!)

    II. I'm tired everyday and it's no good :sleepy: I probably couldn't even say "greenness" if I were awake. But anyhow!!! Thank you!!!!!! The..... "details," as you call them, are my way of excusing myself from writing something proper and good, but I'm glad you like them. I also wrote one of them incorrectly but I hope nobody notices. (I'm too embarrassed to go back and change it, rather.) As for Lena, thank you!! Let's hope I pull myself together soon so that I can also do more things with her. ALSO YES I WILL MAKE YOU A HORSE I'M SLOW. Keep guilt-tripping me because it's working. :cowboy:

    III. You should definitely go sometime, it's beautiful!! Or maybe Emeline can visit Emmaline one day? We should do that.


    Anyway, you flatter me too much :cry: :heartpulse: I'm shaking in my boots over here; YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO BE THIS NICE TO ME. Not until 1. I finally comment on your new blog (!!) and 2. I finally find a way to not make every show jumping picture look the same, okay?

    I wish I could thank you properly but to be quite honest I'm busy screaming and you really were way too nice and I don't deserve you. My heart is full :pensive: :v: :heartbeat: You keep on building.

    (Also when are we actually going to switch skills like we keep saying we will)

  • quincetree

    early summer

    click me!

    Preface: In short, Quincetree kids take on Monterey!

    In long, here’s a project I’ve been working on for stupid long. It’s summer, and California summers are fun to complain about and fun period. It’s also been just over a year since Quincetree came into fruition (pun intended), and the characters behind it still don’t have very many appearances here. Which also means you probably won’t know who Adeline-Irene-Lene-Nora-Wren are. There's also a guy named Alexander Verway involved.

    Adeline - High schooler who’s leasing a mare named Milkshake. Plays the violin and likes frogs.

    Alexander - Rider from Courtour Estate ( @Rena-Cort ). What's he doing all the way out in SoCal? I don't know.

    Irene - High schooler and Lene’s sister. Does a ton of volunteer work, especially at other stables, and is super smart but jokes otherwise. Would give the world for her gray mare Peach.

    Lene - Irene’s older sister. Dropped out of college to work with horses. Rather capricious but adores her mare Morgana to pieces.

    Nora - High schooler who plays the flute in marching band and is Wren’s best friend. Was never entirely interested in sports, but was dragged into riding by Wren.

    Wren - Nora’s best friend. Plays the oboe in marching band. Super tall. Is focusing on music and studies rather than riding at the moment.

    Enjoy! (Also notice how all my jumping pictures look the same.) If you really read the whole thing I'll die. A comment would make my day ♡


    I. Preface, Contents, Introduction
    II. Shows
    III. Shore's End Working Hunter Trials
    IV. Design Seed Challenge: Creature Color
    V. Random Theme Challenge: Beach Vibes

    Students savored in the July sunshine at the height of summer. Summer meant waking up at 2 PM with a destroyed sleep schedule; wasting time to mindless scrolling; lying about, awash with boredom; stifling air; popsicles and fans to combat that; the inescapable buzz and hum of beetles; never changing out of pajamas; and an evening choir of cricket chirps.

    That was not summer for the students at Quincetree.

    Early July took Adeline, Irene, Nora, and Wren to Monterey Bay, a two hours’ drive from the hilly suburb where Quincetree nestled. Lene, being the only adult, was their designated chauffeur/driver/mother for the weekend. The boredom-laden teens tried to entertain themselves on the road by eating all the snacks they’d bought from Daiso that morning. They spared not a single Pocky. A tangy (almost headache-inducing) sugar scent floated from fruit candy wrappers and filled the car the whole way.

    In the passenger seat, Irene leaned on her window and absorbed herself in her earbuds. The fuzzy strip of gray and green outside buzzed by like an endless film reel and dizzied her. Collected on the floor where her feet rested, the crinkle of empty snack wrappers pierced the hum of freeway whenever she shifted in her seat. An exhausted Adeline napped much of the way, and found herself quietly embarrassed when she woke up with a seatbelt imprint on her cheek where leaned on it. In the back, Wren and Nora sat together, spilling tea and chittering among themselves.

    welcome to monterey


    you're doing great sweaty

    take a closer look: 1, 2, 3

    Self-explanatory show entries. Peach and Irene won 1st of their class in the Spring Jubilee Discipline Show. Mesmeric is trying too hard at Shore's End and Lady M is shown in the Regional Spring Showcase, both of which are being judged. :sparkles:

    shore's end

    click me!

    Shore up, shore down…
    Or something.

    The Leo in Adeline insisted her mare would compete in show hunting, despite—

    “Every hunter judge in the world will be offended.”
    “The judges will DQ her for looking like pink lemonade."
    "She won’t fit in with all the bays and chestnuts."


    Remarks about the mare’s strawberry roan overo coat echoed wherever she set hoof. Her overo, a wrapping of peeled paint, obscured a roan turtleneck and the rose-gold glaze that hid beneath it. Curious, glittering eyes and lanky Thoroughbred legs that tangled in themselves were the cherry on top. Heart-stealing aside (or were those lovestruck gazes offended glares?), the pair struggled in the ring. Adeline saw past that, though. She’d shore herself up for her pride’s sake, the way Leos do, and promise to place “next time.”

    Milkshake, the mare, belonged in a Barbie movie. She radiated sweetness and sparkles, and in some outlandish fantasy she saved the world with the power of love. In this life, though, she was still at sea.

    Adeline’s indifference to losing and Milkshake’s nonexistent rosette collection proved that they were at shoring up’s end. If not for sentimentality’s sake, Adeline needed a final hunter show to dispel whatever glimmer of hope she still saw in Milkshake’s hunting career.



    Palm shadows zig-zagged through the other horses’ coats and turned them into zebras. God knows what it turned Milkshake. The judges were verily offended.

    Pretty pink lemonade skies whipped the ever-pinker Milkshake into a tomato smoothie (ketchup?). The judges wanted to DQ her for it.

    Milkshake absolutely did not fit in with the bays and chestnuts.

    Shores don’t end with footprint-pocked sand, freckled with sea glass and seashells. They end with an awkward strawberry roan overo Thoroughbred mare named Milkshake.

    Creature Color
    Monterey Bay Aquarium.

    ft. Irene Kim & Adeline Ma

    i am a fish

    “Ad, look. This is you as a fish.”
    “It’s a clownfish.”

    Beach Vibes

    don't get lost

    Something always lured Wren and Nora to the sea.

    It’s why they opted out of spending their afternoon at the Monterey Bay Aquarium with Adeline and Irene. From there, McAbee Beach was only a five minutes’ walk. That strip of sand and stone, a rocky paradise of its own, yawned through tourists’ chatter in the shadows of Cannery Row’s restaurants and shops above. But Wren and Nora did not spend their afternoon at McAbee Beach, either. The teens elected to visit Lovers Point Beach for adventure’s sake, embarking on a trip five times as long and in the opposite direction of Cannery Row. Salt imbued the air, just subtly enough to revive memories of other beaches and salted airs. Sand crabs and sandcastles bloomed in Wren and Nora’s minds, which sparkled in the rose gold blush of nostalgia.

    A jetty divided the beach in half. The northmost half sat free from the towels and umbrellas that dotted the other half of the beach, which breathed children’s laughter and sand castles. In the midsummer stillness, the air smelled of warm salt and dusty sand. The sea was an azure mirror that glittered beyond the shore and swallowed the sky. Wren and Nora could feel a bit of brine on their tongues and in the back of their throats as they breathed, and the ocean from which it came murmured as its waves kissed the sand and retreated. The rhythm of life and laughter slowed to match the tumble of the sea, but that never stopped the seagulls from their shenanigans.

    No blanket, no lunch (thus no seagull shenanigans); Wren and Nora sat on the bare sand. The regret of unpreparedness sank into them with every grain of sand that clung to their sunscreened legs but they drowned it out. They lamented over band camp and trivial things and chattered in the sun’s warmth. Their eyes glittered with mirth as the ocean did in the high afternoon sun.

    Waves washed the sand and the rest of the afternoon away as the tide rolled in closer, threatening the girls’ toes. Sunburn tinged their shoulders pink, seaspray salted their lips, laughter filled their bellies. Clouds’ long shadows stretched on their sandy canvas below as the sky turned to copper, like the inside of a seashell, and the sun was a ripe lemon over the horizon. Seagulls still squeaked in the sky. Adeline and Irene finished their escapades at the aquarium and too journeyed to Lovers Point, but the beach belonged to Wren and Nora.


  • Emm... hmm... I'm dead.
    Literally I'm trying to collect myself from pieces as your stunning pictures, stories and general creativity hit me like a bullet right in my heart. Everything here is so stunning, Alexa!! :)

  • These pictures are absolutely gorgeous I truly adore the vibe of the aquarium and beach pic the lighting is just on point! :smile:

  • I love the pics of Wren and Nora! Your sims are very beautiful :sparkles: your blog updates are so long and deep that I never feel I can write a worthy comment but it sounds like they had a really awesome time at the beach :D also the aquarium photo is magical :sparkling_heart:

  • Competition Committee

    a. Have I not seen that EC entry? Irene and Caprice are really slaying the game out there. Just look at all that beautiful hair. It's really the highlight of the entry. Meric looks soooo good in your game, it's really not even funny. And Morgana, oh my god, Alexa. As I said, all the hair is really the highlight of your entries.
    b. Those aquarium vibes, I'm screaming, oh my god. It's such the perfect combo of noise and blue tint that I really don't know what to do with myself. i've been staring for too long, okay? Plus, the offset and colour palette is just so nice, I cannot.
    c. An entire map? Alexa, you're really outdoing yourself here. Ad being such a teenager with the whole 'I was here' thing is soo cute. Don't lie to me about which beach Wren and Nora were really at, we all know the truth.

    nevermind, i just read further

    You already know my stance on this entire thing so I won't bore everyone else with my screaming.

    your creativity never ceases to amaze me. and, I'm glad xander and meric haven't died in your care, yet.

  • Replies

    @Constantine-Vale :sob: :sob: :sob: It should be illegal to make my heart melt like that!!!! I thought I was dead after posting that but now I'm dead-dead because of you. :cry: :two_hearts: Thank you so much!!

    @Luna-Smit Thank you! The aquarium and beach pictures were actually the ones I was least looking forward to taking, oops. Fortunately they turned out ok, though, and I'm glad you like them! :heartbeat:

    @Kira-Kita said in Casteleaux and Quincetree Archives {July 30th}:

    your blog updates are so long and deep

    I wish they were :cry: This one just happened to be a messy compilation of July shenanigans, so long :white_check_mark:, deep :negative_squared_cross_mark:

    As far as comment-writing goes, we're really in the same boat :weary: There's too much talent around here and I'm too incoherent. :anger: (Yes, your blog is very much on my to-comment-later list.) Thank you so much for your kind words!! :sparkling_heart:

    @Rena-Cort :rolling_eyes: :sparkling_heart: :sparkling_heart:
    a. Obnoxiously-wavy hair is fun to draw, even when it doesn't make sense. I'm glad you liked these entries!!

    b. The noise is to cover up the lazy cropping and the blue tint is to avoid proper color correcting. I don't know what I'm doing with myself. I'm also glad you like the offset because!! I almost entered this and I realized last-minute that wait. Adeline looks weird and I should crop out basically everything and then give the girls separate pictures. :fish:

    c. When I said "take a closer look" I wasn't expecting anyone to actually take a closer look. You get a gold star for that but don't do it next time because it's probably bad for your health. :stars:

    Real talk, excuse all the sarcasm because I don't know how to accept such heartfelt comments :cry: You make me feel :sparkling_heart: :sparkling_heart: :sparkling_heart: and that's not good!!!

    If I hear another nice word from you then Xander and Meric are gonna pay

  • I am.......................very behind.....................and also very scared.....................................

    Hello it's me the rash you can't get rid of.


    Guess we gotta start from the beginning :pensive:

    1. January Jamboree II/V: Ok I know I'm supposed to be looking at the gorls but your cluttering/decorating skills are just too much for my pea brain :sob: I literally don't have anywhere near the level of patience you have when it comes to these things and it just looks so lived in

    2. January Jamboree III/V: For the longest time THIS was my favorite piece of writing EVER. I don't know why but I really just wanted to cry thinking about the starlets?? This post made ME feel like the starlet. Maybe we're all starlets in this WWE wrestling ring that we call home, fighting for a piece of humble success in our wack ass UC system trying to get jobs. (That got way too real sorry I'm just a crying wannabe starlet!) Also have you read The Santa Ana by Joan Didion? Because I VERY MUCH thought of it when I read this post. I remember reading it and the mention of danger just struck me because of how uncomfortable that piece made me :eye: :lips: :eye:

    3. January Jamboree IV/V: A SEPIA CHESTNUT COAT. That's literally the most perfect way to describe anything ever. I've loved loved loved her adorably muted chestnut coat for so long it's so soft and perfect for the most soft and perfect and affectionate horse. :kiss:

    4. Peregrination: Ah yes my two favorite things. Trees. And California. How to inhale. Your game is literally SUCH a treat to look out but my favorite thing to see in your game is always the foliage. It always looks so so so real and I feel like I'm able to get away on a road trip up and down Cali just by looking at your pictures and this one is no exception. :leaves: (ps Really is REALLY quite cute :sob: )

    5. Victoria Winter: I hate reading this because I relate SO HARD. You write your characters so realistically I really feel like I'm getting to know them all on such a personal level, like I've known them for so long or like that one cool classmate you've known for so long but were always too shy to talk to.

    6. Mirror, Mirror: Mirror mirror on the wall who's the most creative of all?? ITS ALEXA THATS WHO. I'd been wanting to make an edit like this for so long and here it is 100000x better than I ever would have done. I love all the ripples in the water it's so ominous like there's something more in the water although what could be more terrifying than Sailleur the literal Kelpie. There's just so many things to look at in your edits, the clouds, the water, the grass, those little glowing orbs drifting about, I really always find myself coming back to find new things :sob:

    7. Lambretta AT: LAMBY LAMBY LAMBY. Did you ever watch Lamb Chop's Play Along as a kid? I didn't watch much of it but I just find myself thinking about the theme song every time I think of Lamby. A++++

    8. Greeness: Hello Valencia and Victoria! (and also hello to that alliteration!) Tell them Denn loves them very much :sob: (and the color green so she can be as green as she wants!)

    9. Travel: I actually have this one saved on my desktop. Not sure how it ended up there! But anyway, the BIRDS. (can you tell I love looking at the dumbest things instead of the ACTUAL focal point of posts) Every time I add birds in my edits I can never get them to look that organic and well actually bird looking! They look so natural, so cinematic. It's as if the moment Tia cleared that jump somewhere someone released a whole cage of birds to celebrate and its just :kiss:

    1. Quincetree kids take on Monterey:

    Oh boy. Remember when I said that January Jamboree III was my favorite piece of writing for the longest time? Well it's because you wrote THIS. The first time I read this whole thing I was struck. SMITTEN. IN LOVE. I LOVE your kids so much and all their little musical talents but at the same time I KNOW that I would be SO SO SO SHY around them if I ever met them at a festival. I can't believe I'm imagining festival scenarios where I'm scared of some imaginary kids but that's just how real they are to me!!! Despite that little fear I want to meet them so badly and learn more about them :sob: This post literally has me crying because I've never read anything so close to me on this level. It takes me back to the last 19 years of my life travelling up and down the California coast exploring every city in between. I haven't been up to Monterey in over 10 years but your writing and pictures really just brought everything back. I remember the sunset skies and driving through such history, beat up fortune teller shops on every corner, eating a BBQ chicken slider while watching the sun set in a dingy little KFC. THERE'S JUST TOO MANY THINGS TO LOOK AT IN THIS MASTERPIECE OF A POST. I love the cohesiveness between all the different events. Your entry with Milkshake has pink and sunset hues embedded into every bit of it but somehow without any redundancy in sight. (How did you do that??) It's such a romantic depiction of California that I've been chasing for years (probably an unhealthy chase since 90% of it is a dump!) I'm so in love with the aquarium shots. I literally remember nothing about the Monterey Bay aquarium aside from otters??? But yes I'm the clownfish. Can you tell I'm starting to not make sense the more I fawn over this. There's just something so homegrown and organic about everything you do and it's really just you and California in the purest form. I really can't wait to see what you have in store my SoCal NEIGHbor. See u from the other side of the fence :sunglasses: :call_me:

  • @Denn-Hanes

    Denn :sob: :heartpulse: The real rash I can’t get rid of is my n e e d to respond to your lovely comment (unstoppable force) despite my fear for writing an inadequate reply (immovable object) because let’s face it: I’m terrible at replies :clown_face:

    (I love u denn)

    (your words leave me speechless so please shut up!!!)

    1. This one leaves me actually speechless;; :cry: :sparkling_heart:

    2. Your emotional response to the writing bit on my take on Gold is making ME emotional and that’s not okay. And I can’t believe Joan Didion ghostwrote my post!?! Amazing. Also, this is a callout @ that fake portent of Santa Ana winds we got the other week. The yellow skies and the gusts of wind are cowards. :eye: :lips: :eye:

    3. These two make me

    4. speechless again so haha!!!!!!!!

    5. :flushed: That makes me so happy!!! I feel like I’ve written her too vaguely and mystically for anyone to be able to identify that yes, that’s her, but I guess it paid off. Also joke’s on you, Tori would love a new friend :hugging_face:

    I'd been wanting to make an edit like this for so long


    You should make one!!!! with um I don’t know Krom or Plouf or Moldy or M’lem or Trent or Hot Shot or maybe just do all of your horses?!?!?!? The possibilities are endless! I can only imagine how pretty a photo like that would look in your style, with the glowy back-lighting and wispy hair and perfect eyelashes. I’m swooning just imagining it :weary:


    FINALLY someone who isn’t falling for her fakeness like the other fools here. :triumph: +10 bonus points for seeing her true Kelpie form.

    1. I have not but since I had to listen to this now everyone else reading this does too.

    2. They love you back!!!!

    I'll pretend I didn't read......the first part.............................................

    (I think you need to clean your desktop!!)


    This part makes me SO HAPPY though :sob: I couldn't care less about the fact that most of your fascination is about the birds rather than Tia or whatever; I love how you always take the time to notice the little things because the little things are my favorite. Your attention to detail shows in your comments and your own posts; it makes me so happy :cry:

    1. I'm— :cry: :two_hearts: :cry: :heartbeat: :cry: :revolving_hearts: :cry: :sparkling_heart: :cry:


    MY HEART———

    (Can we please take our kids to a festival)

    (They're all dorks so there's nothing to be worried about, except for maybe Nora because she's actually talented)

    (but Wren's nice)

    The rest of your comment is so touching and my heart is soft.


    Also this??? You have a talent for describing such personal events and it really shows in your Orange County post (which I HATE because it's so good and I still haven't gotten over it after a month). Maybe the Kaine and Quincetree kids can meet up at a dingy little KFC for post-festival dinner and romp around town getting their fortunes told as the sun sets.


    It's true and I hate this!!!!!


    :heart: :heart_decoration: :heart_exclamation: :heartbeat: :heartpulse: :hearts: :two_hearts: :revolving_hearts: :sparkling_heart:

    Also I'll excuse the pun because the rest of this was so sweet and I'm deceased and I still need to convince you to move Kaine further south. :tangerine:

    Your comment-writing skills deserve a medal, you talented, funky little clownfish :medal:

  • Hello? Alexa?
    I'm about to comment. This is very overdue and might get out of control long. As well, it could get a bit unorganized, so.. Be prepared?
    Firstly, I want to express how completely and utterly in love I am with everything you post. You can trust that I am far from joking around about this. I honestly very much admire everything you post. There's something so indescribably beautiful and peaceful about your pictures. Everything is so, so... I don't know. I mean I can go and say, "The composition! The lighting! The editing!" But no, that's not enough, there's just so much love or something poured in, and it just radiates through the screen. (Are you a wizard? Ignore that, I'm trying to be serious. :confounded:) I have such a hard time transferring my feelings into words, so thank you for the challenge. I said this awhile ago, I think it was early this year? But your pictures really are like little classical paintings, with a bit of a modern twist...? See! This is when your pictures become indescribable. May I also comment on how beautifully you write. I'm always so mesmerized by your placement of words. They so effortlessly slide through my mind and deliver such effervescent visuals. For example, the way you wrote about Adeline and Milkshake was so poetic and simply beautiful!
    Please. Do not get me started on the entry of Verettia and Emmaline. This picture is easily one of my very favourites from all of equus. It's so unique. I've never seen a picture with such candied skies, with the elegant Eiffel tower, and a freely flying horse accompanied by her rider and a flock of beautiful birds. The two of them (Emmaline and Verettia) look so elegantly free.
    And now I'm onto the photograph of Valentia and Victoria. There's a few of your horses who I just adore with all my heart; Valentia, Wildfyre, and my dear Merlot. :wine_glass: Anyways, back to Valentia and Victoria. My gosh, this image is very purely class. I wish I had the talent to take such elegant and classy pictures, that's all I want! I'll have to work more on that! Is it a coincidence that Valentia was shown on page 115 and my birthday is 11/15? :star2::dizzy: :full_moon_with_face: (I'm offended that there's no shooting star!) I've noticed your stable, or one of them, is located in France. Do you speak any French? :flag_fr:
    Lambretta! Look at that pretty girl! Do I smell an rme pose(s)? :eyes: :pig_nose:
    Okay!! I have to tell you how much I loooovvveee the pictures you took of Irene and Adeline (Sorry, I'm sort of jumping all around your blog's pages haha). It was overwhelmingly hard to not write you to fill your slack with compliments when I saw these pictures. That one picture of the girl (who is it! I hate to refer to her as simply "the girl") in the stripped shirt leaning against a wall (is she leaning, I don't know) at the aquarium is so touching. Their's such an isolating feeling being translated. And oh boy the way you played with the blue and green hues. :dizzy_face:
    Gosh, I wish I could keep on writing but this as been a draft for too many days. I apologize for any grammatical errors you find! And thank you for sharing your beautiful pictures and horses with us. I also can't thank you enough for trusting me with your sweet pixel Merlot. :hugging: I'm sure I'll submit this and then instantly regret not adding this or that. But I'll try my hardest not to edit this any further. I look forward to whatever you have planned to share next. :heart: :revolving_hearts:
    Edit: I couldn’t help but add something!!! Although it’s ultra late. What @Ariadne-Waters said in the thread, “Bringing Legacies to Light” is 100000% accurate. I’m speechless, well done Ariadne :clap:
    You’ve somehow managed to sum up everything that is Alexa, and in such a beautifully written way. Am I wanting to cry???? Ummm excuse me? Please don’t make such bold assumptions!?

  • @Zinnia-Arvi Hello you!!!!!

    I still swear I will get to commenting on your blog. Your last post is adorable and it's obvious how much effort you put into everything; it's great. :heartpulse:


    That makes two of us :pensive:




    :cry: :cry: :cry:

    ((I really don't know how to accept such kind words but THANK YOU SO MUCH it means a lot to me!!!))

    (And the bit about word placement!! Wording is A Struggle for me and I'm so glad it just works for you when you read it.)


    That's adorable! Maybe that's the wizardry you mentioned earlier coming into play. :star2: (I too am offended that there's no actual shooting star.) And yes, Casteleaux is in France! I don't speak any French beyond c'est la vie and voilà, though. Enchantée if I'm feeling adventurous. :sweat_smile:

    AND YES THANK YOU FOR REMINDING ME. The poses you gave me are fantastic. I find it hard not to use your poses when it comes to show jumping; if there's jumping in the picture, chances are the pose is yours. Thank you so so so so so so much for them!! :revolving_hearts: :sparkling_heart: :two_hearts:


    This will be me commenting on your blog when the time comes :cowboy:

    The Leaning Girl In The Striped Shirt is actually Adeline herself! Deciding how to work with the colors for that challenge entry was fun (though building an aquarium set was not) :dolphin:

    For real: thank you so much Zinnia!!! I'm the one wanting to cry; you put so much love and care into your pixels and your blog and this wonderful comment. You have a way with words that's so heartwarming and my heart is thoroughly warmed now. Figuring out how to compliment the master of compliments will be a real challenge for me. :kissing:

    (And how dare you casually reference what Ariadne said like it's no big deal! I told you I am weak!!!!)

    :sparkling_heart: :two_hearts: :heartbeat: :revolving_hearts: :heartbeat: :heartpulse:


  • Catching Colors

    Ceaseless overturns from aestival green to gold copper turn the summer to autumn, leaf by leaf. Between these revolutions of color, there are the horses. They prick their ears as a nippy wind begins to bite, flick their tails as a careless leaf twirls by.

    But gold-leaved trees first need the gold of summer. Pivoine grew with the summer. No, she was the summer: fresh but not overripe. She sported a tousled mane, finicky ears, too much lank. Constellated birdcatcher spots ripped from the night sky dotted her coat like a wet paint brush had dripped them there. Under the cerulean sky’s gaze, her curious muzzle snuck into curiouser places. Those curiosities persisted through the evenings, when the sky ripened to strawberry and crickets chirped lullabies. The mare was old enough to know the fleeting nature of summers at Casteleaux, so she revelled in it all: the parrot-viridian greens, the long days, the rustling leaves. When the leaves tired of their own emerald glint and began to fall, Pivoine, too, tired of her restlessness. She allowed herself to catch her breath.

    Blink and it’s autumn.

    Now the trees catch colors of fire. (Meanwhile the staff are catching a cold.) The leaves that had set themselves aflame while the weather was still thick with summer were the first harbingers of autumn, but the cold and crunch crept into the clouds and air and burrowed there unnoticed. Summer ebbs to cinnamon. Sweeping tree branches hang low, their twisted fingers tickling the squelching mud from a stormy night.

    Still as lithe and puppylike as in his foal days, Cameo runs in the fields. The wind combs his tangled mane and plucks the leaves off trees. He’s the only horse that really seems to share Alexa’s partiality to autumn. (Maybe that’s why he’s her favorite.) Autumn to them is magic. There’s the brewing wonder that enchants the air and the sharp crackle of leaves underfoot. Clouds hide the sun yet everything still glows honey without it. Cheeks feel warm because the air is not. The fire flood of aurums and rouges spares nothing, but nothing gold can stay anyway.

    — ♡ —


    Pivoine CX (Honeybrook Peter Pan x Sailleur CX). Chestnut Selle Français mare.

    Cameo AT (WEC Cartier x Clair de Lune CX). Bay Hanoverian stallion.

    Before/afters if you’re curious: I. and II.

    And very warm thank yous to:

    @Eowyn-Vance for the adorable Cameo himself. I love him to bits!! (I’m also not sure if I’ve mentioned it before but his muzzle is perfectly sculpted and I’m still recovering from it.) :maple_leaf: :sparkling_heart: :fallen_leaf:

    @Therese-Lind for letting me use Honeybrook Peter Pan as Pivoine’s sire! :sparkles:

    @Zinnia-Arvi for not only Pivoine’s beautiful constellated birdcatcher spots but also the pose Cameo’s striking. I’m not sure how I lived without your poses before. :flushed: :coffee:

  • Alexaaa! This post is everything what I could expect if i asked about the discripton of autumn. You perfectly said about every changing detail and I'm sure that everyone walked into world of this little novel <3 Also these beauties on pictures, oh! I love your horses and edits so much, they are stunning and every thing plays great in one piece

  • Deep Inhale
    Ohh myyy
    First of all, enchantée Alexa. J'aime votre album.
    Enchantée is the best word. Someday I'd like to say it to a stranger I'm first meeting. Also, since we're both wanting to cry (It's Oct. 3rd and I still want to cry) should we just cry together?
    Second of all, thank you for finally posting something so I can admire your photos and reply (sort of) to what you said.
    Thirdly, you built an aquarium set?! I can barely build a barn. :dizzy_face:
    What Ariadne said was one of the mos accurate things I've read, I don't know how she does it, but she did, and she did a fantastic job!! I'm still speechless about it and it wasn't even for me, I cannot say anymore because... :sob:
    It's Merlot!! That fantastic boy. Do you understand how much I love this picture of him?!? Like the sheer fact you made the effort to write my name and put cute hearts around his head makes my heart melt. So thoughtful and sweet and all of the above. I send you a good old fashioned virtual hug. :hugging:
    Alright, so as I was writing what I just said above, it started raining outside, but the SUN WAS STILL OUT. So I went and found a rainbow!! And you bet your bottom dollar I took pictures of the colours, and of my two horses. One of which looks like she belong in your game, she has nice eyelashes, a long mane, and is a pretty grey. :rainbow: (OH. And this rainbow was above the barn. So there, the rainbows support this comment.)

    Now I'm back on track.

    Pivoine.. Oh how darling she is. Fresh but not overripe, perfect. She reminds me a bit of the my mare, Jane, who I just mentioned. She doesn't have birdcatcher spots, but she's fleabitten, covered in hundreds of stars. However, in Jane's case the stars and the sky would've switched shades. The light body (sky), with dark fleabitten marks (the stars). She also sports a tousled (long) mane, and too much lank. Although she's big, so this lank is hidden a bit more! The way you've described Pivoine is just so lovely. How you've put the words together makes me so content, it's like reading a soft poem with twirling fairy lights all around.
    "Summer ebbs to cinnamon," How dare you find a way to use words so well. Not to mention what follows. :revolving_hearts: I adore your twinkling writing. It flows so well with your pictures. Oh now I've stumbled to your description of Cameo. Tangled mane, yes that's Jane, in fact she has an intricate little twist, one which I have no idea how she got.. And plucks leaves off trees, yes that's Jane as well.
    I have to admit autumn is one of my favourite seasons too, as well as winter. There really is something beautifully whimsical about these seasons. :relieved: :heart:
    I'm happy you enjoy the poses, I very rarely use my own poses, so I'm happy to see someone using them. However, it's awfully strange seeing things I've made in someone's else's game. :heart: :hugging: :rainbow:

  • You got stop with having such aesthetically pleasing updates y'hear :triumph: actually don't do that, it'd be a huge shame, keep posting fantastic updates please & thank you.

    The writing, hollllly cow, that's wonderfully poetic, I'm always blown away by writers can present their story or concept in such an artistic and lyrical way. (I am not one of those writers, but when I see stuff like this I have a shred of enthusiasm that I could try it- but then I go nahh I'll just continue ogling at other people's writing.) Ach it's hard to express, but goodness I just love it to death.

    And of course, Pivoine and Cameo looks lovely as well! I love the grumpy little expression on Pivoine's lil face and her little tail flick, contrasting with Mr.Cameo running around his paddock <3

    and the way you end with that little "nothing gold can stay" absolutely love that. It ties the whole thing together, you really embraced the "spirit" of the poem if you will. as someone who thrives off that sort of vibe, I'm in love :sob:

  • Replies and stuff

    @Martha-Carter Thank you so much!!!! I was really struggling to get it all worded okay-ish (but what's new?). And I love your posts so much (the COLORS on your last post!! Blues is also very cute). :yellow_heart: :fallen_leaf: :yellow_heart: :sparkles: :yellow_heart:

    love for martha!!

    @Zinnia-Arvi You again!!!!!! You radiate so much big heart energy and I love it.

    I think I should clarify that I didn't actually "build" an "aquarium set;" rather, I threw together some junk to make the illusion of an aquarium. Don't be jealous. (And don't compare it to the actual iconic kelp forest exhibit at the Monterey Bay Aquarium because then you'll just laugh at my attempt :laughing: ) That's what sudden bursts of inspiration look like, apparently. The ends justify the means, or something, right...? :fish:

    And look!! You get another picture!! This time of Lena, resident weirdo. She's sending a virtual hug back!! :hugging: :heartbeat:

    The bit about the rainbow made me so happy :cry: :heartpulse: A sunshower, a rainbow, pretty colors, and your adorable horses?!?! That sounds so magical. One day I'll make a picture of one of my greys in a sunshower under a rainbow and you can bet your bottom dollar it's all because of you. :sparkles: I love hearing about your horses!! I also love how you seem to see that Jane in my posts; it's touching. (Is this the same mare that gets evergreen needles stuck in her mane in the winter? She sounds so sweet :cry: )

    Thank you for your lovely words, as usual. :sparkling_heart: I'm struggling with ways to thank you enough (also as usual), so I hope Lena and her virtual hug and hearts will suffice. :kissing_heart:

    love for zinnia!!

    @Marquis-Moulin I can't guarantee fantastic updates but I can try!!! (You stop being so kind, please and thank you)

    AHHHHH the one who's blown away is me. I'm happy you see so much in my mess of funky metaphors. And believe me, I admire writing like yours, too; first person writing?!?!?! in-character writing?!?!?! A STRUGGLE. You seem to nail it somehow. I don't get it!!

    Thank you so much :two_hearts: (Cheers!)

    love for mark!!

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