spring walk in Paris

Please pardon a mother's indulgence,  but if you fancy taking

a little stroll around Paris today, enjoying the Spring sunshine, 

then pop over to my daughter's blog - she 

is starting a series of posts all about life in the capital

before and afters in our guest cottage

You may remember that a while back I asked your opinion on window treatment for the eaves bedroom in our guest cottage.  I thought you might like to see progress so far.

I worked out a simple method of fixing a crown for draped curtains behind the bed head.  I have been experimenting with linen drapes, lined with antique embroidered voile.  This is a good start, but at 28" each,  the drapes are nowhere near wide enough.  I'll be needing at least twice that width to give a proper fullness.

Here is the before shot!

There has been good progress redecorating the kitchen as well, calming down colours and freshening up.  It doesn't always need a total makeover to make a room feel welcoming.

and the before shot, not sure how I stuck with these colours for so long!

There'll be more to come, next stop will be the sitting room.
  I'm currently upholstering this baby!

watch this space ...

le school exchange and le homesickness!

As I waved goodbye to my youngest yesterday and watched him set off on a school trip to Spain, I was suddenly hit in the middle of the stomach by the memory of what homesickness used to feel like at that age.  Don't get me wrong, my boy wasn't sad, in fact I've never seen any of my gang feeling homesick.  So I wondered is this a generation thing?  Is this new generation tougher, more resilient?  Are they simply more eager than we were to spread their wings and fly?

Here it seems to be school exchange season, and there are groups of foreign school students wandering around our little town like flocks of exotic birds, babbling in far away birdsong.  

Over the years we have taken part in our fair share of school exchange trips and, like most people have had good and not so good experiences.  From the wonderful, smiling, eager to learn, happy to help young boy, to the sullen, silent, refuse to eat anything, won't join in teenage girl.

When I went on my first exchange trip to France, aged about 12, I was - as I mentioned  -dreadfully homesick.  The family were charming and they did everything they could to make me feel at home, but the maman perturbed me by listening in on my phone calls home.  All I wanted to say to my parents was "I'm so unhappy, I want to come home", but  with this lady holding another receiver and following every word I spoke, I had to put on a brave face!

How about you, in your part of the world, were there school trips abroad, did you learn foreign languages?  I'd love to hear your story.

daring flowers at the george v

I like to think that I dare to be different with flowers here, I don't mind oversized, I don't mind monochrome, but when I look at what Jeff Leatham, star florist and florist to the stars,  gets up to at the George V in Paris, I can only stare and wonder.  I think I'd stay there just for his arrangements!  Sometimes he even  arranges the blooms upside down! 

Do you see how there are whole bunches of roses and - maybe - carnations balanced  at a precarious angle so they are almost falling out of the oversize vases - If I tried that, the whole thing would tip for sure, and I'd have water, flowers , the  lot all over the floor.

How luxurious this suite must feel with it's own topiary at the open window.

Love the very Parisian feel to the room.

Acid green viburnum and white arum - I need these flowers ... now!

More dangerous angles!

Their famous courtyard restaurant could hardly have a more 

sumptuous yet uncrowded feel to it.  A lesson in design.

I love that there are people with this much talent.

all photos borrowed from the George V , with thanks

daffodil Sunday

Wishing you all a sunny, 

relaxing, 

colourful, 

family and friend-filled 

spring Sunday!

one stylish French gal !

Last spring I showed you the restaurant of my friend Ingrid, good food, great décor, boundless energy.

Yesterday she revealed her new guest rooms and I am seriously tempted to pack a bag and drive the 10 miles to spend the night there, just for the pleasure of soaking up the great details in her beautiful rooms.

When I arrived at the restaurant she was on the phone and I was welcomed 

by a bucket of pink lilac, flown in from the South of France ... SIGH ...

While she chatted, I wandered around the dining rooms,

 I hadn't been in for a while, so there was lots of new stuff to 

drool over.

Besides the restaurant, and the guest rooms, she also sells fresh flowers.  In the

summer they are out in the courtyard, at this time of year she brings more indoors.

 She took me up to the top floor to see the new guest rooms.  She has 

completely renovated two  suites, one with an independent salon.

Inggrid is also a great 'chineur' or brocante hunter, and has used many of her treasures 

to decorate the rooms.   Be it framed engravings, or reupholstered antique sofas.

I love the way she has used old window panels to create dividing walls in the rooms.

Don't you love this bed linen - it's all French, stunning!

Since she opened, Ingrid's has been a good address for lunch, now I know

that she's also a good address when we run out of space here!

All photos taken by me at Fée Maison, Evreux

vignettes and moodboards chez moi

 

Playing around with colour in the house, testing ideas, 

not clever enough to use a real moodboard, I have to 

put the stuff together to see if it works

Curtains in my dining room and textures in the salon.

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