Paris is a dream…
I often think of Paris and how I missed an opportunity to go and
visit The City of Lights when I was an exchange student to Germany back as a young 19 year old and new to college
and to life…
Paris is still on my bucket list of places to visit with its
Arc de Triomphe, all the bridges leading over water into
the heart of the city, and let’s talk about the architectural
detailing and wrought iron railings on balconies!
🙂
So while I may never have been to Paris or to any city in France ~ a girl can dream… and create a home while waiting that has a little French charm in it instead.
😉
Bring in some lovely wicker and woven baskets and find
a long baguette basket or two at your local thriftshop
to give your kitchen some Parisian flair.
Here I’ve added this small square basket to hold our napkins
and it is often dressed up with various linens to make it
even prettier.
Beautiful soaps on display still in their wrapper-jackets
tucked in a lightly gilded Haviland Limoge dish will add a
friendly European touch dressing up
one’s powder room.
I also like to display gifts around my home as in these small
jars of bath salts.
When left open they add a lovely scent to the room
infusing a bit of roses to clean the air.
The one jar displaying Handmade with Love was created by
Laura Ingalls Gunn who writes the blog Decor to Adore.
Here is the link to her post about creating these
sweet rose scented bath salts.
And speaking of roses…
Go anywhere in France and rose gardens will be found!
This rose garden was one I visited last fall while out visiting
Biltmore Estate.
Truly a remarkable take on a garden worthy of King Louis XV and Versaille or Malmaison and filled with David Austin roses which
were breathtakingly beautiful in their cooler weather
October bloom.
A French style garden wouldn’t be complete without somewhere
comfortable to sit while admiring those roses so be sure
to bring in a pretty metal bench.
My inspiration were those benches seen in the movies
that fill the parks in Paris and in New York City’s
Central Garden.
Turning our attention back indoors
What speaks to me of Paris are caned back chairs and twinkling chandeliers with their brilliant pendants casting their sparkling rainbows on floors and walls.
Outdoor cafés have the cutest caned chairs dressed in haute couture
black and white weavings.
While we can’t always change out our furniture whenever
we feel the urge to do so
we can take what we have and give our chairs a makeover
with some paint and a fabric cover refresh.
Mirrors
The City of Lights also includes fantastic mirrors in every chateau or estate and this beauty {currently with our storage in California} came home with me from Northern to Southern California
for my birthday one year.
Pier mirrors which are fairly tall mirrors are very Parisian and
so de rigueur.
Gilded mirrors like this one at 4 1/2 feet tall really help bring
that French European feel to a room.
Plus they are quintessential to adding light to darker rooms
hallways and to areas that just need a bit more sparkle.
🙂
 |
| A tablesetting out of doors set for Valentine’s Day this past winter. |
Lighting
Chandeliers and table candelabras are truly something we
can all find inexpensively at our local thriftstores and add such French drama to our homes.
In our current home ~ our 41′ fifth wheel travel trailer
which I call our Prairie Home ~
we have hung up a chandelier as I needed some sparkle
and “pretty” where there was none before.
Just a little bling in any home whether small or grand definitely reminds one of Paris and its grand chateaus with their
spectacular lighting…
Furnishings
Although right now this lovely armoire is sitting in storage
it used to grace our upstairs hallway in our Big House.
With its large beveled mirror and carved “mermaid” along its bonnet top, an armoire is a perfect piece of furniture for holding large amounts of bed linens, quilts and the like.
In our next home it will either live in our master bedroom
and be used for holding clothing ~ as probably was its
original intention ~ or may hold a smaller television and
equipment inside and live in our future dining/living room.
Plus if the one you find is in rough shape and the marquetry
and veneers can’t be fixed ~ it’s an easy job to sand it
and paint it from top to bottom.
However a fabulous armoire is used, it is a magnificent
French addition to one’s home and equal to any task
beset before it.
Lastly to add a little Parisian-French flair to your rooms
bring in some Old World styled paintings.
This cutie was found while thriftshopping in England about
10 years ago and with its pheasant scene
and antiqued gilding
this little painting brings in more of that je ne sais quoi
that speaks to
our French-loving hearts.
Sharing with
Paris in July ~ Thyme for Tea
Wonderful/Wordless Wednesday ~ Oh, My Heartsie Girl!
Style Showcase ~ Shabbyfufu
Feathered Nest Friday
Sweet Inspiration
Thursday Favorite Things ~ Follow the Yellow Brick Home
Keep in Touch ~ Let’s Add Sprinkles
Friday at the Fire Station ~ A Fireman’s Wife
*An update ~ this post was featured at
Feathered Nest Friday ~ French Country Cottage
Thank you Courtney!
😀
How do you bring a bit of Paris home?
A bientôt,
