lunch with new friends

Had fun preparing lunch for Trinidad and Johan from Atelier de Cmpagne to arrive today, these boys have been on the road for a little while now, so I thought they needed some home cooking and vitamins.

I'm so glad the sun has come out too!

I'll let you know how it goes

OK  So here's the update,: it's official -  Trinidad and Johann are totally charming, and it was a delight to meet them and spend a couple of hours over lunch together.

What you are not going to believe is that I forgot to take any pictures of them here - no really!!!  I was so caught up chatting, questions flying back and forth, "and have you seen ...?";   "and do you know ...?"; and "don't you love it when ...?"  

Such a shame they couldn't stay for longer

Next time they come I shall definitely take pics, I promise!

café culture in Paris

With so many of my readers spending time in Paris this coming season, I thought you may like some  suggestions for places to sit and enjoy a coffee, a snack, a proper déjeuner, and  ... watch the Parisian world go by.

Here are some of my favourites, chosen for their position in the city, a good terrace, the amiability of the waiters (please don't hold me to that!) and for their all round Parisian-ness.

The Bistrot St Dominique, over 100 years old,  great position in the 7th arrondissement, traditional French cuisine, and just across the square

La Fontaine de Mars, specialising in the wonderful cuisine of South West France, great service too.  A must-do.

The super big, but so well positioned Café Nemours, place Colette, just behind the Louvre.  People watching has never been easier, pricey but chic and reliable.

The Café Guitry is tucked away under the arcades of the theatre Edouard VII in the 9th arrondissement.  A great terrace to sit at because there is no busy road with cars flying by, and if it is hot, then a place in the shade is quite delicious.

L'Absinthe   good food, good atmosphere, good address - what more could you ask for?!

Maybe you already know these addresses, let me know what you think too.

roses and tarnished silver

I'm a simple girl at heart.

I don't long for that much ....

a posy of perfect roses ...

a few lazy sage leaves ... 

an old and tarnished silver bowl ...

soft lighting on a window sill

a little pink, a little cream, a touch of yellow ....

doesn't sound like much to ask !

what do you think?  are you easy to please too?

a busy week ahead and a book review

Yeah I know, I could probably put up that same post title each Monday, but this week there is a special tingle in the air.

In amongst the excitement and bustle of the start to school holidays here, I hope this week to meet the team from Atelier de Campagne!   Trinidad, and Johan (hereafter known as 'the boys' ).  They are in  France on a mega summer buying tour, and it seems that their path will bring them close enough to stop off for a meal with us.

I am so looking forward to meeting the boys, and hearing more about their work and lifestyle.  I'm dying to know what amazing treasures they have found so far, and which I guess will be shipped back to California later in the summer or early fall. 

They are very excited at the moment to be named as the US distributor to a beautiful new book, available since April this year.  Vintage by Nina is written by Nina Hartmann, the well known Swedish interior stylist.

I am definitely after a copy, it looks quite wonderful, with beautiful styling and great ideas.  Knowing how to 'stage' a home and make it look this stunning and this comfortable is a true gift.

 If you would like a copy of the book, just drop the boys at Atelier de Campagne a mail, and they shall wave a magic wand!

 Nina Hartmann, the only person I know with more white tureens than me!!

On another note, thank you to everyone who has been asking for news of our horse Quick.   He is doing well in his stable, quite calm and well behaved and of course incredibly happy to see us when we stop by.  There will be follow-up x-rays in 10 days time, so we hope that the bone is mending well.

guess what! my loot shoot includes a ......!

Guess what I got today?   A bed!!  Did I need another bed?  No, absolutely not, but oh dear, I just love these old upholstered beds with the rounded ends and fancy trim.

SO over the next couple of weeks,  - in between welcoming our guests, weeding the garden, writing the blog and caring for Quick's fractured leg - I guess I shall have some fun renovating this baby.

Do you remember the last time I upholstered a French bed, I even took photos in the garden before setting it up in our guest cottage.

 I think I'll use similar colours and fabric on this bed, but maybe without the monogram, I'll have to hunt through my old sheets to see what would work best  ....  maybe I'll need your advice!

Anyway,  let me show you the other pieces I found this morning.

I simply adore these old jam pots, they are incredibly thick and heavy.  I use them for my jam as you can see from the jar of home made strawberry conserve in the photo.   These jars never had lids.  To seal them I use paraffin wax, then a simply cellophone cover.  The jam seems to go pretty fast in this house, so that system works fine for us!

A lot of blue-grey-turquoise this morning ... my eyes must have been especially tuned in to that colour.

I really love the books that I found, the creamy terrine, the blue grey footstool and the pretty transferware tureen.

Don't you love this sweet little shell soap dish, nicely chipped and ready to hang on a wall.

 I was really chuffed to find this tiny perpetual calendar, with its numbers and months on cards, ready to be slotted in and out of the box.

In fact I think I was pretty pleased with everything I bought today.  So I'll just ....

show you ...

 a few ...

more shots ....

and also tell you that I saw some of the prettiest houses this morning, I could have stopped the car twenty times or more .. but I didn't, so you just get to see this ivy-covered home outside of which I parked my car  at 5.45 am!

I hope you are enjoying a good weekend, don't hesitate to drop me a mail if you are interested in anything I bought this morning.

Thank you so much for stopping by to see what I had to show you today - you are the best!!



PS  For those of you wondering about the "upside down basket" in front of the old bed in the first picture, it is actually a very old mobile bee hive, used for temporary relocation of bees nests!!

dusk in my June garden

 Don't you just love that special light, you sometimes get on a summers evening?  

 Although the weather here continues to be moody, we have had a couple of lovely evenings here this week with the most incredible light at dusk.  Pretty hard to convey via photo, but I tried to capture the mood, and make the most of our climbing Bobbie James rose which is doing its best to steal the show!

The white border in front of the terrace is flowering well at the moment, and the climbing rose Félicité Perpétue at the gateway is blooming with its tiny, pink buds, and fragrant double rose heads.

And by the way, for those who ask, No!  I don't force Gibson to lie down centre stage whenever I take a picture, it's all his idea!  He sees the camera, and chooses a strategic spot to lie down facing me, it is really quite uncanny.   The boy's a natural ...

I wish you all a happy start to your weekend, thank you for reading me this week.