A Stroll through Aix-en-Provençe

When you take your trip to Provençe......
.....and I say when not if, because hopefully if you haven't traveled there yet, each of you will go some day to experience this beautiful part of France.............be sure to jot down on your itinerary, in bold letters, Visit Aix-en-Provençe.

This historic city is the region's most cosmopolitan with an international university founded by Louis II in 1409. A wave of prosperity transformed the city in the 17th century, when the ramparts, first raised by the Romans, were pulled down and the grand boulevard, the Cours Mirabeau was built. Lined with beautiful mansions, cafes, and planted with the renowned plane tree allée, the Cours also has many of Aix's exquisite fountains which were added in the 18th century.



Today, I invite you to leave the Cours and the hustle bustle of the market which was in full swing that morning, and take the same stroll around the medieval streets of the old town that I took last October. The early rain soon stopped, leaving the stones and statues washed and water colored. Provençe, known for the brilliant colors of the Mediterranean coast, the sunflower yellow, cobalt blue, rich reds etc. is also blessed with muted shades which I found so beautiful. Around each bend and corner of the cobbled streets, there were faces and beauty everywhere in this lovely place.

La Place de la Mairie ~ Astronomical Clock (1661) on which statues representing the four seasons appear in turn.

Au revoir Aix, your beauty truly shines. I hope to return again some day and I hope each of you will visit also.
All photos taken in October 2008.

"The Elephant in the Room"

Armoire..................that very French word that conjures up huge cupboards of wood with carvings, keys and tassels, created originally to store everything in the French home from clothes and linens, to kitchen utensils and everyday dishes. Do you have one, or a modern day version of one, used for a special purpose in your home?

I've seen some beauties both here and in France. The antique ones are gorgeous and gigantic, sometimes needing to be dismantled and moved through doorways and up staircases in sections before being put back together.

My personal armoire is not French or antique.
It's pine, handcrafted, and I like it enough to have kept it for 20 years. It was not built as an 'entertainment center' with pocket doors, but for clothing, linens or storage. In the top section I have a collection of hand painted Italian dishes and serving pieces, along with my gardening, bird watching and decorating books. Many years ago I wallpapered the interior with a lovely paper depicting luscious grape vines, very Italian. Lower section is smaller with more two doors behind which we 'hide' things such as a few bottles of B&B, Grand Marnier, port and sherry, my stash of English teas, a tin of Belgian chocolate biscuits, and of course more china and glassware. I don't know what I'd do without the 'elephant' in the living room. It's served me well, fitting it's bulky mass into a corner.


I've often thought about painting the armoire.
Elephants are grey, aren't they?
French grey perhaps.........I have lots of leftover paint from the dining room project.
However, perhaps after painting six chairs, this elephant will have to spend another year or so pine colored. Just a thought while I clean paint brushes and spread drop cloths, again!

Piling Up.........

While working on the dining room makeover for about three weeks, things have piled up! Not just laundry and dust......things like veggies and fruits. They were very fresh but now perhaps need to be made into soup!

In case you missed this one in a post last year, it's from my favorite British vegetarian cook book, Cranks Recipe Book.

Parsnip and Apple Soup

Butter ~ 2 Tbsp.
Med. Onion ~ 1
Med. Parsnips ~ 3
Med. Cooking Apple ~ 1
Vegetarian Stock ~ 2-1/4 cups
Parsley, chopped ~ 2 Tbsp.
Mixed Herbs ~ 1/2 tsp.
Milk ~ 2 cups
Heavy Cream ~ 1/4 cup
Salt/Pepper to taste

Chop vegetables. Melt butter in a large saucepan and saute vegetables and apple, stirring frequently, until onion is transparent. Add stock and herbs, bring to gentle boil and reduce heat. Cover and simmer 30 mins. Cool slightly, add milk. Blend in a blender (or better still use a stick blender in the saucepan - the best piece of kitchen equipment if you're a soup maker). Reheat to serving temperature, adjust seasonings to taste and stir in cream.

Break off a piece of warm, crusty baguette and enjoy!

Somehow I've ended up with piles of china now needing new homes ~ will have to put on my thinking cap here.

When painting a room everything gets 'put out of the way' and then never seems to go back. Oh well, these need rearranging anyway ~ sometimes all it takes is moving an item to a new place to see it with fresh eyes.

Wish I had time to sit and read, or just daydream for an hour ~ I just keep thinking of six chairs needing a paint job!

But I will take time for a coffee break before tackling the piles...and eventually those chairs!

Entertainment by Mother Nature

As we sat down to have our first lunch at the new table, loud twittering and fluttering of wings outside the window caught our attention. The arrival of a colorful flock of beautiful birds, perhaps fifty total, appeared in the tree and on the fountain in front of the porch. Luckily the camera was at hand and I shot these images through the window.

I knew this bird only from pictures I'd seen in my bird books, don't ever recall them in the garden here. They are Cedar Waxwings who always travel in flocks. They are apparently very well behaved, sharing seeds by sitting in rows on a tree branch and passing the seeds along the line to each other! They are truly gorgeous, sleek brown and grey with a yellow belly, black mask, and that amazing little bright yellow tip on their tail. They took turns drinking before flying away to the North on their return from their Southern Winter vacation.

Waiting their turn in the tree before flying to the fountain for a drink.

After all that excitement it was back to lunch. Just think, if we'd eaten in the kitchen we would have missed Nature's amazing beauty right outside our window.

I think we'll be eating in the dining room a lot more now ~ it's such a pleasant space and Nature's free entertainment is an extra bonus.

Dining Room Reveal......

A simple French country house seems to center around the kitchen/dining room. Often it's one comfortable, large space where family and friends congregate at a large table to celebrate and eat.

Remember, the French attitude to food is very important. The growing, preparing, eating of regional specialties, and the pride of presenting it to the table knowing it's fresh, locally grown whenever possible, and each dish is made with much love, is what defines the French more than anything else.

Getting good pics of the overall new look in the dining room is difficult ~ I basically have to stand by the front door to get this much in. This is taken early morning with sunshine pouring into the room which looks out onto the front porch, facing South. I love the new table! I'm pleased with the new look ~ of course the chairs have yet to be refinished so try to imagine them a soft grey ~ my next big paint job.........anyone interested in stopping by with a paintbrush is welcome!

I don't have a large kitchen and my dining room is separated from it by a wall......which I've often wished we could remove. The doorway to the right of the dresser leads into the kitchen. There's a small breakfast area and an island which gives me a nice worktop for food prep. but not a lot of room for the people who like to hang out when you're cooking!



The dresser make over no longer looks quite as casual ~ I removed the cup hooks and decided not to have all those cups/mugs hanging which was a typical English Country Living look. I'm displaying the white Mikasa French Country china, mixed with a few other much loved pieces and the tarnished silver.


I kept this mirror which I love, as well as my beautiful sconce....you just know that's my favorite piece ever, and found at fabulous SuzAnna's Antiques here in Raleigh, NC.


This French chipped frame floral tapestry, also from SuzAnna's, with such an unusual shaped mat, has subtle colors and is perfect on the very pale grey wall. Note I have nothing at the window other than the curtain pole and brackets. I'm thinking antique French linen sheets sewn into tab topped panels which are a typical French country window treatment. Just wish I'd stuffed the sheets into my bag when in Provence last October....but they were really heavy. Guess I may have to go back with an empty suitcase next time!


The sideboard is finished other than finding two large clear crystal door knobs - these are small temporary ones. The paint is powdery grey and I decided not to wax it like the dresser as it adds another texture. The top painted with the almost black Graphite color from the entry, was given the crackle treatment which actually ended up looking more like slate! For some reason the little cracks didn't appear as expected, instead this rather natural slate look appeared and I really like it. I waxed the top with clear Briwax to seal the paint finish.
Note ~ all images can be enlarged to see details if you click on them.


My old window frame with the colorful tulip prints has been given a neutral look. I added pages from an 1800's French book and think it looks great. These dried hydrangeas are from last year's garden ~ surprisingly they've kept their lovely colors and are perfect in the room.


These larger hydrangeas I purchased two years ago and moved them from the top of an armoire to this French dough bowl. The linen runner I purchased in Cortona, Tuscany several years ago.


In the evening the room takes on a soft look. I need to hang a couple more things and paint all those chairs! We enjoyed lunch in the room yesterday ~ tomorrow I'll show you the arrival of unexpected visitors outside the window while we were eating.

Shake a Leg

A book full of inspiration with Annie Sloane's always great paint techniques.

Last week, when I headed out to buy the Briwax for the painted finishes, I peeked in the SALE area of the shop and found what I've wanted for a long time..........and it was a huge bargain at 70% off! The shop makes custom tables, kitchen islands etc. with reclaimed pine tops and great painted finishes It also has an amazing assortment of beautiful antiques ~ armoires, cupboards, china hutches, dressers etc.

No, didn't spy anything quite as French as this....................but would have found it irresistible if I had.........

.........but did fall in love with this big hefty leg.........and three others just like it..........all supporting a scrubbed and waxed pine top!
For years I've been wanting to change my dining room table. It is a great one, solid wood with a custom finish to match six lovely Thomasville chairs I found on sale. It made eating, letter writing, homework assignments, French lessons etc. all elegant on a table which took a bow to Queen Anne, complete with cabriole legs, and two huge leaves which could never be inserted as the table then became larger than the small room it called home.
And then there's "the look". You know, the part your dh doesn't get! My efforts to make the dining room come together as a more simple French Country space required a country looking table, handmade, hefty, already with knots and a few scratches to make it look loved, a bit rugged and lighter in color. This table had my name written all over it ~ plus a price I'd never find again. I said I'd have to think about it, left with my can of wax, came home to visualize it in my room............and dreamed of it all night.

The next day I bought it! The following day a friend brought it home in his pickup. Now it's in the dining room and I'm thrilled with it. DH dislikes change ~ wonder how he puts up with all that I scatter around him. He has hidden old, heavy Queen Anne, and her leaves, in the potting shed ~ in case I change my mind and return her to the palace - doubtful!
What about chairs you say. Guess what.........I have a new painting project ahead and it's a tough one. Four side and two arm chairs need to be changed from polished dark wood into a soft French shade, thinking another soft grey with some darker blue grey peeking through. They need sanding, chipping, waxing, and then new padding and fabric on their comfy seats.
Have you priced really good dining chairs lately, solid, non-creaky, comfortable ones which cradle your back, and support your thighs perfectly as you slowly savor a two hour French dinner with friends.......raise a couple of glasses of wine, then sit back with coffee and a little glass of B&B or a snifter of brandy? Very pricey to replace six heavy, well made ones like this, so keeping and painting is the only option. Wish me luck!

Lovely paint finishes from Annie Sloane's book.

I'll show the dining room before I paint the chairs.......that may be a long term project and I'd hate to keeping you waiting so long!

French Dinner getting closer!

Things are going great in the dining room makeover! I'm still at it, revamping several things with paint and quite enjoying it because the results are pleasing. DH is concerned ~ he dislikes change ~ he's worried I will want to change to Bohemian or Baroque in a few years!! No way, this is the look I've been dreaming about ~ French Country, simplified.

This was the sideboard, green with painted flowers on the door panels. Pretty, but getting a bit boring, and in no way did it fit in with the new colorway. So far it's received a coat of Gravity ~ a very pale grey, and since I took this pic below I've sanded all the edges so the original distressed dark paint shows through. Because one coat seems to be the look I wanted, soft and powdery, a little rough and imperfect, I'm not doing a second coat. However, I am doing something on the top! I've now painted it with the dark, almost black, Graphite grey used on the entryway walls (which are visible from the dining room), and am going to do a crackle finish followed by waxing which will hopefully make this piece look older. I may also lightly wax around the door panels to give some depth.Next time I'll share with you what I found on sale and now have sitting in my dining room ~ something I've wanted for a long time!