Any Hour May Hold a New Adventure

I just needed something beautiful to look at, so I sifted through some older photographs and found this image that I took several months back of an upcycled alarm clock turned picture frame.

It's funny how we make plans and prepare ourselves for things not knowing our path ahead.

This was one of the last creations I offered in my Etsy shop when it was open.

I remember scouring flea markets and yard sales for old alarm clocks, hoping to create more of these...I have a couple put away in storage, never used, just sitting there...

I never really "planned" to put my Etsy on permanent vacation...

I never imagined that my drive for selling handmade flowers and upcycled vintage accessories would literally disappear overnight, but it did.

I just felt the desire to have less stress even if it meant no income, less spending money. I didn't care. I just wanted to be able to spend more time with my husband in the evenings rather than sitting under the lamp at my desk in our room cutting flower petals-oh how those flowers seemed to take forever to make!

I wanted to start homeschooling Amelia, and I knew that it would be hard to juggle both.

From time to time, I've felt inspired to talk with you about being an entrepreneur and the ebb and flow that's tied to running your own business:

The times of high enthusiasm and energy and the times of rest and lack of motivation.

Right now, I'm in between - graphic designing here and there, participating in something new and exciting, trying to "reinvent" myself. Nothing that consuming but somewhat important to me.

Who knows what lies ahead- My Etsy on an extended vacation, little jobs here and there, a new endeavor??? Je ne sais pas.

Either way, I'm happy.

_{image by à la parisienne}

7 Days in Paris...for FREE!

How could you NOT enter this amazing giveaway?!!!

It's been 4 years since my husband and I walked those beautiful streets of Paris.

Since I've quite my job to be a stay at home mom, it's been nearly impossible to accumulate the money for the two of us to return to Paris.

Oh, yeah, forgot to mention that this awesome giveaway is for TWO and it includes 7 nights stay in a chic hotel!!!!

My husband always encourages me to enter giveaways because one year we won an all inclusive trip to Cancun from a local radio station. His jaw dropped to the floor in disbelief when they announced my name, and four months later we were basking on the beaches of Cancun!

Sooooo, visit Oh Happy Day's blog, and enter here for your chance to win.

I think I was number 8,550. Yes, the chances are slim, but at least there is a chance!

From Parisian Restaurant to Gift Wrap

Place Vendôme's Restaurant, designed by Michele Bonan and inspired by Dior is one of my favorite posts that I've composed.

I just love the color palette-dove gray, black and white houndstooth, and pink-

perfectly parisian, perfectly chic.

For my Christmas wrapping this year, I used this very non-traditional Christmas color scheme, and was very pleased with the result.

The great thing about these giftwrap designs is that one could use these papers year round.

_{Inspiration Source: Restaurant at l'Hôtel Place Vendôme}

This special gift was for my niece, Holly, from Amelia. The night we gave this gift to Holly was her last night here before returning to Washington D.C. for her new job.
I didn't want to give her anything extra to pack away, so we kept the gift small-a little golden acorn hanging on a brown ribbon-to be worn as a necklace or to be placed somewhere special as a momento of home and of "little squirrel," her pet name for Amelia.

I added a larger acorn covered in ebony glitter as an embellishment for the giftwrap as a little hint.

These houndtooth chairs and pink satin pillows are the perfect Parisienne duo. I'm seriously considering bringing this look into one of the rooms in our house.

_{I used these pink ornaments last year in several of my giftwrapped packages. Click here to view.}

A special package for one of my best friends. She specifically requested that if she had to wait to exchange gifts with me in order to receive a beautifully wrapped package, she would wait as long as she had to. Last year, I was so behind on giftwrap that I put her gift in a gift bag-Needless to say, she was disappointed (Shame on me) So, I made sure her gift this year was extra special!

This gift was for my brother-in-law, so I added a little masculine touch-a couple of vintage playing cards punched into large circles. Great for gift tags and a great accent to the black and white wrapping paper.

The cylinder tube on the left was a gift for my sister-in-law, Felecia. Her gift actually arrived in the mail in this tube-mailer. I remember thinking "How in the world will I wrap this?"

I used black tissue paper and vintage velvet blush ribbon (the stiff kind of ribbon that florists use). I decided that wide stripes were quite sophisticated and then added a little panache by pinning a black brooch on the center pink stripe.

This is the end of my giftwrapping ventures for now. Giftwrapping this Christmas was a much needed creative outlet for me during the hectic holidays, and I believe that the presentation of these gifts through thoughtful giftwrap made the gifts inside the boxes even more appreciated.

Happy New Year! I am looking forward to sharing 2011 with you all!
_{images 2,4 from TravelModus.com; all other images by à la parisienne}

Dior-Inspired Parisian Restaurant-Feminine et Chic

The new design of l'hôtel de Vendôme's restaurant, is one of my very favorite sophisticated and chic designs that I have ever seen out of all of my blog perusing, magazine reading, and book buying over the years. This restaurant located in Place Vendome, a very ritzy (no pun intended) place in Paris, has recently hired Michele Bonan, an Italian designer, to revamp it's décor from a "Chesterfield" old world library look to a chic, upscale, Dior-inspired atmosphere.

Can you just imagine meeting some of your friends for dinner here?

Vendome's restaurant embodies the look of an haute couture runway:

sleek ebony tables,
pied-de-poule (houndstooth) 1950s chairs,

dusty pink pillows,

and dove gray velour settees, and let's not overlook the towering white orchids, all with a backdrop of powdery gray panelled walls.

A few other details that are barely visible in these post images is that each pillow is accented with frothy white passementerie (trimming) as well as each of the gray silk window treatment's tiebacks.

In the black étagère in the above image, one may peruse through various books relating to fashion, design, and architecture.

Chanel and Dior are included, bien sûr.

_{Image 1- via http://www.desingcalendar.com/}

_{Image 2 via http://www.itelegraph.co.uk.com/}

Image 3 via www.realtravel.com

Image 4 via www.designonline.com

Le couleur violet

Image from Domino

Lilac, lavendar, orchid, eggplant, freesia,amythyst, Hydrangea petal, grape, fuscia, plum, violet ... What is it about all of the varieties of the color known as purple? When I think of a romantic, chic urban loft, I think of a shade of purple. Why is that? Why do chic city dwellers choose purple? And why does it look so breath taking, so rich, so pretty? I believe that some owners of Paris apartments and big city lofts choose shades of purple because it reminds them of one of the most beautiful images offered in the city - the enormous city sky at dusk filled with a kaleidescope of colors -powerful oranges, corals, magentas, hugged by broad, beautiful arms of periwinkle. This evening sky serves as majestic backdrop for it's center-stage soaring skyline silhouettes, whose blackness creates a duet of shadows and luminous lights.

In the fleeting moment of sunset, a hurried pedistrian, taxi driver, and investor (seated in his highrise office) cannot ignore witnessing the beauty of God's creation in the hustle and bustle of city life. How do they fold this vision up and tuck it into their pockets for frequent viewing? They paint their walls, upholster their chairs, layer their beds, dress their windows with luxurious silk drapes, and place flowers in vases with these various shades of purple. Then, lest they forget the refinement of city life, add the silhouettes- black!

Image from Domino

And velvet...a deep purple velvet evokes that sense of royalty. I love shape of this bed. Look at its little legs-Aren't they so demure?

Image from Flickr

Garnier Opéra at dusk. C'est spendide, n'est-ce pas?

Image from Flickr
Which Parisian monument is that playing the supporting role in the majestic sunset theater?

Image from Marie Claire Maison

The variety of vases and flowers offer interest in this symmetrical, formal dining room.

Image from Marie Claire Maison

Like a 6'5" model, these windows enjoy a floor length gown in a beautiful shade of periwinkle! Take notice of the dark ebony floors!

Here is a photo of my personal experience with Paris' sky at dusk. I snapped this shot of a spire at Sainte Chapelle - only at dusk can one truly appreciate the beauty of a building's figure!

Image from Marie Claire Maison

Like the silhouette of the spire at Sainte Chapelle, the black lamp shade and curvy vase add contrast as well as sophistication and drama to this lilac infused room. C'est feminine, n'est-ce pas?

Les joies du printemps: les fleurs sur les toits, à la fenêtre, et par terre

"The Delights of Spring: Flowers on the Rooftops, at the Window, and on the Ground"

Flowers are my favorite part of Spring. I just love their beautiful colors and fragrances.

Although only a minority of Parisians can say that they have un jardin sur le toit (a garden on the rooftop), it's still Parisian-and quite dreamy might I add! Marie Claire Maison did a small article over this garden which overlooks the City of Love. Interestingly there is also a children's playhouse up there! See the article for more pics and details; however, on doit le lire en francais. (You must read it in French!) From what I read, his strategy was to pull off of the problems with the rooftop - too many chimneys- and create small, separate gardens.

An interesting thing about the French, is there love for dining outdoors during the summers; they have the perfect climate and in mid-summer the sun doesn't set before 9:30pm. Honestly, I am not sure of the exact hour of sunset. (I will look into the exact hour.) This rooftop garden also has an outdoor salle à manger -"diningroom," and these plants serve as a barrier from the wind. Do they take out-of -country reservations for two?? Can you imagine celebrating an anniversary here? Ça sera romantique, n'est-ce pas? (Translation- That would be romantic wouldn't it?)

I snapped this photo from a tour bus! Yeah, touristy!

Provided that only a fraction of Parisians have a rooftop garden, only a minority could boast of having such a beautifully sculptured window. The first time I visited Paris (about 8 years ag0) was at the end of May, and one of my first memories is that of looking up at all of the apartment windows (fancy or plain) and seeing them peppered with window boxes loaded with bright magenta and red Geraniums! These window boxes were their only personal slices of earth-of nature. (Now we understand why Paris has so many public gardens)! Can you imagine owning only a couple of square feet for your own outdoor plants? We should all be so thankful for any space we have.
One interesting thing I learned while touring Paris was that these window boxes, while beautiful, actually serve a functional purpose- the scent of Geraniums actually deter mosquitos from entering through an open window. And most Parisians rely on that open window for air current during those hot summer months- pas de climatisation (no air-conditioning)!

I took this picture in the gardens of the Château de Chenonceau. Here's another prime picnic place-only in our dreams- one is not allowed to walk on the grass - pelouse interdite!

Flowers from my garden last summer

If you are not from Texas, this is what we look forward to seeing along the highways here- a blanket of bluebonnets! When I was a French teacher, I passed by this beautiful field on the way to work every April! One day I finally trespassed and got a few quick pictures!

I included these last two pictures just for fun. As I was discussing our unpredictable Texas weather in my last post over Picnics, I remembered when it snowed in April a couple of years ago. It was surreal. It rarely snows in this part of Texas and too have more than an inch of snow after most of the trees had leafed out and while flowers were blooming-that was incroyable!

A Violet Iris Topped with Snow - What a contrast!

Neige en avril (2007)