Friday, 29 April 2011

French Antiques and Flea Market Finds

This house, located in a small village only an hour away from the centre of Paris, used to be a barn and was restored and transformed by Monique, owner of Pigwidgeon, a decorating company. She lives here with her husband and two sons. Every room is brimming with beautiful 18th century antiques and flea market finds. French an whimsical through and through.


Salon d'une maison pleine d'idées déco impertinentes

Buste en terre cuite et fenêtre chinée
The bust is of the Comtesse du Bary.

Consoles en bois sculpté

Escalier et jardin d'intérieur

Vitrine anglaise repatinée

Paravent de charme

Bureau d'une masin pleine d'idées déco impertinentes

Cuisine de la maison pleine d'idées déco impertinentes

Pôele de la cuisine

Salle à manger d'une maison plein d'idées déco impertinentes

Salon ambiance coquette

Salle de bains d'une maison aux idées déco impertinentes

Chambre cocon d'une maison pleine d'idée déco impertinentes

Chambre effet vieilli

Chambre d'une maison pleine d'idées déco impertinentes

All images from here.

Outdoor space rivalry

We have two out door rooms, a Courtyard in the front of the house and a covered Patio in the back. 

The Courtyard is jealous of the back Patio, and with good reason.

The Patio is very large and covered, it has an outdoor kitchen a living and dining area with comfy overstuffed furniture, tiled floors, ceiling fans, nice lighting, beautiful golf course views and a eastern exposure that we and our guest love to hang out and relax on.

The Courtyard has a feeling of privacy, has a nice view of a greenbelt area that runs in between the yards across the street, it's a great place to drink  tea and read the paper in the morning with it's western exposure it stays cool and shaded by the house until around noon. it has beautiful sunsets in the late evening and open to the stars at night.

So why would there be a rivalry between them you ask? OK so you didn't ask but pretend that you did so that I can build up the story here.

The courtyard, even though it's the first impression of our home, and deserves much more respect than it's been getting, has become the dumping ground for all the old patio furniture with it's faded cushions and just so happens to be way too small for the space, all the old mismatched pottery, a unsightly hose reel and NO decorations at all... yes I'm ashamed, very ashamed.

See for your selves the horror...


No your eyes are not playing tricks on you, the floor is slopped toward the center where the drain is, making furniture placement tricky.  If I move the furniture far enough away from the center to where it sits level, it's small scaled makes it feel too far apart.



A very large and very blank wall that is just crying out for some wrought iron art work, trailing plants and vines growing up it. 
Egad!! just look at that ugly hose reel, but don't look at the plants, they will actually be very lush and pretty soon, they have just come out of the golf cart garage where they have been spending the winter, so they look a little rough around the edges.


I think a wall fountain would be nice next to the window. See what I mean by mismatched pottery and faded cushions?  This is what people see when they come to my front door, can you see why the court yard is up set and feels so neglected?


More blank walls in need of some art and more space in need of larger furniture, and yes... that is Tessa looking out the window, she always manages to find a way to be in the blog.


This is the view from the front door, looking straight through the porte cochere, to the left of the arch is the golf cart garage, to the right is the drive way.



This is the entrance to the court yard and more mismatched pots. An arched iron gate would be nice here don't you think?  Nod your heads in agreement please.




As you can see, our courtyard has every reason to be jealous of it's rival the Back Patio, and out of respect to the Courtyard, I will not be showing any photos of the Patio in this post (it will get it's own post too, just to keep the peace between the two) I show you all of this because starting next week with the arrival of the Courtyards very own furniture (not hand-me-downs from our previous home) a long over due make-over for the Courtyard has finally begun.

Thursday, 28 April 2011

Splendid Home in Spain

Decorated by Christine van Hoecke, this beautiful home in Spain with stunning views is both elegant and rustic, bright and airy.
Tour time, my dears!


Terra cotta tiles and wicker furniture in the long, welcoming, porch.


There are arches in almost every room.


A grand foyer with marble floors and a minimum amount of furniture.


Patina on the doors and some of the furniture.


A Chesterfield leather sofa adds warmth to the living room.




A spiral staircase leads to a home office with a balcony overlooking the living room.


I like the addition of the round table and two chairs on the left.




Sevilla tile backsplash adds character to the kitchen.




This is the hallway that leads from the stairs to the master bedroom.


The breathtaking views can be seen both from the sitting area and the master bedroom which have been divided with a low wall.


Another view of the master bedroom and its sitting area.

All images from here.

Wednesday, 27 April 2011

Hey, Guys! For You in Barcelona.

And today, especially for my dear sirs who read Inspiring Interiors, I'd like to show you this apartment in Bracelona, Spain. Elegant and stylish. Hope you like it!



















All images from here.

Tuesday, 26 April 2011

Restored 1860 House

Built in 1860, this home went from a hotel to a nursing home in the 60s and has now been restored by Clarisse and Arnaud de Saint-Martin, both antique dealers and interior designer enthusiasts. Definitely French in style, it is brimming with interesting pieces: from Medici vases and Louis XV chairs to plenty of flea market finds.




















All images from here.