Sweet and pink....

{Image from here}

I have never really had a sweet tooth but living in France has changed this, as I am surrounded in fabulous cakes which taste as good as they look.

My latest French extravagance is Fossier’s pink biscuits de Reims.

These delicate pink biscuits are apparently intended for dunking in champagne. Here’s Fossier’s own description of their novel creation:

Pink for the sweetness, powdered for the nobility, crunchy for the pleasure, the characteristics of seduction of the pink biscuit are carefully preserved by the confectioners of FOSSIER. Since the origin of Maison Fossier in 1756, the secret of the recipe has been jealously kept.

The recipe is simple but delicate to make: made of fresh eggs, sugar and flour, vanilla-flavoured, slightly tinted with cochineal (a natural colouring) and powered with icing sugar, the dough is baked twice successively, which gives the biscuit (baked twice) the particularity of not being flaked of when it is soaked in. The quality granted to this unique and genuine biscuit has inspired the fine tradition of dunking it in a glass of red wine from the vineyard of the Champagne region or in a flute of champagne. Moreover, this quality is at the origin of its use in the charlottes and other cakes. The inventive housewives and chefs are crazy about it. J'adore cette biscuits.

Wishing you all a very happy and sweet Pink Saturday

L xx

Guess what?

I am very excited as the showroom for my wee online shop Fabulously French opens tomorrow. I am going to be open every Thursday morning from 10h to 13h as this is market day in our village and will also be open on request.

Thought that you may like to see some photos.....

This is the armoire that I collected from Perpignan last week. I have waxed it and lined the shelves with vintage grain sacks. This is going to be the home for the petit coterie cushions that I have ordered from the lovely Michelle.

As you know I adore cushions and tiebacks so have plenty in store.......

I have another of these chairs but do not have room for both in the showroom as the armoire turned out to take up a lot more room than I thought it would!

I finally have somewhere to put the blue and white china. Note this is a small selection, I have much, much more.

And my mannequin no longer has to stay in the hall, she has a new home. Note the wall in the corner looks a little bare but will not be after tonight as Mr FF is going to hang my new tapestry there when he returns from work.

And taking pride of place above the mantle is my antique grain stack which has been carefully framed. This matches the tea towels that we have for sale in the shop.

I currently have only one antique grain sack in store but have more on the way should anyone be looking for some.

Well, I had better get back to work....

A tres bientot,

L x

A fabulous time....

Bonjour,

Hope that you all had a fabulous weekend. We had a very busy one which is very normal for us.


Yesterday morning was spent a 2 vide greniers where I managed to find a fabulous antique bed which I am planning on using as a day bed in the last apartment. I love the look of an old antique french bed piled high with lots of cushions.

I was on the look out for old linen as I am currently sourcing for a couple of lovely ladies in New Zealand who are going to be exhibiting at a french market day in a couple of weeks time. It is that same old story, when you are looking for something particular you can never find it.

That said, I have been fortunate to find quite a few lovely items which I am sure will look fabulous when displayed at the french market day.

Last week we stayed at the most gorgeous Chambres D'hotes which we both loved and I thought that you would like to see some photos.......

The room in which we stayed in

The lovely ensuite bathroom

The lovely dining room, where breakfast is served

Another shot of the fabulous dining room, I adore the lamps!

Guest sitting room

Another shot of the guest sitting room complete with old wine tanks

Pool area

Another fabulous lounging area

Garden statute

For more details on Saint Domingue , please visit their gorgeous website. Note Nabonne is about a 5 hour drive from us and is a gorgeous town with lots of places to visit including the fabulous walled city of Carcassone.

On the way home we stopped near Toulouse to meet up with Angela, a kiwi that I have met through blogging but had never seen in person.

I called her to say that we were near the village where she lives and it was unreal as I have not heard another kiwi voice for a very long time.

We are so similar and like a lot of the same things so Mr FF was a little overwhelmed by all the chatter. He calls us "budgies on speed".

Angela et moi

Angela is very talented and has lived in France for 15 years and adores vide greniers, her garage is full of lots of fabulous finds.

She is coming to visit us in a couple of weeks time and will be teaching me patine. She will also be bringing lots of "goodies" with her which we will be selling in the shop.

We were only supposed to be popping in for a coffee.....5 hours and a bottle of pink champagne later, we were back on the road headed for home.

This week I am in the process of updating fabulouslyfrench, my online shop so keep your eyes out for some great items.

I will also be showing you some photos of the Fabulously French showroom.

Today I am waxing an antique armoire which is going to display the fabulous Petit Coterie burlap cushions that I have ordered from the lovely Michelle along with some lovely vintage french linen.

I have also been tagged by the lovely Maryanne at Beadboardcountry so will be sharing 7 things about moi later in the week......

A demain et bon courage,

L x

Away....

{image from here}

We are in Narbonne and are really enjoying our wee break. The Chambres D'Hotes is fabulous and I promise to tell you all about it on our return to Eymet.

Bon weekend

Lx

Is your house drafty?

If so, you need one of these fabulous draft stoppers.

They have just arrived and we have 4 in stock. They are carefully crafted in Provence, SW France by the very fabulous Sylvie.

Casually elegant khaki/creamy white stripe -- each beautifully made and hand-cross-stitched. All draft-stoppers say Ma Maison ( My House in French).

Each beautifully cross-stitched letter in the words "Ma Maison" on each draft-stopper takes Sylvie one hour to do...that's eight straight hours of cross-stitching to create each of the "Ma Maison" panels on each draftstopper.

These are truly a work of art from the heart.

If you are lucky enough not to have a drafty door, they also look fabulous on a couch or bench!!

Each one measures 3 feet long - the perfect size for most any door. Poly-stuffed; no zipper.

For further details please see the fabulously french online store or email me. Note postage cost to USA, Australia and UK is included in the price.

** We currently have only the taupe draft stoppers left with a choice of the red elaborate stitching or the taupe fabric with the grey/blue block type stitching. Please specify which you prefer when ordering or alternatively email me with your requirements and Sylvie will custom make one for you.

Tomorrow we are off on our adventure to Perpignan, as we are picking up the antique furniture that I purchased last week. Will take the camera with me.....

A vendredi,

L x

What a find.....

Ever since I saw this ribbon in the fabulous french general book titled "Home Sewn", I wanted some and have been searching the vide greniers but have not had a lot of luck.

Then low and behold there it appeared, like magic....

J'adore ca!

L x

J'aime vintage linen

As you all know, I do not normally post on a Sunday but felt that I just had to share these photos with you.

I adore vintage french linen and am fortunate enough to be living in a country where there is still a lot of it around.

Infact I bought an antique chandelier recently which arrived in a fabulous antique table cloth so I washed it and ironed it and it looks fabulous.

Isn't this tree fabulous? I really like it.

I am a big fan of items with embroidery on them, I think that it has timeless appeal.

I have had some draft stoppers made for the shop which are made in Provence and they have the most gorgeous embroidery on them. I will being showing you some photos of them this week.

I think that these decorations are my favourite as I love the variety of fabrics that have been used, all of which are gorgeous.

The individual noel decorations are pretty but you would have to hang them near to one another to get the full effect.

I love this stocking and it is quite similar to some linen wine bags that I will be stocking in my online boutique.

Enjoy your sunday, here it has turned very cold so it is perfect weather for being indoors.

A demain,

L x

{all images from here}

Friday Flowers/Vendredi Fleurs

{Image from here}

I adore these flowers in this vasque, they look so pretty.

I have 2 of these vasques and will soon be deciding what to put in them...

Have a fabulous weekend,

L x

I love elephants breath

I really do adore Farrow and Ball paints, not only are the colours gorgeous but I love the way the colour changes depending on the light.


In the room that is going to be my showroom/wee shop I have used elephants breath on 1/2 the walls and it certainly has made a big difference to the room. I will post some photos next week as the room is currently full of furniture which I am painting and will be using to display items on.


{Farrow & Ball "Elephants Breath"}



Speaking of painting I had better get back to it.

A demain,

L x

Lets go away....

{Image from here}

The story goes a bit like this..........
Girl says "how do you fancy a night away near the coast?" Boy says "what have you bought this time?"

This is part of the coversation that Mr FF and I had last night. I have bought a few pieces of furniture which are in a place that is a five hour drive from where we live.

So I commenced my search for somewhere to stay. This was by no means an easy task as I could not find anything that I liked, not that I am fussy!

We also will be taking a trailer which means that we really do need parking so this narrowed down by search as a lot of the places that I loved were in the middle of villages.

I finally found what looks to be a fabulous place in the country and we are booked in for next Thursday night. I promise to take lots of photos and tell you all about it....

I had better get back to my painting, work is progressing well on my wee shop and I have finished the walls and am now onto painting furniture with some fabulous farrow and ball colours.

Will tell you more about this tomorrow!

A demain

L x

Corks everywhere......

I love corks, there is just something about them. I also love old french bottle openers as not only do they look great they are also very easy to use.

Last year I visited an interior shop in a near by village, where I saw a fabulous wreath made out of corks with some old cutlery attached. I really loved it so have been collecting corks like mad.

This one is great for this time of the year......




Or this one for coming festive season....

So you can guess what one of my next projects will be, just need to hunt out some instructions on how to make one. If anyone out there has made one, any tips would be appreciated.

A bientot,

L x

Happy happy pink Saturday

Now that is what I call a pair of shoes!

Have a fabulous pink Saturday where ever you are....

L x

Vintage grain sacks

{image from here}

As you all already know, I adore vintage items and spend a lot of time rummaging around vide greniers and brocantes looking for fabulous old things.

I have been hunting for a vintage grain sack for a while as these are becoming harder to source in France.

I especially love the old grain sacks that have crests and crowns on them, like this one.

{image from here}

I was starting to think that there were more in America than there were here in France, when to my delight, I stumbled across this one.

I have a fabulous old mirror surround which I am going to use to frame it and will then hang it above the fireplace in my shop. I am also planning on stocking vintage grain sacks in my shop, subject to availability.

I am also going to be stocking a range of french style products including tea towels like this one.

This is just one design that I will be stocking and promise that the others are just as fabulous and of course french.

As I am writing this my team of elves is busy making lots of lovely products, perfect for christmas gifts.

A demain,

L x

j'adore ça......

{Image from here}

What a fabulous idea. As you know I adore moth orchids and am also partial to a glass of champagne so when I saw this photo of the censational girl blog I thought fabulous.

I think that I will buy another vintage champagne bucket as I only have one at present and do not think that it is practical to use for both keeping the champagne cold and holding the orchid....could get a little messy.

Vous souhaiter une belle journée

L x

J'adore Yves Saint Laurent

I just adore Yves Saint Laurent latest campaign, Christy Turlington is worthy of being his latest muse.

Have a yummy pink Saturday

{image from here}

Wishing you all a very yummy pink Saturday........

L x

Friday flowers .....

{Image from here}

I cannot believe how quickly the week has gone. Work is progressing well on my wee shop and I am planning on doing some more painting this weekend.

I have also been busy sourcing items (new and antique)for the shop and I am hoping to open in a couple of weeks time, time permitting.

A demain,

L x

p.s. Happy birthday Dad, hope that you have a fabulous day xxxx