All That Is French..................

As we come to the end of  All That is French,  we will visit the Great Room, Garett and Kim's office, the staircase from le cave (the wine cellar), le salon (sitting room) in more detail and the hallway that leads to the bedroom suites.                                        

The Family Gathering Place..........THE GREAT ROOM

                                                                     

                                                         

This image was taken from the stone fireplace in the great room looking back to the great hallway.   No special settings were used on my camera which is just a little Canon Powershot.  The sun was flooding through the courtyard French doors and this was the result!

This container holding a wonderful collection of dried flowers is called a.wine hod.  Wine hods were fabricated out of wood or zinc and used in the vineyards for harvesting the champagne grapes.

       This study was created for Kim's husband, Garett.( I'll bet she uses it too)  From the ceiling fixture to the wild turkey on to the leopard covered chair............a truer collection of what we would find in French home couldn't be more appropriate..  The antique desk just seems to complete the look.

The eagle has landed and he has been created out of a piece of bronze.....details again of a French home.

                      

Dressed in Parisian style, this little serving table is equipped with a little brandy, a collection of leather flasks

that might be taken to a Bear game (not quite so French!)  Details, details and more details................

This ole guy almost looks like he had  been painted by a faux artist, but he was real and had been hunted on the grounds of the chateau....................or so they would have done in Provence!  Hunting was and still is the gentlemen's sport in France.

These two antique initialed chairs seem to be on guard for those entering the wine cellar.  Note the buttery wall color that Kim captured in every hallway, dining room, great room and kitchen, in fact, these is the color of the entire downstairs area.   They almost look like they had been washed by the sun and there for many, many years.............

Wrought iron gates are another characteristic very evident in a French country home.  There are a pair of these and they too seem to announce a wonderful collection of French wines and a tasting room shared with family and friends.

This room is kept at a controlled temperature at all times.  The studded leather chairs are an early 18th c. French acquisition

As we approve of the wonderful wines shared with us, we head back up the stone staircase to the
great room.  Note the wrought iron chandelier that watches over the family activities.  Again, the French loved to work with their hands and iron was prevalent in the communities as a result of those interests. Very often there was  a place in the barn for a forger to do his work on the premises.

This front staircase leads to the bedroom suites..........and a hallway appointed with an 18th century tapestry.

Note the iron fixtures, another "ta-da" moment in a day of antiquing in the South of France.      

   

 

         

  A peak at the guest room suite.  The chair has been created with a few pieces of toile and a few different selection of checks......mixing fabrics in this way was typically French....soft greens, white down filled duvets and and puffy down filled pillows will beckon anyone who has just traveled to be here for a good nights sleep.                

     

Another view of the great hallway as seen from the great room.  The wall fixtures are new and from the Nierman Weeks collection...........still available from your interior designer.  The French commode purchased in Aryles, France.

As we prepare to leave this wonderful home, we have learned so much by being here.  The French country home has been captured in the truest sense. The colors of France, the peaks and arched doorways, the iron appointments, the collections, the Parisian chadeliers, the wine hods and the fabulous antique pieces that have traveled so far and of course, always a touch or two of an animal print.........Paris, Sur la Sorge, Avignon and Marche aux Puces and Aryles.   It matters so much where it all came from and how it was selected. But, most of all it is where it all landed and how much of it we were allowed to share.  Thank you again, Kim and Garett, you have taught us well.


CREDITS:    Bruce George, Architect - Naperville, Illinois
                     Les Tissus Colbert - Design elements and window treatments in much of the home. 


Please note:  I have been told that my readers have been unable to comment...........in order to do this, scroll down to the small white bar below and slide your mouse across until a "comment message" pops up and that will take you to a comment form..........hope that this helps!  ox Mary Anne