On My Nightstand...

At the end of a busy day, I really love to curl up with a good book while snuggled under blankets in bed.  It’s a great way to relax and wind down from the day before heading off to la la land.  Two new books hit my nightstand last week that I want to share with those of you who enjoy French history and anything related to Marie Antoinette….

Marie Antoinette’s Head – The Royal Hairdresser, the Queen and the Revolution, by Will Bashor.  Just published last month, this new biography about Marie Antoinette’s hairdresser, Leonard, is a fun read.  It’s been reviewed as being “The Devil Wears Prada comes to Versailles”.  I found my copy on Amazon, HERE

Marie Antoinette’s Versailles by Cecile Berly.  This book is beautifully photographed and features the public and private places of Marie Antoinette at Versailles.  The book is produced and sold in France, but there is an English translation available from the boutique bookshop at Versailles.  I ordered my copy online direct from Versailles and received it in less than a week.  You can purchase a copy too by going to HERE.

 

xoxo ~ Joy

Plan de Paris - Turgot's Map of Paris in 1739

As the renovation process with our new home dragged on....

I was planning how I would decorate our new space.

There was one piece of artwork that we had been saving for a special place and I knew exactly where it would go.  Come on in and see the "after"......

I had been wanting a copy of Turgot's Historical Map of Paris published in 1739.  While in France, I searched the flea markets and book shops of Paris searching for a vintage version of this perfect souvenir.  I had no luck.

We finally found our map in Kansas City of all places!  We had seen it on a shop wall and the owner offered it to us at half price because he was taking it down to decorate for the holidays.  It was very large and since we were flying we turned down his kind offer.  It was one of those decisions you come to regret. 

This past May, about a year and a half later, we returned to that shop and I mentioned our regret over missing out on that opportunity while chatting with the shop owner.  "You're in luck" he said!  He had stored it in the basement and he kindly offered it to us at a great sale price.  This time we said "YES"!  We packed it in large shipping tubes, crossed our fingers that it would find its way back to Florida and it did....and now it hangs in our new living room....

According to Wikimedia.org.... 

"Turgot's map of Paris is possibly the most ambitious urban mapping ever undertaken. Shows the whole of 18th century Paris and offers a wonderful perspective on the city prior to Baron Georges Eugène Haussmann’s 19th-century redesign. Turgot, who held the mayor-like office of Prévôt des Marchands de Paris , commissioned Louis Bretez and Claude Lucas to produce this map in 1734. Oriented to the east on an axonometrical projection, this map is best understood as an aerial view where in every building, window, tree, shadow and park is shown. It took the team nearly five years of exhaustive sketching and surveying to assemble this masterpiece. In order to produce the thousands of sketches and surveys required to complete this map, Bretez was issued a permit to enter every building in Paris."

As my husband is an Urban Planner and I am such a dork about anything related to Paris, I feel like this is the perfect piece of art for our home.

And it's also useful!  While reading my French history books, I can go to the wall and locate the exact building or streets to put everything into perspective.  Not to mention that I am easily distracted during TV commercials and find myself retracing our steps when we were in Paris last year.  I see something new every time I look at it.

See Notre Dame?



...and the Louvre....

...and the Tuileries Palace which long ago burned down.....

Although the shop we purchased this from no longer has this map in stock, you can find a copy at Restoration Hardware, shown below....

 

...or with Majesty Maps,  HERE

 

 

xo ~ Joy

Shop Update!

My newest vintage Paris bracelets have been added to the website!  Yea!

This may be my last batch for awhile.  My stash is getting low and I think this may be the perfect excuse for another trip to Paris for jewelry shopping.....if only I could talk the hubby into that one :)

 

 

Other pretties are being added every day....

 

....come see what's new HERE.   

 

Merci mon amies ~ xoxo ~ Joy

Coming Soon.....

Happy Monday!  I've been busy in the studio! 

 

 

...just a few of my newest One-of-a-Kind designed jewelry pieces that will be available on my website tomorrow for purchase.  ~  Merci mon amies ~  Have a beautiful week ~ xo Joy

The Paris Memories Continue...

It rains in Paris.  A LOT.  During our 2 weeks there, we only had 1 day of sunshine.  It rained every other single day.  But Paris in the rain is still beautiful. 

One of the first things we did before leaving the airport was to purchase Museum Passes.  Ours were good for 7 days and you could see as many museums as you wish.  They also get you quick entrance so you don't have to stand in long lines at the museum ticket office.  We could use the express lane!  The Louvre for one, is notorious for lines that take hours to get through.  If you go to Paris, get a museum pass!

One very beautiful museum is the Musee des Arts Decoratifs.  It is located at the end of the Louvre and it is dedicated to all things interior design wise...especially 18th century. The wonderful thing about museums in Paris is that you can walk around rooms like you were a guest in a private home.  Every museum we visited allowed photos, with the exception of the D'Orsay.  You just can't use your flash.  I was in heaven.....

An 18th century salon....

...a royal jewelry box.....

.....18th century perfume bottles......

.....a display of chairs owned by royalty........

....an original chair that belonged to Marie Antoinette......

......china that belonged to Madame Du Barry......

Another 18th century devoted museum is Musee Carnavalet.....once a private home now a museum filled with treasures.....

Notice the worn stone stairway.  You can see the wear from ancient footsteps that have worn the stone smooth over centuries of use.......

It took everything I had not to crawl into this gorgeous bed for a quick power nap.......

Hallways were filled with paintings by my favorite French artists....Francois Boucher and Jean Honore Fragonard....

.....and this delightful treasure......a small sculpture of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette that was a gift given to the royal couple.

Thanks for your visit....hope you enjoyed a small sample of some of the beauty Paris has to offer.  Merci mon amies ~ xoxo ~ Joy

 

 



 

 

Remembering Paris....

It was just a year ago this weekend that my hubby and I boarded an Air France jet for Paris.  We were reminiscing all weekend long saying to each other...."this exact time last year we were....." 

In honor of the anniversary, this weekend we enjoyed croissants, French beer and wine, and Sunday night dinner was Paris Chicken.  We also enjoyed looking over our photo albums and I thought I would share some of my favorite photos with you.

We stayed for 2 weeks in this charming apartment located just a block and a half from the Louvre on Rue Saint Honore.  We booked our apartment thru HERE and their services were great and I will use them for our next trip.

Our apartment was located above a Boulangerie & Patisserie and every morning around 5:00 am we would be awaken by the delicious smells of fresh bread and pastries being baked in the shop below.   It was a memorable and delicious way to start our day!

We made a beeline for the Eiffel Tower.  My long held dream has been to go to the top of the tower, kiss my husband and drink champagne.  Check.

Then off to photograph the most beautiful city in the world.  I was packing my big girl camera!

For our first full day in Paris, we blocked a whole day for the Louvre.  Exploring every nook and cranny that we could find....and there are lots!  You can't see the Louvre in a day....but we did our best. 

The famous glass pyramid is really an entrance.....this is what you see from below.....

The art is jaw dropping in beauty and scale....

....and the ceilings are every bit as beautiful as the art hanging on the walls.....

Everyone makes a run for the Mona Lisa first.  I found taking a photo of those trying to get close and take a photo of Mona more interesting.......

....then everyone runs for Winged Victory.  It is stunning to see her in all her glory.

Personally, I found some of the interior stairways to be the most beautiful and peaceful places inside the Louvre.....

....and after walking miles and miles that day, even a marble bed looks like a comfortable place to take a rest!

Every little thing your eyes take in is beautiful in detail and photo worthy....some of my favorite photos were the ones I took looking outside thru centuries old windows and glass panes....

On the way back to our apartment, we enjoyed a stroll through the Tuileries gardens.  I have read about these gardens for so many years and to finally be able to take in the beauty of this special place was a dream come true.  Day One in Paris - done!!!

Although we were there just a year ago, sometimes it seems like just yesterday and other times it seems like a lifetime ago.  Paris is enchanting and she gets under your skin.  I know that I will visit her again, it may not be soon, but someday I will return.  Until then, I have my photos and sweet memories and thank you for allowing me to share these with you here in my little corner of blogland.   More photos to come over the next week or so :)   ~ Mercie mon amies ~ xoxo Joy

Let Me Charm You A Little.......

 

The Fleur de Lis Charm Necklace

 

 

 

xo ~ Joy