* Chic Provence *: Caravane

Showing posts with label Caravane. Show all posts

08 August 2011

l'âne bleu Brings a Smile :)

If you use color, pattern, shape and texture in unexpected ways you will create an element of surprise and delight in your interiors. Caravane, available at l'âne bleu... l'Art de Vivre au Sud in Marseilles, has put together an irresistible collection of pieces that are at once young at heart and sophisticated a la one.

Their cheeky, playful designs will always bring a smile, and what could be better for the spirit?

a fantastic rendition of a kilim-covered fauteuil

would lighten the mood of any room a

few notches!

this is my favorite color of blue; and I love the

pearly round shapes on the wall

the sculptural shape, light feel and

gorgeous color make this canapé

a star!

***

merci pour la visite! .. Kit

01 September 2010

Le refuge provençal

If you have ever been to Ramatuelle, in Provence, close to St. Tropez and situated directly on the rocky Mediterrannean coast, you will remember many things. The craggy cliffs are home to wild rosemary, fennel and olive trees and their scent is in the air. Brigitte Bardot lives her "vie sauvage" steps away from the sea in a walled enclave I have only seen from the outside. Inside her walls, she shelters orphaned animals of all kinds and lives out her life surrounded by the wild beauty of this incredible area. If you want to live a beach life that is *tres* naturelle, (or if you forgot to pack your swimsuit), this beach is for you!

Pining for Provence as I am today, I was thrilled to find photos of the Ramatuelle retreat of Paris antique dealer Stéphane Olivier.

in the spirit of Provençal design,

a Swedish buffet and a Gustavian clock

coexist with a 19th c. painting by Jules Didier

a dining room inspired by the brocantes, a

Gustavian table is surrounded by Swedish Rococco chairs

next to an Italian buffet, mercury glass and an

18th c. pottery olive oil jar

in the bedroom, a school botanical chart on the wall

over a small 18th c. commode; a mercury glass Virgin Mary and

"found" mirrored picture frames

iron garden chair Napoléon III for listening to the cigales chirping

and the wind in the olive trees, typical provençal countryside

19th c. wooden door with candle, Portugese

a terrace in the heart of nature, blown glass hurricane lamps,

and a salt pot in pottery from Biot; under the iron pergola, the

table is set with antique embroidered linens and surrounded

by Italian chairs

Italian bronze chair, 18th c. in

front of light linen curtains in Caravane fabric

two charming parrots in front of black coral

pottery pitchers from Biot

images Cote Maison

Stéphane Olivier Rive gauche. 3, Rue de L'université, 75006 Paris. tél. : 01 42 96 10 00 la petite maison. 10, rue paul-bert, 93400 saint-ouen. tél. : 01 40 10 56 63 et www.stephaneolivier.fr

12 February 2010

These Colors Will Banish the Gloom

And gloomy it has been!

I have been very busily occupied away from my blog (withdrawal!), so today's post is a little cadeaux from my favorite Marie Claire Maison! It is such a lovely little series of pictures of color and how/why it was used. The homes are all over: Corsica, Paris, Sicily.

These rooms will inspire you! Don't forget, the easiest way to create a new look in a tired room is to change the colors...paint walls, add art you forgot you had hidden away, make some new pillows in fabulous colors, reupholster some pieces...it's as simple as that!

{Now if I could just convince my new client to go with those turquoise walls freshened with all that white...}

Electric blue turquoise walls are tempered with lots of white paint and upholstery in the Paris salon of Laurence Leclerc of Caravane (one of my favorite sources for wonderful fabrics). The "witches eyes" mirrors on one wall reflect the light and color of the room, while the gossamer lampshades create a fairy-like atmosphere. The only other color (besides the rusted metal on the wall), a sharp citron, is introduced in pillows from a Tunisian fabric.

Multicolored lanterns imbue this amazing living room with a fantasy-like ambience. The large living space is divided into several smaller functional areas using furniture placement, painted chairs, and gorgeous multicolored velvets and silks for upholstery on the sofas and pillows. This is the fantasy home of Etienne and Clorinde Mery, inspired by the colors of Colonial Cuba and South America.

Near Jaipur, designers Liza Bruce and Nicholas Alvis Vega pay homage to the colors of India. In the very pink living room, traditional Indian motifs are exaggerated and used as wall paintings in white to great effect. The mercury glass chandelier in purples and pinks looks like a large cluster of grapes!

This Corsican mansion has been painted in the soft colors of the area: pinks, yellows and ochres. In this dining room the walls have been glazed with transparent colors to create a pink that blends with the original pinks of the ceiling.

In the south of Sicily, the austerity of the building and the small windows are offset by intense, strong colors of orange and lemon yellow on the walls, while the furniture is a riot of colors mixed on each piece and creating a cheerful, imaginative space.

all photos courtesy of Marie Claire Maison

...............................................

in 2010, it's:

Kit Golson Design

for elegant, sustainable and pragmatic

Chic Provence Interior Design

07 November 2009

Feeding The Gypsy {King}* in Your Soul...

Sometimes....especially now when the darkness falls sooner and stays longer and the economic recovery is so not happening....you just want to take a little journey to somewhere simple and unaware of its sense of place.

Maybe you long to wander the highways and byways along the Mediterranean Coast again, pan bagnat in knapsack, exploring and hiking the wild, dusty hills and rocks along the sea, sleeping and eating at the first gite you find. You are in Gipsy Kings country (* Listen here to The Gipsy Kings), the cote sauvage of the sunny Mediterranean Sea.

Handprinted Linens by Idarica Gazzoni

When you arrive at your rustic lodgings, you are sure to find simple curtains like these drifting on the breezes there. You'll dress behind an old screen, you'll have un cafe et un petit dejeuner at an old table like this one. You'll walk on old, old tomettes (hexagonal tiles) on the uneven floor. You'll rest your head on pillows like these.

Sleeping in the sea air, you will rest well from your rambling and awake with the new dawn. With only your legs to carry you, you get an early start on the day after your strong coffee. The vistas await you.