Come on, let's go....

...prowling through one of the most fabulous vintage Provençal fabric shops in all of Provence, if not all of France... la Boutique de Francine in Isle sur la Sorgue is a thrilling find to those of us who adore the gently worn and immensely appealing look and feel of these beautiful, venerable old textiles. 

Madame's shop is huge, a storefront which at first glance looks pretty modest and unassuming.  Once you enter, you are captivated by the sheer volume of fabrics, arrayed by type and color, and punctuated by antique glass and housewares. 

Linger long enough and you will find...nearly hidden between huge shelves bulging with bolts... a small doorway that leads to an enormous warehouse in back, packed to the rafters with vintage fabrics, linens, quilts, bolts, pillow cover, clothing. Madame has spent a lifetime amassing an enormous collection... much to the delight of our designing hearts!

this little area holds some delightful toiles de jouy, some made into small pillows

even a small fragment of this stunning
antique jacquard is frame-worthy

this little pillow is made to showcase a wonderful fragment of 18th C. toile de jouy

beautiful old quilts, laundered and folded are casually displayed in the shop and welcome 
your touch... aren't they inviting? 

every here and there Madame breaks up the oceans of fabrics with lovely
antique glassware, dishes and household things from bygone eras

ribbons and trims are everywhere!

vintage night gowns in cottons and linens

antique hand made lace crocheted and tatted

lovely sight in the back warehouse room, old basket next to stacks and stacks
of vintage linens of every size

these old fabrics have been over dyed in modern colors
to a wonderful, fresh effect!

These books below will help you make great use of these wonderful old French fabrics (and even give suggestions on where to find fabrics that just look old & French) and are great gifts for your Provence-loving friends or for a special someone who loves to sew and craft beautiful things...perfect!  Enjoy!

for inspiration in how to use these wonderful fabrics,
try Kaari Meng's gorgeous books... this one is
French General Home Sewn, available HERE

another French General book,
try Kaari Meng's gorgeous books... this one is
Treasured Notions, available HERE

and Kaari Meng's signature book complete with inspiration and
practical advice and tools... this one is
The French-Inspired Home, available HERE

Come with us next time!

for info click HERE

The Provençal Upholsterer

Yes, it's just an upholsterer's atelier. But the soul and spirit I found in this workshop & showroom tucked away on the back streets of Isle sur la Sorgue last week captivated me. Madame the Designer graciously welcomed me into her private world of fabrics, leathers, old club chairs and chandeliers with a little tour. She occupies a wonderful ancient space with a front room, an design studio, a couple of side rooms, a courtyard and a true workshop at the other end of the sunny courtyard.

I could not help but envy her as she fielded calls from clients throughout Provence and cheerily pulled fabrics and colors together. We spent a wonderful time together sharing design ideas...that and a cup of espresso and we are now global friends!

patiently waiting their turn on the upholsterer's bench  are these  Art Deco vintage club chairs .. 

do you not LOVE  that back wall?!!

the courtyard of the atelier's upholstery shop and showroom

will be filled with sunshine in a few hours

the shabby shocking pink linen soon to be replaced

for a discerning client in Provence

artlessly chic side room holding projects-to-be

one of the crystal chandeliers hanging in Madame's

showroom..  utterly perfect in design and scale

on the way to her atelier, Madame must peek into this arched courtyard to follow the sounds of 

children playing, glasses tinkling and dogs barking

perhaps Madame comes to work in her vintage

deux cheval?

pretty ironwork over ochre shutters on the rue

Madame has a penchant for the colors and stripes of Morocco reflected in the 

polychrome lights and the vivid fabrics

a small chair awaits a new life!

surely Madame passes through this lavender arch

on the way to her atelier each morning!

a peek into one of the side rooms off of her courtyard

stunning crystal sconces from the early 20th C.

a study in simplicity and rusticity, this worn old vintage 30's must have its original leather

ah the Provence morning always includes un cafe et une croissant!

all photos via 

Kit's iPhone

***

a picture from

Ma Vie Quotidienne {My Daily Life} here

visit Chic Provence Marketplace here

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thanks for visiting!... Kit

Country Chic

For a designer, nothing is more delightful than clients with great taste and a modern point of view. We are nearing the completion of the remodeling and decorating of this "country chic" home and are getting excited at seeing the final installation in the next few weeks. I thought you'd enjoy seeing a little of our design thought process in inspiration and fabric choices that we have used in this wonderful living room.

In the next few weeks as we finish, I'll post the before and after pictures of the entire beautiful transformation where we used as much existing material and furnishings as possible to create a really wonderful living space for this young family!

the wonderful eclecticism of this country chic room taken from

Elle Decor magazine was an inspiration for my client when we

had our first meeting...the room has the same many windows

and an all-white light and airy feel

as we developed exactly the look for her living room, we left

the orange behind and went with a purer palette of reds, blues, whites

and linens; we were completely taken with the Travers collection from

Zimmer-Rhode shown here

these are the fabrics we chose:

the stunning jacquard and the stripes in navy/white

are Travers Batik Leaf and La Verna in Ink;

the beautiful cotton print is Fairie Enchantee Toile from Quadrille;

the solid linen is the Belgian Linen from Restoration Hardware;

and the red stripe is a vintage fabric from France

***

thanks for visiting!... Kit

Midsummer in the Forest

She had always wanted a home of her own, a sweet sanctuary she could furnish with lovingly chosen things that didn't cost the earth. She wanted to create a small visual feast just for herself and to have things exactly how she wanted. So she found an old hunting cabin deep in the forest and transformed it into her little haven:

once a neglected old hunting hut, now

transformed with Victoriana and white paint

she made every square inch count, from the

bookshelves under the eaves to the

wire-front cupboards

a downy sleeping loft under the rafters

the simplest of arrangements: foliage from the

forest tucked into clear glass containers of all kinds

those raspberry colored mud boots could not be

more charming on the little front porch

see the enchanting story of how she used salvaged, found

things to create her tiny Victorian cottage in the Catskills on

a shoestring..it's a fascinating story!

The New York Times

perhaps a midsummer's celebration

in the forest? what shall we

choose for dessert?

apricot ice cream with

nut crust?

violette cassis ice cream?

petits choux?

berry meringue tarts with mint?

rhubarb sables with strawberries

and orange?

recipes here at Marie Claire Maison

(in French, you'll have to get

Bardot in Blue to translate them, she just finished school

in Paris last month!!)

Happy Easter {ca. 1910}

I love these vintage Easter cards from the beginning of the twentieth century. They are so quaint and charming, and speak of a much simpler time when a small card in full color illustrating a little fantasy carried a lot of emotional weight and impact. This was long before movies, telephones, television, computers, instant messaging, Twitter. I can just imagine the thrill of opening a letter (with a handwritten address and a real stamp!) to find a little treasure inside from someone dear. Sweet.

all images courtesy New York Public Library

If you celebrate Easter, I hope it's happy!

If not, I hope these little images will bring a smile and knowledge

that Spring really is just around the corner!

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

in 2010, it's:

Kit Golson Design

for elegant, sustainable and pragmatic

Chic Provence Interior Design