The October Sale!!!

Well, here we are in October. Can you believe it is holiday season already? I am going to get prepared for the holidays early this year. I spent three weeks last year trying to find non-LED lights in Paris for the Christmas tree. It was a bloody disaster, as you recall. A Halloween pumpkin in Paris? You will probably have to make do with a large squash. A Thanksgiving turkey? Don’t hold your breath.

However, I will say that Paris is chock full of the accoutrements for the holidays and they do it better than anyone else. Tablecloths, soup tureens, serving platters, monogrammed napkins, dessert forks, crystal glasses… Everything you need for the holidays.

And that brings us to the theme of the October sale. The fall holidays! So let’s get started…

The October sale starts this Friday, October 9^th, at 10 AM Pacific Standard Time.

As always, I have my favorites…

For the past 20 years, I have had a small obsession with antique paisley. There is just something about the colors, the design and the je ne sais quoi. I have a small collection of  tablecloths, pillows etc. I share this antique obsession with one of my favorite designers, Martin Lawrence Bullard. Let’s take a look at the guestroom of his Hollywood Hills home…

 

How gorgeous! The rich colors are everything. I keep a paisley hanging over the back of my Napoleon III style chaise in my living room. Love love love. I plan to use one of my paisleys for the tablecloth for this year’s Thanksgiving. And guess what? You can as well because I have two huge paisleys available for the October sale! I found both of these paisley in Paris. The first one is in absolute mint condition with beautiful fringe. The second one is definitely more bohemian, circa 1800s, with the most charming ball fringe. Usually these paisley sell for thousands of dollars but I found them for a good price so I can pass on the deal to you which I love doing! Take a look…

 

Next up is a truly remarkable piece. A mustard yellow Provençal antique soup tureen. I’m not sure if it gets better than this. Three words: Butternut Squash Soup. Take a look...

 

 

 

Sticking with our autumnal color theme is a set of green escargot plates. I almost had a heart attack when I saw these. Could not be more charming and there is a set of five! My friend Adrienne thought these would be great for deviled eggs as well and I have to agree. When not in use, I would hang these on the walls of a kitchen.

 

 

The holidays are all about entertaining and I always get excited about the holiday hors d’oeuvres. I love to put together a charcuterie tray and cheese platter. My mother always taught me that presentation is as important as the hors d’oeuvres themselves. So, I have found the greatest sets of hors d’oeuvre forks and knives for the October sale. Take a look…

 

 

I am always on the lookout for interesting serving platters and I was truly pleased when I saw this Ironstone oval fish platter. I just love the shape and the size! It doesn’t just have to be for fish, I think it would look great with holiday side dishes (cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, stuffing) as well. This might be one of my favorite pieces.

 

The October sale has other items that are fantastic as well. I found one of the most charming paintings that I’ve ever seen. It incorporates everything I like about life. White roses and Chinese blue and white pots. This little painting really has a palpable wow factor.

 

 

I also have a very special cabbage ware tea/coffee set. Cabbage ware was popular in the 1960s amongst the uber chic social butterflies… Jackie Kennedy, C.Z. Guest, the Duchess of Windsor. Tory Burch has brought the cabbage ware craze back to life with her Dodie Thayer cabbage ware line. And as luck would have it, I found a vintage set of Portuguese cabbage ware! Take a look…

 

I am always on the hunt for sunburst mirrors. However, I always feel like they are not quite right. I either don’t like the shape of the sunburst, the gold gilt is tacky, or it is not quite the right size. I found one in an antique shop in St. Germain in Paris that was perfect. It was about 5 feet in circumference, circa 1700s and only cost $120,000. Ugh! Why does everything that I love the most have to cost so much money? So, I have to just look at that sunburst mirror from afar. The good news is that I found another one the very next weekend that is beautiful, the perfect shape, the perfect size, the perfect gold gilt and does not cost the price of a starter home. I think you guys will love it! Take a look…

 

So that’s a little sneak peek of Friday’s sale. There is a lot more and yes I will always have a collection of chinoiserie on the sale. How could I not? The sale starts promptly at 10 AM, Friday, October 9!

Happy shopping!

 

The September Sale!

 

Bonjour from Paris!

The City of Light has been dormant for the past month for “vacances” but now Paris is definitely jumping again. Kids are back in school (thank God), restaurants are open again (merci Dieu), florist have re-opened their doors (hallelujah) and I am sure this first weekend of September the farmers market vendors and flea market vendors will have a fresh batch of produce and antiques (hot diggity)!

I always feel like September is the perfect time to regroup and… Decorate. At least that is what happens at our house. Decorate to get ready for the holidays. Call me crazy but this is how my mind works. I have even contemplated what tablecloth I’m going to use for Thanksgiving… And it’s only September. In case you are wondering, I’m going to use a thick antique paisley that I have had for years as the tablecloth. Now I just have to figure out how to find a Thanksgiving Turkey in Paris!

So here we are… September… and guess what? It’s time for another sale! This is a very exciting sale for me because I really think I have pulled some great pieces together for all of you. The September Sale starts Saturday, September 5, 2015 at exactly 10AM Pacific Standard Time!

This sale is all about collections. Adding to your collection or starting a collection. My mother always loves pairs and collections of three or five. I like collections of 15 or more. Why have one chinoiserie box when you could have 40?

This collecting enthusiasm is shared amongst some of the greats. Bunny Mellon was known for her vast collections including her circa 1775 Chinese “tobacco leaf” porcelain service. Jacques Garcia, the king of all collectors, cherishes his 18^th-century “oiseau” Sèvres dinner service. Timothy Corrigan collects obliesks and French earthenware. Jackie Kennedy Onassis collected 17^th-century animal drawings. The Duchess of Windsor had a charming collection of 11 needlepoint pug dog pillows. Martha Stewart collects… Well, everything but I’m particularly fond of her Fire King collection. Oscar de la Renta and interior designer Mark D. Sikes share the same glorious love of collecting blue-and-white.

Personally, I have always been drawn to chinoiserie… Boxes and trays mostly. There is something so chic about the black lacquer with the gold touches and the charming scenes. French and Chinese at the same time. Love! So for this sale, I have something for all of you. 19 pieces in all! Box collections, trays, scalloped dishes, even a candy box… All interesting shapes, sizes and beautiful scenery. One set even has a rare pink color. The chinoiserie tray is absolutely out of this world!

 

 

 

This was a particularly lucky month because I found a little treasure trove of my favorite 17^th-century blue-and-white faience platters with the little basket center design from Rouen, France. As many as I sell to all of you, I keep the same amount for myself. One for you, one for me. :-) I plan on covering the entire wall of my kitchen or dining room with these platters. I just love the “much loved” look of these platters… The cracks, the chips and even the staples. If you want to start your collection, rest assured that there will be more of it in my future sales also. Every antique vendor within a 300 km radius is on the lookout for more of these platters for me because they know I just love them. There are three sets in this month’s sale.

 

A third little collection we are amassing for the sale are these darling dinner bells. I consulted with my friend Heather (lostinarles.blogspot.com) who is an expert in all things Provence and she believes that these bells are definitely from Provence but the ones with the hat could be from Brittany. What she does know for sure is that they are definitely peasants in traditional dress. All of the bells are in perfect order and I don’t think anything could be more charming. This is a great start to a collection. There are two sets of three.

 

 

Continuing with our collecting theme, I found these Provençal yellowware plates with handles. They are stamped “Dieulefit” which means “God made it.” If you remember from the last sale, I had the coffee and tea set. If these don’t scream “country French” I don’t know what does. I thought that they would be a perfect salad plate. I am definitely going to be on the lookout for more of this mustard yellowware.

 

When I saw these turquoise blue opaline vases, I almost had a fleamarketing heart attack. These are very rare and difficult to find a pair of. In fact, I’ve never even see them at a fleamarket before. So of course, I had to have them… For you guys. :-) Can you imagine flowers in them! Gorgeous.

 

When my mother and I were sourcing antiques in France for our shop, the very first thing that we bought was an entire set of this green faience. When we brought it back to our shop in Santa Barbara, we opened our doors for our premier party and the dishes were bought within five minutes. They were the star of the show. A few months later, the interior designer who bought them displayed them at the Greystone Showcase House in Los Angeles and then, voilà, they appeared on the cover of Veranda magazine. Our very own dishes! So you can imagine how pleased I was when I saw this beautiful platter. I will definitely keep my eye out for more of these, so we can build a collection.

 

 

You know I always have my favorites and this month I have three. My first favorite piece for this month’s sale is a French manifest printed on a silk scarf. A wonderful piece of French memorabilia that will add instant charm.

 

My second favorite piece is this Art Nouveau bonbon jar. It is in perfect condition and I just loved the hand-painted gold with little flowers and a bee. Wouldn’t black licorice look stunning in this jar? I also thought it would be chic at your bar filled with ice for cocktails.

 

 

My third favorite piece is this sailboat painting. I just thought the colors of the sailboat and the sky were dreamy and you know this girl loves her paintings!

 

Fancy-ing things up a bit I found these chic black and bronze French Empire sconces. I would use a candle but they are also capable of being wired.

 

Continuing our hoity toity theme, look at these beautiful Art Nouveau bronze candlesticks. Love!

 

Getting back to our Provençal roots, one of my dearest items on the sale is this vintage French wicker glass bottle. Why is it so special? I started collecting these bottles when I first saw them at my favorite interior designer’s shop. His name was Dan Marty. I believe he was hands-down the best California style interior designer and has inspired me since I first saw his shop in Newport Beach, California when Gracie was in kindergarten! Unfortunately I just found out that Dan Marty passed away. A legend and a true gentleman has moved on. The interesting thing about this bottle that it was used in the 1940s to carry holy water from Lourdes, France. Love it!

Dan Marty Design. See the wicker bottles!

 

There is definitely something for everyone in this upcoming sale with every price point. I will be doing some sneak peaks on my Instagram so be sure to follow me HERE.

The sale starts Saturday, September 5, 2015 at exactly 10 AM Pacific Standard Time. Tell your friends, your neighbors… So fun so fun!

Illustration by Elisha.

coucou! the august sale starts today...

 

 

The shop opens today, Wednesday, August 5, for my August sale!

10 AM Pacific Standard Time!

These past few weeks have been a blast collecting new items. There are 37 new pieces! Today on the blog I will give you a little preview of my favorites.

 But first, I have to tell you a little exciting fleamarket story… You all will die!

This past Friday I had a little “incident.” Truth be told, I nearly choked to death. With ALS, your muscles get weak and I guess my throat muscles are getting a little weaker because it’s a tad bit difficult to swallow and if I swallow incorrectly… All hell breaks loose. I have no muscles to cough so blah blah blah. I managed to make it through the evening with the help of a ridiculously expensive machine that we have to keep at the house called a Cough Assist machine which I had to use at least 20 times that night. The good news is that the machine worked and I didn’t die. Surprise, I’m still here. Don’t worry, the story gets better, much better.

So, Saturday rolls around and I am just very nervous about eating, swallowing… And surviving. So, what’s a girl to do? She takes an emergency crazy pill and sleeps the day off because there’s really no other alternative. Sunday morning my caregivers arrived to take me to the fleamarket with my husband and I didn’t know if I really wanted to go. That was a first for me. Was I too scared? What if I coughed/choked? What if I died? What if I had a panic attack? I thought about it for about five minutes and then I realized, “So what? So what if I choke? So what if I have a panic attack? So what if I die? If any of this is going to happen it might as well be at a Parisian fleamarket, right?” Yes, I have these little conversations with myself all the time and I agreed with myself… If anything bad was going to happen it might as well be at my happy place… The fleamarket. So, off we go.

We are halfway through the fleamarket and everything has been easy peasy, thank God. Now, sometimes flea markets are good and sometimes they are not so good. This particular fleamarket on Sunday was fantastic. I was shopping up a storm. At one particular vendor, I spied with my little eyes, a set of the most gorgeous crystal wine glasses. I said to my caregiver, “Oh my God, those are gorgeous… Grab them!” As he was reaching to pick them up, another hand reached to grab them as well! I had my hat on low, as usual, so I could not see who it was grabbing for my glasses! The woman who had my glasses in her hands said to me, “Yes, they are beautiful.” I said to her without looking up, “Do you think they are very old?” She asked the vendor their history and he said that they were 19^th-century Sevres. The woman said to me, “Ahh, they are Sevres. We have the same taste. Very good taste.” At that point, after hearing her voice more, I thought to myself, “I know that voice.” I decided that I would peek up from my hat to see if my suspicions were correct. They were… That voice that was talking to me at the fleamarket about the beautiful 19^th-century Sevres crystal glasses that we shared a love for was no other than… Catherine Deneuve!

 

I literally almost had a heart attack. And to answer all of your questions, “No, I did not buy the glasses and no, I did not take a picture with her.” I would never take away antique crystal glasses from France’s national treasure and I did not want to draw any attention to her so I did not ask for photo even though I wanted to. She had escaped being recognized thus far at the fleamarket and I was not going to spoil her anonymity. Here she was at a semi-crappy fleamarket in the 14^th arrondissement of Paris on a Sunday morning with her Sunday morning hair and Sunday morning sun dress. It was obvious she did not expect to be recognized. Here’s the best part… As she was holding two of the glasses in each of her hands, she had a lit cigarette dangling from her lips… And was talking with the cigarette in her mouth! I thought to myself, “You are the coolest thing I’ve ever laid eyes on in my entire life.”

So, the moral to the story is: Overcome your fears and just live your life as if nothing was wrong because you never know what’s on the other side of that anxiety. I was scared to go to the fleamarket but I did it and boy am I happy that I did!

Okay, now we need to talk sale! I am so excited for all of you to see the new pieces. Once again, I have searched high and low all over France to curate a special collection for you.

As usual, I have my favorites…

I think it’s quite obvious by now that I have a small obsession with chinoiserie and this month is no exception. In fact, I even have more this time! Chinoiserie boxes, trays, cups and even a very special Chinoiserie match striker! Take a look…

 

 

Have you ever felt that you could love an inanimate object? I have and it’s usually either furniture, dishes or paintings. This month I have three extraordinary paintings for you that I actually got goosebumps over! All from the 1920s France, the colors in the impasto are what make my heart swoon. French blues, mustard yellows, mushroom, verdant countryside green, burgundy, pink, Tuscan orange and red. All of the paintings depict a slice of French everyday life. Take a look…

 

 

Speaking of painting, I have been searching for quite a while to find antique and vintage painters pallets and finally I found some! Take a look…

 

 

My other favorite items of this month’s sale are the French faience platters from Rouen, France from the 1700s! I have been seeing these at flea markets here and there but they are usually so expensive but I finally found some that are reasonably priced… And I have two sets! In my opinion, I would buy both sets and display them on a wall in the kitchen. Take a look…

 

 

Ever since I saw that kitchen at L’Hotel Particulier in the south of France with those black tôle trays I have been on a mission to find some. And I did! A huge black tray, a round red tray and a charming green tôle tray with bumblebees! Take a look…

 

 

 

 

There is lots more including bamboo mirrors, an extraordinary cobalt blue apothecary jar from a Parisian pharmacy, curtain tiebacks, a minimalist match striker, café au lait bowls and more more more!

The shop opens today, Wednesday, August 5, 10 AM Pacific Standard Time!

To shop the shop, click HERE at 10am PST!

I hope you like everything. XOXO