Inspiration No. 8 - French Inspired - Interiors & Recipes

I've had a busy week trying to sort out more of my mothers furniture, my home currently feels like "The old curiosity shop" and I simply have to start moving things out so I can move forward.  Due to this extra work I had little time to post last week and missed out on my  regular weekly inspiration post so I've been rushing around the Internet the past few hours to find some great inspiration for you. I wanted to focus on a French theme today, interiors, food and even a fabulous brocante tour in France.

French style is easy to re-create, it can be opulent or country depending on your tastes. I myself prefer a simple country look, probably as I have a small cottage with little space. However, I also love opulence and if I had larger rooms I may choose to bring some opulence into my bedroom. Whether you choose to have a small corner of  your home in this style or a whole house, I have sourced some images that should help you on your way...

Images via: 1|2|3|4|5|6

If you love antiquities, country fairs and France, Sharon at My French Country Home has just hosted her second Brocante tour in France and has another tour organised later in September 2013. You can read about day 4 of the current tour and see more images using the link above. The tour includes a French cooking lesson in this lovely kitchen below. visits to fairs, local dealers and accommodation is in an 18th Century château in Normandy.

If you are interested in finding out more about the tour, please visit "here" or use the link above.

And now for some yummy traditional French recipes....

Cherry Clafoutis - Recipe can be found at Gourmet Baking

Creme Brulee - Recipe can be found here

French style may not always be exactly the way we envisage, my last post featured a typical Villa on the French Atlantic coast but its interior was quite a surprise and certainly there were mixed feelings about its interior. If you missed this post, You can read more here.  

I created a French feel to my bedroom with the simple addition of some old weathered shutters...Read more here.

We hope you have found lots of inspiration, I'm definitely going to make the Cherry Clafoutis. I would love to go on the Brocante tour too but NZ is such a long way from Europe, but who knows!

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French By Design - Jeanne d'Arc Living

Today I was excited to discover a website called "Jeanne d'Arc Living" with an endless range of exclusive French Style products including furniture, soft furnishings, flea market finds, handcrafted stationery, lace and much more. The products and images are so pretty and so "French", I couldn't resist sharing with you...

Bedlinen, cushions, tablecloths, towels and vintage finds are just a few of the lovely items you can find at Jeanne d'Arc Living. The site does not sell direct, however, you can find a list of their suppliers "here" or if you wish to become a retailer for their products, you can enquire "here". Jeanne d'Arc Living are worth a visit even if your merely looking for some French design inspiration. If your on Facebook you can find their page "here".

All images belong to Jeanne d'Arc Living

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At The Picket Fence

Mix of Rustic and French Style In A Designers Cottage

First I'd like to thank everyone for their kind words and condolences on the loss of my mum. I'm now trying to get back some sort of normality after caring for mum so long, but I know this will take a long time as I miss her terribly.  I hope to begin painting again soon and use it as part of the healing process. My mother asked me to throw myself into painting and I plan to do this for her, she will be my inspiration and my first exhibition to be held in New Zealand (now 2013), will be in her memory. For my first post for a few weeks, I'd like to share an inspiring interior with you.

This beautiful 1936 renovated cottage belongs to designer Jill Sharp Brinson and her husband. The house has wonderful bones, just look at those fabulous beamed ceilings.  Beams give immense character to a home and can help determine your interior design style.  I love the way Jill's incorporated iron into her decor such as the industrial table in the dining room, the gorgeous arched feature window and patio door and smaller items such as the suspended wrought iron lanterns above the dining table. All these chosen pieces perfectly compliment the rustic beams and iron balustrade in the living area.

Look for the special 'designer' touches in this home, the wooden carved doves placed along the rustic shelf  in the entrance way, the display of white porcelain on the shelf above the arched door.  For me my favourite room is the dining area with it's fitted display cabinets, I love the chicken wire detail, doesn't the wicker chair in the dining area look perfect with these cabinets. All in all, an eclectic little cottage with an distinctively "French" feel to it

I'm going to steal this lovely idea above and place a shelf above my front entrance door to display some lovely items of my mums.

Photography by Simon Upton, images via House Beautiful.

Lee

&

Poppy oxo