it's cream, it's stone, it's toast, it's cappuccino.
It's, well, it's magic."
~Albert Hadley
New Year's weekend was an incredible flurry of events and I have not had time until this moment to sit down and write a post for you! Yesterday I was out of town with my Mum - just for the day - which was lovely. I don't know why but I always feel like going somewhere in January - whether it is on a big holiday or just on a small day trip. Maybe it's the chaos of December, but January feels like a time for winding down and getting used to the feeling of a new year. Over the weekend Barbara at 21 Rosemary Lane chose me for the Blog on Fire award! I haven't had a chance to say thankyou yet (so sorry!) and to pass the award along to five other beautiful bloggers with a few facts about myself in the mix. Here goes!...
1. My favorite colors - Pink and Green
2. My favorite pastimes - Drawing, Antiquing, Photography
3. My current favorite song - Shelter by Birdy
4. My favorite childhood story - Gwinna by Barbara Helen Berger
5. My favorite dessert - Cheesecake
My Five Beautiful Bloggers!
1. Country Style Chic is a gorgeous blog designed by Melissah! It displays beautiful photos of homes and vignettes that are fresh, elegant, and picturesque. Everytime I visit I leave with a longing for Spring.
2. Inspired Design is a blog I absolutely love to visit because there is always something new and delightful to see - whether it's a gorgeous interior, a classically beautiful outfit, or an inspiring piece of photography. I always leave with new inspiration in my pocket!
3. Champagne and Macarons is as refined and lovely as it's title. It combines the timeless beauty of old-world french elegance with modern touches here and there to create a presence and atmosphere that is absolutely captivating!
4. French at Heart is a photography blog featuring stunning photos of France and all things French. The photos at French at Heart are so beautiful and moody - it is almost like being in France itself!
5. Belle Francaise Interiors is a blog I recently discovered and love! With beautiful photos of interiors and vignettes coupled with pictures of the author's stall in the Dupre's Antique Market in Marietta Georgia - I always complete my perusal of Belle Francaise feeling a little heartsick that I can't be standing among the beautiful things in the photos!
And now for the photos I have created for today's post! I love the color ivory - I love it in furniture, on the walls, in paintings and textiles. I think it is universal and timeless. What I love more than anything is when ivory is combined with touches of gold. In the original finish on some painted antique pieces of furniture such as french or florentine - the combination of cream and gold is exquisite and can have the effect of softening and brightening a room at the same time! Here are my photos of ivory and gold objects in my home - some, like the pretty Tocca perfume, and lace scarf, were gifts this past Christmas. Enjoy and Happy New Year!
Drawing by Jennelise
Hi Jennelise. Thank you so much for passing the award along to me. I'm honored to receive it from you since you have such a beautiful blog. I hope you have a beautiful new year! xxoo, Lulu
ReplyDeleteOh, WOW! I just came over to say hi, and read that you named me in your top 5!!!!! I am touched and honored!! Thank you, Jen!! You are awesome!!!
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dawne
Bonjour Jennelise ~ thank you for naming my blog in your top five!
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautiful blog you have. It's always wonderful to meet new friends.
Wishing you a most beautiful 2012! xoxo, B
A well-deserved award dear Jennelise! A Happy New Year to you! I am a big fan of sweet Dawne's creations at French at Heart (waving hello), and I will visit the other blogs you recommend.
ReplyDeleteYou bring such beauty to the world...love these photos and the colors. So soothing and romantic..
And I adore Tocca as well, but they discontinued my favorite, Touch.
A lovely weekend to you,
xoxo,
- Irina
You're very welcome Lulu, Dawne, and B! Your blogs are SO lovely! Thanks for the sweet wishes Irina - I am working SO hard to get the etsy store opened. There are so many things to sort out! I had not idea :) Luckily I have a wonderful friend who is helping me tackle them one by one. Soon! I promise! Take care (BTW I loooove your blog - I'm sorry I can't leave comments on it. I still haven't figured out why.)
ReplyDeleteJennelise
such a cute blog! love love love. and I am a big Birdy fan as well!
ReplyDeletewww.innermoon.org
I have finally finished going through each of your over-100 posts from last year to this first for 2012 and it's been such a treat. We need to sometimes shelter our eyes from images and photos in the harsh news stories of the day. Coming to a blog like yours is a soothing balm to all that's noisy, stark and jolting.
ReplyDeleteIt would be difficult to name any one post of yours that I liked more than another but, just from September to January, what stands out in my mind at this moment is the gossamer photos you took of your mum's room when it was swathed in plastic sheeting during a painting project. Those shots were ethereal. I also was taken by your sister in what was, to me, her very French black, complete with lacy umbrella against the backdrop of yellow, turning leaves. I lived once where a ginko tree would shed a carpet of pale yellow in November of each year and I loved that tree. Just tonight, I also very much enjoyed that you shared with us that amazing collection of movie costumes. Of course, we-who-love-pink cannot resist your pink Christmas. I could go on; as you can see, it's impossible to pick a favorite.
Over the months, you are getting better and better at what you do here. You've created a simply lovely blog. To think that you are yet so young makes one wonder how far you can go!
A humorous note: I was once a young woman your age who had much fun moving into her first apartment (in a series of them over the successive years) and decorating it precisely how I desired. I had a neighbor, older than me by far, who was British and, somehow, she took a 1940s-era plain rental and turned it into an English cottage, replete with cabbage roses, chintz and fluffy white curtains in the windows. I'd never seen anything more beautiful at the time. Turns out, after living in a sea of browns and leather, due to her husband's tastes, she decided to for once decorate to her own liking after divorce.
I don't think it has to be divorce that frees a woman up to have the things around her that she loves but, I will say, being married to a man who is a minimalist...and who would be happy living in a glass and chrome New York City industrial loft with a color scheme of black and silver (yuck!)...has given me big challenges in how I decorate my home. I look at your gorgeous white and pink with a bit of longing...as I also have three large dogs who have free rein in our house!...but we compromise where we can, and the bedrooms are MINE as is the dining room, so I do manage to have my collectibles, pale pinks, pale blues and whites in at least PART of my surroundings. And, the minimalist man has a soft spot for growing roses, with no complaints for bowlfuls of blooms wherever there's a place indoors for them, so pretty things do find peaceful co-existence in a blended household.
I'm rambling, my head swimming with your bountiful feast of sumptuous photos and drawings. Can't wait to see what you'll come up with in 2012. Thank you again for sharing the beauty of so many different things and I wish you all good luck with your etsy store. Like your roses, you and your career are "in bloom."
I have an addendum to my other too-lengthy comment...and then I'll stop with the too-lengthy comments!
ReplyDeleteSomewhere I guessed you were perhaps Canadian. I know it's a generalization, but anyone I've ever known...or known about...from Canada have been the most refined and gracious people. I've only traveled to British Columbia, when I was a teen long before you were born, but Victoria is etched in my brain forever. I hope to one day go to Quebec and, of course, other provinces (Prince Edward Island comes to mind, having been a "Anne of Green Gables" devotee).
I'll be crossing fingers and toes that you get your trip to Europe sooner than later. I got there at age 21 but I wish I'd been a bit older, to have prepared more indepth for what I really wanted to see and do. I didn't have your knowledge of art and antiques and, although I definitely remember pouring over intricate Belgian lace in Brussels, I didn't yet have an appreciation for Venetian glass or fine English china, much less French antiques in the Louvre or the singular colors and architecture of Provence. Don't wait too long, but also don't rush it. Save your money, have a dedicated travel plan; keep studying. It'll happen, Jennelise. Work it out so that if, for instance, you're in Paris, you have plenty of days/weeks if at all possible. I know this is difficult when you have employment and only so much "vacation" time off. I also was a working girl in an office at that age but my employer generously let me have a month, although the time was unpaid (ouch!). In France, you need to be able to get out to Versailles, which I never did. For you, and your heightened aesthetic sensibilities, you must not miss a thing because what you'll bring back with you...and I'm not just talking about objects/purchases...will foster all sorts of inspiration and new creativity.
I wanted to give substantive feedback, since you've asked for it from your readers. You're doing a great job!
Thankyou for your comments! You are all so sweet :) Vicky I am INCREDIBLY flattered, touched, and surprised by your wonderful 'comments'. I read them through twice and you don't know how lovely you made me feel :) Thankyou so much for your kind thoughts and encouragement. I need every last word and I am so happy that you enjoyed my pictures! It is very fun for me to hear which posts people like the most! I have been to Victoria and it is very beautiful I agree - one day I will make it to France and you are right it will take an ENORMOUS amount of planning :) I appreciated your stories about decorating your own home and your love of romantic styles. Believe it or not it is hard to find truly romantic old pieces where I live - it is an ongoing quest that my Mum and I enjoy together. Thankyou again and have a wonderful week! I hope to hear from you again soon!
ReplyDeleteWarm regards,
Jennelise
Good Morning Jennelise! Your blog is beautiful and your pictures are gorgeous. Thank you for sharing them with us. I will be back for another visit...
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