Wallpapering the dining room, Rustic French Chateau style and Monet's Water Lilies

 Monet's Water Lilies, painted in 1907, was just a fingertip away yesterday when I found myself chaperoning my son's high school class to Boston's Museum of Fine Arts.  There was an entire room filled with Monet's paintings, and I think this was my favorite.  We were told not to touch any of the artwork, and of course we didn't, but it felt so surreal to have this masterpiece right in front of my face without anyone watching.  It was a private moment, and quite luxurious for my soul.

Monet's purple, green and pink paint colors were luminous, and breathtaking. 

 I was very interested in how he painted his landscapes, as I relate to this stye of painting.

 Monet painted many other things besides his famous water lilies and Giverny gardens, including this "Ships in a Harbor" painted in 1873. The scene below is "The Seine at Lavacourt" painted in 1878.

 My eye was drawn to the French style at the MFA, including this ceiling treatment.

 An unexpected addition to this gallery, it was most impressive and beautiful.  

All in all, a very nice outing and one I should plan to attend on an annual basis. 

 As a college student in Boston,  I studied art, and some of our classes were held in the Museum of Fine Arts itself!  I remember learning many things, like the differences between the columns and capitols:  Ionic, Doric and Corinthian, all which came from Ancient Greek architecture.

A mini lesson for you!  

From top to bottom, Doric, Ionic and Corinthian styles.

 Moving along, I have been thinking about wallpapering or painting my dining room. 

 As I sit in the living room and look past my blue walls I can imagine a color or a pattern that pulls the robin egg color into the dining room.  Or celadon green...as the living room has both blue and green.   This paper by Laura Ashley is Summer Palace and has a background of robin egg.  It also has pink and yellow which would look really pretty with the new opaline glasses I have from the Martha Stewart sale.  But its not so hot with the purple transfer ware....and that is a dilemma.

The paper is fun and whimsical, but I fear upsetting my decorating applecart too much 

if I put it up in the dining room.  Its a paper best used for a space that doesn't need

 much decoration, and my dining room has a lot of decor packed into its four walls!

So maybe I will paint, or visit the wallpaper store in search of something that works with 

purple, green and blue.

Always decorating in my mind, its a pursuit I am passionate about. 

 My home will never stay the same, it will always be tweaked and get facelifts or minor adjustments.

I have seen pictures of it in the past and admired it thinking, oh that was so pretty, why

did I change it?  I know why, I just can't help myself!

I like too many things, and too many styles.  My current style dilemma is liking the 

rustic French country side chateau style of decor but I also am attracted to the fresher

whimsical French cottage style.  Maybe I just have to commit to one and swear off the other.

Let me show you some examples from friends and designers.

 This is the dining room of my friend from Chicago, Betsy Duggan.  She is the one who sent me some blue opaline chandelier parts years ago when I began my opaline obsession, you may recall.  Anyway, this is a dining room from her old house, and I thought it was so happy and welcoming.

A good example of Happy French Cottage style.

I loved her green Lilly of the Valley wallpaper, and the matching painted cupboards 

and  table set with pinks and blues.  Totally up my alley.

All of my opaline colors would fit right in on her table, and you can see what I mean

about them working with the Summer Palace wallpaper, can't you?

 This designer, Leslie Biggley, from thelesliestyle.com,  posted this photo recently. 
 I loved the fresh clean colors of the duck egg blue chairs and the lavender draperies 
with the floral mural wallpaper.

Its a tad too modern for me, but I love the overall look.

 Switching styles to the Rustic French Chateau look, this is a great example of what I LOVE.

But in reality I don't have stone walls (yet) and so that is mostly what is so appealing in this space.

I loved the pink touches and the overall soft French look and of course the arched windows and the genuine French doors.

This is a paired down version of the rustic French chateau look that I find appealing. 

This image is from Peeking Thru the Sunflowers.  I just wonder where all the stuff is kept?

I like a bit more decoration, but I love the rustic table with the skirted French chairs and of course the

French console with the Trumeau mirror at the far end of the room.

Hang up all my purple transfer ware plates and it essentially turns into my dining room!

Right?  I have a rustic table under the purple cloth, and a French console too.

 Imagine sitting next to me on my couch....this is what I look at. 

So I am pondering the dining room walls in my pjs.  Looking through books and old magazines

for something to inspire me...and then changing things up. 

 Two styles, two different approaches. 

 Which way will I go? I don't even know yet.

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Hunting for Vintage French Patio Furniture

 This is a story about a certain kind of old French patio furniture.  

That I was obsessing over, ever since it came on my radar after

 my obsession with Grey Gardens.  

(Read about Grey Gardens here)

I saw a chair in the dining room at Grey Gardens 

during the Edie years, and it just fascinated me.

 I thought I saw some at Martha's house too, on a porch, 

and even in her bathroom as a vanity chair.

(Martha Stewart's bathroom dressing table and chair)

It's also a story of how things come full circle sometimes, 

and you learn to embrace what you had and lost, when it comes back to you. 

 Francois Carre Sunburst chairs, also known as Pinwheel chairs.

These iconic chairs have graced patios and sunrooms of the rich and famous, and the just plain rich, ever since they were created by French designer Francois Carre, who patented the design in 1866.

They were made in both France and the United States until the 1940s.

 They have a spring mechanism on the seat and backs. This seems to be the source of failure 

and why so many are in disrepair today and need restoration. 

A garden antique friend of mine, Laurie of Fine and Elegant Antiques, spotted these chairs (above)

on a buying trip, then sent me this pic and then told me where to find them....

but she also mentioned that they had been repaired, and the

repair job wasn't very good.  However the price was good,

 for these sought after Sunbursts at $395/pair.

If you do some hunting online at the various websites after googling Francois Carre Patio Furniture,

or Sunburst Chairs, you will see eye popping prices!! And that is just not how I roll. I want to find them, and I want the price to be soooo good, it makes me giddy.  

I love the hunt, and I love a steal. 

And I know I'm not alone on that one.

 At the Martha Stewart Prop auction in Beverly Massachusetts, I spotted this set of original Francois Carre chairs in a heavy state of rust.  They belonged to the auction house owner who is holding onto them.  Seems like a lot of antique dealers hold onto them, as another dealer messaged me saying she had a complete set (also in bad shape) and if I wanted to purchase, she might be ready to let them go.

 At the beginning of the month, I spotted this pair of freshly painted Carre chairs at Brimfield and they had price tags of $550 each.  Three hours later they were gone, so someone was likely thrilled to find a pair, even at that price.

 I spotted this pair with replaced bottoms selling for $160 a pair in Rhode Island.

However I wanted a whole Sunburst chair, not a half....but the more I saw, the more

I realized they weren't chairs that stood up over time, and if I got some, they would 

likely be more garden ornaments than garden seating.

So as I considered other options that were popping up,

it seems the universe had another idea for me.

 Three summers ago, I found a wire furniture set on Craigslist that had two chairs, a settee and a pair of end tables.  They were fanciful looking, and I learned they were called Peacock Wire Patio Furniture.  The had been painted blue and were peeling, so I sprayed the settee and the end tables,

and they looked very lacy and pretty.

The pair of rusted blue chairs never got sprayed. 

We had just started creating our courtyard 

and had so many other metal chairs, that I decided to sell the Peacock chairs.

The pretty Peacock settee and end tables stayed behind to live with me.

They joined other storybook pieces, like my Marie Antoinette linen press that sat in the yard

under a tarp until she could be hoisted through the second floor window with hub's skid steer.

(Read about Marie Antoinette cabinet here)

Fast forward three years, and now I have a complete set of Peacock Wire patio furniture.

Hubs found a table and chairs at a job site he was doing some excavation at, and noticed that

the owners didn't seem to want theirs.  It was lined up holding sticks and lawn debris.

So he inquired if they would like to sell them as his wife would love them.

And they said YES.  

One very happy wife I was, after having seen so many rusted out Sunburst chairs, 

I was more than ready for a plan B. Or Plan P:  Peacock!

Now I am debating about painting them....should they stay white?

(Martha's garage full of furniture and how she paints them: click here)

 Martha Stewart Aqua (above)?

 Its in the Peacock color family....

(By the way, Martha repainted them in a camel color that I wasn't too thrilled about.

I loved her signature aqua blue color that used to be on her trim and fencing.)

But back to the Peacock set paint color...

 Classic black...a French garden green?

Or stay shabby garden chic in rusty white?

I'd love your thoughts!

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Shocking Secret to Climbing roses, Shabby French and Martha

Spring has truly arrived and Piper is enjoying it as much as I have been.  This will be the third year for my climbing rose on the old arbor.  Its the New Dawn climber and it should be doing much better than it is.....so I did some research and discovered a shocking well kept secret that may explain why my climber is not acting like a climber.  

 Its barely a third of the way up the arbor.  So what I learned was that number one, 

plant your climber practically underneath the structure you want it to climb.  

I had mine about two feet away from the arbor.  

 I had tied the branches to the arbor with garden twine almost straight up to get it going up towards the top of the arbor.  Big mistake!  Understand that there are two types of branches, the main cane and then the lateral canes.  The main cane(s) are the big branches that come from the root area and then the lateral canes are the branches that grow off the main canes and they are the only branches that the flowers grow on.  The secret is to train the main canes in a horizontal fashion with a slight angle upwards, because that is what makes the lateral canes sprout and grow and then produce flowers.

 This image from Rachel Ashwell's new book, My Floral Affair, shows an espaliered David Austin Ballerina climbing rose growing on the side of an enchanted cottage.  Look at the angle of the thick main canes.  They are more trained to an angle instead of straight up. And then you can see the multitudes of lateral canes with the blooms on them, and the lateral canes grow straight up in a vertical fashion creating a bushy full climbing rose!! 

Armed with this knowledge I went out and retrained and persuaded my main canes to go at a criss cross fashion and tied them to the arbor.  Since the bush is further away than it should be ideally, you have to allow for the canes to go vertically until you can train them horizontally.  After I trained it, I fed it with Rose Tone food and then planted another David Austin shrub rose, Queen of Sweden, next to the arbor.  That area will hopefully be filled with roses this summer.  Many people commented on my Instagram post about this secret of climbing roses, saying that they too had never heard of this, and it explained why they only had roses growing at the very top of their climbers.  See, if I had just trained the canes to get up to the top, it would only be then that the main cane would lay flat and then lateral canes would sprout and then bear flowers.  Mystery solved!

 Another one of the glories of spring is when the first flowers arrive from the lilac trees.  Lucky enough to have both purple and white, I cut a big bunch of white lilacs for mothers day and I displayed them inside of this colossal silver punch bowl I scored at the Brimfield Antique Fair.  

 Brimfield is the oldest antique fair in the country and there are thousands of vendors who set up their wares in tents along Main Street in the tiny town of Brimfield.  My favorite dealer lives in Texas and I think she has the best stuff at very good prices.  The best stuff, if you like French, Italian, Shabby Chic, Cottage, Garden etc.... Her name is Donna Corr and her booth and business is Corrabelle Rose.

I spotted my punch bowl, all tarnished, sitting on a display table in her tent.  It came with 8 punch glasses in silver plate as well.  The other treasure I took home is that huge and heavy gilded iron candelabra, which I thought would be perfect for leaving outdoors in my summer courtyard.

 Donna has lots of yummy things like tole sconces and lamps and 

wastebaskets (oh yeah I got one of those too).  And Florentine trays and tables and

 boxes (oh and um yes I got some of those as well).  She will be back in July when Brimfield

 has its summer session, so you can bet I will return as well for some

 power shopping at her delicious booth.

 There really are some spectacular vendors, and you will see the 

MOST amazing things....things from palaces and castles and chateaus!  

 This huge planter was likely the base of a pier mirror (one of those floor to ceiling type mirrors).  

I bought a few things from this vendor as well. Pamela, from Plymouth, Massachusetts, was near Donna's booth in the New England Motel lot.  

 And the entrance to a most enchanting booth, The Two Cherubs, 

featured sky high skinny shutters in turquoise that the dealer, Jenny Lunney, 

lugged home from a shopping trip to France. 

 She is also on Instagram as @jennylunney and you can see my moniker at 

the top of this photo @amymaisondecor if you want to follow us.

 Bring a folding shopping cart like this one that I use. 

 I cannot recommend it enough!  I start off with a bunch of bubble wrap

 and then a stack of kitchen hand towels for wrapping items.  

An old Vera Bradley tote bag with lots of pockets is where I stash some wet wipes, 

sunscreen, water bottles, and snacks. 

 There is my big candelabra, all tucked in safe and sound!! 

 Another shot from Corrabelle Rose.

 Parked outside of the Two Cherubs...

 If you love old things, you will certainly find something to bring home that will inspire you to redecorate or freshen up your living space, be it inside or out.

I just adored polishing up the punch bowl and adding flowers to it.

Its going to hold my mail on a daily basis so I can enjoy seeing it all the time.

Gorgeous!!

 The other fun thing I did this month was to attend the Martha Stewart Prop Sale, 

with my friend Matthew Mead.  I picked up this old french bakers rack

 that you see holding my copper collection.

 It was great fun to go and see all the stuff Martha was selling from the days of her 

tv show and things she used in books.  I recognized several of the items as did Matthew. 

Watch us walk through the auction house on our YouTube video here. 

One of the marvelous things she had up for auction was a collection of opaline glasses in various forms in colors pink and yellow.  See them on the lower shelf...the upper shelf had big goblets in pink bristol glass, and hobnail goblets in white.

 As you can see, I prevailed at auction and brought home this enchanting and rare set of french glassware. 

 Some vintage lighting was scooped up for the cottage, 

at least the one on the right.  I can imagine it in the kitchen...

 Look at the Martha stickers!  So fun!!

The bottom of each glass had a label indicating what it was and catalogued

in the Martha Prop Collection with her stamp on it as well.

 Martha's sale also had a ton of outdoor furniture that was an addition from various estates, added to sell the same day her things were auctioned off.  I came home with this cast iron coffee table base to use in the courtyard and I imagined I could add wooden planks to the top, instead of glass.

 There were so many old sets of outdoor furniture! It was really a blast looking through it all.

And on that note I will leave you and prepare another blog post on the vintage patio furniture I did just find, and the outcome of a set I had lusted after since my visit to Grey Gardens.

But before I go, how about this candelabra?

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