On a high note

Last week I was so thrilled to have found a place that would take in my furniture. I was all set to bring my items to Rustic and Refined Interiors this past Tuesday, but it turns out life had other plans in mind for me.

My father had been in the hospital sick with cancer for several months, and though we knew the end was near, nobody knew precisely when. The call came last Sunday.

I'm here in Ontario and my family is in Montreal. I'm far and it's hard to get away to visit, so I felt helpless. I wish I could have been by his side. But then again, I had made the trip a few weeks ago. When I saw him then, even though the disease somehow made him suffer from a form of dementia, we were still able to have a good conversation and share some laughs. When I left, I said I loved him and deep down in my heart I said good-bye as I knew this was the last time I would see him...I'm at peace knowing that my last words to him were "I love you".

This week was a whirlwind: travel arrangements, getting the girls home from university, making arrangements for all the furry critters at home, packing, etc. Once in Montreal, I was the one to go and make all the funeral arrangements with my stepmother. Then the dreaded funeral day came. Getting dressed. Going for breakfast. Arriving at the funeral home. Greeting visitors. Making small talk with people you don't know. All the while trying to hold it together.

I did fine until the end of the ceremony. My brother was in charge of the music. You see, my father loved jazz and classical music. And so, very appropriately, my brother chose "What a Wonderful Life" by Louis Armstrong to conclude the ceremony. At the best of times, that song touches me to the core of my being, but on that day, it was the key to the floodgate. The tears came uncontrollably. My sweet daughter came to sit by me and held me.

Through my tears, I tried to focus on the words, and I then realized that my father did have a wonderful life. He laughed. A lot. And he made so many people laugh. He was a "bon vivant", a jokester, always coming up with a line, always trying to crack you up. Everyone who knew him said it. In fact, he ended all our phone calls with a joke. On a high note. And by the time the song ended, I was smiling. Remembering the high notes.

Have you ever noticed how Louis Armstrong also finishes the song on a high note?

"Ooooh yeaaaah!"

A fitting tribute.

Rustic and Refined Interiors

I found a new, wonderful store in Waterdown, Ontario, that sells repainted furniture:

 I paid them a visit, introduced myself and explained that I loved to redo furniture and would they be interested in taking some of my pieces. One of the owners, Bobbi-Lynn, asked me to email her some pictures, which I promptly did when I got home. I got a reply saying they were impressed and willing to take any and all of my pieces! I'm thrilled beyond words! I'm looking forward to a long, successful working relationship with them.

They sell more than furniture, as they also take in many different items handcrafted by local artisans. I love the whole concept of the store and their philosophy on upcycling rather than discarding.

Here is the link to their website, so you can view everything they sell.

www.rusticandrefinedinteriors.com

I also made jewelry for a while and tried to sell it on Etsy, but there are so many other jewelry sellers on Etsy, my sales were rather slow. So I mentioned to the store owner that I also made jewelry and she asked me for pictures. After viewing the pictures, she asked to also bring in the jewelry so she can take a look. It would be great if they decide to sell it, as I would love to get back to making jewelry during the winter months, when it's too cold to paint in the garage, lol!

Here are a few pics of my jewelry:

 If you're ever in Waterdown, Ontario, drop by Rustic and Refined Interiors and say hello!

Nicole
xxx

Random musings and bit more of Paris for you

What a lovely day it is today, just a bit cool, perfect for being outside. Tomorrow, we're going to spend the day with our daughters who are at university about an hour and a half away from here. Can't wait, I miss them so much! It's been so strange and lonely having both of them gone.

Thankfully I'm keeping busy by painting furniture and I also took on a new Mama cat to foster for our local animal shelter. Her name is Kisses and she had three beautiful kittens on Monday. I saw two of them being born. What a special treat. I so enjoy watching them grow.

Unfortunately, one of them took sick yesterday. She wasn't thriving, she was dehydrated and her breathing was laboured, so I called the shelter and we made the decision to take her to the vet. She is now in an incubator being treated and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. She is seemingly feisty so this is giving me hope.

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I thought I'd share a few more pictures of Paris with you. I took way too many, because I wanted to remember every sight, every bit of the beauty I witnessed. Paris has such a rich history, there are visual treasures recounting it everywhere you look. I wonder if Parisians, in fact all Europeans, get blasé with it all or if they appreciate the wealth of culture and history that surround them. I'd like to think they do. I know I would.

A window display at the famous pastry shop "La Durée", a feast for the eyes as well as for the palate.

The famous gargoyles at Notre-Dame

A beautiful door handle gracing someone's home

Details of the Alexander the III bridge, probably one of the most beautiful bridges in the world. The bullrushes light up at night.

A ballerina posing in front of the Eiffel Tower. I wanted to have the focus on the shoe and the Eiffel Tower blurry in the back, but the ballerina moved right after this shot. (I have a fascination with pointe shoes, so this was a delightful photo op for me, combining two amazing elements!)

The vault that runs around Place des Vosges

 A pigeon sunning himself on the edge of the patio at the musée d'Orsay, with Paris as the background. You can see the white Sacré-Coeur church way back on the top of the hill, in the Montmartre area.

Beautiful marble detail on the floor of the Pantheon.

 Metro entrance designed by Hector Guimard, master of the Art Nouveau style. (Similar to a metro entrance in Montreal donated by Paris, in the same design. I blogged about it here.) I absolutely love Art Nouveau.

Mosaic details of a church in Montmartre

Close up of the entrance to the Palais de Versailles, honouring the King Sun.

Details of a door at the Palais. I just love the colours! 

I will have to paint some furniture in these colours.

 Marie-Antoinette's intertwined initials on the stairs at the Petit Trianon. Such history!

Swans just enjoying the pleasant weather in one of the fountain pools at the Palais. Not a bad life.

 The ceiling and chandelier at the Opéra Garnier. The ceiling was painted by Chagall. The chandelier weighs several tonnes. This is the opera house that inspired The Phantom of the Opera. There is actually a subterranean manmade lake under the Opera! We didn't know what to expect when we visited the opera, but we were wowed by it all! Quite an amazing place. Next time I would love to see a ballet there. The theatre is so spectacular, it's just as much a part of the show I think!

A gelato ice cream cone, but no, they don't just serve you a scoop plopped on a cone, they make it look like a rose! How civilized!

Young people spotted on our nighttime Seine cruise enjoying a meal and some wine, and raising a cheerful toast to us. There is quite the night life along the Seine!

So much to see, so much to do! There was never a dull moment. I'd go back in a heartbeat!

A Life Well Lived

Ray Staples

November 12, 1919 – July 16, 2012

Ray Staples was a designer extraordinaire, a force of nature, a broad in the best and true sense of the word. She lived the type of life I would like to live, filled with humour, honesty, love, style and adventure. And she had quite the life and career.

I knew her from her many appearances on the Toronto TV show "Cityline". She always had the best quotes for the viewers and audience members who would ask her questions. Here are just a few:

"Peach is nothing more than pukey pink."

"Decorating rules are like dieting. If it's working for you, then okay. If it doesn't, then drop the damn thing and have a booze!"

"I bully my clients to use the colour that I think is right. I've been there, done that. For God's sake, ask for my advice, then take it. Don't give me a hard time."

And whenever someone would ask if they should worry about the wood finishes not matching in a room, she would always reply: "All the trees in the forest don't match, do they? Then don't worry about it."

I remember someone asking her once on the show if a busy wallpaper in a small powder room would make the room feel smaller, she replied: "If you like the paper, then go ahead. The room is still going to be the same size no matter what."

And she was good at her job. The fact that she told it like it is only made her more endearing. I adored her and would always watch the show when she was on. I learned to have more confidence in my own tastes and intuitions thanks to her. I learned to listen to my heart.

If you want to read more about her fabulous life (and you should): please go to this website for her obituary:

http://raystaples.rdiv.com/

You can also read more of her quotes in this post written by Margot Austin, magazine editor and stylist:

http://www.margotaustin.ca/blog/tag/ray-staples

Hopefully reading about Ray will leave you with just a tad more insight about how you should live and decorate, just like she did, by taking the same approach to decorating as to life, with full force and unbridled enthusiasm, all while staying true to yourself.

A "new" coffee table and why it's called Paris Grey

I haven't painted furniture in a few weeks. I'm in withdrawal. First we were in Paris during the first two weeks of August as you all know, then the week-end after, I was out of town visiting family. Finally, last week, I was busy getting my youngest daughter ready for  her first year of college and my older one for her 4th year (empty nester boohoo!). When all the dust (figurative and literal) settles, I'm hoping to get back to it.

This is a piece I painted before our holiday. It was a curbside "purchase". The best kind, lol! It's a nice solid wood French provincial table.

Other than the crayon marks left on it by a overzealous drawer and a few scratches (which, let's face it, are a bonus when you want a distressed look), there is absolutely nothing wrong with it.

And here it is all done:

I painted the table with Paris Grey and the edge and the wood accents on either side with Old White, a little distressing, followed by clear and dark wax. A beautiful, easy transformation.

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Speaking of Paris Grey, when I was in Paris, I saw first hand why Annie Sloan was inspired to call that colour after the city of lights.

I found it on a door at the Palais de Versailles.

On this gorgeous column at the Opéra Garnier.

On the walls of this beautiful restaurant at the Musée d'Orsay.

However, the most spectacular example of this grey was in a room, also at the Musée d'Orsay, called "Salles des Fêtes" (Festivity Room). This is a source photo, as we were not allowed to take pics. You can't quite tell, but it's exactly the same as Paris Grey. This room was jaw dropping. You can book parties in there. Can you imagine?

It is so spectacular with the gold.


Linking up to:

Ivy and Elephants
2805 Potpourri Friday
Thrifty Decor Chick Miss Mustard Seed Furniture Feature Friday
Under The Table and Dreaming

Wow wow wow.

Bonjour!

Hubby and I came back from Paris on Friday afternoon. We didn't want to leave. The trip was that amazing. Even though we miss our girls and our pets, we didn't want to leave.

I fell in love with Paris. Hard. We promised ourselves we will be back. It was too glorious. Paris is so filled with treasures, we went from wonder to wonder. And in two weeks, we saw a lot, but we didn't even see it all. So many sights, sounds, smells and tastes. (Oh those croissants at breakfast! I get hungry just thinking about their amazing flaky, buttery yumminess.)

I didn't know how I was going to express how much I loved and enjoyed our trip, until we stopped for ice cream at a Häagen-Dazs ice cream restaurant (yes, ice cream restaurant) on the Champs-Élysées. There we had the most decadent  ice cream desserts of our lives. (So decadent that we decided to make it our lunch and only have a light dinner.) But that was not what made me able to sum up the amazement of our trip. No, it was a tiny girl, no more than 5 years old, dressed in a pretty pink and white striped dress, her brown curly hair up in a pony tail, who summed it up for us. We're sitting on the terrace, enjoying our ice cream delight, when she steps out of the wide open restaurant doors. Her parents are just a few steps away at the cash, paying for their ice cream. She's holding a chocolate ice cream cone sprinkled with candy. The ice cream is already melting, dripping on her hand, and she's attempting to lick up the drips and wiping her hand with a napkin with her free hand. She keeps licking away and she's clearly enjoying her treat, when she stops dead in her tracks and takes a moment to look at the cone. And there it comes. "Wow wow wow", she says from the heart, to nobody in particular. And then starts enjoying her frozen concoction again. Her parents come out shortly after and off they go.

My husband and I laughed to ourselves, the only witnesses to such a heartfelt moment.

And that's how we felt about our whole Paris experience. Wow wow wow. Not one, or two, but three wows. If you had seen that little munchkin's face staring at that ice cream, you would have know that that's saying something.

I leave you with a few pictures of Paris. I hope to regale you with stories and more pics in the days and weeks and perhaps months to come, because I took way too many pictures, thinking it would capture everything I felt and experienced while I was there. While it comes close, nothing beats being there and seeing it for oneself.

Notre-Dame Cathedral (oh those gargoyles!)

Arc de Triomphe

The star of Paris, la Tour Eiffel, or La Grande Dame, as the Parisians affectionately call her.

Statues outside of the Musée d'Orsay

Medici Fountain, in the Luxembourg Gardens, so romantic!

Flower urn with cherubs in the Luxembourg Gardens, with the Eiffel Tower peeking out in the background

Does it need any introduction? It's red. And it's a mill.

The Gardens at Versailles. Breathtaking.

The Gardens and Fountains at Versailles

The obelisk at Place de la Concorde, with, again, la Grande Dame, and another dame (sorry don't know who she is!)

The Thinker by Rodin, at the Rodin Museum

Wow wow wow indeed.