Bonnes Fêtes!

As 2012 comes to a close, for some of us, Christmas beckons,  and with it respite from the year's striving, followed by tallying of  accomplishments and mistakes .

Mais non, that sounds far too sober, let's have a look at Holiday windows in NewYork City, and Paris instead, yes? After all, la vie est belle....

The Cartier Mansion on NYC's 5th Ave is wrapped in sparkling Red  and crawling with  Panthers 

The Winter Holidays  are a most important time for merchants.  See how some French luxury brands  staged their store displays to entice tasteful and generous gift givers.

Dior on East 57th St. NYC juxtaposes glowing acrylic 18th century rococo and neoclassicist elements  with contemporary minimalist elegance

Cinderella's Carriage was lent by Disney, and on view at Paris' Galerie Lafayette in honor of their 100th Anniversary.


 

 And we leave you with a visual and link to a Style Bistro slideshow of Paris' splendid Printemps Dior windows, wishing you joy and peace this holiday season and a Golden Nouvelle An.

 

http://www.stylebistro.com/A+Very+Parisian+Christmas+-+Dior+at+Printemps/articles/CBd5eojdROC/Holiday+2012+Dior+Windows+Printemps+Paris
 

BONNES FETES!

 

 

A Saison d’Etre: Chic Graphique

In New York, our Indian Summer has finally ended, Autumn is officially here – and with it, Fall Fashion.  Floral and graphic prints, in geometric patterns swirl about us- from Prada to Balenciaga  they have been  reinvented  to be touted by the stylish.

In keeping with la “mode du saison”, this Autumn,  LCF Maison offers brazen Baroque scrolls, Romantic flower power and Mod Squad Geo-graphics for your interiors- in a palette of  lilacs, violets and plums, emerald greens, and vibrant coral and garnet reds.

 

Our newest “Let Them Eat Toile” Accent pillows replicate authentic retro prints of beloved Parisian landmarks like the Moulin Rouge, Sacre Coeur, Arc de Triomphe or antique French Chinoiserie Toile  on the fronts, with  solid jewel toned Linen, Silk, or Velvet versos and Oatmeal linen piping retailing for $75. each.

                                              

"Paris, Mon Amour" Accent Pillow from Le Côté Français Maison's  new  "Let Them Eat Toile" Collection

 

We are delighted to announce that the distinguished  Webster& Company in the Miromar Design Center in Estero, on Florida’s Gulf Coast,  has invited LCF Maison to create a Pillow Wall  for Season 2012-13,  in their 5,000 sq. ft Antique Showroom, while  at contemporary kuxury  home furnishings boutique  St. Tropez Home on Historic 3^rdStreet South in Downtown Naples, Florida, you may now find the original LCF Maison Lavande D’Orange Throw, showcasing a splendid French vintage Amethyst/Champagne woven brocade.

Before saying adieu, we know where you can acquire an extraordinary accessory for your Halloween Bal Masqué outfit- while supporting a most worthy cause -  at the UNMASK AIDS Benefit, to be held at NYC's Bryant Park Grill this Oct. 29th.  A dazzling array of known and emerging artists, (among them famed designer and stylist Patricia Fields, designer Sylvia Heisel and LCFM's own Bartus B.) are donating masks they've created especially for their silent auction.

Wishing you Bonne sweater weather,

à la prochaine

Le Côté Français Maison's NYIGF experience

LCF Maison's newest Coussin "Corset"

Above, Le Côté Français Maison's new Coussin "Corset"A new frivolous and flirtatious accessoire for your boudoir chaise-longue, above, designed by Gianna Valdes for LCF Maison, debuted recently at our booth in the August New York International Gift Fair at the Javits Center.Fused into an 18" square Blush silk-taffeta knife edged pillow, trimmed in delicate black piping, le coussin "Corset" features a black whaleboned corset with silk organza ruffles, antique French gold metallic trim, gold stitching, and leather laces in front and back.Introduced in the Renaissance courts, the corset was used by noblewomen to mold their silhouettes into fashionably extreme wasp-waisted shapes. 16th century French Queen Catherine of Medici is said to have insisted that her ladies in waiting have 13" waists.Our NYIGF trade show booth was constructed by Artist/Restorer Michael Foscone ,and designed with Alejandra Espana-Soto in a neoclassical -meets-now aesthetic. The columns were adorned with faux marbre and stencilling by Marianne Jacquemin, French decorative finish artist extraordinaire. Sylvia Heisel and Scott Taylor, of Post Modern Production were interior styling consultants.      Le Côté Français Maison NYIGF Booth, Home Textile Division, Summer 2012   Most of our antique and vintage inventory was on site, and enjoyed by many visitors impressed with their quality and variety, as well as LCF Maison's focus on customization. The latest Limited Edition creations from our Art Series were enthusiastically welcomed with Bartus Bartolomes' "Triomphe I", "Notre Dame", and Marjolein VanderSluis' "Antoinette Bleu" accent pillow and throw proving especially popular, and Jean Claude Brasset's "Zebre Flammes" and "Zebre Eiffel" attracting new fans. "Antoinette Bleu" Limited Edition Throw and Accent Pillow by Marjolein Vandersluis for LCF Maison          Bartus Bartolomes "Triomphe I" and "Notre Dame" Art Series Pillows   It was exhilarating for us to define our identity in the marketplace at NYIGF, confirm the uniqueness of our specialized creations, and plan for Le Côté Français Maison's future with the input of so many new Home Textile and Design professionals.                                                                                                          à la prochaine ....

Happy Fête Nationale

A week ago today, I bid adieu to Paris, after a stay that seemed much too short, as they always do.  It was however sweet and successful as I gathered not only delightful textile treasures, but inspiration and encouragement from talented friends, like Artist and Interior Decorator Marjan Denkov and his partner, Marcin Kokowsky, psychologist expat Marina Tricard, and the ever exciting sensorial smorgasbord that regales Francophiles from the moment we step on French soil.
Only able to check out the Balenciaga/Comme des Garcons show at the City Docks, along with an interesting photographic exhibit on Houses outside of the museum http://parisleluxe.com/balenciaga-and-comme-des-garcons-shown-at-the-city-of-fashion-and-design, I also spent an enjoyable rainy afternoon at the Musee Carnavalet http://carnavalet.paris.fr/  in the Marais. My last outing was at a tiny Corsican Cabaret in Montmartre, Le Lamarck, with simple and outstanding dishes, super live music

A Pre- Feux de St.Jean ( Summer Solstice) Greeting

Above, Dutch Artist Marjolein Van der Sluis for Le Côté Français Maison's L'Art Du Coussin Series


I've been away for too long, but delighted to bring many new creative developments to our already burgeoning coffers. Numerous vintage and antique textiles and passementerie, being collaged with modern day silks, velvets and linens and original works such as the one above, created by Marjolein Van der Sluis for LCFM are soon to debut at our NYIGF August show on pillows, throws and table linens as well as gift packaging.
Before leaving for the Old World in early July, we will also debut both of French artist Jean Claude Brasset's works, Zebre Eiffel, and Zebre Flammes, also from Le Côté Français Maison's L'Art Du Coussin Series, on Throws, napkins and placemats with wonderful patchwork textile borders - chic, tailored patchwork, of course, never frumpy or dowdy. And please stay tuned for new pieces from the "Tricolore" Collection, due out before Bastille Day, in of course, Red, White and Blue.
à la prochaine ....

Vintage French Jacobean Floral, left and Antique French Neoclassical Medallion Print, below



LCFM " CollectionTricolore" teaser

"Printemps, tu est venu me dire que l'Amour est devant..."

"Spring, you have come to tell me to behold Love"...
translated from a poem by Elodie Santos

During these past weeks I've been diligently at work building our new e-commerce site, www.lcfmaison.com  creating new pillows, throws, table linens and ultra groovy bedding for super-special orange loving clients, and planning for Le Cote Francais Maison's August 19th debut in the Home Textiles Division at the New York International Gift Fair. 

Vin Andella, of VINBO WebDesign http://vinbo.com/   has been sheer joy to work with, as have Charlotte and Yanti, the LCFM couture faeries - who excel at what they do, and have each taught me so much about the technicalities of making fanciful designs reality- the new Mursay Throw is a perfect example of our successful teamwork

meet the new "Mursay" Throw, from the Maintenon Collection, available through Le Cote Francais Maison, www.lcfmaison.com

the reversible  "Mursay" Throw, measures 49" wide by 65" long, and combines a chinoiserie toile in seafoam green earthen hues with a bold kelly/sapphire/aqua stripe on ecru canvas, both of pure cotton, with a lemon silk-velvet verso, all trimmed in aqua and kelly silk piping

 

a very conceptual sketch of the LCF Maison booth at the NYIGF this August


I hope that you will also enjoy your personal renaissances to the fullest, and that each new Spring day blossoms with new understandings and opportunities for happiness. 
Au revoir..

Our Ruby Plaza Shop Officially Opens

http://www.rubyplaza.com/shop/lecotefrancaismaison

I'm happy to let you know that we've just opened this online shop for the LCF Maison soft goods, in  Ruby Plaza, a genteel virtual marketplace  owned and operated by the Ruby Lane group. I've had only positive experiences with Ruby Lane, meeting many extraordinary clients through the antique/collectible shop I established through them several years ago.

on le Golfe du Mexique not la Côte d'Azur , and it's OK

Early yesterday morning we ventured onto the Naples, Florida beach with a camera and these two substantially sized Floor Cushions that the talented Melissa Allen, Principal of MGA Interior Design,LLC had commissioned us to create for their Naples, Florida ASID Showhouse interior last year.
After months in seclusion,  these "Antibes" coussins, from the Le Côté Français Maison's  Côte d'Azur Collection, were thrilled to be the stars of their own photo shoot.


The LCFMaison "Antibes" Custom Box Style Floor Cushion, 27" square, featuring a 1970s Block Print fabric from our vintage textile inventory combined with a leopard crepe de chine and current, textural fabrics in aqua and espresso brown, and a Java striped white linen on the verso






This is how we worked with Melissa Allen, and how we work with interior designers  to customize our soft goods to their color schemes.
You can see more of MGA Interior Design's work at www.mgainteriordesign.com

 

A Valentine Debut

  Valentine's Day would be the perfect day for me to introduce this labor of love, Le Côté Français Maison, dear to my heart, to those of you who also delight in vintage and antique textiles, while favoring a contemporary aesthetic.  

A few years ago, I brought over some vintage and antique French furniture and accessories that I had lots of fun picking out - mostly in the provinces. I sold everything eventually, without making much profit, but developing a lovely international client base of people who appreciated old and pretty French objects. Deciding that shipping and the inevitable complications that arise from moving large fragile things thousands of miles were a bore, I turned my interior designer energies to hunting and gathering eye-catching textiles, discovering that box style pillows offered a wonderful form for presenting interesting collages  juxtaposing these collectible fabrics with new textiles. During the past year and a half, having carefully accumulated a variety of Toiles,Lampas,needlepoints, 20's and 30's florals and deco prints, 60's and 70's Op-Art and geometric prints, homespun linens, vintage designer dress fabrics antique trims, and more, mostly from France but also from other countries, I designed the first Le Côté Français Maison Toss Pillows and Throws that you see here, on the Le Côté Français Facebook Page, Twitter,(@lecotefrancais) and in other places, both virtual and 3D that I will list for you in my next post. A website is in the works, as is a Trade Show, and  other exciting  developments. In the next post, I shall also tell you about the Limited Edition Art Pillows, created for Le Côté Français Maison by Jean Claude Brasset.  

For now, I'll leave you with  pictures of three custom Decorative Pillows, from the LCF Maison debut collection, that I hope may set your heart aflutter, and make your eyes glad. 

Bonne Saint Valentin!