BODIE and FOU

Perfect gift for baby....

2009-11-10T13:42:00.002Z

This is one of our best-sellers.
I bought it first 6 years ago when Bodie was pregnant with Lily and we have now some really cool shots of Lilypette in this gorgeous babygro. Then we launched B&F so I sourced it for the shop...It's often like this...We fall in love with something then try to source for our online boutique. Last night, I just played around with photoshop and loved how this cute Angel babygro looks in a polaroid format....It comes in 3 sizes (0-3 months, 3-6 and 6-12 months) and is also available in pink here

Oh Joy party

2009-11-09T22:57:00.009Z

Last week Oh Joy threw a party in Philadelphia to celebrate the launch of her gorgeous stationary range with Chronicle books and I just wanted to share it with you because the photos of her party look truly fabulous and really it's a case of I wish I had been there....
It's always good to have inspiring, cool, creative examples in mind for the future....you never know...You may need one day to organize a launch party for your business. We never did for B&F because we didn't have the money and if I can reassure small businesses and give a piece of advice....don't worry if you have a limited budget, focus on other things to start with.
However one day when we have the time, I would love to organize a party to celebrate our little adventure!

Joy rented out a photobooth from Photoboothlove in the US but you can rent from these companies in the UK: thephotoboothcompany.co.uk, Rentabooth.co.uk or Groovybooth.co.uk
Have you ever been to a party where there was a photobooth? No?
Then you really need to tell whoever is organizing your company Christmas party to get one. They are hugely fun and gives everyone something to take home. I still have the B&W mug shots that my friends and I took together at a Christmas party organized by Universal Music International 8 years ago and I love them.
Can you see the gorgeous wallpaper in the background on the photo below?? It's an Oh Joy pattern (clever girl!)...isn't this gorgeous?
For a good party, you also need a great photographer and all these beautiful shots which capture the life of the party are by Max Wanger (please check his site....I love the shot of the couple with the ballon) and of course food....
I'm afraid I don't any any great cupcakes companies in the UK but if you do, or work for one or would like to suggest anything that would add to a great, fun, party, by all means, feel free to leave the details in the comment box.

You can all the beautiful shots of the party here and buy Oh Joy stationery from here.

Chocolate cake by Mila Sienna

2009-11-08T18:23:00.014Z

If you live in the UK and you have bought a copy of Easy Living (the November issue which was actually out in October)... you may have seen me 'doing a Nigella' (Marta for US readers ou 'faire la Nadine' for French readers) where I share my bonfire tips and my SU-BLI-ME chocolate cake recipe.....
And if you have been spending some time on this lovely blog for a while and read 'the bowls that stopped from going to jail' piece, you will know by now that cooking is not my best point....

However in the name of love/for the sake of a happy relationship I had to learn a few recipes and this chocolate cake is one of my signature dishes...Well actually the only desert I make unless you count 'fresh organic strawberries with organic custard from Tesco prepared organically by me' as a second signature desert.
Yesterday, my four-year old and my TBC-year old mum spent the afternoon making little chocolate cakes from a French Weight Watchers recipe and pffuu.... they were amazing!

Now I can't tell you how much calories these little chocolaty treasures had but 3 of those were worth only 3.5 points on the Weight Watchers planet.
I don't know what you think but 3.5 points doesn't seem a lot of calories, DOES IT!?
And 3.5 points is for 3 of these little babies so it's really 1 point something per cookie which really feels like nothing...

So yes we used heart-shaped moulds (bought in France but probably available from John Lewis) and yes I recommend using them because they make any cakes looking like you know what you're doing in the kitchen and no it wasn't Mila's birthday but we still had to go through the whole thing.....taking photos for Dad who was still in Hong Kong, lighting the candles, switching off the light and sing Happy Birthday to you Mila!
But since I'm breeding a little Chef which gives me hope not in my genes but in my skills as a mother, I could only oblige to make my little girl happy.

So here is the recipe (all copyrights go to Weight Watchers etc)

For 3 cookies - Preparation: 5 min, Cooking: 4 min
15 g butter less than 40% fat
60 g dark chocolate
1 egg
10g sugar
10 g flour
Pre-heat the oven at 240 degres Celsius. Put the butter in a dish that can go into a micro-wave. Break the chocolate in pieces, add them to the butter and put everything in the micro-onde for 40 sec. Mix. The beat the egg with the sugar. Add the melted chocolate and flour to the egg & sugar and mix everything then pour the mixture in your mould. Leave it in the over for 4 min...and then come back and tell me how much you love me!

(C) photos: me
(C) recipe: Weight Watcher: Le Plaisir de maigrir, Editions Livre de Poche, page 39

Une fille, un style...Yasmine Sewell

2009-11-08T09:41:00.010Z

I'm developing a serious crush on anything to do with the French Vogue and I think a yearly subscription is going to be on my list from Le Pere Noel this year.....

Yasmin Sewell is Chief Creative Consultant for Liberty of London, yes....nothing less....she is also the owner of Soho cult boutique Yasmin Cho and ex-buying director for Browns. Garance Dore who regularly shot for the French Vogue, stopped in London to take these really cool shots of a really cool girl...

(C) Vogue France, Photography: Garance Dore

See you later...I'm off to the new Anthropologie shop that recently opened in London...
Bises

Feeling very glamourous today......

2009-11-07T13:13:00.018Z

I'm feeling very glam this morning......Mandy, Founder of Oneboutique, a gorgeous online boutique which sells purple shoes to die for and the sublime 'Cobb' dress by Malene Birger, sent me a link this morning to the little chat we had a while ago and I love how the page looks...it's very VOGUE but then Mandy is a super stylish chick and so is her boutique....

And ma vie...ah well....I love it when it looks so damn glam because when I was wallpapering the bedroom featured below...I wasn't looking glam at all, I tell you...more like Bob the Builder and his mum (cause mine was helping me)!

How would you describe your personal style? Very French (not sure if it's a good or bad thing) ... understated, natural and a bit rock 'n roll, which I try to make a bit more glamorous in the evening with skyscraper heels and a clutch bag.

What do you wear for work? Plain white or grey tops with black trousers/boots or high heels or winter shorts with ugg boots.

Who is your style icon? Charlotte Gainsbourg and Sienna Miller for the inspiration.

What is the one item in your wardrobe you couldn’t live without? My 'La Tropezienne' tan leather bag by US designer Clare Vivier. Clare is married to Thierry, a French film producer who recently filmed Charlotte Gainsbourg when she recorded her last album in LA at Chateau Marmont. After filming, Thierry gave 'La Trop' to Charlotte, so now my style icon and I have the same bag...not that Charlotte really cares!

What’s your top fashion tip? Wear what suits you and be happy. Confidence, humour and happiness are the best fashion tips.

Who is your favourite designer? Zadig & Voltaire

What’s the worst fashion mistake you’ve ever made? Buying clothes that may fit me when I've lost a few kilos. This never worked! Even if the weight shifts, my body shape may not fit the cut of the clothing, so now I buy things that I can wear now not in a distant future.

What beauty products are currently in your bathroom cabinet? Kiehls for my skin, Aveda for my hair and a little blue pot of Nivea cream in my handbag like my mum always had, because it works for everything-lips, hands and little bumps that my daughter needs soothed.

How would you describe the style of your home? Relaxed, welcoming and child-friendly. Steve and I grew up in big country houses with lots of space in France and New Zealand so its important for us to have a place where Mila can be free to run as much as she wants. I run a chic online boutique so I have lots of simple, beautiful contemporary designs, which I mix with vintage finds.

Where's you favourite holiday destination? Our beach house in France and any hot destination with my family.

What's been your favourite film this year? The Hangover. The title does not any justice to the film. It's about 4 guys that wake up the night after a stag night. They don't recall a thing but the film unveils that it was a hell of a night. I hadn't laughed like this in a long time.

Have a great weekend! I'm off to do a bit of shopping

Bises

Do you want this gorgeous bag?... I need feedback please

2009-11-06T17:29:00.012Z

I need your thoughts on something....

Last week, I blogged about Noix de Coc's Advent Calendar just because I loved the design.
We were not planning to stock it on BODIE and FOU because we normally don't stock themed items (Xmas, Valentine's....unless it's something beautiful like this Love poster which works all year round) but I just thought it was a great and unusual advent calendar to share with you.
Now the designer and ourselves have actually received several emails from customers interested in buying it and since Noix de coc' has not yet an online stockist, we've agreed to take stock which will be limited but more of this later.
Now this made me realized that although not everyone leaves comment on the blog, a lot of you actually take interest in some of the designs featured on the blog regardless of them being on our online shop or not so it got me thinking...

I've always been a big fan of La Tropezienne - a gorgeous tote bag designed by LA designer Clare Vivier but since we specialize in design & chic homeware rather than fashion, I'm not sure if we should add this beautiful bag and other clutches that Clare has designed, to BODIE and FOU.
Clare is one cool lady who is definitively going places. She is great, good fun and very stylish. We've actually never met but like a lot of friendship that blossom via twitter or blogs with people on the other side of the world, Clare and I have a lot of things in common (she is married to a French guy...), loves Charlotte Gainsbourg and we share the same sense of humour (not sure if it's a good thing...;-). In fact, Charlotte Gainsbourg has also a 'La Trop' tote bag like mine...

Clare's gorgeous bags, clutches, shopping totes are now available at Steven Alan, Holt Renfrew in Canada which is basically the equivalent of Barneys New York and Saks Fifth Avenue in the US or Selfridges in London so big fashion shops who know what they are doing!

So my question to you is how much do you love all these California-made bags? (just writing California-made makes me want another one!)
Do you prefer La Tropezienne tote bag or this beautiful Navy Messenger bag which got featured in Real Simple in the States or Clare's stylish and feminine gold clutches (they come in various colours....) which sell like hot cakes in Japan?
Would you be happy to buy them if we were stocking them on B&F?
I need to speak to Clare to work out custom duties, shipping etc but I think La Tropezienne bag would work out about £160 which I think is a very good price for a leather bag made in raw-edged tan natural and the clutch bag would be about £90-£110

So please don't be shy, let me know what you think, leave a comment on the blog, on twitter or simply email me at thegirls@bodieandfou.com and if you like it, we will stock it because I think it's one good looking bag to have on one's arm!

UPDATE:
I'm just adding this great photo of Irene from NYC with her La Trop bag for Clare to see...If you've already bag yourself a La Trop bag, feel free to send me photos. xoxo

Really loving the Doudou cushion Superstar....

2009-11-06T14:15:00.004Z

Last September, I introduced Kayatine which is a new brand of gorgeous gifts for babies and toddlers launched by Julie Lepage-Chartier and her mum.
Julie and I have been in touch a lot recently because we are getting a lot of interest for all her Doudous. She was very happy when I told her we got Doudou Lila featured in a German magazine and she said that she recently got an order for 100 Doudous for a shop in Ireland - isn't fantastic after such a short time!! I'm thrilled for her but I know that Julie is working really hard so it's well deserved!
But today I want to show you the Doudou cushions she made...I'm absolutely loving these two Doudou Superstar red and Doudou Superstar yellow. Look at them!! Aren't they adorable??!
The Doudou cushions are made to order in France so delivery times will be about 2 weeks so if you want one...give yourself plenty of time to ensure your receive in time for Christmas!

More gorgeous Japanese books by PAUMES

2009-11-05T16:05:00.022Z

Two news made me happy this evening....the first one was that the Royal Mail strikes are over and there will be no further disruption until now and Christmas (yippee!). The second one was getting some gorgeous photos from Rie at Editions Paumes for all the new books we will be adding to the site next week and I can't wait to look at the edition on Copenhagen apartments and the San Francisco kitchens for instance when we receive them in about 2 weeks.

All the books I have from Paumes never fail to give me a huge amount of pleasure and satisfaction each time I go through them and inevitably, I have this massive urge to do something creative and making our home looking as gorgeous and inspiring than all these family homes from London, Paris, Copenhagen and since we are moving in our new family home at the beginning of December, 2010 is going to be MY YEAR so I'm warning you...Next year, you may see a lot more DIY postings on this blog!

But don't you think that it's actually a bit tricky to work out the final look of your home?
I have always been a big fan of Jacqueline Morabito's style and each time I see a magazine featuring her work or her homes, I either keep it preciously or take photos of the pages to keep in my mood board folder. However I have also noticed that the explosion of blogs and having access to different interior styles from San Francisco, Copenhagen, Tokyo, Amsterdam from anyone be they professional designer or simply creative people have widely opened up my tastes (more than interior magazines) and now I feel like this hyperactive, excited child who wants white to feel calm and relax but at the same would like to style her home with stimulating, inspirational mood moard, hand-drawing illustrations, vintage treasures and colours.
It's tricky isn't it?!

I look at my friends' house in Bristol or Linda Loenen's family house in Amsterdam or Paul Massey's house and here and I dream of white, light and airy spaces but then Helena Christensen's boho home in NYC leaves me speechless and I still very much love this very cool family house. I started testing the water with Steve regarding painting all the floorboards of our new house in white but he is yet to be convinced.... He is not against it but he thinks that once we've painted them in white, there is no going back....Well technically there is...you just get a sanding machine and start all over again but I see his point so we may try to whitewash the floorboards to start with. Anyway, its not like we are going to move in and start doing any work straight away....After exchanging, we will probably be broke and will be living on kumara (sweet potatoes from New-Zealand) for the next few months :-)

Back to Paumes....The new books we will be receiving are San Francisco Kitchens, Paris Miam-Miam, Ateliers de Paris, Appartements d'amoureux a Paris (lover nests in Paris), Apartements de filles a Paris, Souvenirs de Paris, Petits appartements a Paris, London Kitchens (featured the lovely Kathleen Hills on the front cover) and Copenhagen apartments and I will try - time permitting (things get really busy on this side and that side) - to take you through a few of them to give you a real feel of these wonderful Japanese books...

October competition winners/November now open

2009-11-04T11:53:00.005Z

We had a phenomenal response to our October competition and the 3 lucky winners this month are 3 ladies (sorry guys!).

- Clare Roberson from Cardiff
- Johanna Booth from Liverpool
- Helen Pope from Barcombe
So ladies, thanks for entering our competition and watch out for a lovely print coming from us in the next few days...

The November competition is now open and again we will reward 3 winners with a gorgeous NYC Map by Famille Summerbelle.

Things to do, people to see....one place to be

2009-11-03T21:25:00.009Z

and this is at the Midcentury Modern show in Dulwich next weekend...

If you've never heard of this show, this is an amazing place to see the best in design from the last century or the latest in future collectables from this one.
Midcentury Modern shows were launched by Lucy Ryder Richardson and her friend Petra Curtis. In fact, they started with Showhome which is what the name suggests: a suburban semi in Dulwich, south London, in which Lucy lives with her husband (an architect) and where everything is for sale, from retro Scandi designer furniture by Arne Jacobsen, Bruce Mathsson and Hans Wegner, to lights by Brit design star Michael Young and cushions in 60s fabrics but you can only buy by appointment.

I've always fancied something like this....It's a bit like Nicole Farhi's 202 on Westbourne Grove...You walk into Farhi's homeware shop then at the back there is the brasserie (great food btw) and in the basement, her fashion range...It's a very NYC concept and I love it but given that we lived for a year with boxes up to our ceiling until we moved the business to a warehouse, the chances of me convincing Steve that our new 4-bedroom family house should be a cool concept store, are in fact super, mega, ultra slim!!!

Anyway...Showhome open-house concept worked so well than eventually Ryder Richardson and Curtis needed more space and set up a fair specialising in midcentury modern furniture and contemporary design and the next one is on Sunday 15th November in Dulwich...and as Grand Designs mag says: ‘This show could cause design lovers a cardiac arrest’ and that's where I will have mine next weekend.

MidCentury Modern Show: Sunday 15th November 2009
Dulwich College, SE21 7LD
10am–4pm
Entrance £6
Children under 14 free. Click here for location

Free upgrade to courier service...& lots of goodies to get

2009-11-03T20:28:00.007Z

During the Royal Mail strikes, BODIE and FOU is offering all UK customers a FREE upgrade to courier service on all orders above £50, which means that you can be sure of getting your order within 1-3 days.

And I can hear you saying...."ummm what shall I get for £50 from this gorgeous online boutique.....". Well....since you ask, let me share with you some of my favourites...

A gorgeous Paris, London, NYC map prints + these super cute sugar ducks

A beautiful charm bracelet + 4 boxes of these Bird Clothes pegs
(they work wonder as Xmas stocking fillers!)

At least two of these incredible and inspiring interiors books by Paumes
+ a Familia mug to enjoy a cup of hot chocolate when reading them

The cutest Angel babygro for your baby or friend's baby + this stylish Gingko print

1 set of these best-selling Cognac glasses + 1 Typemap print

I could go on forever but if you are not sure and need advices on what to get,
just drop me a little comment...

Halloween in London & Barcelona

2009-11-02T18:16:00.023Z

It's kind of funny how your opinion on things change when you have children. I was never against Halloween but never felt the need to celebrate it either. In fact, being French, my view on it was just total indifference but Mila and her friends were getting so excited that we joined the fun. My friend Mel organized a Pumpkin-carving party on Saturday afternoon. When she told me she had got hold of a big plastic cover to protect the table and the floor, me - the ignorant frog - thought 'pourquoi?' since Steve had carved a pumpkin the week before and it wasn't a messy job...and then I saw the result and I was blown away. I mean look at these...aren't they fantastic!! ??

Guillaume downloaded a few free pumpkin stencils, then got the girls to draw on the pumpkins and with a bit of help..... here are the fabulous pumpkins by 4-years old Clara, Matilda and Mila !!!
Then at 4pm, we all headed to our friend Tanja's who had organized a fabulous party where another 10 children + parents went - which was a really sweet way to meet everyone in the neighborhood (who said that nobody talked to each other in London?) - and then we all went around the block to ring people's bells.
So now if you ask me what I think of Halloween....I will say it's great! It's really good fun and even better when you can do it with a lots of kids and parents and for the scrooges who think Halloween is just commercial, I would just say a couple of pumpkins, plastic mices & spiders and spooky sweets are hardly going to break the bank and like it says on the Mastercard TV ad...seeing your kids having so much fun: priceless

Bodie (the other half of B&F), Christophe and Lily also celebrated Halloween in Barcelona....Isn't my niece gorgeous in her skeleton outfit? :-)

And I'm just adding these gorgeous Halloween invitations from Marta Stewart I've just spotted on The Beat that My Heart Skipped as a reminder for next year. These ‘Skeleton Invitations’ are created using simply thick card, a skeleton template and silver or white ink pens and pins so their arms jangle about! And you can get the Owls template from here (Rohini: love your Owl mail joke btw :-)

My little girl is growing.....

2009-11-01T22:54:00.008Z

I have meant to go through all my photos to design our own family calendars using the application on Mac so we could give meaningful presents with family photos to my parents and Steve's parents but once again I got sidetracked!
At least I started flagging the pics I like the best and hopefully this year I will make them because I have been talking about making calendars since August 2008!
Suddenly I realised that my little baby was growing fast....
From top left: Mila tequila at the beach in France (I can not remember why we started calling her 'Mila Tequila' when she has a beautiful name like Mila Sienna). Mila at tennis in France (not posing but sulking). Mila in our living/dining room in France when photographer Michael Paul was shooting our house. Mila posing and Mila who will probably hate me when she is older for posting a photo of her on the toilet. I don't make an habit of following her with my camera wherever she goes but she was too cute with her two shoes too small for her.

(C) Photos: Karine Kong. Please do not reproduce without permission etc...

Jenifer Altman portfolio, blog, short series......

2009-11-01T18:11:00.011Z

I don't know what weather you had in other parts of the world but London was very wet and windy today. Rather than watching Steve getting ready to fly to Hong Kong and wishing I could go with him to go back there, I started going through our stuff to organize our move in 5 weeks and despite this gloomy, horrible weather, 4 simple things made me feel happy and content this afternoon....
Happiness and content is also what this beautiful photo of a mother and daughter conveys.....

First.....Repairing old wooden beads that my mum was wearing when she was in her twenties and which Mila had broken last year,
Second....Finding between books that I was sorting out to take to a charity shop, the first scan of my baby when I was pregnant,
Third...Saving a lot of white bed linens turned grey from being thrown away after finally finding the right whitening product
Fourth....Watching a busy, stressed out Dad taking the time to make 3 pancakes for his daughter before leaving.

And I should say, Fifth....was discovering these gentle, soothing photos by Jenifer Altman who is an internationally acclaimed Polaroid photographer .

And Jenifer has a wonderful blog called Nectar & Light: the sweet life through a polaroid and a site where she sells her beautiful work....
I hope this Sunday was very relaxing for you too and that somehow, simple things made you happy and content too....Have a nice evening
xoxo
(C)Photos: Jenifer Altman

PS: just been told by Passementary via Twitter that Jenifer Altman also designed her blog's banner and looking at this page, I noticed she also designed the banner for the lovely Maryam at MyMarrakech

A Big Thank you.....

2009-11-01T05:48:00.007Z

This week, we would like to thank you Passementerie and Inspire Inspire two UK blogs for writing very nice things ('a terribly smart and inspired boutique run by two French sisters') about us and products which I will detailed below so our designers can also see how much people love their work!

Thank you so much girls!

Passementerie or Passementeries Diary is a lovely blog from Oxford about interiors, style, design and travel. Passementerie's favourites were the gorgeous Cotton Bud wallpapers by Selina Rose, a British designer Elodie and I have long admired and of course the stunning Cluster light by Kathleen Hills - which is now in our house in France (well two of them to be more accurate).

Inspire* Inspire aims to promote and support independent artists and designers and I recommend you check out Inspire* Inspire's post about Cameron Moll and his handcrafted intricate letterpress poster of Salt Lake temple which he produced over the course of about a 100 hours. The result is amazing.

Gingko art print by Bold & Noble

2009-11-01T05:28:00.004Z

Our collection of art prints and posters from Bold & Noble is growing!!!
We have now the beautiful Gingko poster in stock. Elodie and I were really seduced by its beautiful, simple design inspired by nature and its uplifting hue of yellow that willl add a calming touch to a wall. Like all the posters, Bold & Noble produce, the Gingko art print is made from 100% recycled material and fits perfectly in the 50 x 70 cm Ribba frame from Ikea.

Advent calendar by Noix de coc'

2009-10-31T06:11:00.004Z

This is one of the cutest advent calendar I've seen and it's by French company Noix de Coc'

It comes from France flat-packed and all you have to do is put these 24 little cubes together with little wooden sticks which are enclosed and there is also 2 faces per cube where you can draw, write whatever you like to make it even more personal!
This would be a fantastic craft project for the children

Next Generation - children casting

2009-10-30T17:38:00.005Z

Next - which had some very sexy TV and press campaigns recently for their women range and have a gorgeous sequin vest in their Winter collection - has announced they are seeking four to seven year-old models to showcase their Spring/Summer 2010 collection in Next Directory.

As well as starring in a fashion photo shoot, winners will also receive representation from children's modelling agency Urban Angels and a shopping spree at Next...that's a lot of good things to win!!

The casting called Next Generation launches on Facebook November 4 - to enter, just go here
and from this date, you will be able to upload photos of your children and family and friends can vote...which is great if you have an extended family!

Voting closes on November 25 and the top 100 entrants in the modelling competition will be invited to the grand final party in the Deer Park at Woburn Abbey Safari Park on December 21.
The party will include dance workshops hosted by Britain's Got Talent finalists Flawless, while Urban Angels will be on hand to provide modelling advice and contestants will also receive professional photographs to take home.
I know I will definitively posting a photo of Mila next week but not this one where her face is covered with chocolate!

Good luck!

One girl, one farm....

2009-10-29T20:06:00.002Z

There is nothing better than to be stuck in bed with food poisoning to feel on fire two days later. I'm back to my normal self and I have bags of positive energy (plus my car passed the M.O.T which really made my day!) so I wanted to share with you this gem of an eco farm in the south of France which I saw in the August issue of the French Marie-Claire.
Are you gumboots ready? OK let's go....

Graine et Ficell e is an eco farm near Nice (South of France) set up by Isabelle, an ex-Parisian who left the capitale to follow her dream. As you know by now, I'm a sucker of these 'dream come true' stories because I think it's hugely inspiring to see so many women following their dreams but I also really like the relax, carefree, contemporary look of Isabelle's farm which is also a B&B and a cooking school for children.
Although her farm is now a little gem for families and children who want to learn about nature, getting there wasn't a piece of cake. Isabelle was not a farmer and had no real experience about eco-farming but she had grown tired of the city, wanted a change of lifestyle and be closer to nature so although she had no farming credentials until then, she had a huge amount of determination and vision!
As Isabelle didn't find the farm of her dream, she decided to build it - a massive job that only took 4 months in the end but which was nothing in comparison to three years of putting the project together, trying to convince the bank,the French agriculture body, etc... Once the farm was built, pigs, cows, chickens and donkeys moved in....

I really like how inviting Isabelle's open-plan kitchen is and you can easily imagine children getting excited and trying to get one of her homemade cakes or glass of homemade lemonade.... Between space, natural light, yummy smells from fresh food and this very long communal table (which I love!)....I just want to go there during the Summer and just be...you know, not doing anything in particular but just appreciate nature and its surroundings and have a chat with Isabelle while she is cooking fantastic, fresh meals with goods from her garden.

Do you want to get the look? OK so here are a few suggestions....

KITCHEN: Isabelle sourced vintage glass jars to display cereals from local flea markets but you can find some beautiful, vintage ones from Holland in Columbia Road or get new jam jars by Le Parfait from Labour & Wait (John Lewis sell them too). Ikea does similar jars but not as pretty and being French, I've a soft spot for the original Le Parfait preserving jars which look so much better. You can also display fresh basil in this herb stand. Kathleeen Hills designed some gorgeous ceramic pendant lights. The Kitchen units are the Varde range from Ikea.
BEDROOM: the white ball chair is available from here and you can get a similar lamp from Roche-Bobois. Skin Flint Design (one of my favourite websites) sells fabulous, reclaimed lights and vintage, distressed mirrors can be found at Cox Interiors in Islington but they will be expensive so if you really want to source great vintage French accessories at great price, go to Lille for 'La Grande Braderie' the first weekend of September (pure heaven!!)
LOUNGE: For a country/close to nature look, you can get sublime stools from Bleu Nature. Habitat also sells nice bamboo salad bowls to leave fresh fruits available to kids anytime and nice eco linen shopping bags are available from here.

For more information, go Graine & Ficelle
Photos: (c) Michel Figuet and I do apologize for the poor quality of mine that dont do justice to his beautiful shots.

Glove Factory Studios

2009-10-28T19:37:00.003Z

I guess I received this today from Glove Factory Studios because we used to be in Bristol but this may be of interest to anyone looking for office spaces around Bristol, Bath, Chippenham etc...
Glove Factory Studios is a sister site to the Great Western Studios in West London

Alice Tait hand drawn illustrations

2009-10-28T18:08:00.009Z

I got food poisoning for the first time yesterday and I was so weak I had to spend the whole day in bed wondering what on earth was happening to me. Steve was like...'check the swine flu symptoms!'...errm no thanks! Well I checked but it wasn't that and given I had gone for my early run at 6.20am before it hit me, I thought it was some kind of virus...So after fever going up and down, not being able to eat all the nice chocolate deserts Steve had brought me in the evening to cheer me up and then passing out on the bathroom floor in the middle of the night, I eventually woke up this morning feeling like I was back from the living dead.
So basically my energy level is very close to peanuts and before heading back to the sofa for the evening, I just wanted to mention the work of Alice Tait which I discovered via the Glove Factory Studios.
Alice Tait had been working as a professional illustrator for 5 years. Her style comprises of hand drawn illustration and type. She has produced a series of wonderful book covers for Chef Nigel Slater at Penguin and is currently doing regular work for Vogue and the Financial Times amongst others.

I'm loving her pigeons and her Paris and London maps are very nice but a bit too classic looking for my tastes and I still prefer the ones from Famille Summerbelle but if you love Alice's versions you can contact her directly.

Glittering hands...isn't this magical

2009-10-25T19:27:00.001Z

Helena Christensen at home in NY....

2009-10-25T13:28:00.010Z

The beautiful and inspiring Helena Christensen at home in NYC photographed by the French Vogue....I'm speechless...

Read about Helena's modelling for Habitat in Regent Street, London here

Vogue article found via Ruby Gatta who had found it at The Selby which I both warmly thank for sharing this such gorgeous and inspiring article.

French fashion label: Swildens

2009-10-25T07:54:00.006Z

I've just discovered this French fashion label on DesignersBlock and I love it!
Swildens is the baby of French stylist Juliette Swildens who had already launched French maternity label 1 et 1 font 3, a few years ago. And well, Juliette is not anyone...I mean she didn't come to fashion by chance. She is the daughter of one of Bonpoint co-Founders (Bonpoint's backstage event mentioned here) so with such a legacy, she was bound to do something wonderful.

The Swildens collection is very cool...think gorgeous casual pieces made in cotton, linen and natural hues with a touch of rock'n roll.
My favourites are their Woolen beanies, the great little black dress with a rock'n roll attitude, harem trousers which I'm dying to get to Steve's despair (but then harem trousers are super comfy), cool long sweat-shirt to hang out at weekends and their vintage t-shirts revisited with iconic images of the Rolling Stones, Blondie and AC/DC...

Charlotte gainsbourg.....un autre petit canon

2009-10-23T17:50:00.006+01:00

Sometimes I scare myself...I was just checking my personal facebook page to see how my family was doing when I saw a post from Charlotte Gainsbourg....for a split second, I thought we were friends then suddenly I remembered I joined her Facebook page as a fan.....sigh...
Frankly I really wonder what's wrong with me....

Anyway, the lovely Charlotte, is offering the first track of her album free to download here
More about my Charlotte here