‘Coastal’ and ‘French’ aren’t mutually exclusive design goals. Mainland France has 2,000 miles of coastline — someone is living (beautifully) on those shores! From a design standpoint, as you leave behind the high style
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Coastal French Gift Guide 2024: Some of these items are a steal; some are sensible; some are straight up luxe. ALL of them speak to my Coastal French heart. (Some links are affiliate, which
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Sometimes, little genius things come along. Like the invention of toilet paper … or cell phones. Now imagine those worlds colliding. Because, let’s face it, that phone goes everywhere with you. When we renovated
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PART 2 – PERFORMANCE VELVET I tackled painting these chairs myself, but for the velvet reupholstery we hired an expert (locals: Suely @ Pawluk’s Upholstery, Monroe, CT). But first I had to find a
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PART 1 – PAINT In my whole homeowning life, little has brought me more satisfaction than this Coastal French dining chair makeover. From the day we bought this set, I could envision the beauty
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The Paris 2024 Olympics have put the red, white, and blue (or if you’re French, blue white and red!) front and center again. At breakfast this morning, that thought made these lovely, perfect wonders
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Time slips away doesn’t it? I’ve always had wanderlust, and visiting Paris seemed inevitable after studying French. Of course I’d go. But the years disappeared. My 40s came along. I started a Coastal French
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If you somehow missed the elderflower liqueur boat when it sped along 10-15 years ago, let’s get you aboard now with the St-Germain Spritz! St-Germain is a lovely botanical liqueur named after one of
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I’ll admit it. I’m a sucker for a good paint name. So, when the winning color from dozens of paint chips turned out to be Benjamin Moore Amazon Green, I was disappointed. I knew
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It’s known for the landscape, lifestyle and luxe goods of its villages and shores, but you shouldn’t overlook the cities in Provence … especially in the Luberon region. Arles, Avignon, and Aix-en-Provence each have
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To me, nothing screams summer or Coastal French like navy blue and white stripes. Whether you’re on a pier in Chicago or St. Tropez, the stark contrast of those crisp colors signals sunshine and
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In this Coastal French powder room makeover, we started with finding a tiny vanity to make this half bath feel bigger and more inviting. The other major component was finding a small, but stylish
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You can have a slice of Provence village life by growing your own lavender. And that could be enough. But if you got the chance to see those famous purple fields and charming little
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From the moment we met, I knew our 1980s half bath was destined for the dump. Like a big hair rock band that didn’t know when to hang it up, this powder room had
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My heart bleeds lavender. A Coastal French country home needs it scattered throughout! But growing lavender in New England isn’t straightforward. Our very shady acre in southern Connecticut is not hospitable to it. Downright
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The brain doesn’t know overwhelmed until you try to buy some white paint. Who knew there were a 1,001 options?! If you need a true white paint — a goldilocks white .. not too
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Finding a way to DIY driftwood finish on old furniture was inspired by desire: I love Restoration Hardware’s furniture, but I don’t love the prices (or that ridiculous tree-killing catalog they send out). Their
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Looking for a girls weekend in Vermont, or a grownup getaway for you and a significant other? While traipsing around in the White River Junction area with my sons for a certain solar event,
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Simple soil tests? You may be thinking, ‘I’m not a scientist! Nothing sounds simple about that!’ But believe me. Simple soil tests are the quick and dirty (and CHEAP) way to get answers you
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Once upon a time, there was a young girl from Fairfield, Connecticut who wanted to go to the Fashion Institute of Technology. She had her sights set on becoming a buyer for fabulous stores
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If you want quick Coastal French change in your home, color is the easiest place to start. As we touched on in our paint colors post, there isn’t a color combo more Coastal French
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BEFORE & AFTER PHOTO INDEX
