In the Cupboard

Top of my Wish List - beautiful old cupboards!

Image 1 - Erin Martin Design Image 2 - House & Garden Images 3&6 - House & Leisure Image 4 - Unknown  Image 5 - Vakre Hem

Love .... Violets

Simple Bedrooms

Love all these bedrooms for their lighter, summer time feel....

Dreaming of de Gournay

{A Dreamy Space featuring a Serene Color Palette and Gorgeous de Gournay Hand-Painted Wallpaper in the “Portobello” design.}

To quote Martyn Lawrence Bullard, I have to say that de Gournay’s line of hand-painted wallpapers is absolutely “delicious”. It’s the sort of extravagant luxury that I can only dream about. I’m sure that covering a room in this exquisite wallpaper would cost as much as a nice swimming pool, but a girl can dream. Their designs range from 18th century Chinoiserie-inspired botanical scenes tinged in hues of blue and green to bold patterns in red and midnight blue along with many 19th century French designs. All de Gournay wallpapers are painted by hand and their design team can make custom fabrics, blinds and porcelain to match their designs. You can even commission de Gournay to create a custom design for you. How decadent! If money were no object, I would love to swathe my dining room in a beautiful Chinoiserie de Gournay design. Chinoiserie designs are so timeless to me and depending on what you pair them with they can look so fresh and modern. They’re rather versatile and truly classic.

{Tablecloth made from Remnants of de Gournay Wallcovering as featured in House Beautiful}

{Design by Nate Berkus featured in ELLE DÉCOR}

{Dining Room by Melissa Warner of Massucco Warner Miller featuring DeGournay’s “Portobello”- You may recognize this particular pattern from the cover of the Domino book.}

{DeGournay’s Take as a “Cover Girl”}

{The wallcovering in this Dining Room by Windsor Smith makes the space even more noteworthy.}

{Muted Tones in a Dining Room Featured in Veranda}

{An Uber-French Dining Room by Suzanne Kasler featuring de Gournay’s “La Chasse de Compeigne”}

{Swimming with the “Fishes” via ELLE DECOR }

{Rich, Chocolate de Gournay in a Space by Miles Redd}

{An Extravagant, Hand-Painted Scene in a Bathroom by Miles Redd}

{Miles sure loves de Gournay, but who wouldn’t! This is one of my all-time favorite spaces.}

{Chic Chinoiserie “Askew” Wallpaper by de Gournay at the Restaurant at Bergdorf Goodman designed by Kelly Wearstler}

{Dark and Romantic Space -Photo via ELLE DÉCOR}

{A Lush, Yellow Chinoiserie Scene via Sara Gilbane}

{Remember this bedroom from House Beautiful’s small space issue last summer? This bedroom belongs to designer David Kaihoi and features rich, pink Chinoiserie DeGournay.}

{Working in a space as bold and pattern-filled as this would make me feel supercharged!}

Ahh Sweet Italy!!

Back from a fabulous trip with lots of inspiration and a bit of travel info to share!

The Almafi Coast was spectacular and a favorite excursion was to the lovely hilltop village of Ravello. We had an extraordinary time exploring the two main villas in town, Villa Rufolo and Villa Cimbrone. (above)

As you can see the gardens and the views were breathtaking!

First, I want to let you know that I have been to Rome three times. Above is a photo of Ancient Roman Forum. The history is overwhelming - so this trip we decided to finally hire a private guide to take us around. What a difference a guide makes!! We all learned so much and really the cost was very reasonable. David Lown is an art historian and he was fabulous! If you are heading to Rome this summer do contact him HERE and enjoy learning all about this fabulous city.

The greatest highlight of our trip to Rome was our excursion 35 feet UNDER St. Peter’s Basilica called “The Ufficio Scavi Tour” (Tour by Office of Excavations). Only a lucky 120 people are taken down each day, an incredible privilege, as St. Peters has over 20,000 visitors per day! We were taken down in small groups of 12, two levels below St. Peter’s to what was Vatican Hill over 1900 years ago. We saw St. Peters final resting place (and bones) as well as the tombs of the previous Popes. I could go on and on but click this link HERE to learn more and the link HERE to make a request for a tour. You will not be disappointed!!

A special area of Rome which enchanted us was the Villa Borghese Park. The first photo of this post and this photo are just a small sampling of what you will see. We spent a wonderful Sunday touring the Villa Borghese (filled with gorgeous Bernini sculptures) and the surrounding gardens. Do not miss this!

Another highlight was Pompeii – Words just can’t describe how we felt walking along the streets of this ancient buried city. I was incredibly taken by the Frescos, like this one above, that are still intact. We also decided to hire a personal guide in Pompeii. Lucia was wonderful and again I couldn’t recommend her more highly. You can contact her HERE.

Finally, remember my previous post about the fabulous Villa Torre Gentile? You can read about it HERE. The owner was kind enough to contact me and let me know that her spectacular villa is available for rent. So if you want to stay in an extraordinary, gorgeous stone villa in Italy do give her call. You can find out more about Villa Torre Gentile, also known as Villanova HERE

I have been so inspired by the architecture, beauty, color and gardens – well I could go on and on. My mind has been reeling since I’ve been back. I am not sure where it will take me, but I am excited to share my journey with you.

(If you do happen to contact our tour guides, do tell them Gina and her family said Hi! I am always so thrilled to pass on a good a contact!!)

(all post copyrighted by Willow Décor and not to be published with out permission)

Food With a View

Beautiful, light-filled dining rooms - just gorgeous!

Images 1&4 - Unknown Images 2 - Simon Brown Image 3 - Leibowitz & McLachlan Image 5 - Annie Schlecter Image 6 - Cotton Love

do you 'sale'...

Are you a sales shopper? It is that time of year in Europe and the sales signs are everywhere. The shops are full with rack upon rack of designer deductions and the shoe departments have upended every last toe-peeper, wedge, heel and flat onto the floor...crowds and chaos clutter the once calm and elegant department stores and boutiques.

I am not a professional when it comes to the sales, although I have now come to realise that there are very genuine bargains to be had, especially in London in the summer. Fashion favourites that I coveted earlier in the year are now 50% off and will continue to slide as the month moves on. While the discounts are tempting it is finding the stamina to search that is the hard part....

That is where shopping the online sales is so brilliant. From the comfort of my mac I can find all the treasures I could possibly imagine - clad my feet in Louboutin, frock up in Erdem and stash my goodies in an Alexa by Mulberry. I can add as much as I like to my shopping basket without guilt because with one simple click the fun can be over and I won't have spent a cent or I can save my bits for later and take time to reflect on whether they are good value or not. Win/Win.

There are a few pitfalls to any 'sale' shopping so these days, having learnt the hard way, before I pay I say....

Do I really...really want this? ('Need' is not a word we girls understand nor wish to reflect upon...)
Would I buy this at full price? That is the only reason to buy at half price....If it wasn't right the first time around it won't be any different because it is cheaper...
Am I caught up in the frenzy of bargains?
Am I buying what I like not what my daughters think I would like?
Will it suit me? Sales generally mean once purchased non-refundable...
Is there something similar elsewhere that I prefer?

If I answer yes, yes, no, yes, yes and no then I'm good to go....  shopbop.com, net a porter.com and matches.com are my fashion vices of preference....they ship everywhere and their return policies are very fair....Have fun saving all that money....xv

my daily click HERE

image - google images

Love .... Temple and Ginger Jars

Image 1 - Alfresco Emporium Images 2&3 - Unknown Image 4 - House & Leisure Image 5 - Better Homes & Gardens Image 6 - Nancy Nolan