It's Christmastime in the city!

It's almost Christmas and New York is lit up and ready for it! Here are a few of my favorite shots that I took around town to share with all of you so you can feel the excitement in the air! If you live in Manhattan and haven't quite gotten the Christmas bug yet, go see the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall.  Ho ho ho!

Ribbons, Ribbons, Ribbons...

Do you find yourself surrounded by ribbons every Christmas?  I have so many beautiful ribbons that I save that were wrapped around packages or I just bought because I thought they were so pretty.  Don't throw out your ribbons.  There are so many ways to recycle those pretty ribbons!

I saw these pretty velvet ribbons at M&J Trims in the garment district and knew right away that I could use these for gift wrapping or table decorations.  M & J Trims has some really fun ribbons with candy

canes and polka dots and snowmen! Go there to get trims to decorate your children's packages.  When the wrapping is fun the gift always seems so much better!

Tie a few ribbons around a colored candle and give one as a hostess gift or use them at a place setting for your Christmas dinner.

Another example of what to do with all that red ribbon!

Turn some into little hairbows for all your nieces and friends with children.

Other ideas include cutting some ribbon and adding a charm or small jingle bell to give to someone as a bookmark in a great book.

Use some ribbon on a bulletin board in a cross hatch pattern to create interest or hang a mirror or painting on the wall with a really wide ribbon.

Sew or hot glue a leftover long ribbon around the edge of your Christmas tree skirt! 

Use your leftover ribbons in all colors as napkin rings and tie a charm to each so that everyone has their own charm.  Then, after dinner each person has to makeup a story about their charm!

Lastly, the famous recycled ribbon garland chain for your tree! So much fun for the children to make!

Happy Holidays!

ROARKE NYC

ROARKE! Designers Mignonne Gavigan and former Bergdorf Goodman buyer Laetitia Stanfield have started their own jewelry line in Manhattan.  Their jewelry designs are handmade and incorporate materials such as pearls, sequins, beads, and silk in each design.  Each piece can be worn in many different ways, such as using the headband as a bracelet or necklace, and the bracelet can attach to the necklace to extend it.  The pieces are very lightweight allowing this flexibility. How clever?!

My favorite is pairing the Charlot necklace with a white tee and jeans and your boyfriend's jacket for a dressed up sexy look!

Designer Mignonne Gavigan below wearing her necklace on a casual day with a dress.

  Ivanka Trump is wearing a Charlot necklace to spice up her red dress!

The jewelry is not available to purchase through stores yet. So email the girls at info@roarkenyc.com to get one before they sell out for the holidays!!

http://www.roarkenyc.com/

Floors of Spain and France

Travelling through Spain and France I realized how many beautiful floor patterns that I walked over.  There are so many wonderful artisans in Europe that created these incredible floor patterns with inlaid marble, limestone, wood, brick and more.  These patterns would be great to repeat in a project on the floor in the entry, hallway or patio or translated into a fabric or faux painted...inspiration..Enjoy!

I stole this shot in a museum that didn't allow cameras! Check out the fab Greek Key style jade colored marble.

This basketweave design is used more often in bathrooms, but looks great in this garden around the fountain.

Europe Bound!

Thanks to the help of my world traveller friends, I am ready to jet set to Europe.  Stopping off in Madrid, Spain to warm up with a little paella, then over to Paris, France to enjoy delicious macaroons at Laduree!  If it weren't for all the fabulous bloggers of the world... how would I have filled up on so much information?! 

Habitually Chic blogged about her travels to Paris and staying in the Prince de Conti hotel making it easy for me to find a hotel quickly.   Charlotte Moss gave me an article from Town & Country that she did a few years ago about her travels to Paris and flea market shopping, along with a print out from Elle Decor listing all of the top spots including; Fashion Stores, Restaurants, Flea Markets, Antiques, Hotels, and more!  I can't wait to see all these wonderful places!

Also, I purchased some great books on Paris that are so small they fit in your purse.   I found them at Archivia bookstore on Lexington Avenue. (See books below)

Looking forward to catching up with you and sharing my adventures when I return!

Marie Antoinette and Versailles

I was revisiting the book Marie-Antoinette and the Last Garden at Versailles that was given to me over Christmas this past year. It really got me excited about my trip to Paris this upcoming week. Hopefully, there is still a little greenery left for me as it is the beginning of November. The book quotes that gardening “can become a devouring passion, transforming an ordinary piece of land into a sensitive portrait of an epoch and a major work of art.” See the work of art at Versailles above.

The life of Marie Antoine and how she became Her Royal Highness, the Dauphine of France and renamed Marie Antoinette at the age of only fourteen is pretty amazing! Suddenly at age 18 she became Her Majesty the Queen of France after Louis XV passed away. Having only spent four years in the castle watching and learning from her elders, she was all of a sudden in charge.  Marie Antoinette was given the Trianon as a gift from her husband Louis XVI since she had always had her eye on it as a "getaway" from her life in the castle.  She spent years working with landscape artists and builders to build the perfect garden and redecorate the Trianon along with the Petit Trianon.  Which was followed by, Belvedere, her small theater for entertaining.  Then, Le Temple de l'Amour which is pictured below.

Pictured here is the cover of the book about Marie Antoinette and her chateau at Versailles.

Maybe this will inspire some of you to get to work on preparing your garden this winter so that it is ready for Spring!

Elle Decor Women in Design Awards

Congratulations to Charlotte Moss for winning the Elle Decor Vision Award for 2009. Elle Decor held an event in Times Square for the top Women in Design for 2009. Charlotte Moss, Holly Hunt, Kelly Wearstler, Michelle Nussbaumer, and Josie Natori were all recognized for their inventive designs and incredible achievements over the past few years.

A view of the crowd attending the event to recognize these top designers.

Margaret Russell introduced Charlotte Moss for her wonderful talents and exquisite design vision comparing her to the likes of Nancy Lancaster, Sister Parish, Pauline de Rothschild and many other great designers with a vision.
The panel of women (left to right; Margaret Russell, Kelly Wearstler, Michelle Nussbaumer, Charlotte Moss, Holly Hunt) answering questions and discussing the aspects of becoming an entrepeneur in the field of interior design. I found it interesting that each fabulous designer started out in a different field other than interior design, yet have all become great designers. Kelly Wearstler started out in graphic design, Michelle Nussbaumer started in theater, while Charlotte Moss started out on Wall Street, Josie Natorie was an investment banker, and Holly Hunt started out in fashion sewing clothes for friends. Somehow, their design talents led them to the world of interior design.

Charlotte was quoted saying"seize the moment" to all of those who are interested in building their own empire and becoming a designer in the world of interior design today. While Kelly Wearstler was quoted saying "Fuel your vision" and read books from around the globe and travel and research to grow and become the best designer you can be.

Thanks to all of these designers for their wonderful advice!