The Gardens of Versailles

Bonjour, mes amis! Are you getting ready for the cozy days of autumn? Our weather is turning chillier here in northern California, with leaves fading golden and days a bit shorter. Before we dip too far into the holiday season, I wanted to share with you some of my photos from the Versailles jardins that I took when I was recently in Paris. (Please see my post of October 3 for photos of the interior of this incredible palace.)


A maze of lush grass and flowers, topiaries, pools spouting water, and 18th century statuary was dizzying in the afternoon sun.







Imagine waking up to these views from your bedroom balcony, as Marie Antoinette must have done!







Inspired by images of this garden and others I visited in Paris, I've incorporated flowers and their colours in the jewelry designs I created this week.

This first piece, entitled 'mathilda', reminds me a young French girl romping about the streets of her beautiful city. I'll let you all in on a little secret: yesterday my family went with my sister for an ultrasound and we learned that her baby is going to be a girl! She and her hubby have chosen the name Mathilda, so I wanted to pay tribute to her with this bracelet.




I have recently become addicted to mother of pearl rosaries and simply cannot get enough! The crosses on these earrings come from two such rosaries and I think they look good enough to eat. I juxtaposed their brilliance with grungy old medals and brass crosses, then added more sparkle with vintage rhinestones, aquamarines and faceted ruby briolettes.




Finally, my 'sweet maria' necklace features a large vintage plate of pastel-coloured rhinestones, a sterling silver Virgin Mary medal which I found at an antiques brocante during my Paris trip, blue enamel flower findings, rhinestone floral links, pearls, and gemstones.






These pieces will be available in my Etsy shoppe later today. Thank you for stopping by. Have a beautiful week! :)

Gilded Versailles

Because of my on-going fascination with all things Marie Antoinette, a visit to Versailles was a must on my to-do list during my recent trip to Paris. Just a half hour's Metro ride outside of the city, the palace where the queen of France lived with her husband Louis XVI (and his ancestors before that) is enormous and opulent in all its 18th century grandeur - everything seems to be glistening in a fresh coat of gold.



This is the cathedral where Marie and Louis were wed.


Paintings of the royal family, as well as religious and hunting themes abound in every room.



Many of the original furnishings are also on display, such as this velvet damask fainting couch.



In every room you have to look up, up, up, since the ceilings themselves are works of art, not to mention the crystal chandeliers everywhere.




We are now about to enter the famous Hall of Mirrors, the largest room in the palace. As you will see, there were throngs of tourists the day I visited. It kind of gave new meaning to one of my favourite lines in Sofia Coppola's film, when Marie obligatorily makes small talk with Madame du Barry, 'There are a lot of people at Versailles today.'





This is Marie's beautiful bedchamber. Ironically, the room seemed smaller to me than I'd imagined from the movie.



Marie reportedly escaped through this side door when the palace was invaded near the end of her reign.




And this is her jewelry chest! Imagine how many diamonds she must have had stored in here!



The black and white harlequin floors made me want to dance...


with this handsome gent.



Inspired by my tour, I created this necklace and have entitled it - what else? - 'gilded versailles'. Featuring a vintage filigree commemorative pendant of the courtyard and goldtone and crystal chains and bows, it will be available in my Etsy shoppe later today.






Alas, it is time to leave Versailles for today. Please stay tuned for photos of the breathtaking gardens coming soon. Au revoir! :)