Village House

House is on the right with the white shutters.

New bathroom addition, love the glass sink

Shower fittings are from the UK and very modern. Floor and wall trim are stone pebbles.

Though it looks like it could use a good coat of paint, this kitchen set was bought at the very chic St.Paul market in Paris

The garden is under construction right now. It should look great when I return to France in May

Here are pictures of the recently renovated house I bought in La Tour Blanche. I love this village as it is a "living" village with shops, a restaurant, a grocery store, a hairdresser, post office and more while still keeping it's 14th century charm.

The house was built in the 14th century and mine was not the first renovation though I did make an effort to make it look "shabby" as well as "chic".

Spring has sprung in Dallas

Today is a gorgeous day, 84 degrees and for my European friends, that's about 25 celcius.

I put the top down on my Mini and drove to a park near my home to photograph the azaleas. This entire area of Dallas, called Highland Park, is covered with azaleas, all hot pink. They grace the front of many homes, line the street parallel to Turtle Creek and crop up wherever there is a bare spot. Breathtaking.

Family Dinner

Every so often I love to cook old favorites for my family. We all reminisce over the last time we ate Mom's chicken and cole slaw. Last Sunday was one of those nights and there was nary a scrap of food left over.

I used my Sacha Brastoff plates from the 1950's. This is a pattern called Smoke Tree.

Latest and Greatest Dry Bar

Recently opened DRY BAR in Dallas is a hair salon that does not color, does not cut but only shampoos and blow dries your hair. They have five salons in California and this is their first salon outside their home state.

They are open seven days a week and I went last Sunday to check it out. It was very cool, clean and modern and being five minutes from where I live in the Highland Park area of Dallas, very convenient.

They offer several choices and you select the picture of the one you want. Since I have naturally curly hair, my choice was super straight, they call it the Manhattan. It worked, they did a great job.

I believe they will open up soon in New York.

They charge $35.00 plus tip which is much less than most salons charge for the same thing here in Dallas.

I wish them luck and hope all works out for them and by the looks of it, they are a hit. It was totally full Sunday morning and because I pass it regularly while out shopping, it looks like they are always full. You can book your appointment on line.

Home in Dallas

I arrived home after a very long 12 hour flight. I guess we had head winds so the flight was about an hour longer than usual. Ho hum......

When I got home these beautiful roses were awaiting me. Okay, so they were a welcome home gift from the florist. It was so thoughtful.

Quick stop at the Pharmacy

I cannot resist the Pharmacies in Paris and here is my latest purchase. They sell these patches for any part of the face you would like to tighten up. Let's see if it works.

Le Hotel Royal Monceau

Lovely Lobby.

Waiting for friends to arrive. Sitting and reading the Herald Tribune and sipping a Coupe.

How about this ceiling? It has the look of Fauve.

The beautiful chargers came in several colors.

Girls just like to have fun.

There is a design on the saucer that reflects on the cup, it's a ring.

Menu for various kinds of Mille Feuille for dessert.

Cheesecake with vanilla bean flavor.

Mille Feuille

Back wall of restaurant with bottles of colored liquid.

Lots of gorgeous chandeliers.

As a goodbye lunch two dear friends took me to the newly renovated Hotel Royal Monceau in Paris, not far from the Arc de Triomphe, for a marvelous lunch. The hotel was recently re- opened after Phillipe Stark finished his work, gorgeous.

Getting Ready to go to Dallas

In just a few days I will be returning to Dallas. I will be closing up my house and saying goodbye to my French friends for a couple of months. This means, lots of lunches and dinners to wish me a Bon Voyage.

I plan on driving to Paris and staying there for a couple of days before I board my flight to DFW.

I'll return to France for the summer but the next few entries will probably be from the States.

A Tipple a day keeps the doctor away

I am virtually a non drinker and living in the wine country of France one would think I would have picked up the habit by now, well, I have not. However, on a regular basis I visit a 96 year old friend of mine and we have a cup of tea. She usually has a shot of whiskey in her tea before she has her pre- dinner cocktails and her wine with dinner. I fix her the tea, pour in the milk, add the whiskey and she drinks quite happily. Today she insisted I join her in this concoction and guess what, it was delicious. Am I on the road to being a "tippler"? Try it, you might like it and we may have learned the key to living a long life.

Designer Vintage Dresses

I have been holding onto some very beautiful designer vintage gowns for a very long time. I have finally decided that someone else might enjoy wearing them so I placed them on my Etsy account for viewing. It will be bittersweet parting with them but I think the time has come for the dresses to be out in public again.

If you want to see them you can go to www.etsy.com and look for the vintage shop

myamericanfrenchlife.

Here are pictures of two of them.

Tres belle.....