Chocolate Cake, Toile, Marie Antoinette and Lily of the Valley

This is a little bit of a mixed up post but sometimes they are the most fun ......

I just wanted to share this gorgeous cake that my friend, Stephanie made for her husband Gary's birthday on the week-end .... we all got together for a bbq with my brother Pat and sister-in-law, Cathy and also some new clients of mine who have just moved up here from Melbourne.  Stephanie made this amazing chocolate cake that was also a mixture of caramel and coconut and it was absolutely divine, delicious and delectable!  The gardenias which garnished this confection were from Steph's garden and the fragrance was incredible! 

 

Last week I also received my new Manuel Canovas collection of toiles and they are so beautiful .... I just don't know which one to choose ....

The lavender is so luscious ..... and I must tell you the history of toiles one day ... apparently they originated in Ireland not France but I am just checking that ..... read it in "Irish Georgian"

 Then I am always playing around with the cushions on our bed much to the confusion of poor Andrew.........

 And finally I have my Marie Antoinette poster framed and ready for hanging .....

I also received my Designers Guild "Lily of the Valley" candles and I popped them onto our fireplace along with some trumpet lilies and I think they work well .... I hope you all have a beautiful week and I am about to catch up with Anita for her photos for my post on her ......

A Little Story to Tell......

 I have a little story to tell about a dream in a faraway land....
where light shone through crystals and time and life was cherished ......

Where believing in the future after a terrible tragedy was the only way forward.......

Where there was hope and courage amidst terrible adversity...

Where so many people had to start again from nothing ..... I can only imagine how terrible that would be ... where a little girl's dreams to play with her dollshouse could be realized again .....

This is Katrina Gentinetta's home post Hurricane Katrina ... so beautiful and so treasured ...... welcome home! The courage to begin again ..... I am in awe of her spirit and determination ..... "We will not be overcome by adversity". ... this is an old Irish saying that my Dad told me and this personifies the strength of this family ...

                    

This is my favourite ... so gorgeous and the pink monogrammed cushion on the white linen chair is so perfect and so welcoming .... just like Karina .... I am going to be visiting next year in New Orleans and we are going to have the best time.....   I am also going to visit Lisa in New York and go to the Hamptons and also Anita, Kit and Alexandra if I can. Also, I wish to say that this blog is only for people with beautiful hearts and souls .....I do not have time in my life for ugliness or nastiness and nor will I tolerate it towards myself, my family or my friends.  For my American friends this is just the beginning .... I am going to do posts on all of you who have been so kind to me ....

Anita ..... Castles, Crowns and Cottages

Lisa ..... Hamptontoes

Kit ..... Chic Provence

Alexandra .... My Pink Sketchbook

Victoria ....

Zhush .....

Red Ticking ...

Little Blue Deer .....

and many more ....

I am going to honour you all for being such wonderful friends .....

All images from Karina Gentinetta except for the storm .... unknown...

Trip to Brisbane .....

I have to share our trip to Brisbane with you ... the most exciting thing happened.  As they had inadvertantly double-booked our suite we got upgraded to the "Presidential Suite"!  Oh my goodness ... what fun we did have but just for one night .... here is Georgiana sipping tea and the beautiful sitting area below ... we even had our own kitchen and dining room complete with a twinkling chandelier ...

 .....Whilst in Brisbane I visited my favourite distributors Verde Agencies who also represent Radford.  They stock three of my favourites ... Designers Guild, Ralph Lauren and Manuel Canovas.  Above is a gorgeous settee with the signature DG colours .... so fresh and beautiful and the green is perfect for spring ...

            Georgiana in front of one their display sofas .......

                                         
                                                    Designers Guild fabric .......

 Grace and Georgiana in amonst the sample books having a ball and pretending to be models .....

Popped into one of my favourite shops of a colleague of mine Robyn's beautiful store "Magnolia" .... I have my eye on these gorgeous ikat lampshades that Robyn had made up from a one off piece of fabric from Turkey!  Love the coral as well ... I am doing a job at our coast for some clients and I think this would work well ... also doing a real Hamptons style there ... will post more about that later ....

The Designers Guild towel range and a gorgeous lampshade ...

The outside of "Magnolia" ..... beautiful cushions!

A good friend of mine turned 40 so I arranged some cupcakes and some champagne and a present (a Limoges tea cup and saucer) and we had a little celebration in the hotel room .... it was also Harlie's twin daughters birthdays recently and I am godmother to them so we had a triple party event ....

Because I couldn't bake I bought these exquisite confections from a shop over at Ascot called "VanillaPod" and they were yum ....

I think even Marie Antoinette herself would have liked to have been at the party .... of course I did fill in for her!

I also caught up with two other very close friends Harriet and Claudia and we all went to dinner at "Libertine" ... a French/Vietnamese infusion restaurant and it was fabulous.  It was a beautiful few days and I was very lucky to be able to combine work with fun and catching up with wonderful friends and of course having cups of tea and delicate cakes and sandwiches with my gorgeous Georgie!  Have a wonderful week-end ...
hugs M.A. the 2nd

"Ladies and Gentlemen ~ Drumroll Please!"

Ladies and Gentlemen ... may I have your attention please ....

I am proud to announce the winner of a "One Lovely Blog Award" .....

Karina Gentinetta from "disegno Karina Gentinetta" ...

..... a Laduree confection to celebrate a brilliant artist and designer in New Orleans ...

..... her work is reminiscent of  Renaissance style coming out of the dark ages of minimalism and bringing new life to these gorgeous pieces .....

....Karina has an ability with antiques that is extraordinary ....she has a talent to bring them to life ....

..... Karina and her husband, AJ's beautiful home in New Orleans .... this was created after the horror of Hurricane Katrina... they have two beautiful children ... Liam and Roma...

..... the interior of Karina's shop full of stunning, breathtaking pieces that she restores with passion including the gilding and upholstery ... then she finds the perfect new owner to take these gorgeous antiques onto their next journey ...

.... she does not compromise ... the owner and the antique have to match perfectly ... http://www.karinagentinetta.blogspot.com/

.... Karina and Aj's gorgeous kitchen ... I will be right over for a cup of tea and then we can start planning... crowns or chandeliers ????? or both!!

.... this is my beautiful piece,  a Louis 15th style circa 1910 sofa that I have bought from Karina and we are currently in the process of shipping it here to me in Australia ....

..... gorgeous 4 ft long Italian sconces ....

.... I also have these tufted Louis the 16th salon chairs en route to the Land Down Under .... Karina made everything possible ... please visit her for an amazing experience ... her ability with antiques and affinity for them is something I have never experienced before.  She takes a piece and gives it new life ... just like she did after Hurricane Katrina .. her strength and determination is something to be admired ...

... I am so happy to give you this award which I believe you so richly deserve ... congratulations .... dear friend ...