French Flair

Description

This rich, oversized resource is a treasure trove of ideas for incorporating traditional designs and timeless antique embellishments into a modern home. While modern design often neglects cultural and artistic heritage in favor of minimalism, Siraudeau demonstrates that it isn’t necessary to forgo tradition to create a fashionable home. With his eye for idiosyncratic details, Siraudeau has an exceptional flair for finding homes characterized with vintage style, where antique objects invoke nostalgia and time-tested quality. French writer and musician Boris Vian declared, “Any object can be an objet d’art once put in a frame,” and this innovative spirit shines through in the one hundred properties featured here. From 1960s mannequins to antique books to a salvaged Parisian streetlamp, any kind of paraphernalia can define and enrich the personality of a home by giving it a history. Styles and periods don’t need to match, because French design is about integrating the unexpected alongside unconventional details to make a modern home unique. Organized thematically, this volume reveals how an extraordinarily diverse range of ambiences can be achieved by integrating the simplest of decorative touches, from authentic, tradional, and romantic, to eclectic and contemporary. Siraudeau guides the reader through some of the most remarkable locations in France, from delightful rural guesthouses, exquisite town homes, and charming seaside retreats, to the best of France’s antique shops, each abounding with features that characterize the unique French flair for home decorating. His ideas and advice are astute to contemporary comforts and the practicalities of modern living, and his exquisite photos, flooded with the soft light of a French summer, make this an invaluable volume for admirers of French style.