Belle Inspiration e-Magazine - Premier Issue Debuting Wednesday!

**You may want to hit the pause button on the

music player to your right before hitting the 

play button on the video above**

One more day!

I'm so excited about the unveiling of 

Belle Inspiration,

the new e-zine set to be unveiled Wednesday the 15th!

In their own words, this is what makes Belle Inspiration so special:

Belle Inspiration is your  rendez-vous with good taste and style.   Published bi-monthly and delivered to you in a digital flip-page format. 

Our international team of contributors are all about a romantic style of living, and enjoying the simple things that can make your day more beautiful.

Each issue will profile practical and versatile ideas coupled with beautiful images,  unique boutiques, wallet-friendly solutions for interiors, food and fashion. 

Meet business-minded women and discover how they launched their dreams.  We endeavor to be your online escape, a small respite during your busy day.  For you, your family, your home, your life!

Interested??

Visit their subscription page here.

Publish PostHope you're having a lovely start to the week!

Orderable Now: Jeanne d'Arc Magazine AND Christmas Book PLUS The New Vakre Hjem!

All kinds of great news here with regard to 

GORGEOUS

magazine publications!

The other day boxes of the Fall issue of

Vakre Hjem & Interior arrived on our doorstop

and let me tell you...

IT

IS

BEAUTIFUL.

Boy I love that magazine!

It is IN STOCK and ready to ship! 

Order your copy HERE!

Here's a short preview:

The next issue of Jeanne d'Arc Living magazine will also be hitting

our doorstop shortly and it, too, promises to be packed with

page after page of Autumn eye candy and ideas!

Pre-orders for this issue are now being taken online 

HERE

and we expect to ship in just a couple of weeks at most!

I love the cover!!

Here's a little preview of it:

AND!!!  Guess what??

Jeanne d'Arc Living is going to reprint their 

oh-so-popular "JUL" Christmas book again this year!!

IN ENGLISH!!!

And, they are doing the reprint in paperback (like the magazines)

so the cost is going to be the same as the magazines!  

Isn't that incredible??  

We expect to ship them out in October and we're taking 

pre-orders online 

HERE!

Here's a little peek inside:

So, even though we are still living with our typical

extreme-heat here in Florida (highs still in the 90's with very

high humidity), 

I am loving focusing on the "promise" of Fall ....

even if vicariously through these beautiful publications!!

If you would like any of the three, or all, head over to the site

and grab yours -- they are already selling fast!!

Have a great weekend and I'll be back shortly with still more

new additions to the inventory!

If you didn't catch the last round that we added to the site,

skip over and take a peek by clicking 

HERE!

There are just some events that fall into that "NOT - TO - BE - MISSED" category... This one, for instance.

Deb Kennedy...

aka WONDER WOMAN of retail decor, display and

general craftiness (in the very best way) is bringing us another 

of her fabulous events held on her expansive,

gorgeous Camano Island, Washington farm...

(just north of Seattle).

What a woman -- making all she touches turn to 

FABULOUS

VINTAGE

AUTUMN

GOLD.

So here's what you can expect:

A heavenly setting:

Fall in the air, Crisp, cool Washington state air,  island breezes, 

And a BARN-FULL of vintage and handmade wares!

Plus lots and lots of vendors all coming together to bring you!

a day to 

shop, 

relax, 

 & take in the coming season of 

cozy, 

happy,

 comfort, 

and celebrations.

And if you're lucky,

if you're 

REALLY

REALLY 

lucky,

you can still get a space in a fun class,

"Deb's Sweet Sweater Pumpkin" class

where you'll learn how to make THESE:

All you need to know about attending this event can be found on any

of these pages:

PETITE RETREAT BLOG

EVENT INVITATION ON FACEBOOK

PETITE RETREAT'S PAGE ON FACEBOOK

You really need to try to find any way possible to get to this --

Deb even provides lodging suggestions on her pages (hint, hint)

so GO FOR IT!

Here's to the coming of the best time of the year!!

  

Some Fresh New Beauty In Just In Time For Fall... And More On The Way!

Just a super quickie post to let you know the some of what was

received here a few days ago has finally been photographed 

and put up on the store website!

You'll find it all on our new items page --

"THE VERY LATEST"

Happy Labor Day weekend to you all!!

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We All Know Our Birth Stone, Right? What About Your "Birth Color"?

"Honey, you were BORN to wear that color!"

Ever heard that?

Ever caught yourself saying "I was born to live with this color!"

or

"This color was just made for me..."

Well, turns out, maybe you were right!

Thanks to sweet Leigha from ELLE OH

and THIS POST she did recently on finding "your" color,

I tried it out on the website, and I am now informed as to what MY special "birth color" is...

Based on my birthdate of August 1st, 19-wouldn't-you-like-to-know...

"Autumn Sunset" is "my" color... Pantone #16-1343.

The little description they give of those born on this date goes something like this:
Devoted.  Persistent.  Intense.
Having a "royal" nature, I need to be treated with respect (Well, okay, I'll take that one).
I function best when I'm in leadership (NOT).
I'm not one to follow someone else's drum beat (agree).
I'm loyal & committed and my influence is felt when I believe in something....
and so on.

I'll take all the descriptives with a grain of salt -- but it IS very fun to play on this site with
the birthdays of your friends and family to see if their color matches what they
have always gravitated toward.

Okay, friends... confession time...

Me no likey.  

I've NEVER been an orange kinda gal.  

Ever.

(Well, wait... there IS that orange rain slicker I have in my closet... the one that got me

into ALL KINDA trouble once when I tagged along to a Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee Vols 

homecoming game one year.  We were on the Vandy side... and I wore my orange rain coat...

Hey, how was I to know??  I don't follow football and I just knew I had this nice bright orange

rain coat from Gap that I was dying to wear, and... well... can you imagine??

There we were -- sitting as a family on the VANDERBILT side of the stands, AT

Vanderbilt where my husband graduated from, and there your's truly is...

sportin' her cute new rain slicker in just the perfect shade of Tennessee Vols orange..

Oh what a day... what a day...)

But I digress...

I was just sure I'd be a nice warm, golden, tawny yellow -- the kind you see in

Provence or Tuscany.

I adore yellows like this:

Oh my word... LOVE this bed...

{BOTH photos from Leigha's FANTABULOUS blog}

Or maybe a great shade of green.. I don't know... something like emerald.

Even something in the greys/charcoals...

Nope.

I got orange.  PUMPKIN orange.

Well... I do love Fall.  Maybe I should embrace my inner-orange and 

try branching out a little and add a little "Autumn Sunset" to my life.

Leigha and I chatted a bit about how I wasn't super thrilled with what turned out to be

"my" color and being the awesome designer that she is, in no time, she

sent me some "inspiration photos" that contained "my" color.

Here are two that she sent me:

This...

and this

I love these beds, by the way!!!  The color... the paintings on them...

And just look how good just the little pop of orange is in this room..

Okay... maybe I could warm up a bit to this....

Hmmm.... Added in just the right amount, to just the right spot, maybe

I would be willing to welcome orange into the fold.

So, stay tuned... maybe there will be some shades of Autumn Sunset

sneaking into my decor -- added in with charcoal, some of my already-present

Tuscan yellows... just might be a match made in heaven!!

Or, on my birthday?

Have a great Labor Day weekend and I will be back here within

a day or so with links to 

ALL the fun new inventory that just arrived!!

Go have fun over at Leigha's blog and picking out 

YOUR color.

  

Shameless Re-Post For A Thursday Laugh. Husbands, consider yourselves warned... :)

I thought I'd share the following blog post that I read yesterday when visited

1 Funky Woman's 

and just couldn't help laughing.

I thought I'd share the laugh with you today.  

:)

Poor hubbys, they just can't win sometimes.  

"HUSBAND DOWN!"

Over the PA system: "Cleanup on aisle 25, we have a husband down!"

A husband and wife are shopping in their local Wal-Mart.

The husband picks up a case of Budweiser and puts it in their cart.

"What do you think you're doing?" asks the wife.

"They're on sale, only $10 for 24 cans, he replies!"

"Put them back, we can't afford them demands the wife, and so they carry on shopping.

A few aisles further along, the woman picks up a $20 jar of face cream and puts it in the cart.

"What do you think you're doing?" asks the husband.

"It’s my face cream and it makes me look beautiful", replies the wife.

Her husband retorts: "So does 24 cans of Budweiser and it's half the price"

Well, I think we all know why that husband is down now don't we? 

You might want to let your hubbies see this one, so if ever they are in a similar situation, 

they will think before they speak!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks again, to sweet Megan who writes 1 Funky Woman...

give her a visit (or a "Follow"!) --- you'll love her!!

Have a great Thursday -- I'll be feverishly working on a huge load

of fresh "funkiness" that just arrived on the doorstep yesterday 

that now needs to be photographed and put online.

Back soon to show you!!

XOXO,

  

Grab Bag of Info, Thoughts, And News

I am so excited about the coming launch of 

BELLE INSPIRATION...

A gorgeous e-zine brought to us by one of our own!

A sister blogger who lives in France (by marriage).

It is the creation of our dear friend and blogger, Mimi Bleu,
from Bonjour Romance blog.


Oh... don't hate her because she's living where 99% of us dream
of living....She is so charming and REAL -- you will love her!

Though the first, charter issue has not yet appeared,
I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at who you will see featured there!

Mimi has invited your's truly to write occasionally for the magazine
and I very well may take her up on that.  :)

You know how I can gab...  ;)

The official launch date for the magazine is September 15th and sign-up
response has already been VERY POSITIVE!

OH!  And if that were not enough, there is also a SHOPPING area of the
on the site!

LOVE it!

I've ordered my subscription, have you?

Click here to order!

E-zines, or e-magazines (online magazines) are growing in their popularity
partly due to the fact that so many of us spend a great deal of time online and are
growing used to the web being a comfortable place to take in our information
as well as a place to go back for reference on something -- much like when a
fresh magazine or catalog arrives... we look at it and then those items
we know we will want to revisit are dog-eared for future reference.

With an e-zine it is the same, with the exception of having an
overflowing pile of magazines growing next to the nightstand or coffee table.

And unlike paper-versions of magazines, with an e-zine,
you can not only literally "flip" through the pages, but you can also
zoom in on a certain item in the content.  You can't do THAT with a
paper mag!   :)

Are we ready to dispense with all paper versions of our beautiful magazines?
Probably not, but I know that anymore, with my schedule, I am probably far more
likely to actually see an entire magazine from cover to cover if I can
flip through its pages while I'm online... since it's likely online is where
I am at any give time.

I do hope you will take a peek at the coming issue
of Belle Inspiration -- I think you will love it!


In other news,
I went on a bit of a buying spree last week and much of what
I ordered is due to come in this week!

I think you will love it all!

There are heavy canvas French-style bags made form
real, vintage canvas.  What til you see them!

There are canvas rugs made from the same vintage canvas
this time, with a subtle, tone-on-tone Union Jack design.
I have already redecorated my bedroom in my head, using
that canvas floor covering as a beadspread.

Large, black metal NYC subway signs... I LOVE THEM!!

Some zinc items that we've never had before and a BEAUTIFUL
French ceramic bird-topped confiture (lidded serving bowl)
with a little ceramic spoon.   Oh-so-beautiful!'

I could go on and on but for now, I will hope to
be back with live links to all this new inventory so you can
see it ALL for yourself.