Christian Lacroix's Paris pied-a-terre-pour-moi

<a href="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a><br />As many have previously blogged about, fashion designer Christian Lacroix Parisian apartment is on the market for $2.5M US$ (2M Euros). The apartment is located in a historical 17th century building in the heart of the Marais, close to the Place de Vosges and the Picasso museum. The town house (<span style="font-style: italic;">hotel particulier</span>) has 4 bedrooms, 13' high ceilings, a messanine library, original moldings and guilding, and state of the art bathrooms and kitchen and an interior terrace.<br /><br />I would like to move in, s'il vous plait!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_10.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_10.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a>I'm not much of a gardener, but would just love to have a small interior courtyard garden. Can't you just see spending a lovely morning with a delicious <span style="font-style: italic;">petite dejeuner </span>of croissant, strawberry jam, café au lait and a good book to enjoy?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_9.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_9.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a><br /><br />Lacroix maintained the original integrity of this 17C building - the moldings, parquet floors, labaryntine floor plan - while adding in his signature style palette of contemporary forms and colorful palette. <a href="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_8.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_8.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_7.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_7.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a> From Christian Lacroix's <a href="http://www.christian-lacroix.fr/english/maison/bricbrac.htm">website</a>: <span style="font-style: italic;">"A house, therefore, is a refuge, but a refuge which must change, grow, and alter incessantly, run off in every direction, not refuse any possiblility, always going in the sense of the indefinable. This unites the houses and gardens of Pompei to furniture close to Giacometti, to the 16th century curiosity cabinet, to the wood and slate of a Japanese bathroom, to the sitting room of an English cottage, to the bedroom of a Russian datcha, or to the atelier of the Facteur Chevall…"</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_6.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_6.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_5.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_5.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_3.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_3.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a><br />Lacroix's 2009 collection shows a strong relation between his fashion and interiors taste.<br /><a href="http://media.wwd.com/images/processed/Collections/2009/haute-couture/lacroix/portrait/00-main/lacroix12.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://media.wwd.com/images/processed/Collections/2009/haute-couture/lacroix/portrait/00-main/lacroix12.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 361px; height: 526px;" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_4.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_4.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.prestigeproperty.co.uk/PropertyImages/LargeImages/125811_2.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a><br />I can't say I love his decorating style - a little too eclectic and disjointed.<br /><br />So, I got to thinking, daydreaming really, about how I would decorate this fantastic apartment:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV3JksghK3SmKvWJNFBRFRnywg8E_t9DRu0nGwcSl96PVzHXMld0-Cqhqi01I_gmmc_FYQQSJ-dvCZit42xgXN_NcRys5vm82wbmrcHdW-JW25yh6Rfm6fQWGGlv2Gcn6_B3_Mlj72a6An/s1600-h/Linda's+Lacroix.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300646968150096946" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV3JksghK3SmKvWJNFBRFRnywg8E_t9DRu0nGwcSl96PVzHXMld0-Cqhqi01I_gmmc_FYQQSJ-dvCZit42xgXN_NcRys5vm82wbmrcHdW-JW25yh6Rfm6fQWGGlv2Gcn6_B3_Mlj72a6An/s400/Linda's+Lacroix.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 420px; height: 305px;" /></a><small><a href="http://www.polyvore.com/lacroix_redux/set?.mid=embed&id=6428169">Lacroix redux</a> - by <a href="http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/profile?.mid=embed&id=451171" rel="nofollow">Surroundings</a> on <a href="http://www.polyvore.com/">Polyvore.com</a></small><br /></div><br />What do you think? I can see some pretty great blogging coming from this spot!<br /><br /><br />Where is your dream pied-a-terre?<br /><br />source: <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/overseasproperty/4527916/Property-in-Paris-Live-the-bohemian-dream.html">London Telegraph</a><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/40/61AD69B5456EE9E48D48218DA34439B1.png" style="border: 0pt none ! important; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" /></a><br /><br /><p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/EQjz" rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml"><img alt="" src="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/feed-icon16x16.png" style="border: 0pt none ; vertical-align: middle;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/EQjz" rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml">Subscribe to ::Surroundings::</a></p>

Christian Lacroix's Paris pied-a-terre-pour-moi

As many have previously blogged about, fashion designer Christian Lacroix Parisian apartment is on the market for $2.5M US$ (2M Euros). The ...

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Getting back into the saddle

<a href="http://gallery.me.com/linda.m.merrill/100786/BobandMom/web.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://gallery.me.com/linda.m.merrill/100786/BobandMom/web.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 376px; height: 573px;" /></a>I'm slowly coming up for air since the death of my dear daddy last week. The funeral Mass was lovely and my brothers and I managed to do our parts without totally breaking down. They each did readings and I played my flute. As someone said - we had an angel on our shoulders, helping us through and I believe it's true.<br /><br />As is often the case with funerals - we get in touch with folks we haven't for a while. Stories are told, remembrances shared, there is laughter, and, of course, tears.<br /><br />I wanted to share the remembrance that my brothers and I put together for the funeral - it was authored by my brother Don with input from Bob and I:<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" >We come together today in sadness at the loss of our father, but not to mourn. Instead, we celebrate a life lived well and to the fullest. Dad would insist on nothing less today.<br /><br />One of the many reasons we loved Dad was his expansive spirit. He was not a gregarious man. Nevertheless, he made a sincere effort to get to know everyone he met, to hear their story, to seek out their opinion. But this was no shrinking flower. He loved banter and debate as well. In the process, he became friends with many, many people throughout his life.<br /><br />The foundation of his life was his 54-year marriage to Mom. Their relationship, born of a blind date, blossomed into a love large enough to envelop all of us in its warmth. But even as we always felt secure in Mom and Dad’s love, we never forgot for one moment that their marriage was the rock upon which the family was built.<br /><br />With quick wit and formidable intellect, he had the answer before we even knew how to ask the question. The crank telephone was high technology when he grew up, yet as a retired man, Dad learned to use a computer and the Internet. He became proficient enough to share his newfound skills by volunteering for his friends at <a href="http://www.rhci.org/">RHCI</a> – miracle workers who gave him the gift of continued mobility for many years.<br /><br />Dad was always there to support us in a time of worry or pain, and he insisted that his children stand ready always to do the same for one another. He said, “they’re your family, and there are going to be times when they’re all you’ll have to fall back on.” We had no idea how deeply he meant it. We do now.<br /><br />There was also great wisdom. We were the beneficiaries of his insight and guidance, but that didn’t mean Dad was going to provide the answers or fight the battles. That was the starting point beyond which we were expected to do for ourselves. It was at once comforting and very, very challenging.<br /><br />Dignity was his life’s work and his greatest achievement: The dignity of putting forth one’s best effort; of honest work despite adversity; of putting one foot in front of the other, despite advancing age which made that simple act ever more difficult with each passing year. He never complained. He never wondered, “why?” As he had done throughout his life, Dad went about the task of making the situation better with great determination. He was a winner in the best sense of the word.<br /><br />We have truly been twice blessed: By having known Dad’s love for so many years... and, more importantly, for having been the children of such an extraordinary father.</span><br /><br /><br />The photo at top was shared by one of my cousins. It's my Dad at about age four and his sister Bette (Merrill) Wasserboehr who passed away several years ago. My guess is the photo dates to 1929-ish.<br /><br />How cute were they? My Aunt Bette was an artist and always an incredibly stylish woman. Even at about age seven or eight, she was quite chic, no? Family lore has it that she used to beat on him mercilessly until he got big enough to make her stop. This must have been one of their good days! In truth though, he adored his sister, and their eldest brother, Bud, who died 20 or so years ago. We know there was quite a reunion going on in heaven this week.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54487/40/61AD69B5456EE9E48D48218DA34439B1.png" style="border: 0pt none ! important; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" /></a><br /><br /><p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/EQjz" rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml"><img alt="" src="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/feed-icon16x16.png" style="border: 0pt none ; vertical-align: middle;" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/EQjz" rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml">Subscribe to ::Surroundings::</a></p>

Getting back into the saddle

I'm slowly coming up for air since the death of my dear daddy last week. The funeral Mass was lovely and my brothers and I managed to do...

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The London "Snofa" (nope, not a typo)

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The London "Snofa" (nope, not a typo)

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