Sometimes it really is the little things ...

On a buying trip like the one I have just been on, racing around Paris and the french countryside, sometimes it is the space, the pause, the time to breathe that you really appreciate.  The pace is generally quite quick - there is so much to be done while I am there - that I do enjoy opportunities to slow my eye, and seeing the smaller things around me too.

Walking through the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris, with the perfectly manicured lawns that you are not allowed to stand on; it brought a smile to my lips to see these little 'untamed' flowers poking their heads through the blades of grass.

And walking through the fields of Normandy, with acres and acres of farm field vista in front of you, there is still a smaller and quieter perfection to be found - such as in these details in the blades of wheat.

Or in the wild grasses by the roadside, or the detail of a wild daisy in a field.

And on seeing these pretty oak flowers, realising that the significant hum in the air, was actually a tree full of bees!

And today, I had planned to be taking photos of some stock to show you, before I put it in the shop.  However, the light is bad, it's raining on and off, and just not the day to be taking furniture outside!

So with a camera in my hand and nothing to shoot, it's made me look again, back home in Brisbane.  At our own hedge of azaleas, that don't quite know whether to flower or not, or whether spring is here, because of this unseasonal winter rain we are having!

And look again at how pretty they are laden with water.

It doesn't always have to be the grand gestures or the sweeping vistas that make your heart sing.  Sometimes it really is just the little things.

Jennifer.

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{all images Vintage Finds}

There and back again

How many miles to Paris town? 

10 282 miles and ten.  

Can you get there by candlelight?

There and back again.

So much to share that I am finding it hard to arrange my thoughts and begin.  If you were sitting in front of me and were to ask one little teensy question, I would be answering with a barrage of words on the wonderful trip I have just had, all the fantastic things I have found, seen and done, and especially the wonderful people I have met.

Because, I must admit, for me it is about people and our connections in the world that makes life truly interesting.  There are the people that present us with experiences out of the blue, that you don't expect, that turn a merely lovely moment into something that you will treasure.

Just one of these moments happened when my friends and I were having a degustation dinner at Le Comptoir, in Saint-Germaine.  Wonderful occasion in itself: vibrant venue, fantastic food and wonderful wine, surrounded by friends and lovely 'french food' chatter - creating an atmosphere we felt could not be topped.

And then was this jovial fellow, let forth with a french classic (you guessed it!) that is a quintessential reminder of Paris!  La Vie en Rose.  Sights, sounds and taste.  The moment and happiness now etched in my memory.

And then there are also warm and welcoming people, where by their very nature, you feel you are coming home.  Such as when I stayed again with my darling friend Sharon Santoni from the beautiful blog My French Country Home.  Such kindness and little details that she attended to!

Little homely touches, the posies of fresh flowers on the nightstands next to each of our beds, and the lists pre-prepared for us of local fairs and markets we may like to visit and new brocantes that have opened since my last visit.  Dinner reservations at a local attended to, and our highlight, a wonderful home cooked french dinner (much appreciated after so many weeks of travel)!

So bear with me while I compose my thoughts, unravel the stories and attempt to begin over the coming days...

Jennifer
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