France + All Things French
Following our post Finding French Antique and Vintage Items in France, where we shared our top ideas on how to find markets and vide-greniers when in France, we have an exciting announcement…
We have opened an Etsy Store called … you guessed it … AFrenchCollection.
Our previous article on markets and the opening of our store is the next step in answer to the questions and requests I’ve had on where do I find my bits and pieces for my homes and could I find something on my trips to bring back for others.
Decorating your house, manor or chateau in France can be fun if you know the basics of where to find antiques and vintage items. Finding vintage and antique items is a lot easier and more satisfying in France than in Australia I have found.
As we have homes in both Australia and France and live between the two we have done a bit of antique and secondhand furniture and decor shopping and share our experience and tips with you now on how to best find antique and vintage items in France.
There are so many more antique and brocante stores in France and as there is always a market happening somewhere you’re likely to find just the right piece you’re looking for.
Continue Reading
On your French travels have you ever been really hungry and on reaching the local boulangerie (bakery) found it closed for their lunch break? What the heck is that about? They sell food right – and they are shut at lunch time! Nothing better explains France’s love for the long lunch than this anomaly. Boulangeries close so that bakers and workers can enjoy their own lunch break, and locals plan around these midday closures.
However, there is also an answer to this age-old lunch hunger problem when the boulangerie is closed. It’s got our family and no doubt many others out of hunger – enter the baguette vending machine. True, there are vending machines that dispense fresh baguettes in France.
Continue Reading
A New Year’s Eve Party is always on New Year’s Eve isn’t it? Are you sure? Now you have to understand it was the very first time we stayed at our house in Brittany, and actually, in France at all. One quick trip to France some six months earlier we looked at houses, agreed to purchase one, and after the sale transaction was completed we made the trip to France with the family to renovate it and have guests stay.
Immediately after getting the keys from the real estate agent and taking down the ‘For Sale’ sign, we got busy renovating, furniture assembling and gardening, and after three weeks of this we were exhausted. We’d been to French department stores, French hardware stores, French supermarkets and had learned to accept that things were very different in France and while everything was possible, it all just took much longer, especially as we knew very little French and could speak even less.
Continue Reading
A French Christmas Tale of how we almost forgot to celebrate Christmas lunch on our first ever Christmas in our French home.
A hot baked turkey with roasted vegetables and “all the trimmings” is still very popular in Australia – even when the ambient temperature reaches 35⁰ outside in the shade, although cold platters and gourmet salads are increasing in popularity. For a couple of months leading up to Christmas magazines start to feature both options with strong preferences often being voiced when the Christmas menu gets discussed amongst families in preparation of the big day.
Continue Reading
Have you seen a French pigeonnier when travelling through France? Have you driven along country roads and seen unusual structures that are circular or square with a un-proportionate height to ground space and with small holes in the walls?
We have seen these little buildings with their pitched roofs standing alone in a field, often silhouetted against the sky and tried to guess just what they were and what their purpose was. I imagine that if you’ve travelled through the French countryside you may have seen these structures also. We now know they are pigeonniers or ancient pigeon homes.
Continue Reading
Nativity Play in Corlay, FranceA Nativity Play with live donkeys, sheep, lots of young children, a baby and candles, what could go wrong? A lot as it turned out when we went to our first Nativity Play in France. But first let’s find out what a Nativity Play is.
Ever wondered what a nativity play is and where to see one? A nativity play is usually held in a church or school hall around Christmas time and has children role-playing as Joseph, Mary, baby Jesus, shepherds and the Wise Men.
The play recreates the scene of Jesus’ birth and tells of how Mary and Joseph were visited by the shepherds and Wise Men.
Continue Reading
