Summit Home Visit... A while ago I sent out an email blast with shop photos of a pair of wing chairs on sale I had covered in antique European grainsacks.   I also pictured a big taxidermy barracuda.  Leslie Coates contacted me immediately to purchase them and when I delivered them I was immediately drawn in by the warmth and simple beauty of her home. This picture is taken just after entering and you see the family room area beyond the peninsula.  Leslie and her husband have been married for 21 years, the last 1 1/2 years in Summit.  "When we were first married, like most couples who have limited means, I had to find creative ways to decorate and to this day I love finding bargains and repurposing items"  Love the cloche! The kitchen has this wonderful smooth slate countertop...I love how the basket warms the stone.  I always LOVE baskets and have nice large French market baskets at the store. You can see the den/work area beyond.   This slate wall greets you in the kitchen....do you think the kids could miss notes left on this board??  (probably, right???) A glimpse into the family living area....Isn't this single chair cool placed with a desk used as a console table??  I love the rug on the diagonal.  If it were square to the room the space would look so different.  It adds a dimension. This large black mirror placed in the hallway adds width, of course and reflects the pretty stairway.  Using a mirror is like placing a piece of art and what it reflects should always be considered.  This mirror was purchased for a song because it was damaged and then Leslie took some black paint and her daughter's craft brush and now it looks like a million...Halloween webs, moss and all.  The wide plank floors are original to this home dating back to the late 1800's.  LOVE the floors!!  The barracuda frames the entry into Leslie's husband's home office. This is an area right off the kitchen for the Coates' 2 girls to do homework.  While you are in the kitchen, this ends being haunted by, "I wonder if they're getting their work done up in their rooms?? I love the lamps and the iron froggy on the shelf! This caddy is a wooden printer's drawer and Leslie found shot glasses in Minneapolis to make it special. This sofa story is a hoot! It is 9 feet long but because it's not massively deep it works in the space to separate the 2 areas.   Leslie found it at an antiques store in Omaha....it was covered in blue and white velvet flocked fabric...aaahhhh!!! What a brave girl!  She chose a neutral ultra suede and it looks perfect accented with one of the grain sack linen pillows from Trouvaille. "The vintage shopping cart, holding throw blankets, was found in Minneapolis and adds fun and surprise to the room..  Love the wicker basket side table. This basket is Leslie's favorite and I would have to agree when she says it "makes her heart race every time she sees it"    Problem in the bedroom....a silly window right over the bed leading to a closet..... Leslie made a grouping with baskets....brilliant!! Back in the kitchen, Leslie's father-in-law made this table out of antique wood.  I have found an artisan in France to custom make tables from French walnut and pine, also.  The slipcovers and light fixture update the table beautifully. Close-up of the light with Halloween moss.  There is a wonderful view of the stone courtyard in the front of the house through the French doors. Leslie peeking, and a great view of the wide plank floors. In the dining room daughter Hannah shows off some of her artwork.  When framed and matted the same all art shows like a masterpiece!  A large trench bowl sits on the dining table and is customized for Halloween.  (One large Swedish trencher is currenty available at Trouvaille) Leslie found these dining room frames at "Curby's" (on her neighbor's curb in Illinois in the garbage!!)  She rubbed them with stain and had mirrors cut, and voila!!  My pictures don't do them justice. Hairy spider accent! I love artist's models as an accent piece as they can change with your mood.  Sometimes guests change them for you and you have a laugh at the position.  Leslie is just like her home....warm, creative, stylish and special and I thank her so very much for this special tour! Happy Halloween!      Bonny Bonny Neiman Stylish Antiques   p.973-714-4541 www.bonnyneiman.com Trouvaille 12 Beechwood Road  Summit, NJ Monday-Saturday 10-5:30

Home Visit in Paris Bonjour, My husband and I just returned from my buying trip in Europe and I now need a vacation!  I hunted from dawn to dinner and will keep you posted when the items arrive in port.  These latest treasures are now being collected  from the Belgian and French countryside and will ship out of Paris.  Wait until you see all I found.....it was my best trip yet.  Everytime I plan on staying in Paris there are hotel room shortages for one reason or another.  This time I picked FASHION WEEK.....the biggest Paris event of the entire calendar!!!   (5 feet tall and in Paris at fashion week is a humbling experience)  Of course, I  found this out AFTER I had secured my plane tickets.  I have stayed at many different hotels in Paris and never found a place I wanted to return everytime.  I like a Parisian experience in a small hotel.   Beautiful furnishings for me are a must but I do not like a pretentious  attitude which many of the larger hotels feel necessary to turn on to make their guests feel like royalty, I guess. I found this small place in the Marais section of Paris while frantically searching for accommodations that didn't cost $900.00 a night. (which was all that was left) It's called Marais House and it was very different.....I was transported back a few centuries as soon as we arrived.    Yann Hentschke, the owner,  has meticulously re-created the splendor of the 16th century with a lavishly restored interior which includes these pair of 16th century Venetian doors. Can you believe this scene?? The house has been the setting for many a fashion photo shoot and has been featured in many publications including Architectural Digest.  (It's so Architectural Digest, isn't it?) One of the several sets of 16th-19th Century Carved doors found and built into this historic home/hotel. Definitely over the top but what fun returning here after a long day.  The lamps were of impressive size and on either side of our bed. The walls were covered with luxurious fabrics.....a little splash of gold in the cartel clock completes this corner. Yann balanced the opulence with several whimsical additions as in this carved angel hanging in the leather covered hallway. The bathrooms are always small in Paris....walls were richly covered in mahogany and full mirrors (classic crystal bird sconces). An 18th Century armoire stands guard. (One of many in the hotel) The stone staircase we climbed to our first room (we had 2 because I wasn't in Paris the whole time) is XV Century....that's from the 1400s!!! We know you wouldn't live like this but it was such a fantasy for a couple of days, don't you think?? I felt as though I was staying in a chateau in the countryside. There are elevators opening to each room,  discreetly covered with 18th century doors. LOVE LOVE the cobbled wall leading to the vaulted cellar where we had continental breakfast (dessert in disguise). XVI Century Tiles throughout. Antique tin toy set in the hallway outside the dining room... so cute! These striped Paris porcelain covered jars were about 22 inches tall, spectacular!!!!! Yann's 2 chocolate labs, Bonheur and Vendome, have free run of the house but I guess have been trained to walk and not wag in fragile areas??? Dessert breakfast offered in the vaulted cellar on mirrored chinoisserie placemats and silver coffee service....check out the iron centerpiece candelabra...(my saint of a husband, Roger, too). Great gold leaf sconce in the upostairs hall and these 18th-19th century carved black frames are really hot right now in current interiors.  I have a very large one with the original mirror coming in the shipment. Silver metal chandelier in our room's hall. The first bedroom had these ornate bedside chests with these specatacular cherub lamps and I noticed Yann had John Derrian plates bedside for glasses, etc.  You know I love that!  Linens were all French with cozy French throws. Limestone fireplace in our room and gorgeous tile floors both XVI century (are you tired of all the century references.....just note they are REALLY old.) Close-up of the carved bedrail and antique carpet. French armoire for our clothes...I just LOVED opening this each day ....I am such a sucker for the old hardware! I drooled over the stone floors in the entry hall and hand hewn beams. This was our second room where we slept in a 16th century bed.....thankfully the mattress was from the 21st century! Close-up of the carving and fringe made with metals and gold thread....I wondered who else slept here??? I'm sure they were a lot older than George Washington!! This room was small, as you can tell, but Yann still fit in a limestone fireplace, a massive armoire and plenty of furniture. The second floor had a glass floor atrium with this wonderful English breakfront. Here is a picture of Yann, our host, who discreetly went above and beyond to make our stay comfortable. He suggested the best local restaurants, had champagne waiting for us and truly recreated history and an experience we will never forget. If you are thinking of making a reservation send me an e-mail and I'll give you a few more details. Best regards, Bonny Bonny Neiman Stylish Antiques   p.973-714-4541 www.bonnyneiman.com Trouvaille 12 Beechwood Road  Summit, NJ Monday-Saturday 10-5:30