France, My Second Home

As with any holiday it really seems a life time ago but only last month I was back in my second country, France. Despite the endless rain, it was just what I needed, relaxing with my husband and our bouncy new addition, Barney our gorgeous Welsh Springer Spaniel.

Every new day brought with it fresh discoveries, hidden treasures in nooks and crannies, flowers in full bloom, a supposedly abandoned car, so French and utterly charming – so much to look at and see, a plentiful source of design inspiration and a complete confirmation of my love of France.

I stumbled across a wonderful and colourful art installation of painted bikes of differing styles – there was a pink one, a bright yellow one, one completely blue and a fourth entirely encased in a bright orange. It was rather bizarre but quite stunning. Later that day, walking through a cobbled street I came across a wonderful red rocking chair. Outside all shinny and bright – I do love a rocking chair, there is something so soothing about the motion when seated in one and being red made it even more lovable.

We visited Chateau de Biron, Lot et Garonne, high up on top of a hill, with a huge base and towering majestically five stories into the sky – it looked amazing and felt very powerful. In contrast a couple of days later I found this shady spot – wouldn’t you just love to have lunch here? Freshly harvested olives to pick at with a baguette and some ripe brie would be my choice and maybe a sneaky class of the local vintage.

Our trip was a little late to appreciate the Poppies, but I certainly wasn’t disappointed by the floral displays wherever I went. One of my favourite flowers has to be the Hollyhock, in France they grow everywhere and naturally to boot. Tall and elegant they have such a richness in their colouring. I particularly liked this one – a perfect pink!