The French Connection, Troisième Edition: Joyeux Noël!

or Merry Christmas ... all the same when you are in France!

We've been doing some holiday visiting and window shopping, getting in "l'esprit du moment"! From the tiniest village to bustling cities, signs of Christmas abound.

I am sorry you couldn't make it here to come along, but I've some pictures to share so armchair touring, here we go!


First stop Reims, (pronounced 'rance'), a gorgeous city east of Paris with prerequisite drop dead cathedral ... important to France's history as many, many kings were crowned there.



Reims is sprinkled with pretty plazas, shopping districts and restaurants... all connected by tramway...





They were putting on their annual March de Noël (Christmas Market) ...






a crêche scene with an empty manger ... the wise men await!


French patisseries (pastries), including beignets (like donuts but yummier), pomme d'amour (apple of love, delish), crepes and gaufres (thin pancakes and waffles) and of course, barbe de papa noël (cotton candy)



Rows of wooden cabins lined the main plaza and merriment seeking folks from all over walked the aisles to view their wares. This was a merry evening with crowds strolling around ... just enjoying the scenery.

It was a nice warm- up for our Paris visit. Come with me as I stroll down the Champs Elysées ...

We started at the Arc de Triomphe ...


went along with the crowds looking at all of the various building decorations and displays ... like this full sized sailing boat on the Groupama building ...



and the giant Chinese dragon ...



a Famous store with Famous french purses ... yes a WHOLE store dedicated to purses ... le sigh!


another pièce de resistance, the Louis Vuitton store ... with a cirque theme. Shades of pearly grey, orange and fuschia made an inspiring backdrop to balancing elephants and whimsical monkeys ... and trapeze artists, too! (don't try this at home, it is way too high!!)


can't wait to try this color combination on some furniture ... that will be a real color punch ... merçi monsieur vuitton !


after braving the crowds along the avenue, we braved the crowds on the peripherique for the ride home!



hope this short stroll gave you a taste of France's holiday action... I am sorting through my camera pics and may have a few more to pop in here, so check back later this week! so many colors and sights along the avenue to amp up my santa spirit!

à trés, trés bientôt! (see you very soon!)


Our guest correspondent for The French Connection is Kimberlee Mancha, mother of Johnelle and co-founder of Mignonne Décor. Now living in France, Kimberlee started our sister shop "The Bohemians" in 2009. She will be providing live updates for all you Francophiles and lovers of beautiful European inspirations.

all images courtesy of Kimberlee Mancha

The French Connection

Maybe you noticed we are featuring guest bloggers here at our blog for Mignonne Décor. We are introducing a weekly series, "The French Connection", focused on all things Français ... design trends, scouting finds from the french countryside, brocante and vide-grenier hunting (that's second-hand shop and flea markets in French); color, fashion and cultural influences, you name it. If it is French and fabulous, we will be sharing it!

On the agenda for future articles:

• On-the-ground reporting from Maison et Objet, THE european décor conference where designers from all over the world converge to present the colors, shapes, textures and textiles for the coming season ... which hot trends and sophisticated classics will be seen in design magazines, shops and eventually - your home. This is the logo for the January show! more to come on that but you can see off the top how fashion and beauty influences design and décor at this event ... they are integral to each other and the result is amazing!

• How to plan your own treasure hunt on a trip to France...sources for cool markets, shops and venues for unique treasures. Or if a trip to France is off the list this year, come along with us as we scout and share cool ideas and finds.

• Meet local artists and artisans to learn more about their works and inspiration. We will feature artists and artisans featured in our sister store as well as stylemakers from all over France.

• Armchair travelling to inspiring cities, museums, historical places of interest that inspire us and potentially you ... whether it is a baroque cathedral, country chic café, or french new wave 60s modern Belmondo styled bar in the middle of nowhere (yes, we do stumble across those)! we'll be bringing you quirky, one-of-a-kind locales to get those creative juices flowing.

• and many other surprises along the way!

So sit back, grab a café and enjoy the ride! and believe it when I say you never know what to expect on a French adventure. One thing is for sure, you have to just relax and roll with it!

Take my last foraging trip for example. There I was on my way to pick up some recycled windows for a design project and I got caught up in a real traffic jam. French countryside traffic jam, that is! Who let the sheep out?




Our guest correspondent for The French Connection is Kimberlee Mancha, mother of Johnelle and co-founder of Mignonne Décor. Now living in France, Kimberlee started our sister shop "The Bohemians" in 2009. She will be providing live updates for all you Francophiles and lovers of beautiful European inspirations.

maison et objet image courtesy of Maison et Objet