Tango, Paris Tango

Paris. Tango. What two words evoke more feeling and conjure up a rush of romantic images in every person's mind, whether you dance tango or not, or have been to Paris or not. Combine the words: Paris Tango and you have this heady memoir told in words and pictures by the photographer/author Carla Coulson.


Carla may be known to some of you Francophiles as the sidekick photographer to author Vicki Archer whose excellent recent book My French Life, and their new book French Essence have become a staple for collectors of books about the French lifestyle. Both women are ex-pat Australians, living in France.


It goes without saying that the tango in this book, is the dance Carla does with the city of Paris. The city holds her in the eternal embrace that is the tango - connected, profound, and sensual.



The frontispiece image is of dancer from the Moulin Rouge ascending the stairs, and the image on the end paper is photo of a pair of dance shoes that look as if the dancer's feet just kicked them off. Between these images are 292 delicious pages of masterful photography of glimpses of Paris life most of us will never have the pleasure to experience. Carla Coulson is the Brassai of her generation.


The great surprise in this book is the text that goes along with the masterful photography. Carla can write! And write she does, as she weaves one fabulous story after another along with the photos, words and images that intertwine like tango dancers legs.


For some odd reason the book has not been released in the USA, and it can be ordered on Amazon UK, and now on Amazon in the USA HERE via some of the second hand booksellers. Snap up this book from one of them.


Paris Tango is a lovely volume to own with a beautiful snap closure slip case, and red ribbon book mark, which are fitting elegant touches for the elegance the pages hold inside.



I asked Carla to send me some of my favorite images from the book to share with you. There are several photos that will inspire interior design fans.



But best are the stories she weaves of a personal Paris she shares with the reader. It is amazing how ex-pats and transplants rediscover what natives know innately and express by living it daily. Outsiders who claim and adopt a place often write the most revealing back story.



Paris Tango is a magnificent book to get for yourself, or to give as a spectacular gift.
Engage in your own visual tango as you savor its pages.

All images from Carla Coulson from her book Paris Tango.

Stop by her blog and tell her hello!

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A Collector's Devotion

I recently had a great visual outing at the home of a collector of spiritual objects. It reminded me of the beautiful homes in the book The Divine Home by Peter Vitale. I have long been fascinated by decor using devotional objects HERE, so this home was a real treat for me.




This is a modest home in size in a lovely part of New Orleans called Old Metairie which is known for gracious living and grand tree lined streets. This house has been remodeled to contain an incredible collection of antiques, providing an aged looking backdrop.

A modest home in Old Metairie

Ordinary front doors have been replaced by a pair of French antique doors. The owners collect old architectural elements and retrofit them into newer spaces. In fact they have a business doing this for many homes in New Orleans.

An angel stands guard at the antique doors from France

The house does not have a large foot print, yet it feels expansive. Tricks like using flat fold Roman shades in linen in lieu of the more traditional silk drapes used in homes in New Orleans, keep the space feeling open.

The living room

Expert layering of objects and furniture is evident here. You feel interested but not overwhelmed.

Vignette in the living room

There are devotional objects come from Spain, France, and Italy. The home owners have lovingly collected them for years.

The angel head in the fireplace is gorgeous!

I snapped these photos on the fly. The house is unstyled as the owners really live it. The light is the natural light only. It deserves a much better magazine worthy photo shoot.

The simple Roman shades in the dining room

I just love getting these special secret glimpses into private homes, and I especially love sharing them with all of you. New Orleans has so many beautiful places behind closed doors and shutters, and walled courtyard patios.

Lovely French antique chandelier

A room used for an office
Fragment of antique fabric used for a valance

Antique angels flank the stove hood in the kitchen

Antique doors retrofitted over modern appliances

Old shutters are used as the pantry doors

A major altar piece from Spain in the wet bar

Butlers table

The family room - old beams were added by the owners

Lovely little soldier stands guard in the family room

Wonderful styling on the bookshelves

Nice trumeau flanked by chunky candle sconces

Gallery wall on stairway to the upstairs bedroom

There is only one bedroom in the house!

An antique bed from a convent

There is only one bedroom in the house. The kids' rooms were in what is now the pool house.

Shelf above the bed

There is a lovely pool and patio and garden. It is a small lot, but every inch of space is ingeniously used.

Antique doors lead to the garden

Lots of plants

Chess board patio - gravel has been removed and pavers will be added

Side yard leading to the street

Back of the house and pool

Loving all this! I hope you have too!

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Would You Like A Little Place Like This In The French Quarter?

Click on images for a larger view

When Tom Landry acquired a modest servant quarter in the French Quarter in New Orleans, he wanted to retain the city’s historic nuances through a redesign that included both the architectural and interior elements of the small space.

“My design intent was to return to the space a sense of time and history while respecting the French nature of the city and my own history of living there,” he explains. “I chose to follow an earlier period of New Orleans when the Creoles held great influences in style, fashion, and architecture.”

The 1840s building that houses Landry’s apartment on Governor Nicholls originally belonged to the Ursuline nuns, and was intended as a hospital. The historic property garnered the Vieux Carré Commission’s architectural award in 1985, the year before it was converted into condominiums.

Landry’s 560-square-foot unit was “very contemporary” when he purchased it. “The floors were carpeted, no moldings existed, and access from room to room was along the front wall of the unit,” he says. “The kitchen was open to the living room with a corner bookcase at one end of the steps and a pony wall at the other, while the living and bedroom were separated by a closet and a return air chase. The bath was of a typical nature of the conversions at that time, bad and cheap.”

To achieve his concept architecturally, Landry repositioned the wall between the living room and the bedroom, giving the bedroom a bit more space. In the center of the wall, he installed a pair of French doors. “This enfilade of doors established a sense of spatial progression,” he notes.

Landry placed a slightly overscaled French paneled screen
in a driftwood finish from Dennis and Leen
behind the custom designed daybed upholstered in a dark gold linen velvet.
"The reason for using an overscaled object like the screen
was that it makes one feel a little smaller in the space, hence the space feels a little larger,” he notes.
“The scale of the daybed and the French Louis XVI oval back antique chairs
are a little smaller than furniture you will find today.

Tom explains, “To accomplish my intent with the interior finishes, I painted each room in virtually the same color except I changed the intensity of the colors from room to room,” he says. "All of the moldings and doors are just a shade darker than the walls in each room. Unifying the wall color and the trim and varying the shades gives the spaces a hint of a contemporary note and makes the small rooms and the entire space feel larger. Using one flooring material also makes the space feel larger,” he explains. “I used a walnut stain on the floors, giving them a little deeper hue than normally seen on pine floors.”


In the bedroom, wardrobes were built flanking the bed (a very French touch) with recessed shelves for his favorite old books on New Orleans. The bedroom has a cocooned atmosphere. Voyage en Chine fabric from Old World Weavers was used to drape the bed. Because of the small space, the fabric had to be restrained in volume. Landry’s objective was to soften the alcove and warm up the room. “It feels connected to the rest of the house,” he comments. “I loved the French toile look with the twist of the Oriental subject matter," he says.

“Using a Creole design idiom in the furnishing dictated the use of woods, iron, stone, alabaster, linens, linen velvets, cotton, and sisal rugs as well as refined and primitive antiques,” he says. “With this I wanted to inject a bit of my own influences with a few abstract pieces of art to relieve the space from being too serious and stuffy.”


In the bathroom, only the tub remained in its original location. “The tub niche was arched and tiled with a white porcelain reference to the 20s,” Landry explains.


For storage of towels, soaps, and toiletries, Landry used an 18th-century Confuittier. “I love the feeling of a piece of furniture in the bath,” he remarks.


The thoughtful redesign of Landry’s elegant apartment echoes the history of New Orleans while reflecting the designer’s flair for creating beauty in small spaces. Though diminutive, Landry’s inspired pied-à-terre in the heart of the Quarter transcends its own limits with panache and a good deal of charm.

Excerpts and photos from Louisiana Homes and Gardens

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A Swedish/French Style Chandelier You Can Afford!

Gustavian Swedish style derived from French elements has gone mainstream. Even if you don't go for the whole smorgasbord of Swedish furnishings, certain key pieces are used in rooms that have a mix of styles and era.

One of the most beloved items is the wood turned chandelier. By and large they hover in price around the $2000. (and up) price range. For most of us this is too pricey. Many regular folks can furnish a whole room for $2000.

Mariestad 12 Light Chandelier - HERE
30"H x 28"Diam. LC584 - $299.00

But now...drum roll...the good folks at Ballard Designs offer the first affordable Swedish style chandelier I have ever seen. Believe me I know because I have searched on behalf of clients and customers and friends who want one, but cannot afford the going rate. Even at wholesale cost you can pay around $800. - $1000.

Mariestad 6 Light Chandelier - HERE

25"H x 26"Diam. LC583 - $199.00

It looks great in the catalog, just the perfect color and proportion. If it looks too new to you, you could always do a little antique-ing with paint.

So at $199. for the six arm model, and $299. for the twelve arm model, you can own a great piece of style.

It would look great in any room in the house.
You can dress it up with little wooden drops from Aidan Gray.
Aidan Gray also has some wood turned chandeliers for around $800.

Fancy and expensive - but check out the wooden drops
Also study the finish on this chandelier
You can do this to the budget one
photo from Cote de Texas

They are currently sold out of the gray drops, but have the gold. If you want them right away, I would buy the gold and just paint them, or maybe gild the candle cups and see how the gold mixes and matches with the gray paint on the body of the chandelier.


Happy Weekend!!!!

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