Fall at The French Chateau
Even when we approach our modern or transitional projects, the Flourish Interiors aesthetic is rooted in traditional, french inspired architectural and decorative principles. From a focus on symmetry to a refined classic style, the Flourish brand is cultivated out of distinguished European inspiration. The French Chateau is a special project for us, as it is my own home. As the name would imply, this is a project where subtle Parisian inspiration was traded for a full embrace of French influence and style. Here, I was free to pursue more direct nods to my favorite places in Europe, which can be seen in the herringbone floors, the floor to ceiling traditional millwork, the neoclassical style, and in various imported antique elements such as the salvaged doors that flank the entry to our piano room. We revealed this project this past spring, but we recently went back to photograph Fall the The French Chateau. We hope you enjoy this autumn sequel.
Located in northern Indiana, this property certainly experiences the full range of seasons. As the leaves began to turn, I decorated the front entryway with a blend of mums, pumpkins and baskets. This created a cascading and welcoming entrance for our guests. Curb appeal is one of the most important aspects of home design. When we remodeled this project, we paid careful attention to the front facade, rebuilding the roof pitch, adding arched french windows, extending a new larger and more stately front porch with large double doors, and redoing a wide welcoming sidewalk with stamped concrete. The original design work for the remodel is now accentuated with seasonal fall decor, as shown below.
Foyers are essentially the second impression of a home, and a chance to move from just visual to full sensory engagement for your guests. I always tell my team; we should aspire to leave our projects such that they engage all the senses. From visual delight to pleasing aromas and soft music, the more sensory engagement offered to guests the more at home and welcome they will feel. With this in mind, the foyer at The French Chateau was decorated for fall to fully engage all who enter. From visual displays to a carefully chosen fall scent and a fall themed musical playlist, we curated a cozy autumn in a single space. The original color palette of the home which was based in white, taupe, black, gold, soft blue, navy, and touches of blush was amended to feature fall rusts and browns. One of my favorite spots in the home features a chest by Modern History with a venetian mirror above it: here we added some fall decoration by layering a framed turkey print over the mirror, adding a new brown ginger jar, pumpkins, and a potted evergreen. Peering through the lead glass back out at the porch also reveals the beauty there in a new way. A round foyer table is decorated with bare branches, more pumpkins, and stacked books. Also from this vantage point you can catch a glimpse of the beautiful adjoining dining room.
As you step towards the dining room, you might notice the custom baby gate, keeping our stairway safe from our one year old. While we were remodeling this home, we were blessed to discover we were pregnant with our 4th child. Our little surprise, Stephen Charles, was born just a few weeks after we moved into our new home. The house features a curved staircase with a non traditional opening. Our carpenter graciously agreed to create a custom, matching gate so we could keep Charlie safe, while retaining the elegance of the stairway. Now with our 1 year old toddling around, we are careful to keep this closed and thankful for this feature!
The dining room is an important part of the seasonal decorating plan. This is the space where the heart of entertaining takes place via shared meals with friends and family. In fact this past weekend, I hosted Thanksgiving for my extended family. In addition to a beautiful table-scape, we brought the outdoors in via a large Fall Arrangement, placed on the black and gold sideboard. I like to keep table centerpieces lower for good site line between our guests. So I chose to place the larger, more dramatic arrangement nearby rather than on the table itself. Fresh flowers from Co-Florist a local and very talented florist created the stunning table centerpiece, which features white roses and eucalyptus, two of my favorite choices.
The hutch shown in the images below, rests just between the dining room and foyer: almost directly opposite the bottom of the stairs. I enjoy using this little niche, to lay out an appetizer and beverages so that guests can be served refreshments soon after they enter. It then doubles as a self serve station as the evening progresses.
