Let me share with you some of my latest finds!

As you know I go treasure-hunting every week. And sometimes I come back home with the most amazing finds! Like this beautiful vintage French hand-made lace! 

I can only imagine the patience and skills you must have to make something as wonderfully detailed as this. It's just magical.

Isn't this the most gorgeous lace you've ever seen?! 

And I know whenever I feel like that about something, I rarely leave it behind!

I love collecting vintage china. And I don't ever seem to have enough! 

(For vintage French china visit my Etsy shop: myshabbywhites and website: shabbywhites.com)

There's something so whimsical about antique carousel horses. I really wish I could have one of this in my place one day. But I know, first I need to move to a bigger place! Meanwhile I keep on dreaming!

Books form the 1800's. Perfect in every way...

All of these beautiful finds and so many more is the reason why I love treasure hunting so much!

Do what you love, and love what you do, no better motto than that!

Much love, 

Adriana.

Welcome to my Haussmannian apartment! 

Ornate mouldings, parquet floors, marble fireplaces and double door floor-lenght windows are amongst the treasures that you find in an Haussmannian apartment. The signature 

architecture of Paris. 

An architectural art-work and a real treat to the eyes! 

As you may know from seing my pictures and following me on Instagram, I live in this petit apartment in the center of Paris. I've been living here for almost 5 years now and trough all this time I've added all sorts of bits and pieces that I've treasured trough the years and new ones that keep coming, and I've managed to create a place that it's dear to me and that I lovingly call home. 

Details everywhere, from the ceiling to the doors and windows, make this apartment a real jewel. 

All this French outburst of details create a very chic/Parisian atmosphere that I kindly try to tone down with my shabby decor. 

Faded colours and timeworn treasures fill this house with humble beauty.

This view from the living room into the kitchen shows an open space that is cozy, peaceful and 

charming, a perfect place to live in :)

A fireplace in the bedroom? yes please! That is so French, and I'm so lucky to have this little wonder as the first thing I see when I wake up in the mornings. 

Even tho it's forbidden to make use of your fireplace in Paris, almost every single French apartment has at least one of these (specially old buildings) and nevertheless they get to be used as decoration accents. And boy are they pretty!

Bedroom prettiness.

Another classical French architectural accent is the windows. Not only they are big, and when I say big I mean almost 2 meters long big. But they are stunningly detailed and beautiful.

And I'm lucky enough to have 2 more sets of these windows in my kitchen! Now I'm just bragging I know... ;p

Did you noticed the little guy in the bottom of the window? isn't that just fabulous?! 

And there is of course those French panel doors. White and gorgeous, they are just perfect! They have made me so aware of how important it is to have nice doors. They can really dress up a place and add so much charm. 

These wonderful doors separate the bedroom from the living room and I have to admit it, 

I have a big crush on them! 

Together with my partner we have tried a few times to move to a bigger place.  I never seem to find anything that pleases me as much as this apartment. A state agent said to me once: "Madame, I think you are in love with your apartment..." I said to him, you know what, I AM.

My advice to you all, be in love with your home and make it a wonderful place, it is the easiest way to living a beautiful life.

Much love,

Adriana.

A simple yet beautiful table. Mixing my vintage French china and flatware is what makes everything extra special in this setting. A treat to the eyes.

Uncomplicated beauty, that's what my style is all about.

Vintage French flatware and china, real treasures from the old times. They have so many details everywhere that you don't really need to add much more to your table, just a pretty bunch of flowers of course!

When it comes to vintage flatware I like mine a little tarnished, this allows me to create a more easy-going feeling and to add that vintage look that I'm so obsessed with...

The perfect balance between shabby and chic.

Beautiful living is all about wanting to make every spot and every moment special.

If the intention is there, you can make it. Start by getting some flowers, they have the power of changing the way everything looks, because everything looks better when there are flowers.  

In living beautifully you share love with those around you and specially with yourself. Because love comes from within and the it spreads around.

Flowers everywhere, flowers always.

Much love,

Adriana.

Being in the countryside is like fuel to my soul. 

Since I came to Europe, I first spent several years in England and then France. I fell in love with both countries and inspiration just kept flowing.

When visiting the countryside I always got that feeling of "home-coming" and that meant so much to me. I didn't know what was it. The old "fairytale" like houses, the history behind each place, the fresh air, the wild and free nature, the ever so cute cows and goats in the fields, or just everything together. 

Love for the countryside flows in my vains, even tho I'm a caribbean girl from Venezuela! 

At the end home is where your heart is, and your heart can be at many places!

Find your calling and go for it!

It's because of that deep love for cottages and farms that I always add a touch of raw wood and rustic pieces. I mix it with my white and pastel color palette and voilá! Country chic at its best!

It's in combining textures and styles that you can find your own voice. One that talks to your heart.

To my eyes, everything is more beautiful when is a little faded and a little (or a lot) old. For me, time worn marks are what makes an objet ever so special. A real treasure.

And when it comes to setting a table, vintage pieces and a little lace please!

I love having fancy china and silverware. But what I love the most is mixing them with down to earth, easy-going elements like this rustic wood table.

These roses are so beautiful! I'm in love with flowers, but I know you already figured that out ;)

Create your own style.

Surround yourself with beauty and live a beautiful life.

Much love,

Adriana.

My living-room is forever changing. This time I've added a few vintage boho Kilim cushions to bring a pop of colour to this room. They do the job and I love them. Boho style really speaks to me. 

And something I really love about these cushions is that they can easily go on the floor 

and they are very comfy to seat on. It doesn't get better than that! 

I chose tones that I know can mix well with my shabby chic style and furniture and voilá, they are perfect.

Cozy, a key word for me. A nice comfy sofa, a little throw, mushy cushions and as many flowers as you can get, a magic combination for creating a cozy space.   

These shoes aren't made for walking! 

Every now and then I take the dust off my pretty high heels and take them for a night out in Paris. 

Oh la la! Love-Hate relationship at its best! Glamour and elegance, you can be so mean to us! 

The forever contradiction in a woman's life. However, pain versus high-heels doesn't seam to be a fare battle. Only a woman knows how pain can sometimes be so overrated! ...Right?! ;)

Lets take a look at these pretty flowers and forget all about pointy shoes!

I brought these lovely flowers all the way from the countryside. They grow everywhere and naturally decorate the garden. I love how they are so easy going yet cheery and blissful. They are also the perfect color to go against my Florentin tables. 

I know you know that. Yes, I love home. And it is my favorite place to be! (Along with nature, the beach and Rachel Ashwell's shop! lol...)

Making a place a Home means bringing in details that inspire you and connect you with good feelings. Using colours that talk to your soul. 

My kitchen is small yet cozy. In a small home every detail counts! I recently purchased these gorgeous vintage French lace curtains which I used to decorate my kitchen doors. It was really the perfect touch and I love it very much!

That's it. Another little tour around my Parisian home. It's so nice to wake up to this view everyday...

Is your home your favorite place? If not, what are you waiting for?

Lots of love,

Adriana.

One of the things I like the most about my Parisian apartment are these doors. Beautifully engraved, white ,French doors. Cute white porcelain knob. All very typical of a Paris home. 

I'm one that's always paying attention to every little detail, and even if some people don't seem to care that much about the doors they have, for me, they are very important. There's no cutting back on the budget when it comes to doors! 

This gorgeous rug has become one of those thing you couldn't live without anymore! Underneath there's beautiful vintage wooden floors that I always liked a lot. Until this rug!

I remember showing a picture of my new rug to my mom and she couldn't understand why would I buy something that was so faded! I laughed and say: "that's the beauty of it! it's vintage!" And you know, not everybody is going to get you, but the important thing is that YOU get you.

A Turkish delight...

Another recent addition to my bedroom are these gorgeous vintage-peach sheets. 

At first, I wasn't quite sure, having always had white sheets. But the color was so pretty that it ended up being an easy choice, I had to get it and give it a try! 

A perfect choice of color, especially for these summer days.  I love it very very much and it makes me happy just to look at it! I mixed it up with my Rachel Ashwell Shabby Chic pillows and the result is pure heaven. I'm a happy girl.

A combination of colors and textures that go perfectly together. 

Soft pink and white hydrangeas are this week's favorites.

A French farm cupboard and a couple of French vintage mirrors. My bedroom is filled with details that complement each other. Relaxing beauty that makes me feel good. 

The Art Of Beautiful Living...

Beautiful living is all about creating a space that makes you feel good. It's as easy as to go and get fresh flowers every week. After all, flowers do make everything look pretty! I think home is the most special place, and to make it beautiful certainly means to live a beautiful life.

For me it's all about vintage pieces and romance. It's about time-worn colours and patina. The lovely harmony between shabby and chic.

I love mixing glamour and country. It's as if these two where meant to be together to create that perfect balance between elegance, confort and old time beauty. These vintage country chairs are the final touch  in achieving a relaxed and charming feeling in this whole setting.

As the tittle of the photo above says: "I love creating a beautiful space" And even though I live in a small apartment that doesn't stop me when it comes to creating the prefect ambiance for a special occasion, or any occasion really. 

Pale colours and whites are my favorite and they are so easy to blend with each other. You just can't get it wrong! 

For this setting I added a pop of dark fuchsia with those beautiful wilting roses. I love and embrase flowers in every stage of their lives, allowing them to shine in their decadence, aren't they pretty?!

I also like to spread around a few petals and to make the table look effortless even if it took me hours to figure out where to place that teacup! Attention to detail can be fascinating and very well appreciated!

Flowers are a must-have in my home and settings. I just feel there's some sort of magic within them. They make everything look pretty and pretti-er. They inspire me and make me feel good, I think their infinite beauty has a certain power over those who look closely at them. 

My French vintage china is pretty much all flowery but I also have a few plain white china to compensate for a possible outburst of flower madness! For me it's all about mixing patterns and not having a set that is all the same. So whenever I go treasure-hunting I'm always in the search for new pieces to mix with my other patterns. 

 But without a question there's nothing prettier than vintage china, and if it's French even better!

I just love time-worn patina and faded colours. And that's what fascinates me about this chair! That country, modest, relaxed look. The beautiful dark wood breaking through the old white paint. Pure gorgeousness. 

So as you can see, creating a beautiful table setting is very easy, just get a simple white linen 

to dress up your table (that allows you to have a blank canvas to play with). Add mix-matched vintage china, a few candles and lots of flowers! 

We are having Champagne tonight, and the fact that it's pink is no coincidence ;) 

Have a beautiful living experience! 

Love,

Adriana.