Recently I borrowed a fabulous book from the library — New French Country: A Style and Source Book by Linda Dannenberg.
I highly recommend this book to almost anyone as it can appeal and be a handy resource to a wide and varied spectrum of people. Such as crafters, historians, interior designers, gardeners, people simply wanting inspiration to redecorate their own home, francophiles. It also goes without saying (though I am going to anyway), New French Country is a wonderful choice as a coffee table book.
New French Country provides a cross section of current country style within Provence* (a region in France's South East). Let me say, as one who has been long seeking just the right inspiration for redesigning my home, and coming up short, finding this book in the library has provided me with the perfect solution.
The photos in New French Country portray a country style with an elegance which sometimes seems to be missing in the modern home. In today's world where so much of what we own is mass produced, a lot of intricate detail is missing. But back in the old days to have something made — a cabinet, a quilt, you name it — quite a bit of time and craftmanship went into the product.
To recap, coming across a book like New French Country truly is like finding Leprechaun's bucket of gold. I'll definitely add New French Country to my Christmas wish list, because I just know it'll be a difficult day when I return this book to the library.
* Did you know? When the Romans conquered Provence in the 2nd Century BC they named the area Provincia Nostra, which means ‘our province’. So the name in French then became Province.
