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Our neighborhood is in the wooded foothills of nearby mountains.
The house sits on a hill that slopes in two directions, to the bottom of a hollow.
The up-hill neighbor's house and all the trees of the neighborhood shield us from much of the sun
and other light that would otherwise come through some of our windows.
The living room gets only the morning sun. So, as it became clear that the living room would be an evening room,
we decided to make it cozy and full of warmth... hence the wall color.
The red walls and a fire in the large, fieldstone fireplace also create a perfect setting for the holidays.

The coral-red was inspired by a color I loved during my youth on Okinawa.
It was finally selected after we experimented with a range of lighter, warm tones of salmon, terracotta and gold,
which all looked like grandma's undies or turned muddy against the dark woodwork.
Depending on the light, the coral changes from a soft, tomato red to an orangey red or a terra cotta pink,
which you will see in the various photos, especially when I had to use strong lighting for the camera.

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Our pride and joy are the pair of Louis XVI period (late 18th-century) French, Aubusson tapestried chairs, from
an old farmhouse in Provence, shown on the right above.
Though I would prefer that they had natural wood instead of the gilding,
the gilding actually reflects the light better. We found them while in Seattle, Washington.
The antique dealer had grabbed them as they came off a truck at a flea market in Provence,
direct from their nearby, original home!

Their tapestries are designed after illustrations by renowned French animalier Jean-Baptiste Oudry,
for a 1755 edition of The Fables of La Fontaine, by the French writer from the late-17th century.
A couple of years ago, the Louvre held an exhibition of items inspired by Fontaine's fables.
The centerpiece of the exhibit was a parlor set like the one our chairs came from!

Oudry was court painter to Louis XV, recording the king's hunts in his paintings and tapestry designs. He was also director of the Beauvais and the Gobelin tapestry works. He is known for his illustrations of La Fontaine's Fables. His work may be seen in museums throughout Europe, The original tapestries after Oudry may be seen at Musée Nissim de Camondo in Paris. A similar salon set, after drawings by Boucher, is in the Musée Sandelin and may be seen on the web: Click here Another salon set based on the Fables can be found in the Louis XVI Salon, at the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild, on the Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat promontory, on the French Riviera. When Béatrice Ephrussi died in 1934, she bequeathed her Cap Ferrat residence and its extensive collections to the Académie des Beaux Arts, a section of the Institut de France: Click here For English translation of some of the Fables de La Fontaine... Click here

After ten years, this room is almost finished, but still needs "editing."
Tom has some more electric wiring to do, to hide the cord to the picture lamp.
We have since bought new paintings, shown on another page.
So, some of the paintings have been re-arranged since these photos were made.
We have also hung vintage French draperies and antique French wooden cornices at the windows
and in the dining room. I've added photos of those on another page.

Click images to enlarge.

As for the box on the floor, I think, that was Tom's preparation for filing our taxes!
The monkey on the French marquetry pedestal in the corner is 19th century porcelain,
by the Carl Thieme factory at Pottscappel, near Dresden, Germany.
In the 18th century, Europeans often used the monkey in its fashionable satires, mocking the aristocracy.
In keeping with that tradition, our monkey is named
"DUBYA."
(as in George W. - you know who!)
But, lately, Tom's decided the name is an insult to the monkey!
So, it may change if we can decide on a new name. Nominations accepted!
The 18th C French firescreen on the lower right has now gone to a new owner.

Note: If some of the large photos, which are linked to the thumbnails, disappear for a while,
it's because I need more web space for new photos, from time to time.

Continued... Draperies hung!
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