21 Jan 2016

A Wonderful Winter Wedding...

If you follow Mirabelle's sister blog La Baguette Magique, you will have found out my big news: I just got married to the loveliest man there is, Roby! Our Big Day was an intimate affair - only close family members - and no lavish ceremony. It was all about pared-down simplicity.


Though needs to be said that we forfeited neither style nor elegance. However we dispensed of the following: wedding planner, professional photographer, personal florist, bridesmaids, wedding attire, hire limo, band/ DJ, private chef... and five-course banquet for that matter. Sorry if this may not be the idea of a fairytale wedding for some of you, yet for both Roby and I, it was exactly the way we both wished our Big Day to be: low-key and fuss-free. A by-product of low-key and fuss-free meant that our wedding came out to be inexpensive, yet not in the sense of tight-fisted or cheap, i.e. lacking the essentials or attention to detail. Ours was inexpensive *and* luxurious!


Here let me share with you a few hints and tips on how to achieve an inexpensive fuss-free wedding reception that does look the part:-


Wedding Venue:
The wedding lunch took place at my parents' house.

Table Decor:
Living on an island miles from the closest town, we had to make do in terms of floristry for instance. From the local general store, my mum picked a small cream rose bush whose pot she wrapped up in foil and then wrapped in a heirloom crocheted doily held together by an elastic band. She also picked a bouquet of mixed flowers (pink carnation, chrysanthemum, red rose, gerbera, pistacia lentiscus, papyrus, etc.) that she placed in a tall crystal vase.
Flowers instantly add grace and elegance!

Table Linen:
Family heirloom embroidered white linen that belonged to my grandma, dating back to the 1930s, and still in pristine condition. Our ultra-special family occasion linen!
Making a statement with heirloom pieces...

Tableware:
Making a statement with heirloom pieces, and going tone on tone, as white on white is so chic! White porcelaine de Limoges plates. Silverware & crystalware, family heirloom pieces from early 20th century to the 1960s.
... and white on white is so chic!

Menu Fayre:
Mostly buffet style finger food for the apéritif and first course, laid out on trays placed on the dining table: canapés (of thin gingerbread slices spread with fig and walnut jam and finished off with a layer of soft blue cheese); cherry tomatoes sliced halfways and held together on cocktail sticks with a dice of artisan smoked/ cured meat in the middle; courgette (zucchini) fritters; freshly-made mushroom pizzas from the local bakery, sliced in bite-size squares, shop-bought savoury palmiers, fresh grapes, cheese bites.
The Buffet Table

Main Course:
Scallops in a white wine sauce prepared by my mum, served straight off the oven in their individual fancy ramekins. 
Dessert:
Galette des Rois, ordered fresh from the bakery. The galette is an Epiphany pastry speciality from France, made up of puff pastry filled with Frangipane (almond paste). We personalised it by serving it with homemade candied kumquat slices and caramelised persimmon slices. [P.S: If you are feeling adventurous, why not make your own Galette des Rois, from scratch! Try David Lebovitz's recipe.]
Roby's favourite French sweet is a Christmas chocolate speciality called Papillote!

Beverages:
Champagne (Charles Lafitte and Alfred Rothschild et Cie) from apéritif through to dessert. Some dry white wine served with the scallops. Mineral water and upmarket apricot juice as soft drinks.
 Afters:
Black coffee served in English china cups, and chocolate fancies, including Papillotes.
Our wedding dog Tickle never got himself in a pickle with his wedding collar on!

Source: (1) Mirabelle montage of Magical Thinking Henna Letters 'N' (Nathalie) and 'R' (Roby) by Urban Outfitters. (2-9) Photography by Mirabelle.

14 Jan 2016

Postcard Views of Vintage Bastia, Corsica

Ephemera are by essence ephemeral: marketing flyers, political pamphlets, invitation cards, menus, receipts, concert tickets, clothing labels, advertising stickers, promotional ink blotters, etc. They are notheless more than 'just' bits of printed card or paper, as some of them become valuable collectibles with the passing of time.

Postcards are interesting too. They sit like a hyphen between ephemera and photographic print. Postcards document the moment. They are individual layers of history, anthropology, art, architecture, geography and land planning, all rolled together. Postcards capture a place of interest, a group of characters in action, and freeze that moment. While on the back of the card, we get the cherry on the cake, what gives the card its personality, authenticity, hence uniqueness: a little record of a moment in a life, a few scribbled words, a signature, a condensate of graphology, an address, a stamp... Testimonies of lives past, of the frailty of the moment gone.

It doesn't take a collector to realise that postcards are an important point of reference, not only as photographic evidence to those of us interested in history. Thus it seemed natural for Mirabelle to portray a piece of our local coastal history in our local town of Bastia, French island of Corsica. Those familiar with the town will recognise it in those views (which I estimate to dating back to the 1920s). This little nostalgic exercise is still a moving experience, as I am trying to picture my Corsican grandma, great uncle and great grandparents living the moments that are pictured herein!


Source: (1-3) A short selection of hand-coloured postcard views of Bastia available to purchase from SCVIEW Antique Images & Postcards, via the Stanley Gibbons Marketplace.

6 Jan 2016

Top Drawer Spring 2016 - A Preview

Whenever a Top Drawer announcement lands in Mirabelle's inbox, it never gets unnoticed! Top Drawer enticingly brings a burst of sunshine into life and more than a frisson of excitement, as a showcase and platform to the world of interiors, and a condensate of everything lifestyle that is tasteful, original, quality-driven, market-leading, fashion-conscious and design-led, alongside which the latest accessory trends and innovations in the areas of Home, Gift, Fashion and Craft are 'catwalking' into their big reveal. The latest addition - a growth sector full of promise - is Food Emporium.


View this as a little black book of hot brands and neat ideas, as well as an invitation to engage with them, get up, close and personal with the latest trends, and feel the vibe. It is an inspiration mood board come to life, a fashion catwalk of sorts for the home.

Part of the Clarion Events retail portfolio that organises 12 high-quality trade events a year for the design-led giftware and homeware sector, Top Drawer attracts the discerning lifestyle attendees: designers, contract buyers, retailers, shoppers, trendsetters, artists, the trade press, professional bloggers and the like. It draws in an audience from Britain and further afield, bringing together under one roof a spectrum of homewares stakeholders, from iconic British kitchen companions (Tala), or cutting-edge 'confidential' brands for those 'people in the know' (Rufus Rabbit), to the long-established international upmarket household names (Alessi), via prestige heirloom manufacturers (Royal Copenhagen). The exhibitor list sure reads like a Who's Who!


Established in 1984, the biannual London Olympia-based trade event has evolved to satisfy - even exceed - customer expectations thanks to a carefully-curated shortlist of exhibitors. This year, you have a 4-day window of opportunity to immerse yourself in the Top Drawer experience: 17-19 January (Top Drawer Spring) and 11-13 September (Top Drawer Autumn). The Spring edition of Top Drawer is an uplift from the post-Christmas retail blur and general morosity. It brings January to life, and sets the tone for the year ahead.

Top Drawer is the UK's prelude to a series of equally-awaited home fairs, such as the January Furniture Trade Show (NEC Birmingham, 24-27 January 2016) and Spring Fair (UK's No.1 Gift & Home Trade Event, NEC Birmingham, 7-11 February). As far as personal experience goes, the UK furnishings company I worked for had a stand at the NEC Furniture Show, and - as part of the marketing team - I would be one of the reps manning it. It provided me with valuable insight and foresight into the industry. And you certainly make valuable contacts and discover awesome brands!

And since you're asking, I have never had the chance to attend Top Drawer, but would love to remedy that! Nevertheless for now, I shall happily content with visiting (over and over!) its website - and leaf through its Shop Preview.

P.S: Meanwhile, to those lucky Top Drawer attendees, please do let me have the lowdown!


Sources: (1) Gift Wrapping Service from Royal Copenhagen (photography cropped). (2) Royal Copenhagen collection of teacups, coffee cups and saucers, photography via Top Drawer. (3) Montage made out of sliders from the Top Drawer landing page, resized and cropped to fit this page. From top down: Home, Gift, Fashion and Craft sectors.

4 Jan 2016

20 Sweet 16

And now is a short and sweet communiqué from Mirabelle & Tickle:


P.S: Isn't this beach buddy of mine cute and gorgeous?! Head over to Tickle's page for more cracking photos!
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