Entertaining Chic!


Book Description

Claudia Taittinger, of the famed Taittinger Champagne family, shares her secrets for hosting successful dinner parties with sophistication and style, including tried-and-true recipes sure to delight even the most discerning guest. Having played host to high society from Paris to New York and learned the art of cooking and presentation from some of France's most celebrated chefs at the Hôtel de Crillon in Paris, Claudia Taittinger is a consummate entertainer and bon vivant--who can really cook. Elegance, refinement, and graciousness color every detail of every delightful and delicious occasion. Drawing on traditional rules of French savoir faire, Taittinger guides readers to hosting unforgettable events. Starting with the type of occasion--from sophisticated formal parties to holiday gatherings and intimate dinners--and using exquisite photography, she illustrates how to tailor the table and create the appropriate mood and ambience. Each event is paired with mouthwatering recipes, from a classic Eggplant Terrine and always comforting Salmon Coulibiac to a delicious Duck Breast with Roasted Figs and Wild Mushrooms. Taittinger deftly combines colors, finishes, textures, and floral arrangements to set the stage for the perfect occasion while sharing time-honored principles of social etiquette, making the grandeur of the Parisian lifestyle accessible for everyone and inspiring the reader to host dinner parties with incomparable French flair.




Living Forever Chic


Book Description

Why French women of a certain age are the consummate hostesses, homemakers, and style icons--and how you can be, too. Frenchwomen--particularly those 40 and over--are role models for stylish and gracious living, what the French call l'art de vivre. American-born fashion journalist Tish Jett, who has studied these women for years, shared their beauty secrets in her first book, Forever Chic. Now she explores why Frenchwomen of a certain age are master hostesses and homemakers, expert practioners of les bonnes manières as well as everyday elegance, savoir-faire, and as a result, la joie de vivre. Jett explains how to entertain like a Frenchwoman, including a glimpse into the typical French larder from which a delicious meal can be thrown together with ease, to detailed instruction on laying a beautiful table and crafting a perfect cheese plate (did you know that when cutting from a wedge of cheese, slice from the back to the point, which is the "heart" of the cheese, and as such considered the best part and not to be lopped off so others cannot enjoy it). She explores everyday style and elegance, disclosing how to create that special bien dans sa peau (to feel good about oneself) sensation so coveted by Frenchwomen. Jett also shares the importance of discipline, which goes hand in hand with beauty--a well-ordered closet, be it for clothes or linens, translates to easy everyday elegance. With tips on adjusting your beauty and style regimes seasonally, charmingly packaged with color illustrations, Living Forever Chic is a delightful gift for the Francophile in your life.




Everyday Chic


Book Description

The supermodel, television and internet personality, busy mom, and author of the New York Times bestseller Everyday Supermodel shares a new set of tips and tricks for creating comfortable, inviting, organized spaces throughout your home—while making them beautiful and stylish too. Once upon a time, Molly Sims was a single girl who used her oven as a sweater drawer. Today, the model turned home chef, design diva, organizational guru, entertaining expert, and blessed mama uses her stove to whip up fabulous fare for family and friends. While she loves to cook, Molly also loves to entertain, and to make the home she shares with her husband and young children both beautiful and inviting. Juggling a successful career and growing household, Molly had to find solutions that worked for her busy life. In this inspirational guide written in her fun, sophisticated, relaxed girlfriend-to-girlfriend style—and flavored with just a touch of Southern—Molly brings together expert advice and her own insights to help you add that little "extra" to make your everyday life a little better, a little easier, and a little more special. Inside you'll find secrets and real life advice for simplifying, streamlining, and beautifying, including: Kicking clutter to the curb. Applying the accessory rule to your home—removing one piece. Feeding your family without stress. Using the right tools to plan parties like a professional, and tackle easy DIY projects. Prioritizing the positive without getting hung up on the perfect. Filled with lovely and instructive color photos from Molly’s own house, personal anecdotes, insight from Molly’s go-to experts, and easy-to-follow how-tos and lists, Molly’s charming guide will help you create the stylish home and life you want.




Cube Chic


Book Description

This style book features cubical designs for every taste, from Tiki to Zen, and features full-color photography and helpful decorating tips.




Forever Chic


Book Description

For any woman who last saw forty on her speedometer comes a sparkling new primer for aging—the French way—with grace and style. Frenchwomen of a certain age (over forty) are captivating and complex. They appear younger than their years and remain stylish throughout their lives. They look at birthdays as a celebration of a life well-lived and perhaps a good reason to go shopping before they dress to perfection for a celebration of another anniversaire. American-born journalist and blogger Tish Jett has lived among the French for years and has studied them and stalked them to learn their secrets. Exploring how their wardrobe, beauty, diet, and hair rituals evolve with time and how some aspects of their signature styles never change, Jett shows how Frenchwomen know their strengths, hide their weaknesses, and never talk about their fears, failures, or flaws. After all, in France, beauty, style, and charm have no expiration dates!




Thirty Chic Days


Book Description

Is it possible to live a chic and elegant life if you don't live in Paris, or even France? Instead of daydreaming about running away to the City of Light, 'Thirty Chic Days' invites you to put on your French-tinted sunglasses and view your everyday through an enchanting and motivating filter.Inside this book you will find thirty chapters (or 'days') full of joie de vivre sharing fun and exciting ways to bring your ideal chic life into being. 'Thirty Chic Days' is a warm, encouraging and fanciful guide on living a simple and beautiful French-inspired life. Enjoy dozens of delicious no-cost ideas and feel inspired to uplevel yourself and your surroundings in an effortless and enjoyable way.Through her popular blog howtobechic.com author Fiona Ferris provides thousands of women from all around the world with tools and inspiration to elevate the everyday from mundane to magical.Contents:Day 1 Have a Paris state of mindDay 2 Eat real foodDay 3 Bathe yourself in mystiqueDay 4 Make up your eyesDay 5 Create and guard your secret gardenDay 6 Be your own French auntDay 7 Honour your body with chic movementDay 8 Be beautifully positiveDay 9 Support your signature charityDay 10 Simplify your life for abundanceDay 11 Adopt a low-drama way of beingDay 12 Curate your wardrobe like it is your own bijou boutiqueDay 13 Indulge in your femininityDay 14 Design the life of your dreamsDay 15 Cultivate serenity and calmness in your lifeDay 16 Create a sanctuary at homeDay 17 Take exquisite care of your groomingDay 18 Little and oftenDay 19 Socialise in a relaxed mannerDay 20 Be your own chefDay 21 Inspire yourselfDay 22 Build rest and repose into your daily routineDay 23 Be financially chicDay 24 Live a life of luxuryDay 25 Collect contentment in petite measuresDay 26 Make every day magicalDay 27 Embrace creativity and enjoy the benefitsDay 28 Think of your home as if it were a boutique hotelDay 29 Walk your errandsDay 30 Immerse yourself in sensuous beautyBonus Day Take inspired actionIf you enjoyed Jennifer L. Scott's 'Lessons from Madame Chic', Tish Jett's 'Forever Chic' or Shannon Ables' 'Choosing the Simply Luxurious Life', you will love 'Thirty Chic Days'!




French Chic Living


Book Description

Wonderfully accessible ideas for maintaining a stylish home, drawing on the ways French mothers and grandmothers manage their households. French houses ooze with charm—and their inhabitants, despite busy schedules, regularly entertain at home. What are the secrets for leading such a chic lifestyle? In this insightful tome, lavishly illustrated with images of a country residence in a romantic French town, de Dampierre shares her knowledge of ways to achieve a warm and inviting home. Her continental traditions make beautifying your house a joy. Household chores—from stocking the pantry to washing and storing delicate linens to cleaning wooden and stone surfaces—are discussed. Tips for adorning your home range from lining dresser drawers with pretty papers and enhancing them with homemade scents to creating delicate floral arrangements of fresh-cut blooms for pleasant accents throughout your rooms. Basic instructions are also provided for designing a simple and attractive aromatic kitchen garden full of herbs, fruit, and vegetables, whether on a plot of land or in attractive containers; its produce then becomes the basis for preparing fresh, seasonal recipes to share with family and friends.




Diner à la Maison


Book Description

A charming approach to cooking, entertaining, and table-setting with all the chicness of Parisians at home. The Parisian dinner party is the ideal of entertaining chic: the style of the host, the quality of the food and wine, and the beauty of the setting. With this creative and invaluable book, Laurent Buttazzoni--renowned French architect, gourmand, and celebrated host of delightful dinner parties in Paris--shares his tried and true elements for Parisian entertaining.Dispelling the myths of expense and complexity that can intimidate hosts, Diner à la Maison is a guide to shopping, cooking, and entertaining the Parisian way. Led by beautiful color photographs made in the author's home, the book covers the fundamental ingredients for the pantry, followed by a guide to pairing 42 menus with it's own décor and table setting. From weekday hits to weekend entertaining, seasonal events, and holiday parties, each menu is accompanied by ideas for a decoration theme. For weeknight gathering, Buttazzoni offers simple seasonal dishes such as Watercress Soup and French Macaroni and Cheese or Rack of Lamb with Pan Juices, Green Tabbouleh, and Lemon Tart. For a more formal dinner party a menu of Belgian Endive Salad with Pears and Blue Cheese, Duck Breast à l'Orange, and Honey Glazed Turnips or Poule au Pot, Poached Vegetables, and a luscious Berry Trifle. With a candid guide to shopping for everything from good-quality groceries to eclectic tableware, as well as creative tips on the details that make any dinner party a success (pop your champagne in the freezer before guests arrive!)--and with an introduction by style icon Sofia Coppola--this book is an essential tool for all those who want to receive family and friends at home.




At Home with Madame Chic


Book Description

Approach life at home the Madame Chic way: a beautiful, illustrated toolbox of tips and ideas for organizing and entertaining. Organized by the pleasures that can be found throughout the day, this charming, helpful book is full of ideas, playlists, recipes, beauty routines, and advice that can turn an irritating day into an enjoyable experience.




Soiree


Book Description

A preeminent hostess and tastemaker invites you to the most chic at-home parties, with detailed descriptions for invitations, flowers, table settings, linens, and more than eighty original recipes. Veranda calls Danielle Rollins a "genuine expert—a natural-born entertainer," and in her first book Rollins invites readers into her world of elegant, accomplished entertaining. Featuring events both intimate (a New Year’s Eve dinner) and grand (a fund-raiser), all fifteen parties emphasize hosting guests with grace and ease at home. The reader will learn how to create a party timeline, how invitations set the tone, and how to plan a menu and gain dozens of ideas for setting festive tables. From signature cocktails (Blood Orange Old Fashioneds, Prosecco with Popsicles) to the imaginative linens, flowers, and menus, Rollins brilliantly executes every detail. From croquet in the garden at the Gatsby Lawn Party (St. Germain Lemonade Cocktails and Victorian Iced Sorbet, with guests in period attire) to a Fall Harvest Chef’s Dinner in the Kitchen, with guests seated cozily around the kitchen island, eating Pork Chops with Stone Ground Grits, the parties are cleverly conceived, flawlessly executed, and fun. Handsomely photographed and filled with the parties of tastemakers such as Oscar de la Renta and Lela Rose plus recipes by esteemed guest chefs, Soirée is an idea-filled resource for those who love to entertain.