anglais et français

In the early 90's I was driving through the winding hills
of Lancashire County, England, in search of the
village, my ancestors called home. Traveling the
pastoral landscape, I understood why they chose
Kentucky for their new home, in America.
There is a remarkable resemblance between
the two landscapes.
A twenty minute drive east of Louisville, you
find yourself surrounded by rolling acres of
pastures covered in bluegrass, an area
known as the Equestrian Capital of the world.




The horse barns are fit for the Queen's mares and
rightfully so, since Queen Elizabeth II's mares are
sired in Kentucky.



The life and scenery resembles that of the English
countryside and you feel like you have walked into
the world of Ralph Lauren. There is probably even
a fox hunt or two, taking place in the woods.




The quaint little town of Shelbyville, aka the Saddlebred
Capital, sits between Louisville and Lexington.
A picturesque town of civil war era homes and Victorian
storefronts line Main Street.




Shelbyville is a place where barley twist and
Staffordshire are hunted like fox, fireplaces are
flanked in wingchairs, and mahogany rules.





There is a fabulous Fine English Antique dealer in
town, Wakefield Scearce located at Science Hill,
which was once, one of the nations most prestigious
girl's preparatory schools.
Tourists come by the bus loads, especially during
the holidays, to view the rooms decorated in
period pieces and visit the basement vault, overflowing
with silver.




Well, the time has come for this lovely little town
to know some "Joie de Vivre".
My cousin recently purchased this building on
Main Street and will open the "Antique Market"
in late October.
European Antique Market will have a large
presence there and I hope to acquaint the town
with all the Louis's!

With the freshly updated facade, its now time to move inside. Tomorrow we start the "morning till midnight" merchandising. I'll be posting photos of our progress. We sit in between two other malls that offer mostly English and American primitive, so it is exciting that we will be a bit unique with our French antiques and brocante.

You can see it is pretty much a bare shell now. It will be an antique mall, so any dealers interested in renting space, feel free to contact me.

I might have to leave a bit early one day and drive a bit further east, to Versailles, as Keeneland opens October 3rd. I try to visit Churchill Downs and Keeneland at least once a year to participate in some Bluegrass culture. Keeneland makes for a wonderful way to spend a nice Autumn day, as it has to be one of the most beautiful turf racetracks in the country.

I even have my new outfit picked out. Ralph Lauren of course. Derby is about hats and the Keeneland fall meet is about boots!

All I need to do is add the French scarf and the
Louis Vuitton purse. :)
I think the English and French look go together quite well, don't you?
I just hope Shelbyville thinks the same!
Bisou and have a wonderful week!