Margot Klope Interiors » Travel

Delicious German Meal

margot — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 13:00:01 +0000

My friend Nancy and I have been talking about gathering our German friends together for a traditional meal, and this week it finally took place! Some guests were from Germany originally; some of us just have a German heritage. We did meet 2 young German women that are here interning; one at Mercedes Benz and the other at BMW. They said they felt like they were home. It was wonderful to gather, meet new people, see old friends and EAT!

I decided to use my beer krugs as centerpieces. (We thought they were called “steins” but were corrected by a wonderful shop owner in Rothenburg). I used simple white daisies from the grocery store, clipped greens, and winterberry.

this krug is from my Grandparents home…

this is a new one purchased from the Hofbrauhaus…

and also newly purchased from Rothenburg

There were so many of us that we needed 3 tables, but there were enough krugs to go around.

Everyone brought food and we had a blast and look forward to the next time.

Guten Appetit!

Munich.1

margot — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 13:00:00 +0000

I was so fortunate to find Depot in Munich and to have it filled with Christmas decorations. I loved it and have to show you some of it’s unique items.

Advent seems to be a big celebration in Germany, so there was much on display using the 24 days up to Christmas.

I love this idea of hanging “wintry” items from wreaths…these were everywhere! And isn’t the wool yarn great?

I saw Birch trees all over Germany, so it was in the stores too.

I love this “stacked” centerpiece; first a straw wreath is covered in a wool felt and then a green one is placed on top along with the glass. And more of that nice, thick, wool, yarn!

DEPOT CATALOG

This is how I used my purchases trimming my kitchen window tree

(Christmas and Advent ribbon)

Frohe Weihnachten!

(Merry Christmas)

Antiquing in Woodbury, CT

margot — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 13:00:57 +0000

If you find yourself in Connecticut soon, make sure you visit Mill House Antiques on Rt. 6 in Woodbury. What a gorgeous spot with tons of fine antiques (not the Thrift Stores I usually frequent)!

the grounds are gorgeous…

and the antiques are plentiful…

So if you are looking for 18th and 19th century furniture, this would really be worth the trip!

Autumn in Germany

margot — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 13:00:33 +0000

I think I got my love of travel from my beautiful mother. This photo was taken of her visiting Germany in the 70’s, but she was born there in 1921. I had the privilege of visiting this beautiful country last month. I am still organizing my (over 2,000) photos. I wanted to let you know what is coming soon…here is a glimpse of what I will share with you.

Gelnhausen

cable car ride to Zugspitze

The New General Store

margot — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 13:00:34 +0000

What a great way to spend the Saturday after Thanksgiving…I drove to Long Island to the Holiday Event @ The New General Store. After all, I was done with cooking, eating, and the clean-up…said good-bye to the kids and grand kids…and I had read about this event on {frolic} and it sounded wonderful. So Martha B. and I loaded in and headed out. It didn’t hurt that it was 65 degrees! Tricia Foley was the host at her beautiful property; we wondered the outbuildings which were set up as shops; we strolled down by the lake; lunch was served (soup, cider, cookies). There were authors there too; Matthew Mead and Jane Cumberbatch signing their books.

The first building was The White Store, which is featured in Matthew Mead’s current Holiday publication.

MATTHEW AND CHRIS

the next building had general merchandise…

JANE CUMBERBATCH

and the charming boat house…

more lovely grounds…

Why not pick up Tricia’s book, WHITE CHRISTMAS: DECORATING AND ENTERTAINING FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON. She is the master of using white to a lovely effect! You will also enjoy viewing her catalog and seeing all the goodies that we saw.

Thank you Tricia for a wonderful experience!

go to Martha B’s site for more photos

Summer Antiques

margot — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 12:00:42 +0000

When on Cape Cod, I just have to stop by some of the stores that I pass by…especially on Rt. 6a! This is what I found this time…

I found these prints by Richard Averill Smith. He was a photographer in the early 1900’s. I loved the interiors, so brought them home and hung them in my office.

I will have to do more research on this man!

more antiques on Cape Cod; #1 and #2

Kitchen Tables.3 Julia Child

margot — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 12:42:17 +0000

One of my favorite places in the home is the kitchen and I am sure most of you feel the same way. “The kitchen is the heart of the home.” Does anyone know where that phrase came from? It is so true. We cook, eat, visit, do homework, read the paper, use our laptops, watch TV, and generally hang out together, all in this one room. And how could we do all that without the kitchen table?! Hence, a new series with some of my favorites. Some will be “real”, and others from magazines. Enjoy.

What a treat to be at the Smithsonian and to see this exhibit. And what perfect timing for my kitchen table posts! When Julia moved to California from Cambridge, MA, in 2001, she donated her kitchen to the Smithsonian American History Museum. Can’t you see her in this kitchen? I can’t even imagine how much fun she had here and how many people enjoyed her meals at this kitchen table. Bon Appetit!

TOOLS OF HER TRADE

Thank you Julia!

click here for her cookbooks

Independence Day

margot — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 11:39:00 +0000

On the Mall in Washington, DC

It’s an exciting place to be on the 4th of July…I hope all of you had a great holiday too!

Monticello Dining Room

margot — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 10:00:12 +0000

When I visited Monticello (the home of Thomas Jefferson) in 2002, the Dining Room was this Wedgwood Blue. This photo is from my Monticello Guidebook.

and now…

the Monticello website says of the color on the walls:

Color: Originally unpainted plaster, then “chrome yellow,” then wall-papered, then blue in the post-Jefferson era. Currently the walls are a “chrome yellow” recreated following paint analysis studies.

“Susan R. Stein, Monticello’s curator says, “The blue dated from 1936. So we began to do paint studies and concluded this chrome-yellow shade was applied to the dining room around 1815, only 6 years after it was invented in France.” “Thanks to a generous donation from Polo Ralph Lauren”, the house was repainted it’s first color. Read the full article and see additional pictures at Elle Decor

I love the transformation! It was very chic to have these bright colors then. Mount Vernon’s dining room is a (pretty awful) green, but chic and expensive at the time.

Figline Valdarno, Italia

margot — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 10:00:58 +0000

some views of the sweet town and villa where we stayed

Figline Valdarno…just outside of Firenze (Florence), “rises between the slopes of the Chianti hills and the left bank of the Arno river”.

at 5pm, everyone comes out to buy what they need for dinner and to visit…sweet!

PIAZZA

Villa Casagrande

OUR VIEW

Built in the 1300’s, it was amazing to be in a structure that ancient. I just want to paint something that Tuscan yellow, but I don’t think it would be the same. The food was delicious (wish I had photos of that), their wine was also. However, we passed on the Spa where you can have some discreet surgery done! I came home looking the same on the outside but so happy and thankful on the inside to have been in Tuscany.

Thanks Cindy for coming with me!