the august box is… summer living in provence!

by Sharon Santoni

 

ochre facades in provence

Our August edition of My Stylish French Box is all about Summer Living in Provence.

Provence and the south of France has always held a special place in my heart.   Since the day I first arrived in this country, not even knowing that it would become my home, I immediately fell in love with the light, the colours and the perfumes of the southern coast and Provence.

morning light in provence

I love the small stone villages perched on the hilltops; I love the colourful markets, spilling over with sweet smelling fruit and vegetables; I love the accent of the people from the south and their quick sense of humour and of course I love the occasional glass of rosé wine too!

summer flowers with my stylish french box

For our next edition of My Stylish French Box we are celebrating Summer Living in Provence.   The perfumes, the colours and la dolce vita.   I have picked out items for you and your home that will bring a special French touch to your summer,  and make your daily life a little more fun.

Of course I can’t tell you the contents because that would ruin the surprise, but you may like to know that there we are very excited to be working with the beautiful brand Rose et Marius, who are all about the natural beauty of Provence.

If you’d like to purchase the box for yourself or for someone special just pop over HERE, you can choose between a one-off box or subscribe for the year.

If you’d like to see what our clients are saying about the boxes then click HERE, and if you want to see the contents of past boxes you can take a look HERE.

And finally, if you are already a box receiver, and you’d like to tell your friends about it, then don’t forget that you are welcome to become an ambassador for the boxes and collect points to earn a free box!

summer flowers with my stylish french box

 

I hope you love this box, and that it gives you a true and fragrant taste of summer living in Provence.

16 comments

Sandy Fisher June 6, 2019 - 5:09 pm

I just looked at my calendar and decided it must be August 1st! Can’t wait for this next stylish box to arrive! Merci to you Sharon and your talented ladies who share your love of France with friends like me who love it too!

Reply
Carol mirley June 29, 2019 - 5:17 pm

I’d love to see what’s inside your latest box, I’m hopeful it might be my time to win this time. I love all your publications .

Reply
Carolyn Rapisarda June 6, 2019 - 5:16 pm

I received the May Blue and White Box and loved the contents, although the the water color illustration was not of interest.
I do not want to continue with a subscription .
I do want to subscribe to the print version of your magazine starting with the July issue.
Please send me the payment information.

Reply
david terry June 6, 2019 - 5:19 pm

Dear Sharon,

“And finally, if you are already a box receiver, and you’d like to tell your friends about it, then don’t forget that you are welcome to become an ambassador for the boxes and collect points to earn a free box!”

O, Sharon….this confirms my opinion that you’re not only a canny, but also generous marketer. As we say in New Orleans and the surrounding, Louisiana parishes, a little lagniappe always helps/cheers the client and the vendor. I can’t recall the French or Italian terms for those instances in which the marketer demonstrates his/her appreciation of your purchase by discreetly tucking a little something (perhaps a bundle of verdure/herbs or some special little treat) into your bag, along with your actual purchase. What a lovely gesture on your part.

P.S. In regard to “lagniappe”?……Ive never assumed that the “French”spoken in either Plaquemines parish or Quebec is necessarily analogous to what’s spoken in actual France…….a situation which drove my French in-laws (both markedly prissy academics) fairly nuts when they visited those places (Canada and Louisiana being nearly 2000 miles distant from each other, and each separated from France since at least the middle half of the 18th century). Gumbo z’herbes, indeed…….

Admiringly as ever,
David Terry
quail roost farm
rougemont, nc
usa

Reply
Ida Duplechin June 6, 2019 - 6:34 pm

My dear David Terry- Coucou. I learned that the word we use in Louisiana(based on 17th century French-reminders from all taxi drivers in Paris) for a certain sausage: “boudin” is NOT polite in Paris. We could speak on this for a very long time. Bonne chance with your relatives. I’m enjoying Paris.

Reply
david terry June 6, 2019 - 7:06 pm

Dear Ida, Well, thank you for your lovely comment. Sharon’s does (and, in my experience, always has) draw a diverse and interesting group of like-minded readers).

I should emphasize that the in-law folks from Tours are all a quite markedly distinct mixture of the merely presumptuous and the blatantly pretentious….and all of them at pains to never discuss the fact of their being half-Jewish (fully so through the female line of descent), while professing to be devout Roman Catholics (although they never attend church/mass except for weddings and christenings). Welcome the haute bourgeoisie of the Tourraine; I came to know them all too well.

As one, much older, long-divorced friend of mine said last year?…..”oh, it’s difficult to keep a marriage afloat when you’re swimming in a family-pool with that many riptides going on beneath the surface.” In any case, they’re not my relatives anymore. Presumably, they’re someone else’s problem…..or ( more likely, no one cares enough about the matter to take them on).

As for “Boudin”?,,,,,yes, I know about its connotations in France. My former mother-in-law was taken aback when she first visited here in the states and was introduced to the dachshunds owned by two of my New Orleans friends. The dogs were both named “Boudin” (for obvious reasons). One of my NOLA friends has six dachshunds……all named for various sausages (“andy” for “andouille”, etcetera.

Where do you live in Louisiana, if I can ask? I used to have many cousins and relatives there, but they all relocated to Austin and elsewhere in the disastrous wake of Katrina.

sincerely,
david terry

Reply
Steven June 6, 2019 - 6:56 pm

Lagniappe.

I grew up in Pensacola – near to the heart of the Redneck Riviera. The parents of a girlfriend from my youth had a late ’50’s/early ’60’s quintessential Florida beach house – single story, flat roof, cinder block, jalousie windows, terrazzo floors throughout, exterior painted screaming aqua, white faux shutters with seahorse cut-outs, the winter wind (and sand) blew straight through the walls (and of ours as well) but it was built for summer, surrounded by dunes, sawgrass, sea oats and cockleburrs – at Lagniappe Beach. Of course, in our parts, it was pronounced Lag-a-nappy. Colloquial diction didn’t alter the implied meaning of the little hidden piece of beach (sound side). And no one knew the difference anyway.

Thanks for the recollection.

Reply
david terry June 6, 2019 - 7:11 pm

Oh, goodness, Steven……… a good friend of mine in college (The University of The South ) was from Pensacola, and we used to visit his grandfather’s summer beach house on Lagniappe beach. Small world, indeed…….

—–david terry

Reply
Steve June 6, 2019 - 8:28 pm

David – small world indeed. I am always amazed how many commonalities people share. Hope you have fond memories of our heat and humidity – and blindingly white sand that squeaks when you walk on it! I love that these same beaches were once Appalachian mountains eons ago. We have a place in Black Mountain, NC – I drive through and am awed that that (beach) used to be this (mountain).

Reply
Leslie Lord June 6, 2019 - 6:25 pm

Ooh la la! I am going to Provence in the fall so I am very excited to see what you have chosen to put into the August box!
I am so enjoying the Contents of the May box and the scarf is gorgeous! The Fragonard candle and the linen napkin and bags a so exquisite… thank you again.

Reply
Kathy Gahagan June 7, 2019 - 2:25 am

Chère Sharon,
I can’t tell you how WILD I am about Sempés prints!! I’ve framed the two large prints and dole out my boxed cards with discretion. Always love the box!!! I ordered the printed version of the magazine but received a confirmation for the digital version. Also, just btwn us…my copper candle came with a scratched, dented lid. You said to ask for something from a previous box but I was embarrassed. The stone fell out of (not the last necklace but the one before), do I thought I’d write. I adore BOTH necklaces! Actually, I love everything always.
Avec amitié, Kathy Gahagan

Reply
sharon santoni June 7, 2019 - 11:54 am

Dear Kathy, I am so happy that you like the Sempé prints, he is an artist very close to my heart, and I find true poetry in each of his designs.
Thank you for purchasing the printed magazine, we are excited to send you the printed version very soon. As we explained in the email update a couple of days ago, there has been a slight delay in the print of this first edition (teething troubles!) , but we expect it to be with you in a couple of weeks. From the July edition on, the printed editions will be received simultaneously to the digital edition being released.
The reason you received the digital edition, is because you subscribed for a year to the print, and the digital version is included in your subscription.
When you told us about the damaged lid to your copper candle last August we wrote back to you immediately and offered to send you a replacement product. You didn’t reply to that mail. I am sorry to hear that the stone came loose on your labradorite necklace, and I will be happy to pop a replacement into your next box.
As you know from our past emails to you, we always reply promptly to any mail from our readers and we try to keep everyone happy at all times.
Thank you for your continued custom, and I hope you enjoy the Provence box
kind wishes
Sharon

Reply
Inga June 10, 2019 - 6:55 pm

Provence is true inspiration! When I need ideas for my new designs, I pack my bags and head to Provence.

Reply
julia beck June 30, 2019 - 9:51 pm

This would be a wonderful surprise to win!

Reply
Marie Debrun July 1, 2019 - 8:59 pm

Hello Sharon, I just love the look of your blogs. Please keep on posting your amazing photography! Anything from Provence would be such a gift. I hope I am one of the two winners. Marie

Reply
Floranet September 24, 2019 - 10:25 am

What a Fantastic Post!! Love your work.

Reply

Leave a Comment