Hands Down

We are heading back to France next summer - just thought I would let you all know in case anyone wants to come along. It's a very casual trip - no more than 18 women that gather at a chateau and eat, craft and shop...not much more than that. We usually spend our mornings sitting around a large table - in the dining room or on the patio - sipping tea and eating a warm chocolate croissant - listening to the church bells at 8am. We craft - spending a good amount of hours in the old barn - heads down - diligently working on some project or teaching the person next to us a skill we have recently learned. We look for vide grenier or flea market signs along the road and then we follow any lead we can possibly sniff out - sometimes we find gold and sometimes we come home with empty pockets. And then we eat again...and drink a bit of the local grape.
I dreamt up these trips a couple of years ago because I wanted to continue going back to France with my mom. I took my mom to France for her 60th birthday and it was the right trip at the right time. So finally - I have figured out a way to return every summer - to return to the rural lifestyle. Molly comes along too - and continues to experiment woading her hands - where else?
However...we return to the land in grand style. This summer we are planning a fabulous week - my old friends Marcia Ceppos and Wendy Addison have decided to join us and indulge us in a week of Tinsel Trading Craft. We'll still visit my old friend Patrick Bru - who has a brocante in his backyard, dye with woad alongside the master Denise Lambert, and laugh with Laurent our sommelier - but this summer, we will also craft with Wendy Addison and hear the lore of Tinsel Trading from Marcia Ceppos.
If you are game, or just need to get away from it all...join us this summer on our third annual Chateau Getaway in France. I promise you it's the best week you'll ever spend at a chateau - hands down! Details and sign ups at frenchgeneral.com

Au revior!