Inspiration in the South of France

The South of France inspired the Impressionist pleine air paintings of Cezanne, Monet and Van Gogh and its beautiful landscape and colors made an equally strong impression on Cindy Rinfret. After a vacation in the South of France, Cindy has come back re-energized and inspired. After looking at her photos we can see why!

Here are photos from Cindy's trip.
The blue sky, old world stone work, bright umbrellas and lush greenery -- what an introduction the market!We love how these flowers are displayed in sweet little compartments with handwritten names. Much prettier than the corner store deli display here in the States!

This view speaks for itself. No caption necessary here!This is the view from the private home where Cindy and her friends stayed. The big decisions here were, what to eat, where to layout, and when to take a walk to the market.

Even on vacation Cindy is always thinking about designing and collecting favorite pieces along the way. On her return back from France, Cindy arrived in the office with an armload of clippings from European magazines (the British House & Garden is especially fantastic) and snapshots of items that she loved. Here are some of our favorites:

This charming four poster bed has lovely details...
This desk is absolutely precious:
Cindy fell in love with this fantastic upholstered bench:

That's our little sneak peak of Cindy's wonderful vacation. You can't ask for anything better than relaxation and inspiration, and lucky for Cindy, both are easily found in the South of France!

Accessorizing with Flowers!

One of the best tricks of interior design is how to use flowers in a room, and Cindy Rinfret has a lot of tricks up her sleeve! Here are some of Cindy's best flower tips:

Cut flowers immediately make a room look more inviting and expensive. Of course, stocking cut flowers continuously can quickly become expensive so in the spirit of economic responsibility, here are some tips to make this luxury more affordable. In these summer months, cut some flowers from your own garden. Hydrangea are especially lovely, and at last month's photo shoot Cindy cut some gorgeous dog woods from the yard to create a dramatic scene on the living room mantel.

One of the most architecturally beautiful flowers is the orchid, and although this flower is by no means cheap it can lost a long time. Cindy often gives orchids as gifts for this very reason -- they are easy to care for and can last for months.


Arrangements need not be enormous to have a great impact. Nothing is more classically elegant than a handful of roses in a mint julep glass, especially when paired with a larger arrangement, as seen above.

Cindy loves flowers but finds it so sad when they inevitably die. To keep the look without having to constantly throw out dead flowers, Cindy stocks her house with beautiful faux flower arrangements, which she gets through Rinfret Home & Garden. All of the flowers in the following photos are faux and are available through Rinfret Home & Garden:



In addition to the above faux flowers which are available at the shop, we also have these fabulous faux arrangements, which are ON SALE now!


These are just a small selection of the arrangements that we have in the shop now.

As a lasting thought, let us remind you that flower arrangements can benefit from some unexpected ideas. Take these flowers, which Cindy accented with peacock feathers:


We hope we have inspired you to add some flowers to your favorite space!