FROM FRANCE WITH LOVE

Fashion accessories designer & mixed media artist, Sofia Barao

My friend Sofia Barao loves everything vintage and romantic and is passionate about the end of the 19th and early 20th century era. She grew up in Portugal, studied in Switzerland, and now lives in a small town in France (L'Isle Adam, which is in the middle of a forest between a river and a lake) just 45 minutes from Paris.


pretty mixed media painting by Sofia

Sofia just started a new blog called 1parjour, which aims to post one piece of artwork a day at prices that makes art affordable to everybody.


Reflections of Me (Reflet de Moi) for sale at 1parjour.blogspot.com

Sofia also designs accessories under the name of La Fee Coriandre (which means the Coriandre fairy) and her products range from vintage-inspired jewelry, bags, home accessories, etc.



I'm in love with her new Marie Antoinette notebooks (pictured above). Covered with vintage French wallpapers and dark silhouettes, there are 20 different vintage wallpaper designs to chose from. Available at La Fee Coriandre Online Shop which you can access at: lafeeshop.wordpress.com. Sofia ships worldwide, and most of her clients are in the U.S.

P.S. I loved reading Sofia's Top 4 list and thought Cacharel's Suzanne Clements and Ignacio Ribeiro was a great choice--they're so often underrated! And of course, Vanessa Bruno, one of France's great hip designers, another wonderful choice and so unknown for the most part in the U.S.

So please read on, I think you'll want to check out a few THINGS YOU MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT SOFIA BARAO:

A) THE FOUR MOST STYLISH PEOPLE THAT INFLUENCED ME:
1. Sophia Loren and
2. Carry Bradshaw :) :) :) :) :)


B) FOUR WAYS THAT STYLE MAKES THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE
1. Once you find your style you'll feel better and once you feel better you'll give a better image of yourself to others and that's very important.
2. you can play to be someone else with different styles :)


C) FOUR OF MY FAVORITE DESIGNERS
1.Marc Jacobs
2.Vanessa Bruno
3.Dice Kayek
4.Cacharel (Suzanne Clements and Ignacio Ribeiro)


D) FOUR JOBS I HAVE HAD IN MY LIFE:
1. Sales assistant for Wolford
2. worked with kids at a primary school
3. Au-pair girl in Switzerland
4. Translator


E) FOUR MOVIES I WOULD WATCH OVER AND OVER (AND DO):
1. Cinema Paradiso
2. The postman (Il postino)
3. The sound of music
4. Any movie with Marcello Mastroiani


F) FOUR PLACES WHERE I HAVE LIVED:
1. Zurich - Switzerland
2. Lisbon - Portugal
3. Paris - France
4. L'Isle Adam - France (now and it's about 45 min. away from Paris)


G) FOUR TV SHOWS I LOVE TO WATCH:
1. SATC (always :) )
2. Lost
3. Desperate Housewives
4. Grey's Anatomy

H) FOUR PLACES I HAVE BEEN ON VACATION IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS:
1. I haven't been on vacation for the past 2 years but the 2 years before that I was in Malta and Portugal


I) FOUR WEBSITES I VISIT DAILY (Or at least Weekly):
1. Google
2. my space.com
3. www.shelterrific.com
4.designsponge


J) FOUR OF MY FAVORITE FOODS:

1. Tiramisu
2. Brocoli
3. Sharon fruit (love this)
4. Watermelon


K) FOUR PLACES I WOULD RATHER BE RIGHT NOW:
1. at a SPA
2. travelling through Scandinavia
3. anywhere in the green Switzerland
4. shopping in Milan (I love this city)