Under the Tuscan Sun: Our Villa

If you follow me on Instagram (you should!), you may already know that last week I had the opportunity to travel to Tuscany along with 11 other women to celebrate a dear friend’s birthday (yes, one of the big ones, shhhh!)   No, it wasn’t Cheaper by the Dozen, but it was a lot more fun!

We rented a villa just outside of Sienna.  The cost was surprisingly reasonable when split 12 ways.  Even better than the affordability factor was the villa itself.  It was a breathtaking home with plenty of bedrooms and bathrooms ~ must when a dozen women are sharing a space for a week.   The setting was right out of the movies. The villa design was light and airy and grounded by a large harvest table with a marble top in the Kitchen which we gathered around  for late night conversation and a sip (or 2…) of Limoncello.

Come take a peek of a week that has etched memories on my heart…

This was the first view of our villa as I unloaded my luggage ~ I’m home!

Just look at the light, I can feel the warmth of the sun through this photo

There were 2 tiny buildings opposite our house, used for pool cushion storage and such.  Aren’t they adorable?

Lavender and rosemary were abundant.  Just walking by, the wonderful fragrances filled the air.

Our front door for 8 days 

And my watercolor sketch of the beautiful door

I loved that the interior design of the villa was monochromatic tones of ivory and beige. The brick archways were whitewashed and in some areas  there was a buttery beige horizontal stripe for interest. Nothing detracted from the beautiful Tuscan hillside view outside the French doors.

Another spot to chat, read or bunk (because you snore and bothered your roommate, hehe)

Just look at this view of the Kitchen in action.

I love European Kitchens. With no long run of cabinets on the upper wall the feeling of openness and airiness abounds.  Did you know that when you move you usually take your cabinets with you in Europe? Thank you BlogTour Milan for that tidbit of knowledge! The large table in the foreground seated us easily when we met at the end of the night for conversation and a sip (or 2…) of homemade Limoncello.

Love this cabinet that was located on each side wall of the Kitchen, it was lovely to look at and functional. It housed all of the glassware and dishes we used during our stay.

This cabinet inspired another watercolor sketch

This large, round, stone top table actually had a center portion that functioned like a lazy Susan, a genius feature considering that the table easily sat 12-15 people.

This is the view from my bedroom, isn’t it lovely?

A close up view of the pool on the property, perfect for skinny dipping (shhhh 😉 ).

The group: outstanding, smart, humorous, talented, kind women and not a Diva among us.

Whereas this trip was to celebrate a milestone birthday, the Birthday Dinner was one of the highlights of our stay.  A friend and I found this table outside and moved it inside and set it up in the front Living Room for the dinner.

The tablecloth is an original creation just for the Birthday Girl.  The fabric is a toile I created using the same technique I used when creating the toile fabric for Emily’s Bridal Shower:  I painted detailed watercolors, had them professionally scanned, and then uploaded the images to Spoonflower and they “magically” turned my paintings into fabric.  This toile had a cake (of course), a rendering of our villa, the cathedral of Sienna, a wine tasting vignette and a painting sketch of the Birth of Venus. I chose this turquoise blue because it complements the Birthday Girl’s home.  Also note the custom party hats created using maps of Italy ~ I just love getting creative with all the details to really make a gathering special!

Taking a photo of the celebration table the morning after is a bit of a tradition for me…this one survived pretty well.

It was a wonderful trip and of course I still have more to share.  Stay tuned for some highlights from out and about in Tuscany featuring  quite a bit of art.  In the meantime, follow me on Twitter (@pamelacopeman) for updates from the Wayfair Heart Home conference  in Boston this weekend!  Ciao for now!

xo,

Pamela

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