Merry Christmas

Beatrice & Harper

 

A very Merry Christmas from the girls at CCC. We hope your day is all you wished for.

Beatrice

Mrs. Alice

 

I came across this photo of a fabulous dog bed with a black and white Japanese Chin. Chins are quite rare in the United States and becoming far rarer as new CDC rules prevent the importation of puppies under 6 months of age. It took me a year to find Bea and she is from Canada (before the ban went into effect). Here is my little girl Beatrice all grown up. 

Valentine's Day Pups

Harper

 

Harper will be turning 10 years old in just a few weeks. It's hard to believe - everyone thinks she is a puppy and she certainly looks and acts like one. She is such a little angel. This photo is from last Valentine's Day in her Maxbone Christian Cowan pink feather sweater.

Beatrice @ One Year & Harper

Beatrice @ 1 Year

 

Here is Baby Beatrice this past Saturday on her first birthday. She was weighed last week and she is 5.5 pounds. Such a cutie. She is wearing a classic pink cashmere sweater by Ralph Lauren. And here is Harper in an orange Ralph Lauren cashmere turtleneck. Harper is just 4 pounds and change - a tiny baby. She will be turning 10 in March.

The Pups

Harper & Beatrice 

 

Beatrice, whom I call Baby Bea, turns 6 months old this week. She is on the right - she is getting so tall. She is really calming down - far more cuddly and less crazy and she is so smart. She is completely housebroken, sleeps all night, and loves her sister Harper. They are such good buddies.

Happy Birthday Harper

Harper

 

Today is the 9th birthday of my wonderful Japanese Chin Harper. She has been at my side through all the highs and lows of this period, and I could not imagine a more wonderful friend.

Valentine's Day Flower Tips

Carolyne Roehm

Many of us will be getting roses for Valentine's Day whether as gifts from others or to ourselves. Most will come in those generic glass florist's vases or no vase. Do yourself a favor and put them in one of your blue and white Chinese vases or ginger jars. Such a beautiful combination. And carnations as shown above in this beautiful vignette by Carolyne Roehm are a gorgeous and very chic again alternative to roses.

BFFs

Harper & Beatrice

 

The girls are inseparable after just a weekend together. The puppy is a little angel and the happiest puppy I have ever seen. Completely relaxed and just enjoying life completely. Things could not have gone better.

Valentine's Day

Harper

I love feathers and have several pieces with feathers in my wardrobe. Harper and I were in HomeGoods yesterday on a little shopping excursion before the puppy's arrival next weekend.

Christmas @ CCC

Harper

 

Harper is all decked out in her Christmas Maxbone feather sweater. Here are more Christmas vignettes around CCC. (And my precious pup).

Christmas Preparations

Harper

 

A chilly start to the morning here, so Harper is wearing a sweater - actually a Ralph Lauren cashmere turtleneck on my little 4 pound angel. 

The Chic Summer Pup

Striped Twill Straw Pet Tote

 

I adore my dog Harper and love finding chic dog accessories for her. I have rounded up some that are so summery, preppy, and stylish.

Happy Halloween

CCC

Happy Halloween from Casa Chinoiserie Chic. The house and the pups are all ready. I love my alligator skeletons and mermaid skeletons - Halloween Florida style. 

Living with Dogs

Alex Papachristidis - Teddy

 

My dogs Harper and Margot are my babies. If you live with small dogs, one issue, if they are allowed on furniture (which mine are) is how they get on and off high furniture like beds or sofas without hurting themselves.

Alex Papachristidis' tip for living with a pint-size pup? Give him a leg up by placing stylish step stools around the house. “Small antique and vintage chairs next to beds and sofas help to give your pets access to higher ground while also protecting their backs,” writes Alex. “I often buy Teddy’s miniature furniture from antique stores, pier shows, and auction houses.” (via One Kings Lane)

Dog Days

Harper

An exciting day in dog world yesterday. In the mad rush to get things out of the old house, the pups' dog beds got left behind by the movers. And I have decided to stop calling him GG which I decided is a bit too cute and harmless sounding. Any ideas for a new moniker are welcome. Their new banana leaf beds arrived yesterday. Check out the hot pink piping. They seem to be happy with them. For small dogs, a Euro size (26" by 26") pillow and sham works great and can be easily laundered as needed. These were from Etsy available here. And I love that she is right here in Florida. I love supporting local businesses.

Margot

The monkeys kept a watchful eye on the pups as they settled in on their new beds.

Vintage blue and white monkeys

Of course, this is where the pups sleep at night.

The master bedroom

House Hunting in Florida - Part 1

Just Chilling

Someone commented recently asking that I do a post on house hunting in Florida. This will be far from scientific, but I would love to share my experiences in looking for two homes over the past year in Sarasota/Venice. I was in the D.C. area for 40 years and I adored it. I never planned on leaving. But life had other plans for me and here I am in Florida. And guess what? I am in love with it.

This is one thing I absolutely adore about Florida. The animals. Last evening, this guy was sitting and chilling just feet from my front door for about an hour. There were sandhill cranes in the back yard, and an alligator swimming lazy laps in the lake behind our house. On any given day I see dozens of egrets, heron, deer, turtles, geckos, armadillos, eagles, cranes, rabbits, frogs, snakes, alligators, the list goes on and on. The other day there was a horse just relaxing in my back yard. We are surrounded by farms. There are roseate spoonbills too - such beautiful birds.

Roseate Spoonbill

And I forgot to mention the wild hogs in our community. Unbelievable.

Wild hogs

If you love wildlife as I do, select a home that is near lakes, a golf course, preserves, or marshes. We have all of these, and there are animals in our yard nonstop. None do any damage really. We use a natural deer repellent on a few plants and if armadillos dig holes anywhere, we stick a fallen prickly palm frond in the hole and they move on to more hospitable surroundings. My new home backs onto beautiful preserves with ancient palms, and the community has lakes, canals, a golf course, and preserves, so I am optimistic I will have lots of wildlife there too. I don't think I can bring all these guys with me - just the puppies. Getting ready for our drive to Venice this past Sunday - they wanted to drive.

Harper and Margot

The Blue and White Laundry Room

Dina Bandman - San Francisco Decorator Showcase

Such a wonderful room - this laundry room has de Gournay wallpaper (in a decorator show house where it is being donated). Love the dog wash station. My two puppies are so tiny that it is more convenient for me to use the laundry sink. BTW, there is nothing keeping me more grounded right now that my two puppy angels Harper and Margot. They are so happy, hanging out with me 24/7 and just enjoying life.

You might have seen this shot above before, but here are more photos to really see all the detailing in this fabulous room with custom cabinetry, navy subway tiles, and so much more.

I think this has motivated me to do some more styling in my own laundry room today.

My pups practicing social distancing.

The Puppy Condo

Redfins - Luxury Puppy Condo in Sarasota

Did I mention to you that Harper and Margot have their own luxury condominium in Sarasota? The Florida house has a double staircase with a wet bar in between on the living room side. On the kitchen side of the staircase is a three section storage closet. We tore out the carpet, installed luxury vinyl dog friendly planks, and created a three room doggy condo that houses their toys, bowls, beds, crate, leashes, etc. etc. It also has a collection of nine dog oil paintings, most from Mario Buatta's collection and even a dog book library. The antique Chinese boxes hold the ashes of my beloved Cavalier King Charles Spaniels Mandy and Julia, and my Tibetan Spaniel Isabella who I lost just before moving to Florida. I am happy they are all here with me.

 I think it is great use of the space and I love that all their doggy paraphernalia is not all over the place.

Halloween & Puppies

 Beginning to decorate for Halloween at my house and Harper and Margot chilling at the Hotel Monaco Doggy Yappy Hour.