Here’s how The Hubs and I plan our vacations.

1. I make a list of the Top Five Places I’d Like to Visit that incorporate decorative painting, architecture, museums and good food.
2. He then takes this List and does recon on sports stadiums to visit, sports games being played in our proposed time frame, hall of fame museums and good food.
3. A Winner bubbles up.

This pattern has never failed us — it helps that I enjoy sports and he appreciates great art! Do note that “good food” is on both our lists, hence our growing tummies. Sigh.

So came about our recent Christmas/New Years vacation in New Orleans.  We actually visited New Orleans prior to Katrina and were hoping to go back to add tourist dollars.  There is so much goodness in New Orleans that many blogs have been built solely to cover it. I’ll just do my personal biggest hits over time on Fauxology and we’ll start with the St. Louis Cathedral.

A landmark located in one of the busiest tourist sections, the St. Louis Cathedral is located right next to Jackson Square overlooking a fountain and a statue of Andrew Jackson on horseback.  Evoking the cathedrals found in Europe, it was built (and re-built several times) on a high piece of land and because of this, sustained far less damage from what Katrina exacted on other areas.

St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans

When you first walk in, you are greeted by beauty.

View towards the Cathedral Sanctuary.

Center Close-up

View towards the back of the cathedral.

Close-Up

Ceiling Close-up

Here are a slideshow with more images from our YouTube Fauxology channel.

Although there are some conflicting accounts as to who painted these murals, the overriding opinion is that it was Erasmus Humbrecht, an artist born in France and trained in Switzerland.  It was his first major work in the Americas. He charged $1,950 for the work above and $250 for the below mural over the sanctuary entitled “Sacrifice of the Divine Lamb”.  Here’s the best close-up I could get.

I came across stained glass windows depicting the life of Louis IX, whom the cathedral is named for.

Only in one invoice are the murals referred to as frescoes, in others it is simply called “decoration”. Conrad Schmitt Studios wrote a fascinating article on the $300,000 1995 restoration of Mr. Humbrecht’s work (here’s the PDF) — definitely worth the read.  There is more on the artwork’s history in Best of New Orleans (great info) and the cathedral’s site itself shares its fascinating history.  I hope you enjoyed my first New Orleans post — others coming up are on the French Quarter itself, the Garden District and how Mardi Gras floats are created.  My brother has previously written a guest post on his New “Awlins” adventures and the Miriam Ellner class he took on Verre Eglomise in case you’d like to dig in on those. Have a great day!

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I visited St. Petersburg, Florida during the Thanksgiving holiday last year and caught sight of the Vinoy Renaissance (historically, the Vinoy Park Hotel) while taking a stroll.  I don’t know about you, but I loooooooove to check out hotels that I think could hold some goodies inside of the decorative painting kind.  Seeing the kind of architecture featured below, I knew I’d find a few special areas.

Vinoy Renaissance

The Vinoy is a Mediterranean Revival-style hotel that is on the register of historical places.  Opened in 1926, it enjoyed much success until closing in 1974.  It was a dilapidated property when a $93-million renovation was undertaken in the mid-1990′s.  The Vinoy was brought back to its original glory while honoring the present.

During the restoration, the stenciled cypress beams above were removed, numbered, stored and ultimately replaced in their original location after new ceilings were installed. You can see how amazing they look with the contemporary design (below).

BTW, how gorgeous is this antique mirror? I must make one for my own home.

The spattering makes it so lovely. Love that rug it's reflecting, too!

Painted corbels abounded as well…

During the years it was closed, the property was occupied by the homeless and ravaged by insects, vermin and floods. The expertise of an army of craftsmen, fine painters and old-world plaster experts were required for the restoration.

A decorative painter working on the historic dining room ceiling. (Photo courtesy of the Vinoy Renaissance)

The dining room restoration above and below.

I must extend a huge Thank You! to the staff of the Vinoy Renaissance for taking the time to give me a tour and going over the restoration with me.  What a wonderful experience!  I do have some more finds that I’ve encountered during my recent travels and I’ll be sharing them soon.  Isn’t it great when you can discover something like this beauty unexpectedly? I bet we all love that!  Talk soon, gorgeous ones! – Regina

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Whenever anyone finds out I live near Orlando, FL, the first question I’m asked is usually about visiting the theme parks.  (Second being the glorious weather.) Since I grew up in Florida, I’ve visited the Central Florida theme parks more times than I can count. Although we’ve previously visited the scenic artistry at Animal Kingdom, my favorite park of them all is Epcot Center — and really because of the World Showcase.  (Although you might be familiar with the “giant golf ball” which houses a very cool ride, Spaceship Earth, that’s part of the second half of Epcot, Future World.)

The World Showcase has replicas of ten countries: Norway, France, Mexico, Japan, China, Germany, Canada, Italy, Morocco and the United Kingdom.

Map showcasing the country layout.

The country pavilions are located one right after the other and each has attractions, shops, artistry and of course, places to eat that focus on that country’s cuisine.  (I seriously cannot say enough of France’s pâtisserie…the Hubs and I visit it every.single.time.  I don’t even want to tell you the amount of goodies in the box we walk out with.) Most of the “cast members” working in Epcot are actually from that country and can answer any and all questions for you.  One of the best times to visit is during the holidays…

Gardens of Canada

(above) Nice “faux” glazes in the United Kingdom.

Norway (above left) and Germany (above right)

Below, you’ll first see a replica of the Itsukishima Shrine in Japan, then Italy, a market in China and finally France.  Photographer William Beem has a beautiful photograph of France, btw.

Replica of Itsukushima Shrine in Japanese Pavilion

Italy Pavilion (above)

Chinese Pavilion

French Pavilion

Last but not least, Morocco and Mexico.  As we enter Morocco, we catch a few beautiful glimpses such as columns and gorgeous “woodwork”. Hope you click on those last two links!

I didn’t take great shots of Mexico and so I used those provided by Walt Disney World below.  Mexico’s gorgeous exterior houses this beautiful interior…

Around the world in one blog post!

You can also catch holiday performances specific to each country and in the evenings, see beautiful light shows.  Although it might be a just a small showcase at Epcot Center, it has inspired a plan to see these amazing countries even more — travel is both a beautiful luxury and necessity, no?  Have a wonderful day, dear Reader!

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Today we have a wonderful guest blogger for you! Arizona-based artist Carmen Benoit of Carmen Illustrates has been previously featured in the Glamour with a Giggle post and she specializes in creative environments for children’s rooms, home decor and commercial spaces.  Today, she writes and shares about the incredible creativity found in one of the world’s most dynamic, colorful and design-savvy countries.  Take it away, Carmen!

I have been a huge fan of Regina Garay and her exciting blog for many years now.  It has become a staple of mine as the “go to” place for inspiration and information about all things beautiful in our industry.  Her enthusiasm is intoxicating and her spirit is even more sincere and beautiful than the images she posts. Needless to say, I was totally delighted and thrilled when asked to be a guest blogger for Fauxology.

Before I entered the dynamic industry of decorative painting, I was a textile artist for an Indian fabric company, Star of India. I had the good fortune of working under the international fashion designer, Leslie Sutain.  I was responsible for painting repeat patterns on clear mylar, separating each color so that the printers and seamstresses in India knew how to make the colored screens and how the fabric was to be laid out on the garment.  It was a very fast-paced job but really perfected my hand as far as detail was concerned.  It also started my life-long infatuation with Indian culture, its colors and above all, its patterns. I wanted to share with you some new and exciting designers and trends that are coming out of India.

The exciting duo, Indian fashion designers Abhu Jain & Sandeep Chelsea are true artists and have a magic for all things beautiful. These photos were taken of their showrooms in London and Mumbai.

Wow. Now I could schmooze in this glam space all night long.

If you are not hooked yet, check out this next series of photos from some well noted Indian hotels and palaces that share that spotlight for their attention  to detail, ornament and luxury. Perhaps that is why Condé Nast Traveler has placed The Taj Mahal Palace in Mumbai on their Hot List for 2011.  The simplicity and elegance of this ceiling and the design on the ones that follow are just breathless. Talk about über-luxury.

(above, below) The Taj Mahal Palace

Leela Palace Udaipur (above, several below)

Oberoi Amarvilas via Maison Marigold

Taj Falaknuma Palace

Lastly, two of my favorite blogs are DesignWali and Maison Marigold.  Both have a wonderful approach and enthusiasm for Indian design.  I especially love how Meenal Basinal of Maison Marigold has a runway to rooms segment where she blends fashion with a coordinating interior.  Sometimes a sari, sometimes a more contemporary outfit, but the results are always heavenly and rich in textures and colors.

Hope you all have enjoyed this little journey to exotic places and spaces.  Wishing you all a creative week!

Namaste,

*   *   *   *   *

I seriously love all the images, the links to the hotel galleries and the new blog discoveries!  Please note that you can keep up with Carmen on her Carmen Illustrates Facebook fan page where she posts not only her works, but also great links and cool images.  I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s guest post (Thank you, Carmen!) and I hope everyone has an inspired day.  Can’t help it after this post, right?

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I love to travel and see beautiful things and experience the wonders of the world. Mind you, my list of Need to Visit is far longer than Have Visited. No matter — there’s always room on my former list for more finds and checking them off on the latter is just a plane ride away, no?

To this instance, I like to read a lot about travel and a nice mag is Budget Travel. I learn so much about cool places and all within a reasonable budget. Here is where I had a peek at a vegetarian restaurant in Prague called Lekhá Hlava, meaning “light head”.

Coming upon Lehká Hlava...

Beautiful photo by Jeanette Irwin

One visitor said that it is “tucked around the corner in what looks to be an old alleyway. What I found was an old building with a tree growing right through it and stars painted on the medieval ceilings…”.

Hundreds of faux stars — and they twinkle and throb.  The purpose was to give the effect that you were dining outside on a starry night.  Love that!  I found more of their trippy decor.

Photo above by Žanda Gebauer

Love the inspired use of the ceiling and wall shape.

Oh, one more pic of the Starry Night can't hurt...

So, when I find myself in the Czech Republic it will be a place to visit because 1) It’s handpainted 2) I love vegetarian food (though I’m not vegetarian) and 3) Uhm. Prague.  The owners designed the restaurant like they would the interior of their own home and enlisted friends who were artists to come in and play.  Their web gallery has more images to see.  The restaurant opened in October 2005.

Hey, wait a minute Mr. Chocolate Fondue! You're not design related! How'd you get past the velvet rope and into the post? But while you're here, don't mind if I do...

Coincidentally, when I read their Project page detailing the renovation, I found that they were inspired to open Lekhá Hlava after experiencing the Zen Palate restaurant in New York City. I lived in NYC for many years and Zen Palate holds a tremendous amount of good memories for me.  I was in my 20s and in the music industry — my friends and colleagues would all congregate there before heading out to the clubs to dance or listen to new bands. Or, we’d sit and have great eats and talk the night away. Imagine – reading a translated Czech restaurant site and being taken back unexpectedly to those amazing times. Definitely worth a blog post. See you tomorrow, gorgeous ones!

A few years ago, I saw a special on Martha Stewart about a trip she took to the Yucatán. (It inspired this post, btw.) She also featured a segment on a lovely hacienda that had extraordinary murals and stencil work, Hacienda San Bernardo — but I can’t find hide nor hair of those particular images online. In fact, the hacienda itself seems to have been shut down or turned into a museum or closed for renovations, take your pick. At least the search for unique haciendas and hotel properties led me down a rabbit hole and I discovered Casa Vieja, a unique boutique hotel in Mexico City.

The video is about 8 minutes long (I know, I know) but it’s fascinating to see all the surfaces painted — even refrigerators with murals. I think you’ll like it. The video has the most comprehensive images but in case you’d like to skip it, here’s a few…

Casa Vieja (translation: Old House) is an all-suite luxury boutique hotel.  There are 10 suites in total, each named after a different Mexican artist and all individually decorated but with the same feel and flavor of the overall design.  It was once a private residence and currently features the artistic work of local artists.

The property has a rustic stone facade, balconies overflowing with bougainvillea, wrought iron gates and antique-filled interiors. I like both a modern style as well as unapologetic properties that are colorful and have decorative elements to within an inch of their lives.  Both make the case for unique design. Even Frommers agrees. Do you prefer one type of design over the other? As always, have a great weekend!

I’ve been in D.C. for a few days and due to my husband working there often, it is the U.S. city I visit the most.  There is something new every time I visit — this time, over the Labor Day weekend, I visited the National Gallery of Art and saw the Hope Diamond, too.  Both incredible. I return back to D.C. again in two weeks (see what I mean about frequent visits?) and I’m planning on visiting the Freer Gallery to see Whistler’s Peacock Room.  I wrote about it in our Golden Peacocks post and thought to share it again.

Whistler's Peacock Room

We’re finishing up our graveyard-shift-hotel-commission this week (we’ve been on it for two weeks already) and my mind should return to its full functioning capacity next week at some point.  For instance, this weekend I found myself without any tops to speak of (save the one I wore on the flight) and had to do a quick shopping spree.  I couldn’t believe I hadn’t packed any of my favorite travel blouses.  As I packed to leave, I did my due diligence and checked the hotel room to make sure I wasn’t leaving anything behind.  There, in the closet, were all my blouses hung up — I forgot I had done that.  Sigh.  My mind, folks.  It’s leaving me.  Read Fauxology while you can.