Palace of Versailles

Hello everyone!

Happy Sunday morning!

I've been away with work yet again - November is going to be an extremely busy month but as I am yet to finish posting about my trip to Paris I though ti was best to start there.

I wrote about my whirlwind trip to Paris here, and have already written a post on the Gardens of Versailles here. This is the final instalment and consists of the Palace of Versailles itself - it's simply exquisite, and that's not a word to use lightly!

I mean just look at those gates, every tiny bit of it is genuine gold and you can see why there was such a revolution when the people of Paris were starving and dying outside.

When you get inside the gates the luxury and grandeur does not stop there either, it's breathtaking and just walking in and standing there is enough to keep you quiet for a little while!

I was extremely lucky with the weather on the day that I had free from work, it rained before and after this so my trip was planned to perfection. The Palace is beautiful and would be whatever the weather, but this kind of blue skies and sunshine scenario makes it even more amazing.

And don't even get my started on the interiors - who doesn't love a massive chandelier!

I'm also a big fan of windows, massive floor to ceiling windows with draped curtains and even better, a window seat. I've always dreamed of having a window of this size and having the ability to sit at it and read - it's a must-have on my dream home list.

Even the mirrors on the interior walls are dressed like windows to add to the grandeur of the palace. I also love seeing the mirrors when they are aged, a bit greyer and with a few cracks within the glass itself is even better in my opinion.

I'm one of those people that can't ignore a ceiling, I have been to a few places around the world that have fantastic ceilings including the Sistine Chapel. They are all amazing in my opinion and there's nothing better than twirling around in a room and staring at paintings on the ceiling.

The one place in the entire Palace of Versailles that I had seen and heard of before that I was very excited to see was the infamous Hall of Mirrors. It's pretty explanatory but take one of these amazing rooms and add in an excessive amount of chandeliers and mirrors, and this is what you get:

Just how fabulous is this room!

There was so much sparkle and luxe in one room that it was simply breathtaking, there were so many things to take photos of from different angles but I've narrowed it down to a few ;)

I did try to take a few mirror selfies - I mean who wouldn't at least try! But they didn't turn out so well on account of the windows showing so much light in the background!

There were so many rooms to see throughout the palace that it would be impossible to share them all with you but this one was another that was particularly interesting for me:

Look at that ceiling!

I've recently painted some of my furniture grey using chalk paint, there is a lot of detail on these pieces also so I have recently bought a gold paint to add some of the detail back in just like this ceiling. It's great finding inspiration from genuine palaces like this!

All in all it was an amazing day - the Gardens were breathtaking and a surprise to me as I didn't expect them to be as exciting as they were. However the Palace of Versailles itself lived up to every expectation, it was superbly luxurious, covered in gold and chandeliers and just fabulous.

I'd fully recommend that anyone visiting Paris also visit the Palace of Versailles, it will take you an entire day from 9 until late afternoon to get around everything including Marie Antoinette's Palace and Gardens too. I practically ran around the whole thing, I was excited and also fearful of missing anything before it closed. For a more relaxed day you may want to skip Marie Antoinette's section however it was my favourite area!

Have you visited the Palace of Versailles? Did you think it was a wonderful as I did?

Will you be planning a visit after seeing these photos?

L xxx

Gardens of Versailles

Good morning!

Today's post is to show you my photos from the Gardens of the Palace of Versailles, I have honestly never been anywhere more beautiful and the weather was so out of this world it's not hard to see why so many people go there.

I will be writing a separate post on the Palace itself as I took so many photos I couldn't put them all in one!
The gardens start behind the palace, and begin with a a huge courtyard with fountains, statues and hedgerows as far as the eye can see. It's impressive enough to stand here and take in all of the surroundings and no picture would be able to do it justice.

The first main fountain that you come across is the one below, it's absolutely huge!

Unfortunately I had missed the main season and so none of the fountains were on at the time, I can imagine this one is hugely impressive as there were so many spouts and statues to look at.

The amount of gold in the entire gardens and Palace was almost sickening, it's not hard to see why so many people rebelled against them and dragged Marie Antoinette and the King out and beheaded them when they were so poor!

They often have a number of extra exhibitions on at various times of the year, Anish Kapoor is the current artist with a number on show. Sadly this one has been vandalised with graffiti and whilst I was there it was a very big deal on the news.

I've no idea what it says but the Palace is clearly horrified, I don't know if it can be cleaned up so I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

I wandered for literally hours in the sun to take in the sights and the fountains, gardens and small niches were just so pretty I could have lost days!

I think my favourite area would have to be the gardens inside Marie Antoinette's estate, not only were they generally beautiful but the addition of so many little extra structures and hideaway places were gorgeous. My favourite part was the Queen's Hamlet, and on my way to discovering it I came across so many of these and this one in particular is called the Temple of Love.

The Queen's Hamlet is an area that Marie Antoinette had created to experience the charms of country life. There are many little buildings all surrounding a lake filled to the brim with fish - I can't imagine how they live there as there were so many!

The building below was my absolute favourite, I have no idea what it's purpose is but the spiral staircase up to the tower where you would have some beautiful views would be just like something out of a fairytale.
I could spend days up there reading or painting, in fact I could just move straight in and not ever leave!

Each of the buildings were totally different and unique so I couldn't take my eyes or my camera off them.
Even coming across little hideaways like this one at the end still surprised me, the rocks arranged perfectly over a little river to another tiny building hidden away from view. I could spend such a long time getting lost in these gardens and enjoying the simple pleasures in life.

I can't imagine the amount of work that the gardeners perform on a daily basis, the colours and smells were amazing let alone the overall maintenance of gardens this size.

The absolute best part of the Gardens? They are totally free!

You have to pay to get into any of the buildings, but the gardens themselves are free, Not only can you wander around and enjoy looking at how the Kings and Queens lived back in the day, but you can also enjoy some rowing and other water sports on the lakes as well as cycling, walking your dog....even sunbathing!
I can't imagine how it would be having this on your door step, I would absolutely love it.

Have you ever been to the Palace of Versailles? Have you got lost in the Gardens like I have?

Aren't they beautiful!

L xxx