Welcome back to The Daily Connoisseur. I hope you had a wonderful new year celebration. I am really looking forward to 2018! This year I am feeling really driven. I'm ready to inspire where I can and hopefully we can all make this our best year yet. I hope you enjoy today's video where I share what you can expect this year on The Daily Connoisseur.
We will be continuing the Mapp & Lucia Book Club in the spring! We will discuss the next two novels in the series, Lucia in London and Mapp & Lucia. Here are the links to Lucia in London on Audible and Mapp & Lucia on Audible. This will give you plenty of time to read or listen to the books before our spring book club begins. Enjoy!
I'm also taking questions and requests for upcoming videos. Please leave your requests in the comment section here, on YouTube or on any of my social media accounts (links at the bottom of this post). I look forward to hearing what you'd like to see in 2018 on the blog.
In my next video I have a very exciting interview with bestselling author, Jamie Cat Callan. I hope you enjoy it! Then you can expect my Winter 2018 ten-item wardrobe video. So many exciting things are taking place. I am so happy you are joining me! News Madame Chic is not just for women! Brad McEntire lists Lessons from Madame Chic as one of his favorite reads from 2017 and he's hoping his wife enjoys it too!
Please leave any requests you have for 2018 in the comment section below. Or if you have any questions, please leave those as well and I can include them in a future reader questions answered session. Happy new year and see you on Thursday for my interview with bestselling author, Jamie Cat Callan!
Today I'm making homemade lavender pomander ornaments fashioned in a traditional Victorian style. The Victorians loved to use natural scents with their holiday decorations and these ornaments are a fragrant delight.
This is a really fun craft to do with your children. I made the one in the video and the girls did the rest. The children's ornaments had some 'bald' spots where the lavender did not stick, but that is OK. When you use a green ball, it looks natural, as though moss is peeking out underneath the ornament.
I often forget I've made these ornaments and when I walk near our tree I am pleasantly surprised with their amazing lavender scent. I hope you enjoy today's video.
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�For women who yearn to channel Audrey Tautou�but don�t have a year to spend apprenticing with one in Paris� (The New York Times), Jennifer L. Scott�s Madame Chic books�Lessons from Madame Chic, At Home with Madame Chic, and Polish Your Poise with Madame Chic�now collected in one beautiful package.
As an American student living abroad, Jennifer L. Scott found a Parisian mentor in her host mother, Madame Chic, who instructed her in the fine art of living. Now, Jennifer shares her lessons in her Madame Chic series: Lessons from Madame Chic, At Home with Madame Chic, and Polish Your Poise with Madame Chic. Based on what she learned from Madame Chic, Jennifer explains how to cultivate old-fashioned sophistication while living an active, modern life, teaching us to take pleasure in everyday routines, to dress presentably, perform household tasks with cheer, and how to conduct oneself both in public and in private.
The Madame Chic series encourages and inspires you to live simply and passionately, no matter your age, background, or location. Like Madame Chic, everyone deserves a little Parisian je ne sais quoi.
Join me today as I decorate a floral Christmas wreath. I love doing crafts this time of year and wreath making has always been a hobby I have enjoyed. I've been making wreaths since I was a little girl. My parents still display the ones I have made in their home so they definitely have lasting power! I hope you enjoy watching the tutorial in today's video.
I purchased everything from a local craft store, but for your convenience I have listed all of the supplies below to the best of my ability. If you don't plan to make a wreath this holiday season, a good idea would be to wait until the after Christmas sales to get your faux florals at a heavy discount. I reuse a lot of my crafts supplies every year, making this process very affordable for me.
News Check out my interview with Author Bytes Cafe host Jordan Rich. A really fun interview discussing all things Madame Chic. Thank you to Author Bytes for hosting me!
Take my new eCourse on the ten-item wardrobe. With over an hour of never-before-seen video instruction, notes and quizzes, you will feel prepared to create your own ten-item wardrobe. For those of you who already do the ten-item wardrobe, this course will keep you on track and provide further inspiration. The course is self-paced and includes a lively comment section with other ten-item wardrobe enthusiasts. Enjoy!
On Instagram Midori_Bujo's notes on Lessons from Madame Chic. Her French husband was surprised how well the Madame Chic books truly capture French living.
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Comment of the Week I received such great advice regarding onion chopping from Monday's freezer meals video. Many people suggested refrigerating the onions, some suggested dunking them in water, others suggest special onion goggles. The most voted up comment came from Janna G, who wrote: To not cry when cutting onions, put the onion in the freezer for half an hour, works great.
Thank you, Janna! I will try this technique out and report back!
I hope you enjoyed today's tutorial. Let me know if you like to make wreaths and what your method is. Your comment could be chosen as comment of the week on the blog. Be sure to check back on the blog tomorrow for a special holiday styling guide from Halsbrook. See you then!
I am so pleased today to finally announce the details on my next book, CONNOISSEUR KIDS, from Chronicle Books.
CONNOISSEUR KIDS is a book on etiquette, manners and living well for little ones! It is an interactive book for the whole family, encouraging family togetherness and bonding over etiquette, manners and tidiness lessons.
All parents want to raise well-mannered children. They are a joy to be around! This book will be a game-changer in the etiquette genre because it encourages the child to not only think about how they can live well through etiquette, but also why it's important and how it will help them in their daily lives.
CONNOISSEUR KIDS will be released in the fall of 2019. As I write the book, I would love to hear from you! Please leave me your suggestions. What areas do you and your children struggle with? Table manners? Tidy rooms? Social interactions? Communication? As you look beyond your own children to society, what areas do you think parents in general need to improve upon? Please leave me your feedback below. I love to hear from you!
I would like to thank my agent, Erica Silverman, at Trident Media Group, as well as my new editor, Sarah Billingsley, at Chronicle Books. I also want to thank all of you for your unwavering support over the years! I am so excited and feel very passionately about this next project and hope you do too.
Hello from Vale Do Lobo, Portugal! We have arrived in Europe. Learn how our flight went, what castle we visited in England and take a drive with us to Santa B�rbara de Nexe all in today's video.
News Take my new eCourse on the ten-item wardrobe! With over an hour of never-before-seen video instruction, notes and quizzes, you will be on track to creating your own ten-item wardrobe. For those of you who already do the ten-item wardrobe, this course will keep you on track and provide further inspiration. Enjoy!
Here is a testimonial for the eCourse from Charlotte V, who writes, "Thank you for taking the time for this course. It has inspired me to finally actually do the 10 item wardrobe... not just dabble with it. I'm sure I'll be coming back to this course for encouragement as the changing seasons approach and I get anxious about keeping it minimal. Take care."
Thank you, Charlotte! Please check in with us and keep us updated!
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What a beautiful city. I'm truly enjoying my time in Portugal!
I filmed the driving portion of this video on the Gimbal Osmo.
This is a great device to steady your filmmaking as you are moving around.
Before closing, I pray that everyone affected by the earthquakes and hurricanes are safe and comforted during this very tumultuous season. It seems that every week there is new tragedy on a global scale. My hope is that everyone affected by these natural disasters is able to find safety, comfort and peace.
Thank you for joining me today and I will see you on Monday!
Losing my train of thought, babies taking down tripods, never ending background noise and little children photo bombing me... just a few things that go on behind-the-scenes on The Daily Connoisseur!
I'm sure you've noticed that I have included my children more on the channel. They are such a big part of my life and we are nearly always together so it has been challenging not including them (as you will see in today's video).
My family and I watched this bloopers video together and laughed along with it. We agreed that it was OK to put online and hope that it brings joy to your day. Working at home with children around has its challenges and I wanted you to know that I relate to your struggles. We work as a team in our house and try not to take ourselves too seriously. I hope you enjoy today's bloopers video and that it brings some much-needed laughter to your day.
News Fauziah Hafidha writes about inspiration from The Daily Connoisseur in her post, Inspiration. On Instagram
It's coffee and Madame Chic in the Czech Republic...
Comment of the Week Monday's Teatime with Jennifer on Narcissistic Audience Members sparked a real passion among our readers. Hundreds of people chimed in with etiquette horror stories about unthoughtful audience members.
Paperbits writes: People overall don't understand theater etiquette. Crinkling papers, cell phone screen with bright lights, loud talking, etc... Thank you for doing this video, I think it is all about exposure, the more you exposure yourself to live experiences away from social media, and just appreciate the moment the more respect you have. I think it is about oversharing as well. I find even myself at times can't enjoy the moment if i don't capture it. I tell myself it is OK to have memories not recorded every step of the way!?
Dear Paperbits, I agree about appreciating the moment. In this digital age we feel we need to share everything, almost as if the experience is meaningless unless we record and share. I struggle with this too and have to consciously refrain from it. Thanks for your comment. It was one of the most liked comments on my video!
Today I would love to know... do you have children and work from home? How do you balance work and family life? Do you have any fun "bloopers" to share with us? Let me know and your comment could be chosen as comment of the week on The Daily Connoisseur!
I am happy to announce that we will be doing an E.F. Benson book club on The Daily Connoisseur. We will be starting with the first two books in the Mapp & Lucia series, Queen Lucia and Miss Mapp.
We will start the book club at the end of June, giving you plenty of time to read the books. They are readily available and can often be found for free on the kindle or other eReaders. You can always check your local library as well for the books. Here are some easy links to the books on Amazon:Queen Lucia and Miss Mapp paperback, On the kindle (99cents), Queen Lucia on audible , Miss Mapp on audible.
Thank you and I look forward to delving into this great series with you!
The wait is finally over. The Madame Chic Collection box set is now available from Simon & Schuster.
The box is designed with this beautiful image inspired by Audrey Hepburn, from the wonderful Virginia Johnson. The box set contains all three Madame Chic books, Lessons from Madame Chic, At Home With Madame Chic and Polish Your Poise with Madame Chic. If you've always wanted to read the Madame Chic books, but haven't yet, this set is a perfect opportunity to get all three.
With the holiday season coming up, this box set also makes a perfect gift.
�For women who yearn to channel Audrey Tautou�but don�t have a year to spend apprenticing with one in Paris� (The New York Times), Jennifer L. Scott�s Madame Chic books�Lessons from Madame Chic, At Home with Madame Chic, and Polish Your Poise with Madame Chic�now collected in one beautiful package.
As an American student living abroad, Jennifer L. Scott found a Parisian mentor in her host mother, Madame Chic, who instructed her in the fine art of living. Now, Jennifer shares her lessons in her Madame Chic series: Lessons from Madame Chic, At Home with Madame Chic, and Polish Your Poise with Madame Chic. Based on what she learned from Madame Chic, Jennifer explains how to cultivate old-fashioned sophistication while living an active, modern life, teaching us to take pleasure in everyday routines, to dress presentably, perform household tasks with cheer, and how to conduct oneself both in public and in private.
The Madame Chic series encourages and inspires you to live simply and passionately, no matter your age, background, or location. Like Madame Chic, everyone deserves a little Parisian je ne sais quoi.
I hope you'll check out today's video to see this beautiful set.
Thank you so much to all of you who have championed the Madame Chic books. I am so grateful for your support!
See you on Thursday for an October Favorites blog post...
Thank you for all of your wonderful comments. Life with baby Connoisseur is just wonderful. He is such a joy!
As promised, here are the Q&A videos I shot before having the baby. Today's video answers a reader's question about how to deal with family members who live contrary to the Madame Chic lifestyle. I receive this question so often, I am really happy to address it today.
When we decide to embark on the lifestyle of living a beautiful, elegant and poised life, we sometimes expect everyone else in our life to follow suit! But the reality, more often than not, is that others who are close to us don't even have these issues on their radar. So how to cope?
Check out this week's video to hear my response. If you are unable to see the video above, click here, look in the sidebar of this blog, or visit my channel: www.youtube.com/TheDailyConnoisseur
Question of the week
Sara writes:
Hi Jennifer! My name is Sara and I am a big fan of your videos and books and I was hoping to ask you a question on the topic of quality friendships. I love the suggestions you have on how to make quality, like-minded friends. Although those are important friendships, I wonder what I can do about my oldest friendships. The more I have practiced poise the more I realize that some of my best friends are not poised at all. I know that being an example to them is great, but do you have any other suggestions on how to inspire others to lead a poised life? I do not want to make them feel as though I am trying to change them, but I am excited to share the wonderful side-effects that come from looking presentable always and maintaining an air of mystery! Thank you!
Hi Sara, this is such a great question, and I feel it relates nicely to this week's topic as well. It is very important to realize that we cannot change other people, only ourselves. I have mentioned before (as well as in this week's video) that if we maintain our poise and integrity, we may inspire others to do the same. If these are some of your oldest and dearest friends, it is perfectly fine to share the exciting changes in your life with them. You could lend them one of your Madame Chic books, or tell them about how the ten-item wardrobe has changed your life. Or you could email them a blogpost or video from The Daily Connoisseur that inspires you. They might find it interesting and they might not, but either way, you tried! Just remember there is a reason why you became friends with them so many years ago. Remember those reasons if you ever feel frustrated with their behavior. Not everyone has the same lifestyle goals and that is OK!
Comment of the week
Starr writes:
Congratulations on the arrival of your sweet baby. You are a hero! Welcome to the world, baby boy.
During the time I lived in England I haunted the charity shops, gathering a beautifully mismatched collection of Staffordshire transferware. The truly old pieces (some of them over a century) a significantly smaller than the more contemporary pieces. But, sticking with traditional patterns (ie. Willow ware, English Scene), the newer pieces still feel puny compared to a set of "standard" white plates I picked up during a subsequent U.S. relocation. Those white plates almost are never used -- except as serving platters.
Incidentally, when I first returned to the U.S., my sister came to visit. The shipping container had just arrived from England and my sister was so interested in my plate collection. After a happy 30 minutes of looking at the different patterns, my sister (who is universally recognized as the most elegant amongst my siblings) turned to me and said, "Now you need to go to [big box store] and buy some plastic plates." When I asked *why* I would do that, she explained that I needed to save my plates for "special occasions. You can't easily replace these as they break. You aren't in England anymore." I simply told that I use the best I have and if they break, it would be fine...and it is.
Hi Starr, thank you for your comment. I loved the story about your elegant sister. I'm glad you explained that you like to use your best everyday. I bet she got a kick out of that!
This week I would love to know, have you dealt with similar frustrations? Are you struggling with how to deal with a co-worker, family member or friend who is not on board with the Madame Chic/ Daily Connoisseur lifestyle? Let me know in the comment section below, and your comment could be chosen as comment of the week on the blog.
See you next time as we discuss your ten-item wardrobe questions...
Before we begin today, I'd like to express my heartfelt condolences to everyone affected by the horrible terrorist attack this past weekend. We are holding the victims and their families in our prayers.
Thank you for all of your wonderful notes and well-wishes for our family! Baby connoisseur is such a joy. We are all really enjoying spending time with him and just delighting in his presence.
Before I delivered my baby, I was able to shoot 5 videos for you that I have scheduled to go up in the next few weeks. I wanted to stay in touch with you on the blog, yet give myself a break to spend time with the baby without working. Today's video shows you some observations about antique dishes vs. modern dishes. In the weeks to come, I have three reader Q&As, as well as a fun and easy chicken dinner recipe.
Let's get started with today's post...
We recently picked up a set of 1960s antique dishes from a local estate sale. The set has a French blue and white scroll design with a gold edge. It is an ironstone set called Capri Crown Essex, made in Staffordshire, England. In today's video, I compare the antique set with our modern Pottery Barn dishes. As you will see, the modern dishes are much larger. I have compared antique dishes before in a previous post. It's fun to do this because you really do see how trends change. As time goes on, we tend to eat more and our modern dish sizes really reflect this.
If you have a set of antique dishes, I encourage you to use them on a regular basis. Not only is it fun to eat off of unique and beautiful plates, but we can all benefit from the smaller portion sizes as well. If you do not own antique dishes or china, keep an eye out for local estate sales or visit consignment or thrift shops. You can find wonderful bargains at mere fractions of the price of modern china, which can be so pricey. Don't worry if you cannot find a complete set, it can be fun to collect and mix and match.
Check out today's video to see the difference between the new and old plates. If you are unable to see the video above, click here, look in the sidebar of this blog, or visit my channel: www.youtube.com/TheDailyConnoisseur
News
Thank you to LandOMoms for recommending Lessons from Madame Chic in their article on eating well.
Comments of the Week Lo C writes: I'm a public school band director and we have two major concerts every school year. While our number one priority is to have families support their children (there is nothing more devastating than watching an elementary school student look for their parent only to have them not there), I have noticed a couple families attending our events without dressing up. Of course we understand as teachers when parents are running from one event to another. The children do seem to notice a difference in the presentation of adults. I, personally, love seeing parents dress up and make the event even more special to the kiddos! It's all about those babies!!
Hi Lo C, I took part in band from 5th to 12th grade and I remember each band concert feeling like such a major event. Back then, all of the parents took pride in their appearance and I think it helped make the events more special. What a fun job you have!
Me writes:
Congratulations for the birth of your son!
I grew up in Italy and brought up with the habit that you always give the best of yourself, it doesn't matter the circumstances. There's no grand, medium or small occasion in which you shouldn't show respect for the others and keep up your own dignity by dressing appropriate. "Comb your hair, wash your hands, polish your shoes" was what we still remember our grand-father's motto, "because you never know".
Dressing with decor at the children's function aligns with that idea, maybe very Italian, of pull yourself together without trying hard, without having to impress anyone. It's where good manners meet style and elegance. It doesn't take much and makes everyone in a good mood.
Hi Me, thank you for sharing the Italian perspective on the subject of dressing well. I love hearing from different cultures around the world. When I visited Italy, I had so much fun people-watching. I found the presentation of dress in Italy to be lovely.
This week I would love to know... do you use your good dishes on a regular basis? Have you noticed any differences in plate size from one era of dishes to the next? Let me know in the comment section below and your comment could be chosen as comment of the week.
Please share photos of your dishes on social media using the hashtag #MADAMECHIC
