Summer Soirees at Huff Harrington

We had the party vibe going all over the place last weekend and what fun it was.  The fete got started Friday night at Huff Harrington Home with a little gathering we co-hosted with adorable Ally, the creator of "From the Right Bank" blog. We've been following her Frenchy-inspired postings for quite a while and it seemed like a perfect fit to throw a fun party with her at Huff Harrington Home.

Here we are with Ally.

Not only is Ally a major Francophile (endearing her forever to us) but she also loves art so we were delighted and honored when she asked if she could raid the gallery to create one of her "art walls" (for which she is extremely famous in blogging circles) at Huff Harrington Home. Of course we gave her carte blanche at the gallery to pick and choose what she wanted to use.

Ally with her masterpiece of an art wall. We're thrilled that all pieces came from our little gallery.

Ally's unbelievably creative and we loved what she picked and how seamlessly she arranged it on the wall.  She gravitated to works by French artists - and American artists who love all things Francaise. The wall looks like it belongs to someone who has been passionately collecting art and paintings for years. (For a very entertaining and  informative glimpse into Ally's famous art wall process, click here on her blog.)
We also thought it would be fun - and fitting - to give away three nights at the Paris apartment - and we weren't surprised when we were inundated with business cards for the drawing. Just to make everyone squirm a little, we waiting till the last possible moment to the drawing.

Everyone was excited about the possibility of winning three nights in the Paris apartment.

We stayed with our beloved Frenchy theme and had plenty of champagne and our favorite summer beverage, Lillet, on hand for our guests.  Soiree, based here in Atlanta, did our nibbles along with our very nice and delicous neighbor, STG Trattoria.

Lillet and champagne kept us all refreshed throughout the evening.

We had fluffed like crazy and the store felt very festive.

We love this vignette that channels all that hot orange and pink.

A pretty French piece that we dolled up with a carnation pink interior.

Our guests mingled, chatted, browsed and sipped.

Checking out the books on our newly arrived and totally crusty antique library table.

The ladies always gravitate to the jewelry.

Love these Frenchy nautical stripes on Megan Dean and Kelly Ottinger.

Emily and Sarah (with Ann in the middle) helped us out throughout the evening.

Lots of fun mingling.

Finally, it was time for the drawing.  We gave everyone a five-minute warning:

Five minutes left!

...and then pulled the lucky winner!  Jeff Kamen, a longtime friend of the gallery, was the winner and we think we're just as excited about it as he is!

Meg, Jeff (the lucky winner), Ann and Ally.

Our summer soiree at the store was a blast and we loved seeing  the dozens of smart and cute bloggers, media, designers and clients who came out on that rainly night to say bon soir.
But the party wasn't quite over yet.  The following day was July 14th - Bastille Day! We always celebrate this French holiday at the gallery and this year was no exception.

It's not our Bastille Day show without our adorable accordion player, who goes by Jacques for the evening.

The gallery was beautifully hung with dozens of new paintings by artists who are either French or who just simply adore France.  We were especially excited to have the works of our talented (and very fun!) workshop students who accompanied Nancy Franke and Bill Davidson to Provence to paint, paint, paint and paint some more.

Elizabeth Lines and Rhonda Feldman who painted in Provence.

Debra and Tom McDavid.

Artist Melissa Payne Baker with her husband, Rick and their new arrival, Payne.

The refreshments.

We always expect a good crowd at this show but this year, it was wild.  We got so crowded we had to entice some guests to stay outside for a little while. We plied them with wine and they were wonderfully gracious about it.

This was the first time we've ever had a line to get into the gallery!

We're off the party circuit till the fall!  Bon ete...

Tata!