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Greetings! 
Personne n'est jeune après quarante ans mais on peut être irrésistible à tout âge.»
Coco Chanel
No one is young after forty, but one can be irresistible at any age
Another summer is drawing to a close, and there is so much I have missed sharing with you since our last issue came out in June. Two months are far too long to be out of touch, and I'd like to find other ways to maintain regular contact without cluttering your e-mail boxes. I plan to integrate my web site and newsletter with other social media (a Facebook fan page and perhaps a blog) so we can visit and exchange views anytime the spirit moves us.
Since the launch of the newsletter in May 2008, our aim has been to bring you articles that will brighten your day, broaden your mind, and keep you informed on matters of fashion, culture, and recreation. The feedback you send after each issue tells me that you appreciate the content we offer, and I want to encourage you to keep writing, because we want to know what you think, what you want to read about, and what we can do to be more responsive to your interests and desires.
All of us share a desire to look our best at any age, along with a passion for great style. While growing older is inevitable, there is no reason why it should diminish our allure. French women understand this better than most, and a recent article in the New York Times tells us what they do to keep themselves graceful and stylish while enjoying the finer things in life. Among other things, they eat carefully, treat themselves to regular massages and visits to the spa, and do a lot of walking, but rarely go to the gym, which they consider "torture." They consider well-chosen accessories de rigueur, such as "good jewelry, fabulous shoes, and a scarf casually wrapped to conceal those neck wrinkles."
Of the many books I read this summer, I particularly enjoyed Fifth Avenue 5:00 a.m.: Audrey Hepburn, The Making of Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the Dawn of the Modern Woman, by Sam Wasson, with which I inaugurated my new Kindle. This short gem of a book deftly weaves together the story of the making of the movie, a social history of the time, and fascinating portraits of the major personalities involved in the production of the film. If you are an Audrey fan (and who isn't?), this is a must read. You will find new and surprising information about Audrey, the film, the characters, fashion, and much, much more. And if you need more encouragement, no less an authority than Peter Bogdanovich calls the book "A brilliant chronicle.... it reads like a compulsively page-turning novel. This is a memorable achievement." So read it - you will be glad you did!
This issue's feature article is a on the Hôtel de Talleyrand, a magnificent building that played a significant role in Napoleonic history. Recently restored, the George C. Marshall Center in the Talleyrand Building is a living testament to European and American cooperation which you should include in your next visit to Paris. Vivien Woofter, who had a major role in the splendid restoration of the building, is our portrait of the month.
Small glitches are still holding up the opening of our Internet Boutique, but we hope they will be ironed out in the next few days. You, my loyal friends and subscribers, will be the first to know, so please watch out for an announcement very soon.
Watch also for a "save the date" to attend a launch party to unveil our inaugural private label scarf design and to celebrate the opening of our Internet boutique. We will hold the event at L'Eclat de Verre, a chic French-style framing shop and gallery located in a historic building in Georgetown. You will be able to taste fabulous French wines, plenty of delicious French cheeses and hors d'oeuvres, mingle with VIP guests and view our new Fall collection. I look forward to seeing many of you there.
With warmest regards,
Alix
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Hôtel de Talleyrand
Located in the heart of Paris near the Place de la Concorde, the Hôtel de Talleyrand is a masterpiece of neoclassical grandeur and a splendid setting for diplomatic gatherings, cultural events, and elegant entertaining.
Built in 1767, it was designed by Ange-Jacques Gabriel, the celebrated royal architect, as part of his commission to develop the space that would become the Place de Louis XV and is today the Place de la Concorde. Gabriel's design included plans for a private mansion, or hôtel particulier, for a close friend and adviser to Louis XV, the Compte de Saint-Florentin, Duc de la Vrillière. The luxurious interior rooms were designed by the young architect Jean-François-Thérèse Chalgrin (1739-1811), who later designed the Arc de Triomphe..
In 1812, the building was purchased by Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, Prince de Bénévent, who was at the time Napoleon's Minister of Foreign Affairs. Talleyrand made extensive use of the residence to receive heads of state and many of the major international personalities of his time, such as Czar Alexander I and the Duke of Wellington, and to entertain lavishly at dinners and receptions. A connoisseur of fine foods and wines (he owned for a few years the renowned Château la Mission Haut Brion), Talleyrand personally supervised the choice of dishes, prepared by his legendary chef Antonin Câreme, whose pastri es were deemed architectural works of art.
Talleyrand also used his residence to engage in the political intrigues for which he is renowned, and where he betrayed Napoleon and plotted the return of the Bourbons to the French throne. Upon learning of his death, Victor Hugo described Talleyrand's actions while living in the mansion as follows: "Into this palace, as a spider into its web, he enticed and captured, one by one, heroes, thinkers, conquerors, princes, emperors [...] and all the gilded, glittering flies that have buzzed through the history of these past 40 years." Napoleon, who suspected Talleyrand's double-dealing, described him crudely and succinctly: "La merde dans un bas de soie."
Following Talleyrand's death, the mansion was bought by Baron James-Mayer de Rothschild and remained in the possession of his family until the occupation in WWII when it was seized by the Germans and used as the southern operational headquarters for the German Navy. After the Liberation, the US government acquired the building from the Rothschild heirs, and it became the headquarters for the administration of the Marshall Plan.  Today, the recently restored Hôtel de Talleyrand houses the George C. Marshall Center featuring a permanent exhibit commemorating the Marshall Plan at work. Among the many documents and objects on display is a fragment of an original crate used to ship aid supplies, which had been presented to me as a farewell gift in Bordeaux, and which I was delighted to offer to the Center on permanent loan.
Vivien Woofter, director of Interiors and Furnishings at the U.S. Department of State, noted that the goal was to make the rooms look exactly as they did originally, "from the parquet floors and gilded paneling to the period furniture and damask wall coverings." She added that reaching that goal involved countless technical, logistical and financial challenges, and required hiring artisans who have mastered the centuries-old techniques needed to make the rooms look just as they did over two and a half centuries ago. Dozens of painters, gilders, weavers and carvers from some of the finest firms in Paris, contributed to the restoration project, which lasted over eight years.
Fashion designer Hubert de Givenchy, who was a member of the Restoration Steering Committee, commented that the "restoration of this historically significant building mirrors the great respect Americans hold for French history, art and architecture." In the case of the Hôtel de Talleyrand, that respect is reinforced by its links to the Marshall Plan, which Winston Churchill described as the most unselfish act in history.
A limited edition commemorative scarf was created as part of the restoration campaign. Designed and produced by the French firm, L.R.Paris, it incorporates the flags of the seventeen countries that participated in the Marshall Plan flying over the shadow of the American flag in the background. It also features architectural details in the Center's rooms, and salient words from George C. Marshall's January 1948 Congressional testimony urging passage of the legislation for the economic recovery of Europe.
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Vivien Woofter
 As the Director of the Interior Design Division for the Overseas Buildings Operations (OBO) of the U.S. Department of State, Vivien Woofter played a leading role in the restoration of the ten reception rooms that house the Marshall Center in the Hôtel
Indeed, Vivien is considered the founder of the movement to preserve and restore our diplomatic buildings and cultural assets. When she began to assess the situation in the early 1980's, she found many of those assets in deplorable condition. "We were selling them, giving them away, painting them, doing horrible things to them - or nothing at all," she says.
Over the years, Vivien has worked hard to get many of our historic buildings historically restored. The Ambassador's residence in Paris was the first historic restoration entirely completed by OBO, with Vivien assuming the responsibility for the restoration of the interiors. Together with Patrick Collins, OBO's chief architect, and other dedicated OBO staff, Vivien promoted the establishment of a register identifying the most culturally significant overseas diplomatic properties, an idea that was finally adopted late in President Clinton's administration with the establishment of the Secretary of State's Register of Culturally Significant Property.
The Department has now officially established the Cultural Heritage Program to properly take care of our culturally significant assets and properties. Today, as the Department's Historic Conservation Officer, Vivien is deeply involved in establishing and staffing this Program. She continues to advise American diplomatic missions on the conservation of our cultural heritage, and leads efforts to train curators in the U.S. and overseas on the fine art of restoration and upkeep of historic places.
A graduate of the University of West Virginia (WVU), Vivien gives generously of her time and talents to her alma mater, serving on the board of directors of the WVU Foundation, and working on special projects in the college of Merchandising and Design and Creative Arts. She is also leading the restoration of the historic Morgantown Metropolitan Theater in her university's home town. "This is my great love, and so are my two wonderful granddaughters, Viviana (4), and Natalia (1 and 1/2)" she says.
For her outstanding professional accomplishments and contributions, Vivien was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the University of West Virginia.
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Napoleonic Anniversaries
Both Napoleon and Joséphine were born and grew up on islands and arrived in France about the same time, from different directions, bound for an extraordinary destiny.
Joséphine, the daughter of French planters in Martinique, was born on June 23, 1763 and christened Marie-Joseph-Rose. She was known as Rose for over half her life until young General Bonaparte pronounced her his "sweet and incomparable Joséphine."
Napoleon was born in Ajaccio on August 15, 1769 only months after Corsica had been ceded to France by the Republic of Genoa. Young Napoleone di Buonaparte spoke only an Italian-Corsican dialect when at the age of nine he was sent to the Royal Military School of Brienne. He reportedly spoke French with a foreign accent the rest of his life.
We got together with friends to celebrate each anniversary with a champagne toast.
Joséphine Birthday chez Sundquist
 Napoleon's Birthday at Ft. Myer's Officers' Club |
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 Invitation to contribute to the newsletter
We look forward to hearing from you!
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