When it comes to overall luxury spa treatments, there is no doubt that France does both just right; when combining the two, you might leave us wondering which luxury spa in France you will book for your own personal retreat, as France has been touted as offering our world the most and best of what 5-star properties have to offer.

The Luxury Day Spa Collection by Great Hotels of the World eagerly proffers the finest spa resorts in all of France, period. This unique collection of luxury spa resorts, combines breathtaking accommodation with truly serene locations, as well as world class spa conveniences.

All member spa resorts in France are regularly quality assured, inspected nearly daily, and governed by Great Hotels of the World to make certain that the very highest in standards of luxury are continually captured.

Le Mas Candille is situated in the hills of Cannes. Guests can choose from a variety of Eastern-inspired treatments at the Shiseido Spa, which also features stunning and totally private Japanese gardens. Guest rooms have fine French furnishings, private balconies and terraces.

Hotel de la Tremoille gives guests the utmost privacy and serenity in its chic location in Paris, France – very close to the Arc de Triomphe. The spa offers expert massage and treatment programs to cater to each unique personality. The spa also contains a sauna and a multi-jet shower for the ultimate relaxation as well as a fully outfitted training center for guests looking for a more active getaway.

Among our favorite and the most notable resorts would have to be the exclusive Hotel Du Palais; the picture of the spa alone will sell you on all it has to offer. This amazing spa is located on seaside property that is absolutely breathtaking. Hotel Du Palais is located in Biarritz, Basque Country France. The spa, more commonly referred to as the Spa Imperial, is dedicated to well-being, beauty, and overall human health. This spa opened in 2006, and promises a haven of relaxation and rejuvenation, with a remarkable menu of spa treatments. Using only Guerlain products, the spa’s highly trained team of therapists offers an assortment of treatments, including lymphatic drainage, facials, and aromatherapy massages.

Gone are the days when homes were built with a stuffy, formal living room and the children were relegated to the recreation room in the basement. Modern homes are designed to ‘live’ in and that means huge main floor living areas that combine multi-media functionality and ultimate comfort.

Many new homes are being designed with great rooms, which mean a huge family room that is usually next to or combined with a large, open concept kitchen. A great room generally features a large fireplace, lots of windows, and vaulted ceilings. The look is comfort (think Upside Living) and the feel is warm and cozy. It has become the hub of the home and it is so popular now that many families with older homes are redesigning their floor plans to mimic the new homes.

So you have a great room and although the space lends itself to family and togetherness, it really is how you decorate it that makes it luxuriously comfortable and conducive to family life.

For wall colors, keep them warm and neutral. If you want to add color, do it in the carpet, draperies and artwork. Choose overstuffed large furniture in chenille fabric or lambskin leather for a sumptuous look and feel. For the ultimate in luxury, choose sofa cushions and pillows that are down filled.

One of the best aspects of decorating your home is that you are free to do whatever you like, choosing whatever home décor scheme that catches your fancy and infusing your home with your taste, style and personality.

If you are looking to add a touch of panache to your luxury home décor, and prefer a style that is different from your neighbors and is decorated in an eclectic manner that speaks of your good taste and character, consider adding colorful Spanish pottery or Italian pottery in your decorating.

There are so many different types of unique pottery, from all corners of the globe that your choices are virtually limitless. Whether you are looking for colorful charger plates to create an accent wall, or themed pottery pitchers to use as unique flower vases, there are many types of pottery to choose from.

The most common and fashionable are earthenware and porcelain potteries. Each comes with a rich history and an evolution of the pottery making processes. Anyone who loves or collects pottery understands the difference between hand painted masterpieces created by skilled artisans and cheap knock-offs that are mass produced in Taiwan.

Much more defined than the traditional American garden and used for a much less utilitarian reason, English gardens can provide an oasis of calm in an otherwise hectic daily life, and is the perfect type of fine garden to match your upside living style. Usually placed in a corner of a property and ranging in size from a few feet to acres, depending on the size of your property, English gardens can provide areas of quiet, solitude and respite, all the while serenading the sense in aesthetic beauty. Flowers, vines and shrubbery are staples of a standard English garden, but the sky is the limit as to what you include in yours.

Many people like to include urns and statuary to hold plants and flowers and some even like to include arbors and weathervanes into their English landscape layout. Another trademark of a traditional English garden is the flowers that are used. You can grow any type of flower you want, but traditional English gardens typically include roses, primroses, pansies, poppies, lavender, bluebells, ivy, bachelor’s buttons, lily of the valley and hollyhocks.

Molded shrubbery, called topiaries are also popular. These are shrubs that have been pruned and sculpted into a particular shape. If you are lacking inspiration as to what types of shapes you want your shrubs molded to, do a search online and look at the topiaries in some famous English gardens such as the gardens at Levens Hall, Stourhead and Sissinghurst Castle.

Dining at the cabin is always relaxed and informal, as it should be. No sterile white dishes permitted! Infuse color and playfulness in your cottage table settings. One of the best ways to do this is through the use of hand painted Spanish pottery – brimming with unique themes, color and vibrancy. Absolutely a perfect choice to set your cabin table with fun and personality.

In the bedroom, load the bed with down filled duvets and comforters, lots of lofty pillows and patchwork quilts that you can wrap yourself in on a cold morning. Add a pitcher and glass to the bedside table so that you can laze away the hours in bed, just reading or doing whatever you enjoy doing.

No matter how you choose to decorate your new rural space, do it with love and the definitive goal of respite and leisure. Many choose to omit modern conveniences at the cottage, such as television and computer. Instead, they choose to keep the cabin as a location that offers a complete disconnect with the hustle and bustle of everyday life in the city. It becomes a retreat – a place to rest, relax and rejuvenate. Enjoy!

As you know, trends in luxury home décor come and go. Some trends are better than others and tend to stand the test of time and become favorites. In upscale, luxury living, there have been some interesting trends over the past few years that seem to have evolved as a result of advances in home electronics technology and the constant search for fine living.

Flat Screen Feature Walls

With the gaining popularity of plasma TV’s and very large screen LCD televisions, a dilemma evolved in how to incorporate these expensive new electronic toys into a room design. As such, a fabulous new trend evolved in high end homes that include a feature wall that is designed around the large screen. For some the screen is covered by a piece of artwork or a mechanical wall that conceals the large screen television when it is not in use. Other luxury homes have chosen to leave the screen exposed and built a modern feature wall around the television – incorporating floating shelves, edgy pottery, and clean, modern lines. When done correctly, they look fabulous in any luxury home décor scheme, from contemporary to traditional. Truly the best of both worlds!

Great Rooms with Class

The evolution of the family room to the great room for the modern families has certainly been a work in progress. Recently though homeowners and interior decorators alike have found a way to blend luxury with comfort and casual elegance in the modern Great Room. This is largely accomplished through the use of quality woods, high end furnishings and then using accents, accessories, draperies and soft furnishings (such as sheepskin rugs and sheepskin pillows) to soften the space. Rich dark wood floors are very popular, as are floor to ceiling windows without coverings that have the effect of making the room look twice as large.

Fabulous Fireplaces

Until recently, fireplaces in a home have been largely traditional in design and not overly exciting. Thanks to new technology in both gas and electric fireplaces, there are many new and exciting options for creating a stunning fireplace focal point in any room. For instance, ceramic logs are no longer your only option for gas and electric fires. You can now choose from polished rocks that come to life with fire, a sleek bed of shimmering beach sand that sits beneath the fire and looks fantastic when the fire is not burning. Furthermore, clever advances in mantel design means that you no longer have to settle for the boring brick faced fireplace with the wood mantel. Upscale homes are now sporting massive floor to ceiling fireplace fronts that are made of slate, granite, marble and travertine. These add drama and interest to a room and provide a feel of affluence and luxury, certain to make a room and indeed a home stand out from the crowd and be a true conversation piece.

Of course, trends in luxury living come and go but these three are here to stay. All offer permanent and fashionable solutions that address issues that exist in today’s modern upscale homes of distinction.

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