The Chateau Diaries #72 Winter is coming

[WMGL]

Probably/definetly NOT.

I need to learn to spell definitely!! Oops.

 

[Wilhelm]

FRK was one of the first CD spin-offs that I dumped. She is so tedious. Unwatchable. I started off interested in her floral ambitions because I used to be a floral designer so we had that in common. She reminds me of the young, fresh-out -of-floral-school things that braved coming into our shop, resume in hand. No experience, but plenty of pics of FTD arrangements. When I was designing, we had huge accounts with businesses, hotels and department stores. That's what kept us afloat week to week. The weddings and events were icing on the cake and it wasn't uncommon to snatch a few $25,000+ weddings in the summer. That was almost 30 years ago. There isn't any hotel or department store floral work, anymore and brides are nowadays shoving weeds into bottles for their wedding decor ala FRK. I got out of that biz just in time, though I still do the occasional wedding for family or friends.

I do like her arangements and choice of flowers and plants.Bottles as well. There are so many florists capable of making flowers look tacky,outdated and hideous it never ceases to amaze me.I wish her all the best.

 

[WMGL]

Yeah, it can be VERY intense!! It's sad when a kid gets shunned because of it. Yikes.

GO Flames!

Like Toronto vs Montreal....Go Habs!!

 

[JackofHearts]

Like Toronto vs Montreal....Go Habs!!

Nope, Leafs!!! (sorry)

PS Now you've done it, you've got Canadians arguing about hockey!!

PPS Dog River vs. Wullerton

 

[Seeingitasitis]

Im disappointed at the christies videos too, i had hoped to see them travelling, checking into hotel, choosing her outfits, getting hair blown out, going through the selection process picking items for each vignette. Hearing beforehand about the ideas for each vignette… seeing them grab lunch or dinner after a long days work… usual travel vlog day in the life stuff.

tonights video felt like a manic history lesson, i had to watch it in 4 parts and actially slow it down for a few minutes because her speech/narrative was so fast, thee were so many tangents and different names dropped, so much background info that felt unnecessary… it was like she crammed in everything she had researched just for the sake of it, or to appeal to Christies themselves, not us her viewers.

I did not watch the last one, so I may have this wrong. Whilst I agree with all you say about what could have been featured, what might have pleased Christie's more is a focus on the item they were selling, all about it, why she had chosen it, how her idea actually showcased and increase interest. Instead we hear she chose a day in the life of her chateau and herself and the items featured little, after they had been drowned in stuff.

Also, good work housesitting, Marie, giving the lady’s name, showing her family photos and in-depth workings of the lock on her door. Also telling us where she is. Real secure.

Nice to see you again. Are you related to T?

 

[Espe]

I have to give credit to Selmar for his shots of the animals and birds. The close ups of the peacocks and cockerels were really good, you could see the details and all the colours of their feathers. Whatever he does in the future, he should be working with animals. They seem to trust him. Whenever SJ and some of the others go anywhere near the sheep, they either run away instantly or Aloysius tries to attack her. That's quite understandable, what else would they do when they see a manic vision in yellow approaching them with her pink phone, screeching and laughing loudly? I think caring for animals is Selmar's main skill in life, not teaching dancing and maybe not carpentry. I don't think he ever really dances, just walks and steps in slow motion. The vlog, however, was much better than his older ones but it was hilarious watching him trying to make a bouquet and cutting all the buds off with one flower, rather than leaving the buds to develop. I also wonder if he actually realised he should put some water in the vase! Having said that, the final "bouquet" was no worse, and probably better, than a lot of Marie's efforts! The woman who had her birthday there was extremely loud in the Tango "lesson" which, as usual, was very tedious to watch.

 

[Sami Lee]

I think a lot of mine was word of mouth...family story telling, plus there were a lot of family records from way back in the day...

I've often been quite astounded at how family stories actually do hold key kernels of truth. And there's nothing better than old written records.
I've held off getting a DNA test because, despite the hype, they're still patchy and quite vague in some respects and for some regions.

 

[Arfarf]

That cottage that FRK was staying at WAS just darling!!! Just picture perfect. And yes, these journal videos have been better than all the previous ones she has attempted.
That last quote by C.S. Lewis was him speaking of heaven when we pass on. Not sure if FRK knows that....she was probably thinking about her Patreons buying her a home in the future. Hint hint, you know.

FFS.
This is another piece of the shocking backstory that helps make sense of the out of control nonsense today.

Most of us applaud cutting costs, getting bargains, negotiating discounts and striking good deals. Being an all round thrifty person.

Most of us also have experience of being hard-up and being in a tight place. Some of us have had the extreme;y costly experience of buying old houses and having to prioritise severely to scrape money together for essential repairs and maintenance.

But there are some things that cannot be scrimped on. Priorities like electrics and water. Health and safety. Home security. Taxes.

@Clara Burnett, this all sounds like a long-term litany of debacle.
And yet, SJ keeps spending on partying, fripperies, more crockery than she'll ever need, mountains of clothes, unnecessary travel, exorbitant wallpapers/fabrics, paintings, panelling, pergolas, gravel even...

Why did her parents allow her all this leeway? When she's not able to manage? That is, she's not anywhere near a responsible home-owner, a manager, a 'chatelaine'. Clearly, she's fundamentally not able to cope with this establishment.

I don't know whether to feel abjectly sad for her or deeply annoyed that no one's bothered to intervene in all this madness.

Or just let her sink. She IS an adult....in age only.

 

[Seeingitasitis]

I don't get why they don't just buy radiators in France.

So we saw her bank statement was from an English bank. To buy in France, she would have to transfer funds and presumably the exchange rate is expensive so she buys in England and hauls it back to France,

Next thread should just be us tattlers swooning over all our giftings and talents and what we bring to the game! I bet CDIY will be wanting us for their next season!



France doesn't have radiators ... or whipping cream ....

I have found it hard to source whipping cream when in France....I have never had to look for radiators.

 

[Sami Lee]

Isn't it an old saying that you have to let go of your child the moment you give birth? Isabel just seems to be too good at it....

I didn't know that was an actual saying!
My adult children were a bit discomfited when I opined that the job of a parent is letting your children go whilst giving them the love, support, confidence and skills to thrive independently. Those who have their own children now understand it.

It's been said here that IJ never wanted children and, to please her husband, had her daughter. Every child needs to be a wanted child. If they're not, the consequences can too often be very unpleasant.

 

[Diesel]

Buying stuff in UK gives them a good reason to complain about French plumbers/ builders / plasterers etc who don't know how to deal with it when it's broken (because it's a different system... and because they know that it was bought in UK and installed by British workers.! They really think everybody is stupid !!)

You would not take this opportunity of complaining away from them surely ?

I have to say Isabelle is the worst. She definitely rejects anything French. Must be something to do with her childhood... in the French colonies ! As she went to UK to train as a nurse very young (21 or 22), I suspect she has never lived in France - except for holidays and retired at Lalande.

However France is good enough to give her daughter à "vie de château " and glory (in their small minds).

Sad people IMO.

That's a plausible explanation...

 

[KyBourbon]

I have found it hard to source whipping cream when in France....

You can probably find a few cans of spray whipped cream under Michael’s bed. You know…for those naughty Royal Jam sessions!

 

[Bored Mermaid CC]

I don't know if it's illegal, it should be as it is dangerous and quite a lot of YouTubers seem to do it. Marie does seem somewhat accident prone so she should be more careful. You can't possibly concentrate on driving and what other drivers are doing on the road if you are constantly thinking of other things and wondering what to say next.

The videos, however, are certainly an improvement on the interview ones. The free accommodation she manages to get is always in lovely places. I wonder if most of the contacts came via people connected with chateaux.

but let’s be honest-even a modicum of improvement seems like a giant leap when we suffered through her freshman presentations

 

[Diesel]

So we saw her bank statement was from an English bank. To buy in France, she would have to transfer funds and presumably the exchange rate is expensive so she buys in England and hauls it back to France,


I have found it hard to source whipping cream when in France....I have never had to look for radiators.

1GBP = 1.17 EUR
It cannot be the exchange rate and she also needs to add transport and probably any customs costs.

 

[oooLaLande]

Nope, Leafs!!! (sorry)

PS Now you've done it, you've got Canadians arguing about hockey!!

PPS Dog River vs. Wullerton

I am just quietly going to say Go Canucks and move on...

 

[Parrfect Porcelane]

On an unrelated note, did any of you Canadians follow the band Great Big Sea before they disbanded?

Great Big Sea - Ordinary Day - YouTube

 

[oooLaLande]

Marie's videos are leaps and bounds better than before (although "before" was a bar set right on the floor)! She better pay that editor lady well!

Also, tbh, If i had a twisted ankle and 2 naughty dogs (the young one was obviously a trouble maker ) running in opposite directions, specially if they weren't mine and I'm taking care of someone else's babies.. I would probably burst into tears too makes me anxious even thinking about it.

This happened before, but with a much simpler an common cause when talking about SJ: laziness and stupidity. When the system was designed and installed, they cut so many corners to lower the costs that in a lot of places where radiators were planned and pipes were laid, the radiators were left out of the equation, to be installed on a later date (when hell would be freezing over...). Instead of securing these pipes thoroughly with the correct caps, they were left open and because no coherent schedule was placed next to all the different switches in the laundry room, and because all inhabitants of her shittoo are morons, wrong switches were turned without checking the effect. Years ago this resulted in several ceilings coming down because of days of flooding the attic, for example the one in the corridor next to her bedroom that connects to the room where Snorty is (not) editing at the moment. She was in bed when that happened (where else would she be?) and too afraid to go check where the noise came from, so she left that discovery for the next morning.... It took her a couple of years (!) to get that fixed, including the electrical wiring that obviously got unusable too. The ceiling in the stables where Ian the builder is working on but doesn't have the right material just yet to finish is another example. Above it now is IJ's apartment, but before that it was just another attic where her tat was stored, including her fathers pornographic escapades, then still neatly hidden. No radiator there, but the pipes were there, uncapped and waiting for... need I say more?

Damn!! How on earth has this building survived so far?!

 

[Sami Lee]

That cottage that FRK was staying at WAS just darling!!! Just picture perfect. And yes, these journal videos have been better than all the previous ones she has attempted.
That last quote by C.S. Lewis was him speaking of heaven when we pass on. Not sure if FRK knows that....she was probably thinking about her Patreons buying her a home in the future. Hint hint, you know.
Or just let her sink. She IS an adult....in age only.

Well, yes indeed. Actually this thought just came to me as I was doing some washing up this evening. There comes a time when every sensible, responsible parent has to stand back and let their adult children just get on with it. (And each child has different needs and a different jumping off age.)
Do you think this is what IJ's done ? Is this why she found P and zapped off to SA?
(I mean, if I were Steffie's Mum I'd be long gone too.)

 

[oooLaLande]

Whatever he does in the future, he should be working with animals. They seem to trust him.

I agree.. Growing up my family had a country house and our housekeepers kept animals. They had dogs, goats, sheep, chickens, ducks... and there is just something about animals trusting certain people...they have a kind of instinct and intuition that humans just don't.
I personally trust these types of people a bit more than the others. They are more gentle and kind and overall have good energy to be around.

 

[elizabethrex]

You'd think Sarah, the editor, would not just tell her to clean her windshield, but that she should be careful videoing personal things from the places she stays.

The point is Marie shouldnt have to be told, these are normal things any adult should know!

YES!!! I can't understand the free flowing hair whilest doing any gardening or yardwork!!!

I love Kirsty! She is just gorgeous, like some medieval goddess! Let that hair flow free I say!