Are you Bamboozled?

I love bamboo. I love the simplicity and the clean lines. It is neither fussy nor formal, nor too casual. It's a lot like a pair of really nice denim jeans. You can dress it up and dress it down. I suppose my love of bamboo, stems, like many of my other loves, from the South of France and my Bamboo bedroom at the Jardin des Arbres. Most especially I loved the small bamboo garden off the terrace of my bedroom.

Bamboo is a reed, a grass, not as I had thought, a tree. It is durable and it's uses are many. Bamboo is an ecologically sound plant. It releases more oxygen into the air than trees do. The bamboo is plant is the fastest growing plant in the world. It can completely regenerate itself in just a few months. Bamboo protects our environment and because it requires no pesticide it is organic and not harmful to us. It's uses are wide and varied from construction materials for new homes (it is incredibly strong) to it's use in bedding (it's filaments are incredibly soft) to the inspiration designers around the world who have incorporated it and it's patterns to their works.

Gucci is responsible for making bamboo a fashionable part of our wardrobes. Years ago, about 20, I saw and coveted the black handbag with the lovely bamboo handle. A recent college graduate I could barely afford to even look at such a beautiful bag never mind the thought of purchasing one. Luckily the bag was coveted by so many that Banana Republic replicated it. That one I could afford and 20 years later I still own it and use it a great deal. Some day I will own the fabulous bamboo watch...

Kate Spade has used bamboo in her handbags...

as has Lilly Pulitzer. I love these LP Reese sunglasses with the bamboo pattern on the sides.
I found mine at Marshall's in September!

This "bangle a desh"  bamboo inspired fabric by Lilly Pulitzer is simply stunning!   

I might just have to run out to Target to purchase this bamboo cutlery set! If you don't have a budget to watch, you might prefer the set below by Tiffany & Co.

I love decorating with trays... these inexpensive bamboo trays, $25 and $5 respectively, are a good way to cover up your not so nice side tables or protect the tops of nice side-tables.
(Just remember to add some felt to the bottoms of the trays.)

This simple bamboo clock, by Tiffany & Co. is understated elegance.
(You can get a very similar version in silver plate at Pottery Barn for about $50)

I have never met a woman who didn't love the work of Jean Schlumberger (pronounced Shlum-ber-jay)
And this gold bamboo cuff takes the cake.

This lovely blue and white bamboo inspired rug from Williams-Sonoma home
would be most welcome in mine!

These simple pillows from Pottery Barn, with the lovely bamboo rings, would cozy up any couch or bed

I love this bamboo chandelier! It's so dramatic!

Inexpensive bamboo candles dress up any room

This Bamboo dining room chair from Williams-Sonoma would have fit in perfectly
with the decor in my bedroom in Cannes.

 These inexpensive folding bamboo chairs (available at many locations including Target) are a wonderful alternative to your standard, boring folding chair. We use them at our kitchen table and have more in the basement for entertaining purposes. They're a perfectly inexpensive way to dress up a room a bit.
Add a pretty cushion for a bit of color.

These bamboo chairs make this eating area casually elegant.

Bamboo bedding is organic, environmentally sound, comfortably and has never been treated with pesticides that regular bedding has been which even after wash after wash can still seep into your skin...

This breathtakingly gorgeous Bamboo bed designed by Ralph Lauren will cost you a cool $20,000!

 

The neutral, natural bamboo shades will shelter you from the late afternoon sun without sacrificing your style!