To make Aunt Carmen’s 80th birthday party memorable, we needed to come up with a theme.  Great parties need themes to make them flow and focus the event.  We wanted this to be a celebration of her life, so we started by asking: what does she like?  Aunt Carmen has owned shops, hotels, and restaurants, designed shoes, and developed real estate.  But her latest passion is … slot machines!
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I grew up in Costa Rica.  My dad is one of eleven in his family and my mom is one of seven, so I grew up surrounded by lots of cousins, aunts, and our family’s friends.  Aunt Carmen, the oldest of my dad’s siblings, has always been extremely capable and well-connected; she’s the Vito Corleone (from “The Godfather” movies) in our family.  Anytime anyone had a problem, they went to visit Aunt Carmen and Uncle Arturo.  Do you need a doctor?  Call Aunt Carmen.  An architect?  Aunt Carmen.  An attorney?  Aunt Carmen.  A visa?  Aunt Carmen.
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In the September 2010 issue of House Beautiful, there is a story about interior designer Penelope Bianchi’s house in Santa Barbara, California that really resonated with me.  As many of you know, at Gracious Style we really believe in buying timeless objects because we only want to own things that we’ll still love ten, twenty, and thirty years from now.
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It can be hard to say goodbye to old friends.  Because every collection you see at Gracious Style was personally chosen for you, they all have a special place with us.  But things change, and eventually some things have to be discontinued.  That’s why each year we have a Summer Sale, where we put many of the collections we’ve loved for years at 50% to even 75% off.
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One of the questions we are asked most often at Gracious Style is, “What do you recommend for cleaning fine linens?”  And our answer is always Le Blanc Linen Wash.  There are many products out there for doing laundry, but here are ten reasons why we reach for Linen Wash again and again.

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It’s that time of the year again!  I’m out looking for sales at all of my favorite stores, and I’m sure you’re doing the same thing.  So we’ve put together a summer sale at Gracious Style, with up to 75% off on our table linens, dinnerware, bed linens, and bath linens.  Quantities are limited, so be sure to shop early for the best selection.
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If you love paint as much as I do, you’re going to love this one…

We love what the super talented Christiane Lemieux has done with Benjamin Moore paints (if you don’t know Christiane, she’s the genius Founder/Creative Director behind DwellStudio; they make many of our cool, urban, and witty bed linens and accessories).
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Erin Gates over at Elements of Style did a great post on her favorite outfits to wear to weddings this past Friday, so we thought it would be fun to share some of our favorite engagement, bridal shower, and wedding gifts from Gracious Style.
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We just received our July/August 2010 issue of House Beautiful (congratulations to new editor Newell Turner!), and we were thrilled to see our Libeco Home Vero Kitchen Towels featured in “The Best for the Kitchen” section.
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Baths are great fun to decorate because they are small and you can change the way they look in just a few minutes.
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