Monday, April 25, 2011

Ooh La Frou Frou Girl Hope ... Close Up!

Hi girls!
This is Sandy,
the artist and creator of Ooh La Frou Frou.

I wanted to say thanks so much to all of you
for being a part of Ooh La Frou Frou.
love all of your comments
here on the blog, as well as on
Twitter and Facebook.
When you visit us each Monday,
I hope it feels as if you're opening a door
and stepping into an imaginary world ...
 a world of glamour, city lights, pink, pearls and girlfriends!

It's fun when someone tells me they recognize
little bits of themselves
in one of the Ooh La Frou Frou girls.
Someone told me recently that she IS Violet!
I think most of us see little bits of ourselves in all of them
and that's exactly what I was hoping for.

Since we have so many new friends visiting us each week,
 I thought it might be fun to
occasionally recap a little about
one of the eight Ooh La Frou Frou girls,
as well as introduce a little something new about her.
So, today ...
You've probably noticed that the girls
have a pretty exciting life.
That's because they live the fantasy life
that we would all like to lead ...
With Hope, we can go fantasy shopping,
popping into New York's trendiest boutiques.
Isn't that part of the the fantasy world
you'd like to live in?

If asked to describe Hope,
I would have to say:
"City Girl."
She loves everything about the city.
When Ooh La Frou Frou began last year,
(before the blog was even created)
a very short video clip was created as part of the launch ...
in the video clip Hope comes to life as
she and her poodle Olive appear
in an elegant city elevator, shopping bags in tow ...
(the elevator looks rather like the elegant Plaza Hotel elevator, no?).
That short video clip is below
and can now be found on You-Tube by searching for
"Ooh La Frou Frou Elevator Girl"
(note:  the "See Card" link below has been disabled).
Here's the video clip!
Oh yes ...
the voice you hear on the video is mine.


The second way I would describe Hope
would be
"Girly Girl."
She's all about beautiful clothes, jewelry, shoes ...
well, beautiful anything, darling.
You may remember Sarah Jessica Parker
when  she appeared a few years ago
in a Gap "Pretty Khaki" commercial
in which she sang
"I Enjoy Being A Girl" ...
Well, Hope certainly enjoys being a girl ...
I can see her standing before her dressing room mirror,
with her eyelashes "all in curls" ...
trying on gown after glamorous gown.
Here's the Gap "Pretty Khaki" commercial ...


Yes, Hope's a "Girly Girl City Girl" that loves to shop..
In fact, the cards that Hope has been featured on
have often been in front of, or inside, boutiques!



If you've been with us since the blog launched in August last year,
you may remember some of these Hope post illustrations.
Her dressing room that looks like a boutique ...


her Dior runway fantasy ...
how many of us, like Hope, have wondered
what it would be like to be a runway model
during Fashion Week
in New York or Paris? Ooh la la! ...


we've gone perfume spritzing with her ...


we've watched her declare a "Me Day"
reserved to do whatever she wanted
(wouldn't we love all of our days to be Me Days?) ...


and we've seen her enjoying that "Me Day"
by walking leisurely through her neighborhood,
enjoying a cappuccino, watching neighbors come and go
to and from their fancy townhouses,
on her way to an afternoon of shopping at Henri Bendel ...


For our "something new" about Hope,
let's talk about where she lives!
In designing Hope's apartment building,
I had to think about a few things.
First, she should live on a tree-lined street in the city.
But one with lots of excitement and action
with lots of taxis at the ready.

And by all means ...
she should have a doorman.
I think that all of us deserve
a white-gloved doorman to open the door for us
when our arms are full of groceries, don't you?
Perhaps someone to call a taxi for us?
To buzz our apartment to notify us
that someone handsome has come to call
and ask us if it's okay to let him up
or are we doing a facial ... again?
A doorman to be standing there
when we arrive home late at night.
I wanted Hope's doorman to be the kind to say,
"Hello, Miss Hope, how are you this evening?"
as she approaches the door ...





Well, Hope has that doorman ...
and you can, too, in this fantasy world.

Yes, we love a good doorman.
Hope's apartment building should also have an awning.
Don't you think beautiful awnings add that "something elegant?" ...







Hope's apartment building has a sleek black awning
to protect her hair from rain
as she exits a taxi and walks to her door.
Of course, an elegant building
with chic entrance topiaries and doorman
needs a name ... and hers says it all!


What is the name of your fantasy city apartment?
Here at Ooh La Frou Frou,
I'm sure you live just over on the other street!

We'll see much more Hope and Olive
in Ooh La Frou Frou cards and posts.
In the meantime, Hope will be
thumbing through Vogue
while Olive leafs through the new Pawsh.
(When you click over to Pawsh,
be sure to click on the magazine itself
to make it full-screen ...
you'll be able to read right along with Olive.)

I'll finish this post
by letting you in on what's
coming soon!
Our first Ooh La Frou Frou Boxed Notes
will be available in about a month ...
the first boxed notes will be called
"Ooh La Frou Frou City Girls"
and will feature twelve blank notecards,
four different designs,
lined envelopes.
The chic designs will feature scenes
of the girls in the city ...
ssshhh ...
that's all I'm saying right now ...
We will introduce
the first of the City Girl Notecard designs
next week!

Also, coming soon ...
mini-invitation notecards!
These are perfect for those times when
you want to invite a few friends over
for cocktails or outdoor entertaining ...
you'd like to invite them
with more than an e-mail invite,
but a real invitation seems a bit formal.
Our mini-invitation notecards
are blank notecards ... 12 of the same design in a box
and feature various party scenes.
Since they will be blank inside,
you can write your own personalized note ...
there will be boxed mini-invitations for
outdoor soirees,
bookclubs,
cocktail parties
and more!

Thanks for joining us for more
Ooh La Frou Frou fun, everyone.
Remember ...
you can be anything, darling ...
all it takes is a little imagination!

To purchase Ooh la Frou Frou cards
simply visit our website here.


Illustration credits:

All illustration in this post
is by Sandra Markwalder,
the artist and creator of Ooh La Frou Frou.
Illustrations: (c) Ooh La Frou Frou ~ all rights reserved.
For custom illustration .. leave a note here.

Photos via:
1. first doorman photo via
2. second doorman photo via
3. first awning photo via
4. second awning photo via
5. third awning photo via


35 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi Sandy

I definately can relate to city girl, this weeks blog actually reminds me from my younger days, how I would love to escape from this to that world!

Vannessa@Luxuria said...

Lovely post Sandy. Can't believe this blog was "born" less than a year ago; I feel like the Frou Frou girls have been in my life much longer. Can't wait to see the new notelets also.
I think my fantasy apartment building would be called "The Sancturary" or "Luxury Towers" ;-)

Carmen said...

Hope is my fave....because she is a girly girl city girl, like me! LOL (only difference is she is a blonde, blue eyed). Have a wonderful week!

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

Raicreations: So happy to hear that you can relate to Hope, sweets. And I hope the blog helps as a way of escaping into that glamorous world with no more effort than cuddling up on the couch with your laptop and a cup of tea! Have a wonderful week, darling, and thanks so much for your sweet support.

Vanessa@Luxuria: Hi lovely lady. Love the names you chose for your apartment building a few streets over!! I can just see it now, "Hope of oh-so-elegant City Girl apartments is visting Vanessa over at Luxury Towers (or The Sanctuary, depending upon the mood!) to do lunch!" ;) Yes! I think the notecards and mini-invitation notecards will be sweet additions to the line! Thanks for stopping by, love. xo

CJ: Thanks for stopping by, CJ! Love that Hope is your favorite ... I think she's an awful lot of fun ... and likes to HAVE an awful lot of fun!! Have a lovely week, sweets! xoxo

Anonymous said...

I really want the city girl cards! Whilst I feel I have got to know Hope well here, I am definitely more of a "Tiffany" girl, and I hope she will appear to me here again soon :-)

www.styleonthecouch.wordpress.com
www.twitter.com/styleonthecouch

Unknown said...

Part of me is hoping to return to a more Hope-style lifestyle in the very near future {I'm moving back to the city from the country very soon}. As always, love your creative post! Wishing you a very fun new spring week!

xo Mary Jo

stylemefab said...

HAPPY EASTER to the lovely ladies at oohlafroufrou, hope you all have a great time. Cant wait for all the new products!!!

Ruby said...

Well I know I have a bit of Hope in me..but not 100%, so now excited to learn about the others as well to see their bios. As always, enjoyed walking through the door!

THE ALTERNATIVE WIFE said...

Sandy she is so me! If I didn't have to work. I am most definitely a NYC girl and that's the life I live in my dreams :)

Happy Monday, sweetie! xoxo

Silver Magpies said...

Your posts are always wonderful, today I can't get my mind off your illustrations!

The tree lined street and dressing room have made me swoon.

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

Style on the Couch: Glad you're looking forward to the city notecards! They'll be fun. Love to hear everyone's personal favorites .. And I loved your recent tweet that you almost felt like Tiffany in the city the other day! XO

Mary Jo of Trust Your Style: Ooh, you'll be a city girl soon!! Fun! Can't wait to hear the description of YOUR city space, Mary Jo! XO

Style Me Fab: Yes, I can't wait to introduce the new notecards and mini-invites .. They'll be so much fun!

Rubys Musings: Glad you enjoyed Hope's bio, honey .. I thought it was time for a little visit to their personalities .. Can't wait to hear which ones you feel say "Ruby" the most! XO

The Alternative Wife: I LOVE that she's so YOU, Dawn! That's just too much fun .. At least when you're here at Ooh La Frou Frou you don't HAVE to work! ;) XO

Silver Magpies:Thank you so very much for your compliments on the illustrations! Means a lot to hear that and I'm so glad you enjoy them, sweets! XO

Unknown said...

Ooohhh! I love everything about this! Thank you for introducing me to Hope - she is everything I envision a City Girl to be!

And now I am singing a la Sarah Jessica! Merci!

Barbara von Enger said...

Ah, the life of a chic city girl - so polished, carefree with spa visit, cocktails, luncheon and so forth. Love the illustrations. Hope you all had a nice Easter break. XX

classiq said...

What a creative and fun post! Hope is just my kind of city girl, especially NYC girl. Wishing you a wonderful week! Ada

Anonymous said...

Thank you for the lovely images and the doorman dreams. Hope you are having a lovely week. Thank you for your kind, uplifting comments. They alwasy make me feel special ~ xox Alexandra

SoapyMermaid said...

another great joyful post.. aw a white doved doorman... sigh.. ;) ps : i tagged you in my blog. sorry and nevermind if you've already done it. see you soon anyway :)

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

Beth-In My World: haha! Love it, leaving you with Sarah Jessica Parker's song in your head ;) Perhaps for today, we should all sing "I Feel Pretty" too, what do you think ;) ... all together now! ;) xo

Fashion, Art & Other Fancies: Hi sweets! Yes, such a very fun life ... and we like to make it as fun as possible for all of our Glamorous Girlfriends!! I had a very lovely Easter, spent it out of town with family, a beautiful Easter brunch in a conservatory. So fun. Hope you had a lovely weekend too! xo

Classiq: Hi Ada! So fun that Hope is your kind of NYC girl! She's certainly enjoying her lifestyle! Thanks for letting me know that Hope is one of the girls that is a little bit of you! xo

Coco Coterie: Hello Alexandra! Love how you phrased it ... as beautifully as you phrase everything .. "doorman dreams." And I sincerely mean all of the comments I make! Have a lovely week, darling. xo

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

SoapyMermaid: Ooh, I haven't seen yet, darling ... I'll be right there ... thanks so much for stopping by ... may you have lovely doorman dreams! ;) xoxo

Christel @ Captivated by image said...

Congratulations on the expanding items, how wonderful news! Loved to get this recap from Hope:)

Unknown said...

You paint such a fabulous picture, I love a city girl I have farmyard phobia and never like to be far from a coffee shop lol. x

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

Christel@Captivated by Image: Thanks, honey. It's all part of the plan and lots more to come! So glad you enjoyed Hope's recap. Wanted to make sure everyone knew the details ;) xo

How to be Perfect: You and I both, sweetie! I love a beautiful walk in the woods ... on the way to the city! I crave action and variety too much to be quiet for tooo long! Thanks so very much for stopping by and for the compliment on painting a story. I so enjoy the painting ... with words and ... paint! ;) xo

Patricia said...

Sandy you've come a long way! Your voice is just as I imagined. Such beauty and fantasy...right up my alley!
Cupcake
xo

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

Cupcake: Thanks, sweetie-pie ... your name Cupcake suits your sweetness perfectly! Do you have glittery sprinkles on your head, by any chance? teehee Kisses, doll :)

Anonymous said...

Sandy,
Your work amazes me, and I do look forward to your posts! Keep it up!
Xo,
E&J

Gorgeous Glam said...

Yes I agree there is a little bit of me in each girl! But we all hav the glam part in common! I always love reading little tidbits about you gals! xo

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

Eddie Ross: Thanks so much, Eddie, for the lovely compliment on my illustrations .. and I'm so glad you enjoy the posts! We do have some great guys that follow us ... some in the fashion world, some illustrators ... and so happy that among that group is a fabulous designer (guess who .. you!) Honored indeed. ;)

Taj Acosta: Thanks, darling. Always a pleasure to have you drop by! We'll be holding recaps of all of the girls in the next few weeks here, so it'll be easy for our fans to refresh their memory of the personalities of all of the girls! xo ;)

Anonymous said...

You are such a lovely heart. I hope your week is going well with wonderful glamourous moments softly blossomed within punctuated work moments we all need to keep a move on in this crazy economy ~ xox Alexandra

uhooi said...

Great pictures!
visit our blog at http://uhooi.blogspot.com/

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

Coco Coterie: Such a sweet comment .. touches my heart, thank you, darling. May your weekend be filled with joy xoxo

uhooi: Thank you for visiting Ooh La Frou Frou .. I will visit ~ have a lovely weekend! :)

Anonymous said...

Love, love, love! I want to write so much but right now, it's just love, love, love!

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

notjustanothermilla: Thanks so much, Milla! When you say "love, love, love" that pretty much says it all! Kisses!

Annemarie said...

Such a gorgeous post, Sandy! I adore all of the girls, especially Hope! Can I just jump into that picture of her closet and live in there forever?! Loving this miniseries of posts! Can't wait for next weeks :) Hugs to you xx,
Annemarie

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

Brunch at Saks: It's so very fun to hear which girls are everyone's personal favorites! And I'm with you ... is there a closet more perfect than one that looks like a boutique?! So glad you're enjoying the miniseries, sweetie! It's lots of fun for me too! xo

Healthy Living Natural Beauty - Michelle said...

I just saw your site for the first time tonight and I really enjoy it! You are such a creative person and your blog is so much fun to see. I've added your button to my button collection on my site and just started following your site. It's great!

Sandy at Ooh La Frou Frou said...

Michelle, it's so nice to meet you .. happy that you've discovered Ooh La Frou Frou! Welcome! xo