As promised here I bring you another small mansion from the book "
The smaller houses and gardens of Versailles", this one simply entitled "Le Pavillon de Madame". While the address is stated, 63 Avenue de Paris, I can't find any information about the house and according to a googlemap search it has either been torn down since 1926 or the address has changed. If anyone has any information I would appreciate learning more!
The house is a delightful arrangement in the French tradition in that there is no front facade and each of the 4 facades is equally attractive.
The exterior is a light grey painted stucco to mimic limestone with a rusticated base and quoins (corner treatment) on the upper floor. The mansard roof is slate while the beautiful dormers are of lead.
As you can see in the site plan above the house is situated in an enormous garden which hides the surrounding houses. It provides a very formal French garden which is in fact a potager or kitchen garden -where flowers mingle with fruits and vegetables. At the end of a path is the orangery where more exotic fruits and plants could grow.
The tall trees surrounding the garden not only hide the neighbors but other agricultural necessities; a chicken run, a rabbitry, and numerous outbuildings.
The plan is unusual in that it is laid out as a town house. The dining room on the main floor opens to the garden and terrace with kitchens and service spaces surrounding it. Only up the staircase are the other rooms you'd expect to find on the ground level. Even in a small house such as this there is a stair for the master and another for the servants.
The house contains only one bedroom going back to what I talked about in the last post
HERE that these houses were private retreats from the palace of Versailles and not meant for entertaining or even families.
The rooms are all small and cozy but feature fine detailing such as this painted boiserie in the entry hall which the article states was painted white.
The stair has interesting faux-marble painted boiserie and patterns that I think show the 18th century interest in the discovery of Herculaneum and Pompeii. Notice the beautiful chevron patterned floors.
Behind the front hall the dining room continues the chevron floors with pale green painted boiserie covering the walls. Notice the painted scenic overdoors.
This is probably the most charming room in the house, don't you think, with French doors opening out to the terrace?
The eclectic array of furniture is very of the 1920s and today for that matter; a very comfortable arrangement.
This seating group by the fireplace is probably where the owner spent a lot of time before and after meals.
Upstairs the boiserie is left natural and unpainted with the carved details picked out in gold leaf. The chandelier is of course more in the French taste while the assortment of furniture almost feels English to my eye.
No shortage of light or garden views from up here either. I love how the chandelier reflects the light even without the electricity turned on.
It pains me to think this may have been torn down! What do you think -could you live in a mini mansion such as this? Live stylishly in a smaller space is what this house screams to me!
Day four started off frigidly but full of excitement: it was Versailles day! 
You may recall my visit nearly 2 years ago and my many many posts (and pictures!) of the chateau so I won't deluge you now but you can of course reference them through my blog search feature in the toolbar.
Versailles, of course, does not change (at least not noticeably) but the seasons do. Tourist season is over and this visit was a weekday so the chateau was nearly empty - a very happy circumstance (other than the many closed areas -boo!). Another reason it was empty: the weather was positively frigid, painful to be outdoors. All the more reason to remain indoors and enjoy the beautiful views! 
A leisurely delicious lunch was spent at Angelina's in Versailles which included some of their famously decadent desserts. The hot chocolate IS as good as they claim and the Mont Blanc could feed a family of four for at least a week (if that family lived on sugar alone). Sinful; as was the fois gras which was probably the most delicious thing I've eaten in my entire life.
Of course, no visit to Versailles is complete without a visit to the Petit Trianon, forever associated with Marie Antoinette whose bed at Versailles you see above.
The Grand Trianon was also visited but it proved to be a disappointment; Not very well maintained and the interiors all date to the 19th century. However, it was interesting to see if for the history alone and great to check off my bucket list. I imagine that in more hospitable weather it is the most gorgeous garden in Versailles.
On the way home, I stopped for a warming drink at L'hotel which I mentioned yesterday, the "Oscar Wilde" hotel, which was also blissfully nearly empty. Only a few colorful characters shared the lounge with me which proved for interesting people watching. I must say it is my favorite spot I have found in the city!
Not every room at Versailles is gilding, glitz and glamour (the 3 G's). A set of rooms on the first floor enfilade feature some very pretty boiseries with colorful details.
I think they're the prettiest rooms in the palace and are a very cozy size of approx 15' square.
The chamber adjacent is painted all white, I doubt this is original but I really love the look of this. It's as if you bought an old victorian or tudor house with dark paneling and wanted to brighten it up a bit. All that dark wood can get so depressing.
I just loved the way the sun streamed in across the face, picking out the brightness of the colors.
The room which was set up as a private library had beautiful red leather journals behind glass and a sparkling crystal chandelier.
While the bed chamber of the apartment had a more delicate porcelain chandelier. Definitely a girls room.
Don't you think these are the prettiest rooms you've seen in a long time?
I loved the subtle turquoise theme in these rooms - these chairs would have only been enhanced by footstools in red leather and maybe a sisal rug and a mirrored sidetable to hold a drink (but thats if this was my own house and not a historically accurate museum!).
You just can't take a bad picture in these rooms!
One of the most popular rooms at Versailles is the queen's bedroom, most famous for its' last queenly occupent, Marie Antoinette. Her bust is seen on the mantlepiece.
Meant to impress, the room is also very personal and displays her love of everything floral.
The beautiful tapestried walls hide a jib or hidden door that leads to her private boudoir.The room faces the gardens, as do most rooms in the palace, and the shutters feature exquisite gilding.
The palace is designed in enfilade style and there is a series of rooms devoted to her, all elegant (as seen below) but none as pretty as her bedroom.
It was here where the angry mob descended looking to rape and kill her (The women's march on Versailles) and finding her missing, due to her quick escape to the King's bedroom, destroyed the room instead. Marie and Louis of course left Versailles after that to live out the revolution in Paris at the mob's demand and Marie never used her bedroom at Versailles again.
Were you wondering when I would get to the good stuff from Versailles? I think I've kept you waiting long enough! The most famous room at Versailles is undoubtedly the Hall of Mirrors. I've enabled clicking on my photos so you can zoom into the details.
I wasn't sure what to expect. I've seen photographs of it my entire life but I was totally blown away.
Blown away not just by the sumptuousness of every detail: the gilding, the beautiful mirror, the huge crowds, but mainly by the beautiful light.
The room is immensely long, 239.5' to be exact, and that doesn't include the adjoining Salon of War and the Salon of Peace on either end.
The light comes from the tall french doors facing the gardens and is reflected into the 17 mirror clad archways opposite. All of the crystal, highly polished marble and gilding don't hurt either!
At the time of the halls construction in 1678, mirrors were one of the most expensive items to own. Meant as a gathering place at the palace, the mirrors were not just a decorative item but also meant to impress all those waiting for a glimpse of the king.
I was impressed.
The hall was designed by the architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart for Louis XIV; would you expect anything less from either man?
Beautiful candelabras and statues line the hallway, reflected ten fold by the mirror.
The views over the gardens are spectacular: I could have spent all day long in this one room.
I kept pinching myself: am I really here?
Towards the end of my visit in this great room, I started to pay closer attention to the mirror.
Does it look ok to you? Hazy maybe?
Not just old, but there is GRAFFITI on the mirror! At first I was outraged!!!
Then I started to read what was scratched onto the glass. Most of the inscriptions left behind are from 100-200 years ago. Historical graffiti!
Somehow that made it much more acceptable to me, is that wrong? This last image has been the screensaver on my home computer since I came back. History refleccts history!