House Tour: Marie Antoinette's Petit Trianon

Name: Marie Antoinette
Location: Versailles, France
Size: A "small" chateau
Years lived in: 1774 - 1792

Not your average Apartment Therapy house tour, but one we've been looking forward to sharing none the less - our photos of a peek inside one of the more remarkable residences we've ever visited; Marie Antoinette's Petit Trianon. It may have been that our eyes had gotten used to the look of excess from touring Versailles all morning, but somehow this home, while certainly lavish, felt quite modern and almost subtle...

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....in its decor and architectural details. The gold accents were at a minimum and the decorative plaster work motifs were mainly white on white. The paint colors used throughout (repainting was underway when we were there - the rooms are in gorgeously well-kept-up condition) are soft and chalky, with just a hint of color mixed with lots of white. The ceilings are soaring with chandeliers suspended from them and the numerous, tall windows allowed for plenty of natural light. The entryway floor is checkerboard marble but the private rooms of the apartment are warm parquet wood.

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We loved the decorative touches throughout - the doorknobs and doorpanels were all gorgeous, the plasterwork meticulous, the mirrors aged perfectly. The color scheme in the main sitting room felt incredibly fresh - the raspberry and white damask used for both the furniture and incredibly long drapes would be right at home in a current room.

The design direction, scale and "feel" of this home was so much more contemporary than the overwhelmingly ornate Versailles that we immediately fell for this "small chateau" and could understand how it was was a wonderful escape for the young queen from the pressures of court life.

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From the Wikipedia entry on Petit Trianon:

The Petit Trianon is a small château located on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France. It was designed by Ange-Jacques Gabriel by the order of Louis XV for his long-term mistress, Madame de Pompadour, and was constructed between 1762-1768. Upon his accession to the throne in 1774, the 20-year-old Louis XVI gave the château and its surrounding park to his 19-year-old Queen Marie Antoinette for her exclusive use and enjoyment. The château of the Petit Trianon is a celebrated example of the transition from the Rococo style of the earlier part of the 18th century, to the more sober and refined, Neoclassical style of the 1760s and onward. The exterior of the château is simple and elegant, architecturally correct, and highly original.

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Images: Janel Laban

Comments (16)

In the picture with the curtain I don't think I have ever seen a prettier shade of pink, mouth watering.

Lovely and feminine. A great example of what you can do with a little creativity and an unlimited budget.

Hilarious idea for a house tour.

There are definitely good design ideas here -- especially since this style of furniture tends to be small. Years ago, a designer at the Kips Bay show house got stuck with a teensy room and did it in Petite Trianon style, with small, dainty French furniture, but used gingham instead of flowery silk to take down the fustiness. It was gorgeous, like a little jewel box.

marie, your small chateau is gorgeous with just the right amount of gold. the side chair and the chandelier are esp. nice. please tell us where you purchased them.

marie antoinette fascinates me, i love the glamor and femininity of her style and her legend. great idea for a "house tour!"

It is something completely different, but Huis Sonneveld (Sonneveld House) in Rotterdam is also a nice suggestion for a house tour. It was build in the 1930's in the Modernism style. http://en.nai.nl/exhibitions/sonneveld_house

beautiful... all of it.... and as someone said... the shade of pink is absolutely out of this world... just extremely gorgeous and pleasing to the eye.

I think I've only ever seen this shade of pink on Hello Kitty before, but it's not cartoonish at all here. It's perfect contrast to the white...Girly but grown up. LOVE!

comparing the petit trianon to versailles is like comparing apples and oranges. Versailles, once a hunting lodge, was redeveloped during the reign of Louis XIV in the seventeenth century to capture the glory of the sun king. It was a place to impress aristocrats from across Europe and to remind them of France's power on the world stage. The Petit Trianon was built a century later as a getaway for the next king, Louis XV (louis xiv's grandson, or perhaps even great grandson), to meet up with his famous lover, the Marquise de Pompadour, arguably the most powerful woman in France for a period of time. Louis XV was reviled by the French populace because of his ill-chosen affairs (three sisters, for example) and for his weak leaderhsip. Marie-Antoinette took over the space, but MA too had very little ability to read the public and by 1792, her various antics, including excessive spending at a time when the treasury had run dry, made her very unpopular.

The main thing, however, is that we're dealing with two spaces from very different eras, even as they occupy the same 'grounds'.

I'm all for rococo, myself. It makes me smile. This is a bit too dry and classical for me.

timmy jr., I almost choked when I read your comment.

This place is amazing, the furniture and colors are delectable, it really does remind me of cotton candy, really, really, really beautiful cotton candy.

Meh. This place could really do with a few Eames pieces, and maybe a "Keep Calm and Carry On" poster or two.

And the queen's best design advice? "There is nothing new, except what has been forgotten."

Enjoyed the hour tour immensely.