art de vivre

Interview with Julie Gauthier, Founder

One17 is an architectural practice that produces a fantastic quarterly cultural magazine for its high-net-worth clients. The publication is called 'One17 Notes' and we are proud to have been featured in their latest issue.

Kevin Drayton, the magazine founder and One17 partner, was intrigued by our company and story and decided to run a 4-page interview with our founder, Julie Gauthier. The extensive interview goes into plenty of detail on our team, process and ethos too.

The interview is accompanied by some stunning high-definition images of our properties and, as soon as we saw the printed copy at last week's’ cocktail party, we were excited to post it online.

Here are links to two documents, one features just our article, for those who want to read it for themselves and the other features the whole magazine by One17 for anyone who wants to read the rest of their fantastic fourth issue.

 

A successful year for Seychelles luxury villa rentals

Art de Vivre has seen an unprecedented 20% increase in bookings from our luxury private villas in the Seychelles this past year. We began in 2003 as Villas de Maitre Ltd and evolved into Art de Vivre a decade later, after huge success in the Indian Ocean. Whilst we have expanded our property rental portfolio internationally, we are proud to continue our success in the Indian Ocean. 

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We have three high-end properties in the Seychelles:

Li Al Do Maison

Residence on the Rocks

Villa Praslin

The first two are located in the south of main island Mahé. Whilst the third, Villa Praslin, is a rare beachfront property on the second-largest island, Praslin.

Each of the three villas are unique and offer guests privacy and stunning views. They are fully-staffed with house managers who organize clients’ entire stay.

The villas are first and foremost second homes and are owned by investors from Switzerland, Italy, U.K. and Mauritius. Potential clients who appreciate the architectural beauty and locations of the villas rent them from 1,500 to 5,500 Euros per night.

We have built strong relationships with our villa and chalet owners around the world but we have known and worked with the owners of the Seychelles villas since Villas de Maitre’s debut in 2003. Li Al Do Maison’s owner has kindly offered the villa, as a grand prize in the Princess Alexandra NHS Trust Charitable fund – Breast Unit raffle prize draw at the London Boat Show 2016 this week. We love bringing business to such charitable and congenial owners that we have known for over a decade.

 

Read our feature written on Art de Vivre's success in the Seychelles

 

If you are interested in renting a designer villa in the Seychelles, we encourage you to make an enquiry or call us on +44 (0) 1296 334138.

 

Art de Vivre are proud to be at The London Boat Show 2016

Here at Art de Vivre we are busy preparing for this year’s London Boat Show, from 8th to 17th January 2016. Located at the ExCeL Centre in London’s Docklands we will be beside Sunseeker’s large and impressive stand volunteering with the PAH charity raffle. When the Princess Alexandra Hospital breast-cancer trials charity needed a grand prize for their raffle this year, we were proud to offer a 7 night stay at one of our top luxury Seychelles properties Li-Al-Do Maison as the Golden Raffle Prize.

Li-Al-Do Maison is a stunning oceanfront 4 bedroom property in Takamaka, Mahé, Seychelles. Our founder Julie Gauthier has been working with its Italian owner for over 10 years and has had many repeat clients coming back year after year. Ideal for families and groups of friends Li-Al-Do Maison’s staff and its location are its highlights. 

We have always found the London Boat Show to be an exciting event and are proud to see so many British maritime businesses present together. When we heard from The Luxury Network partner Sunseeker London that we could be involved in this huge event and make a positive contribution to the PAH charity we jumped at the chance of getting involved.

For those of you attending The London Boat Show 2016, we really look forward to seeing you at our dedicated PAH stand next to Sunseeker and invite you to enter the charity raffle to have a chance of winning one of the fantastic prizes that have been donated to PAH.

If you have any more questions for us, feel free to comment below or drop us an email. We look forward to seeing you there.

Top 10 Winter Sun Designer Villas

As we settle into our new worldwide villa seasonal collection, we feature a selection of the Top 10 Winter Sun Designer Villas for rental. Located across the globe in Africa, Thailand, Mustique, Seychelles, Mexico, St Barts, Brazil, Turks & Caicos, Bali and Anguilla.

These winter sun luxury designer villas for rental are a taster of our collection. For further details, send us an email on [email protected]

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South Africa Reserve Lodge 309

Sleeps 6 + 3 | 4 Bedrooms | Private Pool
12,000 acre Private Estate | Observatory
Architects Silvio Rech & Lesley Carstens
Guest lodges available for extra guests


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Phuket Residence 801

Sleeps 20 | 3 Villas & a Penthouse
Private Pools | Dedicated kids' hotel | Spa
On-site gourmet restaurant | Private Gym
Private Cinema | Designers' collaboration


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Seychelles Villa 407 | Praslin

Sleeps 10 + 2 | 5 Suites | Private Beach
Back to Nature | Main Villa & 2 Guest Villas
Discreet | Private Pools | Tropical Gardens
Handcrafted artwork | Private Wine Cellar


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Mexico Villa 702 | Punta Mita

Sleeps 18 + ch | 9 Suites | Private Pool
Oceanfront location | Crowns dramatic cliff
Architects: Manolo Mestre, Juan Collignon & Karen Collignon | Mexican arts and crafts


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Brazil Villa 601 | Búzios

Sleeps 10 | 5 Bedrooms | Private Pool
Contemporary design | Stunning Sea Views
Gourmet Kitchen | Floor-to-ceiling windows
Natural Light | Waterfalls & Fountains


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Turks&Caicos 523| Providenciales

Sleeps 12 | 6 Bedrooms | Private Pool
Private Beach Access | 10-acre gardens
European, Asian & African Antiques
Mexican architect, Marco Aldaco


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Bali Villa 803 | Cemagi

Sleeps 10 | 5 Bedrooms | Private Pool
Contemporary Balinese Design | Ocean view
Architect Ernesto Bedmar | Lush Gardens Black sand beach | Authentic Cuisine


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Mustique Villa 525 | South Hilltop

Sleeps 10 | 6 Bedrooms | Private Pool
Panoramic Caribbean views | Contemporary
Italian architect Paolo Piva | Media Room
Additional Guest Cottage available


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St Barts Villa 511

Sleeps 10 + 4 | 6 Bedrooms | Beachfront
White-sand beach | Crystal-clear waters
Stunning ocean views | Private "mirror" pool
Architect Firm Olivier Dain Perspectives

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Anguilla 601 | Black Garden Bay

Sleeps 10 | 4 Suites + 1 Bedr | Private Pool
Panoramic ocean views | Asian elements
Natural Beauty | Architect Frank Hamilton
Interiors by Cecconi Simone | Beachfront


For further details on our collection of chalets and villas around the world, send us an email on [email protected]


Top 10 Designer Alpine Chalets

As we settle into our new winter seasonal collection, we feature the Top 10 Designer Alpine Chalets for rental this year across the Swiss and French Alps. Located in Switzerland are a selection of stylish chalets in Verbier, Zermatt, Davos Klosters and St Moritz. In the French Alps we feature stunning chalets in Courchevel 1850 and Val d'Isère.

These alpine private designer chalets for rental are a taster of our collection. For further details, send us an email on [email protected]

Zermatt Chalet 159 |Switzerland

Sleeps 10 + | 5 Bedrooms | Private Pool
Built into Mountain-side | Alpine Glamour
Architects Mooser Lauber Stucky | Spa
Michelin-star Gourmet Chef | Awardwinning
Panoramic Views over Village & Matterhorn


Val d’Isère Chalet 149 | France

Sleeps 10 + 4 | 6 Bedrooms | Private Pool
Alpine Chic | Glamorous Pool with Hot Tub
Panoramic Views | Expansive living area
Private Cave & Fromagerie | Hammam
Situated in the Heart of Val d’Isère

Courchevel Chalet 119 | France

Sleeps 12 | 6 Bedrooms | Wellness Area
Ultra modern contemporary interior design
Large living area with piano & high ceiling
Sauna, Jacuzzi & Steam Room | Office Area
Home Cinema | Fitness Room | Large Garage


Verbier Chalet 140 | Switzerland

Sleeps 10 | 5 Bedrooms | Private Pool
Modern Design | Authentic Atmosphere
Architect Cittolin Polli | Panoramic Views
Glamorous Private Cinema | Games Room
Private Wine Cellar | Seclusion & Privacy



Courchevel Chalet 126 | France

Sleeps 14 | 6 Bedrooms | Private Pool
Elegant, Stylish & Traditional | Private Chef
Office Space | Located close to town centre
Cinema Room | Fitness Room | Fir Trees
Magnificent views | Built in Savoyard style


Zermatt Chalet 163 |Switzerland

Sleeps 10 adults + 2 | 5 Bedrooms
Chic & Stylish | French stone open fireplace
Expansive outdoor living area | Games room
Breathtaking scenic views | Home Cinema
Built on hillside in exclusive Petite Village


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St Moritz Chalet 155|Switzerland

Sleeps 12 adults | 7 Bedrooms
Stylish Mountain Design | Panoramic View
Private Steamroom & Sauna | Home Cinema
Architect Renato Maurizio | Glass Walkway
Intimate drawing room with open fireplace

Verbier Chalet 146 | Switzerland

Sleeps 18 | 7 Suites & 2 Bedr | Private Pool
Grandeur & Elegance | Classic Entertaining
Old Fashioned Ambience | Private Library
Impressive Wine Cellar | Home Cinema
Breathtaking Alpine Views | Rich Colours


Courchevel Chalet 122 | France

Sleeps 8 + 5 | 5 Bedrooms | Private Pool
Alpine Chic | Panoramic views of the Valley
Top London Interior Designer | Ski in ski out
Private Gym, Jacuzzi, Hammam & Sauna
Chauffeured 4x4 Caravelle facility


Davos Klosters 103 |Switzerland

Sleeps 12 + 4 | 6 Bedrooms | Private Pool
Chic & Contemporary Interiors | Discreet
Library, Study & TV Room | Ski in, ski out
Stunning views towards peaks of Engadine
Toys, sledges, games & books | Jacuzzi


For further details on our collection of chalets and villas around the world, send us an email on [email protected]


Featured Villa: Steel & Glass Cape Town 305, Camps Bay

Featured in our Spring Summer 2014 Villa Rental Collection

A beautiful minimalist home for rental, winner of House & Leisure “ SA House of the Year” – September 2009, commanding a 270º view of Lions Head, Camps Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. Designed by SAOTA - Stefan Antoni Olmesdahl Truen Architects, this sublime steel and glass haven offers living spaces that are highly transparent to take full advantage of these views. Interiors are by Antoni Associates.

In an upmarket suburb of Cape Town with its absolute exclusivity and privacy, this elegantly casual & ultra-contemporary villa is a sublime steel & glass haven for you to entertain your guests in. It ambiguously blurs the boundaries between indoors and outdoors and shifts, changes and challenges expectations at every turn, with effortless fluidity. It’s understated but so powerful.

Light

It harnesses and captures every nuance of the changing light through its generous frameless sky-lights and ample glass sliding doors, which can totally disappear, eliminating any demarcation between the living spaces and the lush greenery of the garden, and seamlessly fusing the two rim-flow swimming pools and their generous bleached Balou terraces.

Structure

Heavy, fixed building features seem to defy the laws of gravity and appear literally to float, like the cantilevered roof with its internal hidden steel support structure on the top level and the thick walnut staircase that links the perfectly independent upstairs with the self-sufficient downstairs. Overall, the effect is one of fluid spacial symbiosis, much like the ebb and flow of the ocean that can be glimpsed from almost every vantage point.

Uncluttered

In keeping with Stefan Antoni Olmesdahl Truen Architects’ (SAOTA) belief that the most successful living spaces are uncluttered, refined and have a great directness which compliments the casual lifestyle of their clients, there is absolutely nothing to disappoint.

Finishing Touches

The interiors' palette and décor match the structure with a cloud-like weightlessness and natural harmony. Muted, misty greys, white Carrara marble, limed oak, expansive white porcelain tiles and Zen pebble accents. Artworks like the mystically atmospheric Patricia Driscoll photographic prints and a long water channel animated by Koi. With superb flow and aesthetic restraint, it’s a perfect entertainment, party space, too.

Technology

The house has a box of technological tricks: motorized, automated hairdryers, heat-reflecting blinds, hi-tech remote control home automation pads and XBox with an extensive selection of DVDs, Wi-Fi, plasma screens, Satellite, integrated air-conditioning, underfloor heating, CCTV security system… as well as a six-car garage.

Additional Facts

- The Penthouse (on top floor) has 3 en-suite bedrooms

- The Main House (on ground floor) has 2 en-suite bedrooms

- The separate Guest Apartment (also on ground floor) has an en-suite bathroom, kitchen, lounge/ bedroom and balcony.

- The Basement Studio Apartment is situated at the back of the property and has its own entrance.

- Both lounge areas open to the outdoor terrace with stunning sea views and Spectacular rim-flow heated swimming pools.

- Shaded 8 seater sandstone table adjacent to the gas BBQ overlooking pool on

Highlights

Steel & Glass Haven

Floor to Ceiling Glass

Architecture by Stefan Antoni Olmesdahl Truen

Deemed Cape Town’s most acclaimed designer villas

Studio Guest & Basement Separate Apartments

Breathtaking Ocean Views

Two Rim-flow Private Pools

Blurs Boundaries between Indoors & Outdoors

270º View of Lions Head, Camps Bay & Atlantic

Winner of House & Leisure
“SA House of the Year”
September 2009

Perfect for...

Large family celebrations

Corporate Retreats

Design Lovers

Key facts

Sleeps 14

7 Bedrooms

7 Bathrooms

Children Welcome

Serviced from Mon - Sat

Chef & Butler on request

If you are interested in renting this villa or would like further information on the rest of our Spring Summer 2014 Designer Villa Collection, then do get in contact.

Email us on
[email protected]

In Conversation with the Founder, Julie Gauthier

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Julie Gauthier
Founder & Director, Art de Vivre

[email protected]

With over 20 years experience in luxury property rentals, Julie founded Art de Vivre as the ultimate in bespoke designer villa and chalet rental consultation for her discerning clients looking for the most beautiful properties to rent in the world.

Tell me about your early life…

From an early age in rural Buckinghamshire, I was surrounded by art and travel, aspiring to be an architect like my award winning father. My mother was an artist and music teacher, and I had two older brothers. We lived in a modernist house built by my father in a fruit orchard with floor to ceiling windows, an open plan kitchen and Scandinavian furniture. We spent summer weekends in the Chilterns or at our seaside home in Pembrokeshire and in the winter visiting Oxford and London galleries or attending concerts.



Where did your love of Travel and Art & Design come from?

Due to my parents' passion for creativity, art & design has always been around me. Holidays were always a big adventure either at our coastal home in Pembrokeshire, also built by my father, or travelling to Florence, Venice and Paris by train. I’ve always loved history and fashion and also had a natural gift for languages so after a three week trip to the Far East at the age of 17, I was going to study Japanese at Cambridge University. Instead I went on to study German and French at University of London, immersing myself in german life for five months. On graduating after a short spell as a ski guide in the Alps, I met my husband and worked around the world in Luxembourg, Hong Kong, South Africa, Cyprus and Mauritius. My love for art & design as well as worldwide travel has been dominant throughout my life.

 

How did you come up with the concept of Art de Vivre?

For the past 20 years, through Villas de Maitre Ltd, we have been matching our clients with exclusive homes in the Indian Ocean, primarily Mauritius and Seychelles. Some of our VIP agents were impressed with our new designer villas and service, therefore asked for more elsewhere. This was the catalyst to create a designer collection using our contacts, expertise and love of art and design. We are not a listings site but aim to highlight, inspire and show off the best architecture and interior design. The properties are mostly whisper properties aka off market. Discretion is key to our owners and our discerning clients.
 

Tell us more about the Seasonal Collections…

We are so excited to launch Seasonal Collections where we take inspiration from a seasonal fashion collection, to bring a curated group of beautiful properties based around a visual, narrative or conceptual theme. We will be launching a new set of collections for Autumn/Winter and Spring/Summer every year. These collections are intended to inspire our clients and keep Art de Vivre fresh and alive.
 

What is key to Art de Vivre’s success?

- Our passion, experience and knowledge of designer villas & chalets for rental

- Our bespoke consultancy approach to finding the perfect property for our clients' needs

- Our unique portfolio of architect-designed properties for rental

- The premium level of the villas and chalets with the outstanding experiences they provide

- Our close relationship with the owners

- Our network of loyal clients, agents and partners

 

After operating for over 20 years, what has been the secret of your success so far?

We are proud of our company’s journey with the evolution of the internet as our first villa rental company was one of the first pioneers of internet marketing. We have also always seeked out high-end properties that are fresh and interesting to us, helping us to adapt to our changing aspirations and markets. We realised the importance early on of word of mouth and social media for a niche company which let us reach an audience that is as enthusiastic as we are about our outstanding properties. We have also been fortunate to be in the right place at the right time with loyal clients, stunning properties and excellent partners.

 

What are your core values?

- Honesty, integrity and respect

- Creativity, flexibility and proactivity

- Pleasure of providing an excellent service

- Long term relationship building with clients, agents and owners

 

What are you up to outside your work?

I am lucky to have four beautiful children (one girl and three boys) which have always kept me busy outside working and travelling. Weekends are spent out in the fresh air of the Chiltern Hills where possible and winters visiting museums and galleries, rekindling my baking skills or reading by the log fire. My parents, still alive in their mid 80s, continue to give me enormous encouragement.

 

Where do you see Art de Vivre going in the Future?

Art de Vivre has exciting plans for the future; we have launched a few seasonal property collections, there are some beautiful new properties in the pipeline, as well as some original creative content for our blog. Each of the properties for rental has a unique art & design edge to it which we find not celebrated enough in the industry and we really want to change that. We want to feed the curiosity of our art & design clients, so they can gain access to the inspiration behind the buildings, the interior design and the owners’ art collections. We are very excited by our journey so far, who knows where it will take us next...