victoria & practical magic

There's a new Victoria Magazine blog party launching this week and although I decided to opt out for now I thought I would share my most favorite issue. I started getting Victoria the first year it launched so I have a huge collection since I kept every single one of them. It's a lovely romantic and nostalgic magazine and although my style has changed a bit since then I still find lots of inspiration from it. I'm glad they brought it back and I still pick up an issue now and then.



I like to keep my magazines nice and neat so almost all my copies look fairly new except for one. I carried it around so much that I eventually had to order an extra copy. That was the October 1998 issue and it was the month the movie Practical Magic came out. Victoria did a story on the house that was created for the movie. By the time I went to see the film I was absolutely in love with the house.


I know I'm not alone because I've seen entire websites and blogs dedicated to the Owens family Victorian mansion. It looked like a wedding cake and the interior was decorated in a very Pottery Barn / Shabby Chic sort of style. This was new back then since films about witches usually had them living in dark and dusty old houses.


The production designer Robin Standeffer still used dark woods but paired it with golden tones, sage and lots of creamy whites. I loved everything about it and for years this was the same palette I used in my house. I tend to get obsessive about  films that inspire me so I actually went and decorated my house in the same style. Even today I have lots of touches from that time because I love that film.



The movie itself never got rave reviews. It's much different from the book it was based on (which I loved as well) but because of all the visuals (house, garden, Sally's shop and the Aunt's fabulous vintage costumes) this is up there with my all time favorites. Twice a year I get into the mood to watch it. October, for my Halloween mood, and Spring, because most of the the film was set in Spring. There's a part in the film when Aidan Quinn's character mentions the date March 8. He used it because it happened to be his real birthday. Well it's also mine! So I always get a kick when I hear it.



The kitchen was my favorite room. It had creamy white paint and tiles, an enormous Aga stove and that long farmhouse table where they danced around during the tequila lime in the coconut scene. This kitchen is the reason I have so much white dishes and pottery and started collecting bell jars! I still love it and one of these days I'd love to live in an old Victorian with an attic at the very top where I can have my own studio and paint, collage and craft the night away. And maybe sip a midnight margarita or two!

There's a nice post here about this kitchen as well as the production designer, Robin Standeffer.

Update: I can't believe I didn't mention the soundtrack (thanks Angie)! It's my absolute favorite and I have 3 copies as well! I have the original one that came out right before the movie release and the second one because they eventually made changes to the final score. I still love to listen to it in my car. As soon as I hear that opening guitar on 'If You Ever Did Believe' I can picture that big Victorian house in a heartbeat!



7 comments:

Carousel Dreams said...

Ooh, my girls and I love this movie too, and also watch it several times a year! I love the house too! I also dream of an attic room where I can indulge my every artistic whim...I loved the house in Nights in Rodanthe as well, and the little attic room at the top....mmmmm. I shall keep watching and dreaming x

Anonymous said...

Oh thank you for this post because I love Practical Magic. Not sure why but I always wait until September to watch it. It really puts me in the Autumn kind of spirit. And the soundtrack....love it too. I've bought it three times, because i keep scratching them...lol. My favorite PM website though is Amas Veritas. Very cute. Nights in Rodanthe house is gorgeous and I got to see it during a trip to the Outer Banks. it is gorgeous. Anyhow, where it this party I haven't hear of? By the way, love the new look of your blog!

Justina said...

HAHAHAH!! WOW , you know how they say that if a group of girls start hanging out for awhile , their menstrual cycles start to sync up? I think it's like the same thing for bloggers... if you start following eachothers blogs long enough , you start posting about the same things without even realizing it....

I JUST did a whole post in tribute to Practical Magic :-D .... check it out if you'd like... I tried to find some recipes from my favorite little treats in the movie....

-Justina

Justina said...

What songs were on the original soundtrack ? what are the differences between the older one and newer one after the film was released? You know, I always wondered if there was a whole album with just the movie score floatin around somewhere... I love all the instrumental music in that movie, and can't find it anywhere... I do have the 2 instrumentals that came on the soundtrack, by Alan Silvestri... I wish there was more Score on the soundtrack !

Petunia said...

Justina it's almost exactly the same except fot the final track. Instead of the 2 pieces by Alan Silvestri it has 2 by Michael Nyman, the original composer (Convening the Coven and Maria Owens). I read they decided the songs were too somber so they went with Silvestri who created the more lyrical piece that became the main theme.

Justina said...

OOoOoO I wonder if I could find those on limewire or something!!!

Celia said...

Love this post! I love Practical Magic too and watch it all the time.....AND I did a post about it a while back on my blog too!! Can't wait for the blog party!!