You finally set the date for your big day, and now all you have to do is plan and execute. You made a list...well, it’s a few notes you scribbled on a hamburger wrapper on your lunch break. You set the menu... wait, is Aunt Linda allergic to seafood? Okay, at least you know with absolute cer…
Flowers come to us at some of the most memorable times in our lives, congratulating us, declaring love to us, and consoling us. A growing desire to eternalize those very special bouquets has revived an art form dating back to ancient Egypt. Pressing flowers (flattening their petals and leave…
Enchanting. Tranquil. Heaven. Those were the words swirling around throughout the day of our spring bridal photoshoot at Maison Madeleine Bed & Breakfast in Breaux Bridge. It was a universal sentiment among those of us visiting – and, still, among the owners and staff.
It’s been a busy past five months at the Iberia Parish Assessor’s office identifying, listing and valuing over 60,000 parcels of real estate and commercial properties across Iberia Parish for tax purposes, as they do each year. As the new assessor, Taylor Barras looks back at his first year,…
Our Spring Bridal Issue came alive as soon as model Sydni Bienvenu graced the scene. Beyond her stunning appearance and modeling skill, she’s a bright, ambitious, self- admitted tomboy who loves animals (she has three cats, two dogs, a rabbit, and a variety of fish and reptiles), riding hors…
9 Months sugarcane farmers work to produce a successful commercial crop.
The art comes through me,” says Lafayette artist Dana Manly. Her work and her approaches to creativity have become a lifestyle, she explains. “The further away from the canvas you are, the more likely it is for this ‘creative being’ to come through you. I actually back away from the canvas a…
All those years Brennon Viator sat patiently in the duck blinds, scanning the sky for a shot, he couldn’t have imagined himself one day selling a line of clothing. But being a duck hunter for 10 years revealed to him something missing in the apparel world, when he was unable to find clothing…
We tend to have high aspirations at the start of a new year, so vowing to save more money is usually at the top of the resolution list. If you’re serious about stashing away more moolah this year, read on for a few interesting ways to pinch a penny from our readers.
It’s been a challenging few years of what sometimes felt like a complete suspension of progress, but there are a few determined individuals across Acadiana who have been using this downtime to come up with exciting plans for the new year. We found a few such trailblazers who we think will be…
With so much self-reflection going on these days – hello, COVID quarantine– it was just a matter of time before we turned the looking glass on our financial habits. After all, lifestyle writers and social media influencers have determined that we all have fashion types, love styles...heck, t…
As soon as we determined the cover of our inaugural Money Issue should be fun, creative and iconic, we knew Paul Schexnayder had to be our artist. Paul has been a professional artist for more than 30 years, and his studio A&E Gallery is a mainstay for other artists and art-lovers through…
The happy task of spending money in Acadiana is not about finding places to shop, eat or stay; rather the challenge is how to narrow down the dozens of amazing choices. We wanted to know what spending $1,000 would look like in New Iberia, Breaux Bridge and Lafayette’s Oil Center, so we visit…
Why 1987 was the perfect year to launch Acadiana Lifestyle
Lafayette antiquarian Jane Fleniken was a hometown legend. In the 1960s, when women-owned establishments were a rarity, she launched a thriving French antique business. In 2001 she secured her footprint in Acadiana by purchasing property on E. University Avenue, where she demolished the exis…
If you walk away with anything after talking to Dustin Rousseau and viewing his paintings, it’s that architecture extends far beyond buildings for this artist and practicing architect. Everything he expresses on a two-dimensional canvas is via a collection of shapes, giving a sense of depth …
We’re celebrating the holiday season with a sweet, gooey monkey bread recipe from Megan Mendoza, owner and culinary talent behind Love, Megan. Whether you need a Christmas morning breakfast or a holiday dinner dessert idea, this simple, 30-minute dish is sure to win everybody over!
Perhaps you’ve heard the Cajun folklore about feu follet: a glowing light, no bigger than a candle’s flame, seen in the swamps at night by unsuspecting passersby. It is said that people are lured into staring at the light, sometimes leading to bad occurrences, or treasures, or deceased loved…
106 Myrtle Oak Ave., New Iberia | Lisa Duhe Lourd, Latter & Blum
We don’t get very many chilly months in Louisiana, but December promises to bring a drop in temperatures and a nip in the air – the perfect time to enjoy a warm drink crafted by some of the best restaurants in Acadiana.
From boutiques to speciality stores, Acadiana is a cornucopia of traditional gift-giving options for everyone on your Christmas list. But sometimes there are those people... you know the ones: Uncle Ulysses who doesn’t like “things” cluttering the house; Cousin Carla who is very specific abo…
The only thing more gratifying than sipping delicious wine that’s been thoughtfully paired with the perfect food is listening to Katie and Denny Culbert talk about it. The owners of Wild Child Wines in Lafayette bring to their shop and their customers an enthusiasm for vino and and designer …
Nicole Savoie has an energy and positivity about her that would be an asset to any historic downtown. Fortunately for Acadiana, she and her family moved from northern Texas 30 years ago, back to her father’s native hometown of Breaux Bridge, and now she’s made the “Crawfish Capital of the Wo…
As Christmassy as those red, white and pink leafy plants are, poinsettias are not the only option for the season. Florists from across Acadiana show us how to think beyond the poinsettia with trend-setting approaches to festive floral arrangements.
After last year’s more subdued Christmas, it seems only fitting to get extra excited about festive decorations this December. Incorporating new holiday ideas or changing up the look you always go for doesn’t mean a complete overhaul of your existing décor – or breaking the budget. We caught …
The people below each appear somewhere in this issue of Acadiana Lifestyle. Can you tell which of the holiday wreaths pictured on the following page belongs which person? Try matching them up by entering your guesses in the circles that accompany each photo. Take a photo of this page showing…
Having a shop of her own has always been a dream for Denise Hebert, owner of The Blue Butterfly Boutique in New Iberia. For ten years before opening her store at 141 West Main Street, she had been making soaps and candles and, for several years, also held a decorative painting business. She …
Twenty minutes south of Abbeville is a 100-acre tract surrounded by a wooded swamp called Big Woods that is off the radar for many outside of Vermilion Parish. But the work of Family Missions Company located there has brought the area a quiet and profound notoriety. It’s where people from al…
Leonardo da Vinci said, “The artist sees what others only catch a glimpse of.” Otherwise, what a boring art world it would be, if artists couldn’t see the strange in the familiar and have wandering imaginations. Lafayette artist Terry LeNoir Palmer is one whose work negotiates the spiritual,…
Whiskey neat is not for everyone, and Cliff Couvillon was out of options. He and his buddies were camping in sub-zero temperatures at the top of Mount LeConte and, although they had some good whiskey, they had nothing to mix it with, except snow...and Tang. It didn’t take long for Couvillon …
Acadian-style Charmer in the Heart of New Iberia
Working a nine-to-five in IT wasn’t for Mike Campbell, although he did it for nearly two decades. It was a “final straw” moment, he recalls, that was his tipping point to leaving that career to start something new. “Working in IT – the last thing someone is when they call me is happy,” Campb…
You most likely know the face, but chances are you’ve never heard the whole story of how this well-known personality made it to Acadiana. Gerald Gruenig’s journey from New Orleans to Lafayette is seasoned with a bit of good luck, a dose of misfortune, unexpected detours, and a cast of charac…
Most people commemorate their kitchen renovation by having friends or family over for a meal. Last April Courtney Dugas Frugé celebrated the weekend her kitchen reno was completed by baking cakes, cookies and cupcakes for three clients’ birthday parties. “It sure is a prettier place to work,…
Long before New Iberia’s art scene exploded, and the paintings and mixed-media work of visual artists were revealed, Lyndel Renoudet was creating pottery. In fact, her work has been contributing to the art community since 1984, and today she is one of only a few known ceramic potters left in…
Some experiences have an unexplainable way of quieting the senses, like a gentle wave of calm, washing over you, detangling the nerves and smoothing out the rough edges. Sound therapy is one such experience, and the owner of Bayou Lotus Studiö in Jeanerette says that feeling is actually your…
Bottled Up and Hand Labeled: Small Batch Spirits
Spoiler alert: I’m about to get bossy. And I’m hoping you will, too.
The first thing to strike visitors to Rachel Girouard’s New Iberia hair salon (A Salon by Rachel) is the space, itself, which looks like it leapt off the cover of a high-end design magazine. The Loreauville native made the loft apartment her home nearly five years ago, before transforming th…
In a long-awaited effort to bring Louisiana hunting and fishing licensure in line with other states in the region, and to generate much-needed funds to support its operations, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) has realigned the way it will issue licenses.
In the shop behind Heath Hernandez’s home, just outside of Youngsville, the owner of 2 Deep Lures demonstrates his craft, as he whips up a small batch of bass lures. He’s confident, quick, and precise – and he’s barely 12 years old.