Paris on a Plate

I wanted to call it "Paris for Dummies" (Paris pour les nulles), or "Quicky Paris" but I guess people are more skilled on Paris these days (or have a tripadvisor App), so a fashion Paris on a plate it is...

I was inspired by Garance Dore's question of what/where to visit in Paris. Reading the comments of the rest of the girls made me realise I kinda knew some good spots already: Colette, Marais & the latest hype of the & Other Stories shop. I would recommend her to go skating during Fridaynight (here), but would I like to be responsible if the great Garance would blog about her broken leg the day after? Not so much?

Nevertheless, tons of blogs have shopping guides: I'd just add my two cents to see if you like what's served on this plate:

Neighbourhood - 

Rue St. Honore

* & Other Stories

The latest member in the family of H&M, COS...only more pinteresty/tumbler-esque/etc. Funkier than Zara: I consider it Balenciaga on a budget.

shopping at & Other Stories

shoes downstairs!

When you can find things online the real shop might not entice you. But they actually had more than online. I totally passed on a black leather jacket with a white collar that I shoulda bought

LBBJ with a quirky collar detail

*Balenciaga [replace by your own fave designer]

If only for that excellent window-instalments but for me to see the real deal in real life.

Or, something I haven't dared yet: Chanel at Place Vendome

Alice Delilah is the model/face for Chanel, which gives it a cool girl feel again, just like Gabriella Chanel used to be in her days.

*Colette

Sometimes superfriendly goodlooking people, sometimes snobs...but I love their book-section.

* Tuileries

time for the park

Probably know as THAT place where all streetstyle photos are taken during fashionweek. Don't expect too many beautiful, fashionable people in non-fashionweeks. It's égalité and the park is for everyone.

Mornings for the sporty crowd:

Afternoon

The romantic crowds & the tourists

But it's still a great walk and many tourist take their huge cameras with them, so you can dress up fashionable and act like your a [retiring/overweight/underweight/in-rehab-but-almost-back-on-track-KateMossish (aka small)] model instead: it's all about attitude.

* Food

Oh right, gotta eat while you pretended to be a model at Tuileries? There is lots of sushi but I personally don't like it (I prefer Teriyaki). I'd say you throw a Marie Antoinette and head for the LaDuree instead for Macarons: Just one, and take tiny bites, and then go running in Tuileries to get the calories off (just kidding, unless you are really a model, ofcourse).

or,

Japanese Delicacies:

Something delicious from Aki Boulanger. It's a Japanese pastry shop close to the Louvre.

* Fragance

How to act expensive while you smell cheap or standard? Go find yourself to elite perfumer Jovoy and say you like something that matches your personality.

That man was startled when I took a photo

Marais:

After you escaped the decadence of Rue St. Honore, you do a complete turnaround and go vintage shopping at Marais...You smell expensive already, so it might diffuse the old stuff you will be sniffing soon.

So you basically avoided the scales after that one macaron? (Oh, who were you kidding, you finished the box within 3 minutes): Let's hit the scales for the clothes:  

Kiloshop

weighting a pink boucle coat: €23

elegant Paris: plenty of Boucle coats

another girl browsing at Kiloshop

*I've discussed  free P'shop before 't was a whole lot busier than when I visited it in 2010: total crowdness...shuffle and sniff...

 *the Old Library

To show off on instagram that you have more interest than fashion...or perhaps you could bring your camera and do outfitshots in secret (sssttt, I won't tell): that would totally be more original than the Tuileries crowd on fashionblogs, right?

always wanted to know about 19th century Photography?

 * Food

Lots of patiserries and other good food: I sniffed too many vintage to be hungry so I haven't eaten anything in Marais.

Canal St. Martin

You've seen the expensive Rue St Honore, you got your vintage fix at Marais, now some labels you like: Maje, APC & Sandro.

Canal st. Martin is somewhat like Marais before it gotten famous, I guess. It has some fab speciality shop & some excellent outlets of the big French brands, but there are not that many tourist to be found yet. The food is excellent, varying from middle East, Thai, Nepalese, Chilean and some other varieties.

Big Department stores

There is something utterly relaxing about a department store: you find everything in a smaller range and you can even sit down for a cup of coffee (or LaDuree again).

Le Printemps:

Marc Jacobs often has this gorgeous pop-op store layout. They sell Manolos too and most of the designer brands.

Galleries Lafayette

Messier than I have seen in Marseille, actually too messy, but still fun for some cheaper cashmere. But skip it if you are just in for a quicky.

Museums/art
Art is everywhere in Paris, not just the museums:

in a hall in Marais

Modern Art in window display

Hotel: this lady's having better sensual time than me

So much art going on in Paris: just pick the one that you fancy the most and forget about the crowd's favourites. Check the running exhibitions out beforehand for your own personal best.

That was my personal run-a-ton Paris.  The women at Garance Dore's blog [here] had a lot of tips/links too. Don't do too many monuments: they will probably stay there when you are 50-something and you will finally understand the value of monuments, but now...not yet! 

The Curious Case of Dropping Bottoms

[P is for....PROMOTION]

Cosmic Love? Not that much for the twin moons

I have lost my Romwe virginity recently, and perhaps like the real thing, it sounded so much better by word than it actually was.

Don't get me wrong: it was fun and definitely not traumatic. I had some designer labels that had a similar effect on me and that costed me an arm... and the leg is still attached.

Romwe gets a lot of promotion among fashionbloggers. I am not easily drawn into any hype but I gotten curious by the tons of positive reviews. However, my shopping story is probably less promotive than on most blogger's site,  so the [P is for....PROMOTION] was the P that lured me into buying from them.

I got the ultimate key-item from them: the quirky legging

For exercise...I thought they would work out (get the pun?)

Ok, do not visualise this but running with these babies had the Rihanna effect!

[showing inappropriate booty] (in my case unintentional)

They sagged off...I have no trouble with this when wearing my Calzodini leggings:

Calzedoni Italian leggings: 10 euros cheaper and they stay appropriate!

Solution: Da Unitard

Ok, the last time I wore a set like that was sweet 18 so I would not go to Zumba without a larger t-shirt floating over it. Or perhaps if I lived in a larger city like Rotterdam, that would be normal. Or perhaps they are already used to my colourful workout sets.

Have you had a shopping experience of something that was hyped all over, but you felt dissapointed about it?

Prada, Duty Free

I'm often slightly nostalgic when I reach the Duty Free shopping part of airports: pricewise, in the (older) days there truly was a difference between normal shops and the shops over there, so the reward of waiting for going on vacations was even more anticipated.

These Prada's were the ones I fancied earlier online, and trying them on before jetting off gotten me into pre-internet bonzanza of shop-pleasure.

I love a classic Havana tortoise style, and the sophisticated pink inside inside makes it quirky with a hint of fashionality. Moreover, I always love a butterfly shape for it's feminine & old-school effect on my facial frame.

vintage-ing

When talking to girlfriends there are a couple of opinions about vintage shopping: There's a team that really likes vintage, there are a couple who like it because it's quite the thing of the moment, and a part that really feels quite indifferent about it.

Let's talk about the cons:

No 1: Questionable pre-ownership

basketcase? Nope, just in a suitcase
(or, in Dutch..."toch maar de koffer ingedoken") 

Just like your last date, you really want to know why it has been disposed and where has it been? Items are being done away for various reasons: sometimes boredom, sometimes for having too many similars, sometimes because it reminds you of the ex or a lousy night out. Perhaps I'm a bit too native american-ideology (?) with the idea of pre-ownership sticking on my clothes, but that is often my personal reason why I prefer new over vintage.


part 2: vintage-itchiness...

 I'm often quick in vintage stores: I simply browse on type (dress/skirt/etc), then colour, and then I get my hands out and get touchy. I am no expert at all on fabrics but I wonder if the 1960s had a whole spectrum of fabrics that were really experimental, because....man...they itch!

 

No 3: One of the frequent complaints about vintage shopping is vintage-pong...

 "Can something be done about scent of this vintage ring"

It has discussed among my friends and I once read this blogger-article that pinpointed the scepticism I agreed upon.(article over here)

Really, the years that have seeped into the clothes: or just the moths and the mildew.

Whatever it is: you smell it, your friends do, and the people about an arm-lenght close to you too. It's brilliant when you are really beautiful and desirable and people are too touchy-close to you, however, most of us do not have this luxury and want to be attractive to people. Good scent works in this field! 

The thing is to check if the scent can be removed, or that you have a perminent cold, I'd prefer the first. So check the fabric or ask the salesperson if you can un-pong it.


 So, let's go to no 4: Faux vintage

The I♥Vintage shop in Amsterdam: all types of vintage/novintage/deadstock

 As discussed earlier, vintage has gotten quite some hype and plenty of shops jumped into this opportunity. There are also words being used as "novintage" & "deadstock".  And sometimes your plain old H&M is being sold as vintage, but that one doesn't count.

Novintage is basically new, only with a vintagy twist to it. Deadstock is like me: kinda old but not really used... Deadstock can be great, unless there has been a whole factory filled with similar items and you will not be the original you wanted to be. However, it's not too likely that it will be with the pong as they are often boxed and never opened. As for novintage, similar. It's still not a unique piece, however, there's no vintage-pong either.

I summed up some cons but vintage isn't just popular without a reason. It is fun with a bit of free time and creativity, and you can look like an original without spending too much cash and your peers will love to know how nifty you were for scoring that ultimate piece they cannot have. 

In Holland, I think we have good vintage that isn't as expensive as the UK, where the vintage hype has had its effect on the price. I have some options listed here. Also, a good one is the mondaymorning market in Amsterdam at Noordermarkt: however, be there early because the models and hipsters are really early too (I love battling models: they are often thinner than I so I have more strength when we grab an item simultaniously. But sometimes they are hungry so they fight harder because they cannot eat and need some kind of fix: it depends. As for the hipsters: they're often smaller than me but I kinda respect them if they get it earlier)

Also, look in the richer areas of your country/neighbourhood, where the rich get rid of their beauties much earlier and they're priced much cheaper in that area.

Lazio-ism and other (de-)shopping

My blog seems to be about travel and near-nude men lately, but no worries, I still like shopping.

One of my greatest surprises this week was seeing my coveted Isabel Marant's Lazio's in the largest departmentstore of or little country.

I was stunned how much I liked them. I saw them on Columbine's Smile and already thought of them as supergorgeous, but only fit for model-like calves and not the kind of legs I have.

However, with the not-so-boyfriend jeans I was wearing they looked even better than I imagined.

Gosh, how am I going to justify spending € 700 on a pair of boots?

Well, by selling my Givenchy Antigona (hopefully, but here's the link)

If you follow me you saw those ridiculously happy photos of me and the bag (here)
That was the fantasy 

Reality was: I wanted to hurl the bag to some people ridiculing me making photos with the tripod, and I disliked the fact I bought a bag that is not-really-me that I wanted to throw it in the canal afterwards. 

(that probably won't show on the photos...see, I'm a reasonable actress).

(I don't have angry-issues, btw, as long as the world is one sweet-soft-nice place. Ehm, yeh...my therapist says I'm in denial)

Anyway, I don't hate the bag anymore but I feel it's too cask-like and I feel too pretentious with this bag. It's just not love and I could make someone else happier with it.