Jardins Jardin

Last Thursday I went again to a favorite June Fete, the annual 4-day JARDINS JARDIN in the Tuilleries. Arriving just a week or so at the start of summer in Paris.

The second year in a row a CHANEL tour. This time through a camellia garden and into a mini lab to learn how they make their newest Hydra Beauty skincare line.

The camellia was Gabrielle Chanel's emblem, decorated her apartment on rue Cambon and adorned her first fashion collections from the 1920s.

Each flower has 65-80 petals. It takes 150 flowers to make a kilogram of flowers. 7 kilos are required to produce 1 kilo(2.2 pounds) of the Camellia Alba PFA active ingredient. Lordie.

And they gave everyone who took the tour tiny bottles of CHANEL Hydra Beauty Micro Serum, plus a camellia seed if we want to DYI.

The outfits of our Chanel guides were endearing, especially those red rubber rain boots. Not for sale sadly.

They would be perfect for strawberry picking at LA FERME DE GALLY just outside Paris.

Or do nicely whilst planting on your own terrasse if you had one rather that a tilted bit of metal roof.

For mingling with the French goats at JARDINS JARDIN? Perfection.

More rare elixir at Jardins Jardin, honey made from Paris rooftops called CITYBZZ.  

You don't have to have a garden, a bit of terrasse or a green thumb to get a kick out of Jardins Jardin.

Just plan on coming next year for the entire month of June to take full advantage all the fetes. Salon de la Patisserie starts today. I gave my free Jardins Jardin bag to PBer Pat and she kindly took this pic of my always messy desk. Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast. Share with a friend. Indulge yourself and Get a taste of Paris with letters and ROSE SALE watercolors in your mailbox📮. Why not?xxx💋Carolg and Bear🐻 in the jardin🌷

Fete de la Rose, Rose Sale, Fetes de Juin Map

June in Paris one big festival!

Bear went to the FETE DE LA ROSE at PARC DE BAGATELLE on Sunday afternoon and I've been painting roses ever since.

Most of the buses changed routes and schedules in April. Here's a good one. Catch the #244 at Metro Porte Maillol (exit6 Bd. Andre Maurois ). The 244 will be waiting. It stops in front of musee LOUIS VUITTON. Then a few stops later the gardens. Follow the dirt path to the Porte d'Honneur. Voila. 

La Bagatelle was built in 1777 and covers 62 acres.

Inside the Orangery you could buy bouquets, perfumes, rose ice cream, lollypops and get rose news.

Oh anything rose-enhanced like these sparkling waters. Just outside rose bushes to take home were for sale.

A number of guests were decked out in 18th century costume.

Or picnicking on the grass. Perfect for doodling.

The annual competition of New Roses was on. Everyone was up close and personal, inhaling deeply. Perfume can not begin to come close to the scent of these beauties.

We were given forms to vote on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd preferred roses. Plus the most perfumed. "Ah the smell of it"

We brought home this little bouquet in a bucket(3€!) Immediately we immersed ourselves painting roses so there's a SALE ON 10% off on Etsy. 

The new June Paris map fills you in on all the goings on in Paris this month.Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast. Please share with a friend. Indulge yourself. Get a taste of Paris with letters and watercolors delivered in your mailbox 📮. Why not?xxx💋Carolg and Bear 🐻 in Paris

Dijon Breakfast

Here is everything I ate in Dijon including breakfast (at Café Gourmand - nothing special but the view is grand). What a stunning historic town. Almost all the streets are pedestrian-friendly.

Head to la Place de la Liberation for a coffee or later an Apéro Spritz. 

The perimeter is lined with cafes and restaurants under giant umbrellas.

I went after a dip in a local pool (it was HOT!) to recoup and doodle.

The first Burgundian Bite was a gougere - a puffy thing with a hint of regional Comté cheese inside.

Lunch was a simple salad in Boulangerie Tartin'Art near the covered market. I went there last trip.

For dinner we were hunting for more classic Burgundy dishes.

The coq au vin was just OK from MOULIN À VENT in Place Rude.

Still a good spot for doodling. Next day I ran to the wine town, Beaune. The tourist office sent me to BRASSERIE CARNOT. In general BEAUNE is a more upscale town with the finest wines available so the cuisine and prices can get stellar.

I ate escargot three times but really I didn't need to order snails at Le  Carnot since they were included in my main, Salade bourguignonne, the best thing I ate all weekend . 

Almost every Burgundy classic was represented. Even the vinaigrette was made with Pommard, a poached egg in wine, ham with parsley. The croutons were tiny cubes of local pain d'epice honey cake adding a nice touch of sweetness.

Dessert was Clery fraises I bought from the Beaune Saturday morning market. I can promise you in either town, Beaune or Dijon you will eat very well. Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast. Please share with a friend. Indulge yourself. Get a taste of Paris letters and watercolors in your mailbox 📮. Why not?xxx💋Carolg and Bear 🐻 will not be indulging this week🏊‍♀️🏊‍♀️🏊‍♀️ahem

Carte Senior / Dijon

Remember last summer when I was jumping on trains every other day and painting. I wanted to win the DansLeTGV contest for 'things you do on the train'.Well I won 2nd prize(a very nice 200€ Of travel vouchers).

Fortunately no one else was fool enough to try painting on a moving train though some did pick up a pen or pencil.

Today I used some gift vouchers to renew my annual CARTE SENIOR. If you like taking trains in France and who doesn't its best to have a travel card. 

Plus SNCF sends you daily temptations. That's how come I went to Nice for 4 days (40€ A/R!) There are are discount cards for everyone(all 49€). 

Tomorrow morning I'm taking the train to DIJON.

To the URBAN SKETCHERS FRANCE annual meetup. I missed Aix last year.

I plan to eat everything

Burgundian.

Any suggestions of any kind are most welcome. Would you like a painting of your favorite Montrachet? Just say the word. I may even run to Beaune for a vineyard tour🥂. Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast. If you enjoyed this please share with a friend. Get monthly Paris letters, maps and watercolors in your mailbox at ETSY. xxx💋Carolg and Bear 🐻 ❤️ the TGV

Revelations at Grand Palais

When I went to REVELATIONS at Grand Palais previously it was a mostly all-French affair with just Norway as guest.

The latest edition last weekend of “Revelations“.

The 4th arts and craft biennale was a delight

Since 33 more guest countries were added.

The mix of craft artists working in so many mediums was outstanding.

Usually I'm not so thrilled by crafts but the grand scale, strong colors, variety of textures, materials and shapes made for an exciting experience.

At Revelations you had a chance to speak with the creators about their medium. Quite a few were honing their craft on site.

Revelations will be back in 2021 for another four days at Grand Palais. Its well worth planning ahead.  

All the brilliant colors and textures inspired me to do a new set of subscription bonus watercolors. Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast. If you enjoyed this please share with a friend. Get monthly Paris letters, maps and watercolors in your mailbox at ETSY. xxx💋Carolg and Bear 🐻 in Paris