Madame de la Lafayette

Madame de la Lafayette,watercolor on Etsy, sold 5.5" x 7.5

Parisienne Anne Corrons of MesVitrinesNYC (now Mes VitrinesParis/London) gave me a detailed tour of the first Xmas vitrines in Paris...i.e. Galerie Lafayette!

MIAM!

A fantasie tea party or two...
Dreamy Nicole Kidman-like fems...

One of them very much turned...

Upside down!
What was in that tea?

Anne tells me this means BIG Xmas!

Anne, here about to take a shot, and I'm about to go off to Philadelphia for the Holiday. Here's hoping I don't get turned upside down and you either!!!
See you next week...
BON HOLIDAY!

Tour des Macarons

Les Macarons a la cupid,watercolor on Etsy, sold 5.5" x 7.5

Brought back by popular request and to help you adjust to the upcoming excess on this Thursday...

More macaron piece montees - this one the first I spied at Pierre Herme on rue Bonaparte.

Macarons a la Laduree,watercolor on Etsy, sold 5.5" x 7.5

Laduree's quite managable tower of macs. Well I could manage it. I don't know about you...
This is definitely for a festive party occasion from Gerard Mulot...
Oddly grey-colored macarons from Laduree..?
What do you think? Odd or edible?
Lenotre had this swirling tower of macarons in their shop and I stole a shot.
A quite unique fruit and (no not veg), but macaron tower from Dalloyau at Gallerie Lafayette...
At the Salon du Chocolat, this very real tree of pistache macarons from Sadaharu Aoki.
No macs here, justs a very attractive tower of coffee cups in Cafe Richard's boutique window...
Strictly fruit for those abstaining from pumpkin pie, seen at Chateau Vaux le Vicomte.

A tower of French marshmallows or guimauve anyone? Me, me, me!

And Dalloyau's chocolate tower before I got the chastising finger...

And at Printemps, these towers of Xmas lights - inedible I'm afraid...
BON HOLIDAY!

Paris Map Fair

Les Macarons a la pistache,watercolor on Etsy,sold 5.5" x 7.5

Before I went off to Paris I was chatting about my love of Paris Maps and chocolate maps...

So when I spotted this poster for a map fair in one of the passages the following Sunday I was hooked.
Les Macarons a la framboise,watercolor on Etsy, sold 5.5" x 7.5
I'm not sure what I thought I'd find there but it was free and I LOVE maps! :)
Over at Hotel Ambassador on 16, boulevard Hausmann, there was room after room of plenty of maps...
And map dealers from all over Europe...
And throngs of people seriously perusing all the maperie...
Maps are a kind of flat art that is immediately engaging. So much imagination is implied. You can put things where ever you want them and decorate the hell out of them.

It was the crazy decorations that drew me...

There were books and books full of the things...

I love all the hand lettering too....

But particularly these illustrated cartouche called out to me...

A cartouche is an oblong enclosure originally found In Egyptian hieroglyphs and flung all over these hand-drawn maps in the most colorful and whimsical way.

So the next macaron map that comes along, I'm ready to do the cartouches. In fact I may have to create it myself from start to finish.
BON LUNDI!

Ou est le radiateur?

Not a cheminee,watercolor on Etsy, sold 5.5" x 7.5

As an American staying in a Paris apartment, you must adjust to different ways of doing things, like keeping warm - not just saying things differently.

This exquisite but nonworking fireplace/cheminee was in the Musée national de céramique Sèvres...

And there are plenty of faux cheminees to be had along rue de St.Peres...

My sister has this Prussian-style furnace - it's purely decoration.

And Micha found her 19th century furnace in the celler and installed it as a decorative object. You may have to search for the chauffage or heater in a French apartment. They are usually situated underneath the window. So they can warm up the drafts coming in through the leaky French windows?

I only found the portable radiateur in the bedroom, the last day whilst I was cleaning...ahem

You do have to wonder how anyone kept warm...

...in these grand, elegant rooms at Musee de Nissim Camondo?

No wonder so many of Ingres portraits of women show them wrapped securely in warm shawls... And no wonder the cashmere shawl was held in such high regard by the Victorians.

At Chateau Chantilly, the painting on the firescreen in La Grande Singerie is particularly lovely...

My guidebook says it was painted by Christopher Huet and was bought by the Duke of Aumale to go with the other monkey decorations in the room...

It shows a monkey schoolmaster whipping a bad cat-student, as a naked monkey sits perched on a stool learning his lessons....Hmmm

But back to the subject of French heating in French apartments.

Here are a few phrases I should have learned before my trip:
Où est le radiateur? Where is the heater?

Comment fonctionne le chauffage? How does the heater work?
L'appareil de chauffage ne fonctionne pas. The heater is not working.Or better yet simply point and say,

"Ne marche pas." It's not working.

Working or not, you can always depend on a luscious cup of rich chocolat chaud in Paris to keep you very toasty.

Have a toasty week-end!

Name The Bird

Camondo oiseau,watercolor on Etsy,sold 5.5" x 7.5

First day out in Paris at Musee Nissim de Camondo I ran smack in to a flock of birds that followed my adventures all through Paris...

No ornithologist I, so can you name the birds here at Camondo?
Another bird that looks so familiar...Hmmmm
More lovely birds whilst in the Versailles gift shop.
At the tail end of my trip, a visit to the magnificent and often overlooked Musee de Sevres - just a short trip on ligne #9 to the end and then a quick walk over the bridge - et voila - a fantastic historic collection of china from everywhere and all time periods.
At Sevres this plate commemorating American bird species -the crow?
Birds as decorative elements stalked me. Here on a tapestry chair at...?
Ah at musee Nissim de Camondo and it was a folding screen not a chair!

These lovebirds were busy cooing at Versailles on another screen...

I went to Rick's place again and spotted this old alphabet bird postcard lying around...

Just a bit of old embroidered tapestry at the Bastille brocante. Note a bird is present amidst the flowers and bunnies...

Tons of birds symmetrically arranged on the fabrics at the Musee de la Toile de Jouy. I guess birds add a touch of life to these static repetitive designs..qui sait?

Here at Chateau Chantilly , a Roman mosaic of lowly pigeons!

Much more life like than just purely decorative, these unidentifiable everyday birds in the elegant chambers of La Grande Singerie at Chantilly..

Passing by on rue de St. Peres - a great street for window gazing into very fine antique shops - these amusing birds perched on top of a gazebo in a print by Antoine Watteau...

Oddly you do not see many birds and pastry together. Except here at Gerard Mulot's grand piece montee... These birds look like they escaped from a hat to me...
BON JEUDI!

Countess Christina de Vogue

L'Ecureuil de Vaux le Vicomte,watercolor on Etsy, 5.5" x 7.5

I have been grappling with this darn squirrel paw to paw this morning, and so far the squirrel is winning...

As noted before this squirrel is on the Chateau Vaux le Vicomte coat of arms.
Plus on divine tapesteries you can buy in the chateau gift shop...
And Susanne spotted this American squirrel in residence in the same shop!
Thanks to a PB reader, who let me know the Countess would be doing a book event at the New York Alliance Francaise last night, I got to meet the squirrel's owners, so to speak...
The story of the chateau is intriguing and the Countess Christina de Vogue could not be more charming...
Elegant...
Or gracious.
Remember this gorgeous book I showed you in September?
Decadent Desserts: Recipes from Chateau Vaux-le-Vicomte
Count Patrice de Vogue, her husband, has his own fascinating book on the history of his family's aquisition and complete restoration of Vaux since 1875.
After the talk we got to taste the Countess's heavenly desserts from her new book...
By the way the chateau's amazing grounds were designed by Andre Le Notre in the 1600's and have 7 - 12 landscapers attending it's needs year round. There are 36 pools and fountains, of which 28 (I think..) are in functioning order. The grounds alone cost $1,000,000 a year to keep up. The Count and Countess live on the premises and you feel their presence in the fresh flowers, warmth and grace throughout the mansion. If you like you can rent the chateau for your wedding or any other grand event of your choice. Chateau de Vaux le Vicomte is my favorite in France in case you were wondering...
BON JOURNEE!

Les Tasses de Ch. Vaux le Vicomte

Cup from Vaux le Vicomte,watercolor on Etsy,sold 5.5" x 7.5

I was inspired to paint this cartouche by the cup I bought at...

Chateau Vaux le Vicomte during the chocolate event.
And now I'm kicking myself that I didn't buy this sweet cup at Versailles :( Why do you have to return home, before you wake up to certain missed oportunities?
The coulda, shoulda, wouldas of travel are often not evident till you hit terra firma, chez nous...
This Marie-Antoinette set was way out of my budget to say the least...
But this elegant mug from Chateau Chantilly would have done ever so nicely without breaking the bank...
Same goes for this cup and saucer from the Musee de la Toile de Jouy ...
I'm falling for the idea of mismatched cups and china hard.

HELL! What was I thinking passing these by?

These stunning glasses were out of my range to be sure. Still lovely to look at from afar...

Not a cup and not for sale but definitely fun at the Musee de Toil and well worth dreaming about....

As far as I know Boulangerie PAUL does not sell their cups and saucers... But aren't they missing out? I'd love one to add to my new collection...
Bon Petit Dejeuner!

How Much is that Macaron in the Window?

Laduree Piece Montee, on Etsy, sold, 5.5" x 7.5"

One of my obsessions is the porte-etiquette - the little Parisienne price signs in the pastry glass counters and windows...

Have you noticed I always include them in the picture?
You can dream all you want about Paris, but it's nice to know what things cost, especially these days...
It's like a reality check that tells you it is possible to walk into a Paris patisserie and actually buy something unlike Cartiers or Hermes...
Plus some of these signs give you much more info than just the price. Sometimes more than you may want to know too...
The names of these gateaux can be quite poetic or not... Can this Dalloyau cake titled "Mogador" be a reference to an island in Essaouira bay in Morocco. Do tell if you know the answer.
I'd rather shop for macarons in Paris than shoes anyday. Plus your mathematic skills can become quite enhanced in the process. Who knew?
Class, I hope you all learned your lessons well when we touched on this subject earlier...ahem
Fauchon has their own rules of mathematics - they make them up as they go along or according to the kind of box they wish to use. They will recieve a C- for this.
Who hasn't heard of the "New Math"? Gerard Mulot has a new kind of macaron mathematics - sold by the meter no less. Get out your rulers please.
In addition (no pun intended) Mulot has kindly informed us of the prices for their glorious towering cones of macarons.
Try not to fall out of your chairs class...

Meanwhile this very sweet tower of macarons from Laduree is quite reasonable, though I did not purchase one. No time. Evidently 48 hours is required to attain this lovely piece montee and all for the minor sum of 41 Euros. Pas mal...pas de toute!
BONS REVES des MACARONS!

Brocante Bastille

On Sunday night up at Susanne's adorable apartment (with the Eiffel Tower out the window), Susanne insisted I must go to the brocante at the Bastille - the best annual antique market in Paris and gave me this ticket...
The tents were set up just around the corner from me and I had been flirting with a visit...

While at Susanne's we snacked on delicious quiche from her local boulangerie. I instantly fell in love with her flatware.

From Monoprix no less!

When I saw these at the brocante...

And these! You know I high tailed it over to Monoprix toute a suite to schlep back at least 2 sets to start with. More to come next trip...pas cher either..shhhh

Someone asked why bring a tapemeasure - because of these gorgeous linens, that's why.

And lace up the whazoo!

Marie-Antoinette, I'm coming...

I love this! Have not a million, gazillion antique dealers heard this?

"My granny has the same one"
Hence the title of this boutique...

Next trip I am renting this little spot to stay in...

Or this one...perfection non?

The great schlep...no I did not schlep anything home from this fab brocante. Dommage :( Too busy taking pictures for you all! What I sacrifice in the name of blogging! It's criminal!!!

And here is where the dealers grab their dejeuner...

MIAM! (yum!)
No I did not dare - commence le regime
BONNE WEEK-END!

Les Musiciens de Lviv

My flight was at 4:30 on Tuesday, so I ran out for a last chance to visit this excellent patisserie David Lebovitz showed me two years ago and just a stone's throw from my apartment... FERME!
As were many other shops on Veterans Day, November 11th.
C'est la vie...
OK, so a last shot of my metro stop, Bastille...
My view on the quiet courtyard in Charlotte's lovely apartment. I found this with your much appreciated assistance... MERCI!

Here is the link if you are interested: http://www.vrbo.com/43745
The salon has wood beamed ceilings...
French doors everywhere.
Ma chambre / bedroom...
Ok, time to depart enfin.
Off to C.D.G. airport.
Of course I passed through Metro station Chatelet enroute. And of course the Russian singers, Les Musiciens de Lviv, were there playing their hearts out. And of course I bawled as usual...
Somehow these metro singers represent Paris for me more than any other icon like the Eiffel Tower or Laduree macarons! It makes no sense. Why? They are ALWAYS there in Chatelet playing heart-breaking music (for me anyways). So this time, even loaded with too many bags and rushing to RER B, I waved to the woman from the top of the stairs and bought their CD. YAY
Now that I'm unpacking - here are some essentials you shouldn't leave home with. EarPlanes for take-off and landing. A tape measure - more about that later. Oddibile 250, you can find in any Paris pharmacy. They're just charcoal tablets for those times when you've eaten too many escargot or macarons...and your tummy aches.
Back home again. Did I mention my studio was being painted while I was away by my kindly neighbor? So chaos awaited me...
And a chance for a clean start too. YAY! It will take a huge effort to mess this up.
An invite to La Maison du Chocolat's new shop on Wall Street awaited me too. But Jet Lag had other plans...zzzzzzzzz

I did get those pretty new Laduree boxes and perhaps the last few. Or so I was told. I even brought a few macs home this time.

This blue and white pitcher (see above amidst the chaos) was instrumental in the new look I'm giving my apartment.

Bye bye IKEA. Here's where the tape measure came in handy.

BONJOUR TOILE de JOUY!

Hello Eiffel Tower

WE DID IT!
We finally got upclose and personal with the Eiffel Tower.
Well a BIG MERCI to PB reader, Susanne, who was not letting me off the hook on that one.
Susanne just happens to live in the 7th arrondissement, so the Eiffel Tower is her very good neighbor.
On the return trip from Chateau Vaux le Vicomte, Susanne made a swing around the tower in her Smart car! YAY
The lights were just about to come on....
Five minutes every hour, the Eiffel Tower lights up like a...are there even words to describe this?
We got out of the car for a closer look too...
Susanne has her own special view out her window.
She practically owns the thing!!
Oooops I forgot to show you this fab chocolate Eiffel at the Chateau...
Here's another Eiffel Susanne showed me. I went to Bertrand's yesterday, but more on that later.

So it's bye-bye for now Eiffel Tower and Paris.

I hop on the plane this afternoon. Well I do if I can fit all my stuff back into my tiny suitcase. I'll see you soon in New York and please have the JetLag medicine ready. I'll need it!
BON MARDI!
PS I've been remiss not to introduce you to Susanne! et voila...

Chateau Chocolat

Since you insisted I attend Chateau Vaux le Vicomte's Salon du Chocolat I dragged myself off yesterday with former San Fransican/now Parisienne Susanne to check it out.
It was Susanne's first time (my 3rd) so I was the guide.
Ah the smell of it!
Throughout the chateau - it was inescapable...
Tower upon tower of chocolat...here to adorn mini crepes made-to-order...
Here - a giant tower of chocolate macaron sculpture...

This French obsession with towers goes beyond the Eiffel Tower...

...it seems...

The piece de resistance in the chateau's Grand Salon made by Frederic Cassel.

Lots of people too, but nothing like the Paris Salon du Chocolat or Versailles so completely managable.

Lots of dipping going one...

And here some chocolate "glue"
YUM!

More dipping...

Chocolate covered almonds from Mazet Confisieur.

Bien sur, Moliere was there, since he attended many balls at the chateau in former days...

And fab pastry chef Sadaharu Aoki was there in person!

...with his latest creations, chocolate-covered macarons!
YAHOO!

Plus his excellent uncovered macarons.

After we'd had our fill of all the milk and cookies etc...

They sent us off to these divine divans for a much needed nap, before trudging home laden with our bags full of choco goodies. It was quite a grand trick or treat day. Thank you for insisting I go PB readers!!!

BON LUNDI!

Just Deserts

Yesterday I was over at the Bibliotheque National in the 1st arrondissement...
Looking at historic pictures of pastries...
For some reason these engravings inspired an awful craving...hmmm But there was not a single patisserie to be found in the area! Believe me I looked hard.
Finally hours later, I ended up at Patisserie Gerard Mulot in the 6th arrondissement, master pastry chef with more choices than you can imagine.

A plethora of choices.

Which one would you choose?

Savories anyone? You can also buy dinner at Gerard Mulot...

OK non. Back to just desserts.

How do you choose?

Bien sur you can never go wrong with Mulot's macarons.

My choice - lemon, pear-caramel, caramel, pistache...

The bill - we will not discuss the calories involved...Jamais!
BONNE WEEK-END!

Le Pourpre et le Noir

The other day Margaret said...I am really enjoying your blogs from Paris! A question...what are they wearing in Paris this week? It looks as though everyone is very casual.

Yesterday I had expert Parisien, Anne Corrons as my fashion guide to les nouveaux Looks Automne. Remember, Anne has the blog, MesVitrines NYC. Now she's back in Paris shooting les vitirines ici.
And Anne says: Le Noire et le Pourpre are the trend/tendance this year.
Suddenly I began seeing black and purple everywhere!
And sleeveless fur shrugs are in!!!
And these shorts...
So where should you go for these goodies?
Les Petites par exemple is very in.

Oh another wrapped look....

And Zadig et Voltaire is hot hot hot! *Note the purple in the vitrine..

Plus, did I say that Anne says the skinny pants are still in..?

Anne says ALL Parisien girls shop at Le Comptoires des Contonniers. Oui, c'est vrai...

And Sandro is another not-to-be-missed boutique. These can all be found in the Marais by the way.

Did I mention that Carla Bruni shops at Zadig et Voltaire? That's what Anne says and she knows. Please stop by Anne's MesVitrines NYC for more inside dirt on Paris fashion and vitrines.

BONNE SHOPPING!

YES WE CAN

6:00 AM Paris

Barack Obama promet le changement et appelle à l'unité.
BONNE JOURNEE!!!!!!!!

Chateau de Fontainebleau

Chateau de Fontainebleau anyone? For all of 23 euros you get a Forfait Loisirs at the Transilien guichet in Gare du Nord that provides you with train/bus/ chateau entry, illustrated booklet plus audio guide!

The lovely weather is a tossup that worked in our favor.

I met two Aussie sisters, Janet and Sue in the train station...

I think I have been in more grand halls this trip...

...than patisseries! But I intend to fix that.
Not that there is anything wrong with grand halls..

Marie-Antoinette's boudoir...Any number of royalty resided here and left their thumb print - Francois I, Henry II and IV, Napoleon I and Josephine, Empress Eugenie, even Pope Pius VII was held prisoner here for 2 years...

I'd like to be held prisoner in this former bedroom...

Now a stairway...

I'm in love with these sculptures...
And this one too...

Janet, Sue and I ate our sandwiches in Goddess Diana's tranquil garden. Then I wondered off to town to check out the macaron situation...

Ah ha! Yes Fontainbleau has macarons! A bit plain vanilla looking in my opinon...

Same goes for this tower of macs...

The best macarons are at Frederic Cassel's patisserie - but they are closed on Mondays :( I'd just begun to think it was time to begin walking Paris' streets instead of another ballroom when...

I saw this sign at the Fontainbleau train station - Chateau Vaux le Vicomte is having their very own Salon du Chocolat this weekend! For thr first time , Vaux le Vicomte will be hosting a new Chocolate fair inside the chateau. Chocolate makers will be inside the chateau to tell the visitors their secrets, demonstrating their art, and of course letting them tasting and buying their woderful products..bla bla bla

I CAN NOT miss this can I PB readers?

You get to decide!
BONNE VOTING!

What I did last week-end...

Sometimes PB readers write me that they'd like to tag along to Paris...

Believe me you wouldn't..sometimes I wish I could skip it...
Friday morning I took the train to the chateau de Chantilly to see the newly renovated Grand Singerie...

The whole chateau is quite magnificent but this one small room is mind-blowingly beautiful...
One small detail among many others that leave you in awe. No one is quite sure if Wateau or several other artists painted these murals since they're unsigned...
Back to Paris after lunch to visit Musee Carnavalet - the history of Paris museum in the Marais..
I'm collecting bits of Louis XV details...
On walls...
On frames, like this one at the Musee Cognacq-jay a few blocks away...
Saturday was a "lite" day. I only made it to the Musee des Arts Decoratif.

There was a "Red" exhibit going on...

Plus red fire engines (toys) and red everything!

After lunch with my cousin, off to the Opera Garnier.

Spectacular!

On Sunday I took the RER to see the Musee de la Toile de Jouy...just on a whim.

What wonderful fabrics...

But don't go on a Sunday if you want to buy any.

The fabric shop nearby is closed :(
C'est la vie.

Enfin, a visit to la Musee Pierre Herme...

I needed to bring a friend a petit cadeau - this one!
Only 2 photos are allowed now in PH!? So arrest me :)

Today I'm off to Chateau de Fontainebleau. Are you still with me?
Tomorrow, I hope to just walk around my neighborhood and visit enfin the marche d'aligre. Or else!
BONNE SEMAINE!