Tuesday, January 31, 2023

Yesterday

 

Yesterday I took the #1 up to Concorde after a run to la Poste 📬 mailing out your PARIS LETTERS 💌

I briefly thought about getting afternoon tea ☕️ at Cafe Léperouse at Hôtel de la Marine and decided not.Trop cher €€€€

Rue Royale and windows were waiting
A stop in Laduree to see what’s on for Valentines
❤️Hearts on pedestals called “Mon Chou” is their Valentines theme. I bought a small piece of cake citron, telling myself I’d paint it later. Ha Individual slices come in cute little boxes (4,50€). It was trés delish.
 “Une cadeau?” The vendeuse asked. 
“Oui, madame!”I said.  
*Always say Oui and ask for some ribbon svp 🎀 Why not?
*Update Speaking of chou. More on that chou shop
Hmm…Les Dunes Blanches has FIVE shops in Bordeaux, Biarritz, Cap Ferrat etc. Who knew?
Next stop Fauchon at 11, Place de la Madeleine 
I’ve been flirting with their 2-3-5 minute tea-timer for years. 
Who am I kidding? My nick name will always be ‘Johnny-come-lately’. Some things don’t change. Are you always on time?
Next door Mariage Fréres.
They sent me an email promo for their Chinese New Year’s tea
Instant coupe de foudre/❤️love for their bunny (sorry Jeanette). 
It is the year of the lapin/rabbit. The vendeuse checked with the manager. The bunny is not for sale. 
“You will have to wait…” she said. 
No date given. 
With Easter coming, prognosis negative.
Still plenty to look at
Mariage Fréres is such a beautiful shop.
Nearby a ‘so French’ cafe 
I want to paint this cup.
The mundane purpose of my uptown jaunt? 
I badly needed a new space heater at Merlon Leroy. Cachemire-wool blend turtlenecks are great but not nailing it in my drafty chambre de bonne
*Update - All the cashmere/wool blend turtlenecks sold out on Sunday after I posted on Le Cachemire. I picked up this round-neck number…still very warm. Don’t ask me why it’s taken me a lifetime to figure out real fibers like wool and cashmere keep you warmer than acrylic blends🤔 
I still regret the mohair socks 🧦 I didn’t buy at Marché Aveyron in 2015 
I felt brave and popped into a
cashmere shop nearby, Kujten. The window says,
’Dernière Démarques’ Last markdown.
When I asked,
”Les soldés?” (Sol-day)
My pronunciation was politely corrected,
“Partout et SOLDES” 
Everything in the shop was 30% off of 300-600+€ 😳 
Veddy nice but I’m sticking with my locale brew 😊
By popular request - moi in new mustard yellow scarf & pull - elevator shot. And what Parisians are wearing.
I headed home to test out the new heater.
So that’s what I did yesterday.
The light show on the Seine never disappoints.
Browse in my Etsy shop and pretend you’re in Paris ☕️ 🥐 

27 comments:

  1. Ohhh! Love the wall of colourful tea pots in Marriage Freres! I do find in Europe (including France) I bring my own strong tea bag with me, as the cafes usually have rather weak black tea for my taste. However Marriage Freres tea is pretty classy. You look good in the yellow jumper too. I find the mix of wool/cashmere more affordable and still warm, hope you do too!

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  2. I enjoyed this post as Rue Royale is one of my favorite streets. As a matter of fact my sister & I stayed in that area on our last trip and I am pretty sure we frequented that “so French cafe”, where you wanted to paint the cup. They had great hamburgers and pomme frites. Since I am a rabbit collector I would have liked that rabbit at Mariage Freres. Hope your space heater helps keep you warm. You sure do look good in your new scarf.🗼❤️🫖🐇🍔🍟

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    1. Anonymous8:49 AM

      Rue Royale and Place de la Madeleine is a very good area to stay in Paris. You’re at the center of everything. The space heater is working fine 👍Thanks Daina

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  3. "Cheerful rabbit" will be my quiet model.

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  4. Anonymous7:21 AM

    I've loved your last couple of posts, tracking you throughout your day. They remind me of what Frank O'Hara called his "I do this, I do that" poems--so charming, and giving the vrai flavor of la vie a Paris. Thank you!

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    1. Anonymous8:42 AM

      Oh thank you! I sit at home so much pushing a pencil that when I finally get out there’s a stack of to-dos. I must look up O’Hara’s poems. I’m really enjoying doing these daily reports.

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    2. Anonymous1:30 AM

      Adieu to Norman, Bonjour to Joan and Jean-Paul by Frank O’Hara
      the only thing to do is simply continue

      is that simple

      yes, it is simple because it is the only thing to do

      can you do it

      yes, you can because it is the only thing to do

      blue light over the Bois de Boulogne it continues

      the Seine continues

      the Louvre stays open it continues it hardly closes at all

      the Bar Américain continues to be French

      de Gaulle continues to be Algerian as does Camus

      Shirley Goldfarb continues to be Shirley Goldfarb

      and Jane Hazan continues to be Jane Freilicher (I think!)

      and Irving Sandler continues to be the balayeur des artistes

      and so do I (sometimes I think I'm "in love" with painting)

      and surely the Piscine Deligny continues to have water in it

      and the Flore continues to have tables and newspapers

      and people under them

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  5. You look great in the mustard yellow!

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    1. Anonymous8:45 AM

      Thank you Jeanne. Its a new color for me.

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  6. I expected Mariage to be much larger,But certainly so pleasing on the eye.Eye candy.Loved it.
    Hope the heater is doing it/s job..no comparison real wool and acrylic..and you know I know:) No cashmere here but wool.

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    1. Anonymous8:36 AM

      MF HQ is in the Marais. They now have many petit branches all over town. The shop actually went deep in the back.

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  7. Anonymous8:34 AM

    That first picture of a grey day is so Paris ! Annie

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  8. Anonymous8:36 AM

    Beautiful sweater & scarf! I can't wear cashmere or wool, I itch terribly, but admire from afar.

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  9. Anonymous9:40 AM

    I honestly like your posts more and more! You have hit your stride and then some. Charlotte

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  10. Bobbye Trotter9:41 AM

    That looks like a dusting of snow at the Concorde. Beautiful photo, perfectly framed.

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    1. Anonymous10:22 AM

      Just reflections…snow is a rare thing in Paris 😊

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  11. Anonymous10:37 AM

    I love a cashmere blend! I have 3 that are a few years old, there are only a few months here in Arizona to wear them, sigh. I would be in heaven in the tea shop viewing the tea pots, they remind me of my teen years before I drank coffee. Good Tuesday to you Carol, Nancy

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  12. Anonymous11:04 AM

    Carol,
    I sleep in my old cashmere sweaters in the winter. I go to second hand stores for cashmere sweaters as well. You look good in the mustard scarf. I look at my Laduree painting often and wish I could be in Paris. Stay well, we got snow on East end of LI first time this winter.Dorry

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    1. Anonymous5:46 PM

      I am sleeping in the round-neck one 💤💤💤

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  13. Love the mustard scarf on you, Carol. I try and wear only natural fibers and found a great online only shop that is very reasonable. I am going to buy a space heater this week as our gas prices have quadrupled and my two story house is chilly - even in Southern California.

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    1. Anonymous5:48 PM

      Try to test it first. Mine is noisy. And don’t get the radiator oil-filled style. They do not give off heat.

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  14. Bonnie L12:59 PM

    I’m also enjoying votre vie quotidienne…fascinating! Never a dull moment in Paris. You look lovely in your new sweater and scarf. Mirrored French elevators are so convenient for selfies. Stay warm. ❤️

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    1. Anonymous10:41 PM

      Ah la vie quotidienne ! Making the ordinary interesting.

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  15. Carol--Since you've had so many compliments on your mustard sweater and scarf, perhaps you should feature a little figure of yourself in the next Paris letter. How cute would that be?

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    1. Anonymous5:49 PM

      😊 I will try Mary Lou ✏️

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  16. I'm so glad to see people in Paris are wearing comfortable shoes. Loving your scarf and daily jaunt. Yup. Real fibers are warmer, go figure. Well done on such a sweet, compact space heater. Remeber when they were big behemoths? This is perfect!

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  17. You look absolutely gorgeous in your new yellow scarf! It suits you perfectly <3 And such a beautiful photo you captured at Place de la Concorde, love it! Lovely grey clouds and the man biking. So Paris!

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