Bear’s Paris Christmas Letter

Its one of those things. You can live with someone for 6 years and still not really know them until you have to draw them. Then all is revealed.

Both Bear and I were deeply, madly smitten with the Angelina Advent calendrier.

This is one advent calendar that did not get escape this year, even though the contents were a tad disappointing. No matter we forced ourselves to eat every last treat in 1sitting. The 24 treats are supposed to be eaten over the 24 days before Christmas, one a day...ahem.

The perfect inspiration for the December Paris letter, including portraits of Bear, friends and family.

Bear has been many times to Angelina in case you were wondering.

Galeries Lafayette is also bear-focused for their December holiday windows.

Even if they are Arctic polar bears.

All made of white paper created by Lorenzo Papace with painstaking detail and delicacy inside and through out the store. by

Inside the store a giant white ferris wheel turns with bears sitting in each compartment.

And the tree is white cutout paper as well. I think its paper..not sure, but a nice change from the usual glitz.

The Galeries Lafayette Montparnass branch has simply big bears and penguins. I was desperately looking for something to buy so I could take home their adorable Christmas bear bag.

You easily can get your name on the December Angelina letter or a friend's. Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast. If you like this post and want to support it, buy Paris letters and watercolors or forward to a friend.

Paris Advent Calendrier

All Paris is obsessed with advent calendars in November and I've caught the bug. I made the perfume map into an advent of sorts, but you need 30 24 apertures for the 30 24 days before christmas, starting December 1st.

As a general rule the advent calendar is a house with lots of opening windows. This one is from Patisserie des Reves, filled with hidden candies"

Every year l'Occitane does a whimsical house full of cosmetics. I waltzed out yesterday morning planning to pick one up. Ha! There isn't a single one in all Paris.

'Rupture of stock' they call it. These are limited editions. Grab it when you see it. You snooz, you lose. La Mere de Famille's annual candy-filled house is long gone. Boo hoo

You can still pick up a Nuxe-filled block of Parisian houses. Monoprix commisioned it and they are still around at 50€ a pop. Ouch.

Chocolatier Arnaud Larher's row of village houses looks inticing (29€) and still in stock. Yum Yum

Jeff de Bruge candy shop is almost out they told me. Last one.

Another top chocolatier, Chapon has stacked little boxes lined up like a Christmas tree.

A rather modern design from Maison du Chocolat. Advent calendars are either candy or cosmetic-filled or DIY.

You can buy plenty of reproduced old designs and fill them with whatever you want.

The carrousels are lit up in all the parks at night in Paris.

Le Bon Marché's windows have a snowball theme with flocans (snowflakes). This would make a nice advent calendar no?

More pretty lights

Every year at place Saint Sulpice, G.Thuillier has nativity pieces.

A real house with edible chocolate-covered marshmallows near Galeries Lafeyette. La Grand Epicerie also has edible houses covered in snow.

I know what I'll be doing next November. No more 'Johnny come lately' waiting to to catch the Avent calendars. Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast. If you like this post and want to support it, buy Paris letters and watercolors (no rupture in stock so far) or forward to someone who might enjoy it. 

Paris Letter Gift Bundles

It's that time of year.

Everyone is out shopping, browsing for gifts. Paris is always a knockout even if skies are grey and temps dropping. Hello Red Ridding hood!

Every Christmas since I moved to Paris I've wanted to show you the Fab gift bundles you can give yourself or others.

The box designs and ribbons are sensational.

This one caught my eye in Monoprix...they have a Big selection. You say you want that 'je n'ai sait quoi?" Well get scrubbing. I see French women scrubbing away in the pool showers. Why is this essential? They just soaked in a chlorine pool for an hour. Evidently it is.

Anything with the word 'cottage' is considered adorable & trés charmante I guess.

This gift bundle (also at Monoprix 19.95€) is a delightful steal. Everything you need for New Year's Eve including pink Himalayan salt and onion marmelade to put on your foie gras atop your pain d'epice toast. Yum Yum

You will need Champagne with that. Veuve Cliquot will cost you, but oh so worth it. Veuve's gift city metal 'sign' box is a keeper.

I dropped into La Poste office to mail out your perfume letters and noticed their wall display of my Paris letters had diminished.  They admitted some now adorned their walls at home 🥳

I decided to deck my own walls with letters. I'm not done yet but I noticed quite a few images of the beloved Eiffel Tower. Ah ha

Why not create a gift bundle of 6 Paris letter Eiffel Towers! 

Plus an Eiffel Tower giftcard to go with! What's not to love?

I wish I could include a mini-Eiffel Tower brandy bottle in the bundle.

Here's a gift Suzanne Y of California dreamed up from November's perfume map, clever girl

Suzanne says:
“I had a fun, relaxing time coloring! and it didn't take long.  though I think it looks better in real life than the picture I attached here. The paper I used is 80# Strathmore cold press 132 - it was part of a watercolor paper sampler pad and goes through my printer very easily though I had to cut it to 8.5x11 to fit the paper tray. Like I mentioned before, I've copied on 140lb arches but it doesn't always go through the printer. I used Sennelier paint in honor of painting French places but it seems less pigmenty than other brands... I like more pigment look. Smaller paint brush was easier to use than a bigger one. Now that I've had fun painting and there were only 2 sheets of paper you can send, I would prefer the outline... it's free coloring sheet!”

I tried painting one myself this morning. So much fun and just as relaxing as colored pencils

Holiday gift bundles are up on Etsy. Hooray! 

Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast. 

If you like this post and want to support it, buy Parisbreakfast letters and watercolors 

Or forward to someone who might enjoy it. 

Exposition Leonardo en France, Italian Embassy, Il gelato del Marchese

Thank you for the Thanksgiving greetings PBers! I celebrated a week early at the Italian Embassy

A special event closing of the 'Leonardo in France' exposition.

What a grand celebration! Catered by the divine Il Gelato del Marchese, 3 rue des Quatre Vents, 75006

No turkey. Just foie gras gelato plus foie gras. Every course except the Parmigiano had gelato.

Mini cornettos of ricotta gelato with bottarga.

Il Gelato brought along their adorable chariot. The guests (mostly Italians) were swarming like bees. Some came up from Italy for the event. The gold stiletto heels - to die for!

Three kinds of pistache gelato, one Iranian, one from Sicily.

Solli came along to help taste the flavors. She had mandarino, cafe and chcocolate.

Gorgeous cream puffs too, though no pumpkin pie.

Beautiful bouquets.

The Italian embassy is housed in the stunning hotel particular,  Hôtel de Boisgelin (also known as Hotel de la Rochefoucauld-Doudeauville) at 47, rue de Varenne in the 7th.

We felt like princesses let loose in a palace.

The grand Carrara staircase.

Just glorious

Not your average thanksgiving dinner bien sur.

The Da Vincis were displayed in a room lined with Sicilian mirrors.

The exhibit celebrates the 500th anniversary of Leonardo's arrival in France at the request of king Francis the 1st. Most of the paintings were copies by Da vinci's students, Francesco Melzi and Gian Giacomo Capriotti.

Exquisite.

The piece de resistance, the drawing of the head of a woman known as La Scapigliata, lent by The National Gallery in Parma. Breathtakingly beautiful.

There were maps of Da Vinci's trip into France and the Amboise chateau in the Loire valley where he created many technical drawings and machines.

I’m Carol Gillott, an artist living in Paris. Every month I send out beautifully illustrated letters 💌that capture the true Parisian experience.

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