No Reservations: My Paris Edition
Plus, meet me in Nashville this week.
On my way back from Paris where I have a quick 36 hours at home before I head to Nashville for a trunk show at Kirna Zabete with my friend, the artist/interior designer Kelley Estes. Invite below, please come if you are in the area, even if it is just to say hello.
Paris was a whirlwind, five nights was enough, but just. And it was my first Paris trip where I decided to really wing it, which is how my daughter and I came up with the name of this post, because besides our hotel and one appointment at Resee, I made no other plans, no dinner reservations, nada. Sure we had a few frustrating “where do we eat and what do we do now” moments, but ultimately, we ended up trying some new places that I will revisit.
My daughter and I stayed at the Hotel L’Eldorado at the edge of Montmartre (which I found through Yolo Journal—the site I rely on for the best travel recs no matter where I’m headed) . After blowing it out in Mexico, we needed some place affordable. The hotel is adorable and I loved our room; my only complaint is that they like their rooms dark in Paris, and I am old now and need to see things in my room. The other issue is that it is a metro ride to get almost anywhere, but the metros in Paris are easy to navigate and cleaner than NYC, so it was fine. They also have a lovely garden, but it was cold and raining every day and we couldn’t enjoy it.
Shopping
My daughter and I did have a very targeted list of places to go. I also had a shopping list (see last post), which immediately flew out of the window when I went to my only scheduled appointment at Resee, where I spent more than my allowance on a perfect vintage black Chanel boucle jacket. I met with Matty, whom I have bought things from before at Resee’s NYC pop-ups; he’s a lot of fun to shop with.
I had asked to see a Toteme leather blazer, but they were finishing up preparations for a Chanel event, a classic Chanel blazer is on my long-term wish list, and there sat the perfect one that ticked all the boxes. It was black. It had fun, but subtle buttons. It was a bit oversized so I can wear it for decades to come. I couldn’t resist.
For me, more and more it’s about vintage and resale finds, and you can get anything from recent The Row (at more affordable prices) to exquisite pieces (worth-it investments) from the 90s you won’t see on anyone else.
Then, Carven. I wanted to go see Louise Trotter’s last collection before she heads to Bottega, and guess who was in the store, arranging the new Spring collection for the influx of Haute Couture editors/clients coming in this week?! I have such a girl crush on Louise, and her clothes were far better in person than I imagined.
I gushed about how much of fan I am of hers, and came away with a skirt that is actually a twofer—a long, lean black grain de poudre skirt with a detachable lace-trimmed nude silk slip (Louise had put the nude skirt on a rack with a white tee and pearls, so you will be seeing me in that when it warms up). I wanted this blouse and these shoes. I am sad Louise is leaving Carven, it was a brief, but elegant affair.
Those two purchases immediately depleted my shopping fund, so no Paraboot lace-ups (which also seemed quite heavy) or Alaia bag (which didn’t seem near as special as the Chanel jacket). I am not complaining.
Other stores I loved: the new The Row (I asked to take photos, they politely declined, which means I should have snuck them, lesson learned). It’s gorgeous, but different than I expected because it has many street-facing windows (on the very quiet rue Mont Thabor) so it doesn’t feel as private as the other boutiques.
It also was full of classic pieces, a few I already own, or items that are so similar in feel to other clothes in my wardrobe, it made me wish I had packed them all. (Anyone else make mental notes when traveling of people who have on items similar to pieces you own and love but don’t have with you? I get outfit envy. I might be a bit obsessive.)
Envious feelings aside, The Row visit made me take note of how satisfied I am with my wardrobe in its current status. My more deliberate approach to dressing is paying off; I am so excited to get back home and wear what I already have. My youngest daughter is going to try to adhere to buying 5 clothing items this season (post Paris haha) and it’s something I am considering myself. But my first purchase might be the red sandals someone was trying on that I can’t find a photo of yet. Ugh, they are so good. I had to walk away. When I find them, I will share.
We waited in line at Buly because my daughter wanted to get a new perfume and I a comb with my initials and then we walked around the Marais more than the Rive Gauche. I skipped all the big designer stores, because honestly, much of it feels too commercial.
Finally, we went to the Marche aux Puces at the Porte de Vanves on Sunday. Everyone says get there at 7 am, but that’s not happening when I’m on vacation, plus I figured in the dead of winter it is probably not as busy; we arrived at 9 am and some vendors were still setting up. I have been to Clingancourt and the “fancier” markets, but not this one, which I enjoyed because it’s more of a hunt. I bought a couple small boxes and old postcards and was very tempted to weigh myself down with some vintage Christophle silverware (such good prices). I am probably going to regret not doing it, but another time. I will come back, because French tchotchkes are superior to most American tchotchkes. Just saying.
Side note: French Harper’s Bazaar is really good and apparently they just launched French Harper’s Bazaar Interieurs which someone else has raved about. Who knew? Print could be back!
Eating
We didn’t make any reservations in Paris for two reasons: 1) I didn’t get my act together to book the classic bistros in time and 2) my daughter is vegetarian and amazingly there are still many restaurants (all the Cyril Lignac that I am dying to try) that don’t offer anything for her to eat. That said, we had some very good meals. I would go back to each place mentioned.
Dinner:
Brasserie Lipp. Ok, not a new find, been many times, but it’s classic, and the food seemed better and the waiters were nicer than I remember. Sooo Parisian to me.
Buvette. One of my fave NYC restaurants and still like that one better than one in Paris, but it was cute and cozy on a freezing rainy night (which was every day and night on our trip, lol).
La Marine. In the Canal Saint Martin area. We happened upon La Marine on our last trip three years ago, and my daughter went back recently last fall. I can’t find it on any list, but it is very good, very lively, packed even on a Sunday night. I wish there was a La Marine in NYC, I would go often.
Drinks
Classique. An intimate, busy and not touristy bar in Pigalle with a cool but not at all pretentious crowd. A random choice, which we thoroughly enjoyed.
Lunch
Kunitoyara Udon Bistro. A sliver of a Japanese restaurant that serves fantastic udon and tempura, centrally located and near the Louvre. So good and very friendly. They have more restaurants in Paris, now on my list for next time.
Hando Parisian Handroll. I love the hand rolls at Sugarfish in NYC. I might love the hand rolls at Hando more. We stumbled upon the Marais location and managed to snag seats at the counter. (You can only eat so much French food.) It’s trendy, but super cute and just yummy.
Other Places
Notre Dame. Again I didn’t manage to get timed entry tickets but you don’t need them. It took us 10 minutes to get inside. I am so glad it’s reopened, however, it’s lost that patina that was part of its charm.
Louvre. Same deal. It took us longer, 30 minutes to get in, but we wanted to spend one hour and hit some highlights since we have been before. I am the fashion person who doesn’t like museum fashion installations (go figure), but the Louvre Couture one had some highlights. We whizzed through.
Musee des Art Decoratifs. I haven’t been in decades, but the Jeanne Lanvin apartment decorated by Armand Albert Rateau is the most exquisite thing I have every laid eyes on (and a fave Pinterest post). It’s really hidden up on the 4th floor behind other rooms, along with so many other beautiful things.
Wardrobe Thoughts and French Style Takeaways
Even though I missed having some of my clothes (mostly my Row grey suit), I was very happy with everything I packed and wore it all multiple times. It was a perfect travel wardrobe, and amazingly I am not tired of anything. Also, layers are everything.
New York women and French women dress very similarly. But, there are a few small differences I kept noticing that are easy to replicate and in my view, take everything up a notch.
French women wear leather boots, even when it’s raining. So glad I brought my old Khaite ones, which are comfortable enough to walk around in all day (I did wear my New Balance sneakers as often, but never at night). Not that there is a shortage of sneakers on French women, but a boot immediately ups your look. In keeping with the theme, I have my eyes on this Khaite pair for next fall which you could pre-order now in case you can’t wait.
A scarf, always, wrapped around rather nonchalantly.
A red lip. I brought a deep red lip palette from Fara Homidi but saw so many French women in brighter classic red lipstick, even for day, I wish I had packed this palette as well. I always want to do a red lip, but get inherently lazy because re-application seems like so much effort. I have to get over it.
A good straw bag in winter. For some reason, this older couple were, hands down, my favorite look I saw all week. Their clothes were dark, classic and looked well-made. But it was the his and hers straw bags that gave them the ultimate je ne sais quoi. Now I am on the hunt for a similar bag to hers, with stripes, that’s rather stiff. I will report back.
Sigrid and our matching DEL’EP cases And finally, the natural, less-is-more beauty French women excel at as shown here exquisitely by Sigrid de L’Epine, the founder of DEL’EP and a former French PR powerhouse (you can find my old interview of her on my site here). We managed to squeeze in a quick tea my last day and Sigrid, to me, is proof of how French women get it so right. Little to no makeup (except the occasional red lip), undone hair, but still dressed. Never trying too hard, never fussy. Like they have better things to do. And yet, they still love clothes. Sigrid is walking in the Valentino couture show this week, something she hasn’t done since she was young.
Do you think that kind of French flair rubs off on you if you spend enough time in Paris? Here’s wishing.
x
Jennifer
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The couple with the straw bags — so great! And can’t wait to see you in that Chanel and carven 🤍
We would love to see the Chanel jacket