paris breakfasts

Tea at Downton Abbey

2012-02-10T09:41:00.001-05:00

Are you a Downton Abbey addict too? Who is not enthralled...

Have you considered the three Downton sisters fit the classic sibling trio parfaitment?

Eldest daughter, Lady Mary, of whom much is expected, is bossy, a tad arrogant and the most priviledged of the three.

Middle daughter, Lady Edith is certainly neglected. Her parents have chosen her to look after them when they're old, but Edith has other ideas...ahem

Youngest daughter, Lady Sybil is wild, free and tempted to cavort with the household Socialist chauffeur, Branston - typically naughty. By the way, did you know the British version of DA is longer? You can watch the original uncut version on Amazon.

But on to other things like tea in London - I'll be there 3 days in March and much ground must be covered. I'm fond of Tea & Cake/London, though I waited till I got home to order it...silly me.

More than 70 tea salons in mouth-watering photos + vital info. I haven't been to Peggy Porschen's Parlour at 116 Ebury Street, Belgavia SW1. Have you?

I just finished cover artwork for Peggy's newest book, Boutique Baking, out in the Spring.

A few preparatory doodles...

My other favorite go-to guide for London is, Shop Image Graphics In London.

Design has to play a part where you go in London doesn't it?

Peyton and Byrne never disappoints for ultimate Englishness both visually and tastebud-wise...

Thank you PBer Karen for sending me a shot of menu art I did for Maison Blanc patisseries...

Do you long to immerse yourself in Downton Abbeyness? Just hang out in front of Fortnum and Mason's windows. Or better yet go inside and pretend to be a Duchess...

My fav go-to gouter/snack in London is eaten sitting on a bench not in a fancy tea salon. To-die-for Ottolenghi take-away lemon/passionfruit tarts...sigh

Art by ?

I wish I knew where I shot this picture in London, but very adorbs no?

Bon Weekend PBers!

Adult Time

2012-02-09T11:10:00.003-05:00

Hanging in there still with Pamela Druckerman's Bringing Up Bebe, is the importance of 'adult time' for French couples..

Chocolate Ribbons

French parental rituals of upbringing have a specific purpose - so parents can get back to being a loving couple again a toute a suite.

How appropriate for Valentine's Day.

Chocolate Hearts

As expat Deborah Ollivier puts it so well, 'Though they love their kids passionately like everyone else, the French generally don't subvert their identities to the lives of their children'.

'Boundaries, in other words, are good, particularly in protecting the sanctity of parents' private life. (No, Marie-Louise, you may not sleep in mommy and daddy's bed. And yes, Jean-Pierre, you must sit at the table every night for family dinner and eat correctly'.) says Ollivier.

Chocolate Bisous

From the book, "For me, the couple comes before the children," says Virginie, the stay-at-home mom who taught me to "pay attention" to what I eat".

If you live in Paris you could take a cooking class to prep for your Valentines' dinner at L'Atelier des chefs.

Or peruse one of many cookbooks for lovers...

What about a stunning new hot pair of shoes to wow your honey?

A new red lipstick peut-etre?

So what are you doing special for Valentines Day PBers?

Do tell all.

Bringing up Bebe

2012-02-08T11:13:00.002-05:00

Have you ever eaten whilst standing at the refrigerator? Probably not...

How about eating by the sink? Jamais!

Multi-tasking/eating in front of the computer? Are you kidding?

After reading Pamela Druckerman's Bringing Up Bebe, Bear and I are trying to change our wicked ways...

Yesterday Bear sat down a table and had a 3-course lunch = Mindful eating. Yahoo

French kiddies do this everyday at the creche starting at 9 months.

Watch David Turecamo's film for CBS on French kids' lunches. It will knock your socks off and prove the point Druckerman makes in Bringing up Bebe. French infants start early on a 4 times-a-day feeding schedule (8 am - 12 noon - 4pm - 8pm) just like their parents. A sample menu of kids lunches - mon dieu

The concept of the 'formule' offered at lunchtime restaurants is a replication of what kids eat at pre-school and daycare - the 3 course meal a la Francais.

Parents are encouraged to prepare vegetables different ways so a child will taste ('just one bite') and experience a variety of foods. The first food infants get is often pureed vegetables not rice.

Do French kids eat sweets? Of course they do, but at snack time/le gouter 4:30 in the afternoon. Have you seen French kids walking around clutching bags of chips or cokes? Jamais presque. Snacking between meals is a non non. Is it any wonder French women are thin? (Bear and I could happily munch popcorn and marshmallows hourly but that's another story).

Dessert at dinner is often fresh fruit or compote. Have you too noticed the aisles of compote at the supermarket?

Have you ever turned up at a Paris bistro at 7:30 and the place was vide/empty?

Come 8pm every seat will be filled. The French do not forget their early training.

Bear's breakfast today - we're trying to eat a la Francais.

It ain't easy. Sometimes we get out the dolls and practice eating a table instead of in front of the computer.

Bon Chance!

Bringing Up Bebe

2012-02-07T10:04:00.000-05:00

Have you wondered as I often have how come French kids are so bien-elevee/well-behaved?

They do not seem to be at war with their parents...

Expat American Pamela Druckerman's Bringing Up Bebe has many of the answers I've been seeking...

Plus (perhaps unintentionally) answers what makes the French...so French. Why the culture is the way it is. Even why French women are thin.

It begins in infancy and even before. French women experience pregnancy as a 'spa' period to lather attention on themselves. Pregnancy is not as a research project.

Druckerman is a former Wall Street Journalist living in Paris for 10 years with her British husband. As a new Mom with 3 young children she became curious about French parenting. Should her first-born enter a creche/French daycare at 9 months? Would this effect her child's development? Where were alphabets in the classrooms? What were tots 'learning'? Compassion and respect for others. Do read Judith Warner's reponse in Time on Bringing Up Bebe.

French parents believe in creating a secure 'cadre' or frame for a child to grow and discover life within. "The French believe it's important to be very strict about a few key things, but then to give kids as much freedom as possible about the rest. You can really see this at bedtime. French parents tell me that at bedtime, their kids must stay in their rooms. But within their rooms, they can do what they want", from a Druckerman interview.

Learning manners is foremost in French upbringing.

Have you tried walking into a Paris shop or cafe, asked directions of a French policeperson without saying the 'Bonjour' first? You'll understand instantly the importance of Bonjour as well as au-revoir, merci, s'il vous plait.

Parents assert authority when needed with 'non' and 'les gros yeux'/the big eyes to let a child know when they're stepping over the limits. But author Druckerman says," 'the big eyes' works best when there is mutual respect...strictness comes with flexibility...giving kids autonomy and choices".

French children learn early to wait/attend. To deal with a bit of frustration.

The way French parents and children deal with food is such an eye-opener. I'll post more tomorrow on that one. For sure most French children could pass 'The Marshmallow Test' with flying colors. Instant gratification is not encouraged. Learning to wait is.

Many French toddlers bake every weekend. With parents nearby but not directing too much. I was allowed to put the raisin button on the gingerbread man and lick the bowl (not allowed for French children). That was it. I never got to make anything from scratch. No wonder I can't bake #$@ macarons.

I'm always interested to see the plethora of children's cookbooks in France. Now it makes perfect sense to me.

Photo by Ernst Vikne

Alone time is important for French children. Learning to play by themselves and become self-reliant is highly valued. I was scolded for spending hours drawing and cutting paperdolls by myself.

"Why don't you go outside and play like other kids", I was told relentlessly. I never paid attention then and I still don't go outside enough probably...

The one subject Druckerman doesn't go into in depth is the French doudou. Perhaps that's my turf to map out. Qui sait?

Clearly you don't have to have kids to find Bringing Up Bebe interesting. If France interests you (would you be here if it didn't) then much will be clarified about French culture. Druckerman's book is hilariously laugh-out loud funny as well. I'll address French food issues tomorrow. Bear has a lot to say about that. Watch a video on the WSJ of Druckerman here. And here is Druckerman en famille in Paris & NYC.

rue des Martyrs

2012-02-06T09:04:00.001-05:00

Every single trip to Paris I meet up with my second-cousin, Kristine (an Older French Girl par excellence) for Sunday Brunch in Pigalle - she lives in the 9th...

We always go to English-style Rose Bakery (my preference not hers) at 46, rue des Martyrs

I always get their yummy mixed salade plate (14 euros) and Kristine always gets the smoked saumon(14 euros) and we share.

We never get dessert (le crumble, carrot cake, scones etc.) at Rose Bakery because Kristine (a retired dental surgeon) does not eat sweets except chocolate. (In France chocolate is a separate food group).

After we part, I always cross the street to patisserie Delmontel 39, rue des Martyrs.

And torture myself choosing among the gorgeous delectibles...

A Sunday walk up rue des Martyrs is full of torture and delectibles...

Like this tarte fine abricot from a corner patisserie...

The food browsing potential on Martyrs is endless...

Pets like to browse here too...

Fromage/cheese? mais oui, beaucoup

Seafood...also beaucoup.

Terra Corsa at #42 is for Macaron Jill, married to a Corsican...

You don't have to be a meat-eater to appreciate French boucherie in my opinion. Visit rue des Martyrs between 10 - 2 on Sundays for a real Parisian neighborhood jaunt (not many tourists). But get to Rose Bakery before noon for brunch if you don't want to wait in line for an hour...

See You next time Cousin Kristine!

Unboxing Kindle 3G

2012-02-03T12:41:00.000-05:00

Much as Bear and I love opening pastry boxes...ahem

We have a BIG problem with techie boxes. Some things sit in their boxes unopened for months or longer :(

When the new Kindle 3G arrived on Wednesday we looked at the box a lot...

Finally we decided a post on PB would do the trick. We'd have to open it. Ta Da

Being a tad dyslexic, instructions send us into a tailspin. There's a nice video here on opening and setting up your new Kindle. We played it safe and called Amazon 866-321-8851

Doodly-doodly-do We're uploading

What drove us to get the %$#Kindle unboxed and setup?

We wanted David Lebovitz' Paris Pastry Guide.

Granted we bought his app for our iPod Touch (which is gathering a lot of dust unused in a drawer).

HMPH

The Kindle seems a LOT EASIER :)

Should we have gotten the Kindle Fire for color?

YUM

We'll manage. It's the useful info we want and less visual temptations won't hurt a bit.

AND we're loving the 'Daily Deals' Yahoo

Thanks La Table de Nana and everyone else for all the useful Kindle tips last Friday

Bon Week-End!

The Sibling Effect

2012-02-02T10:25:00.002-05:00

Are you an older sister/younger brother/middle child? An only?

Of late I've been enthralled with books on birth order and child-rearing. Jeffrey Kluger's The Sibling Effect has been an eye-opener and life-changing in how I view my older sister.

Photo of Istanbul Street Kittens by Louisa Shafia

Listen to a terrific interview with Kluger on NPR. I'll be quoting him liberally here.

'What goes on in the playroom is a little bit like kittens wrestling. Kittens aren't really trying to hurt one another when they bite each other in the neck. They always hold back. But what they learn and what they learn when they're wrestling is what they'll use later when they do kill a mouse'.

What is it about older sisters/brothers vs. younger sibs?

'true that firstborns will be the most successful. They will be the ones who earn the most. They will be the ones who are most loyal to the family, most driven to achieve in traditional ways. They will also be the tallest, even if it's only by a few centimeters, and they tend to have higher IQs by about 3 points over the second-born...

The rules are looser for younger sibs and they get priviledges earlier - they tend to be wilder, more innovative, more empathic, more observant...

mais oui

Does this carry over into later life? Does it effect how we deal with other people?

I recently chatted with an old friend who bosses me around.

I asked her,"Are you an older sister?"

"Of course." she said.

Ha. That explains everything...

What about 'onlys'?

'Kids who grow up in a single-child playroom and kids who grow up in a multiple-child playroom tend to have different approaches to the world and tend to have somewhat different conflict resolution skills'.

'21 of the first 23 astronauts were either firstborns or only children'

Were you a middle-born child?

Middle children sometimes lose out on special attention but they develope coping skills by ecoming more observant.

Perhaps you're a member of a large family? Birth order can change with divorce/remariage sometimes in your favor or not. So many variations on a theme...

Were you Mom's favorite? Or Dad's?

Younger sibs may or may not mimic their older sibs. 'Siblings who hope to stand out in a family often do so by observing what the older child does and then doing the opposite'. Boy was that me to a T....

My niece says my sister and I are different as chalk and cheese...

Yet Kluger repeatedly points out, your siblings are the ones who know you the longest and the best.

'To have siblings and not make the most of that resource is squandering one of the greatest interpersonal resources you'll ever have'.

Kluger's book is full of personal family anecdotes (often hilarious) balanced with scientific data. Read the 1st chapter on Amazon and see if you're not hooked.

Bonjour Siblings!

Paris Librarian Look

2012-02-01T13:30:00.002-05:00

I saw quite a few examples of the glam 'librarian' look in Paris

In windows/ vitrines and stores if not on the street, but I forgot to look...

The Woody Allen '4-eyes'-coke-bottle glasses seems to be in with Paris oculists...

Actress Louise Bourgoin wears 'Woody' glasses and looks adorbs non?

Hot and sexy with just a pink scrap of Vichy check fabric + your lunettes/glasses. Pourqui pas?

All top designers make FAB lunette for Parisians...

Jean-Paul Gautier likes triple arms...

How to accessorize your 'librairian' look?

The Art of Writing supplies quill pens, perfumed inks and kid school satchels...

Passage Cour du Commerce Saint André 75006

Edible lunettes! The best kind.

The French Scarf

2012-01-31T11:03:00.000-05:00

Does your average French person leave the house without wearing a scarf?

I doubt it.

How-to-tie your scarf is demonstrated everywhere you look.

Scarves are non-gender, non-seasonal accessories.

Do French infants wear a scarf in their cribs? I have to do further research...

The stripe scarf is a French classic. You can not go wrong wearing a stripe scarf.

Four variations on tieing your scarf.

Here's a scarf that grew into a coat...

Your classic cardigan can double as a scarf in France. Pas de problem.

Tintin gets away with it...

Even some French parfums don a scarf...

Scarf around a baguette? Bien sur.

The classic Saint Honore wears a kind of chantilly scarf non?

A traditional Fr couple - La femme is scarved. Monsieur appears to be scarf-free.

Bear does NOT wear a scarf. Does this make him less French? Should he get one ASAP? What do you think?

Boxed In...

2012-01-30T11:02:00.001-05:00

It's no secret I have a love affair going on with French boxes...

My collection keeps growing...

At this year's Salon du Chocolat there was a special 'Professional' section to view suppliers of boxes, ribbons, ingredients etc.

River Pack makes Pierre Herme's innovative boxes as well as Cafe Pouchkine and other 'couture' patissieres...

Embaline Cartonnage de Luxe is another fancy box-maker. Drool...drool

Upstairs at the Salon I loved Arnaud Larher's lunchbox style candy box..

And my favorite and it's contents (flavored-chocolate faux macarons) was tiny - just under 3" square but inside soooo delicieux

Sadaharu Aoki puts great thought and wit into his boxes...

He was at the Salon as always to chat with consumers...

Boissier does the prettiest boxes. I'd love to visit their salon de the in the 16th...

More faux macarons - these are really almond candies/calissons d'Aix -

Real chocolate-dipped macarons in a plain see-thru box - miam

Box-shaped chocolate snacks were provided for 'professional' viewers at the Salon by Lenotre - how we suffered...

Do you want to see more Paris candy boxes?

I have more to show :)

Book, Nook, Kindle?

2012-01-27T09:51:00.001-05:00

More often than not when I visit the musee Louvre I avoid the lines...

And go instead to the Louvre bookstore under the pyramid.

It's never too crowded...

You can check out other exhibition catalogs on in Paris...

I'm a book-aholic. I love bookstores. I'll never give them up.

But I decided finally to give in and get a Kindle.

There will be books I won't be able to read on it...

Or maybe not?

At least I'll finally be able to read in bed not just on the subway...

Pestering Kindle readers on the subway and reading La Table de Nana's kindle post made up my mind.It is lighter than carrying a book around...

It might be nice to have some travel books in my bag in Paris,

Like Thirza Vallois' guide to the 1-6 arrondissements...

One thing you can't do with a Nook, iPad or Kindle is rest your hot teacup and macarons on it...

Do you LOVE your E-Readers PBers?

Do tell all!

Tarte Fine

2012-01-26T11:42:00.003-05:00

Tarte Fine au Pomme, watercolor, 9" x 11"

To find a tarte fine aux pomme in Paris look for glass paintings near the doorway of cows, chefs, wheat sowers etc....

Your everyday, no-name, corner, neighborhood patisserie like this one (on rue martyr 75009) will have les tartes fines...

Basically a tarte fine is a flattened round crust (usually pate sucre or feuilletee) layered with multiply thin slices of fruit in a spiral pattern. It can be savory as well with tomate/aubergine/basilica etc.

The top is liberally painted with a brush full of abricotage (apricot jam glaze).

The tarte fine comes in 'individual' sizes or family size. Not so pretty an example here but it tasted divine I assure you...chomp chomp

Usually your tarte will be wrapped in pretty fruit- decorated paper that acts as dual napkin/holder...

You will not find many tarte fine in high-end 'couture' patisseries like Fauchon, Herme, Lenotre, though their pastry chefs learned their tarte skills at their grand-mere's knee bien sur. Is it a snob thing?

If you see chef figurines inside a Paris pastry shop, you'll see tarte fine too...

Hand-written ardoise/blackboards announce the fruit flavors of-the-day...

A tarte fine aux fruits makes a great 4 o'clock snack in my opinion - the next best thing to eating an apple...

Sometimes it comes in an adorable illustrated pastry bag worth collecting if you're into Paris trash...

What's not to love about la tarte fine?

Collecting Paris Ducks

2012-01-25T10:23:00.000-05:00

Collecting ducks in Paris...

Doesn't cost a euro...

Unless you're into foie gras...ahem

No ducks in fromagerie Barthelemy's vitrine, just cheese and chickens...

Easter time brings out a gaggle of geese in Paris bien sur...

You can find canard a foie gras anytime but especially at New Years...

I wonder who makes all these darling ducks..?

A duckling nightlight would be fun...

Real farm ducks (and goats) come to Montmartre Sundays for the kids. Not in New York...

eCollegeFinder has made me a contender for a Top Writing Blog award! Who knew? You can vote for me here as many times as you like until Feb 3 :)

Merci en avance

Combien?

2012-01-24T10:18:00.001-05:00

Prices are always clearly posted in Paris/France merci dieu.

I think it's the law. Particularly when it comes to bread/pain the government sets the prices/prix and they MUST be posted in the window/vitrine no less. Ha! Try and find this in the US anywhere. So many places don't post prices. It's a snob thing here...

Even the fanciest places like patisserie Christian Constant post their prices loud and clear. It does make the decision process easier don't you think?

Lunch blackboards/ardoises in the street are a great aide...

If you see the word 'formule' in a lunchtime menu - that's the best thing to order. The best deal for what was bought fresh from the market that day. Everyone around you (if they're French) will be eating it. It makes sense and cents.

At the creperie there are so many prices you could go nuts. As a rule when I'm abroad I think of 10 euros or pounds like $10. It's the standard everywhere and easier than checking dollars on your calculator. Forgetaboutit.

I adore French signs...

Some of them are quite artful and personal like at the market/marche...

Here the flowers are nicer than the signs or porte-etiquettes...

High-end Pain du Sucre tells you how much that verrine is going to hurt yr purse...

The variety of price signs fascinates me endlessly..I could look and look

Here the price sign is popped right in the middle of the tarte! Does it come with the tarte too?

I wouldn't mind being this woman in Montmartre for a day putting up price signs. Maybe then I'd get this obsession out of my system...

BONJOUR LE PRIX!

La Grande Epicerie

2012-01-23T09:16:00.000-05:00

Paris People Watching 5.5" x 7.5"

A terrific place to people watch and perhaps to shoot is La Grande Epicerie...

The latest of fashion is on display at La Grande Epicerie...

But I'm attracted to les madeleines...

And les tarte citrons...

Chocolat chaud is always on my browsing list...

I am mostly a browser at La Grande...what would I do with fresh eggs in my bag?

But I adore their egg boxes colored just like...

Macarons!

Here mini macarons you fill yourself..Hmm...perhaps I could fool Jill that I made these myself :)

The walls of chocolate bars, the endless array of pastries (and wholesome fresh veggies too btw) could easily drive you to distraction. So many choices...

La Grande Epicerie has just the thing to help you with your indecision - Delo Destress, whatever that is...

And for the weight-conscious minceur/diet pills and exercise bands. Everything is thought of here.

I HEART La Grande Epicerie for the eye candy and the people watching.

Have you been here to drool too?

Shoot From The Hip in Paris

2012-01-20T10:46:00.003-05:00

Sometimes you ask how I get my shots in Paris. Camouflage(dressed in black) and shooting from the hip.

That's how I caught this oh so French couple - elegant Older Fr Girl and her companion wearing a Yankee's baseball cap. (Last week an authority said French men do NOT wear baseball caps. Ha!)

I shoot to sketch later. The Sartorialist I will never be.

At dinner last week a friend remarked in frustration,

'We had a meeting today with the French - their hair was unwashed, no makeup, yes they were skinny but they looked so %#@!chic!'

The Canon PowerShot S95 is my trusty companion to shoot on the sly in Paris always set on Auto....

I love shooting the French from the back...

Backs can be so revealing of character...

What's not to love about this French kid's swagger?

The side view works too...

I prefer not to be invasive on the street...

I'd rather not ask permission but I try to be discrete in what I show you...

Sometimes I get caught...

Red-handed...

There's no age limit to getting caught either...

I always get caught by the sharp-eyed guards at La Grande Epicerie but that will never be a deterrent ever.

BON WEEKEND & HAPPY SHOOTING!

Paris Pastry Signs

2012-01-19T13:07:00.004-05:00

Everyone talks about the famous French 'attention to detail'...

I'm always interested how Paris pastry chefs 'sign' their creations. Those little tags, usually edible, usually chocolate that carry their 'John Doe'. Gerard Mulot signs his works multiple time in white chocolate here...

La Maison du Chocolat use their brand icon (a Mexican metate to grind chocolate) quite discretely almost as an afterthought...

Cafe Pouchkine, on the other hand, goes all out with a gold airbrushed chocolate tag in Russian no less!

Here Pouchkine goes over the top (OTT) with an edible chocolate ribbon to boot. Does this gateau come with a Russian dictionary?

New Paris Hotel Oriental Mandarin makes their signature tag part and parcel of the pastry. How nice is says.'J'aime Paris' instead of a logo...

At Lenotre, you get a chocolate 'rubic' cube. WOW

Sebastien Degardin combines a paper logo on top of chocolate - the best of both worlds I suppose...

Sadaharu Aoki always decks his treasures with white paper name tags. Pourquoi?

Fauchon too follows the paper trail but uses different colors. I have many of these saved and tucked away for a rainy day or something...

Master Paris pastry chef, Pierre Herme always tags his pastries with a little round yellow paper signature. I would deduce he doesn't want any outside flavors to influence his masterworks. Nothing this man does is not thought out with great attention to detail.

Your average neighborhood Paris patisserie...

Will rarely mark up their pastries with an icon or chocolate signature...

This is not to suggest their tarte abricot fine is any the lesser for it. If only I could learn to eat the crust...

BONJOUR PASTRY SIGNS!

Resolutions and Green Smoothies

2012-01-18T11:23:00.001-05:00

So we're back in the kitchen for some fun, games and catastrophes...

Natch, like you I spent the New Year's holiday repenting December's marshmallows and gingerbread. After watching Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead I was ready to turn a new page. I rejoined my pool (after a 4 month hiatus), ordered a new suit on Amazon (it has to stretch and I have to shrink) and decided to make Green Smoothies!

Luckily I have a terrific niece-chef-author, Luisa Shafia of Lucid Food who has the easiest Green smoothie recipe out there - no Breville juicer required! Just a blender.

This is my first smoothie ever and I gotta say this is not bad at all. In fact it's darn good! I'm hoping/praying one a day will put me in fighting shape for Paris pastries come March. Try it. You'll like it :)

With the leftover kale I made kale chips. These do not taste like potato chips IMHO but maybe I'll adjust...ahem

Why are the streets of Paris paved with fabulous bread but I can't find anything I like in NYC?

I read about Scandinavian Brodmix Flerkorn you can make in a box at Ikea Brooklyn and ran to get some.

It took enormous will power to resist Ikea's gingerbread cookies (on sale too).

And Swedish fish! miam miam

I did succombe to Ikea's smoked salmon. miam miam

Yesterday I did hand-to-hand baking combat with the brodmix. Basically you toss 2 1/2 cups water (20 oz.) into the box and shake violently. Then toss into a baking tin. Let ferment 45+ minutes.

I threw in extra seeds for more grit...

Bake for 1 hour at 400 degrees in a well-greased pan.

The bread tastes delicious and is supremely grainy and nutty the way I like it.

I just can't get the damn stuff out of the pan! I need an electric drill to remove it.

Any suggestions PBers are most welcome.

Happy New Year's Resolutions to you too!

Mini Paris Monuments

2012-01-17T11:16:00.003-05:00

Paris has more monuments than any city on the planet...

I was looking again at the Paris bus guide (75+ buses included) and one spread (Bus 42) could keep you busy for two weeks hitting all the high points...

Not all Paris monuments have to be monumental don't you think?

Like the Wallace fountains spotted around Paris...

I love those presse kiosks and the ad columns 'Colonne Morris' (merci marie et Veronique!).

The Metro signs are another favorite mini monument...

What about the French beret or street signs..?

Dejeuner in Paris is a well-loved mini monument...

The ardoise/blackboard is another fav...

Can a Paris mini monument be living, breathing?

Pourquoi pas?

Isn't a demonstration a Paris monument not so mini?

Or the ubiquitous macaron?

French parfum is a mini monument you can easily bring home...

Most Paris monumental monuments can come home with you on a mug bien sur!

What's your favorite Paris mini monument?

Paris Blue Monday

2012-01-16T12:23:00.002-05:00

Did you know today is 'Blue Monday' - "the most depressing day of the year." Psychologist Cliff Arnall reasoned Blue Monday is the day when a slew of unpleasant variables such as drab weather, failing New Year's resolutions and Christmas bills collide, creating a veritable maelstrom of negativity.

So let's pretend we're in tres bleu Paris instead non?

Paris does have a grey-blue caste to it, that makes many Parisians long for 'blue skies' New York, but that's their problem...

So many bright blue shops like chocolatier Marquise de Sevigne at Place Madeleine...

Posh Bonpoint promotes bleu for French kids...

Is it any wonder French kids are so mature? They get trained to be little adults right off the bat.

Bleu port + bleu shoes = perfection!

Jean-Paul Hevin does not have bleu macarons but all his goodies come in his signature cobalt bleu tins. MIAM! I'm a collector...

The French wear bleu head-to-toe as do their dogs...

More French in bleu. Don't you love the little 'bleu' riding hood jacket here?

Street signs are easy to find in Paris - always in bleu and plastered on corner walls. Not the case in NYC malheureusment...

Paris Metro maps are full of French Ultramarine bleu...

Thanks to Harriet I ordered the bleu Paris bus guide from Amazon.fr...

Somehow you can never find these treasures when you're in Paris and it's fun to plan ahead...

Still feeling bleu/blue?

BONJOUR BLEU MONDAY!

The Metropolitan's American Wing

2012-01-13T12:13:00.000-05:00

Oliver Tarbel Eddy 1839

Yesterday I went to see the Met's preview of the newly renovated American Wing.

John Singleton Copley "Mary Sherburne' 1763

Sixteen magnificent rooms opens permanently to the public January 16. I found myself drawn to the animals in the exhibits, especially pets...

Of course the focus of the exhibit is the newly refurbished 'Washington Crossing The Delaware' in the main hall - more here.

Ammi Phillips 1834

I painted so many of your huggable pets this past December, I could be hankering to hug a pet of my own...ahem

Thomas Eakins wife and setter 1884

I didn't know painter Thomas Eakins had an Irish setter...

Van Rensselaer Hall Mural 1765-69

A man walking his dog or out hunting..?

Van Rensselaer Hall Mural 1765-69

In this very grand muraled room...

Joshua Johnson detail 1805

I'd settle for a red cardinal...

This giant eagle might not be so petable...

Nor Remington's 'Broncho Buster'...

A pet squirrel as long as it's not from Union Square Park...

Minister/painter Edward Hicks 'Peaceable Kingdom' 1830 (62 versions exist) shows a young maid hugging a lioness...who knew?

A tethered fox in Fur Traders Descending the Missouri by George Bingham is probably not the best pet...

I would have to forgo a pet shark unless it was in 'The Gulf Stream' by Winslow Homer firmly secured to the wall...

Tintin's 'Snowy' looks huggable at Ellie Zabar's Kids store a few blocks away...

Don't Miss the Met American Wing next week

(And do look at more than the pets svp.)

The Renaissance Portrait

2012-01-11T12:57:00.000-05:00

Early December I got to see the Met's new Renaissance Portrait from Donatello to Bellini show, up until March 18th. Over 160 works are represented in media ranging from bronze medals, marble busts, illuminated manuscripts, drawings and tempera on wood.

Bear was thrilled to see a distant relative hanging...

Near a Da Vinci portrait drawing...

And not far from a Bellini portrait lent from the museum in Padua...

This Botticelli of 'Simonetta Vespucci' is visiting from Berlin...

One of the only two existant tempera on wood paintings (1444) by Pisanello of Leonello d'Este is lent by the Accademia of Bergamo...

Fra Filippo Lippi's man and woman at a casement window (1440) was possibly commissioned for the occasion of a betrothal...

Clearly there are many rare and beautiful portraits in this exquisite exhibition. Here 'Selvaggio Sassetti', a banker's daughter painted by Ghirlandaio (ca. 1487-88).

Sculpture busts mirror the paintings...

Did the show's curator have a hand in choosing these look-alike busts?

The many dated bronze portrait metals assist in dating and identifying all the portraits of the time - this one by Pisanello (1441-42).

Miniature portraits for travel...

Red abounds. Was it because scarlet fabric was rare and reserved only for rulers and aristocrats?

Do wear red when you visit the Met Renaissance Portrait show.

Don't miss it!

Stripe Training

2012-01-10T12:44:00.003-05:00

French Stripe doodle...

Stripe training...

Starts early if you're French...

And basically never ends...

Is the Breton sailor shirt the origin...

Of this committment to the stripe? Qui sait?

Almost everyone wants to be French, so start the day by drinking your coffee out of a striped cup...

Dinner?

Alway eat off a striped plate and you're set.

Buy pastries only from striped trucks like Lenotre...

Only cross the street at the striped zebras and you'll feel instantly very French.

Dressing head-to-toe in stripes is de rigeur and will never be considered de trop

Food?

Only eat striped macarons from Jean-Paul Hevin to feel completement French.

cet comme ca Bon chance!

Look Up!

2012-01-09T11:13:00.000-05:00

Your first few days or week in Paris you'll find your eyes are stuck at eye-level...

Glued to the window taking it all in leche-vitrine...

Sometimes entering the premises for a bite...

It's hard to get your eyes above eye-level. One trick is to check reflections in car windows...

Some shop windows/vitrines will force you to consider looking upwards...

Paris postcards make you think about looking up...

At the Eiffel Tower.

You could buy a bag with all the Paris monuments as a reminder to look up...

If your walking down rue Royal you can't avoid looking up at la Madeleine..

Night time is the right time to look up at Paris' monuments like the Opera Garnier...

Checking the time? Look up for lots of clocks. By my 2nd week in Paris, I'm looking up all the time at the magnificent architecture...

It's nice to look down in the street too.

Flowers await you.

And Paris Dogs!

Do you remember to look UP in Paris?

Hats:An Anthology by Stephen Jones

2012-01-06T14:29:00.007-05:00

Macaron-hat doodles...

Last night I went to the fabulous 'Hats:An Anthology by Stephan Jones' exhibit at Bard Graduate Center...

...On 18 West 86th Street (they're open till 8 pm on Thursdays).

Three floors of magical hats brought over from the Victoria and Albert exhibition - we're lucky indeed.

A veritable pandora's hatbox of memories (whose mother did not wear hats?), history and celebrity lore (including the hat Carla wore to meet the Queen).

Photo by Justine Photography

A hat inspired by illustrator Rene Gruau I'm always raving about...

I bought Rene Gruau's J'Adore calendar in Paris last October thinking I was very clever and now I see it on Amazon...who knew?

We have hat designer Stephen Jones to thank for this fantasy trip.
Jone's atelier is on view + a can of his essential soda pop...
So many hats and only one head!

There's just something special about a woman in a hat. (Betmar Philosophy)

"Women wearing hats are at once sophisticated and whimsical....Their faces are younger and softer. They carry themselves differently, daintily, like deer. Their voices flutter a bit..."(from "O" Magazine).

The human head is a constantly moving and turning pedestal...with the hat a sculpture. (Eia Millinery design)

If you can't make it to New York (ends April 15) by all means get the book.

It's loads of fun with Bjork and Barbara Cartland side by side.

So many hats get their inspiration from uniforms...

I spotted this lacy cocktail hat one night in Paris passing Cherry Chau's shop. You can hear more on the exhibit here.

And Thank you Kerry in WA for reminding me.

Bon Week-End!