paris breakfasts

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!

Paris Pop-up Shop

2012-01-05T15:06:00.014-05:00

Paris Dreams Shop, watercolor 9" x 11"

I planned to open an 'imaginary' Pop-up Paris souvenir shop pre-Christmas....
I didn't get around to it, but it's not too late right? I planned to import real French bollards to put in front of the shop...
It would be nice to have a little cafe corner...
There will be FREE/gratis petit fours for everyone...
But you will have to pay for the caramels beurre sale
And Carambar caramels...
This 'imaginary' shop will only carry Parisien tchotchkes (under $20). It will include all the junk I meant to pick up in Paris but never got to, like these Comptoir de Famille hot chocolate bowls.

Any tchotcka with 'Paris je t'aime' on it...

Or Paris dogs makes the grade.

Plus those adorable street sign magnets but in bigger sizes...
Paris has much better postcards than NYC I think...

Do you agree?

Very girly...

Very pink.

I bought my ticket to Paris yesterday for March, so maybe next trip I'll bring back tons of Paris junk and really open a pop-up shop...

Wouldn't that be a hoot?

What's YOUR favorite Paris junk? Do tell.

Take the Paris Bus!

2012-01-04T11:22:00.010-05:00

Yesterday one of you said she'd prefer not to take the hot, stuffy Metro to her new Paris job, so today I'll show you how to take the bus to work.
Paris must have one of the best public transportation systems on the planet if not THE BEST. Walk up to the bus shelter and *note the buses stopping are listed on the side.
Now this is the cherry on top! Every bus shelter has a 'working' digital sign telling you exactly when you're bus will arrive (or if it won't arrive at all because of a demonstration...ahem).
There are clear maps (really they are) telling you where you're going and indicating if you are on the right side of the street. Interactive Paris bus map here.
Including a map with ALL the buses in the immediate vicinity. Paris since 2006 has a special night line of buses running after midnight btw.

No need to buy Pariscope when bus shelter signs will tell you what's on.

The side of all Paris buses will tell you their first and last destination.

Please board at the front of the bus and smash your Navigo magnetic card against the box thing. Or you can buy a ticket from the driver.

Do say 'Bonjour Monsieur/Madame' to the driver svp.

Inside you'll find a bus map + another digital sign telling (in French) the next stop/la prochaine arret

The bus is quite a civilized way to see Paris and get around, definitely more scenic than the Metro.

Please do exit/partie out the backdoor. The red button is to alert the driver of your stop/arret

Once you know the buses in your area you can go online to check out it's route. Easy peasy.
Line 38 runs north to south through the city center and provides memorable views of the Latin Quarter, the Seine river, or Notre Dame Cathedral.

Line 68 offers a vantage of the Musee d'Orsay, Saint-Germain des Près, the Seine, The Louvre, and the Opéra Garnier.

Line 28 offers lovely views of the Ecole Militaire, the Assemblée Nationale, the Seine River, le Grand Palais, and the Champs-Elysées.

Line 96 winds through beautiful spots on the right bank, including Hotel de Ville, the medieval Marais neighborhood, and trendy Bastille. Info from Go Paris.
These days Bear & I take the bus all the time in Paris. But almost never in NYC. New York has contests to see which bus is slowest :( Do you take the bus in Paris?

Paris Job Hunt!

2012-01-03T11:44:00.002-05:00

Do you dream of working in Paris?
Would you be willing to do anything including working at Fauchon?
Dishing out macarons? I can think of worse ways to earn a euro...
How about Angelinas? Hmmm...this looks a bit grueling...
Do you think it's true what they say about working in a candy/pastry shop..?
At Ble Sucre could you ever lose your taste for pastries?
Or macarons?
Could I ever lose my taste for Amorino's pistache + framboise + cafe combo?

Do I need an Italian accent to work at Amorino? I'll fake it.

Serving penny candy at Metro Odeon? I'd do that.

Take the Metro to work? I wouldn't mind...

I loved shooting fashion shows in Paris.

I'm not willing to make bread in the window...

And MacDos..serving up macarons? Hmmm...

Dog walker? Oui, absolutement!

What would YOU like to do in Paris?

BONJOUR JOB HUNTING!

January Diet

2012-01-02T10:51:00.009-05:00

Will you be eating salade today?
AND tomorrow?
And perhaps all of January?
Wouldn't it be nice if this month's salades could be Paris take-out from MIYOU?

Or La Cantine at Merci?

Miam...miam

MIYOU again - shrimp, quinoa, pomegranate, rocket.

Saumon + salade in St. Germain-en-Lay

I lurve Rose Bakery's mixed salade plate.

Not a bad way to make up for all the marshmallows and gingerbread of December.

Is salade des fruits allowed on the January diet?

HUGO

2011-12-30T06:12:00.008-05:00

Do you LOVE train stations too?
Especially train stations in Paris...
All that hub-bub. And the anticipation, the expectations!
So much more managable than airports too.
And the big clocks!
Tick-tock...tick-tock.
Is it time yet?
I saw Hugo yesterday based on the graphic novel, The Invention of Hugo Capret...

It takes place in a train station...

A Paris train station...

What could be better?

There are mystery sketchbooks in Hugo...

And a mysterious automaton...

AND Paris dogs.

TWO of them!

A perfect movie no?

The perfect movie to see on New Years Day 2012 perhaps..?

Are you ready for 2012?

Do you know where you'll go?

ALL ABOARD for 2012!

Tick-tock..tick-tock

See you next year PBers

xxx carolg AND BEAR

Sempé

2011-12-29T09:02:00.009-05:00

I have an assignment to draw Sempe-like figures running. I wish they were all running dogs instead...
Last October I visited the new Sempe exposition the day it opened at Hotel de Ville...
The drawings are displayed in a casual, accessible manner...

Making it easy to get up close and personal with each drawing...
Jean-Jacques Sempé could be considered the iconic artist of Paris...

His prolific, witty drawings capture that Parisien j'ai ne sait quoi...

It's nice to see Sempe's daily sketchbooks...

Plus his final drawings readied for the printer...

If you need to draw a bicycle there's no better artist to reference...

With Sempe's mastery of the quotidien urban life, be it Paris or New York, no wonder The New Yorker has made him a frequent cover artist...

Crowd scenes are right up Sempe's allee...

As are cats...

Perhaps rather than dogs?

When you step outside into Paris' streets, they come alive with Sempe images...

L'exposition Sempe is on at Hotel de Ville until 11 February 2012, if you can't make it

then watch this video and Enjoy!

Antonin Careme

2011-12-28T07:33:00.003-05:00

We have Antonin Careme to thank for exquisite French pastry...
In my recent studies comparing American pastries with...
...French pastry,
I discovered there is a serious lack of gloss, glitz and l'abricotage on the home turf.
L'abricotage is that generous application of apricot jam syrup...
Parisien patisseries fling it about with abandon. This New York tart lacks shine and sparkle.
A dusting of powdered sugar can do in a pinch...
Gerard Mulot's beauty combines powdered sugar AND l'abricotage...
Elaborate Parisien desserts are no accident...
When there is such a long tradition. Check out Cooking For Kings,The Life of the First Celebrity Chef, Antonin Careme (it could say pastry chef par excellance).
Merci M. Careme.

Why you'll find divine fantasies in every Paris pastry vitrine.
Bonne Mercredi!

Ines de la Fressange on rue du Bac

2011-12-27T07:20:00.007-05:00

For her December shopping diary Ines de la Fressange of Parisian Chic walks down rue du Bac 75007... I too walked down rue du Bac my last evening in Paris...
It's full of wonderful Frenchie facades...

Loaded with potential leche-vitrine/window gazing...

This tiny print shop, Olivier de Sercey has extremement fine stamps at 220 euros(!)..

Ines adores the handmade Italian home goodies at La Paresse en Douce at 97 rue du Bac...

Moi aussi, especialment these made-to-order cashmere slippers...

You'll never go hungry browsing on rue du Bac. Why not grab an 'animal cracker' style box of macarons at Dalloyau - 63, rue du Grenelle round the corner?

Chocolat Chapon is well worth immersing yourself in chocolate at 69, rue du Bac...

Plus their adorable crockery can serve up your tea or chocolat chaud...

Mais la creme de la creme on 93, rue du Bac is Patisserie des Reves bien sur!

It's a child's playland of pastry for grownups...

I bought this irresitable tarte douce a l'orange...

Plus the 'Limonada', a creamy, lemony ball. The pastries are perfectly packed to withstand the Metro crush. Not that they made it further than 10 steps away...miam miam

Exactly nextdoor this little dog kept watch on the comings and goings on rue du Bac...

Ines can't resist saying bonjour.

Don't miss Ines' video here!