January 29, 2020
I’m back! And it was glorious… Any time I get to spend that much uninterrupted time with Belovedest is going to be great, but this trip was truly special. Today and Friday I’m going to try to share some of it with you. If you’re planning to go to Paris any time soon, I’ve got some suggestions, and if you can’t make the trip, travel along in your imagination!
We left mid-day Saturday, with stunningly cheap tickets on Aer Lingus, the Irish airline. This of course meant that we connected through Dublin, which was quite simple. The most difficult part for me was wanting to just stay in Ireland! But Paris beckoned…
What did I wear for this epic 2 day trip? Why, my argyle cardigan of course! (This isn’t the one I have – mine is about 15 years old, but it’s still lovely…)
cardigan – Pringle of Scotland; scarf – Banana Republic; earrings – Lord & Taylor; tee shirt – Lands’ End; tote – Longchamp; boots – Blondo; corduroy pants – Lands’ End
I’ve said it before, but your travel outfit (if you’re going from the US to Europe) is critical – you’re going to be sitting in it on the plane(s), but moreover, you’re probably going to spend much of your first day of your vacation wearing the same outfit! Make sure you love it…
What did I pack? Well, I wanted to make it as easy as humanly possible for myself. Since my fibromyalgia can be pretty tiring, and walking 10 miles a day in Paris can be pretty tiring (!), I wanted to have a pretty much brainless travel capsule wardrobe. I don’t know that I can get more simple than this:
solid tee shirts – Lands’ End; striped tee – Lands’ End; turtlenecks – Lands’ End; marled sweater – Tentree; cashmere cardigan – Lands’ End; black velvet jeans – Lands’ End, black jeans – Lands’ End, black sleeveless dress – Eileen Fisher; tassel loafers – Hush Puppies; sneakers – Adidas
I literally packed all of my tee shirts and turtlenecks in a travel sleeve, in the order in which I planned to wear them. Each morning, I could just grab the top tee shirt, the sweater and pants (or dress) that were up in the rotation, and then have a conversation with my feet about what shoes to wear!
And then I grabbed a scarf…
Scarf #1 – Hermes Parures des Maharajas, Scarf #2 – Hermes l’Entente Cordiale; scarf # 3 – Hermes Collections Imperiiales, Scarf #4 – Hermes Les Clefs; Scarf #5 – Hermes les Amoureux de Paris; scarf #6 – Hermes Brides de Gala Love; scarf ring – Mai Tai Collection Anneau Infinity in black horn
(okay, I only had 1 of these scarf rings…) I folded the scarf on the bias, tucked the 2 long ends of the scarf through the scarf ring, and I was done!
On the days when I wore my argyle cardigan again, I wore my sparkly black scarf with it. But I did indeed wear SIX DIFFERENT Hermes scarves within 8 days. I was very happy; other people might have thought I was nuts, or overly “status-y,” but I enjoyed every second of it!
First Trend Spotted
You may wear athletic shoes almost anywhere. The majority of people we saw outside of the law/finance neighborhoods were wearing Adidas, Veja, Nike – you name it. I wore mine frequently, and I believe that Belovedest wore his every day. At no point in time were we inappropriately casual.
And yes, it was fashion week…
Second Trend Spotted
Paris has embraced the fabric tote bag in a big way – we saw relatively few paper shopping bags, almost NO plastic bags (except some knuckleheads packing produce into them in groceries…), but hundreds and hundreds of canvas or lighter cotton bags. When we made purchases, everyone asked if we wanted bags, and reminded us that we paid a few cents for the bag if we took them. Hallelujah for small steps of conservation!
Where We Stayed
Belovedest is enamored with the Marais – on the north side of the Seine, north of the Centre Pompidou and including the Picasso Museum.
So we chose the Hotel du Petit Moulin, which honestly used to be a bakery.
Our room was on the 2nd and a half floor – seriously! We took the elevator up to the 2nd floor (which would be the 3rd floor in the US, but whatever…) and then climbed a handful of stairs to our door.
These are views of our room – the “painting” is a pair of sliding panels that took the place of curtains. THIS is an idea I’m going to steal in the years to come!
And the vintage mirror in the modern bath was genius. Another idea I might shameless copy…
It’s a great area in which to stay during Fashion Week, because dozens of brands open up “pop-up” showrooms for wholesale buyers to see their stuff. Even though we mere mortals can’t technically get into these shops, we can sometimes wander in for a second or two (until we’re very politely told that it’s not for us…) or just gawk into the windows. And we get to see all of the buyers scurrying about. Most of them are attractive but reasonably normal-looking young people. Some of them, however, are style statements of amazing… daring? Boldness? Individuality? Nuttiness?
Ours is not to judge…
If you’re interested in staying out of the center of Paris, I can warmly recommend this hotel – the staff was lovely and helpful, and our room was a real delight. Having a comfortable haven after being out all day makes a lot of difference for a vacation! It’s especially important to me these days, as I often need to nap for a bit every afternoon…
What We Ate The First Day
As soon as we had left our luggage with the staff at the hotel (they are used to this – millions of tourists arrive before the OTHER million tourists have checked out of their hotel rooms, so all hotels are continually managing the luggage overlap…), we made a bee-line to the Rue de Turenne, and to one of my favorite cafes in Paris, The Royal Turenne.
A special shout-out to Dominic and Abdul… They were SO kind to us, on mornings when we were so jet-lagged and in need of caffeine that we could barely open our eyes.
There are literally dozens of cafes like this all over Paris, and I’ve never been into one that I didn’t enjoy. They are very much a part of their neighborhood, with lots of regulars who stop in for a quick coffee, or a very slow glass of wine. Find one very near your hotel and make it your second home when you’re in Paris! After the 2nd or 3rd visit, the staff will start to know you and might even slip you the occasional extra croissant or cup of coffee…
We stayed relatively close to our hotel for much of the day – we took a break in the middle of the afternoon to check into our hotel room and put our feet up. A nap and a face wash made it possible to go back out for dinner without falling on our faces in the street!
After our break, we were hungry, and had NO dinner reservations! But we made our way back down the Rue de Turenne to the Cafe des Musees, home of some of the best boeuf bourguignon in the world…
Yes, snails. They’re like tender pencil erasers, doused in a ton of garlic and butter. You can use up a half a baguette sopping up the butter…
After these delights, and quite a bit more wine that might be wise when one has jet lag, we staggered to bed!
Day 2
(see how easily I was able to get dressed?)
What We Ate The Second Day, Part 1
Monday morning, we got up and hiked well into the 10th Arrondissement for some breakfast at a great place called Holybelly. They have 2 locations on the same street, and I’d go to either of them every day if I was in the area. Nice people, good food..
This glorious array is a trio of donuts with dipping sauce, some exceptionally tasty ham with bread and mustard, some cheese with some kind of thin bread, and scones with walnuts and something else tasty. The menu changes all the time, so don’t fuss the details. This, plus some tasty coffee, was our breakfast…
Monday was the day of dumbness, at least on our part. We headed over to one of our favorite museums, the Musee Guimet. It’s Asian art, and it’s seldom busy, and it’s ALWAYS amazing…
And it’s not open on Mondays… IDIOTS!
So we decided that we would walk up to another of our favorite museums, the Musee Cernschi, which is just on the edge of the Park Monceau. It, too, is mostly Asian, and always has special exhibits that are breathtaking. They also have one of my favorite Buddhas in the whole wide world there…
And they’re closed until MARCH! IDIOTS!!!!
We walked a lot… Le sigh…
But I did find a handbag that insisted that it had to come back to Chicago with me. Have you ever quarreled in public with leather goods? It’s embarrassing…
What We Ate The Second Day, Part 2
Happily, we were staying in the neighborhood for dinner. There’s a small chain of restaurants owned by a group called Big Mamma, and we went to one of their outposts called Biglove. I had absurdly good pasta with mushrooms…
Be advised, ordering Italian food from a staff member who speaks French can turn into quite the jumble of confusion. It’s entertaining to struggle to figure out what something is when the best explanation you get for an Italian word you don’t know is a FRENCH word you don’t know…
But my pasta was excellent, as was Belovedest’s ravioli. We swilled large quantities of sparkling water, because the jet lag was catching up to us…
Third Trend Spotted
Wide-legged cropped pants. On men, on women, on children. They look a little big like split skirts, if the pants are wide enough. Yes, lots of glimpses of bare ankle sometimes, but often worn with socks that covered the lower leg, or tights that made a longer monochromatic line.
I have velvet pants in this kind of cut, as well as really cool Eileen Fisher lantern pants. I’m feeling better about them…
lantern pants – Eileen Fisher; velvet cropped pants – Rebecca Taylor
Day 3
After the museum debacle of Monday, we took a day off from trying museums and chose to go to the Galleries Vivienne for a while…
Something that I particularly enjoyed this trip was finding that a lot of holiday decorations were still in place almost a month after Christmas! On long, dark winter nights, or even on grey, overcast January days, this kind of decor really made life a bit brighter. I’m pretty certain that a lot of people were doing the same in their homes – we saw lots of Christmas trees that were just beginning to be taken to parks for recycling this week. There’s no reason everything has to come down on Christmas Eve (in retail…) or New Year’s Day, or even the 12th day of Christmas. Why not call it winter decor, and live with it for a while?
What We Ate
There’s a Le Pain Quotidien just a few blocks from our hotel, so you KNOW that we would be there. I’m a big fan of LPQ, in any country…
I’m struggling to remember where we ate dinner. Seriously! I’m writing this the morning after we got back, and I’m just drawing a blank. If it was amazing, I will write about it later…
Fourth Trend Spotted
Poodle coats. This could appeal… And plaid coats, still. In fact, the entire coat world seemed big and bulky and roomy and cozy as heck. I was wearing a Barbour quilted jacket that I’ve had for ages, and I looked quite compact and almost svelte next to a lot of these giganto-coats.
russet poodle coat – Marks & Spencer, plaid poodle coat – J.Crew
With that, I think I should take a nap and tell you all of the other goodies on Friday. I’ve made an unusual decision about my own wardrobe, which I’m eager to share with you!
love,
Janice
p.s. Two years ago, I tried to see how versatile the 2018 color of the year (Ultra Violet!) might be…
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Glad you had fun! Maybe your next trip will be Aer Lingus to Dublin.Thank you for sharing. My husband would love to go back to Europe but I find sitting all night in a plane seat to be very challenging.
How do you pack your scarves?
Also how to you wear tights under lantern pants? Don’t the pants catch on the fabric and ride up???
We will be in Cork in June, for my birthday…
And I just fold all of my scarves and stack them and slide them into a plastic bag. Squeeze out the air and zip lock it shut. The 1 gallon bags fit my scarves exactly right!
AND, I’ve never had problems with my clothes catching on my tights. Maybe I’m just lucky, but it hasn’t yet happened. It might just be that the fabrics aren’t such that they want to grab – I don’t have a good explanation, nor advice for how to replicate the effect.
hugs,
Janice
Quietgirl, I had someone make me what is essentially a lined fabric envelope for my scarves. It closes with a flap that has a ribbon that winds around a button on the main part of the envelope. That explanation is probably as clear as mud, but the end result is my scarves are protected, and there are no sharp edges to catch on the silk.
A cloth envelope is a great idea for keeping delicate things protected. May I ask what the ‘travel sleeve’ is that you fold your tops into, Janice? I tend to throw everything into a holdall rather than a suitcase. Although I have a packing order, I often end up rummaging or tipping everything out to find things. I do use a jewellery roll so I can always find that!
I use the packing cubes (which are NOT cubes…) from Eagle Creek; we bought them at least 15 years ago, and they will literally never wear out unless we have some sort of accident with one. I use a 10 by 13 one for tops, and I can fit at least 10 into the cube…
And I pack my jewelry in my vintage velvet evening bag! This trip I actually wore the same jewelry the entire time, and so that wasn’t an issue. Jewelry rolls are a wonderful thing; I should find one I love.
hugs,
Janice
I’m so happy to see you featuring Tentree products! They’ve become one of my favorite companies for their sustainable manufacturing and eco-friendly practices. I have that sweater and I LOVE it.
Thanks for sharing! Lise
I love any Paris post! Three of your photos are showing on the page (doughnuts, leather bag, and Galerie Viviene). I tried on my blog reader, your website, and on my phone. Just thought you’d want to know – and I’d like to see the photos! LOL
I’ve got someone looking into the problem… I don’t know WHAT the heck is going on!
Thanks so much for letting me know.
big hugs,
Janice
So much fun! Also, not sure if it’s just my view, bit seems like your Google ad banners have gotten larger and more annoying to read around… Of course still worth the read?
Try clicking on “reader view” at the very top of the page. It makes a world of difference for me.
Thank you for sharing your escapades with us, Janice!! I’m loving my vicarious trip to Paris! ❤️❤️
I’m glad to hear that you finally managed to get back to Paris. It sounds like a lovely trip.
I really like the capsule you packed too! The colors of the travel day ensemble made my heart sing. I was disappointed to find that the fabulous argyle sweater, at well over $200, was 45% acrylic, though. I’m going to have to take up knitting again so that I can have quality scarves and hats. I refuse to buy any more garments that contain acrylic! Those garments perform very badly, in my experience and the cost per wear is exorbitant.I’m trying to limit polyester content too. Thank God for thrift stores where I can still find high quality from time to time.
My sweater is a really old cashmere from Lands’ End; it still looks great and it must be 15 years old. Why is the quality of so many things deteriorating?
hugs,
Janice
Janice,
Thank you for the travelog, and sighted fashion trends , though unfortunately, the photos of the yummy breakfast and the leather handbag are not showing up on my iPad.
I often keep up Christmas decor ( not Santa’s) , just red berried candle rings and red Cardinal ceramics until the end of January. As you said — things that say “ Winter” ! They must come down immediately after the red of Valentine’s Day, however !
Your packing reminds me of one of your very early archived posts featuring a bunch of scarves, but was work related, which I adored ! ! I am in North Carolina right now, visiting little grandkids and their parents ( there’s a good reason God doesn’t let us reproduce as we age — energy depleting , despite their cuteness ! )
The weather has varied between the highs of 40 ‘s and 50’s so I packed both turtleneck tops and scoop necked ones— wish I had packed all turtlenecks ! The younger generation here like to keep their house about 5 degrees cooler than the temps that we “ oldsters” are used to ! Cardigans work in this regard !
Tomorrow — back to chillier PA !
Still can’t wait to see that new scarf that you mentioned !
Sounds like a once again wonderful trip, despite the “oops” timing of the two museums ! It happens !
Janice,
I found my scarves reference ! It was from “ Back to the Roots of the Vivienne Files “ and it was titled something like “ One French Woman’s Small Simple Wardrobe”, showing her varied scarf ensembles for each day of work . I loved that post ( along with all of the rest that you have done ! )
What shoes were they wearing with the wide leg pants? That is a trend I want to try but I haven’t been able to figure out footwear for them.
Lots of low boots, the occasional ballet flats, and occasionally athletic shoes. I’m wearing low boots with mine right now, and will switch to flats or sandals as the weather warms!
hugs,
Janice
Janice,
The three missing photos are now viewable — thanks !
I am in love with the simplicity of your packing genius, which is soooo uncomplicated and easy! The pop of color with five different scarves, especially perfect for the winter, is inspiring. How I wish I had found you during my working years but I am sooooo enjoying you in my retirement for casual wear and travel. Merci beacoup!
Janice, I am SO GLAD you finally were able to take your trip to Paris! Your packing was masterful, as always.
I stumbled across your blog and am now addicted! I’m re-building my wardrobe using navy and grey as neutrals and have found all your ideas inspiring. I’m on a budget so ebay and searching out vintage scarves in charity shops ( thrift store) plays big part in my shopping. The Marais is my go-to area in Paris and luckily, from Scotland, it’s easy to get to. Looking forward to Pris part 2.
Rain is dripping down and the light is rather dreary outside, but I’ve just finished reading your delightful post. Love, love, love Paris and your travelogue has me wanting to plan a trip again. Your wardrobe is brilliant, easy to pack, easy to wear, and stylish to boot. An added bonus is that there’s another post to look forward to about Paris.
Awesome timing—I just bought the tickets for Vienna this spring, and have started to seriously overthink the packing thing. This post is a great course corrector. Also, ❤️ ?, although I’ve never had them with mushrooms, and I am seriously jealous of your cheap tickets; it costs me $500 just to get to a hub that has international flights.
Hi Janice, glad to hear you had a lovely time in Paris (my fav city too) and loved hearing of the new trends. Olsen Europe has a checked coat advertised this week that is very like the ones on trend you mentioned.
A question? Did you wear your turtle neck with your dress under as a jumper or overtop to make it like a skirt and top?
Looking forward to Fridays post too
B~~
I wore the thin cotton turtlenecks UNDER my dress, so basically like a jumper (as we call them in the US). I am seriously considering that I could also wear a bulky sweater OVER the same dress, so it would look like a skirt.
hugs,
Janice
Just a suggestion, go to the opera when you are in Vienna, the seats have tiny screens with translations on them so you will know what you are hearing and can follow the story. We saw Don Giovanni and it was such a highlight of our travels. The opera theatre is spectacular, why go on a tour when you can go to an actual opera. Order wine and cake ahead of time for intermission. My husband is not an opera fan but really enjoyed it. The caliber of performers is outstanding. Oh I would love to go back again…
Don Giovanni is the BEST! My favorite opera hands down (although Carmen’s okay too.) There’s a hotel across from the Operahouse that fills my insta feed with gorgeous photos of the building, usually taken from the balconies of their suites, but their room prices are gold plated, so I guess I get to experience the glory from the ground . The big question is where do I park my husband, because he won’t sit through 3 hours of 18th century libertining…any thoughts?
Such a fun post, Janice. I feel exactly as if I’ve just been to Paris!
Me too! If we can’t be there ourselves, reading Janice’s reports is the way to go.
Hi Janice, glad to hear you had a lovely time in Paris (my fav city too) and loved hearing of the new trends. Olsen Europe has a checked coat advertised this week that is very like the ones on trend you mentioned.
A question? Did you wear your turtle neck with your dress under as a jumper or overtop to make it like a skirt and top?
Looking forward to Fridays post too
B~~
You make a wonderful tour guide. I shall look forward to Friday. Thanks for the look back post to ultraviolet as purple is my favourite colour. I don’t remember violet in the shops either in 2018. However, I found a wonderful 1970’s violet and cream cowl neck checked jumper in a charity (thrift) shop and a pair of violet stretch trousers from catalogue. Violet also looks great with silver and sparkles.
Your travel wardrobes have been helping me downsize my home wardrobe in a systematic way that makes sense to an engineer type. Paris has deep catholic roots so they may follow the traditional liturgical calendar that celebrates Christmas through this weekend which celebrates the presentation of 40 day old Jesus in the temple.
That makes sense – thanks for sharing!
hugs,
Janice
Cropped trousers (pants)… Marks and Spencer had a huge range of what they called 7/8 length this autumn/winter. Ok if you are tall but when you are 5′ 1/2 like me they were a ridiculous length, particularly with my preference for wide leg trousers. M&S do all of their trousers in Regular, Short and Long length. I did find that though that the Regular 7/8 length was full length on me and now own a pair of ‘on trend’ houndstooth checked trousers. However, proper culottes with lots of fullness in the leg (gives the impression of an A-line skirt) look great on my small frame with a pair of ankle boots. Explain?
About Winter decorating
I had a neighbor who decorated his small bungalow with red and green lights around the windows, doors, and eaves of his house. He kept them up all winter. For Valentine’s Day he lit the red ones for a week, for St. Patrick’s Day he lit the green ones. Very fun for the whole neighborhood!
Oh THAT is genius…
I’m thinking about putting lights in our windows (well, at least some of them) next year, and that just might be what I do.
thanks for taking the time to share,
hugs,
Janice
Thanks for the tip about packing cubes – a great idea.
Hi Janice,
Lovely post on your trip.
Just to clarify, I have a question. The Eagle Creek product you use for packing are not cubes– are they the Pack-It Garment Folder??
https://www.eaglecreek.com/shop/packing-folders/pack-it-original-garment-folder-l-ec041191?variationId=137#hero=3
That’s what I used when I went to France in 2015 for my tops, but I rolled my silk blouse in a dry cleaning back so it would not wrinkled and it worked!! Loved that trip to Paris and Nice.
Actually, Belovest uses these for his shirts, but the one that I use is more like these:
https://shopstyle.it/l/bdd1p
Mine are at least… 20 years old? I don’t even think they make the ones anymore that look like mine! But I use them every time I travel (which is a lot) and they’ve worn like iron.
hugs,
Janice
Janice,
I love, love, love my packing cubes. Eagle Creek’s ultralight Specter cubes , as well as their newer ones that are also lightweight, but open like a clamshell, which is more convenient for packing. The name of those is currently escaping me . I also use Hynes Eagle brand compression cubes with 2 zippers ! The Hynes Eagle cubes can be used as regular sized cubes , or compressed ( these are not the kind where you squeeze out air ) I usually choose to compress .
Janice,
Specter Tech is the name of the Eagle Creek ultra light compression cubes that I was trying to think of that open on 3 sides, unlike the earlier versions. I just verified it . Makes organization a breeze as well as keeps the TSA from rifling through my stuff , which has happened on a prior trip .
I have a couple of those too! I, in fact, have a ton of packing gear; I really need to sort it all out and keep the best and donate the rest. You think that I’m an easy mark to get this kind of thing for gifts?
hugs,
Janice
Thank you, Janice, for a terrific post! My husband and I are thinking of taking a bus/train trip up from Madrid to Paris one of these years, and we are thrilled to read about your adventures in Paris. And, I totally agree with you about LPQ, where I spent many happy hours in Buenos Aires.
Diane
Museum are always closed on Mondays in Europe. It is a hard lesson to learn and remember