holy moly givenchy

i never cease to be amazed at what people create, and the new sp.11 collection by givenchy is no exception.  inspired by a cross between japanese robot toys and dancer kazuo ohno, designer riccardo tisci has managed to design a line that well,  looks pretty much like what he was inspired by…. i think you could throw in a lobster and a crane here and there, but yes, spot on.

one outfit alone required 2000 hours of cutting and 4000 hours of sewing.  wowza.

see the whole collection.

alan, steven sp.11

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

so, i’m not quite sure whether steven alan has been looking at my wardrobe for inspiration for his new spring line…

…or maybe it’s that he knows what i want my wardrobe to look like and used that as inspiration for his new spring line.

either way, i think he’s following me.

 

spring? no? not yet? oh.

some colors that remind me of the exact opposite time of the year.

images from unknown, sonia delauney, ahh-i-can’t-remember-the-name, canvas, sonia delauney swimsuit, shoes i saw at maison et objet in paris.

the water lilies of giverny

the other day i took a trip outside of paris to giverny, where you can find monet’s house and gardens.  i was amazed at just how much his painting resemble the life he had there.
it was so beautiful, i would have painted the water lilies too.

happy may day

happy may day!

does anyone have any plans to dance around the may pole? no?
well, traditionally may day marks the last of winter in the northern hemisphere and is a time for celebration.  in france, king charles IX would give all the ladies of the court a lily of the valley on this day…. and it is still customary to give them to loved ones.   so much so that it is even legal to sell them free of taxation today.  which explains why i saw people walking around with flowers all day.

images via the city sage and saipua.

the west side bridges of paris

i spent the day walking west along the seine, photographing all the bridges on the way.

i started with pont neuf, which crosses over the tip of ile de la cité.

the next bridge is pont des arts, a pedestrian bridge where during the nicer months you can find people picnicking and having a glass of wine while they watch the sunset.

sometimes the most interesting thing about a bridge is what’s going on next to it.  such is the case with pont du carrousel, which leads into the courtyard of the louvre.

exactly opposite this bridge is pont royal, which mimics the  one before it yet maintains it’s own identity.

bird songs

everyone can think of a familiar bird song that reminds them of someplace.  even if you can’t summon it to mind automatically, when you hear it, it is subconsciously familiar.  for me, it goes something like ‘whowoo, who who who.‘ i actually have no idea what kind of bird makes this call, but i heard it this morning while the streets were still quiet enough to hear the sounds of birds chirping.

it reminded me that i haven’t visited the marché aux oiseaux in a while, so i decided to take a stroll across the river to île de la cité and see what i could find.

the first three i came across looked like they were three gangsters, the big boss bird is the one in the middle, with his slightly dumb sidekicks to either side:

and others were just content being beautiful and showing off their colors:

i know these bird song books have been around for a while now, but i am still fascinated with how great they are.

you can find the books here.

for more information about the marché aux oiseaux

sunday morning

that’s all.

goat cheese season

it has come to my attention, as i passed by my local fromagerie, that it is now la meilleur saison pour les chevres, or the best season for goat cheese.  i didn’t even know that cheeses had a season, so i went in search of why.  apparently, the taste is determined by it’s ripening time, or directly related to the actual seasons. for instance, cow cheeses are determined by whether the cows are indoors for the winter or outdoors for the summer; whether they are eating hay, or grass.

so basically, happy goats make for better cheeses.  hooray! now i have a reason to eat a lot of cheese!  alice waters even teaches that you should eat food when it is in season, and the season is upon us (of course, this only stands until it goes out of season again, in which case… i will still eat cheese).

a brief list of cheese seasons:
goat cheese : from easter to the beginning of november
brie and camembert : from may until december
beaufort : september to march (this cheese is better a bit aged)

two of perhaps the best fromageries in paris:
barthélémy, 51 rue de grenelle (a favorite of the barefoot contessa)
androuët, 41 rue d’amsterdam

if you are now craving some chevre, this garlic, rosemary and olive oil goat cheese spread from eating is art just looks delicious, and so easy!

to read more about french cheese.
to read more about alice waters and her new book.

cerisiers à fleurs

the cherry blossoms are out and about in paris these days.  you never quite know when you will turn a corner and get a glimpse of pink in a courtyard next to a church, or in the garden next to the muséum national d’histoire naturelle.
oh the things you see on a sunday in paris.