Le Marais....the Food, the Fashion, the Fabulous....

Oh how I am missing Paris ! I'm glad to be back home and I'm feeling very refreshed, and gung-ho to move forward with some very exciting projects for the second half of this year, but let's just get back to Paris for a little while and let's talk about Le Marais.

Le Marais, which is on the Right Bank of the Seine River, has to be one of my favourite areas of Paris. It spreads across the 3rd and 4th arrondissements, and is renowned for being one of the main localities for art galleries, including the Musee Picasso and the Musee Carnavalet. Since the 1980's Le Marais has had a strong growing gay presence and known for having a strong Chinese community. Today it is known as " the Paris inside Paris ", and is a very fashionable district, home to many trendy restaurants, fashion houses and hype galleries. What I loved about Le Marais is the vintage shopping and the quirky little boutiques that stock products solely made in France....oh and the food of course. How could I forget the food ?

One of my favourite hangouts in Le Marais : Boulangerie La Verrerie ( formerly Boulangerie Heurtier ) 2 rue de la Verrerie, ( Le Marais ), Paris ! There's always a queue out the door of this boulangerie. As you can see there is a cafe inside to the left, and we'd venture there for our hot chocolate, double espresso and a break from all our walking.

Macaroons, anyone ?

or would you like a Chocolate Eclair ?

This little food market is on Rue St Antoine in Le Marais ( basically across the road to the Boulangerie and near Metro station Hotel de Ville ) There is such a variety of hot food here and it smells divine !

We all ended up having Chicken Paella !

Above and below : Scrumptious food to be had at Restaurant L'Alivi, a walk up the road to the right of Boulangerie La Verrerie. I highly recommend this restaurant. I had dinner here on my first night in Paris. The food is divine but you must book to get a table !

I stumbled upon this little gem ( above ) by accident. This little boutique, The Vintage Bar is THE place for vintage high-end fashion, if that is what you are searching for. This boutique is only a walk up Rue Le Verrerie to your left of the Boulangerie La Verrerie. Prices for vintage Chanel bags here ranged from 1200 Euro for the small quilted Chanel to 2000 Euro for the Jumbo. All bags here were in excellent condition. There was a huge collection of vintage high fashion coats, jackets, jewellery, with brands ranging from Dior, Gucci, Louis Vuitton to Chanel and Hermes. I spotted a beautiful red 100% cashmere classic Chanel coat in perfect condition for 1200 Euro. Unfortunately it was not my size and also red is not my colour of choice. If it were Tiffany Blue or black, then that would have been another story !

Another great vintage find was Free*P*star, on Street 61 Glassware ( Le Marais ) Paris. This store is so cheap for excellent quality vintage that it will make your jaw drop. I walked past and saw these people rummaging through clothing on the mezzanine level of this boutique, so I thought I'd walk in and see what the fuss was all about. Now I understand. Crisp Italian white shirts for 1 Euro each, denim jackets for 5 Euro, leather jackets ranging from 40 Euro upwards, fur jackets and coats were 50 Euro and upwards. If you're looking for fur or leather, then this is the place to be. My husband bought a stunning vintage dark brown soft Italian leather jacket for 40 Euro whilst I bought a fabulous shearling and fur coat for 50 Euro. Both in excellent as-new condition. There was a vast array of vintage designer jeans here, authentic Burberry trenchcoats, authentic vintage Dior bags as well as a huge assortment of shirts, pants, skirts and suits. Of course, different stock is there based on when you visit the store and some clothing, you wouldn't even bother looking at, whilst others are just high quality finds. Funnily enough, the jacket my husband bought and the coat I bought were the first things we picked up when we walked into the boutique, and they were perfect for us. 

How beautiful is the window of this jewellery store with the flowers suspended above ? Unfortunately I missed the name of it !

Above: Yes, it's always the turquoise blue that attracts my eye !

Au revoir to Le Marais ! 

Watch out for my future posts, featuring the Colours of Paris, which will include the spectacular  Palace of Versailles, the Musee du Louvre and the colourful and creative windows of Paris boutiques.

As of June, you can also follow my 10 week journey into Post-War Abstract Painting via MoMa ( Modern Museum of Art )  in New York, as I undertake a practical online course on the Materials and Techniques of Post-War Abstract Painting.

Also there are some exciting things happening next week. Firstly my watercolour fine art prints will be photographed and uploaded into my Etsy store. Hooray ! Thanks for your patience. I know it's been a long time coming.

Secondly I will be showing you how to create a beautiful, yet simple artwork using this gorgeous shopping bag from Chanel store at 31 Rue Cambon in Paris. ( Seriously, it's so easy that anyone can do it and I mean anyone ! ) Bags like this are like travel destination souvenirs and these don't come by easily either, so instead of throwing them out or using them to store your beautiful purchases, why not display them as artwork ? I'll show you how next week. In the meantime, au revoir and have a wonderful week. Hope the sun keeps shining !

Ooh La La ! More views from my Parisian Apartment !

Hope you've had a fabulous week ! How great is this Sydney weather ? It's been superb. Speaking of great weather, I thought I'd share with you these amazing views from the windows of my 17th century Parisian apartment on a beautful morning in Paris !

One side of the road was being fixed on this bridge that leads to the Left Bank. This was where all the fresh food markets were and also where the artisan boulanger, Eric Kayser  was situated. My husband made daily morning trips to this boulangerie to purchase fresh creme brulee for breakfast ! Yes, you read it right - breakfast ( along with other yummy delicacies ! )

What a beautiful spot for some wedding photographs !

Bonjour Ile Saint - Louis !

It wasn't long ago when I posted up that I was studying French part-time. Well that was for a reason. I was heading to Paris for a couple of weeks and boy, was it an amazing and unforgettable experience. Mind you, now that I'm back, I had better get back to those French lessons ! French 102, here I come !

After much research I decided to stay in Ile Saint Louis which is one of the two natural islands in the middle of the Seine River. The other one is Ile de la Cite. The island was named after King Louis IX and remains to be one of the oldest parts of Paris, and is rich in architecture with an imprint of the late French Renaissance period. Ile Saint Louis is regarded as a privileged location within Paris.

What attracted me to choose Ile Saint Louis as our base for our vacaton,  was the fact that not only was it the most central part of Paris to stay for our needs, but also it's a peaceful oasis of calm in the busy centre of Paris. We wanted a more local Parisian experience rather than a touristy one.

 The island only has one way streets, no metro stations and only two bus stops, however the island is close to three Metro stations that we frequented regularly which were on the Right Bank : Pont Marie, Saint Paul and Hotel de Ville.

Most of the island is residential but it has it's local cafes, restaurants, creperies, and quirky little boutiques, and of course fabulous boulangeries and patisseries.

Ile Saint Louis is only a short skip and jump to the Notre Dame Cathedral

Our beautiful Parisian apartment is on the left, above the Japanese restaurant Isami ( regarded as one of the best Japanese restaurants in Paris ) Our apartment was so peaceful and in such a convenient location. There was a bridge that took you to the Left Bank and another bridge that took you to the Right Bank.  Next door was L'escale which was our regular cafe haunt for a quick noisette ( aka macchiato ) before we headed out for a day's worth of sightseeing or shopping.

The view from the apartment.

Biscuitier La Cure Gourmande. These biscuits are to-die-for and you can try before you buy. 

Pylones is a quirky homewares store in Paris. The window displays are always a kaleidoscope of colour. All items here have some function or usefulness. I bought a kitchen timer from here that was a little robot. Very cute. There was also another interesting piece which was a motorbike / tape dispenser. 

I always grabbed something for lunch from this local boulangerie when we had a big day out to visit a museum or gallery. 

Although the sign says " Tartine Vegetarienne ", these were actually Croque Monsieurs. I didn't know what a Croque Monsieur was until I was learning French and also saw them in Paris. It's basically a ham and cheese melt ! 

After 24 hours of flying, this was the first cafe we went to for our first coffee. Cafe St. Regis.  The atmosphere and decor of this cafe was quintessentially Parisian and you know you've arrived in Paris when you go to the bathroom, and you feel something brush against the back of your leg and you see a big dog ! In saying that, this was the only time I saw a dog inside a cafe. All other dogs were outside cafes. My son was delighted with the first hot chocolate he consumed here in Paris. Now hot chocolate in Paris is different from hot chocolate in Sydney. It's basically thick, melted chocolate and some cafes will provide a small jug of milk on the side to add to it. The closest thing in Sydney I can compare it to is Max's Brenner's Italian hot chocolate.

My first Double Espresso ( Long Black )  after flying for 24 hours !

Our favourite restaurant on Ile Saint Louis ! Les Fous de L'ile. Absolutely delicious meals with such attention to detail. 

Another great restaurant / cafe that we ate at. Le Flore en I'ile. A great place for tea, a glass of wine, a relaxed dinner but most of all, for their amazing desserts ! 

The bridge that leads to the Right Bank.

Heading back to Ile Saint Louis from the Right Bank.

Watch out for my next blog post which will feature one of my favourite areas of Paris : Le Marais !

Until then, au revoir !

Bonjour Paris .....

Keep your eyes peeled for the upcoming blog posts from Paris !

Loving Belynda Henry.....

Belynda Henry daydreamed about becoming a full-time painter whilst teaching art at high school. Although Belynda graduated from Sydney College of the Arts and majored in sculpture, she was always fascinated by the painting students and their studios. Her dream became a reality when she had her baby girl,Chloe in 2000 and landed her first representation with Libby Edwards Galleries.

 Belynda is inspired by many artists, ranging from Louise Olsen from Dinosaur Designs and her Dad, John Olsen, to Guy Maestri and Elizabeth Cummings. I can actually see some of her inspiration coming through in her work especially her works on paper and her play with shapes in her abstracts. I can also see her inspiration from nature and landscapes.  Belynda was also a finalist for the Wynne Prize at the NSW Art Gallery.

I'm so glad she left teaching and became a full-time artist. Check out some of her works that I love !

Above: Reflections with White. Acrylic on Canvas.

Above: Landscape and Red. Acrylic on Canvas.

Above: Blue Brown . Acrylic on Canvas

Above: Softer. Acrylic on Canvas.

Above: Private Lawns. Acrylic on Canvas.

Above: Romance. Acrylic on Canvas.

Above: Blush. Acrylic on Canvas.

Above: Blue Green Brown. Acrylic on Canvas.

The following are some of her works on paper. I adore these ! 

You can find more of Belynda Henry on her website and her blog.