Thirty years ago (heavy sigh) this book was released, and this is where it all began for me - the whole fascination with French wardrobe planning, the idea of a minimalist, well-chosen wardrobe that would take me anywhere. The following images that delineate the possibilities inherent in seven pieces of black clothing were revolutionary to me. Up until this time, I was very stuck in the "gray suit, navy suit, white shirt, red bow tie, black pumps" aesthetic of the time (thanks for nothing to the Dress for Success theories). Breaking out into black opened my eyes, changed my self-image, and finally gave me the excuse to spend a lot of money on clothes that I actually really liked. I know that this idea ... View the Post
Travel with Janice Archives - Page 15 of 15
The Voyages of Vivienne: sleeping in airports
Vivienne and I have both traveled a lot, and both of us have had to sleep in airports more times than we care to remember. It's an acquired skill; perhaps you can benefit from our shared experience. (and the insights of the hysterically fun and useful http://blog.sleepinginairports.com/)
Worst case, without doubt, was late summer at the Norfolk Virginia airport. We were informed, in rapid succession, that (1) no more flights would be leaving on the night in question (it's about 10 pm when we're told this), (2) there are no hotel rooms available in town, (3) TSA has gone home for the night, so if we leave the airport, we have to stay OUTSIDE all night, and (4) all concessionaires are closed for the night.
So here's the ... View the Post
Paris shopping: Les bouquinistes
It is impossible to walk through Paris and not see the (approximately 200) dark green book "boxes" along the Seine. In addition to selling the usual posters, postcards and refrigerator magnets, one can find amazing old books and magazines. Unfortunately, unless you can read French, there's not necessarily a lot which might be of interest.
Except... I've started buying magazines which were released the month that I was born. They're a fascinating little snapshot of history, and it gives me a good reason to support a Parisian cultural institution. They're easy to carry back in my suitcase, and they only cost, on average, around 10 Euros.
In the next few days, I'll post some more information about my most ... View the Post
Things Parisians own: Paris Par Arrondissement
Paris is large, and has streets which (1) are only a block long, (2) change names repeated over the length of the street, and (3) have very similar names and are easily confused. Thus, it's not at all uncommon to see someone in Paris dig one of these nifty little books out of the bottom of a handbag or briefcase. There's simply no way for even a native Parisian to know where every street in the city is! Just five inches tall, less than an inch thick, and covered in waterproof plastic, the PPA (say pay pay aaaah) includes every street within the Periphique (the ring road) around Paris, as well as maps of the subway and the suburban train system, and nifty listings of parks, hospitals and other items of interest. They can ... View the Post
From the Style Shelf: Working Wardrobe by Janet Wallach
One of my very favorite bloggers, the beautiful Caramel Cupcake (http://cupcakecaramel.blogspot.com/) has been analyzing her style books, and it prompted me to pull some of mine off of the shelf and look them over again. And first would HAVE to be Working Wardrobe, which came out the same year I graduated from college. (yes, that would be 30 years ago...)For someone coming out of college with a wardrobe utterly unsuited to the business world, and a job in government waiting for me, the idea of building one of these capsule wardrobes was intoxicating. I still find these illustrations by Christine Turner to be sort of rivetingly elegant.
Forgive the blurry edges of the scans - I was unwilling to squash the book flat in my ... View the Post
Paris shopping: Diwali
Of course everybody in Paris wears scarves almost all the time! (seriously, it's true, at least in cooler weather) But these aren't the square, Hermes style silk scarves nearly as often as it's the more relaxed rectangular "echarpes" loosely looped around the neck. And where do these millions of scarves come from?
Diwali - yes, the same word as the Indian festival of lights. There are at least three or four of these stores scattered around Paris - I know of one on the Rue Mouffetard, and also on on the Rue Soufflot just down the hill from the Pantheon. These stores are the absolute mother lode of scarves in any color and any fabric you can imagine! You have to go in with some sort of a plan or clue ... View the Post
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