quiet windows - palais royal

For the past few months, I've been walking through the palais royal garden every morning and evening on the way to and from work. It has grown to be one of my absolute favorite places in Paris and one of my favorite moments in the day. I walk through the garden at some of the quietest times of the day - all the shops and restaurants are closed, and sometimes if I'm lucky, I'll see one or two people through the windows getting ready for the next day of visitors.

I love looking through the shop windows, which are almost like cabinets of curiosity for me since I've never walked into any of the stores and most of them are empty when I walk through. 

  

the carefully curated windows of Didier Ludot's are almost like walking by a fashion timeline

how precious is this display case in Miss Bibi's teeny tiny shop? 

The garden itself seems untouched most mornings, save for the brave runners who work out before work - heck if I lived close to such a beautiful garden I might consider it too - and one or two people walking their dogs.

I love this quiet start to my days and feel like I get to the office more refreshed than if I had stayed underground the whole way. The garden has become a sort of oasis for me - a place to escape every day and dream for the whole seven minutes it takes me to waltz through. 

fake it till you make it

Last week, I learned I would be attending a meeting today with a potential new client. As much as I wish I were able to go out and splurge at times like these, the reality of my monetary situation keeps me at bay the majority of the time. Most of my disposable income, which let's face it, isn't much in my field of work, goes to travel, which at this stage in my life is perfectly fine with me. I know that in this kind of situation what you say is more important than how you look, but I'm a firm believer that when you look the part, it's that much better. 
None of the items I wore were more than $50 and I know I will wear each and every one of them millions of times in endless 'winning' (I hope) combinations. 

dress: H&M current collection 10 €; flower brooches: H&M current collection 3 and 4 €; shoes: Nine West s/s '13 on sale for about $45 

July 4/14

As an expat, there are a few holidays that go missing in the calendar (yeah, yeah, they're replaced by others) and when those days roll around, I always find it hard to be far from home.

Every Fourth of July, I think of lounging near a body of water, eating hot dogs and Mac and cheese, twirling around with sparklers in my hands and the general celebration of summer with family and friends. Of course, there is also the feeling patriotic that comes with the Fourth of July, which still isn't the case for me when I celebrate Bastille day. 

Each year I like to add little moments to my day that remind me of home - last year I went out to lunch with a friend, we had burgers and fries. This year, I wore red, white and blue to work and dangled a little American flag at my desk. 

Just ten days later, I found myself in another patriotic ensemble of blue, white and red and celebrating France's frenchness basking in the sun.

It's my fourth Bastille day since I've been living in France and no two have been the same. While last year we basked in the Parisian festivities, visiting the Invalides where the army vehicles that parade down the Champs Elysées park for the afternoon and let kids climb into them, and enjoyed the fireworks from our rooftop terrace, this year, we spent the day at my boyfriend's parents' house, kind of lounging around the garden and enjoying family time before driving back to Paris for the start of a new week. 

We made it home just in time to watch the fireworks from our living room window and listen to the action live on France 2 playing in the background. Outside of work, these past few days have been a pleasant welcome for summer with long sunny days, weekend trips here and there and sweet summer nights sprinkled with rosé wine or menthe a l'eau. When the credits rolled on the France 2 broadcast of the fireworks we were lucky to be watching from the comfort of our dinner table (read, barefoot), la vie en rose started playing and while I know it's cliche, it was just another sweet moment to add to my book of Paris moments. 

candy striped

I am absolutely in love with the weather since last week. It truly feels like summer and I think it shows – people are happier, colors are brighter, we’re having meals outside and the only thing I can think of doing when I get home at night is hanging out on our awesome rooftop !

 

 dress: Forever XXI; shoes: Nine West (circa s/s '07); sunnies: YSL; earrings: Monoprix sales

The Summer Manifesto

Every summer I think of ways to have fun despite having to work most of the time. One of the perks of living in Paris is that there is always something to do and somewhere to go. Here's this year's summer manifesto, which we began to manifest this Saturday with a trip to the Domaine de Chantilly. These past weekends have been an array of staying in the city and taking day trips within reasonable driving distance of the city and I'm excited to see what new adventures this summer brings. 

top, shorts, necklace and bag: Forever XXI; sandals: Asos; hat: from Rome; sunnies: YSL