bonheur: May 2012

Tout Sweet

Biff's photo by Karen Wheeler
This morning while doing a search on Amazon for books on 'moving to France' I met up with Biff. He belongs to fabulously funny Brit author, Karen Wheeler,

Who wrote laugh-outloud, Tout Sweet:Hanging Up My High Heels for a New Life in France. BTW I've just added walking to my Paris-prep regime of swimming + stair-climbing, so being able to read my Kindle (with one eye on the ground for unforeseen circumstances) is a great joy. Granted my hoots of laughter are scaring off the neighborhood dogs but never mind.
Tout Sweet is the perfect read for anyone who dreams of chucking away their BlackBerry in favor of real blackberrying and downshifting to a romantic, alluring locale where new friendships–and new loves–are just some of the treasures to be found amongst life's simple pleasures.

Since Biff and his brill owner live in a small village in Poitou-Charentes (central western France) I thought it a good excuse to take them on a fantasie noire trip back to Hotel du Petit Moulin which just happens to be on rue du Poitou (home turf you might say for them...).

I can easily see Biff bouncing down these dotty stairs. Biff may or may not be a Portugese water dog but he's still adorbs and has his own blog at toutsweet dot net not to be missed.

I see Biff lounging in this perfectly co-ordinated bedroom.

Or leafing through the oh so tres courrant fashion journals at the hotel.

Or better yet parking himself in the faux book nook

For a good read (not too many words for Biff) of Pascale Estellon's lovely Mon Priemier Livre D'Activities (also matching Biff's coat noir).

Biff's mistress, Karen, former fashion editor for the London Mail on Sunday, could relax in the perfect noire lingerie outfit with matching gloves of course...

There is the option of one of Eres new summer checked bathing suits as well.

One MUST match one's dog don't you think? It's de rigueur non?

The added filip of a 'Chantal Thomas' fringe goes into the fantasy mix

Plus a good healthy spritz of Guerlain's newest La Petite Robe Noire is essential.

Why not a noire carte des affaires while we're at it?

I was surprised to find these in Paris.

What do you think?

Would you or wouldn't you?

The ultimate treat for Biff and his mistress - Pierre Herme noire macarons reglasse(licorice).

Enough of les noires fantasies...

Back to Karen Wheeler's tale of Tout Sweet, making her way renovating a run-down but tres charmante cottage in Western France seriously lacking in the most basic mod-cons.

'My future, as I had often smugly reflected, seemed assured: a sexy French husband, a second home in France, and bilingual enfants dressed in Bonpoint clothing'

All this goes down the drain when said Fr man takes a walk just before the wedding. The adventures up and down will have you spinning with laughter. Karen's a terrific writer. Well she's British. Go read a few pages on Amazon and see if you're not hooked. I was down-loading in the middle of 31st Avenue (isn't the Kindle wonderful?)

Cheers and happy reading PBers.

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Dior Secret Garden

She didn't blog yesterday...

She was caught up in the mad search for visas

Up against the walls of bureaucracy

She went into hiding fearful, trapped

She would pretend all was well

Put on a good face

But inside terror struck

She wanted to run away from it all

But climb the steps she must

Lost in a maze of paperwork in triplicate

She would find her way clear

And breath l'aire frais

Get some perspective, calm down

Croise les doigts/cross your fingers she makes it.

On verra bien.

Have you seen the new Dior Secret Garden?

Don't miss it.

Shot at Versailles and features Dior-clad models running through the castle’s gilded halls. Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin shot the living campaign, starring Daria Strokus, Melissa Stasiuk and Xiao Wen Ju in Bill Gaytten’s last collection for the house.

If she does make it, she'll stay one night at Hotel Petit du Moulin designed by Christian Lacroix-29,rue du Poitou 75003

She'll sleep in the most outrageous bed ever

Run down the dotty stairway like no other

Grab an apero

Race out the front door

Always looking

For the perfect pastry

Ah...only Pierre Herme's unpronounceable gaufres will do in their elegant boxes

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Blue-Bleu

Blue suede shoes seem right for Memorial Day no?

Here's a way to double your creativity - spritz yourself all over with blue paint like Jean-Paul Goude did to Jean-Paul Gautier!

One of my favorite shots of French ultramarine blue watercolor swatches.

Mother and child reunion.

Have you noticed how French moms and daughters dress alike in Paris?

Blue bag + blue dress.

All she needs are those blue suede shoes. I saw a lot of blue in Paris.

A stunner of a bleu wall at an art show in March.

A touch of bleu at the show.

One of my favorite boutique hotels (in the Marais) is solid blue, Hotel Caron de Beaumarchaise. I long to stay here one night...

And their prices are nothing to get bleu about either.

Tres joli/beau oui?

A blue dollie at La Petit Blah-Blahs

Have you seen Nicole Robertson's gorgeous (means multi-colored Ha!) new book on Paris In Color?

Nicole of Little Brown Pen lives in Paris full time. Take a look at her blog and swoon or get ze book and look offline whenever you want to sink into Paris colors.