Missing Paris...........and blog friends

~ Photos by Lala of My Castle in Spain ~

In sharing these most divine Tumblr photos taken by one of my favorite  bloggers this week, I got to thinking about my Paris trip a year ago September. We were supposed to meet up with lovely Lala of My Castle in Spain during the second week and my sister-in-law and I got caught in a torrential downpour while Zara shopping on the Champs Elysées. Not a terrible place to get soaking wet. We couldn't get a cab, waited hours holding our wet shopping bags like the pair of pathetic drowned tourists that we were at that point, no phone, no way to get back to our hotel, no way to contact Lala. Someday I hope to meet up with lovely Lala if our paths cross in Paris again. Maybe by then I can learn to speak a bit of French? 

~ Photo by Haleigh of Making Magique ~ 

All of this got me to thinking about how much I missed going to Paris this year. How incredible and wonderful it was to spend time with Vicki, the talented Carla, meet up with sweet Haleigh her Paris photos above and below and Claudia who is brocante hopping right now, and how I would have cried if my Paris photos weren't retrieved when my laptop hard drive went off this week. I wonder if they think the same.............how improbable it was that we all met up that week in Paris and how we made it happen. 

~ Photo by Haleigh of Making Magique ~

It is difficult to maintain such unique friendships long-distance but bloggers tend to do it well. We make it happen by email, telephone, Skype, plane, or train and once the connection is made, especially once you have met them in person, it  becomes important to maintain the bond that most will say is impossible to keep. My brother called me the other day "Louise wants to know when you two can go to Paris again?" My reply was quick and decisive. "September 2012 for the Maison d' Objet and I know exactly who to call to meet us there". I miss Paris but mostly I miss my blogger friends. 

petite french yogurt jars.........as sweet little vases

When I saw this project of painting the insides of plain glass jars, I knew there was a story I had to tell you. When my sister-in law Louise met up with me in Paris last fall during my second week, we would slip down the narrow winding stairs to the most charming hotel restaurant each morning and order our breakfast of yogurt, granola, fruit, orange juice, croissants, and several pots of robust coffee.

Louise is a very practical and clever woman of Dutch background and when she slipped out to the restaurant washroom to rinse out the yogurt jar I thought perhaps in an amusing way she was taken the Dutch work ethic a bit too far. Silly me, she was taking what she found to be the sweet little jar back home as a sweet little vase clever but even I could see that one wasn't going to be enough. Change of morning plans.

In order to add to the collection without convert bathroom trips, we resorted to room service, something I happen to adore anyways and made her mission a bit easier to acomplish. By the end of the week, she has a nice little clean collection no yogurt traces no label to line up along her kitchen window when we got home. Sometimes they hold flowers, sometimes little bunches of fresh herbs, but I do have to say I wish I had done the same. Now you might ask, why this jar? 

Unlike North America, the French package their yogurt in glass jars so much smarter. Since it isn't a screw top, there is only a nice curved top lip exposed when you remove the foil top. It is one sweet little glass jar to line up along a windowsill and remind you of everyday Paris. 

When I saw this technique on the blog Hidden In Paris which I found through Vicki Archer's book recommendation here I knew I would send it along to Louise, perhaps she wants to add some colour to her sweet little Paris vases? It looks really easy and as you will see by clicking here, it works on all types of glass shapes. Especially the petite ones you bring home from Paris.

Photo 1 and 5 via Hidden in France/Photo 4 via electricmom//Photo 2 and 3 by Sande Chase

Fuschia Faves...............and random musings

A gorgeous gift. 

Some day I will bring out those calligraphy pens again.

And practice, practice.

One of my Paris floral photos. Such a tender bloom.

Chanel. Coveteur. For Grown Up Ladies.

For Little Ladies. Armani Junior.

Have you noticed nail art is making a comeback?

Summer. Prada

Fascinated with artist Maira Kalman. Her drawings, her musings, her monthly blog for the NY Times, go see here. 

More summer. Oscar de la Renta.

This is how I imagine our brains must look. All the faces we have seen and known. 

Fuschia Louboutin

I have promised my son that I will not dress up our dog in any way.

Statement Piece.

Truly Magnificent. 

Another floral photo I took in Paris last September.

Final day in Paris, something I ran across this morning. My back had finally given out and I reclined on a stone bench while my sister-in-law went in to Monoplix and I looked straight up and saw this. Perfect. Done.

Photo 1, 10, 14 via Tumblr/Photo 2, 6, 12 via Pinterest/Photo 3, 15, 16 by Sande Chase ~ A Gift Wrapped Life

Cire Trudon...........Paris and now New York

You know that you have walked into the most divine Parisian store when you open the doors to Cire Trudon. In fact, you are entering the shop of the oldest wax and candle manufacturer still in operation (see website history here). Originally founded by a wax merchant named Trudon in 1643, the French company has changed hands a few times over the four centuries and began it's current retail revolution in 2006 when it furnished the candles for the product-accurate production of Sofia Coppola's film Marie Antoinette. After all, Cire Trudon really did actually manufacture candles for the royal court of Versailles, most churches, wealthy families, and was the official royal wax manufacturer for Napoleon in the 1700's. Cire Trudon flamed again in 1948, producing candles for the prestigious fashion houses of Hermes, Cartier, Dior, and Guerlain. In 2007, Cire Trudon was purchased by an innovative man named Ramdame Touhami who has managed to position the oldest candle company into high court, successfully entering the royal court (so to speak) of todays' crowded candle market. If only Marie Antoinette could see them now.

~ Napoleon ~

Though I am highly fragrance-sensitive and smelling too much scent can quickly give me a migraine (it is not a fair world), I put that potential risk aside in the interest of a good story and let the most knowledgeable sales attendant lift each glass cloche and instruct me to inhale the distilled scent from the inside of the over sized glass cloches. This method of absorbing each individual scent was new to me before attending the Maison et Objet show and I found it a method that eliminated any competing scents. So why wasn't I feeling the typical pain after all that inhalation? 

~ Marie Antoinette en Noir ~

~ Marie Antoinette en Ivoire ~

What distinguishes Cire Trudon in today's candle market is a combination of many things. Besides the  history, the interior, the service, the packaging, all of which make for a memorable shopping experience. But what sets Cire Trudon apart for me are two things, their unique and classical French bust moulds, and the actual candle quality. Price equals quality in many products and nowhere is that equation more apparent than in candle quality.The top-secret Trudon manufacturing recipe is 100's of years old and it remains the same today. Cire Trudon candles are 100% paraffin-free and devoid of any secondary minerals derived from petrochemicals. Certainly more expensive, but with none of the harmful and dangerous chemicals so painfully-tolerated by many in cheaper brands. That difference is relevant today and I will devote a upcoming post on candles and the latest research in respect to health.

A description of each scent is rendered in gold calligraphy.
Odalisque ~ Orange Blossom

My absolute favourite. Isn't she a beauty?

In bringing back travel treats for my friends I always look for something special, something petite and easy to pack or carry. Those petite and colourful votive seen on the front table with the wax cameo were my gift of choice and in order to carefully carry them back I was forced to check my carry-on bag. But a girl has to do what a girl has to do in order to gift her friends with special little treats.

It must be the fragrant work environment. Hugo our sales attendant at the Cire Trudon flagship store in Paris (78 rue de Seine) was so charming, so considerate and attentive, certainly he could be one of the shop's best assets along with the product and gorgeous toile-patterned interior. After making my selections, we left my purchases with Monsieur Hugo, went for a short walk and returned to find each of the 14 petite candles expertly wrapped and twisted in black tissue and sealed with the stunning Cire Trudon label. Tucked into my shopping bag was a thoughtful surprise, a generous quantity of their exquisite product book, truthfully a gift in itself. I am sure we were not the biggest customer of the day, but the gracious Hugo made us feel that way. 

The gold-embossed labels are produced exclusively for Cire Trudon by the oldest champagne label maker in France.

The gorgeous Cire Trudon product book has beautiful drawings and descriptive text in French and English, a petite history book if you will. For my larger boxed candles I chose Ernesto as my wintry scent of choice. The masculine scent captured the essence of leather chairs, a roaring fire, rows of books, with a hint of tobacco........the distant whiff of a Havana cigar perhaps.

So many titled with clever scent associations, so few hands to carry it all home. A few I was sorry to leave behind........Roi Soleil ~ the waxed wood of Versailles, Spiritus Sancti ~ subtle but unmistakably church incense, and Trianon ~ a floral homage to Marie Antoinette. Take your time, you will be inhaling some remarkable and unusual scents.

Feeling like you want to see these waxen busts for yourself? Aren't you in luck if you live in New York where the first North American Cire Trudon shop is opening this week? Here is a press release link from the NY Times. You can also order online at Barneys New York. Though not seen in this photo, antique mirrors were incorporated into the design of the NY store, a reference to the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles. As we know, nothing reflects the glow of candles better than mirrors.

Cire Trudon - New York

54 Bond Street

Manhattan, New York

212-677-1200

Due to be launched this November, Cire Trudon is boldly introducing a cheeky but unique entry into the home fragrance market as well. Stink Bombs (no kidding) but done in the most elegant of fashion, something designed to amuse the home fragrance market. Each gold tin holds 5 glass vials, break them open and let the interior perfume blast your home or garden environment with intense fragrance, fashionably stinky in all the right places. 






Top twelve photos by Sande Chase ~ A Gift Wrapped Life
Photo 13 from NY Times

Gilt Crystal and Glamour Gift Wrap Challenge ~ Part One

You know that Gilded Glamour Gift Wrap Challenge I gave myself a few posts back? The one inspired by my photo of the Ralph Lauren store display in Paris? The one where I said come back and see the result sometime this week? Just so you know, I had absolutely no idea where this challenge was going to head but I was determined to pull this one off......... even though I was a bit worried after the stated fact.

Surprisingly, I don't actually have all that much "gold and gilt" gift wrap materials. I like gold, I just tend towards working with colours when it comes to gift wrap presentations. But this lack of "gilt" only made me look a little harder, dig a little deeper, and gather some golden inspiration to capture the essence of that Paris salon. This is my Part One of this "gilded challenge" and you will see a few more over the next week, once I started I was really into this gilt and crystal "salon" look and even better for me, it has special holiday gift written all over it.

 ~ the Ralph Lauren Paris salon inspiration ~

This presentation brought together more than a few of my gift wrap pointers. I used a standard matte gold wrapping paper that I buy in a commercial roll, a burnished gold taffeta ribbon that I bought at a mark-down bin at a craft store a long time ago, a black faux-fur hair scrunchie, and a crystal bauble from my old jewelery stash that I didn't even know was there until I went hunting for something sparkly this morning. It obviously fell off something and luckily had a small eye at the rear that I needed for a secure ribbon attachment. If I hadn't found this I was totally prepared to take apart other jewelry pieces......... actually I did but the "gilt" challenge isn't over yet. You will have to come back to see more.

Step One ~ Wired Ribbon

Step Two ~ Scrunchie

This faux-fur hair scrunchie (and it really is and no I wouldn't wear it) slides over the ribbon knot, pull through the ribbon tails and it really is that easy. Lots of instant volume, almost having a collar effect and creating a nest for the sparkly bauble. I slide through another short length of ribbon and then just folded each of the four ribbon tails under for poufs. No complicated bow-tying needed. This bow-less ribbon style will only work with wired type ribbons, something more readily found during holidays. 

Step Three ~ Bauble

This was sheer luck to find this crystal bauble, but you could just as easily use a brooch, clasp, or as you will see this next week..........even earrings, with or without their partners.

All photos by Sande Chase ~ A Gift Wrapped Life

golden glamour..........inspires

Gilt, Crystal. Glamour. Glowing. Gorgeous.

~ Ralph Lauren ~ Paris ~

Something that inspires me to wrap a gift of opulent beauty.

This week............

Photos by Sande Chase ~ A Gift Wrapped Life

top photo at Ralph Lauren Paris/bottom photo at Maison et Objet

sunday morning

Help yourself to flaky croissants and brown eggs....

Strong coffee with steamed milk.......

Back row to people watching.........

I am craving a Paris outdoor cafe breakfast this very early Sunday morning.

All photos by Sande Chase ~ A Gift Wrapped Life