Tex Saverio - Jakarta Fashion Week 2012

Photo by Honda Tranggono/Feminagroup

Makes Me WARM

..........Burberry

Di musim gugur dan dingin kali ini, Burberry Prorsummengangkat coat dan sweaters-nya dengan bermaterial wol danwarna-warna cerah. Bila Anda merencanakan berpergian ke tempat yang memilikisuhu udara dingin,  jangan lupauntuk memakai coat dari seri Prorsumini sebagai teman yang menghangatkan aktifitas Anda. Coat dengan motif kotak-kotak dengan aksen warna memiliki tigadesain yang berbeda, yaitu: Check WoolOversize Sculptural Caban, Check Felted Wool Oversize Sculptural, dan Check Compact Wool Sculptural.Sedangkan, apabila Anda lebih menyukai motif dan desain yang simpel seperti Compact Wool Sculptural dan Sculptural Felted Wool Duffle denganwarna orange , tak dipungkiri coat ini menurunkan aura berkelaskedalam diri Anda.

Burberry Prorsum juga mempunyai solusi lain untukmembuat Anda hangat dengan sweaterscerahnya. Sweaters rajutan berbahanwol dengan tekstur lembut dan halus dalam metalicknit cashmere dan brushed mohaircable knit. Kesan kasual pada sweatersdari Prorsum mungkin dapat memberikan Anda kesan klasik jika memakainya.

Coat dan sweaters dari BurberryProrsum ini seperti lirik lagu dari Billie Holiday, “The snow is snowing, the wind is blowing. Why do I care how much itmay storm I've got my love to keep me warm.”

Photo by Burberry.com

French Pastries

Desserts, dogs, and Fashion.. all so much more glamourous in Paris. Why is that?



tfs

McQueen Tribute by Damien Blottiere

 Alexander McQueen tribute by Damien Blottiere 

in VOGUE Homme Japan vol #7

Paris Frocks - 1930

A reader has requested more posts about garments from the 1930s and 40s.  Today, a look at daytime dresses and suits from Parisian designers in the spring of 1930.  You can see in these examples that the dropped waist of the 20s is moving back to the natural waistline of the 30s. Are you as much in love as I am with these?

Jean Patou blue and white tweed tissue wool suit with a linen and lace blouse.  Can you see the bracelet handle on the purse?
 

Elsa Schiaparelli wears a dress of her own design in black silk crepe backed satin.  The front skirt drape was new and "of the moment".

Two polka dotted silk crepe de chine daytime dresses by J. Suzanne Talbot.

Cecile Welly wool tweed suit accented with a black fur collar.  Puppy dog not included.

Lousieboulanger silk crepe de chine afternoon dress.

Paris Christmas Decorations

One of the most charming parts of visiting Paris in December was seeing various stores and cafes decorated for Christmas. Christmas in Paris is much more understated and tasteful than it is here in the U.S. You won't see giant blow-up Santas or snowmen, you won't hear annoying Christmas music, and you won't see garish flashing lights. You will see lots of natural elements like pine cones, cinnamon sticks, and grapevines. Real pine trees are often simply decorated with a few glass balls. Click on the pictures to see a larger view!

Many cafes are decorated above the awnings so as not to take away valuable table space on the sidewalk.

This cafe intermingled Christmas trees with the regular plants above the awning.

Trunks from birch trees help keep these trees in place and add that natural element that the Parisians like.

Twining grapevines are decorated with red sticks and glass balls in pinks and purples.

Three real trees sit atop curly sticks and gold and silver glass balls hang from ribbons.

I saw lots of trees decorated with flocking in various colors of the rainbow: White, red, purple, blue, and even bright green. The flocked trees would be adorned simply with glass balls in a contrasting color.

Red flocked trees with gold glass balls.

A tiny white flocked tree with blue glass balls adorns the window of a pharmacy.

Many stores and cafes had a single small decoration. Here a simple pine swag is decorated with real cotton bolls and red berries.

I would imagine that these white trees remain up year round. For Christmas, glass balls were added in an unexpected black.

I loved these two kooky Christmas trees that stuck out horizontally above a very narrow sidewalk in Montmartre.

Haven in Paris

The view from our apartment in Paris.

My husband and I sleep on different schedules. While I'm an early-to-bed early-to-rise type of gal, he prefers to stay up late. This has always been a challenge when we're away from home staying in a small hotel room. This past year, we've had two outstanding vacation experiences. For both of them, we chose an alternative to a hotel. While in Florida, we rented a small cottage and in Paris, we stayed in a fabulous apartment offered by Haven in Paris.

Haven in Paris offers a wide range of apartment choices in various neighborhoods throughout Paris, from studios to a 5-bedroom penthouse that can sleep up to 10 people. We stayed in the 1-bedroom Houdon apartment in Montmartre and it far exceeded our expectations. Large and spacious, it features a living/dining room, a comfortable bedroom with luxury linens, and a completely modernized kitchen and bathroom. Every window offered a marvelous view of the neighborhood, and the balcony was simply charming.

No, there is no maid, nor is there room service, but who cares? We were able to shop at the local grocery and cook our own breakfasts and dinners which saved us a huge amount of money. We were able to do laundry, which allowed us to pack lightly and go with carry-on luggage. We were able to stretch out and relax for hours without feeling cramped and claustrophobic in a small hotel room. And we weren't disturbed by loud people in the halls or on the other side of a thin wall. The cost of renting an apartment through Haven in Paris is lower per night than you would pay in most nice hotels and, in my opinion, the experience is far superior.

Best of all, the apartment truly felt like a home away from home, like we were living in Paris and not just visiting. We will definitely use Haven in Paris again for our next trip to France. Thank you, Erica!

Full disclosure: A portion of our stay at the apartment was a gift from a dear friend. I have not received any compensation from Haven in Paris for this post.