Whistle Stop Paris

Just a light lunch on arrival at Hotel Amour.... 

Perhaps one of the most instagrammed bits of Paris, but lovely none the less. 

Apt graffiti in the Marais at dusk. 

The leafy dining room at Hotel Amour

Ready for exploring in comfy New Balance and duvet-like Woolrich Arctic Parka

Delicious brunch at the unassuming but always great Rose Bakery on Rue des Martyrs

Saint-Georges, our local metro stop

Favourite little find of the trip, Musee de la Vie Romantique near Pigalle (more at the bottom).

Lights galore at Merci

We pass through Paris at least a couple of time a year to spend time with family in France, and after getting the Eurostar we inevitably end up racing across town to catch another train south, catching glimpses of Belle Paree as we go, seeing nothing but the Gare du Nord and perhaps the inside of a cab. 

So this time, we decided to stop-off and spend one night in Paris before heading down for a few days of nothingness over New Years. We were quite literally there for 24 hours which was lovely but gone in a flash. Unlike previous trips to Paris where I've created week-long itineraries to cram into a weekend culminating in being disappointed and knackered as a result, this time we arrived pretty much plan free and simply wandered. While it was short, it was definitely sweet, and was more than enough time for a few great meals, an exhibition and a bit of shopping. 

We Stayed.... at Hotel Amour in the old red light district, Pigalle. It's one of my favourite areas and hotels so it was a real treat to be back. We very sweetly got upgraded to a suite after waiting half an hour for our room which made for an extra nice start to our stay. Every room is different and, being an old brothel and all, some rooms have pretty, ahem, daring decor. You might end up in a black room with mirrors on the ceiling but its all part of the fun....

We ate.... Lunch at Hotel Amour, dinner at the beautiful but expensive Brasserie Thomieux and brunch at one of my favourites Rose Bakery on Rue des Martyrs, just over the road from Hotel Amour. Eggs, plenty of bread and one of the few places in Paris you can get a good juice. Good for tea and cake too (the carrot cake came highly recommended on Instagram). 

We Went.... Musee de la Vie Romantique. It's an old, Italian-style villa tucked away down a passage near Saint-Georges that's now a small museum for Romantic art and pieces of jewellery and artefacts that belonged to the creative family who lived there. There's also a really sweet garden and conservatory that you can take a moment in and get coffee and tea in the summer. After attempting to visit Musee de L'Orangerie and witnessing the 200 people deep queues, this was a breath of fresh air. Small but perfectly formed.

I Bought.... First point of call was concept store Merci. I picked up a treat from Isabel Marant and few new jewels but I'll make sure to show you exactly what I bought in the next post. Those of you who follow me on insta will have already seen the Marant piece in question.... 

I Wore.... Lived in my new Woolrich arctic parka and new New Balance 574 kicks, both of which were pretty much made for sightseeing. Also wearing my Blake LDN beanie, Gucci bag, Gap jumper and Zara jeans. 

Don't forget, there's some new bits and pieces on my Tictail store including Iro, Isabel Marant and vintage pieces picked up from my travels. Going to be having a bit of New Year clear out so keep checking back for more... 

All photos taken on iPhone 5 - apologies for any slightly pixelated ones

Stella's Christmas Jumper

Christmas came early Yesterday as Jamie and I prepared to go our separate ways to our families for the holidays, and did so by overeating and opening presents. We had dinner at The Shed in Notting Hill, which took us both by surprise at just how good it was (still thinking about the gnocchi and venison), and then headed home to take our places by our soon to be abandoned tree.

As usual, he massively showed me up as far as gifts were concerned, and the star of the show was this much-sought after, much-loved Stella McCartney jumper which was waiting for me under the tree. Not only was it the best surprise (I couldn't get it on quick enough), it could also technically fall in the bracket of festive knitwear. Well, its definitely the closest I've ever got to a Christmas jumper. And not an applique Rudolf in sight. 

Jumper // Stella McCartney

Skirt // Zara

Boots // Sandro

Coat // Bash via Vestiare Collective 

Jewellery // Theodora Warre, Natalie Marie jewellery and Noemi Klein

watch // Larson and Jennings

Bag // Whistles

ph. by James Wright

Hiromitsu - les Tuileries - Paris

      Hiromitsu - les Tuileries - Paris

      Hiromitsu est "personnal shopper" et donc styliste. J'adore son chapeau à plume et 
      son look noir de chez noir, qui reste pourtant extrêmement joyeux !

      Photo by Fred - Easy Fashion Paris

Leaf and Maud - FW - Paris

      Je me demande depuis le début d'où vient ce nom de Leaf Greener (Une feuille plus 
     verte que verte ?). C'est le nom que porte la Fashion Editor de ELLE China. J'ai trouvé 
     son look marrant assez adapté à l'entrée de l'hiver. En dessous, Maud porte un simple
     bonnet self-customisé. la preuve qu'on peut transformer une pièce banale en 
     accessoire de Mode.

     Photos by Fred - Easy Fashion paris

Federica - le Grand Palais - Paris

      Federica - le Grand Palais - Paris

      I met Federica just in front of the Grand Palais where Chanel shows take place.
      I just remember that she is from Italy and works as an architect. That's all !

      Photo by Fred - Easy Fashion Paris

Weekend Update

Ph. via my instagram @lucywilliams02

The closer we get to Christmas, the less time I seem to have at the weekends. Any free time is spent catching up with everyone and anyone before we all go our separate ways for the holiays as well as trying to cram in all those menial jobs so that when Christmas arrives, there's nothing left to do other than kick back and do very little. That's the plan anyway.... 

I ate...  I had 6 friends for dinner at mine on Friday and made a butternut squash and kale lasagne. I used this recipe but subbed the leeks for kale (but kept some spinach in there too). It turned out really good and was polished off pretty quickly for breakfast lunch the next day too. 

I watched... The new Hobbit movie in 3D at the IMAX. It was my first time at the HUGE screen and I was pretty blown away. The film itself turned out to be really good escapist fun which is exactly what we were in need of after a late night... I gather its fairly imaginative when it comes to adapting the book but anyone other than a diehard Tolkein fan shouldn't mind too much. David Beckham on Jonathan Ross was also a highlight of the weekend.

I wore... My new Blake LDN pieces including the perfect cashmere beanie in the picture above. Been hankering after a good grey beanie for a while and this one is never far from my head right now.

I bought.... I had to be pretty restrained while Christmas shopping for others this weekend. The only things that slipped through the net was a top-up of Philip Kingsley Daily Defense and Lucas Papaw Ointment.

I browsed... Hiphunters, the online fashion community that recently launched in the U.K. You might have seen via Instagram that I was recently treated to a pretty special dinner at Claridges to celebrate the site's U.K launch and I've been checking it out since. The site's basically a mixture of a wishlist service, magazine and e-tailer all in one, with the idea being you can be inspired, share ideas and shop all the big name designers in one place, as well discovering new brands and news features as you go. You can also get your daily street style and news fix (always good) so its one of those sites that's nice to bookmark and check out prior to tackling your emails in the morning... You can check out a video from the spoiling night at Claridges below and see all that Hiphunters has to offer by checking it out yourself here. 

This post was sponsored by Hip Hunters

Constance Jablonski X Twin Magazine

If you follow me on Instagram (@lucywilliams02), you might have already seen the gorgeous Constance Jablonski for Twin magazine pop up. 

I really can't get enough of this shoot. So simple and yet so cool and inspiring with the major lesson to take from it being borrow a boy's shirt and go braless and unbuttoned. Perhaps not one for the office (NSFW), but definitely a look that can, ironically perhaps, look so feminine and relaxed when done in the right way and at the right time. If totally braless is just too much, a flash of sheer black lace would be just as good. These ones by La Perla and Lonely are my current favourites.

In other news, I've added a few new bits and pieces to my Tictail store - a fact I suddenly realised you might not be aware unless you don't follow me on Twitter or Facebook.  Isabel Marant, Iro, Vintage and Free People all still up there.... Check it here.

Constance Jablonski by Nick Dorey for Twin Magazine, Issue 9

Lace Up

I’ve been trying really hard to avoid Zara recently. Not out of any bad feeling towards the store or the clothes, but more as a preventative measure against succumbing to buying far too much that you ultimately mentally grow out of within a few weeks.

Seriously, I sometimes think about the amount I’ve spent in Zara over the last five or so years and it would probably amount to not one, but two pairs of Chloe Susaanna boots (my dream ‘one day’ item for as long as I can remember). A terrifying thought and one I try not to dwell on too often.

There’s no denying Zara is great (my most-worn and most-complimented jeans are all from there) but you can end up falling into something of a black hole unique to the Spanish store, whereby you feel like you could never wear that coat without that jumper, that jumper without that skirt and so on... 

Anyway, I’ve definitely learnt to reign it in after many, many impulse buys but still have the occasional Zara moment. This Saturday was one such day.  I went in with the pretence of Christmas shopping for others, and came out with two items for myself. C’est la vie I suppose.

If you’d told me at the start of the day, I’d be coming home with a pair of lace-up skinny jeans, I would probably have laughed but that’s exactly what I came home with.  Britney in her Crossroads days would be so proud. They too might end up being a fairly fleeting purchase, but right now, I kind of love them. 

Jeans // Zara

Jumper // Zara

Coat // Very, very old vintage from Paris

 Boots // Vintage

Bag // Gucci

More options below...

 Ph. by James Wright