Fall Style In Paris

My friend Chloe recently cleared her closet and gave me this stunning Balenciaga jacket, actually part of a suit (with friends like that, who needs stylists....). Its lines are very simple, the fabric is exquisitely warm and thin, and I adore the collar.
The weather has indeed become pretty cold in Paris, around 60 degrees F (16 degrees Celsius) during the afternoon... Brrrrr... To tell you the truth I have caught a kind of flu and am in bed with lots of tea, honey, and vitamin C.

The girls of Paris too have started wearing tights and jackets (a lot of velvet around!), as well as boots, and I thought I'd share with you the amazing look of this red-loving gal, whom I spied on the subway yesterday...

Meet Chloé and Cancan

My friend Chloé has been my style icon since high school; back then, she was a super cool girl who just went ahead and hung out with super nerdy, not-popular me. She has a tremendous sense of fashion, and fabulous taste in books and music, as well as a talent for illustration.
Today I met her at the roomy and impeccable café Tournon, on the eponymous street; it turns out author Joseph Roth used to live in this very building in the 1930's! Exciting, for a literature addict such as myself.
Chloé was wearing an Antik Batik wrap dress over a black tee and leggings, with crocodile gladiator sandals and crimson toenails. She was reading Ludwig Lewinsohn's The Case of Mr Crump. And who was hiding in her slouchy leather bag but Cancan, her 2.5lb long-hair chihuahua!
Je t'aime, Chloé!

I Spy Styles In Amsterdam

That's my hand, holding my tram pass... I'm wearing a shocking "Schiaparelli" pink nailpolish by Essie, available at Skin Cosmetics, a terrific store on the lovely Runstraat.

Bikes are absolutely a part of the Dutch lifestyle; I loved this tandem bike, and those fun sneakers...

If I were bolder I would copy this hairstyle, a fresher version of my own cut. I spotted it on a waitress at Ysbreker, a great café by a canal.

Don't you love this comics-style bag? Very Roy Lichtenberg...


This girl, who was having lunch at Ysbreker, was super stylish. I really loved her jacket with that crown. Like the Brits, the Dutch have a playful, tongue-in-cheek take on their monarchy.
I also liked how she wore a bright blue dress - her high heels were the same color, too...

Purple and white and I Spy Pink

Let's start the week with some silky, delicate flowers: a bouquet on my kitchen table... They're poetry incarnate.

They smell exquisite, and their colors echo those of the primroses on my window sill.

Also, today I'd like to introduce a new feature, I Spy. I love spotting cool styles and in I Spy posts I'll share some such sightings. We start with this really fun bag, its shocking pink hue (hello Elsa Schiaparelli) and clean gym-bag-like lines. I'm no fan of so-called it-bags or handbags, but this one won my vote.

I Spy A Pink Bag - Monday afternoon, rue des Archives (Le Marais, Paris)