Whenever
in Paris, we hardly ever take our breakfast at the hotel.. I much
prefer exploring the local cafés, watch friends meet for a coffee before
work, regulars
catching up with the waiters on the latest news, and the quartier
getting ready for the day.
'Petit déjeuner parisien' at the Comptoir des Saint-Pères
I
love Paris' left bank, and most of the streets and places depicted on
my 'Rendez-Vous Rive Gauche' scarf are familiar friends. It was fun to
wear the scarf while strolling through Saint-Germain, and to take some
matching pictures along the way.
The
'Comptoir des Saints-Pères' at the corner of the Rue Jacob does
not only serve excellent breakfast, but it also has a rich history.. it
used to be frequented by James Joyce and his family, Ernest Hemmingway
and F. Scott Fitzgerald
(the Comptoir was called Michaud back then). Serge Gainsbourg lived
around the corner (in the Rue Verneuil), and Jane Birkin a
few houses further down the Rue Jacob (until 2000).
The 'Au Sauvignon' is another charming café, located south of the Blvd St-Germain (on the corner of the Rue de Sèvres and Rue des Saint-Pères, right opposite Hermès' Rive Gauche store), and a perfect spot for a drink or coffee after visiting the 'Le Bon Marché' or Hermès...
Capsule pieces: black turtleneck sweater and jeans
Shoes: black Jumping boots
Accessories:
Hermès 'Rendez-Vous Rive Gauche' 70 Carré, Kelly Dog bracelet in black croc and black Birkin
Scarf tying method: Criss-cross knot
the table next to us at the Au Sauvignon ~ a small afternoon feast of foie gras accompanied by Poilâne bread..
Comptoir des Saints-Pères, 29 Rue des Saints-Pères, 75006 Paris, Tel:+33 (0) 1 40 20 08 36
Au Sauvignon, 80 Rue des Saints-Pères, 75007 Paris, Tel:+33 (0) 1 45 48 49 02
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Beautiful pics as always MaiTai. We are twins on this lovely scarf :)
ReplyDeleteFlorence
Awh, so lovely to be twins with you on the RDV! Have a wonderful evening :-)
DeleteDear MaiTai, as always, a pleasure to see Paris through your eyes! :-) And you have a talent for seeing the harmony of the natural and manmade environment, with your ensembles!
ReplyDeleteThank you, dear NN! Oh and harmony, wouldn't it be wonderful if we could get some more of it (..in the form of neutral CWs in coming scarf collections) ;-)
DeleteYes, I keep hoping! They really just need to throw us a few, now and then, and we'd be happy! xx
DeleteLove the boots...the whole ensemble is so chic.
ReplyDeleteMany thanks for the lovely comment!
Delete*sigh* love Paris, love your ensembles and love your food photos! Do you have a favourite hotel that you stay in Paris?
ReplyDeleteThank you, cewek! Glad you liked the post. I am planning a series on Paris hotels :-)
DeleteAh the beautiful Paris that I love with a tranche de foie gras pain Poliane et un bon verre de vin rouge !
ReplyDeleteBeautiful pictures.
According to the beautiful and gracious lady who had the dish, it was very good too! Bonne fin du semaine.
DeleteHi Maitai!
ReplyDeleteI have not been to Paris in ages and as it is my home town, looking at your pictures, I am missing it a bit... (I usually don't!)Le Comptoir des Saints Pères, I think I know exactly where it is and have had a couple of coffees there as a student... Gasp! Next time you are in the area, perhaps consider paying the ever beautiful Sabbia Rosa" boutique for fantabulous silken undies and goodies! (I am not on their payroll!). And as far as the pain Poilane goes, the best Croque-Madame I ever had was in another coffee shop as a student in that very area and it wasn't actually a sandwich but a slice of toasted Poilane with the regular trimmings on it: yum.
And as for Mr Hemingway, I have visited his house on Key West about a month ago... It was warm, then... Gasp again!
Great minds think alike! You seem to have a great time in Paris and by the look of the pictures, you are as elegant as ever!
Cheers,
Béatrice, Switzerland
Hello Béatrice, thanks so much for sharing the Sabbia Rosa tip! I just looked at some images through google, everything looks so very pretty. The Poilâne Croque-Madame sounds divine, will keep my eyes open when in the area next. When I lived in London some years ago, I used to drive Elizabeth Street, just to go to the Poilâne shop. Hope warm spring weather is on it's way! PS. Ms Lena had a ball ;-)
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ReplyDeleteA warm welcome to you, dear S! How nice to know how you found my blog. I am relatively new to Pinterest, but am enjoying it greatly. Your Easter weekend sounds wonderful, like a scene straight out of Dr Zhivago! Your comment reminds me that it has been far too long since I've visited Giverny, it is such an enchanting place.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteOk last comments got lost on the mac! I waxed lyrical about your talents as a blogger and memoirist. Your blogs are such a visual and inspirational delight. You are truly talented and bring much joy to others.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work! I am hoping to enjoy your blogs around a campfire occasionally in remote Western Australia over the next month. Taking my one and only vintage Hermes scarf to brighten up my camping attire (on special occasions).
Always looking forward to more.
Oh it is so very frustrating when comments get lost! Thank you for trying again, and for the lovely warm words. Your description of wearing vintage Hermès by a camp fire in remote Western Australia sounds like a scene from Out of Africa (today's comments trigger memories of favorite movies!), and makes me want to pack my bags :-) Have a most wonderful time away!
DeleteMust say a word more here...so much love this post for its beauty and for the comments too.
DeleteThe scene with the one and only vintage Hermes scarves which will be used and protected for a month by a camfire - it sounds like description of the word "love" to me, so special and it really reminded me of my very first scarf, how I treasured it and how scared I was when wearing it around. My heart was beating "OK, it is the first and the last one", however I continued afterwards, also bought the scarf rings which made my wearing space much wider and I got new dimension of freedom when wearing scarves.
However, I still remember my first cautious steps with my scarf and now, thinking back, I am sorry I did not take it to my long walks in nature to be with me during silence and relaxing moments.
Wish you a nice time with your scarf! So special!
Lea
Thank you for sharing your warm thoughts, my dear Lea <3
DeleteJ adore votre foulard tellement parisien!
ReplyDeleteSe matin a paris encore quelque flocons le temps est fou
Vous savez que c est mon quartier avec st sulpice j adore m y promener comme dans un grand village
Pour l instant c est encore les pulls et les manteau cette année nous portons toujours les bottes en avril;
Bien a vous
MYRIAM
Déjà ce foulard porte les heureuses memoires, car c’était un cadeau d’un chère copine, et maintenant, il a plein de beaux souvenirs de Paris imprimés sur la soie en plus. J’éspère cet hiver fou est en train de partir (hier, j’ai sorti en ville avec mes bottes et un grand pull...) Bon fin du semaine à vous x
DeleteDear Maitai,
ReplyDeletedanke für diese homepage!
Ich bin so begeistert von Ihren wunderbaren Fotos, Erläuterungen und Tipps. Die hübschen Accessoires und Anregungen. Man möchte eintauchen und noch viel mehr sehen. Loslaufen kaufen und ausprobieren oder einfach nur schauen und warten - what comes next.
Vielen Dank aus Deutschland
G.
Liebe G, es freut mich immer sehr, einen Kommentar aus Deutschland zu lesen, herzlichen Dank für die netten Zeilen! Ich freue mich, dass Ihnen die Beiträge gefallen, und hoffe, daß Sie weiterhin Spass und Freude an meinem Blog haben werden. Es grüsst Sie herzlichst, MT
DeleteDear Maitai,
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the lovely pictures of Paris recently.
Your reply to Beatrice above made me happy! - I was unaware there was Poilane in England- I always assumed it was only in Paris- I can't wait till my next stay in London in two weeks- I know where I'm going to visit!! Also for the tip about Au Sauvignon- Le Bon Marche, and the Hermes Rue de Sevres store are probably my two favourite shops ever- so a perfect match!
Best, Tara
Have a wonderful upcoming time in London, dear Tara! Hope the cherry blossoms will be out, London is so very pretty in spring. Elizabeth street is a true gem, and filled with lovely shops and restaurants: www.elizabethstreetlondon.com
DeleteOf course I love the pics of you, wearing your lovely RvRG scarf...how much fun to be at the very placed that breathed inspiration into the design!
ReplyDeleteBut...I'm still staring at the pain du Poilâne (this bread is proof that God exists!) My friend took me to Pied du Cochon, and the waiter placed some very respectable bread at our table. When I asked if we could please have Poilâne instead, he treated me as though I were the most brilliant American he'd ever encountered!!
Have a splendid weekend!
Barbara A
Oh what a wonderful story! Next time, you might want to whisper to him that Ralph's serves Poilâne. It is Ralph’s in Saint-Germain though ;-) Ralph’s Paris
DeleteHave a wonderful weekend too, and hope your RdV RG will be with you soon!
you look fantastic as always. Cannot wait to visit Paris again. x
ReplyDeleteThank you, my dear FF xx
DeleteDear Danielle W ~ my email reply keeps bouncing back... all eggs are hollow :-)
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love all the aesthetics in this post...the colors of the scarf and your clothes blending with the colors of Paris. Just beautiful.
ReplyDeleteMany thanks, vintagefrenchchic! So lovely to hear you enjoyed the post.
DeleteHow nice it is to have a scarf which lives through real life! My visit to Paris was too short to capture all details shown on the scarf. However, very nice to read the above comments, memories and nice thoughts related to Paris.
ReplyDeleteMay I ask - do you go into shop and go "through thinking phase" or you immediately know that you need "just that" scarf when you see it (i.e. do you know which one is the right one when you see it, without much choosing)? I often stay in boutique for a longer period of time (well, 30 minutes or even longer) and go empty handed. Then, after returning home, two or three days later, I realize that it was a big failure and I must travel back to get that scarf, which is in that moment "a kind of destiny", "to be or not to be", "fatal" and so... Not often, but it has happened several times.
Do you want to return some scarves after buying them (it has happened to me too, but never did it - too complicated).
And the last question (I know I am horrible) - do you dress up when going to boutique? I absolutely do not care and go in my casual clothing, which is my "natural style". No logos, no trials to look "upscale". I have noticed that the ladies do pay attention to it sometimes, therefore I thought I might ask you...
Lea
Dear Lea, I love your questions, please don’t ever feel like not asking!
DeleteRe choosing: I covered this topic some time ago, these posts should answer most of your questions:
How to choose a scarf part one
How to choose a scarf part two
Re time, some scarves are love at first sight, others take longer to choose. I tend to linger longer over those which are outside my ‘usual habit’ as I want to be sure that I will end up using them when back home. Overall, I love being at H, so a 30 min visit to me is nothing.. ;-)
Re outfits: If you look through the capsule wardrobe series, you see pretty much how I dress whatever I do ~ picking up DS from school, running errands, going to the supermarket or shopping in town, seeing friends etc... and, going to Hermès!
Have a great weekend xx
Thanks for your answer a lot. Regarding the above two "scarf selection guiding posts" - oh, of course I have gone through them 100+ times and they have helped me tremendously (to keep away from the colours which are not "mine", to choose the scarf which will tie nicely, etc...).
DeleteHowever, I still sometimes get stuck with 2 or 3 scarves and cannot make a decision (I think they are somehow equally ranked according to the selection criteria), then my undecisive heart makes me leave the place...
I guess it is, after all, partly related to a hefty price tag...it would be much easier with 20 EURO scarf and I would probably buy all of them, each time :-)
Good to know 30 minutes is not excessive and also somehow relaxed that I could also go to Hermes in my usual outfit, as I somehow feel uncomfortable to "dress specially for H" in a way which is "not me" and which should reflect some picture which is "out of my usual frame", so to say.
Love, Lea
So glad the posts are helpful, my dear Lea! If your heart is undecisive, it's good to leave the place.. you are doing the right thing! It is also good that the scarves are so expensive, otherwise you'd have piles of scarves you wouldn't wear ;-) And last but not least, a woman is at her most beautiful when relaxed and happy in her own skin.. you are absolutely spot on there too! Warm hugs x
DeleteOh thank you for sharing these lovely and charming anecdotes, ma chère Jamais! Your friend must have had a most wonderful time.. As for the Concorde, imagine! (hope the storage room had heating) Enjoy a most lovely weekend xx
ReplyDeleteI love the wonderful combination of that warm, bright mustard coat with your dark neutrals, linked by the mustard in the scarf. A very chic ensemble.
ReplyDeleteMany thanks, dear Melissa. The coat has been a wonderful buy, it always brightens a cold and grey day :-)
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ReplyDeleteDear Madame Maitai, make a scarf into a postcard of Paris life ! Please excuse my gushing but I Absolutely love your yellow coat... Please may I ask where you bought it ? Cheers and best wishes, Mandy :-)
Thank you, dear Mandy! The coat is by Sessùn, from the Autumn/Winter 2011 collection. All the best, MT
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ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your reply...Much appreciated :)
You are very welcome :-)
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