I Prefer Paris

SAVE THE DATE: Wednesday, December 1- Tuileries Christmas Market Tour

Please join me for a very special Facebook Live tour with Atout France of the festive Tuileries Christmas Market on Wednesday, December 1@10am East Coast Time, 9am Mid-West Time, 7am West Coast Time & 4pm Paris Time. 

As is the custom each year, Paris is decked out in lights as the festive season approaches. Streets sparkle, major department stores come alive and the magic of Christmas weaves its spell!  We will visit the best and most popular Christmas market in the iconic Tuileries Gardens and experience the dazzling lights and dozens of food and gift chalets. We will also see the holiday lights, decorations, and shop windows on the rue de Rivoli, rue Saint Honore, and the festive holiday displays on the Place Vendome.

CLICK HERE for more information and to reserve your spot. I look forward to seeing you! 

Eye Prefer Paris Postcards with the Doors of Paris. 

I am excited to launch a new series of Eye Prefer Paris Postcards with the Doors of Paris. 

The limited-edition series of Eye Prefer Paris Door Collection Postcards are available three different ways.

18 cards: 3 Red Doors, 3 Blue Doors, 3 Green Doors, 3 Wood Doors, 3 Iron Doors, and 3 Door Knockers. 

Cost: $65- Free shipping 

9 postcards: 3 Red Doors, 3 Blue Doors, 3 Green Doors.

Cost: $35 plus $5 shipping 

9 postcards: 3 Wood Doors, 3 Iron Doors, and 3 Door Knockers

Cost: $35 plus $5 shipping 

Each postcard is printed on thick matte coated card stock, similar to traditional vintage postcard stock, that enhances the vibrancy of each image. Eye Prefer Paris Postcards come in classic postcard size (6”x 4.25”), perfect for collecting, framing, or sending to that special someone. 

Each order is specially hand wrapped with love from Paris and mailed in an elegant, French blue envelope. Postcards take about 4- 7 days to arrive in the U.S. 

Just in time for the holidays, the Eye Prefer Paris-Paris Door Collection make a perfect gift for your Francophile friends and family, and I can write a handwritten note for you and include it in the envelope. 

CLICK HERE to order 18 cards: 3 Red Doors, 3 Blue Doors, 3 Green Doors, 3 Wood Doors, 3 Iron Doors, and 3 Door Knockers. 

Cost: $65- Free shipping 

CLICK HERE to order 9 postcards: 3 Red Doors, 3 Blue Doors, 3 Green Doors.

Cost: $35 plus $5 shipping 

CLICK HERE to order 9 postcards: 3 Wood Doors, 3 Iron Doors, and 3 Door Knockers

Cost: $35 plus $5 shipping 

Green Doors

Blue Doors

Metal Doors

Chantilly- Le Rocher des Tresors

Coming home in June from New York, I met a charming young man, Nico Nancel, who lives in Paris, and is half-American and half-French. We became fast friends and met a few times for coffee. He invited me to an event he was producing, Le Rocher des Tresors in Chantilly. The show is the first time they have had a projection on the chateau, which is a big deal. 

The dates of the event were last weekend, and I went on Sunday night. It was a crisp night, with the threat of rain, but the rain gods held out and they didn’t rain on the Chantilly parade. The event was well organized, and it took just a few minutes to check in with my ticket, Covid test, and security. I got a great seat, courtesy of Nico, with a front and center view of the chateau already bathed in light. The crowd was raring to go and at 9:45 promptly, the lights went out, and as Bugs Bunny once said, “On with the show!” 

The spectacle was divided into eight acts and it weaves a tale of mystery and intrigue with stunning imagery and a grand, sweeping musical score. I have seen over a dozen illuminations events like this in Avignon, Nancy, on Notre Dame in Paris, on the Chartres Cathedral, and I have to say this one trumped them all, and one of the best I’ve ever experienced. Le Rocher des Tresors brought the animation and the excitement to a whole new, more sophisticated level. It also included fireworks in parts of the show, which again, brought it to another level. At the end I was on my feet, yelling bravo. 

Even though you missed it this year, the good news is there’s going to be part two next year of Le Rocher des Tresors, which should not be missed, so make your plans soon. 

I stayed at the wonderful Auberge du Jeu de Paume Hotel, a must when you go to Chantilly. I have stayed several times in this Relais&Chateaux gem, and it never disappoints. I had a spacious room, accented with lovely Toile de Jouy on the headboard and wall paper, a super comfortable king size bed, and fragrant toiletries from Rituals. Auberge du Jeu de Paume has a new chef, Anthony Denon, who formerly worked at Alain Ducasse. I had a relaxing dinner in the luxuriously appointed dining room before the show at Le Jardin d’Hiver, and my starter of sea bass tartare with fresh figs and almonds was a refreshing delight, followed by a intensely flavored lamb confit with caramelized eggplant and middle eastern spices. The three- course menu is only 56€ per person, and at lunch time during the week, they have a steal of a deal, two-courses for only 25€ per person. 

Auberge du Jeu de Paume Hotel will be offering a special package for Le Rocher des Tresors next year, so stay tuned here for further info. 

https://aubergedujeudepaumechantilly.fr/en/ 

Sunday Spring Lunch at Chez Nahem and Gagliostro

It’s been over a year since we’ve entertained people in our home. Before the pandemic we would have frequent, small dinner and holiday parties. Vincent would prepare new adventurous recipes he had found which were always a success. We would clean and straighten the house, bring out our special glasses, dishes, and serving platters and go to the market to buy fresh flowers. 

Vincent and I have had two vaccines and our good friends Susan and Claude, also had them. We figured since all of us received the double vaccine we would be good to go and able to see each other. Usually, we do dinners because of our work schedules, but had to change it to lunch because of the 7pm curfew in Paris, so we invited Susan and Claude for Sunday lunch.  

I went the day before to the Baudoyer market near my house, and there’s a stall that has a good selection of beautiful flowers at reasonable prices. The flowers from them always last at least 7-10 days if I change the water and cut the stems frequently. On Saturday there was quite a big variety and it was hard to choose. I finally selected two bouquets of hyacinths, one purple, the other white. Vincent put them in a clear vase which showed off the stems swirling around the water. I forgot how incredibly fragrant hyacinths are and the perfume permeated the entire room. 

Usually, Vincent does all the cooking but in recent months I have entered the kitchen again after a long absence. In case some of you didn’t know, I was a chef and caterer in NYC for 21 years before I moved to Paris in 2005, and once I moved, I didn’t want to cook again. 

The lunch was a joint cooking venture; I made the soup and dessert, and Vincent prepared the main course and the salad.

Susan and Claude arrived about 12:30 and it was beautiful, sunny spring day, with the light pouring thorough the windows. We poured a rosé first and enjoyed a snack of hummus and creamy artichoke spread on little nubs of bread. For the next few hours, we feasted on the fantastic food we prepared, along with a robust red wine. We laughed, reminisced, talked about music, art, culture, and our current favorite television shows. Although we have known Susan and Claude for over 15 years, I didn’t know that much about Claude’s upbringing in Belgium and his family history, and he generously shared about it. 

Below is the menu, along with recipes- I knew in advance you would be asking for them. 

Butternut squash and apple soup-Ina Garten/Barefoot Contessa

https://barefootcontessa.com/recipes/butternut-squash-and-apple-soup

Tomato pappardelle pasta with broccoli rabe, Swiss chard, and ricotta -NY Times 

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1013075-pappardelle-with-greens-and-ricotta?searchResultPosition=1

Salad of roasted beets, prosciutto and Chèvre – Vincent

Slice roasted beats and discs of chevre and arrange on a platter and add thin slices of prosciutto. Add salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. 

Dark chocolate polenta cake served with fresh whipped cream and strawberries 

https://www.cooked.com/uk/Leiths-School-of-Food-and-Wine/Quadrille-Publishing/How-to-Cook-Cakes/Whisked-cakes/Chocolate-polenta-cake-recipe

Wine: Rosé- Figuiere Magali Signature -Cote De Provence 2019 

Red- Haut-Rian -Cote de Bordeaux 2019 

Left to right: Claude, Vincent and moi 

Beet, chevre, and prosciutto salad 

Chocolate polenta cake 

Order Photos From My Etsy Shop 

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I have updated my Etsy shop with 15 new photos in addition to my other classic photos from before. In addition, I can make a print of almost every photo you see on Eye Prefer Paris.

Below are sizes and prices.

10x13 inches $60

11x14 inches $80

16x20 inches $115

Click here to go to my Etsy shop. 

Photos are printed on Fuji crystal Archive metallic paper with rich satin gloss finish and is unframed.

Prints are printed in N.J. and sent by USPS. Delivery time is 2-5 days.

If you have any questions about the photos, please email me at [email protected]

 

Connie Fredericks Malone: A Great Online Concert

I met Connie Fredericks Malone in 2013 when she wanted to share with me about her sister Carole Fredericks, who moved to Paris from Boston in 1979. Carole went on to have a super successful singing career with the group Fredericks, Goldman, Jones, which sold over a million records and she also put out three successful solo albums. Unfortunately, Carole died unexpectedly in 2001 at the age of 49 while on a fundraising tour of Dakar. The family was shocked, and grief stricken, and Connie wanted to continue Carole’s legacy of her charity work and also keep her music alive, so she formed a foundation to promote both. The original reason Connie reached out to me was because she got the city of Paris to place a memory plaque on the outside of the building Carole lived in near Montmartre. Connie thought it would make a good blog story, which I agreed. We met and instantly hit it off and we became fast friends. Click here to read the original story on my blog. 

Connie is an accomplished singer herself, coming from a musical family, and her brother is Taj Mahal. Connie and her husband Jim live in upstate New York but come to Paris every year for about two months, staying in Carole’s apartment which the family kept after her death. 

A few years ago, Connie performed at a friend of mine’s cabaret club in Paris, Club Raye and I finally got to see her sing. She has a wonderful and full ranged voice and is a warm and endearing performer. My friend’s club closed the following year, so Connie no longer performed in Paris. 

Unfortunately, Jim and Connie couldn’t come to Paris the last two years, so I really missed seeing them. Last month Jim sent me a YouTube link to a charity concert Connie sang at her local church and I was blown away. Her voice took on a whole new range and dimension than when I saw her in Paris. Her voice was deeper, richer, and more soulful. The concert is divided into three parts, and the middle part was an incredible catalog of hymns and gospel songs that are at once rousing and moving. The rest of the concert Connie sings a parade of jazz, standards and show tunes with ease, grace, and fun, and she also dedicates a section to Paris and French songs.   Best of all Connie wears a different, fabulous hat in the last two sets. Make sure you watch it to the end because Connie sings an old Nancy Wilson song that is rarely performed, and she changes the tempo and makes it her own. It’s a knockout for sure. 

Click here to watch the concert. There are some speeches in between sets, so just fast forward if you don’t want to listen to them. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. 

Thank you Connie for making the gift of your singing is available for us to watch. I am listening to the concert as write this blog post. 

https://www.conniefredericksmalone.com

I am thrilled to launch my Emily in Paris Video Tour today. The video stars moi and is directed and filmed by my partner Vincent Gagliostro. In the almost 25-minute video you get to experience seeing many of the locations where the show was shot, the fascinating history of them, and you will receive insider scoops about Paris. An added bonus is you can watch my onscreen singing debut in the video, singing a verse from a classic French song. 

The price to watch the video is $12. Click here to send $12 to my Paypal account, and after I receive your payment, I will then send you the link to watch it. I request that you don’t share the link with anyone else. Please note that any order received after 10pm Paris time, I will send the link to the video the next morning. 

 

Trailer for Emily In Paris Video Tour

I want to thank everyone who purchased the Emily In Paris Video Tour and for your great feedback and comments. 

Vincent has created a short trailer for the video, so you get a tidbit of what the tour is like. 

Click here to view video 

If you haven’t watched the video yet, click here to send $12 to my Paypal account, and after I receive your payment, I will then send you the link with a code to watch. I request that you don’t share the link with anyone else.

As a special offer today, the first five people that respond to this mail or leave a comment in the comments section, will get a discounted price of $9 instead of $12. 

Click here to read my interview with Patricia Field, the costume designer for Emily in Paris and Sex and the City.  

Emily In Paris Video Tour

I am thrilled to launch my Emily in Paris Video Tour today. The video stars moi and is directed and filmed by my partner Vincent Gagliostro. In the almost 25-minute video you get to experience seeing many of the locations where the show was shot, the fascinating history of them, and you will receive insider scoops about Paris. An added bonus is you can watch my onscreen singing debut in the video, singing a verse from a classic French song. 

Here’s a list of some of the iconic places from the show that are on the tour.  

Place Trocadero and the Eiffel Tower 

Opera Garnier 

Pont Alexandre III

Palais Royal 

Place Vendome

Montmartre 

The price to watch the video is $12. Click here to send $12 to my Paypal account, and after I receive your payment, I will then send you the link to watch it. I request that you don’t share the link with anyone else. Please note that any order received after 10pm Paris time, I will send the link to the video the next morning. 

If you have been living under a rock, and don’t know what Emily in Paris is, it’s the new hit TV series on Netflix, about a beautiful, smart, young, American woman who is suddenly whisked away to Paris for a new job at a French marketing firm, and her adventures, challenges and mishaps, trying to make her way in the city. Click here to read my review and details about the show. 

I posted a four question Emily in Paris quiz last week, and whoever the first three people to  answer the questions correctly would win a free viewing of the video. Below are the answers and congratulations to the winners. 

Emily In Paris Quiz 

1. What neighborhood or arrondissement does Emily live in? The 5^th arrondissement or the Latin Quarter. 

2. What was the location of the influencers event Emily attended? Either the Place Vendome or Hotel de l’Evreux. 

3. What ballet does Emily’s snobby boyfriend walk out on? Swan Lake.

4. What’s the name of the restaurant in Montmartre where Emily and Mindy have dinner before their wild night out? La Maison Rose. 

The price to watch the video will be $12. Click here to send $12 to my Paypal account, and after I receive your payment, I will then send you the link to watch it. I request that you don’t share the link with anyone else. Please note that any order received after 10pm Paris time, I will send the link to the video the next morning. 

If you have any problems receiving or watching the video, please email me at [email protected]

Please forward this to your friends and family. 

Enjoy the video and I look forward to your feedback and comments. 

 

 

Coming Soon: My Emily In Paris Video Tour

I’m excited to tell you I am launching an Emily In Paris Video Tour, starring me, not Emily, next week. 

In the 30-minute video I visit many of the locations where the show was shot and tell you the history plus give you some insider scoops about Paris. I also make my onscreen singing debut in the video, singing a verse from a classic French song. I used to sing sometimes at open mic piano bars when I lived in New York. 

If you have been living under a rock, and don’t know what Emily in Paris is, it’s the new hit TV series on Netflix, about a beautiful, smart, young, American woman who is suddenly whisked away to Paris for a new job at a French marketing firm, and her adventures, challenges and mishaps, trying to make her way in the city. Click here to read my review and details about the show. 

The price to watch the video will be $12 but I am giving away free viewings to the first three people that answer the four Emily in Paris quiz below. 

Emily In Paris Quiz 

1. What neighborhood or arrondissement does Emily live in? 

2. What was the location of the influencers event Emily attended? 

3. What ballet does Emily’s snobby boyfriend walk out on? 

4. What’s the name of the restaurant in Montmartre where Emily and Mindy have dinner before their wild night out? 

You can either email your answers to [email protected] or in the comments section of this blog post. 

Good luck and I will announce the winners on my post next week officially launching the video. 

 

 

 

 

A Shaded View On Fashion Film Festival- 12th Edition

Fashion icon and blogger Diane Pernet is launching the 12^th edition of her international A Shaded View On Fashion Film Festival tomorrow, October 6 until October 9. The good news this year is the festival is all online, so you can watch it from the comfort of your home and it’s free of charge.

Started by Diane Pernet in 2008, A Shaded View On Fashion Film Festival was the first ever film festival devoted to fashion, style and beauty. Subsequently, ASVOFF has traveled the globe to New York, London, Tokyo, Milan, Moscow and Mexico City, plus it’s been presented at  Centre Pompidou, the Guggenheim, the Barbican in London, Art Basel Miami, CaixaForum Barcelona, the Franz Mayer Museum and the Cannes Film Festival. 

For the 12^th edition, ASVOFF is presenting 37 short films in competition with various prizes, 11 documentaries, 6 student films, and in keeping with the current, worldwide health situation, 68 #LockdownHomeMovies about life in quarantine around the globe. 

Highlights of the festival include the Paris premiere of the film Dos Fridas by Ishtar Yasin featuring Maria de Medeiros as the nurse of Frida Kahlo, and a documentary about the last fashion show of designer Jean Paul Gaultier by Matarrese and Guillaume Thomas. Dita Von Teese, Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Rossy de Palma and Boy George, are some of the fashion figures appearing in the films as well as fashion brands Gucci, Comme Des Garcons, Jean Paul Gaultier, Phipps, and Marni.

There will also be the  pre-recorded ‘Industry Tea’ Zoom Talk Series, where fashion industry experts speak, including Gossip Girl's Costume Designer Eric Daman, Female Gaze in Filmmaking with Ishtar Yasin,  and Writing for the Screen with Roger Avary, the Oscar winning screenwriter of Pulp Fiction. 

When you go on the site (link is below), click on the top image, which will take to a page that will list the different devices you can stream the festival on, so pick your desired platform. 

https://www.ashadedviewonfashionfilm.com/

House of Cardin Gala Screening at Theatre Chatelet

Vincent and I were invited to the gala screening of the new documentary film, House of Cardin last Monday night by our friend Cori Coppola-photograph above- (former Parisian of the Month), who is a producer on the film. 

It was a suit and tie affair, and the first time in months or maybe even since 2019, that

1. 1. I wore a suit
2. 2. I wore actual shoes, not sneakers or slippers
3. 3. I wore pants since the end of June 

It was at the Chatelet theater (another first, going to an indoor theater since February) and when I arrived there was a well-dressed and heeled crowd clamoring to pass the red velvet ropes. 

But there was one peculiarity: the Red Carpet was now green, I guess for climate reasons, I’m not sure. A big Pierre Cardin logo imprinted on the carpet was the jumping off point beyond the ropes. 

I don’t know my French celebrities as well as my American ones, but I did recognize a few and will post their names and my comments about them in the photo captions below. 

After fighting through the red velvet ropes, and practically ruining my hair, I was seated in the first row of the mezzanine. I had a prime view of people entering the theater on the main floor. About 15 minutes before the screening started, there was a big ruckus and lots of applause, as Pierre Cardin was escorted to his seat. 

There was a bit of a pre-show on the stage, when Matthew Gonder, who is an executive producer and the American Brand Ambassador for Pierre Cardin, spoke about Cardin’s accomplishments with great fervor to invigorate the audience, and ending by performing a rap style song about Cardin. 

The lights dimmed, the film started and from beginning to end, I was enamored, entertained, educated, inspired, humored, impressed, and dazzled. Cardin not only changed the face and world of fashion forever, he was and still is devoted to the arts, and owned theaters, designed costumes, and supported artists for decades. He was also the first designer to use Asian models and models of color and was the first designer to bring his clothes and brand to Russia and China.  His biggest joy is his work and at age 97 he is still working every day to complete large -scale projects such as a modern, futuristic tower in Venice. 

The film has an all star cast including Jean Paul Gautier, Sharon Stone, Naomi Campbell, Kenzo, Philppe Starck, Alice Cooper, and Dionne Warwick. 

I won’t give away any more details or spoilers about the House of Cardin, but if you want to immerse yourself for 95 minutes in a world of beauty, glamour, hard work, and legend, please watch the film. 

House of Cardin is available on Canal + in France and in the U.S., you can rent on Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=house+of+cardin&crid=2XN15ONVSZO6Z&sprefix=house+of+cardin%2Caps%2C204&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_15

Directors of the film and married in real life- Todd Hughes and P. David Ebersole- with cool Cardin ties 

Glamourpuss 

Staff wearing Cardin outfits- Star Trek? 

Annabelle Belmondo- model and daughter of Jean Paul Belmondo 

Hey lady, in case you didn't realize it, but this is a tribute to Pierre Cardin, NOT Lanvin! Shame on you! 

Pretty in pink feathers 

Interior decorator and dandy Vincent Darré, on the right- love the coordinating mask and suit

Arielle Dombasle- eternal starlet at age 67, singer and actress married to Bernard Henri-Levy.

When do you think she last ate a morsel of food?

Not sure who this tall drink of water is

Pierre Cardin as a young boy

 

I am thrilled that my interview with Alan Cumming is in Passport Magazine- Click link below to read

https://passportmagazine.com/alan-cumming/

 

 

 

Funny Girl in Paris

I first saw the film Funny Girl in 1969, at the impressionable age of 13 and was blown away. The film had an immeasurable impact on my psyche and I had never before witnessed such a spellbinding force of nature on screen such as Barbra Streisand.  I eventually wore out my eight-track soundtrack, learning every lyric, gesture, pause and breath by heart. 

When I saw the Theatre Marigny was mounting a production in Paris, I was ecstatic. It’s almost inconceivable that there has never been a Broadway revival since it was first staged in 1964 and now it was coming to Paris for the first time. Whoopee! 

Certainly my expectations were high and I was also biased by the Streisand effect, so this was going to be a tough test to win me over. 

Before the curtain opened, the house lights dimmed to a soft light and as the orchestra played the overture, my pulse started to race with excitement hearing some of my favorite tunes, live. 

The first act was well performed and staged. Christina Bianco had all the right qualities to play Fanny Brice- funny, brash, feisty, vulnerable, and nervy, and performed her songs well, but she didn’t seem to have that je-ne-sais-quois charisma needed to bowl us over. Also sometimes the orchestra seemed to be playing a beat too fast and if felt like Bianco was sometimes one beat behind trying to catch up. Nicky Arnstein, played by Ashley Day, is a handsome hunk with impeccable manners and effortless charm, who serves his role well. Not until the end of the first act did Bianco really start commanding the stage with a rebel rousing, can’t-keep me-down rendition of Don’t Rain on My Parade, which brought the house down with an avalanche of well-deserved applause. 

It’s only the second act the production comes into its own. The perfect marriage starts to split at the seams and in the dramatical moments in between the songs, Bianco and Day, show off their excellent acting chops, sometimes moving me to tears. Bianco beautifully fulfills her part in the second act as the mature Fanny Brice, still a fumbling mess around her beloved Nicky Arnstein, trying with all her might to love and keep her man, no matter what. He ends up going to jail for eighteen-months for embezzlement and his sudden and surprise visit to Fanny in her dressing room comes just a few minutes before she is to go on stage. He announces that he wants to end the marriage because she will never understand him and in return Fanny, with heartbreaking vulnerability attempts one last desperate act to save her marriage, before she realizes it’s over. She then goes on to sing a heart-warming and sometimes heart wrenching version of The Music That Makes Me Dance.

I was humming all my favorite tunes from the show on the metro coming home and Bravo! to Christina Bianco for creating a fierce and formidable Fanny Brice, making her a memorable Funny Girl. 

Do not miss this production if you are in Paris or if you have to, make a special trip. 

Funny Girl 

Playing until January 5, 2020

Marigny Theatre

Champs Elysees 

https://www.theatreinparis.com/show/funny-girl?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Dynamic%20Retargeting%20-%20all%20products&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI48Ks3fTk5QIV1YTVCh06owTDEAAYASAAEgIOSPD_BwE

In my latest  A Bite of Paris video, I've taken a break from food tasting to visit my friend Jessica at La Vaissellerie, my favorite tabletop, dish ware, and kitchen shop, located in the Marais. 

Click here to watch or link below 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGfIOVl7188&feature=youtu.be 

Please remember to hit the LIKE button if you like it and SUBSCRIBE button to subscribe to my channel.

Come experience Eye Prefer Paris live with Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I personally lead. Eye Prefer Paris Tours include many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes, food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks and gardens and much more.  In addition to my specialty Marais Tour, I also lead tours of Montmartre, St. Germain, Latin Quarter, in addition to Shopping Tours, Gay Tours, Girlfriend Tours, Food Tours, Flea Market Tours, Paris Highlights Tours, and Chocolate & Pastry tours.