You can leave your hat on

...And your scarf, your coat too and oh, don't forget your umbrella!

Once more cold and rain showed us no mercy in Paris and about all the rest of France except for lucky southerners.

But as I had the day off, at least I could dress without workspace etiquette in mind which meant :

• a hat for protection against the lame drizlle and big showers (H&M)
• big grey scarf (H&M)
• comfy warm oversized coat (Isabel Marant)
• cosy fisherman knit (H&M)
• casual skinny jeans (H&M)
• practical leather sneakers (Jonak)
• handy and trusted bag (Balenciaga)
• A bit of pinky red on the lips for the sake of proving that it is indeed spring (Party line by MAC)

While at & Other Stories

Wearing my new oversized Zara leather jacket, from the current spring collection. I'm so happy of that eBay find!

It turns out to be really useful for the season and the slighty longer length and looser fit brings a little rock twist to off-duty looks.

leather jacket/perfecto cuir: Zara - sweater /pull: Isabel Marant Etoile - jeans: h&m - boots: Isabel Marant -  scarf/écharpe: Accessorize - bag/sac: Abaco

And Other Stories and lots of hype

After more than a month of opening, I finally ventured in the Paris' & Other Stories store.

Unlike the crazyness that seemed to have happened within the first hours of its inauguration, the store was, for a saturday, very quiet but then, it's located on luxury upper money Saint-Honoré street and not popular and commercial Rivoli street.

The space is beautiful, with a luxuriant inner yard, clear and luminous, not overflowing with merchandise, is also in my opinion a subtle reference to the Céline store located on rue François 1er with its raw, in a permanent state of under construction ambiance.

Lots of cute things here and there: skincare, makeup, jewelry, accessories mixed up in an orderly yet cute display according to a look /color scheme/mood board.  

The shoe section offers lots of options: flats, very high heels, Nike sneakers. I tried these plum loafers but considering that I bought so many shoes lately, I've reached a (relative) saturation point and would feel utter guilt adding another pair right now so I didn't linger around.

The sale assistants are really nice, polite, helpful yet not too intrusive which is an extra bonus point in my opinion. Much better than the treat-clients-like-they're-transparent policy going on at Zara a few meters farther down the same street.

But when it comes to the matter at heart: clothes, I'm not completely convinced by & Other Stories.

Don't get me wrong there are some very nice and interesting items but there's often too much going-on for me. As if the brand wants to prove to your face its so buzzed about creativity.

So you'll find lots of slits, transparent panels, volume, colorblocking, pleats, materials mixed, draping, neoprene, stripes, 80's - 90's influences, etc.

It left me with an after taste of try (too) hard.

But maybe it's because I'm not in their marketing target. I guess I'm too conservative, prefering basics, classics with a little twist, natural materials rather than synthetics.

My only real & Other Stories coup de cœur was that dress bellow.

Let's make a point

That's my latest fancy: Pointy ballet flats are nothing new but after years of wearing round flats, this shape feels fresh and somehow a bit more elegant and grown-up. 

It's a bit 60's mod, a bit 90's minimal, which I guess makes it completely trendy for 2013 !  

Teamed with skinny pants: that's the association I really like and wear frequently at the moment.

Yep, it's May and I'm wearing my Isabel Marant Bator coat over a striped APC sweater, not to mention the tee underneath it, without breaking a sweat... At all. No comment.

coat/manteau: Isabel Marant - jeans, scarf/écharpe, belt/ceinture: h&m - shoes/chaussures: Aldo - bag/sac: Balenciaga City

The yo-yo equation

So the equation is the following:

What to wear when,

a) it's a sunny but cold 5° Celsius as I leave home and head to the office,

b) 14° c by the time lunch break hits,

c) A couple of degrees lower when I leave the office and with a chance of rain,

d) taking in account that the office is almost empty due to vacations but jeans and sneakers are not an option.

Inspired by this pic from a fall (!) Vogue Paris editorial:

(Vogue Paris, octobre 2012)

Here bellow what I came up with last monday:

• military jacket
• cable knit white sweater
• kaki beige pants
• black tote with the in case of rain foldable umbrella
• ballet flats
• and of course the more necessary than ever scarf

jacket/veste:Isabel Marant -  pull/knit, scarf/écharpe, pantalon/pants: h&m - ballet flats/ballerines: Lanvin - cabas/ tote: Céline

Do you have outfits planned for rollercoaster weather?

Please share your ideas because I've been at a loss in front of my reasonably full closet as to what to wear with those fluctuating temperatures. 
 

In my closet: Céline asymmetrical duffle

Here's the background story :

Girl walks into the Printemps department store, back in february 2012, stops by the Céline corner,

spots bag, her eyes fill up with stars,

holds up the bag, checks it inside and out,

plays model with it in front of mirrors as if a visual confirmation was necessary to assert the bag's gorgeousness,

 

at this point, girl is in love, raves about the sleek and casual elegance of the bag, how practical and cool it is,

girl checks the price tag,

the girl's heart sinks as she realizes that (legally) leaving the store with the bag will not be possible. Ever.

The girl comes back several times, checks the internet for more information about it, bag sells out and is not reissued, life goes on.

Still, the bag remains in the corner of the girl's mind.

10 months later, girl spots THE bag, second hand yet in perfect condition, at an affordable fraction of its original price and just when she got her end of the year bonus. 

Girl gets herself a Christmas gift and to this day, the bag is very often part of her daily outfits. 

  
Not the end of the girl's story with the Céline duffle for sure.

cardigan, jeans: h&m - blouse: Zara - bag: Céline asymmetrical bag

Saturday and Sunday

Saturday

This is what I wore  after the morning workout for afternoon errands.

The Ritchi knit by Isabel Marant Etoile has been on my wish-list since the moment I tried it on at Le Bon Marché, foolishly decided "I was not sure about it" and put it back on the rack. That was about 2 years ago. Of course by the time I changed my mind, a matter of days later, it was sold-out.

I had gotten the Camaieu knit as a substitute but couldn't shake off the original from my mind. I'm really happy that patience paid off, thanks to eBay and not for an obscenely overcharged price. 

It's so lovely with its mix of blue, white and red yarn, I couldn't wait to wear it.
After hand-washing it, waiting for it to dry -I must confess to raising up the bathroom's temperature heater to speed up the process- that's how much I was eager to wear it!

Isn't it funny how a piece of cloth can create such pleasure and excitement?

Wool jacket/veste en laine , pull/knit : Isabel Marant Etoile - boyfriend jeans : Uniqlo - boots: Isabel Marant - sac/bag: Céline asymmetrical duffle - écharpe /scarf: h&m.

Sunday

The look for a late morning stop by Marks & Spencer, then a japanese lunch followed by a grab-as-much-sun-as-we-can walk around town and burn off a few calories before the traditional sunday goûter (afternoon snack) of tarte normande (norman apple pie) and jasmine tea while catching up with Mad Men.   

The temperature droped a lot compared to last week-end (bare legs and a simple cardigan as cover-up are not an option unless planning to catch a cold!) but it's ideal for wool jackets, a bit of layering and ballet flats. 

veste/jacket, ballerines/ballet flats : Isabel Marant - pull/ navy knit, marinière /red breton: Uniqlo - jeans: h&m - sac /bag: Céline asymmetrical duffle - écharpe /scarf: h&m.

I hope you all had a nice week-end!