Love, love, love

So in addition to our few days in Paris last week, I had a few extra days off work to attend... my best friend's wedding!

Claire and Andy have been together since we were all 17 and at school. So to say the least, this wedding was pretty overdue!

But if I can walk down the aisle one day with as big a grin as Claire had on Saturday, and spend the whole day beaming, I will be a very lucky gal. I've never seen two people more in love, more in tune with each other and more excited to start their married lives together (even if you have to start counting your anniversaries from one again, Claire!). 

Over the course of the past year, Claire and Andy made 1000 paper cranes to decorate the venue. It's believed to guarantee the couple one thousand years of happiness. I'm not sure that the very happy couple needed the help...

Extra-extra-specially, Claire and I have been best friends since we were 11. And on Saturday, we stood in her childhood bedroom (the scene of so many sleepovers) and she put on her wedding dress (and I only cried a little...). We got papped by her photographers brushing our teeth, Claire spent the whole morning completely, totally and utterly relaxed. I bit back tears as we walked down the aisle. I danced the unicorn dance (seriously, the best dance ever) with my best friend at her wedding. It was awesome.

If I'd made a speech, it would have said this. 

Wishing you 1,000 happy moments with each other everyday, Clandy!



(and may we dance the unicorn dance at my wedding!)

xxx

Despatches from Paris: The Photos

 
1. The view from our beautiful flat // 2. Summer in Europe = tights + coat // 3. + 4. Lovely old buildings in the Marais and St. Germain // 5. The Louvre in the rain // 6. Gorgeous cafe interior // 7. Pilgrims to the grave of Satre and Simone de Beauvoir // 7. + 8. + 9. Awesome street art 

Despatches from Paris: The Books

The Boy and I are big readers. One of my ambitions for our holiday was to spend as much time hanging around in parks and cafes reading, writing and watching the world go by. Since the weather (up until yesterday- when it was so beautiful!) has been pretty bad the whole time we've been here, this has involved quite a few cafes, espressos, cafe lattes and carafes of red wine! Since we've been doing so much reading, we thought it'd be fun to put together a Parisian themed reading list of some of our favourite novels and essays for your enjoyment!

Suite Francaise, by Irene Nemirovsky

Found in the attic by the author's children, this is a masterpiece. Set in France during the German occupation during the Second World War, it's a stunning rumination on change, the fragility of life. Nemirovsky was herself arrested, deported and ultimately killed because of her Jewish heritage before she could complete the novel.

 Pure, by Andrew Miller
This won the 2011 Costa prize and is one of the books I've been reading here. Set in Paris in 1785, it follows Jean-Baptise Baratte, an engineer in charge of demolishing les Innocents, the largest cemetery in the city. It's something of a black comedy, given its slightly gruesome topic! Jean-Baptiste repeatedly questions his sense of self and identity over the course of the book, and it makes for a beautiful rumination about our understanding and comprehension of the world around us. Definitely worth a read, particularly if you're a fan of historical fiction.


A Place of Greater Safety, by Hillary Mantel 
OK,so I'm outing myself as a bit of a history geek here. Well, my first degree is in the subject! This is a huge and absorbing novel following some of the key figures in the French Revolution through their pre-revolutionary days and into the revolution itself. If you've ever read any Mantel before, you'll know how well she nails the portraits of historical figures, and particularly in turning very unpopular characters in the historical imagination into real people with multidimensional personalities.


Cousin Bette, by Balzac 
A very unhappy spinster moves in with her extended family and plots their destruction. The novel forms part of Balzac's 91 book series, The Human Comedy, and is one of my all-time favourite books through its examination of virtue and vice in a familial setting. It is sometimes criticised for being melodramatic in parts, but since I love melodrama in my books, I definitely don't see this as a bad thing!


The Second Sex, by Simone de Beauvoir 
I completely recommend this as a seiminal work in second-wave feminism as an inspiring text in itself and as a very interesting insight into the history of feminism. The most often found translation and in fact until recently, the only translation, is pretty poor as it was rushed out after the death of de Beauvoir. But a new, reportedly much more readable version has just been published.


Do you like reading books set in the place you're visiting on holiday? Do you have any other favourite Parisian novels? I love recommendations for future reading!




p.s. Although all links click through to Amazon, I completely encourage you to support your local independent bookstore!

Despatches from Paris: Flea Markets

I'm a very lucky girl: this is my third trip to Paris. The last time we were here, we discovered the St Ouen flea market(s). There's actually over a dozen markets there, a lot of which now sell incredibly ornate, expensive antiques which look like they were lifted out out Versailles! There's also a lot of fake clothes, watches and belts if those sorts of things float your boat.

But, there are two absolutely awesome flea markets: Marche Vernaison and Marche Jules Valles.
They're both stuffed full of amazing vintage clothes, scarves, lamps, furnature, bits of metal and glass...Kat heaven!

I wanted to share a few key tips for getting the best out of St Ouen!

 

These markets aren't super super super cheap. You're not going to find a lot of hidden treasures for cents. That said, things are reasonably priced in most places. It's a very beautiful place and really easy to want to buy everything (aka me in the antique clothing shop gushing over antique shawls!) and to spend way more money than you're planning to. Set your budget. Don't take any more money than that.

 There are so many stalls to check out in Venaison and Jules Valles. Don't be afraid to wander in, take a different turning and go down that little avenue which seems completely deserted.Get off the beaten track and walk away from the other tourists. Follow locals. Stick your head around every door.

Rummage! You won't find the gems with your eyes only- dig in, pull things out of boxes, move boxes, sit on the floor and make yourself comfortable.

I'm always a bit nervous of haggling, mostly because my French is completely dreadful. But, some Franglais on both sides yesterday meant that I was able to haggle a 20 Euro discount on this beautiful lamp.

 Don't be afraid to ask for a discount- even if you're prepared to pay the full price! My friend Laura who's also in town at the moment, couldn't get the vendor to budge on the price of this beautiful vintage children's lotto game.

Don't forget to check out the stalls and shops just outside of the market entrances and on the walk to Jules Valles itself. I bought this beautiful sunburst mirror from a temporary market stall on one of the streets opposite the cafe were were heading to after a hard day of rooting.  And I haggled the mirror down from 50 to 15 Euros!

The biggest bargains to buy there? Vintage postcards! Our flat is decorated with vintage postcards of Parisian landmarks from our last trip to St Ouen, complete with holiday stories on their backs. I also love the vintage photographs- so much mystery behind their faces!

Salut!

This poster made my day when The Boy sent it to me at work this week. But it seems to have struck a chord on Pinterest as well, judging by my inbox notifications of re-pins! I've become completely obsessed with the website he found it from- Bookshelf Porn. Sadly, the website doesn't tell me where it comes from originally. If you know, or get any clues, please let me know as a.) I'd love to credit the designer and b.) if it's available, I'd love to buy it as a print.

As you may have seen via Twitter or Instagram, The Boy and I are in Paris at the moment! We're amazingly lucky to have friends who live here who are away for the next few weeks, so we're here until Wednesday.

I  can't tell you how much I need a holiday. More news on Paris to come, but right now we're roasting a chicken and watching the Champions League Final. (When I say we, I mean The Boy is watching, I am catching up with blogs and having a little pre-food snooze. 

I hope you're all having wonderful weekends! What are your plans?

The awesome Southbank

Chinos: Miss Selfridge (currently on sale!) // Sandals: Accessorise

This weekend, we had our first (I hope not only!) taste of summer in London! It's such a lovely city in the sun... Since both of us had  to work on Saturday, The Boy and I decided we needed to make the most of the weather. Keep your eye out for a review later this week of our lunch at the Brockwell Lido (sadly we got up too late for brunch!), but in the afternoon, we headed over to Southbank.

I love Southbank, but my absolute favourite place there is without doubt the book market. It's such a great place to get lost for hours among lots of weird and wonderful books. It also happens to be next to an excellent bar in the BFI, if you haven't checked it out yet!

We were actually went over to check out the Handmade in the UK exhibition being held at the Oxo tower. There were some incredibly beautiful pieces, a fre of which caught our eye. In fact, we're hoping to invest in something very special for our 5th anniversary coming up next month. But I don't want to jinx it...

But we did pick up a little treat for ourselves: a vintage edition of all seven Narnia books! The Boy always mocks me because I've actually never read most of the books.... so I think these little beauties are the final enitcement I need (and a good way to shut him up!)

Smoked mackerel chowder

As you may know if you follow me on twitter, my best friend Claire is getting married at the end of May! 

All very exciting, except I tried my bridesmaid dress on again a couple of weeks ago and it was a wee bit on the tight side. So I've been on a pretty strict healthy eating regime (I refuse to use the 'd' word), cutting out my favourite things- bread, potatoes, rice and pasta- from my diet. Usually this would mean I was eating lettuce and er... more lettuce, but The Boy and I have been experimenting with removing the carbs (aka the tasty stuff) from some of our favourite foods so that I'm not suffering too much! I have to say, it's really been working. I feel a bit guilty that I've been eating as well as I have. And only about a third of that is because I've been doing a bit of cheating!! 

Here's my favourite of our newly invented recipes: smoked mackerel chowder. Without the potatoes! Adding so many veggies really bulked the soup out and made it really filling. It also takes about 15 minutes to make, so it's ideal for lazy girls like me! 

You will need

2 leeks, chopped

1 garlic clove, chopped

3 small carrots or 1 large carrot, finely diced

350g peas

2 mackerel fillets, flaked

100 ml milk 

3tbsp creme fraiche

salt and pepper

• Fry the white bits of the leeks, carrots and a chopped garlic clove in a large saucepan
• Add a litre (or so!) of chicken (or vegetable stock) to the pan
• Add the milk and creme fraiche
• Bring the soup to simmer (don't let it boil)
• Add the flacked mackerel fillets and the peas to the pans and cook until the peas are defrosted and cooked
• Serve with lots of fresh black pepper

Nom!