A Weekend in Montargis

I do love a good weekend getaway, and August is the best month for it, especially if you're one of the last souls who has been left behind in the city, while what seems like every last Parisian has deserted the capital in search of sun, sand and sea.. Luckily my friend Meg invited us (along with a few other friends), to her boyfriend's parents' ridiculously beautiful, film set-worthy house in Montargis. Although the weather didn't quite play fair and it remained cloudy most of Saturday, it didn't stop us frolicking in a sunflower field, picking fruit and vegetables from the amazing garden (serious life goals right there), BBQ-ing, eating outside and generally enjoying a couple of days of not breathing in Paris' car fumes or other ripe, unpleasant smells that emanate from the streets in summer - dubbed by many as 'eau de Paris'. Having felt lethargic as of late, it was the perfect weekend away to rejuvenate, enjoy nature and leave my cares behind for a couple of days. 

Following My Nature

I've been having one of those moments of late, which surface every now and again. With summer firmly set in Paris these past weeks, the heat getting up to an almost unmanageable temperature and my (what seems like) incessant travelling backwards and forwards to the UK recently (I go again in a week!), I've felt lethargic at best and not so willing to conjure up new posts, or feel confident with the ones that are a work in progress. I know I'm in need of a rest. Freelance is wonderful, but it takes its toll, especially when I'm juggling so many things at once, or hustling for new projects. Luckily we're flying off to Santorini in a couple weeks, which I cannot wait for. The only downside being that our summer holiday this year, like the last, will be based around weddings - one in Santorini and the following in Biarritz. Not that I don't love a good wedding, and both I know, will be beautiful. But I could do with one whole week on a beach doing nada. Another project that is a work in progress. But enough of my first world problems, as I wanted to share a collaboration that I worked on earlier this year, with Marc O'Polo for their #FollowMyNature campaign. I love the photos and this is the type of project that I would love to do more of. 

The task entailed picking of few of my favourite items from their collection and wearing them around Paris - a bit like a day in the life of.. I purposely chose places that at first glance might not appear very 'Parisian' - places with darker tones and natural materials - wood, concrete etc... because I don't count myself a typical Paris blogger. It was a campaign I was happy to get involved with as I like to think that I tend to follow my nature. I followed my heart to Paris and have followed my gut to change career direction towards things that I personally enjoy and find more rewarding, even if I have in the past been warned against it by the more cautious. 

For the project I picked Fragments, a lovely minimalistic cafe in the 3rd and one of my go-to galleries in Paris, Yvon Lambert, which is located just off one of favourite streets - rue Vieille du Temple.  I felt that both complemented the clothes, and also reflected my personality and style tastes which are usually quite minimal. You can read the full feature + interview with me on their blog here. I'd love to know what you think! 

Photos by Ylenia Cuéllar, edited by me. 

Pickled

I ventured over the the 11th on Friday lunchtime with Cindy - an arrondissement I'm migrating to more and more these days - to check out the recently opened Pickled. A canteen/culinary agency, Pickled (cute name by the way), was set up by two friends: food designer, Myrtille and chef, Amandine. I'm all for women teaming up and doing business together and they seem to make quite a pair. They've created a welcoming, beautifully thought out space with an equally aesthetically pleasing menu - as you might expect from a food designer and chef duo. I took my camera along just in case and couldn't help but snap a few shots of the food and interior. If you're looking for kitchen storage solution inspiration, this is the place - I love that white wire wall. 

Amandine and Myrtille serve a daily changing menu with seasonal ingredients. We tried the pickled yellow pepper and coriander cream 'le Plat revisté en sandwich' - basically their dish of the day made into a burrito, cauliflower soup and cheesecake to finish. I like to count myself as a bit of a cheesecake connoisseur. Unless there's salted caramel on the menu, it's my go-to dessert, with my favourite being Rachel's blueberry cheesecake (that you can find at her eponymous cafe and in The Broken Arm), but Myrtille and Amandine's offering with sesame crust, drizzled with a refreshing citrusy lemon coulis, might just be my new favourite. 

Pickled

54 rue Basfroi

Paris 75011

Myrtille and Amandine

Bastille Day

Here are a few photos from Bastille Day last week. After jumping on a couple of Velibs, we cycled down to the 5th to lunch at one of my favourite burger joints, Loulou. We wandered the streets of Saint Germaine, as it's not an area I often get down to, being south of the river an' all. As it was with my London days, I'm a north of the river girl, or Right Bank as it's called in Paris. We walked all the way to Coutume Café, where we stopped for one of Rachel's irresistible cheesecakes and iced lattes. 

Having a packed a blanket, just in case - we then headed over to Champ de Mars to check out the crowd situation in front of the Eiffel Tower. At 5pm it was already heaving, but we managed to find a small spot so decided to camp out and wait for the fireworks. While fighting others off we managed to hold the fort for 5 other friends who joined us armed with rosé, baguettes, cheese and cold meats, so we could enjoy the evening with full bellies. The crowd got gradually bigger (if that was possible) as we waited in anticipation for the firework display. As the sun set against a backdrop of the iron lady and to a soundtrack of classical music ranging from Gershwin to Tchaikovsky, the clock finally struck eleven and the light display began, lighting up the sky for an intoxicating 40 minutes, in what was the best firework show I've ever seen in my life. You can see a snippet of the show on my Instagram here.  If you haven't seen them, I urge you to coincide a trip to Paris on Bastille Day, it truly is a feast for the eyes and ears! 

The Parisian Kitchen

I’m a big foodie. I love to try different foods, discover restaurants and generally eat until my heart’s content, but I’m not a very inventive or well-practised cook. And I'm not one of those people who can just throw things together et voila! I have my go-to dishes that I return to time and time again, such as chili, or I consult one of my many cookbooks (25 at last count - which are admittedly more for decoration) and try to recreate a recipe, but often fail as I'll be missing a quarter of the ingredients.

So being invited to The Parisian Kitchen was a chance to get a little more creative in the kitchen and learn to cook some typically French dishes. Run by the lovely Bénédicte, she launched the venture earlier this year out of her love of cooking - a passion she'd inherited from her mother. Having worked in the luxury goods industry, Bénédicte wanted to do something a little more personal. Located in her gorgeous apartment in the 17th, she welcomed my friend Rachelle and I with tea and coffee on a Tuesday morning a couple of weeks ago. The first part of the morning was taken up by a trip to her local market and cheese shop to buy fresh produce (along with explanations from Bénédicte - who knew there were so many different types of onions!) that would be used for the three course menu that she'd planned for us to make together. We then spent the next couple of hours cooking (or they did, while I snapped away) before sitting down to the most delicious feast! 

We cooked & ate the following:
Cream of asparagus soup, foie gras froth and truffle oil 
Coley with a citrus dressing
Vegetable pie pastry 
Chocolate soufflé