Venetian New Year

We're back from our European holiday in sunny, (too warm!) LA and massively jet lagged. It feels like we haven't slept in days, but we're trying our hardest to stay awake and go to bed at a reasonable hour so we just may sleep through the night. Le mari took some amazing photographs of Venice.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Oscar running through an alley, scaring off the pigeons.

Our favorite restaurant we stumbled upon. This pasta was tossed in the cheese wheel - it was so, so good. 

 These lovely sights are at every turn, it is so hard not to photograph everything. 

Although is the most touristy thing to do, yes, we took a gondola ride at Oscar's begging. But we were so happy we did. It's such a lovely and peaceful (once you're off the Grand Canal) way to see the city.

These taxi boats are the sexiest taxis in all the world. Never thought you'd here those two words together, huh? Sexy and Taxi. Go to Venice.

We discovered a small leather goods company called Officine 904. One of the owners, Omar, who I'm talking to in this picture was interesting - he makes bags out of Italian leather in Italy, we make bags out of Italian leather in LA - it's a very different endeavor. He was excited that our one Italian store is Luisa Via Roma, because he said it was one of, if not the best store to be sold at in Italy. Yay. We just shipped them, so hopefully it will do well. 

I also drooled over some better known Veneta leather goods stores...of this one in particular, I can't help it, I'm a huge fan.

This was the candy stand at the market on the square outside our apartment. I liked the lettering. Oscar liked the goods.

I love the way the red stands out on this dreary Grand Canal picture. It looks like a painting.

Oscar's look pretty much sums it up for all of us: we were in awe of this beautiful city with such a rich and complicated history it seems it would take years and years of study to understand the how and why of it all. 

ABC - Amour Bonheur Chance

After a few days in the French countryside with family, we spent one day in Paris. Of course I had to hit some of my favorite shops. 

This is the big wall along the staircase at Merci. I thought is was perfect as a New Year's wish.

Amour, Bonheur, Chance. 

Love, Happiness, Luck.

What more do we all need?

 It was fun to see Merci in a winter setting.

 I think they were selling these bands which hold the magazine together. I just liked this picture for the Numéro cover.

Here's me shopping in my new Capeline hat from Comptoir.  

 Isabel's storefront on rue Saintonge is so beautiful. I walked around Paris looking for inspiration for our new storefront. We're moving 2 doors down from our current studio. But more on that later...

The letters were spinning around saying Happy/Merry Annee/noel.

 

We went to Marant because I became obsessed with finding a pair of sneakers to wear in Venice after I saw these by Gerard Darel. After a wild goose chase, I found out they are sold out everywhere. And so to satisfy this sneaker urge, I had to buy these Isabel ones. Only I got them in black, and a hour after leaving the store I was kicking myself for having not gotten the whites. :( 

p.s. these are NOT walking shoes for Venice. 

 This was the view from our hotel room. The fog was majestic and relentless. We never saw the entire tower during the time we spent in our room-with-view. This was taken just as we were checking out, 24 hours earlier we could see only the bottom slice of what you see in this picture. It was comical.

 Speaking of majestic, this is my sister-in-law's apt in Paris. I mean, come on! 

 Because we stay in my sister-in-law's neighborhood, the 7th, it is a nice walk to see the Tour. No matter how tour-isty (ha! get it?) it's still massive and cool and breathtaking every time. Here though, I was probably scowling, because I never like my picture taken, but I do like my black messenger bag. :)

 We all had pastries at the ridiculously cute patisserie on rue St. Dominque.

 And then we were off to Venice. This is the boat taxi from the airport to town. I'm in awe here. More pics of this incredible place to come.

Til then, Amour Bonheur Chance to you all. 

HAPPY 2012!

Christmas in France

We arrived in France yesterday. Completely jet lagged and "on the moon" as they say over here, meaning completely out of it, we went to midnight mass at the local church to try to get in the Christmas spirit with song. 

After midnight mass, the tradition in the family is to serve hot chocolate with brioche and croissants. 

This was the table when we returned to my sister-in-law, Françoise's house. Her beautiful porcelain cups made by her talented friend Inès de Nicolaÿ and a little gift of chocolate in a wrapped box in front of each cup.

 

We took this picture to show the beautiful hand-embroidered table cloth. I was nervous to serve hot chocolate on such a pristine white table, but Françoise assured me that tablecloths were meant to be used, not sit in drawers and besides, all stains come out of white when you boil it. (Not for me, but I obviously didn't ace home economics.)  

Joyeux Noel everyone!

xoxc

Katie Loves the Red Messenger

Yesterday, I got a morning text from a friend: Katie Holmes is wearing your red messenger on JustJared.com! It turns out that she's been all over the celebrity sites the past couple of days wearing it. It is soo great on her warm-weather-winter, New York attire! I love it. We don't know where she got it, but we have a sneaking suspicion that it was the Steven Alan store in Tribeca where she frequently shops. 

Even cooler that she bought it retail! Thanks Katie, you're cute.

 From here

 Out at night from here

 Shopping with Suri from here

 In Tribeca from here

From here

Happy Holidays

CV by MB
We're heading into the home stretch of the holiday season. Thankfully, it's been a busy one for CV. In one week, I head to France with the family and from there we will finish the year in Venice, Italy. :)
We've had such an exciting year! With these treasured gold earrings, an early holiday gift from my lovely friend Maya, I'm set.
I wish you all the happiest of holidays.
xoxo

Scott, Garance, Jenna & Mickey

New York Celeb sighting of the day: Scott and Garance - demigods of the fashion blogosphere, in the flesh at the J. Crew corporate HQ. I was so excited to be there at the HQ - I've admired this company since grade school when the catalogs would come in the mail and I'd fall down the rabbit hole wishing I were that kind of east coast, blue blooded beauty. They created a good dream and they commercialized old money, American preppiness like no one else. And more than I wanted whatever they were selling I wanted desperately the life of the person in the catalog.

(photo Jenna Lyons and Garance Doré from Stylecaster.com)

I was also excited to go to their HQ, not only at the prospect of working with them, but also at the idea of hearing the famous CEO Mickey Drexler over the loud speaker speaking to his court, er, his employees. I'd read about it in the New Yorker in last year's profile of him, so I was fascinated to hear the genius retailer speak. I could only catch snippets of since I was in a meeting and wanted to appear to be present for it, but there was one audible message: "Jenna, I know you're in a meeting, but please stop by my office when you get a chance, I have a really quick question for you - just need your opinion on something." Yep, I was at J. Crew. And mega-talented, J. Crew creative director, Jenna Lyons was in the building. My money was that she was holed up with Scott et Garance, non? 

Mad Dash to NYC

As of 7 a.m. today, I'm in New York for a little more than 48 hours jam packed with meetings.

Three holiday crafty-shows and one concert in the 3 days leading up to 

Sunday night's red eye and here I am. 

Saturday night we went to see Jane Birkin sing at Cal State LA. 

I had no idea what to expect as, to me, she was always Serge Gainbourg's beautiful, sexy muse who sang slightly off key but it didn't matter because she was, well, impossibly beautiful and sexy. 

But still, I work in a world where the most coveted handbag is named after her. And her daughter is arguably my favorite style icon ever, (and she had some pretty iconic looks herself). So if she comes to town, and le mari asks if I want to go, I don't question it, I don't say I'm tired. I just go. I go and and I expect to bow my head and pay my respects to an icon of style, of music, of an era. 

So I was happily surprised that I actually very much enjoyed it. 

With a tousled bob, she wore a crisply pressed white button down, buttoned down rather far, black tuxedo pants, and black flats with white soles. In other words, for a women of 65, very chic. She sang Gainbourg's songs all in French and spoke English in between. She was great - engaging with the crowd and very humble and charming. And the whole thing felt very authentic. She's. Jane. Birkin. For god's sake.

Now I'm here. My first of a few nights at the Ace in New York. 

Stumptown coffee is in the lobby and as the line out the door at 4 pm attests, this coffee is no joke.

Delish. I almost can't wait for tomorrow am so I can get some more.

The Ace is cute. Here's my room.

The weather is very mild in New York right now, about the same temps as LA at night really. 

But the Chirstmas decs are up all over - this is Macy's: tis the season indeed.