Rick...

I meet Mr. Rick Owens today... All I know is that I was freaking out on the inside the entire time.

PV...

Today early in the morning after getting the breakfast "l'anglais" at the cafe under my apartment (half a baguette, jelly, butter, a croissant, 2 eggs, cafe au lait, and orange juice). I hopped on a train out of Paris to go to Premiere Vision. It is the largest Textile fair in the world, and the most influential. Bi-annually the fair decides what next years trends will be in fabrics, colors, and patters, as well as showcasing all the talents in the fashion industry. The exhibition hall was larger than I can even describe, and full of everything you could ever imagine. Room after room of techno fabrics, cottons, silks,  lace, you name it. Then you move on to the Leather fair, which to me was pure heaven. Crocodiles hung all around you in every color and treatment imaginable. Furs were sliced and diced to weigh nothing, and infused with precious metals. Then there was a room the size of the Minneapolis Convention Center (this was the smallest of 6 rooms), that was entirely devoted to trims (buttons, zippers, beads, feathers).

F/W 2011 Color Trends (it is crazy thinking a year in advance!)

My Draping teacher gave us credentials and business cards and had us pose as her assistants. We were meant to spend the day talking to vendors and ordering samples of fabric for her. At first it is intimidating working with all the people, but you quickly get the hang of it. It was really quite amazing being around so many people and looking at so many different fabrics. It really was visual stimulation overload, in the best sense of the word. 

Center Showcase to that groups all the key fabrics of next years collections. There are about 50 or so set ups with 5-15 different fabrics, each with a certain theme. 

It was a lot of fun, and very inspiring, but It really takes a lot out of you. Now to wait 6 months and do it again in February for S/S 2012(Crazy, no?)!

Night At The Museum...

The Louvre is free for students on Wednesday and Friday nights, making it a cheap way to study and get inspiration outside of school. Plus it is just a 5 minute walk from my apartment, so I have no excuse not to use it as a resource. 

Entrance under the Pyramid

Probably the second most photographed woman in Paris. 

My favorite French painter, Théodore Géricault, This is my favorite painting at the Louvre.

While all his painting are beautiful, I think his ones of animals are especially great. He captures them in such an emotive and raw way. 

At first I was caught off guard by the heron fighting the hawk...

... That is, until I kept seeing them pop up in artwork everywhere. I think there is a story that I am missing. 

Napoleons dining room. His apartment puts Versailles to shame in terms of use of gold and decoration. 

Fashion's Night Out...

Eiffel Tower and the Seine from Avenue Montaigne.

Dolce & Gabbana's private bar, and special "Dolce" drink in the gold bottles. 

A jazz band serenades the shoppers at Ralph Lauren.

View through the 3D glasses at Dior.

Massive crowds outside Louis Vuitton.

Eiffel Tower at 5 in the morning... It was that long of a night. 

Well, my first Fashion's Night Out will sure be in my mind for a long time. There is no better way to "shop" all the luxury boutiques on Avenue Montaigne than with some friends, and a constant flow of champagne and cocktails. Of course, every night has its highs and lows, and this one had plenty of each...

1) Dior: Massive speakers blasting an eclectic mix of house and rock music, turning the amazing store into a nightclub. All around waiters hand you glasses of champagne, and a plethora of delicious hors d'oeuvres. There was 3D screenings of the last Haute Couture show, and of course the clothes, oh the clothes (of the Dior and Dior Homme variety). Oh, and I spotted a guy in the Nina Ricci sickle heels. You know the ones...

2) Louis Vuitton: So, maybe you have to wait 30 minutes just to get in the door, but guess who was there to greet you inside... LEIGH LEZARK. I had to take a mental snapshot since Vuitton has a strict no camera policy, even though no other boutique cared last night. She was a lot more skinny in person than I ever imagined. 

3) Celine: Apparently Phoebe Philo (Creative Director) and Carine Roitfeld (Editor in Chief of Paris Vogue) were at the boutique styling looks, but I guess they were not there very long. Oh well, the clothes, shoes and bags more than made up for it. 6 inch boots covered inside and out with rabbit fur? Yes. Tote bag oozing in sheepskin? They had that too. 

4) Givenchy: Biggest let down of the night. I knew Riccardo Tisci has a devoted following, but his store was filled with them, and only them. Everyone was head to toe Givenchy F/W 2010, and by everyone I mean the 14 year old boys, and the 70 year old women. Getting to peek at the Haute Couture collection in person didn't make up for the depression of knowing I could never be in that crowed any time soon... unless I find myself a sugar mama, cuz I know my parents wont be supporting a Givenchy addiction any time soon. 

5) Chanel: Two simple words describe this event... Invitation Only. Only problem was it was not the same invitation that gets you into all the other events, it was a private invitation from Chanel. 

Tonight...

Vogue's Fashion's Night Out is tonight, so get out your fancy clothes and  get ready to party and shop (in my case, the window variety). 

Pictures and stories to come tomorrow. 

Apartment...

So the place is on the 5th floor with no elevator, small, and lacking a decent wall color, but it has some things going for it; good location in the 1st right by the Marais, and a great view (you can see le Centre Pompidou if you sick your head out the window, it is just down the street). Plus It is a few blocks from the river and the Louvre. 

I'm Back!

Well, I'm back to blogging, and back to Paris!

Currently, it is not all that glamourous in the city of lights though. As you can see my hotel room is very very very small and my luggage takes up almost all the space. Oh well, only two more days until I can move into my apartment and finally unpack all my stuff.

While the room may be small, the view (and the weather) are very nice. Ok, maybe the weather isn't so nice, it is only in the mid 60's. Cold compared to Minnesota, but warm according to my roommate from Sweden. Everyone is wearing their jackets, but I just have to face the cold since my jackets are all packed away still.

We also have a nice "balcony" if you can call it that. Basically just a big window that opens up to a railing. Very French. What must also be very French is the hotel cleaner who just walked into the room... and didn't leave. He tried talking to me,  "mais je ne comprends pas le français". Only saying that didn't matter to him. So he continued talking in French, confused by all my luggage. I said "Je suis américain, mais je suis un étudiant à Parsons". This was followed by lots of oui's, non's, and confused faces at each other. He finished cleaning, then left with a au revoir! Oh, the language barrier.