Stocking Stuffers: Gifts for kids

Can you believe Christmas is tomorrow morning? It seems like just yesterday we were preparing our dining tables for a Thanksgiving feast, and now we're getting ready to leave out a plateful of cookies and a glass of milk for Santa! As a child there is nothing more exciting than the anticipation of Christmas morning. Maybe we're nostalgic for the presents we received as children or maybe they were truly better, but as far as gifts go, children really get to have all the fun! Our stocking stuffers for him and her were great, but wrapping up all the treasures and treats we have for kids makes Christmas really feel magical. Marbles, spinning tops, handmade Christmas elves, sour candies and finger puppets are just a few of the delightful items we have wrapped up and stuffed into stockings. With less than 24 hours now until Christmas morning you better believe all of us at the Paris Market are filled to the max with the Christmas spirit! Merry Christmas everyone!

Holiday Inspiration: Christmas Baubles

It feels like every year we start decorating for Christmas earlier and earlier. Now it seems it's practically a tradition to set up your tree and begin adorning it as soon as Thanksgiving is over. In Europe however, this tradition is not as common. In fact, it's much more common to decorate a day or two before Christmas instead. While we're not going to split hairs in a debate over which is the better time to begin decorating, we will say we're still excited to be adding our last minute holiday touches! As far as traditional decorations go, one of our favorite Christmas tree decorations is the timeless glass ball ornament. These shiny baubles date all the way back to 1847 in Lauscha, Germany. Nowadays many baubles are mass produced in plastic rather than glass, however when you find the quality glass ornaments like the ones made centuries ago, no other ornament compares. It doesn't matter if you have a miniature tree or the biggest Fraser Fir in the lot, these colorful and classic glass baubles can make any old tree one of sophistication and beauty. If you're like us and the rest of Europe, you've got some decorating to do! We've just marked all of our holiday items 30% off, so come visit us and enjoy this wonderful holiday season!

Available at The Paris Market.

Notes from Abroad: The best of the bakery

While enjoying the holidays abroad with family, we wanted to share some of the things we love most about Europe during this wonderful season. This week it takes the form of delicious breads and pastries from the local bakery! It goes without saying that bakeries all across Europe have their own unique and delectable flavors specific to their regions. As we are currently in the southern most corner of the Black Forest in Germany, we rounded up this collection of our favorite delicious and traditional Schwartzwalder treats to share with friends and family back home!

Stollen - a traditional holiday loaf filled with dried fruits, marzipan and dusted with powdered sugar.

It wouldn't be Germany without the pretzels! / The Berliner - a jelly-filled, sugar-dusted favorite!

Weckmann - another beloved treat around the holidays in the form of a little man made of sweet bread.

Schnecken- or "snail", a delicious sweet rolled pastry filled with any number of nuts and dried fruits.

Stocking Stuffers: Gifts for Her

If you're looking for the perfect stocking stuffers for the Mrs. this year then look no further! With a stocking filled with gifts like our favorite scented Tocca soap, nourishing Fresh sugar rose lip balm, delicious peppermint bark shortbread and so much more, our stockings are guaranteed to make this Christmas morning one of the best ones yet! For her, we've stuffed the stocking with a delightful collection of holiday treats in a color story of soft pinks and purples that are sure to keep her looking and feeling beautiful this holiday season. Happy shopping!

Available at The Paris Market!

Postcards from Paris: { Appearances by Monsieur Hulot }

An image struck my attention while waiting for my train. It was an advertisement for the newly restored version of Mon Oncle by Jacques Tati. The image is simple, an older gentleman on a bicycle with a pipe in tow and wearing a hat, and behind him sits a young boy, wearing a white collar and also a hat, smiling. Clearly set in a different time period, for whatever reason, perhaps it was the simplicity of it all, the image seemed incredibly current.

Skipping ahead to another scenario, the other day while working amongst holiday stress, a man passed by wearing a hat and a beige trench holding his arms behind him and striding nonchalantly past the cake counter. He seemed very familiar yet I could not seem to place him. I admired his calmness and cool demeanour amongst all of the holiday shoppers at Le Bon Marché. His familiarity remained in my mind throughout the rest of my working hours. After clocking out, I decided to take a different route to my station. When such inclinations to wander come to mind, I try to take them even if time isn't really on my side. I made turns down rues I normally wouldn't have, and passed by lovely Christmas displays. The shop windows in the 7ème are all quite festive with holiday cheer, but here comes the exception and the tie-in to it all. Third time is the charm, and there he was on display in the windows of a menswear boutique, Monsieur Hulot.
Who is Monsieur Hulot?
The character who inspired the creation of Mr. Bean, and described by Roger Ebert as, "friendly to a fault, but he is the man nobody quite sees. The holidaymakers are distracted by their own worlds, companions, and plans, and notice Hulot only when something goes wrong, as it often does." Nothing really went wrong in my case, on the contrary he was the calming sense that even if something did turn complicated during his quick appearances he was the character to relate to.
Bisous,

Reba

On the Table: Winter Wonderland

Even though it may not snow in Savannah, we still enjoy the beauty of a winter wonderland! Utilizing our favorite vintage dishes, we've created a tabletop color story of white, gold, soft grey and blue. Adding to the holiday spirit, our snow covered Christmas trees intermixed with our serving dishes creates a delightfully picturesque vignette of a frosty wintertime landscape. Accented with our Mercury glass ornaments, you can almost feel the crisp mountain air of the Swiss Alps as you dine with all of your friends and family. It may look like a chilly meal, but with the warmth of loved ones at your side you've got nothing to worry about! Bon appetit!

Holiday Inspiration: Christmas trees

Embarking on a family outing in search for the most beautiful Christmas tree is always one of our absolute favorite holiday activities. Choosing the right size, shape, smell, color and making sure the needles aren't too prickly is all part of the joy of discovering the perfect tree. Being one of the most popular holiday traditions, the Christmas tree is a very old custom developed in early modern Germany with predecessors dating all the way back to the 16th century! We don't have to spell out every reason why we love Christmas trees, however we will mention that we love them so much so that we like to decorate the house with not just one tree, but a whole forest's worth! We don't mean a living room full of ceiling scraping trees, but trees of all sizes, from 2 inches to 2 feet. Whether they're hand carved from wood, dappled with snow, sparse or fully decorated, it's the variety we love most! Our favorite way to decorate is to mix several shapes and sizes, making a personalized collection to help liven up a mantle, tabletop or shelf with all of the holiday cheer the traditional Christmas tree has to offer! Happy tree hunting and decorating!

Available at The Paris Market.

Holiday Inspiration: Mercury Glass Ornaments

Always a Paris Market favorite, silvered "mercury" glass is considered one of the first true "art glass" types, that is, glass that was made for display and for its inherent artistic value rather than for utilitarian use. Originally produced in the Czech Republic dating back to roughly 1840, mercury glass quickly became popular throughout Germany and England before making its way to the United States. In order to create mercury glass, a glassblower must make a double walled glass first, while adding silver between the layers with a liquid silvering solution, which is then sealed. Although mercury was originally used to provide the reflective coating for mirrors, elemental mercury was never used to create tableware. Nowadays, traditional techniques are no longer implemented, including the double wall and solid bottom found in authentic mercury glass decorations. Call us old fashioned, but mercury glass ornaments never seem to go out of style! Eternally classic and always beautiful, the silvery shine of mercury glass always adds that extra Christmas glint to the rest of our holiday decor!

Roland Pine: The scent of Christmas

One of our favorite things about Christmas time is all of the wonderful scents that are notorious with the holiday. Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, coffee brewing in the kitchen, gingerbread houses baking in the oven and of course, the ubiquitous smell of a Christmas tree's pine needles. With our Roland Pine candles, the scent of pine is no longer exclusive the room where we decorate our tree, but can now be enjoyed anywhere our hearts may desire! Over the years we've found that unfortunately holiday candles can run the risk of either smelling too strong, or too artificial, but light a Roland Pine candle and you'll swear you're hiking through a dense forest in search of the perfect Christmas pine! Available in various sizes, including triple wicks and votives, these soy candles make perfect Christmas gifts and stocking stuffers!

 Available at The Paris Market!

Postcards from Paris: { ...au Jeu de Paume }

One afternoon last week as I was walking along boulevard saint Germain des Pres, waiting for a certain hour to pass. I was in search for an interesting distraction because even though the sun was shining I was too focused on the numbness of my fingers and the smokey vapor of my breath. I walk into a charming bookstore, quite frankly in this neighborhood it's difficult to not find a charming bookstore, but this particular one caught my attention because there was an illustration by Erwin Blumenfeld in the window. Skewed face and interesting colors, I was drawn in and captured by a series of drawings and portraits by the German-born American-Vogue photographer. I noticed that the book was an extended glance from the current exhibition at Le Jeu de Paume.

Le jeu de paume is top. The exhibits are always fascinating, modern, and revealing. Which inspired a visit, and another interesting distraction. 

Blumenfeld is most recognised for his often surrealist-inspired fashion photography. He shot many covers for Vogue and Harper's Bazaar between the 1940's and 1950's. Along with fashion photography, he also produced a large collection of drawings and Dada-esque collages.
It was so interesting to be amongst such a varied body of work. From simple ink drawings to clean, modern portraits of celebrities from the era. Erwin Blumenfeld seemed like he stayed forever true to himself, while still able to impress and inspire the French, wink.

Bisous,

Reba