Ever worked yourself into a state trying to find parking in 7 levels of a Westfield car park? Well, in Paris they do things a little differently. You stroll into any store off the street with your poodle, i kid you not. When the doors of Le Bon Marche were opened to us on Rue Sevres in St Germain, people were shopping inside with their tiny dogs, looking at the gorgeous design products on every floor. There is no horrid food court selling Burger King, but rather 'Le Grande Epicerie de Paris' selling deli delights such as Sonya Rykiel chocolate teddy bears. Here, my favourite design finds from France's most famous department store (all available online in the home and design section)... Top to bottom: Iris Niewenburg china brooch, Driade Kosmo table centrepiece, Jose Levy perfumed candles.
Trying to match that glaringly hideous shade of Coles 'envirobag' green to any outfit is impossible. I've always objected to those bags which are made of plastic-pressed-to-look-like-fabric anyway (am I the only one to notice?) and which have been mass produced in such volume they can't possibly help mother earth in this lifetime or the next. If 'they' want us to re-use plastic bags, they'd have to be hand crafted, in trendy colours from scrap material by Susan Bilj. By making them precious we'd use them again and again...think cost per wear and forget flying that faux-green tote from the supermarket today!
