OK, we've actually been back for several weeks, but work got extremely stressful and I just haven't had time to process much of anything!

We were there for only a week (first time for both of us) and had a marvelous time. Stayed in an apartment in the 5th, ate and drank lots of yummy things, and did a little shopping. I had fantasies of wandering through the boutiques, but ended up not having the time to do that, so I got my shopping list checked off one night in a whirlwind trip to Galeries Lafayette (good grief, it's tourist madness there, but it did the job). Came back with my favorite perfume, tins of tea from Marriage Frères, and a navy cashmere v-neck from Eric Bompard that I'd been coveting since I saw Ingunn wear hers with such flair!

Anyway, I was thinking of you all while there and made some mental notes to share. I assume that the crowds were made of of many tourists and students from the nearby Sorbonne; we weren't staying in the high fashion areas:) Also, the weather turned quite chilly that week, so everybody had pulled out their heavier clothes. As a side note, it was 90°F when we left Virginia, and it had dropped to 50°F in Paris. I checked the weather an hour before we left the house, confident of my clothes choices, and arrived there to be surprised by the change in the forecast!

What I did see were tons of ankle boots and knee-high boots of every variety. Lots of almond-toes, and very few pointy toes. The variety of tights was fun to see, with all sorts of patterns. All had a degree of sheerness; I don't think I saw a single pair of truly opaque tights. I was very surprised by the amount of nude hose on women of all ages. Many of the younger women were wearing nude hose with jeans and flats, which is something I rarely see at home and have always considered frumpy, at least since the 80s!

For bottoms, skinny jeans still ruled the streets. I don't recall seeing anything else, silhouette-wise for pants. I wore my Gap broken-in straights one day and felt very floppy compared to the sleek jeans. No sweats, few sneakers unless they were Cons or the occasional dark Nikes.

Hair was much more natural and less "done", although this might have been the student influence in the area. Most makeup was natural too. If lips were bright, the color was red while everything else was very understated. The only glossy pink lips I saw were on an American teen with her friends:)

In terms of the area we stayed in, the people I saw were well-dressed in a casual way. Not overly done, just polished. It's amazing what a popped collar and scarf can to do to dress things up. Oh, and a touch of fragrance. They were better dressed than the average American, but not any better dressed than the average YLF-er!

As for me, I stuck to skinny jeans, a blazer, and Cons for most of the trip. Due to the unexpected cold, my wardrobe was much less varied than I'd planned but it worked out fine. A special award goes to my Cons and a stick of Body Glide. While my feet were sooo tired, not a blister or ouchy spot was to be had, and we walked miles everyday...far more than I think we've ever walked in our lives.

Here's a photo of me in the square by our apartment (wearing a breton top, maybe a bit literal, but I get a pass as a first time visitor, right?) and a gratuitous pic of the street we stayed on:)