ALP presents: American Fashion Icons with Dimitri Papalexis

Paris Art Studies @ The Library presents

An evening with Dimitri Papalexis

Thursday March 29th, 2012 at 19:30

at The American Library in Paris.

Fashion week is over but couturier and costume historian Dimitri Papalexis will discuss 

American fashion icons and the ways celebrities and their fashion 

have influenced society and the fashion industry all over the world. 

Papalexis has studied and taught fashion and embroidery

since the late 1980's and owns his own boutique in Paris,

Ditri Couture, in the 4th arrondissement. 

From Mary Pickford and Audrey Hepburn to Princess Grace and Jacqueline Kennedy,

explore how the fashion and styles of the rich and famous

effected society in the 20th century.


Also,  ALP's Evenings with an Author presents Frederick Turner on Wed., March 28th, 2012 at 19:30.
Turner will discuss the banning and unbanning of Henry Miller's Tropic of Cancer and how it became an American classic. Frederick Turner is the author of several books (Go Between, A Novel of the Kennedy Years; In the Land of Temple Caves: Notes on Art and the Human Spirit; 1929: A Novel of the Jazz Age; Into the Heart of Life: Henry Miller at One Hundred among others) and his writings have been published in The New York Times, The International Herald Tribune, The Los Angeles Times Magazine, The Massachusetts Review, Tin House, Southern Review and others.

Check his website for more information: Frederickturner.org.
And check ALP's schedule for Wednesdays Evenings with an Author series.

The American Library in Paris~10, rue du General Camou, 75007 Paris, France~Tel.+33.01.53.59.12.60

Hemingway Wrote Here ~Missing Paris Day

Today we go back to Paris for another writer's tour

this time taken from Michael Palin's "Walk Like the Man" Hemingway Adventure tour.

On a rainy day in December, I followed Palin's directions:

Starting on the 7 line to Metro stop Censier Daubenton,

walk up Rue Mouffetard 

(not missing the most lovely and unusual house at the bottom of the hill, 

 across from church St. Medard) to the Place de la Contrascarpe.

Take Rue du Cardinal Lemoine to the right

to No. 74. 

It is here that Hemingway and his first wife Hadley lived during their first year in Paris in the early '20's. 

If you have not read The Paris Wife by Paula McLain, 

it is a fascinating look at the turbulent and remarkable lives of the Hemingways from the woman's perspective,

describing the many and varied sights and sounds, smells and tastes of 1920's Paris

and, of course, life as the wife of Ernest. 

According to the plaque outside the door,

they occupied an apartment on the third floor.

Hadley, in The Paris Wife, describes it as "two oddly shaped rooms" across from a bal musette,

a dance hall, with constant accordion music playing. 

She determined that the accordion music would be the sound of their first year in Paris.  

And always, those shops or cafes near any door he's touched

make the most of his fame. 

When Hemingway found he could not write in their cramped apartment,

he took a top floor room nearby

just up Cardinal Lemoine and to the left 

at 39, Rue Descartes.

But this time the restaurant below has attached itself to the poet Verlaine

who apparently died here, calling itself La Maison de Verlaine.

In the book, Hadley describes the view as an ugly one 

across the Parisian chimneys and rooftops,

you know, the view we all wish we had. 

And it was here that he wrote, in that first winter in Paris, working in a small, cold room

and walking the city when he could no longer write,

and then that Ernest and Hadley met the writers of Sylvia Beach's Shakespeare and Co. bookstore,

those Gertrude Stein referred to as The Lost Generation. 

Coming soon, a few more writers locations

on our walks in Paris.

Divine St. Patrick's Day

 

via Pinterest

Some yummy photos to get you in the mood!




 

via Pinterest
And if that doesn't do it...



via Pinterest
...maybe this one will.

Happy St. Patrick's Day to you!

Library of my dreams...

~Photo from Pinterest~

"When I got my library card, that's when my life began."

~ Rita Mae Brown

I read a book when I was young

about a little girl getting her very first library card. 

I've never remembered the name of the book

or been able to find it, yet,

but it left a huge impression on me. 

I could feel her excitement, almost taste and smell the dust of the library, 

the musty smell of the books

and the anticipation and excitement, the freedom and responsibility

of being able to check out one's very own book selection.
And take them home, to be YOURS for a predetermined time.

My hope is that I will find this book again before I die. 

I loved the library of the castle in Scotland

but can you imagine searching for books at every level of this staircase? 

It looks like it should be a part of the set 

for the movie "Inception",

worlds within worlds of dreams. 

Pot au Haggis~ Missing Paris Day

It's my sister's birthday week.

And this is one of the things we did during my last visit to Paris.

A bit of the old Haggis appetizer at the Auld Alliance 

(just off the St. Paul metro stop)

with a beer and an Edradour (scotch) chaser.

Edradour was the scotch tour we took while in Scotland awhile back

so we were reliving a tasty memory. 

She doesn't like to travel to too many cities more than once.

Too many places to see to go back to somewhere you've already been. 

We've spent a lot of New Year's Eves together

but she said recently that she would go back to Scotland 

for Edinburgh's Hogmanay and torch light procession again at New Year's. 

It was THAT much fun! 

So here's a wish for a scotch (not too peaty) and a beer to you on your birthday 

and for another Hogmanay New Years together! 

Preferably from a nearby castle.

See that post here. 

Happy Birthday and love you, Beautiful Sister!

Famous Saint Sulpice~Missing Paris Day

A little view of the exterior of the Eglise de Saint Sulpice,

most recently made very well-known by Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code

though the interior has been the scene of many a book.

Dedicated to Sulpitius the Pious (a 7th century bishop),

it is slightly smaller than Notre Dame and

home to more than one mural by Eugene Delacroix.

It was built over a 13th century Romanesque church

and was the wedding place of Victor Hugo

as well as where the Marquis de Sade (1740) and

Charles Baudelaire (1821) were baptized. 

It is the burial place of the granddaughters of Louis XIV

and Louise de Lorraine. 

But I will always now remember it as the place where I broke my camera 

at the very beginning of our most recent visit to Paris

while sitting on one of those benches in the square. 

(I broke The Chef's too but luckily--if any luck is involved here--

 it was on our last day just before leaving.)

Maybe I should have gone into the church, offered up a few sacred words

and touched one of those meridian lines

before ever touching my camera that day. 

Next time I will. 

Bonne semaine!

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen

Facts via Wikipedia)

Thousands of Candles...~ Buddhist Thought for the Day ~

Photo via Pinterest

"Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, 

and the life of the candle will not be shortened.

Happiness never decreases by being shared.

I teach one thing and one only: that is, suffering and the end of suffering.

Just as a mother would protect with her life her own son, her only son,

so one should cultivate an unbounded mind towards all beings, and loving-kindness towards all the world.

One should cultivate an unbounded mind, above and below and across, without obstruction, without enmity, without rivalry.

Standing, or going, or seated, or lying down, as long as one is free from drowsiness, one should practice this mindfulness. 

This, they say, is the holy state here."

~Sutta Nipata

One of ma belle soeurs got me to a yoga class this past weekend and it's been way too long. 

I even did a 75 minute session on my own at home this morning 

which almost never happens. 

There is just something about that mindfulness (all by itself) 

but especially combined with the strengthening and lengthening and focus on the body. 

Mind/body focus.

I'm determined that this start will put me back on the yoga mat on a more regular basis. 

And while I don't do a long meditation every single day (like I'd prefer) , 

I do find that a few minutes several times a day is still tremendously helpful. 

Love that term: 'An unbounded mind.' 

And 'happiness never decreases by being shared.' 

Too often we share the opposite. 

What if every single day, 

we opted to share happiness through an unbounded mind?! 

What would the world look like? 

Oscars on my mind

Sooo very excited about this year's Oscar Night!

I watch them every year so that's nothing unusual

but this year a friend of ours is nominated and will be in the audience.

You'll see his name come up for Art Direction for the runaway silent film hit 'The Artist'. 

He's been living what I would call a kind of double life, 

part of the time raising chickens and domestic animals 

with his beautiful and delightful artist wife 

(whom I've dubbed 'A little Piece of Magic')

in a small rural town in Oregon.

The other half of his life is spent traveling the world 

creating and directing set production for famous Hollywood (and now French) directors

such as Paul Haggis, Peter Horton, Edward Zwick and Robert Redford

(the latter of whom I have twice now been one-degree of separation away from

and still have not been in the man's orbit.

Third time's a charm, Bob!)

This Sunday night we'll be having our own cozy Oscar party,

me and The Chef, a few fun nibbles, our new family addition (kitty photos soon to come),

scanning the screen and audience for A Little Piece of Magic

and He of the Double Life. 

So thrilled for you L.B!

And if I see my mail carrier in the audience, 

I'll know where our tickets went. 

(photo/poster from Google images)

On Rue Mouffetard~Missing Paris Day

Just across from the 15th century church of St. Medard

at the bottom of rue de Mouffetard in Paris

sits a most lovely and unusual house. 

These photos are not perfect but they give you an idea.

I found it thanks to Michael Palin's 'Walk Like a Man' Hemingway tour 

(':An Englishman Trails an American in Paris')

of which I will share my photos in an upcoming blog. 

Though I've been searching for some information about the house,

my search continues. 

But thought you might enjoy seeing it anyway.

It's not been well kept up

but still worth a view.

And the street itself

continues its tradition of a morning market

through which Hemingway must have walked every day

(if he made it out early enough after a night of drinking). 

Should you find yourself in Paris,

don't miss the street

(and the tour).

More to come!

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Valentine's Sweet Kisses

Via Pinterest

A sweet day! 

We will be making dinner at home with

 The Chef's twenty-something son and his sweetie

(at their request)

celebrating by way of a couple's dinner. 

Can't think of a better way. 

Wishing all of you a most lovely Valentine's Day!

<3<3<3

Right Bank Tombs of Beauty~ Missing Paris Day

Another shot from Cimetiere de Passy in the 16th arrondissement

which overlooks the Eiffel Tower. 

I love the bright green of the moss alongside the gorgeous patina of the door.

And of course, the cobblestone walkways. 

Since 1820, Passy has housed the remains of such famous names as Debussy, Manet, 

Givenchy, Mirbeau, Morisot and Renault. 

If not for the names, worth the walk for the beauty, 

the view and the chestnut trees. 

Cimetiere de Passy

2, rue du Commandant Schoesling

Metro: Trocadero

(photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Novel House in Paris~ Missing Paris Day

Welcome to the house of my novel~

partially set in Paris. 

It's just a few blocks from our apartment so easy access. 

And right on the Champ de Mars.

I love the arched doorway in grapevine relief,

the mini columns and the heads also draped in vines. 

I've had it in mind for some time

but on this last trip I took some photos so I'd have them for description. 

Notice the wild cat licking a leg above. 

And the pine cones over the window...

and in the corners. 

It's actually a couple of apartment buildings

but in this job, I get to take creative license. 

It also happens to be the home of the Cesar Academie

(of which a friend has been nominated for an award-

but that's another blog post). 

The backside looks right out on...

the Eiffel Tower. 

Imagine having this as your living room view.

That's what I did so (besides the tenants of the building)

my characters are the lucky ones.

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Steak Tartare? Still not ready...

The gorgeous Steak Tartare. 

Have you tried it?

It's in every restaurant, on every Paris menu

and I'm offered a bite every time it happens to be at my table. 

But so far, I cannot seem to order it. 

This happens to be the Chartier version. 

My brother-in-law, on a visit once to the US,

tried to feed My French Babies (when they were still tiny things)

 barely seared, local hamburger meat at home, pink as the above picture all throughout the middle.

I had to convince him he could kill his children if he let them eat it. 

It took every persuasive power to get him to cook it through

and he swore they wouldn't eat it well done.  They did. 

(He forgot about the magical powers ketchup has on children.)

And me, myself? I still can't bring myself to eat this beautiful medley of colors.

It's tempting, but it's still a non.

Someday I will. And I will celebrate when I do.

But until then, I'll take my Steak Frites.

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Window Shopping in Paris

Already it feels like ages since I was in Paris 

and I just got back. 

So I make myself feel better with some 

virtual window shopping.  

Thought you might enjoy as well. 

I look at the chocolate above 

and can't believe I didn't go right inside and buy one of everything. 

Was hoping to do lunch at La Duree this visit

but it turns out they had a fire and have been under reconstruction. 

I believe you can still buy their macarons

but I just took pictures of some instead. 

And I let loose and ate my fair share of cheese this time. 

Every meal. Every time. 

Looking forward to the next visit already. 

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Jolie Papier Toilette

While doing research for my novel in Paris recently, 

I made a quick lunch and shopping detour 

in the Carrousel du Louvre, Paris' underground shopping mall

beneath the Louvre Palace and Museum. 

And found I needed a...

what would be the French term for 'Pit Stop'? 

I finally found the Point WC,

an attended restroom with a price: 1 euro 50 c.

The woman at the counter takes your money

 and another (very quickly) cleans every stall after each use,

then greets and directs you to the most recently cleaned. 

Never have I seen so many decorated rolls.

Maybe I just don't get out enough.

I think I like the plain colored variety. 

Afterward I was delighted to find a Fragonard (Parfumerie)

where I bought an Eau de Toilette (really!)

as a gift for an upcoming hostess. 

When in Paris,

stop in the Point WC and pay the price 

just for the experience. 

And then indulge 

in some of the most famous perfume in Paris. 

Carrousel du Louvre

99, rue de Rivoli

75001 Paris

01.43.16.78.00

Mon-Sun 10am-8pm

Metro: Palais Royal- Musee du Louvre

Fragonard Louvre

99, rue de Rivoli

75001 Paris

01.42.96.96.96

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)