FAQ Part I

Here are the answers to your questions from my FAQ post, feel free to ask me more!

Could you recommend some places to see/shop etc in Paris? I love going for walks in the Jardin du Luxembourg with a box of Pierre Herme macaroons to dip into along the way! Also the Parc Buttes Charmont is beautiful, you get really dramatic views of the city. Shopping wise I like to wander around the shops in le Marais but sadly I can only afford to window shop there! I love Cos, Isabel Marant and Comptoir des Cotonniers though. And I love the Poilâne bakery and Mamie Gâteaux when I feel like indulging my sweet tooth!

What are your favourite books? I read Patti Smith’s Just Kids over summer and it was the most beautiful book I’ve ever read. As soon as I finished, I had to start it over again.

Suppose you could pack your bags and leave for any place in the world tomorrow, where would you go? Top of my list at the moment is Japan, I’d love to visit Tokyo and Kyoto when the cherry blossom’s in bloom.

If you were to blog about another subject, completely fashion unrelated, what would it be? I used to always write journals when I went abroad as a youngster so it would most probably be a travel blog.

How old are you?
 I’m 20 years old.

What's your favorite item in your closet? It changes from day to day but at the moment it has to be my Isabel Marant Bator coat that I saved up for. No matter what I’m wearing underneath I always feel good when I put it on.


What do you do for a living? I’m currently a studying French and History of Art at university, whilst dreaming of becoming a fashion journalist or stylist!


What are your favourite blogs to read? Here are my current favourites:

http://thisisnaive.com/, http://deadfleurette.blogspot.com/, http://trois-douze.blogspot.com/, http://definitelygolden.com/, http://ifyouweretherebeware.blogspot.com/, http://mag-laflaneuse.blogspot.com/, http://www.garancedore.fr/, http://www.turnedout.tv/index.php, http://sheswildatheart.blogspot.com/, http://portillon.wordpress.com/, http://theepitomeofquiet.wordpress.com/, http://thethinkingtank.wordpress.com/, http://millyfellintothewardrobe.blogspot.com/, http://fashion-filled.blogspot.com/, http://la-vie-en-rose.tumblr.com/

What kind of music do you like? Bob Dylan, always. Mostly folk music such as Leonard Cohen, Neil Young & Karen Dalton. But I also love all those weird, ethereal female artists like Charlotte Gainsbourg, Sophie Hunger, Joanna Newsom, Au Revoir Simone, Cat Power etc.

Where in Paris do you live? In the 14ème.

What are your favourite movies? I could watch Sofia Coppola’s Lost in Translation over and over again (and all her other films as a matter of fact!) Audrey Hepburn films of the 1950’s & 60’s, Jean Luc Godard’s Breathless, Grey Gardens, all Wes Anderson’s movies... The list goes on!

edit: Thank you to two of my favourite blogs En Voyage and Capture the Castle for awarding me the I love your blog prize.

Questions:
1. Why did you create the blog? I started Her Ribbons and Her Bows as an outlet for me to practice fashion writing as it is something I would love to do in the future and just as a sort of scrap book for all the things that I love.

2. What kind of blogs do you follow? Mostly I follow style blogs which have a good balance between writing and images.

3. Favorite makeup brand? Chanel for makeup and French pharmacy brands like Weleda & La Roche Posay for skin care.

4. Favorite clothing brand? Isabel Marant Etoile, Cos, Zara, Comptoir des Cotonniers, Chanel, Lover & Orla Kiely

5. Your indispensable makeup product: Chanel liquid eyeliner or Lucas Remedies Papaw Ointment

6. Your favourite color: Navy blue

7. Your perfume: I alternate between Marc Jacobs' Daisy in the summer and Serge Lutens' Fleur d'Oranger in the winter

8. Your favourite film: see above

9. What country would you like to visit and why? see above

10. Make the last question and answer to yourself: Favourite magazines? My ideal magazine would be a combination of Lula, Russh, Paris Vogue and The Gentlewoman.

(Collage by me. Images thanks to Vogue Paris, Jalouse, Vogue UK & ELLE US)

FAQ

Apologies for the lack of updates - I have been drowning under a the sea of French bureaucracy having made the move to la belle Paris. My days have been spent exploring the florists and patisseries of left bank, spending lazy afternoons wandering through the Marais with friends making mental outfit notes and not forgetting some all important shopping! My most recent purchase: a camel coloured polo neck from COS which has become a steadfast staple in my wardrobe. I was even photographed by Tamu Mcpherson wearing it with my Bator, high waisted jeans and some grey high heeled desert boots outside the Chanel SS11 show (which made my day!) I find the street style here is just so inspiring - I wonder if this quiet chic will ever get old? I see thousands of muted colours interspersed with scarves, blazers and ballet flats yet they never cease to inspire me and introduce me to new ways of wearing things.

So having been off the radar for a while, I thought it was about time to give something back and do a Q&A session with my readers. And one thing I ask of you - any suggestions of your favourite things to do in Paris would also be most welcome! So fire away...