From January through May I have taken you on a “fashion trip” and what a trip it was! I hope you enjoyed it! I know I had a great time showing my designs to all of you. Now, I invite you to take a photo trip with Jac and I through PARIS!!! We had a wonderful time. Jac and I have both been in Paris a zillion times, always for work, but NEVER at the same time! So this was a first for us….to be in Paris at the same time and NO WORK….. just PLEASURE. The minute we landed in Paris, arrived at the hotel…the “Lancaster”, we showered dressed and hit the streets. We walked and walked and walked…..for three days we walked Paris!……stopping briefly along the way, snapping pictures and telling each other stories and memories we had at these special little places. It was the BEST TIME. What you are seeing above are the photos we took on our walking tour…..”ohhhhh take a picture of that”……”give me the camera I have to take a picture of that”, was how the conversation went. There are many buildings you will recognize….the Eiffel Tower, the Madeline, the Sorbonne, Notre Dame, the Palace Royale, the Arc de Triumph, the Plaza Athenee [the hotel with the red awnings, where I stayed many times]. We stopped….. had some lunch at the famous and infamous “Cafe de Flore”, which has been there for over 100 years. At the Palace Royale there was a Helmut Newton exhibit……a VERY famous fashion photographer. The banner advertising the show was an ICONIC photo Newton took of the model, “Vibeke”, in a ground breaking suit by Yves St Laurent. The photo was taken in the wee hours of the morning on some Paris street. How do I know this??? Vibeke told me so. I know Vibeke and love her. I used her in a few shows…..runway wasn’t really her thing [she was quite shy doing runway], but she did them for me. Once, she broke her arm and was due to do one of my fall shows. She came to the studio with her arm in a sling and the cast! She was so sorry she couldn’t do the show and I said to her “why, are your legs broken?”. A BIG smile came to face and of course she did the show….broken arm and all. We worked out exactly what she would wear and I made special slings in the coordinating fabrics. Every time she came out onto the runway there was wild applause…..she stole the show! That was a wonderful memory for me and, I know….for her. Notice the picture of Jac in the Luxemburg Gardens, standing in front of the tallest Tulips I have ever seen! I was wondering why there were red streamers draped on the statues on the Arc de Triumph [photo lower left]. The next day…. Monday….was their Memorial Day and all of Paris was having a Vacation Day……..everything….parks, restaurants and the streets, were packed with people….great fun. I have three sets of postcards from Paris…..I hope you have enjoyed our “first day” in Paris!………………Much Love, Louis
P.S. Don’t forget to look at Jac’s face book page….Jac Dell’Olio. She has posted more photos that she took. She has written wonderful stories with each picture of her special memories of Paris.
Wow, am I impressed with the energy both you and Jac have after a trans-Atlantic flight!!! I am always so jet lagged going in that direction I think all I would have been up to would be a trip down the Seine in a Bateau Mouche! I am already planning on getting on a tram and riding around and around the Ring after we arrive in Vienna. Thanks so much to both you and Jac for sharing your Paris adventures, made all the more meaningful for being able to share with each other you respective old Parisian haunts. Yes! A memoir written by the two of you from your two different perspectives would be most enjoyable and very interesting! I had to LOL at your account of your visit to Guerlain. Back in the longer hair hippie days of his earlier career, Ray was frequently sent around on one diplomatic mission or another. He always traveled in jeans and a backpack. Primarily, I think, because he LOVED seeing the look on folks’ faces when he whipped out his Diplomatic passport 🙂 !!! Delighted that you and Jac had such a memorable trip. As always, Barbara
Thank you so much, Louis and Jac, for your wonderful postcard from Paris and the fashion stories behind the famous picture! I see you have a picture of the Guerlain shop– I think this is the main store on the Champ, not the smaller one in St. Germain– so I hope Jac got to go up to the second floor and breathe in the fabulous limited edition fragrances only sold there. It was a highlight of one of my trips to Paris when I acquired a very special limited fragrance there.
I should have mentioned in advance a gem of a tiny jewelry store in the Marais neighborhood– Catherine Martineaux, I believe is the spelling– owned by a lovely multi-lingual young woman who designs and creates her own styles. They are mostly a bit more delecate than the ethnic, tribal pieces you acquire at the NYC shop, but I think you’d enjoy seeing the store and meeting Catherine on your next Paris trip.
Merci for all you do!– Blinddogs
Hi Nancy….you are absolutely right that is the flagship store. Isn’t it near the “Ritz” hotel? Jac’s favorite perfume is “Mitsouko” and I love smelling it on her! The store is a little jewel box, but the sales ladies are quite stuck up. Of course we weren’t dressed to impress as we were on our “walking” tour…..in sneakers and hoodies, and just stopped in. It’s amazing when you start to spend Euros how quickly they warm up!
We were in the Marais, but didn’t see her store….my eyes were trying to take it all in but it’s all too much! Next time!! much Love, Louis
OMG!!!! Mitsouko is my signature fragrance that I have been wearing for some 30 years! When I went to the Guerlain store on the Champs, I asked for a “new” frangrance that would be in the same family of fragrance as Mitsouko.
I bought a fabulous limited edition scent, “Philtre d’Amour”– filter of love?– that is unique but actually not as fabulous as Mitsouko. Did Jac get a new, limited edition fragrance at the Guerlain store or did she stock up on Mitsouko, which can be hard to find these days in the US?
I’ll dig through my Paris memorabilia and find Catherine’s card for your next trip to Paris. I think Jac would enjoy her jewelry.– Blinddogs/Nancy
Jac’s mother wore Mitsouko and Jac has worn it since she was allowed to wear a fragrance…..so it’s been a long time……She wouldn’t even think of trying something else…..she stocked up and you are right it’s not easy to get here.
Merci Beaucoup! Thank you for the lovely photographs. The photos only make me want to return, though I was there not long ago. Paris holds a special place in my heart for many reasons, but most importantly because my daughter was married there in 1999 in the 17th arrondissement!. The French government requires a civil ceremony in the arrondissment in which you live. They were later married in a small town, Valery, just outside Paris in a 16th century church with family and friends. And I returned there to bring in the new Millenium with the children. I love that you and Jac were able to return to Paris together without going for work and gosh, the memories you both must have from your fashion past. Paris is one of my favorite places and you gave me another peek at it from your point of view. Great Show this time, and your work again was impeccable. The print on that last maxi…to die for! does it sound silly to ask you to consider doing it again in a jacket? That is one of the most beautiful prints …it was perfection. That same print in a jacket with the banding perhaps around the collar and the hem or sleeves…in the same fabric?…so beautiful!
What fabulous pictures and stories you’ve shared with us. Thank you so much for taking the time to give us a peek into parts of your wonderful visit.
Louis-
Your descriptive ancedotes and joie de vivre are leaping off the screen! What wonderful memories…..and now you and Jac are making more happy memories. Thank you for sharing these photos and stories with us.
I’ve always loved art, years ago I became interested in knowing more about the slim, pensive model and the iconic ad that looked like more like fine art than an YSL ad. I read an interview with Helmut Lang, Vibeke and Alexandre about the photography shoot (and the follow up shoot). Facinating! And now to find out you know her! The anecodote about the fashionable slings was priceless. I would’ve loved to see that runway show!!
All my items have shipped! The maxis, the skirts, the tops, etc.
I will roll the clothing, but still fear I will need a steamer trunk for all my rolled items!
Yes, it’s been quite a year 🙂
Judi
Ooops! Helmut Newton, not Lang…..I need a strong cup of coffee!
Fabulous photos, fabulous stories, from fabulous people! What a terrific book that would be … and how kind, generous and delightful of you and Jac to share this all with us!
I’m sitting in my vintage camper at 2am, on the beach in St. Augustine, Florida, listening to the waves of the nearby ocean, and remembering my own trip to Europe three years ago, when the ONLY things I saw of Paris were the airport, a taxi, the inside of a bus and the inside of the train station, thanks to the Icelandic volcano putting us three days behind to board our River Boat in Germany … I never even got a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower, before being swept away on a 200 mph train … now thanks to you and Jac, I get to see Paris in a way I wouldn’t have even if I’d been there …
THANK YOU!
Cathy, out of PA, in St. Augustine :))))
thank you for the pictures and the story about Vibeke. i could just invision her on the runway in her beautiful slings and everyone loving it. you are a very special man Mr Dell’Olio. and always much love to Jac for putting up with us all lol. she was so cute on the show about the belt. we all had to laugh.
That does it. I am officially hell-bent on painting every room in my house that stunning Christian Dior gray and white combination. Thanks for sharing what sounds very much like a mini second-honeymoon!
There’s a book here from both you and Jac: “The Last Time WE Saw Paris”–so the title’s not original, but what a great book it would be photos with anecdotes. I’d love to buy it~
Thanks for the great shows. I can well imagine you are both EXHAUSTED. Hopefully some R&R is coming your way. Bet the pups are thrilled to have you back. Cannot wait for all my lovely new things. I could not choose, so I bought EVERYTHING–literally, except for the red georgette crepe caftan. I thought two of those would be enough~ black for dress up, blue for dress down.
Love all the sneak peeks of the jewelry. I just picked up two pairs of the Byzantine earrings. They are up for sale if you type in the item #. I think there are enough pieces very soon to have a dedicated jewelry show. (Loved your comment about being a carnival barker–but PLEASE keep barking!)
BTW, I would now like a pair of Byzantine pearl tops for all the drops. And a pair of gold drops to go with all the tops. Plus amber and blue drops/tops.
OK, that’s enough from me today!
So happy with all my Linea,
crdlb
Thank you for the lovely photos, Louis! Hard to believe this time one year ago, I was there!!! It’s a beautiful city…wonderful memories!!! By the way, yesterday’s show was fantastic!!!! Thank you for all you do!
Fantastique! Loved your photos and commentary, especially historical notes on the fashion industry and my first-ever introduction to Vibeke. So much to know, so little time. Every discipline has its unique history, and we know so little about each other.
Hi Louis —
Love your post cards from Paris, installment 1, fabulous photos, interesting commentary. Great to enjoy Paris vicariously! Merci Beaucoup!
Kindest regards,
TourEiffel
A picture may be a thousand words, but the stories behind the photos are worth so much more! Thanks for sharing with us. Enjoy the warm weather– finally!
Thank you for sharing your trip! You need to write a memoir about your fascinating life in fashion! Love seeing Paris through your eyes! Thanks too for your last show — terrific!!
You and Jac are so very generous to share not only these wonderful pictures, but the stories that go with them. Thank you so very much!
Its wonderful how you and your wife share these pics with us. I can tell that both of you are having a wonderful time and wish you a wonderful summer ahead.