French fashion c’est bon
From bespoke bags to slinky lingerie and designer heels, there’s not much you can’t buy in the Left Bank neighbourhood of Paris. Here, insider tips on the places to shop to stay in vogue. By Vacations and Travel Magazine’s Susan Gough Henly.
Shopping in Paris…Ah yes, we all swoon with fantasies of Yves Saint Laurent, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Christian Dior and Givenchy. Yet arguably more satisfying – not to mention bragworthy – is to discover the creations of local designers whose oh-so-chic boutiques are tucked away in the side streets of the city’s arty Left Bank area.
Le Bon Marché department store is the perfect place to start any shopping trip. A classy alternative to the grands magasins of Galeries Lafayette and Printemps, it has a boutique-like feel and a fine selection of labels.
Owner Aristide Boucicaut hired Gustav Eiffel’s consulting firm to develop Le Bon Marché into the first specialty store of its kind in the 1870s. Not surprisingly, given the French fascination with literature and shopping, Emile Zola fictionalised the Boucicaut family in his novel, Au Bonheur des Dames (The Ladies’ Paradise), which documented the birth of modern retailing and deconstructed desire in the marketplace.
Today, Le Bon Marché – now owned by Louis Vuitton Möet Hennessy (LVMH) – is fabled for its fashion collections from more than 200 top designers including Chanel, Gucci, Dior, Christian Lacroix, Comme des Garcons, Stella McCartney, Balthazar and Manolo Blahnik. And as lush as the clothes are, the space is even more elegant. The store is also home to droolworthy lingerie and beauty departments and La Grande Épicerie de Paris, which offers fine foods from all over the world. Don’t be fooled by the name, which means “the good deal,” however – shopping for fineries here requires deep pockets.
When you’re living the high life on the Left Bank, it’s important to have a good base of operations, and the Hôtel Lutetia is just that. Built in 1910 to house Le Bon Marché’s travelling clients, Lutetia was the first Art-Deco building in Paris. The property is even more enticing since designer Sonia Rykiel supervised a major renovation to restore its original 1930s splendour.
Over the years, famous guests have included Pablo Picasso, Peggy Guggenheim, Josephine Baker and James Joyce. And Hèrmes.
In a spectacular reimagining, Hèrmes’ first store on the Left Bank features four oak-slatted huts dramatically inserted into the hotel’s former swimming pool. Here, in rustic-chic pods, you can peruse the design house’s lavish signature clothing, jewellery, perfumes and homewares.
Once you have a taste for French fashion at its finest, make your way to the über-chic sixth arrondisement, where sophistication and intellectual rakishness are on display in equal measure. This is where designer boutiques, art galleries and publishing houses live hand in hand with institutes of higher learning such as École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts and Sciences Po.
Just around the corner on the curving rue du Cherche Midi is another institution, Pain Poilâne, renowned for its crusty stone-ground sourdough bread and arguably the most famous bakery in Paris. Buy a loaf to nibble on between the boutiques that also line the street.
Visit the sleek four-storey emporium Marithé + François Girbaud, popular for its edgy jeans; and Lilith, selling floaty dresses and accessories. Stilettos in all shapes and colours are up for grabs at Charles Jourdan; and Robert Clergerie’s store is lined with chunky heels.
Shoe-lovers can continue their explorations along the rue du Dragon; more treasures are in store on rue du Vieux Colombier. Here you’ll find Zadig & Voltaire, a favourite among Parisian hipsters for its gorgeous cashmere tops as well as its boots and piles of CDs.
While you’re in the area, be sure to stop by the Église Saint-Sulpice, the second-largest church in Paris after Notre Dame, renowned for its magnificent organ and Delacroix’s painting Jacob Wrestling with the Angel. More recently, it achieved notoriety with a starring role in the movie adaptation of Dan Brown’s novel The Da Vinci Code.
Just around the corner on 25 rue Saint-Sulpice, Vanessa Bruno’s boutique offers flattering, feminine clothing in soft colours and billowy fabrics. The daughter of a Danish supermodel, Bruno counts Nicole Kidman and Charlotte Gainsbourg among her fans. If you’re on a budget, you’ll love her cheaper second label, Athé.
Turning left on rue Bonaparte, join the queue of people waiting to purchase macarons at Pierre Hermé. You’ll have plenty of time to admire his bijou window decorations before you get to the counter, where you can purchase melt-in-your-mouth biscuits in flavours such as jasmine, coconut and olive oil and vanilla.
On the corner of rue Bonaparte and rue du Four, check out City Pharmacie, always teeming with locals in the know and overflowing with baskets of discounted European beauty products – think Weleda, Biotherm, Roc, Caudalie, Phyto, Vichy, Roger & Gallet and Bioderma.
Continue up rue Saint Benoît to Upla for casual bags and purses. This delightful store opened in the early 1970s, offering fisherman’s pouches in a creamery in Les Halles market. It may have new Left Bank digs but the shop still draws crowds for its classic designs and appealing new materials.
At the next intersection, rue St. Jacob is the artsy publishing hub of the quartier Saint Germain. Veer left onto rue du Bac to visit Galeries Maeght for its exceptional collection of limited-edition prints by the likes of Braque, Chagall and Dubuffet. Nearby, Fragonard Parfumeur offers exquisite perfumes from Grasse as well as delightful creams, soaps, candles and other great gifts to take home.
Back on rue St. Jacob, make your way to Isabel Marant’s boutique, overflowing with the latest in ethnic-chic designs (Elle MacPherson is a fan); Marant’s husband, Jérôme Dreyfuss, also has a store on the strip, offering beautiful leather bags and accessories such as key clips and mini flashlights.
Turning right on rue de Seine, stop at Cire Trudon, the oldest candle-maker in the country – the company’s history dates back to the days of the court of Versailles and Napoleon Bonaparte. On the corner of rue de Seine and rue Lobineau is the exquisite Gérard Mulot, a bakery, chocolatier and pastry shop rolled into one. When you’ve finished ogling the window displays – a tree of multi-coloured macarons beside cases of strawberry tarts and chocolate ganache, perhaps – make your way inside for tea and sandwiches made using house-baked pain de campagne.
At 8 rue de Tournon (an extension of rue de Seine), Marie-Hélène de Taillac’s modern jewellery store is all sensual lines and shiny lacquer, which reflects the light and colour of her semi-precious stones including sapphires, fire opals, rose quartz and lapis lazuli. Next door in a 17th-century townhouse is Bonpoint’s concept store, packed with classy children’s clothing.
Just down the street is the beautiful Jardin du Luxembourg, originally commissioned by Marie de’Medici in the 1600s. End your day of retail therapy on a park bench here, watching impeccably dressed locals strolling around the octagonal pond while refuelling on Mulot macarons.
Photography by Susan Gough Henly.
Article courtesy of Vacations and Travel Magazine.
