to shop / clare vivier, part deux

clare vivier has a new style in and a new color for the popular Tropézienne. On top of that, DailyCandy has 25% off until February 12 with code DCVIV.

to eat / macaron vs luxemburgerli

I’m not sure where I first read about macarons, but I tasted for the first time when I visited Paris in 2005. I made a beeline for Ladurée. I got a box of 20 and fridged them upon arrival. They slowly died one by one.

For my October trip to Spain, I built a long layover in Paris on the way back because my mom had never seen Paris. A seven hour layover in Charles De Gaulle gave us approximately 2.5 hours of leisure. I planned to pick up macarons for a friend’s birthday from the Ladurée on Rue Royale after an obligatory shopping stop on Rue Saint-Honoré. It was a random Monday and the shop was packed to the brim. I did not have the patience or time to wait in line so I decided to go to the airport location. A painful Blackberry search showed that there is a shop in CDG Terminal 2F. Too bad I was leaving from 2E. Unlike some U.S. airports, the CDG terminals aren’t connected beyond security and they only allow access to the terminal you’re ticketed for. Imagine my surprise when I saw this cart sitting right outside of the Terminal 2E security gate! Mission accomplished. Unfortunately, they did not have the Christian Louboutin boxes…

I took some more pictures while I was waiting to board. I love good lighting!

Colorful macarons always photograph well despite a few crumbles here and there. I personally prefer cream or caramel filling over jam or jelly. They are too sweet. As much as I like macarons, I am not in love with them or with Ladurée… I am, however, in love with ice cream filled macarons. I stumbled upon a small shop near the Eiffel Tower a few summers ago. I believe Dalloyau also carries them in Paris.

It’s hard not to mention Tokyo when talking about macarons. If you ever visit Tokyo, you’ll see perfect, beautiful individual-packaged macarons everywhere from Starbucks to Sadaharu Aoki and Dalloyau. Every major French macaron player has a shop there; you can find more innovative flavors outside of Ladurée.

In early September, my friends and I went to Switzerland for a very long weekend. We flew in and out of Zurich. Brief research pointed me to the Sprüngli Luxemburgerli. They have outlets in the airport, major train stations in Switzerland, and in Zurich. If you ever have a layover in Zurich, you have to pick up some! I picked up my Luxemburgerli during my last hour food shopping blitz from the ground level shop in the Zurich Bahnhofplatz because I read that the airport shops usually have a condensed selection. (And, the fresh Sprüngli truffles are to die for!)

This cappuccino Luxemburgerli looks like a mini-hamburger.

The gold-dusted one in the center is champagne-flavored! You can get them without alcohol. This was my favorite.

I love Ladurée’s beautiful boxes and always keep them immaculate for future use. Sprüngli’s boxes are reminiscent of Chinese take-out and aren’t much to look at, but it’s the inside that counts. Luxemburgerli are similar to macarons in that they are meringue-based, but they are smaller and airier. And in my opinion, they are much cuter than the macs since they resemble tiny hamburgers. I like splitting them in half lengthwise and often share one half so I can sample more flavors. My roommate and I had fun finishing these off (and I did gift at least half of these to some worthy foodie friends) within the recommended shelf life of 3-5 days. Too bad these babies are not easily accessible stateside.

Recommended Reading:
Macaron – Wikipedia
Luxemburgerli – Wikipedia
Ladurée
Confiserie Sprüngli AG

to shop / Capri Blue Volcano

One perk of Anthropologie’s free card program is the annual 15% birthday discount. Aside from normal sales, discounts are rare at Anthropologie.

I stocked up on the Capri Blue Volcano candle at the Soho W Broadway store. There are many yummy smelling items there, but this is one of my favorites. It is also great for gifting. The Aspen Bay scent notes are described as “tropical fruits, sugared oranges, lemons, and limes, redolent with lightly exotic mountain greens”. A whiff will transport you to some faraway vacation destination. The “peeled naval orange” doesn’t smell bad either and “black currant & cassis” reminds me of a college friend’s dorm room, in a good way. I’m jealous of those who are in close distance to the flagship store in Rittenhouse Square because their four stories of bliss trumps the New York City stores in selection, but my credit card is thankful.

to shop / Longchamp

The Longchamp boutique on Rue Saint Honoré in Paris was one of my stops during my very short Paris layover. Despite the weak dollar, Longchamp is still cheaper in Europe, even without the ~12% VAT tax refund (inclusive of Global Refund’s cut). Am I surprised? No. Here are some examples, pre-VAT tax refund, with present currency exchange rates.

Planetes Messenger Bag
$278 vs. 135 euros ($200)

Planetes Medium Long Handled Tote
$145 vs. 69 euros ($103)

Planetes Small Tote
$98 vs. 46 euros ($68)

It’s even better when you find Longchamp on sale over there. However, you don’t necessarily have to go to Paris to find current season Longchamp below retail. It seems like there are opportunities to purchase Longchamp on sale (~25% seems average) on a monthly basis stateside. Keep an eye on magnums.net and bloomingdales.com promotions. Or ask me if I have any stock I need to get rid of…

to travel / menu

I will be posting about my recent or not so recent trips and relevant eating/shopping, including:

• Spain (Barcelona, Sevilla, Cordoba, Granada); Paris quickie
• Switzerland (Basel, Vals, Zurich, Lucerne)
• Italy (Rome, Florence, Sorrento, Positano, Amalfi, Capri, Ischia, and my beloved Naples)
• Tokyo
• Hong Kong
• Taipei
• Last year’s big Europe trip (Copenhagen, Budapest, Vienna, Salzburg, Munich, and London)

Some of my travel companions have been bugging me for pics… don’t they know I’m backlogged for years? Maybe if I commit to pixels I will be more likely to follow through.

to shop / clare vivier

I discovered LA-based bag designer, Clare Vivier, earlier this year through Bodie and Fou.

(From Seevivier)

(From Real Simple)

I promptly acquired La Tropézienne and carried it for a good chunk of the summer. The eco-tanned leather is luxurious. I love the thickness, durability, and the style. But as much as I loved La Trop, I needed more. After some Googling, I found out DailyCandy had a 25% off promotion for SeeVivier (which is now over)! Let’s just say that October ended up being a big month for purses. I follow the Seevivier blog and am excited what’s going to come out next. For my fellow New Yorkers, Steven Alan will be carrying her bags shortly!

Recommended Reading:
SEEVIVIER [blog, shop]

to eat / Pearl Oyster Bar

Pearl Oyster Bar
18 Cornelia St
New York, NY 10014-4138
(212) 691-8211
http://www.pearloysterbar.com/

to eat & shop / Soho & Noho

My friend, M, was in town last weekend. I was on my way to meet her at the W. Broadway Anthropologie when I decided to stop at the Baked by Melissa window to pick up mini-cupcakes. I’d passed by this window before but never found a reason to stop. It’s on the NW corner of Broadway and Spring and very easy to miss. The line was 3 people deep and moved quickly. $10 for 12 mini-cupcakes is not exactly cheap.

We tried cookies and cream, mint chocolate chip, tie-dye, peanut butter and chocolate, red velvet, and cinnamon. I didn’t get to try red velvet. My favorites were the mint and cinnamon. They were sweeter and richer than the typical New York cupcake so the size was ideal (1-2 bites at most).

Anthropologie was a bust. We stopped by Reiss and ogled at a few things.

Then, we stopped by Comptoir des Cotonniers. Mainly because I’d browsed their Barcelona Born location a week prior and I wanted to compare selection and prices. No significant differences noted. They have some lovely knitwear with leather accents, and in a navy/black combo!

Our last stop before dinner was Uniqlo to pick up alterations. On the way there, we bumped into the Van Leeuwen truck, which has eluded me for ages. We were sugared-out and decided to get the Earl Grey ice cream to refresh our taste buds.

M got her alterations and I finally found the Uniqlo capelet I wanted in my size!

Our last stop before dinner was the inven.tory outlet store. M got a gorgeous wool coat from Rebecca Turbow’s SAFE line. They had a number of Lutz and Patmos items, but I found them to be too overpriced at 50%. Wait for 75% off at Saks.