MAY-britt’S PARIS DIARY

As I’m writing this you can find me in my bed experiencing my very own Amélie moment. Looking over thousands of Parisian rooftops imagining all the different stories taking place beneath ‘em. As much as I love New York and as much as I love Milan, Paris really is the premier league when it comes to fashion.

It took some time for me to actually get to the city. At 7:30 AM I was completely prepped and ready with my suitcase at the airport, got myself a cup of Starbucks coffee and a magazine for on the road. Long story short: my Thalys train had been cancelled. The next one wouldn’t leave for another three hours. So back home I went to make cuddle with my girls and make them some breakfast.

Three hours later. Same story. Although there would be a train leaving at 11:30 AM from Amsterdam Central Station and not from the airport where I was. So off to the station I went and as I arrived, I saw the Thalys train leave the station. How super sympathetic of the Thalys…

Apparently the following train was cancelled too and finally, at a quarter passed one, I was comfortably seated and ready to leave. The only plus side of all of this is that by the time I finally arrived in Paris, it was definitely wine o’clock.

The first stop on the agenda was Esther Dorhout Mees’ show after which we wanted to have dinner at a favorite place of mine, La Société. We didn’t have a reservation so with a bit of improv and very confident acting skills, we walked in using a fancy name (think Von Furstenberg, or Swarovski, or even De Beers – anything that sounds rich and powerful) and without any hesitation, we were seated at a beautiful table.

When it comes to restaurants in this city, we have trouble stepping outside of our comfort zones, so we had breakfast at Café de Flore before heading to the Avelon presentation. Avelon is definitely one of my favorite Dutch brands and has a new winter collection that’ll make your fashion heart burst with excitement.

And then onto Paul Smith where sir Paul Smith was personally waiting for us and don’t tell anyone but he has designed a few bags at Céline’s factory and I may have ordered one for myself. Oops.

Fast forward to the Mandarin Oriental hotel for a lunch appointment with Proctor & Gamble’s ‘noses’ (so to speak), who recently produced the new 007 perfume. On our way to the meeting I spent the elevator ride standing alongside Anna Dello Russo who was carrying a Bottega Veneta bag that was so big, you could lie in it. Well, at least Anna could.

After plenty of whiffs of the pink champagne and raspberry scented perfume, we hurried on over to Hôtel Costes where I found our editor Liesbeth. And top model Imaan Hammam who had walked her final show and was done for the season.

Then off to Ladurée for a tea date with an old friend of mine from Paris (luckily Parisians still find Ladurée acceptable) after which I headed to Hotel Scribe, my friend Micha’s (from modeling agency Micha Models) home for the week.

She was actually supposed to go and grab dinner with Maartje Verhoef, but she had a Valentino fitting she had to go to, so we had a wonderful evening catching up after which I happily rolled back into my bed in Boulevard Saint Germain…