They say the best way to break a bad habit is to replace it with a good one, and now that electronic cigarettes have become all the rage in Paris, let’s hope the fruity-scented vapor replaces the tobacco tar stink that still hangs over the city’s sidewalk cafés. In the past two months I’ve seen [...]

It has been a long, long winter, and now that the sun is making timid appearances, you may be interested in gently reintroducing your body to the world with a trip to the spa. For a posh swim and gourmet pastries at a historic palace hotel, book an afternoon of “Gourmandise Sportive” at the Shangri-La (10 [...]

“In America only the successful writer is important, in France all writers are important, in England no writer is important, and in Australia you have to explain what a writer is.” –Geoffrey Cottrell

The Figaro newspaper has a beautiful gallery of images taken during this past week’s snowfall in Paris. Enjoy (Hat tip to Prete-Moi Paris.)

I had thought it would be easy to find courses in basic jewelry design in Paris. After all, the city is the world capital of fashion. There are independent jewelry stores all over the place. But no. What little I could find were studies that took at least a half year. I finally landed on [...]

Grab your knitting needles, embroidery threads, patchwork and hoops. The Paris Needlework Fair (l’Aiguille en Fête) takes place in February (February 9 and 12, 2012). The fair is not restricted to age or gender. The men are knitting along side the women and there is even a sporting event: Speed Knitting! The annual Paris needlework [...]

George Whitman, the founder of the famous Shakespeare & Company Bookshop, passed away at the age of 98 on December 14th. Originally from America, he opened Le Mistral Bookshop in the Latin Quarter in 1951, changing the name to Shakespeare & Company to honor of Sylvia Beach’s original shop near Odéon, which closed during WWII. [...]

Originally from Montreal, Lisa Pasold is a writer and journalist who now divides her time between Paris and Toronto. She’s published two books of poetry (with a third forthcoming), a novel (with a second in the works), and written for numerous newspapers, magazines, and guidebooks including Time Out, Fodor’s, The Globe and Mail, and more. [...]

Parisians tend to have small apartments which aren’t conducive to most DIY projects that require space to work, store tools, and make lots of noise (although most of my neighbors drill and hammer away at 9am anyway). But now there’s a place you can go in Paris to learn, create and work independently to your [...]

So…new lesson learned this weekend. Do NOT miss the last metro and do NOT walk across Paris in your bare feet at 3AM. Sounds pretty obvious. I got invited to a party over near the Eiffel Tower and knowing that there would be a pool, I really had to check this out. I went, and [...]