Paris Part 1: Things I've seen

Where do you start with a long weekend in Paris?

There is just so much to do and see, even though I've been there a few times before. L & I did loads of stuff, loads of walking and a fair bit of eating. It was his first time so we had to do some of the more iconic Parisian sights. I did however manage to drag him around to a bunch of crafty places. Here are some of the things I've seen.

The apartment we stayed in was near Goncourt, it was so lovely and in a up and coming area of Paris near the Canal St Martin, the 10th district of paris. I do think that staying in apartments is so much better than a hotel, and far better value. There were loads of lovely things about it, but my favourite was this chandelier, made from an old milk bottle holder-thingy and loads of milk bottles.. such a great simple idea. I'm always seeing these at flea markets and second hand stores, I think I'm going to have to copy their style.

Of course no trip to Paris for a yarn nerd like me would be complete without a visit to La Droguerie, a old and wonderful yarn shop right in the central of town. I spent a while in there trying to work out what to buy - there were so many beautiful things. In the end i purchased some yummy supersoft 100% wool (but I'm saving all my Paris purchases for another post, so you'll have to wait for that one)

And then walking around Le Marais I saw this little shop selling these cute knitted finger puppets.. a whole shop of them. Most of them seemed to be based on a fairy tale theme.

Near Hotel du Ville there's a street that has a bunch of Papiers on it (shops that only sell paper items) : like these amazing bound books, and sheets of wonderful paper.

We also headed out to the Marche aux Puces de St Ouen (a massive flea market in the north of Paris) that is great. There are loads of vintage stalls selling everything from old pieces of watches, buttons, clothes, fabric, furniture, retro pieces and nick-nacks. It's pretty lovely, even if a lot of the stuff is expensive. Well worth a visit.

Since summer is over, lets bring out the scarfs

I've been umming and ahhing about what to make out of this tasty yarn I got in Barcelona, and have decided that it has to be a scarf.. I started last night, am practicing a few other stitches to make it softer and more fabric-y .. here's hoping it works out!

Inspiration from Barcelona

My first trip to Barcelona in 10 years was simply amazing. The great people, food, sights and weather, bars and lifestyle were just what I needed to get over my London non-summer hump. We spent a week just walking (or riding bikes) around just taking everything in. One of the best things I did was go inside Gaudi's Casa Milà when L was working one day.

You can't mistake it from the outside as anything other than a Gaudi, and it is quiet breathtaking. Once inside the apartment on the top floor, the robust lines of the exterior morph into beautiful sinous biomorphic lines. A light filled example of Art Nouveau, subtle detail and an amazing use of space. I could of spent hours in there.

The detail in every corner was what I loved about it the most. The wood work on the beds, light fixtures and doors. The undulating ceiling, the floor tiles and these crochet curtains were also pretty special.