France Shopping + a GIVEAWAY

Pants: Morning Lavender

Ten full days of France, plus two days of travel, means a whole lot of packing.  Somehow, I came back with half my clothes and the other half of my suitcase was full of things I bought.  Sorry product links won’t happen much since a majority of these items are older or vintage.  If they are still available I’ll list them.  Remember, you can be creative!

It takes the same amount of time to dress plain than it does to dress cute (thanks for saying that Brenna).

“Pardon my French” shirt

Remember, I already planned leaving a lot of my clothes and shoes behind (I left a pair of my Sam Edelman ballet flats behind, as they got ruined in the rain in Aix). Oh well, I replaced the space with something better!

I also got photobombed a bit, especially by vespas. I didn’t mind. I mean really, how many places can you get a vespa in your photo?

See this one.  He looks like he was speeding up to get in my photo.

Dresses were easy.

And those vintage skirts I never wore, finally looked great in France!  But really, doesn’t everything and everybody look better in France?

Bag: Madewell

Adding a top (crochet or lace) over a tired maxi skirt also helps.  I belted a scarf to make it more unique.

If you forget something, just buy a new top, like I did!  Fabric made in France, I bought this top from one of the markets in Aix-en-Provence and paired it with linen pants I brought.

An oldie but goodie Anthro top with shorts.  Welcome to my palace!

The perfect dress to boat down the Canal du Midi, don’t you think?

There were also quite a few outfit changes as it was warm and only lightly humid – but we were also very busy all day so a quick shower before dinner was always necessary, so I had two wear two outfits a day.  Good thing I packed enough!

Here’s something you might get a kick out of, in France, they only have sales twice a year, they last for about a month and a half.  It’s law, they aren’t forced to do it, (trust me, I wanted Hermes to have a sale but they didn’t), but it’s the only time they can do it, as I was told.  “SOLDES” is said like “Sold” and that means sale.

The day we arrived into Montpellier, it was the first day of the big sales. It was craaaazy.

Isn’t it also crazy that on Sundays the stores are closed, most anyway.  The Galeries Lafayette (high end) is open, but closes early – by the way, sales they have on their tags apply only if you have their card.

As a huge shopper I couldn’t imagine life with sales only twice a year.  Gosh dang we are lucky in America, aren’t we?  The freedom of sales anytime! *wink*  Although I gotta tell you, French fashion is just stunning, the quality, creativity, I took interest to multiple French clothing lines.

I fell in love with this 100% silk scarf from Souleiado – (different print). I was looking for a memorable piece of jewelry as a souvenir but couldn’t find anything unique enough and saw this scarf which was created in France and begged to drape my shoulders and be twisted on my head.  Some of you might know Liberty London, Souleiado prints are very popular in Southern Europe, and um, quite pricey.  Their items are gorgeous, see their fashion look book, the photography is stunning!

I also found this unique soap holder, of course, made in France.  Marseille is known for their soap – made from olive oil.  Isn’t this cool?  Good news, if you really like it, I found one online too here while looking for refills. Mr. Wonderful said I probably should’t mount it unless I could find refills, and, done.

Did you notice the pink scrubby towel under it?  Have you ever considered going to a supermarket in another country just to see what they use?  Of course see the “Made in France” logo, as in France, not much is made in China.  The kitchen cleaning towels were under 3 euros.

I also knew I had to get an olive wood piece and loved this ladle, it was 14 euros.  The tablecloths under it are French fabrics, so so so so divine.  I bought two, plus six matching napkins.  The cost of the tablecloths vary from 20-35 euros.

So this is all the stuff I bought.  No wonder I didn’t have room.  Yep, that’s pink sugar and olive oil in an Eiffel Tower glass.  I had a quick layover in Paris and since I didn’t have much room the last time I was in Paris to buy much, I figured I’d dump all my euros and buy a few more things.

There’s a lavender sachet – also a must-buy especially in Aix, and more towels, candy, and I also came home with six tea towels, my favorite souvenir of choice, but again, I won’t be keeping them all.

Speaking of not keeping things, I did also bring back stuff with you in mind, truly.  The fact that this took up space in my suitcase means I really really love my readers.

How about this adorable tin I picked up from the Roy Rene Calissons factory.

But wait!  That’s not it!  I also got a soap from Nice, a towel from Montpellier, candy from Aix – note this candy has almonds so if you are allergic to nuts don’t eat it!  There is also a small glass wine stopper from Château La Coste in Aix. Everything is made in France so it’s a special treat!

• Leave a comment below with what city you’d like to visit in France – Nice, Aix, Carcassonne, Marseille, Montpellier, or Le Boat down the Canal du Midi?

US residents only because I’m not sure how to ship internationally, sorry, I still love you international readers! Comments close tomorrow, Thursday at 5 p.m. Arizona time, I gotta make it brief so this is a quick giveaway –  I have to mail this out before I take off again!  Winner selected at random so just leave a comment :)

Diana Elizabeth only felt slightly guilty when she left things behind, but she needed the space and she knew some things would never come out of the closet again.  A photo in it was all she needed!

Related posts:

• Fashion in France
• Montpellier
• Canal du Midi on Le Boat in France
• Carcassonne
• Marseille
• Aix-en-Provence
• Nice
• Video Tour of the South of France

Keyword: Travel Equipment South of France