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Audrey Hepburn Herms scarf, Caf Marly, Christine Lagerfeld, eBay Herm scarves, Elizabeth Taylor Herms scarf, France, French scarves, Frenchwomen and scarves, Herms, Hermes scarves, Hotel Drouout auction house, How much is an Herms scarf?, How to tie a scarf, I Love My Scarf by Herms John Jannuzzi video, Jackie Kennedy Herms scarf, Madonna Herms scarf, Paris, Paris by Bistro Christine Graf, Princess Grace Herms scarf, Queen Elizabeth Herms scarf, The Herms Scarf: History &nita, a long-time resident of Paris, notices it in her half-French daughter: Shell put on a scarf and twist it carelessly and she comes out looking elegant. Or she wraps a belt around and voilinstant chic.
What the French also have is a knack for creating beautiful objects, inspiring people who visit their country to try to purchase something special for back home. A flurry of shopping often precedes the trip to the airport. The canny shopper looks for something light, lovely, timeless. Possibly something from Herms.
I Love My Scarf by Herms by John Jannuzzi Video:
Founded in 1837 by Thierry Herms, the company made solid, sensible objects like bridles, saddles, and harnesses, of such high quality that they were used in royal coronations. Today the saddles are still there, but most of the action takes place around the scarf counter, where salespeople, fluent in several languages, flip out squares of highly colored silk from the trademark hot orange boxes.
Don an Herms scarf and youre in first-class company. Queen Elizabeth sometimes covers her hair with an Herms scarf when she relaxes on weekends in Scotland. Elizabeth Taylor used to be seen sporting one of these mous scarves, as were Jackie Kennedy, Audrey Hepburn, and Princess Grace in their time. More recently, celebrities as dissimilar as Madonna and Laura Bush have been photographed wearing Herms.
Now, where can one find these bulous scarves? If youre in Paris, and have money but not much time, go straight to their flagship shop at 24 rue du Faubourg Saint-Honor. There, elbow-to-elbow with the new rich and the old money, you ntasize about being immensely wealthy as the salespeople proudly show off the latest silks for you. Youll see some customers ordering a dozen of their vorite design, all in different colors, of course.
If you happen to have more time than money, the best source for finding the older and more collectible Herms scarves is the mous auction house, the Hôtel Drouot, at 9 rue Drouot, near the mtro stop Richelieu-Drouot in central Paris. Its a large building, where various companies host previews one day and auctions the next. Many will have an Herms scarf or two among the offerings, and some sales are devoted exclusively to them among other high-shion accessories. Generally, a used Herms scarf in reasonable condition will go for a price from 120 to 200 Euros (currently $156 $260). Not bad for a luxury item that now sells for about $410 at the source. But you have to know your numbers in French, and be able to adjust to the st pace of the bidding.
What if you cant travel? Sometimes an Herms item may appear amongst the items at auctions in your area. Another source could be eBay, but here you have to know what youre doing and deal only with a reputable seller. There are kes out there, many of them expertly done. Become acquainted with Herms by looking at some in a top department store, touching the heavy silk, noticing the hand-rolled hems, rolled toward the right sidequite the opposite of most scarves. So, if you choose to shop on eBay, be sure to pick a seller with first-rate feedback and a money-back guarantee.
Now that you have your Herms in hand, the next decision is just how best to show it off. Should you roll it and tie it at the waist, use it to control long hair, or opt for a conventional knot in front? Oh, and by the way: if you want to boast about your purchase, skip the H and practice saying air-mez.
BOOK RECOMMENDATION: A Womans Paris
The Herms Scarf: History &d other places of refreshmentmakes a lot more sense than a ponderous cultural guide.
This was followed up by Paris by Bistro (co-authored with her husband, Dennis), which won Forward Magazines Travel Book of the Year award. Their most recent book is Caf Life Paris.
All books were published by Interlink Publishing in Northampton, MA and Arris Books, London. Christine and Dennis live in St. Paul, Minnesota, but spend several months of the year in Paris. Christine Graf: (Email christine.)(The Cafs of Paris) (Paris by Bistro) (Caf Life Paris) (Email: )
Herms by Christine Graf first appeared in The Old Times magazine. (Used by permission.)
You may also enjoy A Womans Paris® post,Scarves la Françoise: The lingua Franca for stylish women, by Barbara Redmond who shares her experience trying on scarves and tying them at the home of her French friend in Lyon. Arriving at the mous silk manucture in Lyon, Andr Claude Canova, Barbara and her friend gently tapped on the window even though the shop was closed. The shop girl let them and they all enjoyed hours of playfully draping, twisting and knotting scarves and shawls. An experience spurred by the ubiquitous nature of women and scarves: our common language.
French Impressions: Edith Kunz on the mystique of the Frenchwoman (y, smart, and chic). Edith Kunz, author of Fatale: How French Women Do It, shares clues that unmask the delicious deceptions plotted by Frenchwomen while suggesting how contemporary women can flirt like a coquette, charm like a courtesan and emit sensuality with cool confidence by merely adjusting ones attitude and garter belt. Her latest book, The Merits of Middle-Age Men and Where to Find Them. Books to enjoy at a sidewalk caf with a bottle of wine and a French omelette.
Paris photo shoot in search of the perfect Moroccan slipper, by writer Lisa Rounds who tells of her adventures in the North African neighborhood of Barbs in Paris searching for the perfect slipper in red, of course, for a Cosmo photo shoot. Lisa shares her story of living the dream, working for a publishing company in Paris.
Beauty Confessions from a Globe-trotting Parisienne. Parisienne Bndicte Mah shares a French womans approach to beauty and makeup; and how the relationship Americans have with beauty is very different from that of the French. Including her list of Beauty Resources in Paris and a vocabulary of French to English translations. (French)
French Lingerie: Mysterious and flirty, by Barbara Redmond who shares her experience searching for the perfect lingerie in Paris boutiques and her fitting with the shop keeper, Madame, in a curtained room stripped to bare at Sabbia Rosa. Including a French to English vocabulary lesson for buying lingerie and a directory of Barbaras vorite lingerie shops in Paris. (French)
Ballet Flats in Paris: And God made Repetto, by Barbara Redmond who shares what she got from a pair of flats purchased in a ballet store in Paris; a feline, natural style from the toes up, a pair of shoes that transformed her whole look. Including the vimeos Pas de Deux Coda, by Opening Ceremony and Repetto, by Repetto, Paris. (French)
Text copyright ©2013 Christine Graf. All rights reserved.
Photography copyright ©Barbara Redmond. All rights reserved.
An outstanding share! I have just forwarded this onto a colleague who was doing a little homework on this. And he in ct ordered me breakst simply because I stumbled upon it for himlol. So let me reword this. Thank YOU for the meal!! But yeah, thanx for spending the time to discuss this topic here on your website.
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I love Christines book Cafe Life Paris, and used it for researching cafes for a novel set in Paris that Im writing. What a treat to read her article about Hermes scarves. Got a few of them myself. I like to wear them in unconventional ways or unusual knots.
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Hi Marsi what a nice comment. Id like to see your novel when its finished. You might also find Paris by Bistro helpful we included more background in that, particularly on differences between quartiers, Maurice Chevaliers and Edith Piafs Paris, places vored by African-Americans, the shionable and the less-vored parts of this great city.
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