Okay, so here's the situation. If you ask Sammi (age 13) what she wants to do in Paris, she'll reply, "Go shopping." If you know me, that's the last thing I want to do or know anything (major stress on that) about (heck, if they made garanimals for adults, I'd buy them).
So with that said, where (besides the major department stores), would you take a 13-year old to do some clothing and accessory shopping? And this may sound crazy, but would there happen to be any tour companies that do this? I know, crazy, but if there were, I could send my mom and Sammi off with them, while Jake (my nephew) and I go do something more to our liking. Mom's to, well, not timid, but along those lines, to go off with Sammi solo.
Zara is a hip, inexpensive, young fashion label (it is actually Spanish). There are Zara stores all over Paris. Google "Zara Paris" to get a whole map. I know of no saints, I mean martyrs, I mean services that will take people shopping, except very high-end luxury shopping consultants… You may want to look at the map and agree with them on a place to meet up afterwards. For example, when they are in one of the two stores near the Opéra (one on rue Halévy, one on bld Haussmann), you can duck into a tour of the Opéra Garnier, or see the museum in the back with Mozart manuscripts and Ballet Russes stage sets. Takes some coordination of opening hours, etc. Lastly, all of you may want to check out the musée de la mode (fashion museum) in the same building as the Louvre. I know you are not interested in shopping, but this is not shopping. We are talking about something quintessentially Parisian and about where the city's sense of style comes from historically and culturally… My heart goes out to you. I do hate other people's shopping and hope you survive.
I had this situation two years ago - took my then 15 year old to practice for her French speaking exam and 13 year old fashionista sister came too.... The euro was very favourable for us then and we came back with quite a few shopping bags - some we could have got in London
We did well in the BIG underground mall at Les Halles (big branch of H&M, with stuff they did not have in London), some great shoes further along into the Marais in some nice little boutiques (the scarlet patent ballet flats are still going strong as 'the Paris shoes') - rue Rambuteau and rue Des Francs Bougeois I think. The good thing about that location is it is not far from the Pompidou Centre, which is worth a look for the non-shoppers.
We were staying in 5th and there were some chain shops there that appealed to the 13 year old- on price as well as style, on or near Bvd St Michel.
Zara is great - the favourite shop of my now 17 year old. They do stuff which suits stylish 20/30 year olds and a younger line. She loved the rather more upmarket St Germain de Pres boutiques and Bon Marche, which didn't appeal to the younger one.
I'm not a recreational shopper, either - I traded patience outside changing rooms for equal acceptance of a bit of museum wandering!
Posts: 1367 | Location: London, UK | Registered: 20 September 2006
I might sound like the odd one out here, but I absolutely love shopping anywhere (let alone in Paris!), and am looking forward to accompanying my daughter on shopping excursions when she is a little older! Call me crazy...
Anyway, I thought I would add in a couple of suggestions from my experience.
For a 13yr old, I do think the department stores and the big mall in Les Halles would suit this age group (and also price wise).
But, personally, I find it much more enjoyable browsing through the 'street' level boutiques rather than stuck in a mall that could be anywhere, really. And if you will be accompanying them, it might make it a little more bearable for you.
Here is a tour you might like to try (but looks like it's still around the 100 euro mark). They have a few different tours. (Hope I've posted this correctly...)
If you'd rather let them go it alone, you might be interested in having a read of my page devoted especially to shopping in Paris (I confess to being a bit of a shopaholic myself). I would suggest maybe trying out Montmartre and the Marais, and I've listed some of the street names too.
Kim, My granddarling, 18 years old last summer when we were in Paris, ADORED the shops across the street from the Louvre, on rue de Rivoli. She shopped herself silly there, found gifts for most of her friends and family, loved Angelina's for hot chocolate once, loved the idea of going into a Paris Starbuck's and in spite of all of the other places we went to browse and putter, she liked this area the best.
I think it was mostly because she was looking for fun, funky silly gifts for a few friends and the variety of items in the many shops was really cool for her.
We also spent some time in the shops under the Louvre, and she found a few cool pieces of jewelry and some books there.
As well, we walked back from the Louvre along rue du Bac, all the way to La Grande Epicerie which is right across the street from Le Bon Marche. There are a lot of interesting and gorgeous shops on this street, also. We both loved the walk home along this street, and spent quite a few Euros there! The Port Royal bridge leads right onto rue de Bac, and it is a healthy walk from one end to the other. We did it 3 times, and found treasures every single time. Good gelato shops and a funky tea shoppe if you need a break!
“Whoever said money can't buy happiness simply didn't know where to go shopping.” ~ Bo Derek Brenda
...some luscious leather dancing shoes for my girl...from a shop on rue du Bac!
Good grief, Brenda !- I've got those exact shoes in brown (are those grey? May, in fact, be the same brown!!)Comfortable and as much heel as I can take, but do look stylish.
Posts: 1367 | Location: London, UK | Registered: 20 September 2006
I'm mainly going to echo the suggestions made by others. Kelly liked Les Halles and Zara. She most enjoyed the little shops along Rue Mouffetard, which is an interesting shopping street with great food shops at the bottom of the hill. We both enjoyed BHV, but I was most interested in the kitchen store.
(You could find a cafe in one of these central areas and enjoy people-watching while she does her shopping nearby.)
Originally posted by Panda: Good grief, Brenda !- I've got those exact shoes in brown (are those grey? May, in fact, be the same brown!!)Comfortable and as much heel as I can take, but do look stylish.
I have very similar shoes in black! (Munro Isabel) Love them - perfect for work or for dressing up black slacks.
Posts: 16015 | Location: The Beautiful San Francisco Bay Area | Registered: 06 August 2001
I wear my brown ones with a skirt and tights - I also have a similar pair (not so much pattern) in black that I wear with dressy trousers. My 17 year old has a very similar black pair, so I classify this style as ageless!
Posts: 1367 | Location: London, UK | Registered: 20 September 2006
Originally posted by Colleen: (This reminds me of the Robert Welch flatware thread - where it turned out that Pauline, Marta, Chris, and I all had or ordered the same set!)
That's a riot, Colleen. I love that flatware (yes, Marta, I remember seeing it with one of your soup pictures, I think) - didn't know there was a funny story behind it.
Shoes are cute, too. Brenda or Panda, who makes them?
This is hilarious! Another reason why I love my Slowtrav peeps! Taryn will be laughing when I tell her that several of my ST friends have her shoes!
Terry, I'll call her and ask her for the brand name and let you know.
Kim, there is a great shoe shop on rue du Bac, on the left hand side of the street when walking away from the Seine, about 1/3 of the way down the street. We both went a little overboard there. The July sales were on in full force. What can I say! Actually, there are several great shoe stores on rue du Bac.
I wish I'd bought a pair of these as well, because they are gorgeous looking and she tells me they are incredibly comfortable.
Panda, Taryn's shoes are a lovely dark taupe, and as soft as a marshmallow. Niiiice! I totally love the little button that holds the strap in place. She agonized over buying these because she had two crisp new 50 Euro bills from her Uncle Mikey for her birthday treat in Paris, and it took her ages to decide that shoes were a perfectly acceptable gift to herself. She was so worried about spending Michael's cash gift in a way that he'd approve of. She idolizes him and wanted to make sure HIS cash bought her something uber-special. I think she did a great job of it! He approved, and that made her happy.
Colleen, where did you buy your beauties? They are so close to being the same style, it's amazing!
Talking about this makes me wish we were going back again this year. Kim, will you please enjoy Paris for me, seeing as I can't be there?
Brenda's Rules for Shoes #23: If you find a pair of shoes you love, buy one in every colour. Brenda
Taryn just called me and her shoes are Kinza brand. I Googled it and found nothing. I don't know if that means that there is no specific manufacturer of that brand or if Kinza is a small company that might not have its own website. So, there you are...hope it helps.
NOW, she wants to get together for a snack of a few little dishes of crème brûlée! Guess which grandmother is making that delicious dessert this weekend? Now, if I could buy a box of this lovely stuff, I'd make it in way less time than the original recipe!
Brenda's Rules For Shoes #24: If they follow you home from the shoe store, you can keep every pair! Brenda
Thanks, anyway, Brenda. I actually like Colleen's shoe a lot, too, but I think I liked the cute strap placement on Taryn's. I could really use a slighly dress-up pair like these, with all the heel that I can bear.
My Isabel shoes came from Nordstrom, but here's the Munro link where you can search for stores: http://www.munroshoes.com (Note that these shoes are MADE IN THE USA. )
To complete the thread hijack, here's the official "Slow Travel Flatware"
Posts: 16015 | Location: The Beautiful San Francisco Bay Area | Registered: 06 August 2001
It is a safe bet to stick to the department stores (in which case I would definitely recommend you try the Bon Marché, and then the Galleries Lafayette and Printemps blvd Haussman -- the architecture of the buildings is really beautiful) and Zara is fine as well (although you can find it all over Europe and the U.S. now); If you're looking for good street shopping, the rue de Rennes/rue du Four area in the 7th is great, young, and not UBER expensive. Make sure to stop by Bathroom Graffiti, your daughter will love their fun gift ideas. The rue du Commerce (in the 15th) also has basically every store French women shop at on a regular basis. DONT shop on the Champs Elysées -- everything is marked up... Since you're there, I would also definitely recommend you check out Colette -- it's a "concept store" that features rotating designer collections, and they recently had an exhibit about Barbie by Karl Lagerfeld. Super hip, but also just cool to check out. And the Rue St. honoré is great to stroll down and window shop. I would also recommend definitely checking out "Merci", another cool store with everything from books to furniture to clothes (set in what looks like an apartment!). All the profits from ALL the sales are sent to a charity.
Hope this helps!
** forcing an edit to check sig **
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Kim,
I'm venturing into unknown territory but ... you might consider a walk on rue du Faubourg St. Antoine, starting at Place de la Bastille and heading toward Place de la Nation. There are some of the all-over-the-place clothiers in the early going, and then a number of smaller shops on the lefthand side of the street. Some cute outfits in the windows, and several shoe stores. Prospecting the cross streets on the lefthand side of Faubourg St. Antoine (the 11th arrondissement side) will also turn up small designers' shops and take you through a "with it" part of Paris. I dare not name particular cross streets. Maybe rue de Charonne and rue Keller off rue de Charonne? Maybe rue Trousseau? Americana, help!
Maybe rue de Charonne and rue Keller off rue de Charonne? Maybe rue Trousseau? Americana, help!
Help is here ! Either Keller or Charonne sounds good, especially Keller.
Another nice boutique row is rue Beaurepaire all the way to Canal St Martain, then along Canal St Martin.
I chanced upon a kind of urban truth in Venice. In many interesting historical cities, - such as Venice, Paris, etc., - often there are very small streets parallel to thoroughfares. These small streets constitute the "real" city that locals reserve for themselves.
I would take her to Galeries Lafayette to revel in shopping luxury, then over to Zara and Promod next to the Garnier, where she can find more affordable options. I'm a big Promod fan, actually. I know it's a chain, but I've bought some very nice things there that I continually get compliments on at home.
That's the one I couldn't remember the name of !....that was a well priced chain that both girls bought things from.
What you really need to do is take the Eurostar over to London to the head branch of Top Shop at Oxford Circus- the mothership of teenage fashion (not to be attempted by mothers without headache tablets)
Posts: 1367 | Location: London, UK | Registered: 20 September 2006
Having just returned from Paris, I couldn't help but notice that jeans and CONVERSE tennis shoes (in all colors) are very popular with the young French folks, male and female.
Window shopping is quite enjoyable in so many neighborhoods and Rue de Rivoli is such a great place for a rainy day since the sidewalks are covered... especially with a pot of hot chocolate from Angelina's.
)
