Having Paris Design Week to look forward to in January is wonderful, but being able to grab a few days' uninterrupted time with my good friend Tara has made it the icing on the cake. Our line up was intense - a day each at the vast furniture and decor fair Maison & Objet textile fair and Paris Deco Off, the famous Flea Markets and a day left to wander. My step counter raced and our feet and cheeks hurt from walking, talking and laughing. Here are some of my highlights:
Paris Deco Off brings fabrics, furniture and soft furnishings alive. Houses and showrooms open up and even the streets are decorated with fabrics, cushions and pop-up spaces.
Maison L'Objet will separate the women from the girls when it comes to having a passion for interiors. We walked 8 miles around the fair and probably only covered a third of it! The sense it gives of our global design community is unparalleled and I met several exclusive suppliers for client projects there. A highlight was the seminar on colour trends I attended courtesy of the BIID (Tour) - apparently we're heading into a future with multi-coloured buildings!
I could spend a week at the Paris Flea Markets, sourcing original French items for our projects. When I first visited years ago, I was only interested in the clothes, but now it is the art, furniture and stories that pull me in.
And finally, Paris itself - the flower stalls on the street, the crisp blue sky, the romance of Seine, bookshops, perfumeries, need I go on?
