Hot couple alert. Paris is currently a little sexier this week as celebrity couple Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem spice things up in the city of Amour.
The newly-Oscared Penelope enjoyed a mojito in one of the 8th arrondisement’s English pubs yesterday, accompanied by her ruggedly handsome beer-drinking Spaniard.
Both looked casual, happy, and madly in love– frequently sharing passionate smooches as uninterested frenchies continued their happy-hour conversations.
A photo of the new Ritz Bar (with the lights on).
It’s the most exciting thing to happen at the Ritz in a long time. The new Ritz Bar (formerly the Cambon Bar) opened its doors this month to a surprisingly hip clientele, and Petite Brigitte is becoming a fast fan.
Extremely dim lighting (it takes a few minutes to adjust it’s so dark– perfect for an illicit rendezvous) and some innovative lounge music give this bar a modern vibe, but the decor keeps in tune with the luxurious comfort synonymous with the famed hotel. Decadent red velvet and black lacquered tables are set against oil paintings and ornate glass trees. The feel is a bit 1920’s gentleman’s club, with antlers adorning some walls, but if it brings in George Clooney then PB is all for it! Cocktails by world-class bartender Colin Field round out the chic spot.
Feel like you’ve hit a plateau in your love life? Has your husband or lover become predictable and boring?
Leave it to Karl Lagerfeld to inspire some old-fashioned role playing… a la francaise.
Shot in his magnificient Parisian mansion using supermodel Claudia Schiffer, Lagerfeld unveiled a series of photos shot for Dom Perignon’s OEnotheque 1993 vintage. The unveiling party this month hosted celebs such as Jude Law, Ralph Fiennes, Pedro Almodovar, and Maria Bello.
The campaign offers a myriad of fantasy women, with Claudia Schiffer in multiple roles including french maid, dominatrix, geisha, and trashy bride. Says Karl: “These portraits show a woman who metamorphoses over time, from the 18th to the 21st centuries, while retaining her own personality.”
Check out the seductive shoot on Dom Perignon’s site.
And who is that sniffing Claudia’s neck? None other than Karls secretary/bodyguard/boytoy Sebastian Jondeau. Oh la.
Photo courtesy of domperignon.com
On a memorable visit to Normandy as a teenager, I had my first experience with Calvados. To be honest, I remember it better than some other first experiences . . .
Surrounded by friends in a cozy saloon in Dinard, I was handed a glass of Calvados. Frightened by the initial warning that it would take my breath away, I timidly sipped the famed liquor, and promptly fell in love.
It would be another 5 years before I was of a legal drinking age, and before I encountered Calvados again. These days, it is my digestif préferé. I am not the only one– in fact, it was James Bond’s drink of choice in 1963’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.
Calvados is currently undergoing a kind of global renaissance, although it is still one of the best kept secrets in the world of French fine spirits. Let’s just say, your server will be impressed when you ask for it.
Made from the distilled apples of Lower Normandy, and aged a minimum of two years, the older the age of the Calvados, the smoother the taste. But make no mistake, this baby will burn her way down your throat. It is a pleasant and sexy burn, however, and one that will keep you coming back for more.
Served as an aperitif, in between courses, or a digestif, you will find Calvados in nearly any French locale that serves alcohol. A word of warning to lightweights: sip slowly, this drink is not apple juice– it’s around 70 proof!
For reference, there are many top brands out there, but the most widely acclaimed is currently the Grand Pommier XS, which won the World Spirit’s Competition in San Francisco for 2005 and 2006. (For our few male readers, or you naughty women, this brand was also voted as the best accompaniment to a fine cigar).
yummy.
Sometimes investing in lingerie seems so impractical when it never makes it out of the bedroom, doesn’t it? (especially when your beau prefers you naked anyway). So now that you have taken my advice and bought all of this matching lingerie, where can it get the most use?
Oh, the things Paris will do to a girl’s morals!
If you and your man are open to new and exciting things (as you should be in Paris!), let yourself be seduced by the candlelit ambiance of Les Chandelles. A few glasses of champagne, a look around at the beautiful clientele, and you might just find yourself playing the libertine for a night.
Les Chandelles is a naughty little secret that few in Parisian society will admit to knowing. Located in the 1st arrondisement, it is the most VIP swingers club in Paris– only the sexy need attend. But don’t worry ladies, this place is not a hedonistic realm of male-oriented pleasure. On the contrary, clientele attest to the fact that women are the queens of the night and that most of the liaisons transpire out of female seduction.
There is no doubt that a woman was behind the creation of this sexy little joint. Madame Valerie is the femme fatale mastermind of Les Chandelles, and will give you advice on everything from the best lingerie to wear, to a sexy reading list. Here is a lady who knows the rules of seduction!
Thanks to a strict dress code, no amount of cash or princely titles will get you in. The uber-selection makes the evening most enjoyable, as it weeds out any ODM (old dirty men) at the door. In fact, men can’t get in at all without a hot woman by their side.
Don’t be intimidated by the classification as a swinger’s club either: it isn’t strictly about sex. In fact, many couples just go for a drink and a look around. Some women will lounge around in their much coveted La Perla lingerie. No matter what the order of the night, be assured that Les Chandelles is as formal and discreet as it is alluring.
Note: We know none of PetiteBrigitte’s readers would EVER think about wearing pants to such an establishment. This is strictly a club for your sexiest black dress, best lingerie, and Stella McCartney skyhigh heels.
Do consult the website for a run down of guidelines (no whips or dog collars please) and for what your man must wear. Also has a wonderful list of lingerie shops. For the truly adventurous female, you can go alone on Monday nights! (they don’t call it menage-a-trois for nothing!)
Les Chandelles
1, rue Thérèse
Paris 75001
France
(33) 01 42 60 43 31
Looking for a hot place to unwind after a long day of indentured servitude?
Try Le Fumoir. You’ll walk in with a cocktail, and leave with a lover. The clientele is young and HOT.
Of course, I haven’t met a lover yet, but I envision such an encounter. The drinks are DELICIOUS, the lighting is dim, the music jazzy, and the men are mostly straight and either work for LVMH (just around the corner) or some international consultancy firm. Meaning… young and well dressed.
Did I mention the drinks are amazing????
Top shelf liquours availble for 7 euros. Happy hour goes from 6 to 8. Try the Chinatown w Vodka (mojito-ish but better!).
6 rue l’amiral Coligny (1er)
Metro: Louvre Rivoli
OK, I’ll admit it, when I think of the word Chocolat, this is the first image that comes to mind:
Unfortunately dear reader, this man is NOT my guilty pleasure.
Instead, you may recall the secret ingredient used in the movie, Chocolat. It was the chili pepper. Let me tell you, it lives up to its reputation… a serious aphrodisiac! Call me crazy, but it could be the female viagra.
That’s right, guilty pleasure #2 is Excellence Chili … the new version of specialty chocolate by Lindt.
If you have not tried it, get yourself over to the closest gourmet market and experience the biggest trend in chocolate, described by Lindt as “seductively piquant.” The flavors of dark cocoa give way to a full-bodied spicy touch- just the right amount to warm up those cold Parisian days. It is seductive. In fact, today it seduced me into eating an entire bar.
This is one item you might buy in bulk.
Excellence Chili by Lindt is available at La Grade Epicerie and Carrefour.
Update: TERRIBLE news. It turns out this chocolate was a LIMITED edition from Lindt. It is now off the shelves, but perhaps will be reintroduced (according to Bon Marche it sold tremendously well— grace a moi—and may come back!).
One must study to master the seductive techniques of French women.
According to Helena Frith Powell, a Brit in Paris, not only do the frenchies have perfectly matching underwear, they are also very well read. These 10 were probably on their third grade reading lists.
1. Cheri, by Colette
2. Madame de, by Louise de Vilmorin
3. The Ravishing of Lol Stein, Marguerite Duras
4. Bonjour Tristesse, by Francoise Sagan
5. Madame Bovary, Flaubert
6. Emmanuelle, by Emmanuelle Arsan
7. Les Liasons Dangereuses, by Laclos
8. I wish someone were waiting for me somewhere, by Anna Gavalda
9. Cyrano de Bergerac, by Edmond de Rostand
10. The Delta of Venus, by Anais Lin
Make sure these get on your summer reading list… they will surely be in my beach bag, right next to the oversized sunglasses and Contrex water (all you non-french, Contrex is a special weight loss water they sell here). Ahhh, I can picture it now…
