WOODSTUCK

WOOD STUCK FESTIVAL !

A group of french friends launched its woody woodpecker company: WOOD STUCK.

They're offering wood skins for smartphones.

Original, caring of Mother Nature and easy of use wood skins.

Wood Stucks values are simplicity, quality and respect (of people and nature).

Every product is made in France and certified by the FSC label (Forest Stewardship Council) to respect and maintain natural communities and high conservation value forests, but also to create equitable access to benefits.

To satisfy everyone, they offer different kinds of woods: mahogany, oak, walnut, wenge...

The fact that every tree is unique makes every single wood skin unique too.

And they're sanded by hand.

A very precise work for a high quality product.

Between the year 2000 and the year 2005, 73,000 km² of forests have been destroyed and researches have shown that every minute 2,000 trees are cut in the world.

It seems vital, for our planet and our future, to take care of our environment even if it's on a small scale.

Wood Stuck is a way to begin to change our consumption habits, step by step, and to be aware that another way to consume is possible. It means changing our way of thinking and changing our way of spending. But it's definitely worth it !

PS:  For each purchased product, a tree will be planted in France with an online follow-up of their reforested park.

Find them: here and there 

GAYPRIDE

The Right To Shoes

The Gay Pride 2015 ended yesterday in Madrid

And same-sex marriage is now allowed in every state of the United States of America

But it's no reason to take it for granted. Quite the opposite.

37 years after Harvey Milk fought for gay rights in California [and was killed for it and his success], 77 countries still punish homosexuality (gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgenders) with prison, torture or forced labors and in 11 countries (like Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates, Mauritania, Yemen...), homosexuality is liable to death penalty. 

Who would have thought it would still exist in 2015 ?

When I see the way women are treated in those countries, no wonder why homosexuals are punished or liable to death penalty...

Wasn't there a time where human rights existed ?

To another scale (and in a much more evolved country like France) homosexuals still experience very strict rules to do blood donations. It's been a ban since 1983 because HIV was much more present in this population and given the time to notice the virus' presence... It was safer to proceed this way.

But time has changed. And when you know that in 2011, 42% of european students (attending a study on contraception and sexual relations) had sex without using any mean of contraception, with a new partner, I think we should also be careful about heterosexuals for blood donation too !

Anyway, I'm glad to see that brands such as Adidas bring their support to the LGBTQ community creating a new pair of Stan Smith and Superstar (around 100€), but also flip-flops (50€) to color our summer.

- Copyright Adidas -

Everybody is already wearing the regular Stan Smith so why wouldn't we get a bit more original and much more supportive by buying these ? And for those - like me - who are not afraid to wear flip-flops with any kind of clothes, why not to get the ones below ?

- Copyright Adidas -

Worldwide brands are very powerful, sometimes more than politicians, so let's be part of this powerful reign and use our compulsive fashionistas' desires and purchases wisely. At least, for once !

UNUSUAL PLACE

WHERE TO EAT & CHILL IN MADRID ??

I discovered the following place during a journey in Madrid. 

It was 3pm on a saturday afternoon, I was with a few friends of mine, starving (and hungover), wandering in the streets to find a nice place to fullfil our empty stomachs - even if it's hard to think in such conditions. 

We finally ended in the street "Calle Ventura de La Vega", and got into this restaurant called SAPOREM, attracted by its menu made of "tapas" and small dishes to mix and match.

The decoration is very lovely; modern and original with small details that make you feel like home.

We first thought there was no terrace - but as starving as we were, we were ready to give it a miss - but a waiter took us to a patio in the back of the restaurant.

Now we could get a new lease of life by eating and resting.

After sharing our tasty dishes, drinking a few glasses of "Tinto de Verano" (a typical spanish drink made of red wine and iced lemon Fanta - it seems weird but it's actually good !), we were ready for dessert and asked for the menu...

The waiter came back with a particular menu...
And from this moment, we knew we were falling down a new (but really nice) trap: a menu that suggests one slice of amazingly big cakes + an amazingly big homemade cocktail.
It was 5pm when we ordered.

[...]
Well, it was 9pm when we got out. No need to tell you it was a great afternoon !!

It was the perfect place to relax and enjoy some good food.
Moreover the "cake and cocktail package" is original and very appreciable if you want to enjoy a little snack while drinking a delicious homemade cocktail.

If you want to freshen up and eat good food during Madrid's warm days, don't miss this place !

For twice as much pleasure, we can find them in two places:

"Calle de Hortaleza, 34" and "Calle Ventura de la Vega, 5"

Enjoy !!

MADE IN PARIS

Last week I was presenting a french fashion brand from the city of Lyon, today I'm going to talk about a street-wear brand I discovered two years ago in Paris [and from Paris]: LES PARISIENS.

You might think every thing is in its name, but let me tell you the story.

LES PARISIENS is actually two friends combining their skills to create a real "Made in France" brand, even more than Made in France: Made in Paris.

One of them, Sylvain Montassut, is a fashion designer [he got his professional experience during interships and jobs in designer houses like Francesco Smalto and Emmanuelle Khanh] and is taking care of the creative part of the brand. The other one, Ousman Bamba, is taking care of the business part of it. 

Every piece of the collection is made in Paris, and finishing works are sewn by hand (e.g. hand-stitched leather yokes on hats and beanies). Even if those techniques are expensive, they're the core of the brand and its strengths, and they are proud to say they stick to their values.

They want to offer products inspired from the street so people can identify and afford it. 

They target young people from 18 to 30 that may not be able to afford premium or luxury brands, but that don't want to wear what everybody else is wearing (clothes coming from big fashion chains like Zara, H&M and so on).

They put emphasis on quality rather than quantity to produce high quality clothes, with small collections that change quite often. This way they allow their customers to get different products so they are not all dressed the same way.

They also observed that in France, people are not very proud of their country or district (compared to the US), so they wanted to create this "patriotism" and make people realize that they live in a beautiful country with great opportunities, in fashion, but not only.

They both live in Paris and they've always seen people coming from all around the world to visit Paris and do some shopping. But they see tourists with shopping bags coming from worldwide store signs. 

To them, it's completely non-sense because if you're going to Paris, you want to bring home something authentic, something that really DOES come from France, not something you can shop anywhere in the world.

That's why they wanted to change it, at their own level, by offering an alternative street-wear brand.

LES PARISIENS is therefore a state of mind, a way of dress and a way of life.

Meet them here.

Discover collection there

HOT DAY COLD DRINK

As a heatwave is hitting Europe, I decided to make a cold and fruity drink as a survival kit.

These 38°C are anything but unusual in Spain -- where I'm living

But it's still nice to enjoy some cold drinks and try some new stuff !

I really got crazy about fruitjuices during a trip to Sri Lanka where my friends and I discovered a place where they were making fresh fruitjuices with completely-unkown-fruits like sour sops and woodapples.

I love those drinks because we can choose any kind of fruit (or almost) and change all the time.
We can also make it tastier with yoghurt / milk / icecream and transform it into a lassi, smoothie or milkshake.

So here's the pineapple, kiwi, banana fruitjuice, with passionfruit and strawberries to snack.
As easy as pie, you cut the fruits, put them in a blender with ice cubes and it's done ! Enjoy !

WEDDING TIME

Last weekend, I went back to France where I celebrated my cousin's wedding
(in a small town named Ambillou, next to Tours, into the Vallée de la Loire)

She and her husband-to-be rented an amazing old hunting lodge: "Le Domaine de la Trigalière"
where most of the guests could stay for the weekend thanks to 7 houses.

- La Trigalière Cottage -

The [moving] ceremony took place outside, in front of a small chapel, under a hard sun. At the end of it, every guest was invited to write pieces of advice for a wedding anniversary of his choice, so the newlyweds could read it when the time would come.

Then, we enjoyed the cocktail in the garden in front of "La Trigalière Cottage", which dates back to the nineteenth century, where we had dinner and danced all night.

The morning after we could rest and lie poolside before having a tasting lunch of local products such as terrines and goat cheeses.

The tasting was led by professionals, really passionate about their job and region : La Balade Gourmande.

- Gardens and pond next to the 16th century house "Sainte Christine" - 

Every house on the domain was very warn and comfortable. Rooms are painted in bright colors and have visible beams which is lovely and authentic.

The domain offers different paths to go for a walk but also for horse riding and cycling. This place is so peaceful it makes you feel like you are lost in the middle of nowhere and the only thing you have to do is to relax and enjoy.

I wish I had more time to spend in this magical place and enjoy a few more breaststrokes in the swimming pool and a long walk through those big fields at sunset. Unfortunately, a weekend is always too short !!

Places to visit:

- Château de Gizeux (offering wine tasting)

- City of Tours

WEDDING OUTFIT

It's always a headache to find the perfect outfit for a wedding, we never know what to wear - a dress, a skirt, pants - and it suddenly seems to be the BIGGEST problem on earth.

It's important to stay cool and to keep in mind that this is absolutely NOT a problem. It's actually a welthy-people problem, so we should deal with it with casualness.

However, when guys only have to choose their tux's color, and to choose between tie, bow-tie or no tie at all, we have a bunch of options.

I wasn't able to find the perfect skin-tight top to fit with my skirt so I bought a swimsuit. It perfectly matched and nobody noticed. To keep it simple, I wore black high heels and a clutch bag. I also made sure I had a black leather jacket if the weather was bad.

Swimsuit: Galeries Lafayette Paris | Skirt; Maje | Clutch bag: Lancel | High heels sandals: Minelli