Wishing you and your family a very merry holiday and a happy new year...Thank you so much for your support, emails and comments on The Daily Connoisseur. With the birth of my baby girl, this past year has been the best of my life and I have been delighted to share it with you on this blog along with all of my memories...
12.19.2010
12.13.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #6 The Art of Skin Care
The Daily Connoisseur
2:24 PM
12 Comments
French women are not only known for taking great care of their skin, but also for being comfortable in their skin (or bien dans sa peau).Skin care is the most important aspect of French beauty. Good skin is like a status symbol and thanks to the copious options available in France (be it facials, specialty creams or massages)...
12.06.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #7 Rejection of New Materialism
The Daily Connoisseur
3:40 PM
13 Comments
When the guidance councilor in Paris first told me about the family I would be living with I was pleasantly surprised. Famille Chic was a well respected aristocratic family with an apartment in the desirable 16th arrondissement and a country house in Brittany. I would be living with Monsieur Chic, Madame Chic and their...
11.29.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #8 The Art of Entertaining
The Daily Connoisseur
8:05 AM
13 Comments
France is truly a dinner party culture. Up until my sojourn in Paris, I wasn’t really versed in the art of the dinner party. Southern Californians do dinner parties, but not very often (we tend to go to restaurants instead of private homes) and when we do them they can be very casual, barbeque-style affairs, outside...
11.22.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #9 Exercise is Incorporated into Every Day Life
The Daily Connoisseur
1:53 PM
10 Comments
I used to be the type that would park my car as close to the grocery store entrance as possible to avoid walking any further than I had to. In my mind, exercise was for the gym only.Living in Paris truly was the anecdote I needed to shake up my laziness (because, let’s be honest- I was lazy!) Do you remember my story...
11.15.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #10 Seek Out the Arts
The Daily Connoisseur
4:00 PM
9 Comments
You’d never know it based on my prior posts, but I didn’t actually go to Paris to party, gallivant and observe lifestyle traits, but rather to study and further my education. I studied French, Theatre and Art History. My classes were unique in the sense that on Monday we would discuss Manet’s Dejeuner sur L’herbe in...
11.08.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #11 Clutter-free Home (or Clutter is So Not Chic)
The Daily Connoisseur
3:35 PM
12 Comments
I am not exaggerating when I say Famille Chic’s home was completely clutter-free.There was no pile of mail waiting to be sorted through on the kitchen table. There was no accumulation of shoes and coats by the entryway door. There were no remote controls, game controls, errant CDs and other entertainment paraphernalia...
11.01.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #12 Life As a Formal Affair
The Daily Connoisseur
12:06 PM
13 Comments
It’s not for everyone… and certainly not everyone in Paris was like this… but Famille Chic’s life really was a formal affair- and I loved it. Do you ever feel as though our society has become too casual? I recently attended a baby shower in Santa Monica where six people were wearing jeans. Six people! So wrong... Living...
10.25.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #13 Look Presentable Always
The Daily Connoisseur
5:56 PM
17 Comments
Yes the last few beauty and style themed posts have all been leading up to this with the simple message: look presentable always.Do you remember the story of my sweatpants with the hole in the knee? Madame Chic’s shock and dismay at the sight of them? Many lessons came out of that embarrassing incident (at least something...
10.18.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #14 Define Your True Style
The Daily Connoisseur
3:36 PM
20 Comments
If you are anything like me your closet has at one time or another showcased a rather schizophrenic wardrobe. Bohemian, preppy, urban and god knows what other looks have all been in there in the ultimate attempt to find my true style. The question is- when does the searching stop? French women really seem to know their...
10.11.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #15 Le No Makeup Look
The Daily Connoisseur
10:45 AM
17 Comments
Le no makeup look is one of my favorite beauty tricks I learned while living in Paris. (If you couldn’t already tell… I write about it all the time!)As you know one of my favorite activities in Paris was to sit for hours at a café with a cappuccino and people-watch. And while French men were very fun to observe (for other...
10.04.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #16- The 10 Item Wardrobe
The Daily Connoisseur
3:31 PM
18 Comments
I’ll never forget the moment I saw my bedroom for the first time chez Famille Chic. Madame Chic led me to my room and I eagerly took it all in. There was a single bed with a charming velvet coverlet, stately floor to ceiling windows that looked out over a picturesque courtyard, a perfectly adequate desk for me to study...
9.27.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #17- Deprive Yourself Not
The Daily Connoisseur
6:42 PM
12 Comments
Of pastries that is. When I first arrived in Paris I would regard the shop windows of the Patisseries with simultaneous longing and fear. The desserts looks so delicious- so tempting. What if I ate them and gained weight? Finally, I just succumbed and figured "when in Paris"... (I could always hit the gym when I got...
9.20.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #18 Cultivate an Air of Mystery
The Daily Connoisseur
9:17 PM
24 Comments
Last week my husband babysat while I went and treated myself to my first manicure/ pedicure in a long time. Being somewhat sleep deprived and feeling highly unglamorous, I was very much so looking forward to the experience. I did have a wonderful time (mani, pedi and 10 minute shoulder massage… heaven!) but the experience...
9.12.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #19- Only Use the Best Things You Have
The Daily Connoisseur
5:52 PM
21 Comments
I learned the hard way when Madame Chic questioned why I would wear a holey pair of faded sweatpants to bed. In France, it is de rigueur to use the best things you have on a daily basis. And why not? As it has been said before, life is short, why save your pretty pajamas (for example) for another night?Living with...
9.06.2010
The Top 20 Things I Learned While Living in Paris- #20 Snacking Is So Not Chic
The Daily Connoisseur
4:29 PM
17 Comments
Mindless snacking that is. Trust me- there was no errant box of Cheez-its laying about by Madame Chic’s sofa (actually they didn’t have a sofa… but you get the idea)...There are many things that are simply not done in France and mindless snacking is one of them. Of course there is nothing wrong with the occasional afternoon...
8.19.2010
I hope you are having an enchanting summer. I know I am. Mr. Connoisseur and I are having so much fun with baby…I cannot believe it is almost the end of August and the fall season of The Daily Connoisseur is almost upon us!The following are some updates, observations and announcements:The 5 minute face (otherwise known...
8.03.2010
Thank you so much to everyone for all of your lovely messages about the baby. We are all thriving and doing very well. Our baby girl is changing so much every day I am savoring every moment and am filled with gratitude.Many of you have asked what we named her. I have decided to not announce her name publicly as baby...
7.21.2010
Mr. Connoisseur and I are proud to announce the arrival of our baby girl. She decided to make her debut two and a half weeks early and is thriving and doing great. Thank you so much for all of your lovely messages and your support as we enjoy this amazing time in our life.Jennifer ...
7.11.2010
One morning in Paris as I ventured to the salle de bain in my pajamas, Madame Chic stopped me. The look on her face was one of concern.“Jennifer,” she said (in French, bien sûr), “Did I do that in the laundry?”She was referring to the hole in the knee of my sweat pants- my favorite white sweat pants that I wore religiously.“Oh...
6.30.2010
One of my favorite beauty bloggers, FuzKittie, tagged her readers in a want to get to know you post and I thought I’d participate. If you find yourself inspired to answer the questions as well, I’d love to read them!
1. What time did you get up this morning? 7:15am
2. How do you like your steak? Medium rare.
3. What...
6.23.2010
A while back I was reading Colin Cowie Chic, where Mr. Cowie suggests you can tell a lot about a woman by the state of her handbag. In this context he mentioned that when he is hiring someone new and wants to know if they are tidy and organized or not he glances at their open handbag or the inside of their car. If it’s...
6.19.2010
Not being able to drink my favorite teas and coffees while pregnant has proven quite challenging. I normally am a green tea fiend- a connoisseur, if you will, that usually enjoys at least two cups a day. I also love an afternoon coffee (cream, no sugar) **sigh**... Anyway, don’t feel too sorry for me- the day will come...
6.13.2010
Thank you to everyone that has sent me a comment or email asking me how the pregnancy is going. I’m currently 7 ½ months pregnant and am feeling great! I’ve had a really great pregnancy- no morning sickness, nausea, insane cravings or extreme weight gain (all things that I was expecting to happen!). I feel very blessed...
6.09.2010
I recently read The Park Avenue Diet: The Complete 7 Point Plan for a Lifetime of Beauty and Health by Stuart Fisher, M.D. This book has a really interesting concept. Rather than just talking about diet and exercise, it addresses the seven major components of one’s image: weight, fitness, hair, skin, clothing, self-...
