Fabric Shopping (and Food Eating) in Paris: Happy Accidents

We were in Paris for five days in early April, where my husband had to work and I could be a tourist. We came back two days before the Notre Dame fire, which I reflected on here. I also visited the St. Ouen flea market, chronicled here. 

I made no plans to visit fabric stores - with so little time, I figured I'd have to focus on major tourist sites. Plus, I already have waaaay too much fabric at home. 

But that's not how it worked out. 

The first place I accidentally found fabric was in the department store Le BHV/Marais. The funky Marais district of Paris is famous for its Jewish history, dating back to the 13th century. It's also packed with boutiques, galleries, restaurants, bars, and, especially, falafel stands. The lines are long and slow, but it's worth it, a luscious pack with gobs of mix-ins (I don't even know what all this stuff was, but it was delicious.)

We wandered into BHV looking for something else entirely (food souvenirs, to tell the truth), but instead, on an upper floor, we came across a huge area devoted to crafts and sewing! There were two shelves of bolts:

Some had "Frou Frou" printed on them, which meant nothing to me at the time (but soon would). Many resembled Liberty of London prints, but weren't.

There was a table full of what I later confirmed to be fat-quarters. (Fat-quarters of an American yard, even though France uses the metric system and meters are 39".)

I needed an easy-to-pack souvenir, right? So I bought these.  

Nearby the fabric shelves, there was plentiful stationary, plus this rack of decorative paper. 

(Paris in general has lots of paper stores - this is clearly a country that appreciates fiber more than we do, except in bread.)

There were also shelves of yarn, especially from the French company Phildar, including these made from recycled tee shirt fabric....

...and more conventional yarns, non-fuzzy....

...and fuzzy.

We saw craft supplies of every description, for kids and adults. I shoulda bought one of these sweet paper mache stegosauruses, to paint or decoupage...

So much fun! I thought that was it - that one visit to a retail fabric establishment would be all I'd experience.

But no! A few days later, completely by accident, on the way to  Montmartre's Sacre Couer church, we found ourselves on Marche St. Pierre, the closest thing to a fabric district that Paris has, according to this excellent and informative article that I wish I had  studied before my trip!  

It was the afternoon before our departure, so I had limited time there. I sped through, and here's what I saw:

In a wonderfully named shop, "La Folie Des Tissus" ("The madness of fabric!?") from the precut ("coupons") table, I bought a three meter piece of this -12 Euros!

The shop specializes in garment fabric - their website is here. 

I was looking for fabrics that I wouldn't find in most US stores. Many stores had a kind of gauzy fabric with simple prints, which I liked enough to photograph, but not enough to buy. Like these bicyclettes:

And boxers:

...with bugs and bunnies on bottom. Similarly, I found the following simple but unusual prints, on a heavier cotton backing:

There were also plenty of prints with more colors, but not nearly as good quality as you'll find in a US quilting shop:

The lower-quality fabric was also inexpensive....

Several stores sold gorgeous, great quality, African wax fabrics, at very reasonable prices:

Then there was the following print - not high-quality, but highly entertaining - of macarons alternating with bears bathing in turquoise tea cups!?!

At the end of the block, I was surprised to find the Frou Frou shop! Now I understood where the fabric and kits at Le BHV/La Marais had come from! It had lots more than the department store, including these wool packets for embroidery (I assume)...

...a MUCH larger table of fat quarters than BHV...

...More of this nice gold-imprinted feather fabric of which I'd bought a piece of at BHV...

...a vast wall of buttons...

...another one of decals....

...And delightful kits for bags and backpacks.

I bought a couple more fat quarters. (OK, more than a couple.)

The first fabric on the left above is faux cutting board fabric! 

The last store in the street is Tissues Reine, Queen Fabrics. They had three tables of genuine Liberty of London fabrics - traditional prints as well as newer motifs. They were priced around 26 Euros a meter, which is around the same price you'll find them online in the US, around $30 a yard. (Plus shipping).

More Liberties:

The dupioni price looked great - 4.90 Euros! 

There were some very nice high quality cotton prints:

Extra-wide batiks: 

Many of the tables held mannequins - each about 3 feet tall - taller than a Barbie, but not nearly as tall as shop mannequins in the US, which gave them a hobbit-like air. 

This was the strangest fabric I found, severed hands + monkey vampires....

Moving from the ridiculous to the sublime, I also found this metallic fabric:

The selvage said it was a Kaufman fabric, from the Klimt collection, so I figured I could buy it in the US for less. As it turned out, it took me a LOT of Internet searching to find one piece, which I ultimately did buy - for about the same as I would have paid in France! (Lesson: Support shops, buy it when you see it.)

Even the floor in this shop was fabulous (Always examine French floors).

After burning thousands of calories fabric shopping (and walking around the spectacular Sacre Coeur basilica), based on our non-scientific study of one dining establishment, I suggest you eat dinner here: 

Yes, it's called Il Ristorante (reviews here), and the cuisine is Italian. The prices were reasonable, but it has an elegant feel. The charming owner wore jeans and an embellished army jacket, so I didn't worry about the fact that we weren't dressed up. The wine she recommended was delicious, and so was the food. Here's the perfectly grilled vegetable appetizer, with ultra thin-sliced carrots, zucchini and eggplant.

 I ordered the gorgonzola gnocchi, which was insanely delicious....

 DH went for the tasty clam linguini,

And this was desert. Trigger alert: It may have contained chocolate. 

The final piece of fabric I brought home from France was a dishtowel with a subway map - widely available at any souvenir shop!

Along with fabric stores and paper stores, the other thing that's much easier to find in Paris than American cities is bookstores. We passed loads of them. Some were ubiquitous Gibert Jeunes, easy to find by their yellow awnings. One that we visited had several shelves of sewing, knitting, and crochet books, plus kits:

So when you go to Paris, be sure to check out the craft section of the bookstores! For a much more comprehensive article about fabric shopping in Paris - especially if you're planning a visit - I again highly recommend this article.

Quilt-ish Reflections on Notre Dame, by an Accidental Witness to History

Last week, I was an ordinary American tourist in Paris. I blogged about my visit to a flea market, here. Next, I was going to write about fabric stores; and then about some of the quilty inspiration from art I saw in museums and churches. 

But then - two days after we arrived home - the Notre Dame cathedral burned. Watching the news was surreal. We were just there; we had walked around inside it on April 7; for the next several days, we passed it many more times en route to other sights. It occurred to me: I was now one of the last witnesses to see the inside of the cathedral before the fire of 2019.  

So, before I post about fabric shopping in Paris, I'm posting the (few) pictures I took in Notre Dame eight days before the fire. Take heart: From initial reports, most of what I photographed on that day is still in good shape. My photos: 

 The carved arches made me think of dense quilting designs.

I was also thinking of quilting designs when I saw this spectacular ironwork: 

Inside, I photographed the rose windows, because you never know when you'll need to make a stained glass quilt: 

 ...plus a couple of the magnificent smaller windows...

Most of the clerical statues lay placidly on top of their caskets, but this fellow seemed eager to communicate.

Overall, the cathedral's interior was dark; but this nook was (relatively) bright and colorful.

Two things fascinated me here. First, the spectacular Madonna icon. [Update: A reader informed me that this painting is a copy of the 600-year-old Black Madonna of Częstochowa, Poland. The original is still safe there.]

...and to the right, a table holding pictures of the late Polish Pope, Jean Paul II. 

The multilingual sign reads: "Relics of Saint John-Paul II". 

What kind of relics? Where? Under the sign, over it, behind it? Were they saved? [Update: The New York Times just published  a fascinating article about how precious items were rescued during the fire, here.] 

Finally, there's this shot:

And that roof is now gone. 

Far better pictures of Notre Dame's interior are online. Appearing on my social media feeds since the fire are stunning quilts inspired by rose windows, especially Michelle Bardwell's 'Cathedral Rose'. See a rich Pinterest page, mixing photos of rose windows with quilts, here.  A similarly inspiring page is here. A newfound appreciation of  Notre Dame will doubtless inspire many more quilts. 

My heart goes out to the French and to all who grieve. I hope it's a consolation that the damage could have been much worse; and that the cathedral will be rebuilt - just as beautiful, and more fireproof than before. 

Next installment: Fabric shopping in Paris. Really. 

Ogling Toy Sewing Machines and Other Sewing Stuff at the Paris St. Ouen Flea Market

I am the world's luckiest person, and one reason is that my husband is a scientist, a profession that tends to hold meetings in big universities - which are usually located in big cities, with fabric stores and flea markets.

While he's in meetings, I can go places that wouldn't interest him. Last week, he had a meeting in Paris; I tagged along, and had most of a Monday to myself to enjoy the famed but confusing flea markets ("les puces") of St. Ouen.

St. Ouen is 15 different markets, each with its own personality. The markets teem on weekend, but fewer vendors are open Monday (It's closed the rest of the week). The first market I visited was Vernaisson, which had loads of things stitchers love! To conserve phone power, I didn't take pictures of the 

• Piles of red-and-white kitchen linens, often with initials hand-stitched into them,
• Vintage print fabrics, most in not great shape, 
• Costume jewelry galore.

But I did take pictures of:

• Beads - new and old, European and/or African,

•  Baubles and tchotchkes and toys, oh my!  Below, those are plastic skeletons in front, and I'm not sure what behind them - toy lanterns?) Crazy, interesting, old stuff!

•  Buttons and more buttons, often stitched to cards; vintage trim, often not in great shape:

• And, most astonishing to me, toy sewing machines, which I collect, and which are very rare in U.S. flea markets. One Vernaisson dealer had four stunners. First this toy Singer:
  Second, this cool artsy tin machine that I should have bought (only 30 Eros! The cheapest thing in the market!) But packing it up would have been challenging. The machine's body looks like worn soap.

Next, this gleaming antique...I happen to have two of these at home, but neither shines like this:

The fourth was plastic: 

It says "Ma Cousette," which I assume means, "My stitcher"?

I figured that was all I'd see - four hundred percent more than I usually see at US flea markets. But then, at a different booth I found these: 

The one on the left was very rusty, and I never saw anything quite like it. The one on the right was in lovely condition, and she wanted I think 180 Euros for it. She said it was Victorian era. 

Last, I saw this non-toy machine - it's an industrial  machine intended for shoemaking It looks like it weighs 300 lbs: 

Venaisson is small, so I did it all in about an hour. Down the street I found the Dauphine market whose slogan is "modern & classic."  It's housed in a building whose courtyard hosts this:

Yes, a giant UFO (or USO, Unidentified Sitting Object, I didn't see it fly.) Dauphine didn't have nearly as many goodies for sewists as Vernaisson, but I did find one shop with lots of cool buttons; 

 
...And a bin with fabric bolts (synthetics, which I didn't feel the urge to buy)...

Dauphin vendors also offer loads of vintage clothing; funky furniture; Rolling Stones/Mick Jagger items (books, posters, pinball machines); and, even less likely than the UFO, a famous, 10-foot-high American, Bob:

How'd he get to France? In the UFO? 
In a dark corner of Dauphine, there's a hole-in-the-wall restaurant called Gastropod; despite its humble appearance, the food was incroyably delicious. Here's my "Buddha bowl" (kidney beans, roasted sweet potatoes, pickled peppers, corn with dressing, a small tomato-y beef stew, fresh bread.) (Wasn't Buddha a vegetarian? I'm not going to nitpick with a lunch this delicious.)

I also walked through the Biron market - it was 2/3rds closed (because it was Monday), but that was just as well. Through windows and in the open shops, I saw stuff that doesn't interest me - stuff the peasants liberated from Versailles, elaborate, over-the-top antiquities for people with royal taste and treasure. The Malassis market was almost completely closed and those stalls didn't have clear windows to look through, so I can't characterize what's sold there in any way.

What did I buy? I was so restrained! Besides the memorable lunch, I bought a little 10 Euro bag at Vernaisson, containing these things:

There are charms, brooches, a buckle, a pin from Graceland (!), a thimble, a shoe decoration. Closeup of two of the charms: 

The thimble, beetle charm and rhinestone pin: 

The brooch below has a guitar handle on the left - but I can't figure out what the shape on the right end is - not quite France, not quite Texas - if you know, please tell me in the comments!

 (UPDATE: Mystery solved! It's Africa, sideways! See comments below - the pin was a commemoration of the Live Aid concert in 1985. I'm thrilled!)

If you want to visit Les Puces de St. Ouen, do a lot more advance homework than I did - study this website and google translate this one in French. Print out a map - the flea markets are not contiguous, you have to search for them! Wear sunscreen, bring walking shoes and a fanny pack (Pickpockets are an issue on crowded days - no one came near me on a scant Monday.) If you can possibly go on a weekend, do that, because so many of the shops are closed on Monday. Have a blast!

If you have visited the St. Ouen flea market, I'd love to hear about your experience in the comments. 

NEXT INSTALLMENT: Falling across fabric in Paris. 

UPDATE: I just found three of the six vintage toy sewing machines spotted in the flea market, on Etsy, for similar prices. Put "French toy sewing machine" in the Etsy search window, and you'll find them too! (Why bother travelling? Oh right, the food!)

UPDATE: The St. Ouen Flea Market has a colorful 100-year-old history, involving "rag and bone men"!  Read more about it here. 

Spring Holidays: Stuff Stuff! (My Patterns can Help)

Here in the relentless sunshine of Los Angeles, it's hard to determine the month. January? August? Looking out the window provides no clues. 

The only way to know for certain is to study supermarket shelves. And according to my shelves, it's been Easter and Passover since Valentine's Day, when heart-shaped candy disappeared overnight, replaced with bunny-shaped candy, and (just as sweet and cheap), Maneshewitz wine.

For stitchers, that means it's time to make stuffed things, and I'm not talking about turkeys or hams, because I don't know how to cook those. It's time to sew high-fiber stuffed Easter and/or Passover toys/table props!

First, if you celebrate Passover, may I suggest a tossable, lightweight, extra-dry, inedible matzoh ball. 

Yes, that describes my cooking, but it's also a fabric truncated octahedron,  easier than it sounds - baste fabric to 8 cardstock hexagons, and 6 cardstock squares, then sew them together. 

(For step-by-step directions, see my book "Stitch-a-hedron: English Paper Pieced Polyhedron Gifts and Accessories to Sew," in print at Amazon  or PDF download at Etsy.)

Similar to a polyhedron is a yarmulke, a small hat, with only four sides, also easy to make from matzoh fabric, using the patterns in my book, "The Uncommon Yarmulke" (sold in print or PDF on Etsy).

I don't sell matzoh fabric, but a vendor who does is Lauree Feigenbaum at 1-800-dreidel.com. Her trompe l'oeil matzoh fabric is extra-wide - a yard is more than enough to make multiple balls, hats, earrings, table runners, baby bibs, aprons, and of course, matzoh covers! (So your covered matzoh looks uncovered!?) 

If you or your friends celebrate Easter, speaking of sweet bunnies, you may need to make a zero-calorie gift rabbit from your fabric scraps. My stuffed animal method is fast, intuitive, and addictive. I just finished writing it up in a new 39-page booklet, "Spontaneous Stuffies: Small Improvised Animals from Precuts, Scraps and Jeans." The PDF (on Etsy) includes 20+ patterns, including the following small (about 4") and large bunnies.

Lambs are appropriate for Passover as well as Easter, so here are three. First, a snub-nosed lamb (or ram?):  

Next, a little lamb made from denim jeans.....

...and yet another lamb/ram from an cotton print - the tail is braided scraps. 

All are about 5" across. If you'd rather make something flat, here are some more matzoh covers, to get your wheels turning. (This one is Pokemon-themed.)

Detail:

The next one, made in 2004 (at the dawn of digital photography), is Exodus-themed: 

Want more spring quilty ideas?

- Send a fiber art greeting card. I stitched a bunch of Spring green egg-themed postcards, here. 

-  Find Passover and Easter baby bibs here.  

- Twenty more ideas for matzoh fabric, including quilted items, are on my blog here. 

Memory Pillow: The Dog Who Loved to Eat

Not long after I became a quilter, I realized I had acquired a superpower: The ability to console the bereaved, in a tactile way. 

A few months ago, my friend Lynn lost her beautiful dog Kenya. She told me how sad it was to come home and see Kenya's empty spot on the bed. I knew I had to make a pillow for that spot. Here's what came out. 

It's not just the finished pillow, or quilt, or whatever, that is consoling - it's the process, talking to the person about their loved one. When I asked Lynn what Kenya enjoyed, I was hoping she'd say something like a red ball, sticks, a teddy bear, something easy to piece or applique. Instead, Lynn said:
"Food." 
"Which food?"I asked.
"All food. And dog bones." 
Fortunately, I had a scrap of dog bone fabric:  

Plus, I own an infinite amount of human food fabric. I pieced together some food fabric strips, cut them them crosswise, and set them in the outer border. 

That border started out wider, but then I had to buy a smaller pillow form than expected (the store range was limited.) So I cut it back. That made the food border on front so thin you could hardly tell what the foods were. That's why I put more of the same food fabric on the back.

The central photo started out like this - Kenya with her younger brother Ziggy. I cropped it Photoshop. 

Then I printed the cropped photo onto a sheet of EQ Printables Premium Cotton Satin. It's pricey but the color comes out well, and it's permanent (Plus, my printer uses Epson Durabrite ink, which is  also supposed to be permanent and waterproof.)  
The goal of this pillow was to make Lynn smile. Dogs whose favorite food is everything are funny. And I hope the grass fabric suggests she's rolling in the lush grass of heaven. 
For more memorial quilt and pillow projects, click on "memorial" in the word cloud on the right.