Happy Halloween!

Yayoy Kusama

Source Saatchi Gallery

Les Yeux d'Elsa

One of the reasons I like France is that culture permeates everything. In the most unexpected situations you can find a reference to literature, or painting, or music. Rarely I found this in other societies. And the French take this naturally and many of them, not all naturally, but many know what about it is. They love their great culture and are proud of it. Every evening I watch a show named "Questions pour un champion" were people of all trades compete on cultural questions. It is similar to the American Jeopardy but there is less money at stake and it is, how to say, more pleasant, there is a lot of humour involved. Among the competitors there are  cooks, drivers, teachers physicians..every kind of profession. It is nice and fun to see  so many different people with cultural interests.

I write about this because of Lanvin's new collection of jewelry named Les yeux d'Elsa (Elsa's eyes).
This is the title of a poetry book written by the great poet Louis Aragon. Elsa Triolet was his wife and his muse. She was Russian and he wrote for her the most beautiful verses.

Les yeux d'Elsa

Tes yeux sont si profonds qu'en me penchant pour boire

J'ai vu tous les soleils y venir se mirer

S'y jeter à mourir tous les désespérés

Tes yeux sont si profonds que j'y perds la mémoire

Elsa Your Eyes

 your eyes so deep I stoop to drink I’ve seen

 all the bright suns assemble here to preen

 seen the despairing all plunge in to die

 your eyes so deep I lose my memory

 (translation by Timothy Ades)

Today's favourite

Beautifully structured and striped Burberry skirt.

Monochromatic

Despite the gorgeous day and rather high temperature for the season, I stick to fall colours of brown and gold hues.

Monochromatic by norafab featuring a leather vest

Love

A stone statuette of a man and a woman, from Tutub (Tell Khafajah), the Diyala region; Early Dynastic period, ca. 2600 B.C.

The Iraqi Museum - Baghdad 

Source: Mesopotamia

Tintin

Tintin, together with Asterix, and Lucky Luke to mention my favourites, is not part of my childhood. I discovered him later in life, after I left Romania. I was an adult by then. In Romania I was reading Pif, which I loved, knowing that it was somehow related to the journal l"Humanite. It took me years, and even decades to understand that l'Humanite (and related comics) belonged to the French Communist Party. It was made of the finest white paper, its last pages ( the only one I was reading) had information about fashion and other interesting topics. News and photos  of the  wedding of Jacqueline Kennedy and Aristotle Onassis was a scoop. All these were unthinkable in the grubby newspapers I was used to. I read it until I was 14 and then we left to another city where it was not available anymore. And more than 20 years later I discovered Tintin. By then I could make a difference among the political leaning of various journals. And definitely Tintin was capitalism with its best feature: the freedom to travel. And, mille sabords, I loved it.

Hair

During my life I had my hair  in all possible colours, except for pink and green. I loved to change a lot and it happened to be a brunette in the morning,  a ash blonde in the afternoon and a red head next day. I don't do it anymore as I have to look like a serious professional and I miss it badly. I'll probably end buying some wigs.

Aimez-vous ...le beige?

A colour I liked for many years. It is a little covered up by the trendy strong colours of the last years. Excellent for calming interiors.