Lunch at the Top of the Eiffel Tower!

I was very fortunate to be in Paris last week as a part of a trip with our video makeup artist Michelle Phan. (Did anyone follow along on Facebook? We did a special Facebook tie-in.) It was Michelle's first trip to Paris, so she had many highlights, but the highlight for me was lunch at the top of the Eiffel Tower. I've visited the tower several times, but never made it past the third level. So when my colleague Julie from the Paris office invited Michelle and me to lunch, I said yes immediately.



The restaurant is called the Jules Verne (after the French author) and it was beyond lovely. The decor, the service, the food, everything. Can you believe the view? It was one of the most memorable meals I've ever had and one of the nicest afternoons ever. So thank you to Julie!



Enjoy the photos. The food, in case you're curious, is, from the top, gazpacho with ricotta, chicken with spring veggies, raspberry and strawberry parfaits with violet macarons, and homemade passion fruit marshmallows. Sorry if I made you hungry!

Macarons! Paparazzi! Alber Elbaz! Karl's Coke! (And Another Exclusive Paris Giveaway!)

Some Paris observations:

1. Macarons are the cupcakes of Paris. But you knew this.
2. Karl Lagerfeld has his own Coca-Cola Light bottle! Look at Coco Rocha styled a la Lagerfeld. (I can't find this bottle anywhere in Paris. It's like a Chris Benz lipstick.)
3. I met one of my heroes today. Alber Elbaz, the designer for Lanvin. Very thrilling. If I had an unlimited fashion budget, I would wear Lanvin exclusively.
4. Our photo shoot was very interesting yesterday, as we had paparazzi to deal with! Stayed tuned for more on that subject...
5. No one walks around drinking coffee in Paris, even though a certain Seattle coffee chain is expanding here. If you're the kind of person who walks around compulsively clutching a Starbucks cup like one of the Olsen Twins, you'll find it's a hard habit to break. Everyone I know in Paris has one of those Nespresso pod machines at home, or drinks his or her coffee in a cafe.
6. It's hard to get iced coffee in this city! This is a big trend waiting to happen.

Thanks for the comments yesterday! AtelierGal, Blinky Daisy, I can't believe I didn't know about BB cream. Thank you for enlightening me. I asked the president of Lancome about it and she's going to send me some of our BB cream. She thinks I'll like it. Stay tuned. Fab Over 40, I didn't go into Osborne & Little! I wish I had known about it. I literally stood in front of there for three hours.

Today's giveaway? A bottle of the Nutrix Royal body oil and a Lancome deodorant. (Neither is available in the U.S.) These products will make your bathroom look chicer immediately. Did you even know Lancome makes deodorant? I didn't. Several New York fashion editors who discovered it on trips to Paris would always ask me to bring some back for them. I finally tried it to see what the fuss was about and you know what? It's good stuff!

Leave a comment letting us know why your bathroom or medicine cabinet needs a little injection of Lancome glamour! We'll pick one comment at random. Please post by Friday night.

By the way, we'll name all the Paris giveaway winners next week.

Bon chance!

Fall in Love with Tresor in Love! (Giveaway Alert!!)

We had a photo shoot yesterday in the 8th arrondisement, in a building with windows overlooking the Arc de Triomphe. It was a gorgeous view, very beautiful, very Parisian, made all the better by the leafy green trees and bright blue sky. I snuck out to visit the Sephora nearby on the Champs-Elysee, the huge Parisian thoroughfare packed with tourists, chain shops, cafes and a giant Louis Vuitton store. The Sephora is ENORMOUS, even compared to the big Times Square Sephoras near my office.



There was so much fragrance, makeup, skincare and haircare that the average beauty junkie would just combust trying to take it all in. One of the new fragrances on display is Tresor in Love, our latest scent and a sibling to the legendary Tresor. T.I.L. takes the iconic fragrance and transforms it into a fruity floral. If you like that category of fragrance, you'll be interested in knowing it's Lancome's first fruity floral. (Previous Lancome scents have all fallen into the floral, oriental, chypre and/or citrus categories.)



The fragrance has been a big hit in Europe and will launch in the U.S. in early fall. We filmed the TV commercial and print campaign with Mario Testino and our spokesmodel Elettra a few months ago while she was on break from school. The print ad was shot in a studio in New York and the commercial was shot in a beautiful private home in the heart of Paris that used to belong to Karl Lagerfeld. There were dozens of extras, all good looking and all dressed in black, white and grey. Elettra looked like a young Audrey Hepburn in a white cocktail dress by a famous Italian designer and insanely high YSL heels. The poor thing had to stand for take after take in those shoes.



Let's give away a bottle of Tresor in Love. Just leave a comment saying what fragrance you're wearing today. Is it your signature scent? Do you rotate fragrances? Layer fragrances? Let us know. If you're wearing nothing, you can say that too! Please post by Wednesday night. We'll pick one post at random.



Good luck! We're on a soundstage outside of Paris right now and I need to stop typing. It's all quiet on the set and who knew how noisy a keyboard could be!! (Bye!)

Made It!

Arrived in Paris! My Open Skies plane left the gate at Newark Airport only to turn back because of "technical" problems. You never want to hear that! But all was fixed and here I am. It's a beautiful day in Paris.



I already spotted a few trends from the window of my taxi. Skinny white jeans, blazers, flat jazz shoes, medium-sized leather bags with chains (not the small ones of a few seasons back) and hats. (A cross between a floppy hat and a fedora. Not sure what that would be called. Any hat experts out there?)



My first purchase will be the new French Vogue. I heard there's a great beauty story with our super spokesmodel Daria Werbowy and makeup by our genius artistic director Aaron De Mey. (Check out the behind-the-scenes video above). Penelope Cruz is the guest editor. She pulled together the group of A-listers for the cover, including our very own Kate Winslet. Doesn't she look great? Actually, they all look great. Love that Meryl's in there!



Michelle Phan, our video makeup artist, just posted her latest Lancome video on YouTube. It's about prom makeup. If you or a loved one is headed to the prom, check it out. Whether or not you want to duplicate the look, you can always get great tips and techniques from Michelle. I have to say those YouTube comments are crazy! It's like the Wild Wild West over there. Yikes. I'm very happy everyone is civilized here on the Lancome blog! : )



Anyway, I'm running to today's photo shoot. Have a beautiful day. Talk to you soon!