Finding French Inspiration – In April

Well, the year continues to fly along. I seriously can’t believe it is April already.

But as the days get shorter here in Australia, I’m finding more and more time to track down some excellent French inspiration that I can’t wait to share with all of you. So let’s jump straight in.

On Paris

Earlier in the weekend, I had the very great pleasure of catching up with Judy McMahon, the founder of the My French Life website. For me, spending time with Judy is inspiration in and of itself. After just a couple of hours with this amazing woman, I was motivated to return to French language classes, my creativity had skyrocketed and stacks of ideas were flowing. And, of course, My French Life is full of French inspiration as well and I’ve turned there to find out what’s happening in Paris in April. If you are lucky enough to be travelling this month, you won’t want to miss it.

While you are in Paris, you may want to do a little shopping. And even if you are not keen to part with your Euros you may still want to check out les grands magasins á Paris. The team at About Travel have put together this handy guide to the big names in Parisian department stores. For the record, I love them all!

If you are going shopping, you’ll be glad to have read these tips from frugal first class travel on French shopping etiquette.

If you are not headed to Paris this month, then you may be looking to cultivate a Parisian state of mind – I know I always am. I’ve been a fan of Tonya Leigh and her French Kiss Life concept for a very long time, primarily because she reminds me to live life with as much joie de vivre as possible.

On French Language

Although my journey towards learning to speak to French has been slow and kind of rocky, I’m continually fascinated by the crossover between the French and English languages. If you like that sort of thing too, be sure to check out this cute little video which highlights some French phrases hidden in English words.

On Style

It’s all about mistakes this month. First up, check WhoWhatWear if you want to understand the style mistakes French women never make. And if you want to learn from the mistakes of a stylish fellow traveller, the fabulous une femme d’un certain âge has been kind enough to share five common packing mistakes.

And now we turn to someone who would never make a fashion mistake. Thanks to Vicki Archer and British Vogue we have this lovely video peek into the wardrobe of Caroline de Maigret. I’m happy to take all the tips I can get from this fashion icon.

Finally, if you have a bit of spare cash lying around, have I got a link for you! Yes, the oldest winery in the world happens to be for sale – and in great news, the winery is in France! You can get more details here.

Wishing you an amazing April – wherever you happen to be in the world.

And until next time – au revoir.