Friday, April 29, 2011

Have a great weekend!!!





Hope you all have a fantastic weekend. Perhaps enjoy a Kir Royale in celebration of the royal wedding? Or why not go all out and bake one of my favorite desserts, a Queen Elizabeth Cake?

Whatever you do, hope you'll have a regal time! I'm doing some spring cleaning and furniture and decor re-arranging, and the house smells like lavender, yum!

Isabelle xo




(Kate Spade, It's all about fashion, Matchbook, Fashionologie)

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Fascinating, isn't it?


 As previously mentioned, I am doing research for my next novel that will touch upon the issue of counterfeiting. It's a fascinating subject, that has been in the news lately thanks to New York City politics. I was thrilled to be invited to Harper's Bazaar Annual Summit and learned a tremendous amount of valuable information...



 Here's a table of fake products, to show how difficult it can be to identify them. Did you know that 80% of fakes are now sold online and some consumers are seriously being duped as some knock off sites look just like the designer's own website.


A picture of Valerie Salembier, Bazaar's Publisher showing a journalist how to spot a fake. A shocking piece of information: most fake perfumes contain urine and antifreeze!



The keynote speaker was Frank Abagnale, the subject of the movie and Broadway show Catch Me if You Can. He's been working  for the FBI for 35 years now in the fraud division. I hope you find this subject of interest, because it's the main topic of my next book!



 I couldn't help taking a shot of these gorgeous blooms in Greenacre Park...Hydrangeas are my favorite at this time of year...



A picture of the windows at the Heart Tower: vintage pages pf Bazaar magazine.


And I ended my NY trip with a pit stop at Anthropologie where I picked up a few items, including a lovely mug with my initial on it, perfect for writing days ahead. Now I need to get back to work!



Wednesday, April 27, 2011

NYC Interlude



I had such a lovely day yesterday; I met lots of fascinating people at the Harper's Bazaar Conference and learned lots of interesting things that will be helpful in my research. Diane Von Furstenberg was in attendance as well as members of the fashion community. (I will share a few pictures tomorrow, as soon as I get home!)

I enjoyed a fabulous fig & ginger martini with Dawn of the Alternative Wife blog and we had a fantastic time at the Gramercy Park Hotel's Rose Bar.

Having a quick lunch with a friend before flying back.

A bientôt!!


(Image via Marie-Claire)

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Harper's Bazaar Anti-Counterfeiting Summit




I'm very excited about attending the Anti-Counterfeiting Summit today hosted by Harper's Bazaar as the fight against counterfeiting will be the subject of my next novel, a sequel to the first. The keynote speaker is Frank Abagnale, the subject of the hit movie Catch Me If You Can! I'm sure he'll have some pointers on how to detect a fraud!

I will be diligently taking notes and I look forward to meeting some knowledgeable people in the industry. I have already learned so much about this subject, it's fascinating!

 Afterwards, I am having cocktails with fellow blogger Dawn of the Alternative Wife. What a day!!



(image via FGR)



Monday, April 25, 2011

Happy Monday!!!




On my way to the airport to catch a flight to New York. Will report back shortly! Have a fantastic week!




(Images via Vogue+Coffee)

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Happy Easter!!










I'm packing for an exciting trip to New York as I've been invited to attend the annual Anti-Counterfeiting Summit hosted by Harper's Bazaar Magazine. I will share more details next week as the keynote speaker should be quite entertaining. Happy Easter to all of you dear readers!






(Images via Bakerella, French Frosting)

Friday, April 22, 2011

Happy Friday!!!






Happy Friday! Hope you'll enjoy the long weekend  with friends and family. It's sunny today, looking forward to running a few errands and picking up a few books for some research & inspiration.

I went to see the movie Les Petits Mouchoirs (Little White Lies) with Marion Cotillard last night, it was fantastic! A feel good movie about friendship, love and those little lies we tell ourselves.  



(images via makingmagique.com and here)