So hot that Monsieur Sans Culottes and Madame Topless apparently didn't care if their neighbors in the facing building (me) could see them in various stages of nudity and near-nudity through wide-open windows.
It was that hot.
Packing for this is a challenge, because I'll be spending some days in the Tolbiac archives which are air-conditioned and some days in the Arsenal archives which are not. And part of nearly every day on the Metro, on old or new lines... mostly not air-conditioned and crowded.
My goal is to appear chic and put together (even on the hottest of Metro cars) as best I can.
To that end, I pack cottons and silks that I can layer up and down. With a surprising amount of color. I find that a series of mix-and-match pieces that can become polished with the right acessories leaves me comfortable and feeling good about how I look. I also wield a mean washing machine and iron.
Black is my neutral. I mix in white and color much more than I do in my winter closet. The colors I'm going to focus on in this group will be blue and rust; I might also include some light spring green, cocoa, and red.
For tops:
- 5 or 6 lightweight T-shirts in solid white and black
- 3 or 4 button-front linen shirts in bright, light colors like mango, aqua, celery, white
- 3 or 4 cardigans in cotton or silk blends--black, white, blue, rust
- a lightweight cotton jacket in white
- 3-4 skirts in cotton prints and solids in slightly darker shades like rust, teal, black
- linen pants in black
- blue jeans or similar weight pants in black
Besides these, I'll bring or buy one dress in a solid color.
Oh, I do plan to shop once I get to Paris.
Go-to accessories:
- a rayon pashmina in a solid color
- 4 to 5 cotton scarves in patterns, working with the colors included
- necklaces, bracelets, earrings -- mostly in silver or semi-precious stones
- 3 to 4 pairs of shoes
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Your summer travel wardrobe has inspired me!
ReplyDeleteMy usual summer "uniform" consists of a short-sleeve t shirt, paired with a cardigan sweater when needed, plus pants or knee-length shorts.
You've inspired me to add a few button-front linen shirts to the mix. They will be wonderful to wear alone, or under a cardigan as a base layer, or over a t shirt as a jacket. Or for that matter, layered between a t shirt and a cardigan.
(Because I'm retired, I generally wear casual clothes.)
Now my only decision is what to include in my color palette: either black or navy with khaki, white, and various shades of blue.
Hope that your summer in Paris is delightful.
kris