Day two in Paris started with a warm baguette, strong espresso noir, soyja yogurt, and fresh fruit from the local market. Some of the baguette petit tradicion had dark chocolate chips in it which were phenomenal. My goal for the day was to make it to the April 77 flagship store and splurge on a vegan motorcycle jacket, which I’d been saving up for.
The store was tre chic, filled with rock n’ roll inspired clothes, and hard-to-find items like vegan cowboy boots and thick sweaters made from cotton, as opposed to wool. There were still a few wool items straggling from previous seasons, but designer Brice Partouche, PR master Tommy, and Ben at the store all assured me that the collection will be totally vegan as of 2011. Ben, who was our salesperson was helpful and also had some fun tattoos which you’ll see in the photo album below. He even taught us how to say “fur is disgusting” and “you hate animals” in French, so I could say it to people in fur… which is almost everyone people in Paris. I mean, seriously? If the Arctic Pass had a prehistoric runway, you might be able to imagine what I’m taking about.
It was inspiring to see tags that read “cruelty free fabric and label” and handsomely designed labels that declare “Good Guys Don’t Wear Leather”. James got a seriously gorgeous, brown, waxed-canvas biker jacket and I went with a chambray shirt and a black jacket. I am lucky this store is so far away. I’d be broke. Well-dressed, but broke.
Today, Paris was transformed into an arctic fairy tale with real, melting icebergs shipped in from Scandinavia, plopped along the runway, creating a frigid puddle for the models to splash through. The menswear was over-the-top, and suggestive of Satyrs, the Inuit, and Ice Kings with everything from full-length faux-fur cloaks to faux-fur pants and full-on Yeti-suits.
It seems that Europe is always strides ahead of the rest of the world when it comes to health, environment, and social justice. Meat-free menus are to be promoted in UK hospitals as part of a strategy to cut 
Jason Wu is about to become my enemy. After designing Mrs. Obama’s evening gown, he recieved 4 million hits to his website, and what do you think he’s doing with this newfound stardom? Unfortunately, I was absolutely horrified and disgusted
