Brasserie Gabrielle

Does it get better that this? I think not. There is a reason why Chanel is the greatest fashion house and yesterday’s fashion show is exactly why. Held at the Grand Palais, Karl Lagerfeld transformed the joint into a Parisian brasserie. No detail was overlooked… Mosaic floor tiling, bistro revolving door, red banquette seating, French newspapers, white tablecloths, snooty waiters, perfect brasserie bar serving “Parisian ladies who lunch” grapefruit juice and pain au chocolat. Lemon tea for the well-dressed Chanel clad ladies at the tables. I mean, come on! And then, don’t forget, the reason for the show… The collection!

It was as if Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel was reincarnated through each of the models. Absolute Parisian sophistication. Uber chic would be an understatement. Each of the models wore identical two-tone iconic Chanel low slingback heels. I think my favorite look of the collection was the fitted yet movable classic tweed skirt… Midcalf! Genius. I don’t even have the words to describe everything, so let’s just take a look. You can check out the whole live show HERE but first here is a little tease of the show…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I want. I need. I love.

The show, as usual, drew quite the celebrity crowd. My favorite momager, Kris Jenner, was on hand to support model daughter, Kendell. Cara Delevingne graced the runway and Anna Wintour was front and center. My favorite style icon and a former Chanel muse, Ines de la Fressange, was in attendance and praised the show. Take a look…

 

 

 

*Something you don’t know about me? Well, today it’s really about Gracie, my daughter. Since Gracie was in the ninth grade, all that she wanted to do was attend NYU for college. She fell in love with New York when we were living there in 2009-2011. For ninth grade, Gracie was homeschooled and setting her own schedule so she had plenty of time to explore New York City. I took her everywhere with me, uptown, downtown, Brooklyn, Harlem, SoHo, the East Side, the West Side and everything in between. For 10^th grade, Gracie attended an all-girls Catholic school literally next door to our apartment on E. 68^th St. Every day after school, Gracie and her girlfriends would further explore the city as only teenagers could. Gracie was smitten. Riding the subway all over New York (in their sassy school uniforms), Gracie and her friends saw everything and were exposed to different cultures, different ethnicities, different socioeconomic backgrounds, hipsters, gossip girls, psychos, artists, musicians, different religions and everything in between. Gracie embraced it all. She loved going with her girlfriends to Dylan’s Candy Shop, California Pizza Kitchen, Serafina’s, Serendipity, Shake Shack and the Meatball Shop. Gracie was set to spend her future in New York City. NYU was her dream school.

At the end of Gracie’s 10^th grade, I was diagnosed with ALS. So annoying. Gracie had plans for God sakes and I just ruined them. We were leaving New York. We needed to go home to Santa Barbara for me and this monster called ALS. Grace was disappointed but knew that my health was more important. So off we went to Santa Barbara but Gracie never gave up her goal to attend NYU. Gracie homeschooled her junior and senior year in Santa Barbara. When the time came, Gracie started her application to NYU. I told her that she needed to apply to other schools as well “just in case.” Gracie reluctantly applied to a couple other schools, including American University in Paris. Applications were finished and sent off. Now the waiting game. Gracie checked the mailbox every single day. Months later, Gracie received her acceptance letter to another college in New York. She didn’t even really care… All she was waiting for was that letter from NYU. One afternoon a letter from NYU showed up in the mailbox. Gracie took the letter to her bedroom and quietly peeled it open without me knowing about it. 10 minutes later Gracie came into the living room where I was with tears rolling down her cheeks and a look of disappointment that I will never forget. I knew the answer.

Here we go again… I have to be supermom and “make it all better“ like I did when I had to tell Gracie I had ALS. To be honest, as crazy as this may seem, my ALS and Gracie not getting accepted to NYU were about equal on the devastation scale.… To both of us. It’s funny how when mothers don’t always have the fast answers, we seem to come up with something that works. I just told Gracie that there was obviously a plan for her… And NYU was not it. It broke my heart to see her so sad but I had to keep my wits about me and let her in on one of life’s secrets… Sometimes life sucks. Not everything will go your way and there will be disappointment, sadness and frustration. However, it’s how you choose to deal with it that strengthens your character. I told her she had two choices. She could either wallow in her disappointment or she could stay positive and look at different options. She was so upset all she wanted to do was go to her bedroom and cry for a while which she did. The very next day, Gracie received her acceptance letter to American University of Paris. She couldn’t help but smile. She knew that Paris was her destiny and her plans for New York were indefinitely shelved.

Fast-forward two years later, Gracie is living in Paris in her own apartment, has a French boyfriend who adores her, she loves her school, loves her friends and loves her super cool job. Gracie was at my apartment last night for a little impromptu dinner party. She was a little bit late because her school was on a field trip to the Palais de Tokyo, a building dedicated to modern and contemporary art. It is quite possibly the chicest spot in Paris with its Monsieur Bleu restaurant designed by famed architect and designer Joseph Dirand. I looked at her and said, “You still wish you were at NYU?” Today, Gracie graced us with an unusual double visit to my apartment. I asked her what her plans at school were for tomorrow. She told me that they were going on another field trip to the new Lanvin exhibit in honor of Paris fashion week. I looked at her again and asked, “You still wish you were at NYU?”

Usually my stories don’t really have any point or morals but today they do. We don’t always know the plan, we don’t have all of the answers, there will be highs, there will be lows, there will be challenges and there will be rewards… All that matters is how you choose to react. Look, after I was diagnosed with quite possibly the worst disease on earth, I chose to take the higher ground. I could have just as easily crawled up into a ball and depressed myself into my demise. I chose not to. I chose to be happy and I took my fate and chose to make the best of it ( Aren't I amazing?). What the fuck else was I going to do? I like to be happy. I think Gracie has witnessed this in me and chose to make her life in Paris the very best she could… And she has. I am a true believer that when one door closes, another one opens. Life is full of surprises… So just enjoy the ride. The End.

Photos courtesy the internet... Duh.