Drag Queen Stiletto
 |
 6 Clear Platform Stiletto Slides Drag Queen Shoes 13  US $37.99
|
Shop Like a Parisian
The Parisians not only take their food and wine seriously but also their shopping. Shopping in Paris is an art. Once you know a few secrets, Paris can the best place in the world to buy discounted designer items.
I’ve also observed how the French shop. They buy quality rather than quantity. Two or three classic pieces each year, normally bought during their favourite shopping time “Les Soldes”.
Twice a year, the French do some serious shopping. Summer Sales in August and Winter Sales in February. These are government controlled and while there’s a lot of dissatisfaction among retailers about these restrictions, I believe it works well for consumers.
But what if you can’t shop in sale time? You have several choices. Warehouses (entrepôt); second hand stores specialising in designer brands only (dépot-ventes) or private sales (held for a short specified period and online). If you are a Paris resident, ‘ventes privées’ offer great bargains (see below for three of the best sites).
But back to retail shopping.
Warehouse outlets:
Not far from the popular rue de Rennes (home to the big brand ZARA, H&M & GAP) is rue Placide. For designer labels, head to ‘Mouton a Cinq Pattes’ (Sheep with five Paws) This Parisian institution has every imaginable designer label on sale; although some items have been there so long they’ve made a comeback. They have three stores in this small street, which is a bit of a mystery. Lots of bargain bins to search deep and wide while I can’t guarantee a ‘Hermes Scarf’ you may find a Louis Vuitton or a Chanel, lots of Gucci belts and other surprises.
Word of warning; finding your size can be disappointing. Anything under a European 40 or US 10 should be fine with skirts, shirts and little tees. Anything over might be limited to their choice of jackets, coats (fur and leather) and other accessories. I guess there’s some truth in ‘French women don’t get fat’.
In the same street you will find the outlets for Carroll and ETAM which offer good classic work suits and tops as well as numerous children’s boutiques and shoe shops. It’s a small street and well worth the detour. At the end of the street, it’s back to luxury shopping at the Bon Marche or a spot of lunch in their recently renovated “Le Grande Epicerie Paris’.
At the opposite end of town is rue D’Alésia. My Parisian friends tell me they don't shop there as it’s just not chic enough but I don’t believe them. Its only a short metro ride away from high street shopping and well worth a visit, particularly if you like Cacharel and Sonia Rykiel. There are lots of small stores stocking Armani, Dolce & Gabbanna, American Retro and numerous French labels. It’s quite a long street so you could easily spend a full day shopping there.
At Cacharel I couldn’t resist a hip length woollen jacket, with a rabbit-fur lapel (€660 reduced to €120) and a frilly, high-neck silk blouse (reduced from €320 to €90). There's also a great selection of clothes for children; girls’ embroidered cardigans at €30, boys suits from €100 as well as lots of cashmere twin sets around €80-120. The ground floor is dedicated to Monsieur: Suits, shirts and sweaters at great prices.
Also impressive are the two Sonia Rykiel stores. As France’s queen of ‘knits’ you can be assured of quality and there’s plenty of her trademark bright coloured wool tops and skirts for under €100. Both stores had last winter’s stock greatly reduced and some new season items, albeit some with flaws. The larger of the SR stores has a section dedicated to the under 2s. You can image how cute this is.
Lastly, shoes, glorious shoes. Head to rue Meslay; the entire street is dedicated to our ‘pieds’. I would recommend going straight to No 13. This store specialises in Charles Jourdan (should have more stock after the liquidation) Valentino and Langerfeld. Prices range between €80-200 and there’s lot of classic styles and colours.
Afterwards, there are over 50 stores to browse. Many offer ‘copy’ designs in Chanel and Prada but the quality often matches the prices. I saw lots of the Italian brand Superga from €25, Converse and Todds. When I visited in winter there was an extensive range of leather boots from €150.
To diverge a little, minutes away from rue Mesley is the rue Temple. This district is famous for its wholesale jewellery supplies: Beads, chains, tools as well as costume jewellery. It’s a great street as there’s always a frenzy of activity. Retailers bargaining with wholesalers. Large garbage bags of costume jewellery being dragged back to the 5th and ready for a mark-ups of 70-100%. These stores usually only sell to retailers but you are free to wonder around and you can always ask if you see something you like. If you can buy in quantities, they will almost certainly turn a blind eye in demanding the necessary retail registration details. I’ve never had problems buying semi-precious stones and chains.
Now, back to shoes, for all fans of the ‘stiletto’. I am going to recommend a store on the outskirts of Paris, “Mini-Prix’. It look more like a 7/11 but you will find designs by Jill Sanders, Ralph Lauren, Blackberry Neal Alexandra, Patrick Cox and Gianfranco Ferre - sorry no Manolo Blahnik - all for less than €200.
Surprisingly, some new season stock. They also have a small range of designer label handbags but I wasn’t too impressed with the collection. It’s not far from the Porte de Versailles, the major trade exhibition hall in Paris. There’s really nothing else in this area, a couple of stores promoting clothes, but not a great collection. However if you like heels, you’ll love this place.
Of course, this is only a tiny selection of the many places in Paris. Everyone has their favourite and I’ll certainly be back to Cacharel when time and budget permit!
Address list:
Cacharel & Sonia Rykiel - rue d'Alésia Métro: Alésia, t: 01 45 42 53 04
Mini-Prix, rue Boulevard Victor M: Balard
Shoes rue Meslay – M: Rennes
About the Author
Creator of a new website allowing travellers to create their own itinerary of events, locals restaurants, shopping and beauty tips and ideas for travelling with children in Paris, London and Loire Valley. The author is a former Public Relations consultant in Australia but now living in France.
|
|
Drag Queen Wig $24.95 Drag Queen Wig |
|
|
The Drag Queen Baby Name Book $16.27 An alphabetical compendium of suggested drag queen names for anyone anticipating arrival of a beautiful bouncing drag queen. With these names she'll definitely stand out in a crowd. Hundreds of suggested names illustrated with full color photographs by the author. Six different categories of names are explored to use or use for models---highly subjective, of course. |
|
|
Pseudo: The Drag Queen Murders $45.49 African American drag queen, diva, and fashion designer, Essence, thinks she has it all together until someone murders her protege and she finds herself and her gang of unlikely detectives in search of a serial killer who prefers killing drag queens. With the grudging helf of two police detectives, one of whom Essence finds ohsoirresistible, they search for the killer hoping to catch them before he kills again. Essence puts her life on the line as she finds herself chained to the floor as the next victim of a killer that wants more from a girl that her joie de vivre, purse and pumps. Author: Fleming, Snookie Binding Type: Hardcover Number of Pages: 182 Publication Date: 2011/08/08 Language: English Dimensions: 9.00 x 6.00 x 0.56 inches |
|
|
Stiletto $4.99 Stiletto |
|
|
Are A Drag $10.49 Are A Drag |
|
|
One Dead Drag Queen $6.99 A series of three bombs destroy a local health clinic, killing many and injuring many others including high school teacher and clinic volunteer Tom Mason. While Tom is hospitalized, his lover, professional baseball player Scott Carpenter, begins to believe that Tom may have been the intended victim of the bombing - the third bomb was wired to Tom's truck and Scott is receiving threatening letters saying that he's next. With a long suspect list and a mounting death toll, Scott must find the killer before the killer finds them. |
|
|
Drag Queen in the Court of Death $14.62 No Synopsis Available |
|
|
La Princess: A Drag Queen $24.33 No Synopsis Available |
|
|
Drag Queen Named Pipi $8.78 No Synopsis Available |
|
|
Singer Drag Queen Rupaul Wearing Red Teddy While Checking Lipstick at Event $79.99 Dave Allocca Singer Drag Queen Rupaul Wearing Red Teddy While Checking Lipstick at Event - Premium Photographic Print |
|
|
quot;Hot Couturequot; Drag queen Yellow T-Shirt by CafePress $20 What are you serving? Drag queen Yellow T-Shirt Tee, TShirt, Shirt Yellow fans, color your world, or at least your body in this vibrant attention-grabbing hue. Stand out in a crowd. Our 100% Authentic Tagless T-Shirt is preshrunk, durable and guaranteed. 6.1 oz. 100% cotton. Standard fit. |
|
|
Drag Queen Gay License Plate Frame by CafePress $18 A real roadside attraction, get your driver's attitude or cause across on this cool License Plate Frame. Constructed of sturdy, durable, shiny chrome that makes your message POP. Images are applied with a permanent adhesive weatherproof decal. UV and w Gay License Plate Frame . A real roadside attraction, get your driver's attitude or cause across on this cool License Plate Frame. Constructed of sturdy, durable, shiny chrome that makes your message POP. Images are applied with a permanent adhesive weatherproof decal. UV and w |
|
|
Rupaul's Drag Race Season 1 $74.36 High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles One of the nine contestants to compete on RuPaul's Drag Race was determined by an audience vote via the show's official website. The results were announced in early September 2008. The contestant to win this honor is Nina Flowers from Denver, Colorado. Nina Flowers went on to win Miss Congeniality. The winner of RuPaul's Drag Race Season 1 was Bebe Zahara Benet. The runner up was Nina Flowers. Jorge Flores (born February 22, 1974), better known as Nina Flowers, is a Puerto Rican drag queen, DJ, activist, professional make-up artist, and television personality who has been performing since 1993. Flowers won an on-line vote to become a cast member on Logo's popular reality series, RuPaul's Drag Race, which premiered on the network in February 2009. Finishing in second place, the publicity generated by his participation on the show has brought many new opportunities to perform a various national and international LGBT events including Denver Pride, San Juan Pride, Chicago Pride and Vancouver Pride. |
|
|
Stiletto Workout $13.99 Stiletto Workout |
|
|
Queen $34.99 Queen |
|
|
The Queen $8.99 The Queen |
|
|
Electric Drag $10 Electric Drag |
|
|
Transgender Identities: Drag Queen, Drag King, Hijra, Two-Spirit, Kathoey, Trans Woman, Mukhannathun, Bacha Bazi, Trans Man, Urani $19.52 Chapters: Drag Queen, Drag King, Hijra, Two-Spirit, Transwoman, Kathoey, Mukhannathun, Trans Man, Baccha, Uranian, Sissy, Muxe, Fa'afafine, Bigender, Genderqueer, Bissu, We'wha, Fakaleiti, Khanith, Mak Nyah, Pak Nyah, Lhamana, Calabai, Calalai, Mahu. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 120. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: In the culture of South Asia, hijra (Hindi:, Urdu: Bengali: or ) or khusra in Punjabi are physiological males who adopt feminine gender identity, women's clothing and other feminine gender roles. They have a long recorded history in the Indian subcontinent, from the Mughal Empire period onwards. This history features a number of well-known roles within subcontinental cultures, part gender-liminal, part spiritual and part survival. In Pakistan, many hijra live in well-defined, organized, all-hijra communities, led by a guru. These communities have sustained themselves over generations by "adopting" young boys who are rejected by, or flee their family of origin. Many work as male sex workers for survival. The word hijra is Urdu, derived from the Arabic root hjr in its sense of "leaving one's tribe," and has been borrowed into Hindi. The Indian usage has traditionally been translated into English as "eunuch" or "hermaphrodite," where "the irregularity of the male genitalia is central to the definition." However, in general the hijra are born with typically male physiology, only a few having been born with male intersex variations. Historically, ceremonial initiation into the hijra community is said to have involved removal of a boy's penis, testicles and scrotum, without anaesthetic, at or around puberty. However, according to Mumbai health organisation The Humsafar Trust, only eight percent of hijras visiting their clinic are nirwaan (castrated). Since the late 20th ...More: http: //booksllc.net/?id=301626 |
|
|
Drag It Up $9.49 Drag It Up |
|
|
Slow Drag $7.49 Slow Drag |
|
|
The Slow Drag $11.49 The Slow Drag |
|
|
Used Stiletto $1199.99 In Store Used USED STILETTO |
|
|
The Iron Queen $8.99 The New York Times Bestseller My name is Meghan Chase. I thought it was over. That my time with the fey, the impossible choices I had to make, the sacrifices of those I loved, was behind me. But a storm is approaching, an army of Iron fey that will drag me back, kicking and screaming. Drag me away from the banished prince who's sworn to stand by my side. Drag me into the core of conflict so powerful, I'm not sure anyone can survive it. This time, there will be no turning back. |