Shopping on the Champs-Élysées

What was once a field or champs is now one of the busiest pedestrian streets of Paris, lined with movie theatres, cafes, a club or two, a McDo, a 24h pharmacie, and lots of shops.  It’s become touristy over the years, sure, and the Vuitton store at the corner of Georges V is always bustling.  But what is nice about the strolling the Champs-Élysées is that you can get a good read on trends, fast.   They may not be the most cutting edge, which you will find in smaller shops, but they are indicative.  Check out stores like Naf Naf, and you will instantly spot a few trends in main-stream fashion~

One of my favorite stores is Monoprix; see their website HERE.  This is sort of the Target of France; and you will find lots of great accessories, clothes, gifts and more.  If you forgot anything, stop here, or if you are like me, arrive with an empty suitcase and make a quick trip after landing to stock up on some clothes, cosmetics and toiletries. They also have very stylish baby & kids clothes, lingerie and fashion accessories like scarves at an equally great price.  If you are making a quick stop in Paris and then going on the the South, go to Monoprix for a few soft cotton tshirts or striped tank tops and beach accessories like a pareo and an XL Evian vaporisateur; you can pick up more expensive and better accessories at the beach, but at least you will feel more like a Parisian going to the South than an American; these stores are all over France, but the one on the Champs-Élysées is one of the best~

The sous-sol or basement used to be a grocery, but now it’s given over to housewares and gifts.  Here you can shop, leisurely, for things like Mona Lisa biscuit tins~

and Eiffel Tower cognac and brandy bottles, in all sizes; you may find them cheaper elsewhere, but the selection here is great and the shopping is hassle-free~

They also had some nice Laduree recipe books, pretty but really expensive… pass~

I did buy two polka-dot Eiffel Tower cocktail napkin packs, these will go for the Reve launch party~

And also, a great set of champagne, wine and water glasses in the old shape that I love.  These were about $5 each; crystal; I brought two of these back to Laguna but will go back to buy 30 more of each; this was the best deal I found on stemware (style vs price) anywhere in Paris~

And grey plates, all the rage in France, and here at possibly the best price, $5; above them you will see some great grey placemats rolled up, also for $5 each~

Chocolates, these are super cute, but I bought others in a chocolate shop~

And Himalayan salt is hot in France and in California…..are these cute?

Here on the back wall I found the full display of the Eiffel Tower brandy and cognac bottles…..these were $7-$20 each, and I debated a long time before selecting one~

I bought the medium sized brandy bottle; the brandy was a nice night-cap and I’ll show you soon what it becomes in California.  Behind the bottles you can see all the books, magazines and keychains that are also here.  It’s a great selection of Parisian souvenirs~

There are lots of t-shirts for sale in Paris, but I check Monoprix first; I know a girl named Isabella who wants one of these….I will pick one up for her next time.  The ones at Monoprix are good quality cotton, soft but not too thin.

Depends on whom you ask, but most of the women I talk to say they would love to have a rhinestone Paris tshirt, especially in black; about $13...

And I brought two of these home, Perrier cans….can’t find these in the States and they will be pretty in some display, until I get thirsty for a Perrier~

You just need to look at the window of the store to identify spring trends…..scarves, eyelet, white, grey….

I didn’t get back to buy more of these items, but I picked up a few things and will be back soon…..this very soft cotton tshirt comes in various colors, you can see a hint of the pink version at the bottom of the pic, but I prefer the classic~

There was another large Monoprix near our flat, but it was dedicated to groceries (note this is also a great place to pick up a bottle of wine in Paris), so I bought things like kilos of Brittany sea salt for 1 euro and jams and honey.  Yes, go to the Champs-Élysées store for the clothes~ 

If you get to Paris, this is a good place to check out early in your visit; you can usually go back to pick a few things up before you leave, but it’s nice to see it all in one place and not shop from the street vendors.  You can click on the section at top called Mode en Ligne HERE on the website (HERE) for their current fashions and prices, as well as locate a store near you while you are visiting France.