Black to Paris

October 27, 2017

Winnipeg fashion blogger Cee Fardoe of Coco & Vera crosses the street in le Marais wearing a Carven dress and carrying a black Celine trio bagPortrait of fashion blogger Cee Fardoe of Coco & Vera in Paris wearing Celine Audrey sunglasses and a black Cupcakes & Cashmere leather jacketCanadian fashion blogger Cee Fardoe of Coco & Vera wears a Carven dress and Celine Audrey sunglasses in le MaraisOutfit details on fashion blogger Cee Fardoe of Coco & Vera, wearing a Carven dress, Steve Madden Stecy sandals and a Celine trio bagCanadian fashion blogger Cee Fardoe of Coco & Vera crosses the street in le Marais wearing a Carven dress and carrying a Celine trio handbagCupcakes and Cashmere jacket (c/o Shopbop)
Carven dress (similar)
Steve Madden sandals
Celine bag
Celine sunglasses
Keltie Leanne Designs earrings (c/o)

Years ago, one spring morning on our way to enjoy a breakfast we couldn’t really afford at La Favorite on rue de Rivoli in Paris, we stopped casually to snap some outfit photos on a relatively non-descript Le Marais. We didn’t give too much thought to what we were doing, which is unusual for us, but the results were surprising – and by surprising, I mean the photos turned out far better than expected. A photo of me from that day, crossing the street with my old black Furla bag in hand, appeared in Framework Magazine later that year. I’ve always wanted to recreate those photos, but it seemed silly. We don’t get that much time in Paris each year, and can’t bring ourselves to waste

I’ve always wanted to recreate those photos, but it seemed silly. We don’t get that much time in Paris each year. We have to be judicious with how we spend it. And we can’t bring ourselves to waste a chunk of it on a trip to a residential street near nothing else we want to visit just to take photos, no matter how well they might turn out.

But this year, we had time. Three months in the capital seemed like an eternity – at least until May. Suddenly, once again, we had to consider carefully how we spent our days in order to fit everything in. And I was determined to recreate that old photoshoot, so we made a trip to Le Marais a priority.

Nothing turned out as planned, of course. It never really does. It was too warm for my black leather jacket, really. The street was busy with tourists checking out of their Airbnb rentals. Construction prevented us from shooting at the same angle we did all those years ago. A diversion on rue de Rivoli meant an inordinate number of cars came rushing by while I leaped out of the way. And we planned it. Which means the shots lack the spontaneity, the carefree feeling that made the original ones so perfect.

The truth is, reshooting never works. You can never recapture a moment in time – once it’s passed, that’s it, it’s gone. And there will never be another one like it. While that means I can never recreate the old photos the way I hoped to, it also makes these ones meaningful in their own way. The morning we spent wandering Le Marais trying to find the old street was a completely different day, with its own story.

7 comments so far.

7 responses to “Black to Paris”

  1. You’re so right about not really ever being able to truly recreate things like this – I’ve tried and it was just simply not the same. But you look gorgeous as always and you know I deeply appreciate the all black outfit.

    Courtney ~ Sartorial Sidelines

  2. Melanie says:

    Perfect outfit! Black is always a go-to color :-*

    Melanie / http://www.goldzeitblog.de

  3. Ania says:

    Wow! You look beautiful dear 😉
    Blog x Facebook x Instagram x Bloglovin

  4. Happy Sunday love! Just getting caught up with my blog reading now, I’ve been miserably sick with the flu, which I found out is an evil combination when you’re in my condition + hoping everything is going ok with the little. This is not the time to be sick! Oy!! As for trying to recreate photos?! Absolutely agree, it never works, even if M & I are trying to recreate photos while we’re shooting them (because something went wrong) they never have the same allure, or capture the same magic. But as you say, each moment has it’s own story and I love these pictures just as much!! Plus, SO into the outfit!! xo

    http://www.girlandcloset.com

  5. Lyddiegal says:

    You are completely right of course, it’s impossible to recreate a photo – recreate a moment or a feeling… making new ones is all we can do. But I must say these photos came out beautifully none the less, and that dress is simple perfection.
    Chic on the Cheap

  6. Cee, that is so true! I’ve tried recapturing things on a different day and it’s just a different feel (and sometimes situation) altogether. So glad you have these. You look so beautiful and elegant. Just look at that woman looking at you. You have to capture a moment when you can, then leave it alone 🙂
    http://www.averysweetblog.com/

  7. Wow, this dress… I admire your perfect and classy style. You inspired me.

Cee Fardoe is a thirty-something Canadian blogger who splits her time between Winnipeg and Paris. She is a voracious reader, avid tea-drinker, insatiable wanderer and fashion lover who prefers to dress in black, white and gray.

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