Fashion for the Mommy’s Soul – My Paris/ Zurich Look-Book

Of Baby, Mommy, Long Trip & Luggage Limits…

What happens when panicky, finicky, lazy yet busy Mommy goes on a trip, with her baby girl in tow? Well the obvious answer is – potential chances of luggage limit violation! Don’t you think that is quite legit? My munchkin needed her supply of diapers, baby food, wipes and et al for 3 weeks, but still the clearly excited and over-enthusiastic Mommy didn’t give up her chances of putting some style together on this dream trip. Needless to say this serious tug of war left Daddy Dearest petrified and giving occasional polite reminders of the number of suitcases 😊.

Travelling Light!?!???

I am one of those persons who just CANNOT travel light! I need my things…the most trivial of them. My daughter seems to have drawn from my genes, as quite evidently she can neither. I am not exaggerating by a bit when I say that most of the suitcase space was taken up by peanut’s essentials and some non-essentials (only if her Moo Moo Book and Appy the Elephant qualify as non-essential!).

Time for some clever Packing:

With such restrictions I had to be organised, careful and a wee bit clever when I was choosing my outfits. After all it was a 3 week trip, and I wanted to put my best foot forward. Hence I divided my outfits into two sections:
A) Staples
B) Accessories

So the staples were the obvious jeans, thermals and coats, while the accessories were my secret weapons. Scarfs, sunglasses, slings, caps… they all added the much needed variation to the same coat or jacket.

For me, Shoes are a very important part, especially while on a vacation. So while I wore a pair of simple running shoes for the long flights, I carried a pair of pastel-toned sneakers and the eternal knee-length boots. Well, even after becoming a mother, I cannot imagine Paris without boots!!)

Not a Make-up Person:

Make up for me means a good non- comedogenic moisturizer preferably with sun protection, a super pigmented kajal, a tinted lip balm and some peachy blush for the cheeks. That is the maximum that I can fare. But this time I went a step ahead and threw in a couple of bright lip colours that surprisingly complimented the usual black/ grey coats and jackets wonderfully!

So yes that was pretty much it🙂!

I have to mention here that it was a lot of homework and hard work to take out time for myself, after the usual feed-change-soothe-baby talk routine. But who said that the best things are easy?!

Some general Styling Tips I followed:

• Layering
• Accessorizing
• The ‘no more than 3 Colors rule’ that Parisians take quite seriously
• Giving comfort a chance!

Here are a few of my looks in Paris and Zurich. Tell me if and how you like them😀.

Simple day look while we visited Sacre Couer Basilica and the area in and around Montmartre.

Denim paired with a bubblegum pink Sweater. A nice fuzzy woolen scarf to keep the chilly breeze at bay. Oversized eyeglasses, boots, my sling bag and a dash of pink for the lips.

A very basic look for an evening out and aimless strolls. Knee length striped pencil skirt with a black top and a black jacket. A pair of black leggings as the temperature dropped after sunset and black sneakers.

Did I say I love black!😎

It cannot get simpler and universal than this. Denims, black sweater, boots my constant companion, the leather sling bag and a little pop of colour for the lips.

This day was special in ways more than one. Visiting Disneyland with my daughter was almost a dream coming true with extra cheese!!! So it called for some sunny peppy colours for the day. A bright pumpkin yellow sweater with denims and sneakers was all I needed.

A Day trip to Versailles saw me wearing a black knee length dress, over a black thermal top, along with a favourite fabric statement neckpiece, my boots and my sling bag.

This was on the day before we left Paris and happened to be the nth time to the Eiffel tower! Evidently, a very emotional me went a little overboard according to my standards. Wore this red and blue fit and flare dress with my boots and topped it off with some red lips. My way of bidding bye to Eiffel😘!

Note: the carousel ride added that tiny bit of magic dust to this day.

The area in and around Notre Dam was our favourite. The little green bookstalls by Seine, the quaint cafes and this particular shop became a routine during the 3 weeks that we spent in this city. This was the first day that we went to Shakespeare & Co. I wore a bright blue sweater with my black thermal, denims and turquoise blue sneakers. Also, tried a white cap to add some contrast.

Blues are not bad afterall!

More often than not, we would take these idyllic walks along Seine at and post sunset. The classic French architecture along the banks, a perfect Prussian blue sky and a lit up Eiffel in the distance, all made it more magical. This day I was wearing a beige coloured woolen poncho with jeans and boots.

In the above pictures I am wearing the same black coat. I have tried to bring in a bit of variation by pairing it with oversized aviators, a fleece cap and a Kantha scarf in three different looks respectively. These are the occasions when I used accessories to create different looks with a same basic outfit.

Day tour to Rheinfalls and Stein am Rhein. Wore a sand-beige Trench Coat with the good, old pair of jeans and boots.

So that was pretty much it! Needless to say I repeated quite a few looks in the three weeks.

Waiting for your comments and feedback.

Love

Devlina

😊😊

P.S. since munchkin comes first we always carried a bagpack, my sling sometimes the stroller and sometimes the baby carrier.

Now that is what I call serious mommy fashion!