Alchimie Forever is a range of cosmetics created in 2000 by a couple of Swiss doctors, specialists in cellular aging mechanisms and aesthetic medicine.

These treatments, designed and produced in Switzerland, target free radicals. To do so, each Alchimie Forever product uses natural antioxydants such as green tea, grape seed, tomato, rosemary, blueberry or even turmeric.

The men’s range currently contains 3 products: two anti-aging serums, a moisturiser and a antioxydant defense gel (still to come: an eye contour gel).

The twin anti-age serums

One is made with green tea, the other with rosemary, and they are packaged separately to maximise the benefits of each ingredient. They are formulated to reduce fine lines, wrinkles and brown spots and can be worn under a moisturiser (ed: from the age of 30 to prevent the first few wrinkles). My first fine lines seem to have benefitted from it. It’s quick to use, so much so that it’s easy to find the time to use it regularly. Note that the green tea gel is lightly tinted so I advise that you mainly use it in the evening.

Royal Cream Moisturiser
This cream is moisturising and rejuvenating, and is made of jojoba, basil, grape seed and vitamin E. It’s pleasant and very rich, and I would highly recommend it to men with dry skin! Let me know how you get on…

Antioxydant defense gel
A gel that refreshes and rejuvenates the skin, made from green tea, rosemary, turmeric and tomato. This is my favourite of the whole range! Use it every morning, it’s a really great way to start the day on the right foot…

€48 to €69 from SkinStore

Le 66 is a 1200m² multi-concession store, split over 4 floors, that opened last September at 66 avenue des Champs Elysées.

The first section is a sort of display area presenting the 66 best products du jour. The second section is devoted to trainers and accessories. Puma is showing the whole of their Sport Fashion shoes range: Alexander McQueen PUMA, 96 Hours, PUMA by Mihara Yasuhiro and Rudolf Dassler Shuhfabrik. You can also find brands like Obey, Spy Optics and Urban Mobility.

Further on, you find the 3^rd main space, split over 2 levels. For us men, it’s straight down! There’s no fancy decor: the floor is grey, the walls are black, and a 15-metre-high white wave promotes a selection of the latest clothes. A carefully-chosen selection is on the menu, with brands like El Ganso, Junk de Luxe, Hannes Roether, Moritz Rogosky, The Generic Man, Thomas Burberry, WeSC, Won Hundred, You Must Create etc. And a Kiliwatch corner.

If you haven’t yet had a chance to visit this new store, I invite you to discover Le 66, it’s a nice setting and you will doubtless discover some new things. An address which puts a little something back into Champs Elysées shopping.

Note: This article is the first in a series of articles about a range of stores, which will also fill out our Paris Shopping Guide that you may already know. And, of course, we’re planning on travelling outside of Paris ;-)) (see our Fashion Guide in Paris)

I broke my umbrella! It was mad: the fabric broke from the stem and I found myself holding just the handle. At this point, the top of the umbrella was 3 metres in the air, spinning like a frisbee. -Gogo gadget brolly! People for 10 metres around ran in panic.

In the end, no-one was hurt, but I don’t have an umbrella anymore. And given how much I got soaked yesterday, I thought it might be time to get another! My research led me to eBay where I found a wide range…

First choice: from Piganiol (that’s a French manufacturer, guys! From Aurillac, cradle of the French umbrella) you can find this compact umbrella for €17.90 (including delivery).

Another Piganiol, this large style with a wooden stem and a chestnut handle for €72, or this square one for €93 (again, delivery is included). Also compact, but more high-tech and stylish: this style from Davek (New York). The structure is carbon-reinforced, the handle is stylish (like a gearstick) and the case is leather. From $120, which at the current rate makes €79 (and it’ll probably be €60 in a month

Once upon a time, our fathers had no choice but to visit “mixed” beauty parlours: -Have you come for the bikini wax? Erm, no, it’s for my back. I’m off to the beach next week, and at the moment, to tell you the truth…I’ve got a mohawk down my back! I like to travel light, you see… And a bit of massage wouldn’t go amiss!

Times change. Since then, some beauty parlours have opened their doors specially for us men with our rebellious hair and pale faces… They can treat your feet, back, hands, face and more… Everything to help you relax and put the colour back in your cheeks.

The first time I went to a beauty parlour, like many others, it was a gift. -“Ok, I’ll go then!” Having carefully examined the range, I decided to try a facial treatment.

Being the active sort, I was a bit dubious of my ability to stay still for an hour. So during the first 15 minutes, I asked loads of questions:
What are you doing?
Have you finished it yet?
Are you qualified?
Can I see your certificate?

Then I agreed to close my eyes and leave myself in expert hands: I was cleansed, toned and moisturised… I let myself be swept away by the zen music and feel only the dancing of nimble little fingers.

-Ok, calm… So much so, that at the end of the hour I was nearly asleep. And so, slowly, I came back to life, I put my shirt back on, walked up the steps, said goodbye to the staff, and was carried away by the ebb and flow of Paris.

It was strange to find myself back amongst the crowds after escaping for an hour. I felt like I was walking on moss in the middle of the forest, and my face was breathing the open air.
-My face is breathing!
And I felt really relaxed. If I followed my instincts, I would have gone home, and sat down on the sofa in front of a nature documentary with a big bowl of soup. But I had things to do, like meeting friends for a drink. I had to! -“Hey, you know what, guys? My face is breathing.”

Still to come: our special dossier on men’s beauty parlours in Paris

Regular visitors have probably heard of this Danish brand: Junk de Luxe. Its another in the wave of Scandinavian designers along with other brands like Acne Jeans, Cheap Monday, Dr Denim, Nudie and WeSC. I mentioned it for the first time in an article about a shirt (I bought that particular style at the time, it’s great, and hasn’t shrunk! Tried and tested :D)

And fresh in this season (I kinda gave the game away in the editorial for this special): we can now wear Junk de Luxe jeans! They’re fresh in, I saw the first styles arrive at Le 66 in mid January. And I’ve just seen their pictures. This one’s the “Modomac”, which are waxed jeans (yes, there are more!) in a straight/skinny cut.

You get the “Junk” quality you’d expect, with a price tag of €100, which isn’t actually all that bad for a pair of jeans. They go straight into my Top 3 waxed jeans.

Exclusive to Le 66 (article in French) and at the Printemps de l’Homme.

Ok, I’ve made my mind up: this spring I’m changing my trainers! My favourite Stan Smiths don’t look so hot anymore: the leather is scratched everywhere and the toe is about to give up the ghost. -More cheap
manufacturing. Ok, ok, I’ve had them for about 2 and a half years, and I’ve not exactly treated them kindly either…

Despite this minor setback, I still like the brand with the 3 stripes. So I started my research there. As I suggest in my article on cheap clothes on our French sister site, I went to YOOX to see end-of-line stuff and new styles.

In the the former category I found these high-top “Pro-model” in black with snakeskin print. Unfortunately, I can completely forget about them; there aren’t any in my size! But there might be
some styles that you like in your size…

Operation “spring trainers”: part 1. To be continued.

€59 from YOOX