Klin D'oeil Carreau

This afternoon at the Marche des Enfants Rouges, both full of couscous and avoiding the rain at a rickety, mosaic table we discussed whether or not we’d like to stay in Paris another year. I said no, believing after eight months to have 'seen it all’. We tucked our chairs in, said thanks to our waiter who was busy pouring mint tea into a woman's cup from a stupendous height, and headed round the corner to Carreau du Temple. We'd read about the indoor market space and thought we knew what to expect. How wrong we were with our images of charcuterie and foie gras stalls.

With no previous knowledge of the event we had stumbled across ‘Klin D’oeil’, a pop up event of workshops, boutiques and stalls lead by illustrators and artists, many of whom are girls we follow on Instagram ourselves! We were both excited to see Agathe Sorlet and Mathilde Aubier prints beside hundreds of beautiful ceramics, textiles, tote bags and jewellery. If only we’d been braver and dared speak to some of the artists, but it was hard to tell who was who in the sea of friendly faces. It was almost painful to see so many pretty things and not be able to bundle them all up and take them home.

There was even the opportunity to create something yourself. We watched in awe as a table of women transformed a bundle of leaves and flowers into intricate wreaths, and were impressed by how quickly a young girl seemed to master the art of weaving. This two day event was a very pleasant surprise on a drizzly bank holiday weekend, and just round the corner from one of the best food markets in Paris. One of the joys of living a big city is that you never know what you'll stumble across next and I officially eat my words.

Written by Mabel Wattam