Sennelier

(from the Sennelier website)

( from the Sennelier website)

Gustave Sennelier opened his art supply shop at 3 Quai Voltaire, in the Left Bank of Paris in 1887. It is still there today, just around the corner from the Ecole des Beaux Arts and is the likely place where some of the most celebrated names in history purchased their paint and charcoal. A short walk away, just along the Seine river, you'll find Notre Dame Cathedral, which Claude Monet painted obsessively in every season, in all sorts of weather. Monsieur Monet probably popped in to replenish his tubes of cadmium yellow and viridian green, perhaps even chatted with Monsieur Sennelier about painting the church despite the constant crowd attending services. Oh, that cathedral crowd is still there too.

If you visit Paris, even if you never draw or paint, do visit this shop. Stand still, breathe in deeply. Mmm, linseed oil, wood, handmade paper, what an aroma! You can purchase a handmade blank journal as a gift for a lucky someone or for yourself.