Anna Wintour, Editor of U.S. Vogue Anna Wintour was awarded a Legion d’Honneur award by French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Paris on July 6

Wearing brand-new Chanel Couture that had walked the night before, Anna accepted her pin in front of a crowd that included Bernard Arnault, Karl Lagerfeld, Stefano Pilati, Donatella Versace, Tommy Hilfiger, Alber Elbaz, Franca Sozzani, and Riccardo Tisci.

Wintour was awarded a Chevalier (Knight) of the Order, which was established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802 and signifies the highest order of decoration in France.

The French fragrance foundation awarded its annual prizes exclusively to local brands last week.

Its main awards for best fragrance of the year went to Yves Saint Laurent’s Belle d’Opium, in women’s perfumes and Bleu de Chanel in the men’s category.

All other winning brands, including Lancôme, Hermès, or Biotherm, also hail from France.

Celebrities including Vanessa Paradis, Blake Lively, and Rachel Bilson looked on as Karl Lagerfeld showed his annual Croisière collection at the Hotel du Cap in Antibes on the French Riviera on May 9.

The French government announced the eight recipients of its new ‘palace’ hotel rating May 5, dealing a blow to some of Paris’s most famous hotels.

The ‘palace’ rating is an official designation above five stars awarded by the French tourism authorities — it’s designed to help travelers identify the cream of the country’s many swanky hotels.

A total of four Paris properties were given the award — the Bristol, the Meurice, the Park Hyatt and the Plaza Athenee.

After smelling, crackling, tasting, and scrupulously examining an interminably long row of baguettes, a panel of judges whittled down a list of 174 contenders, all vying for the Grand Prize for best baguette in Paris, to just one.

Tuesday’s competition crowned Pascal Barillon the best baguette maker in Paris this year, a competition that turns humble bakers into instant celebrities and attracts snaking lines of customers outside their bakery every day.

The edible icon of Paris is an institution not just for tourists, but for the French who also rhapsodize about the best baguettes in the city.

In an effort to distance itself from accusations of being elitist, this year’s Michelin Guide France 2011 has revamped itself to cater to the mainstream diner.

This year’s edition, to be released March 3, has expanded its “Bib Gourmand” section with a listing of 601 restaurants offering a complete prix fixe (fixed price) menu for less than 35 euros in France –the largest selection in its history.

Bib listings are considered restaurants that offer “good food at moderate prices.”