French Style!

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Though I am a self-proclaimed Franco-holic, this is my first time posting in this thread, so first let me say HELLO! :) I love this thread, since I am obsessed with all things French, and their style generally tops my list of things I wish I could emulate.
There's a few things I was hoping to get answers to, however. For example, it's rather obvious that the "je ne sais quoi" quality they have regarding their fashion sense (and lives in general!) is due to their overwhelming confidence. They're comfortable in what they wear (and when you feel good about your body, of course you're much more comfortable!) and how they look. This comes from taking care of their faces, bodies and skin, such that they always have a good "base" for their clothes. But I was hoping to maybe see some examples, if anyone can provide them? Everyone's talking about the chic-ness they see on the streets of France and I was hoping maybe someone had visuals for the rest of us to see and try to learn.
Second, they invest in quality, not quantity, which (in general) is not something we focus on here in America. In the US, it's all about mass-produced items (think chain stores like Forever 21, etc). However, I understand the reasoning behind it: after all, not many of us were brought up with such unlimited amounts of money that we could spend hundreds to thousands of dollars on a single item of clothing? We try to find deals... that's just our way :) For example, while my family has money, I was not brought up to spend $500 on Christian Louboutin shoes... my parents always said when something was very expensive that we were "paying for the name" and for the marketing. To a certain extent, I agree.
Anyway, my point is this... to make this thread a little more functional for the rest of us who love the French style but cant afford it, does anyone have any ideas on how to emulate it on a smaller budget? Instead of buying a Chanel jacket, what else can we do to slowly incorporate more sophistication to our wardrobe?

Sorry for the long post; I'm just dying to start utilizing some of this advice! :)
 
i've read some of the posts and this is really funny...
I think SOME french women are so inspiring and well-dressed etc. because in France, the image counts a lot... everyone is always judging you...
if you go in a restaurant and you are wearing a tshirt and jeans (at evening) people are judging you... if you go in a hippie café and wear Prada dress people are judging you... etc.
the image really counts, you can't be too much, you cannot be too simple... so I think that's why french women are dressed so easily as you all said...
but then it's like everywhere else... there're tribes etc.

imo, the real french parisian (because honestly you're only talking about Paris...) is how Emmanuelle Alt styled women in Vogue Paris...
 
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it is hard to buy quality over quantity in the US. Quality items are harder to find, clothes not being lifetime friends but more fleeting pieces of whatever fashion trend. I think that if you don't spend money on the things you don't really need or want, then you can afford to splurge on the items that will really make you happy. Even though I'm basically jobless at the moment, I can afford to buy those $160 shoes (big item for me. My parents could definitely afford it, but they're frugal and refuse to pay that much for a mere pair of shoes), only because I didn't buy that $10 shirt, those $15 sandals, etc., etc. I wait until I find an item that would seriously break my heart if I didn't get it, and fill the in-betweens with some cheap basics.

My friends like getting a good deal though, and it's always so hard to shop with them. They can make some semi-tantalizing items seem like such good finds. And on top of that, some clothing retailers who advertise their quality are lying
 
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pasu1 said:
American style is vulgar with too much skin showing off.
Click to expand...

What? :lol:

Sorry to butt in, but I don't agree that America=silicone, tan and vulgar. Though there may be a higher percentage of this, maybe moreso in some regions. But where I live, these things don't show up too often. At the most we're just sloppy.

Though, maybe I'm just coming from amishville. :blink: I've been told I look more European. And I don't idealize our celebrities. Sometimes I look to older women in my family. But only because they have style that I agree with. I don't know why a celebrity can be looked up to for any other reason.
 
For its 60th anniversary in 2005 French Elle set up a lottery.You could win the "ideal wardrobe". I thought it might interest some of you.:flower:

French Elle isn't high fashion therefore it closer to the average french women.








 
Thank you Jadee! I believe a French woman must have some good quality basic items such as black turtleneck, black heels & ballet pumps, also they do know how to give themselves a brand new look with speical accessories, i.e. scarves. Normally when we do shopping, we pay attention to its design&price than quality&textile, good fabrics also give clothes good impression and longer lifetime. besides, French women love solid or pure color that is easy to mix up with other pieces to create different looks.
 
I just spent about 5 days in Paris - whilst people watching, I noted a few key trends.

Jeans - for men and women, but the plainest and simplest they could buy. Normal blue wash, not too tight but not baggy either.

Boots - with their jeans, I saw so many women tucking them into boots. Either brown or black, and again very simple, flat - like riding boots.

Because of the weather (it was not too cold, and sometimes sunny) women either wore cute jackets, or bigger knitted cardigans (like Stella McCartney ones). Jackets were simple, hitting the waist, and usually undetailed.

Interest in outfits came from accessories, little bits of gold, some big scarves. Leather bags were very popular - the Gerard Darel bag is still absolutely THE bag to carry, as well as the perennial Longchamp.

The key is simplicity, and the stores were carrying muted colours for spring. They were much softer, calmer colours. I noticed French women wore a few key simple items, then one which was more interesting. Like Jeans, a jacket, but with a smock top.

Makeup again, really, really simple but elegant and refined.
 
miu_miu said:
I just spent about 5 days in Paris - whilst people watching, I noted a few key trends.

Jeans - for men and women, but the plainest and simplest they could buy. Normal blue wash, not too tight but not baggy either.

Boots - with their jeans, I saw so many women tucking them into boots. Either brown or black, and again very simple, flat - like riding boots.

Because of the weather (it was not too cold, and sometimes sunny) women either wore cute jackets, or bigger knitted cardigans (like Stella McCartney ones). Jackets were simple, hitting the waist, and usually undetailed.

Interest in outfits came from accessories, little bits of gold, some big scarves. Leather bags were very popular - the Gerard Darel bag is still absolutely THE bag to carry, as well as the perennial Longchamp.

The key is simplicity, and the stores were carrying muted colours for spring. They were much softer, calmer colours. I noticed French women wore a few key simple items, then one which was more interesting. Like Jeans, a jacket, but with a smock top.

Makeup again, really, really simple but elegant and refined.
Click to expand...

simplicity is really the key to a chic look in my opinion- thanks for sharing
 
My pleasure everyone :flower:

And I couldn't agree more - simplicity 100%. Focus on one thing in your outfit, and think about the rest creating a harmonious whole...

Colour palette is really important. I actually don't remember seeing a lot of black, but navy blue and grey were good base colours. A hint of pattern and colour here and there, but restrained always.
 
miu_miu said:
Colour palette is really important. I actually don't remember seeing a lot of black, but navy blue and grey were good base colours. A hint of pattern and colour here and there, but restrained always.
Click to expand...


I think wearing all black is a cop out- it's the easy way to avoid having to think about combining your clothes. I think other neutrals look more fresh and interesting
 
^ very true, and I confess, I'm guilty too - although I have got better.

Does anyone have any future "French Style" purchases they'd like to share?
 
miu_miu,thank you so much for sharing your experiences!

Btw, my favorites jeans is blue wash as well, probably straight. I see French choose simple fine made items and combine them in a simple way, that's probably make their looks so comfortable...

Also, makeup is another key, simple and refined, exactly same as what's you described. ^_^
 
I'm trying to renew my wardrobe with the french style in mind..
I'm going to Paris at the end of March, I'm going to do (hopefully) a lot of shopping, and style watching, of course..

I like Vanessa Bruno a lot for french clothes, very simple but good quality and stylish cuts..
 
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