I've just got back from five days in Le Marais, and I've decided I want become Parisian, s'il vous plait.

[TossDaily]

So there.

EVERYBODY looked fantastic. EVERYBODY. DP and I just sat open-mouthed in fascination. Whatever their age, they looked amazing.

So I'm sitting here on a diet, wearing an Isabel Marant jumper and frantically googling 'How to turn French.'

As far as I can tell, the rules are:

1. Be thin, despite the fact you are walking down the street at 11am gnawing a cheese and ham baguette the length of your forearm.

1. Have your hair the colour and texture of natural hair.

1. Have the most amazing skin, despite the fact you have a permanent Gauloise on the go.

1. Never get pissed and lairy, despite the fact you are having a glass of red wine with your lunch and it's Tuesday.

1. Wear shoes you can walk in.

1. Have an amazing coat.

1. Know how to tie a scarf so it looks like you have slung it on and it's just choosing to snuggle up to you because you are SO FRICKING GORGEOUS.

1. Have a pharmacy on every corner that is just an Aladdin's Cave of miraculous skincare delights for less than a tenner each.

Anyone else have any tips? Joking aside, I loved the style - the shops, ohmigod the shops! It was like I'd walked into my internet shopping history.

I could actually walk around in my biker jacket without feeling like a twat.

I want to be French. Aidez-moi.

Maybelline matte lipstick in Rich Ruby is fantastic if you are cool toned.

NYX does great red lipsticks too.

Just my personal view but I think it would be fine on you Proper, I don't think it would suit a golden blonde with warm complexion.

Mrs, I really don't like the Clinique counters, their staff is trained in sales and a bit of skincare but not really in the colours. They're also quite pushy when it comes to buying. Chanel meanwhile take their time and have a no pressure approach, always telling me to wear something out and come back later. I have to really announce it to them that I'm buying it, they never ask or presume.

Proper, I'm dark brown haired and the sun has left my hair a touch red in places from the summer. The Stole looked very good on me in terms of colour, it's multidimensional and colours with your own colouring somewhat, I think only an ice blonde would struggle as it would turn her all the more cooler although that can look stunning too.

Thanks botemp, the lady at my local Chanel counter is lovely actually. I always assumed they would be the most austere but not so. I'll try there.

I have no idea if I have warm or cool colouring. I originally had dark brown hair and skin that burns a bit but then goes golden. I now, at 53, have blonde hair after years of highlights but it's white underneath. It's more ash blonde than golden I think. After years of wearing nude lipstick I realised I was becoming washed out hence the search for a bit more colour. My new favourite is Bobbi Brown Blue Raspberry, I actually love the creamy texture, it seems to make my lips look plumper.

Cause of you lot I just spent £££ on a Chanel red lipstick 💄 ,powder and got asked if I was having an affair by another school mum

I have 3 red Chanel lipsticks. I lick them off almost as soon as I apply them. Also my lips are thin and I worry it’ll make them look thinner. My red shade is def an orange red. The blue refs make me look ghastly.
Thanks for your views on the stole.

I'm not a massive fan of creamy lipsticks but that's personal, but I do really rate the Estee Lauder Pure Colour Envy range, they're really great in terms of wear comfort (on par with Tom Ford furthest thing from drying but not greasy) and really great staying power. They have a few cracking reds too. I'm not a massive fan of their counters though, they tend to ignore you under a certain age or all crowd in on you at once I feel like a teenager all over again who they think is stealing.

Pretty, did you reply it was a very interesting French fellow you met on the internet

Haha no ! I am starting to go back to work again so me looking smart is a bit of a shock for them!

I work in an art gallery so this thread had become a bit of a go to as I've been in jeans and knits this autumn, I needed some warm chic advice! Thank you for all the info, my lipstick is absolutely gorgeous and indeed makes my teeth look much whiter. I have ashy brown blonde hair and with a black jumper I look v.polished now.

It's funny as I've got older I need lipstick more, otherwise I look washed out.

Lol at the affair Pretty.

I have MAC ruby red (I think that is what it is called). The counter assistant was wearing it when I bought mine a couple of months ago and it looked great on her. I avoid the orange reds as they make my teeth look very yellow. It is incredibly drying. Terrible. I have other MAC lipsticks and never had this problem.

That's hilarious pretty about the affair.

I'm off out for dinner dressed all in Cos with red lipstick I already had and suits me. I must stop shopping.

I keep forgetting but I just have to share the cutest Instagram account if only to balance out the Japan anecdotes. This couple has been married since 1980 and dressing in coordinating clothes everyday since. They wear lots of Uniqlo I also think they're the only two people in the world who can successfully pull that off.

Omg they are so cool

Spudlet - I'm a natural redhead (though currently brunette) and have a smallish mouth. I struggle with red lipstick, but I get on really well with Medieval by Lipstick Queen.

It's like a glossy red balm, quite sheer, but you can build up the colour by adding more layers. It leaves your lips looking like they've been stained by berry juice - hence the name.

Ooh, that sounds perfect Toss! I shall have to have a look for it. Thanks

I have a red lipstick from No 7, which they colour match to your skin. It's a true red, but my preteen keeps "borrowing" it 1) for Halloween 2) for making an iMovie with her friends . Very funny about the affair pretty... I just need a chance to wear mine. It was a with a voucher and I desperately wanted to get back to wearing red lipstick (which I used to do) so it was a try out.

That couple are so cute botemp.

MrsR Bobbi Brown counter staff are excellent. I’ve been to more make up counters than I can remember and B.B. are by far the most skilled and patient. Some more than others obviously but all very well trained and good with colour and tones. I haven’t tried a B.B. lipstick personally but my friend likes them. You could always get a colour match there and try to find a similar shade elsewhere if you weren’t sure about their own products.

Those who’ve already bought it, how long did the stole take to arrive? I just checked the measurements and it’s quite big isn’t it?! Not entirely sure how or where I’ll wear it but it was so lovely I was swayed. I am cool toned though so hopefully it’ll suit.

Oh yes Chanel counters are very good. Chanel lipsticks are my favourite too.

I haven’t found a proper red I really get on with yet. I have a couple of Besame ones which are a great colour but against my very pale white skin it’s a bit BAM! I tend to stick with berries and plums in Autumn and Winter. They’re still bold and pigmented but don’t seem as tricky as true red.

^for me I mean. I still gaze with awe at anyone I see with bold red lips. Instant cool.

DH is from Paris and his female friends certainly know how to party in fact they always say they have to tone it down for the little English girl, that's me. They drink lots of champagne and one New Year three of them were naked by 10pm. Had to escape when it appeared to be going in a partner swapping direction.

Enid I think the stole took 4 or 5 days to arrive, it was sent from Portugal. Hope you like it as much as I do!

I love this thread. But, from the rural depths of Cornwall, I would have to observe, it doesn't work here. Here.we have horny handed sons and daughters who toil, physically and all hours, to scrape a living.

The full-on Parisienne doesn’t work in more muddy environs, I agree, but I do genuinely feel better for having taken a bit of inspiration from this and bunging some earrings in, some lippy and wearing my ‘best’ coat even if I’m just popping to the supermarket. It might not pass muster in Paris but I feel a tiny bit more glam for making a tiny bit more effort, I must say.

My coat was second-hand, so was my nice bag (a lovely,structured, deep brown leather rucksack, much nicer than it sounds honest, which I’ve also started using everyday) so it works even if you’re a bit skinted.

Thanks Gone that’s not too long. Although I always seem to order things on a Friday which adds to the waiting time.

This thread is so brilliant. I have a burgundy faux fur snood that I remembered I had and wore it today. It was so cosy and made me feel a little bit glamorous on the school run. I tend to live in jumpers, jeans and boots so every little helps.
Does anyone have any ideas on how to style the stole Botemp has probably made a best seller at Parfois.
I have dark olive skin so not sure if it would suit me, but it would be lovely if it did.

I love Japanese style. The French and the Japanese seem to have a long mutual love affair, judging by the most enormous branch of Muji I ever saw, and the Uniqlos, and the many beautifully dressed Japanese people in Paris. There's a natural affinity there with the minimalist aesthetic.