Bonne année, Parisiennes de Mamansnet! C'est Le nouveau thread full of nouveau ideés!

[TossDaily]

Excuse the franglais.

Here it is - the third thread in the series, where we add a little je ne sais quoi to our lives, inspired by the style of our souers across the Channel.

Thanks to our top contributor and style guru Botemp, we are finding ways to lift ourselves out of the style doldrums with a slash of red on the lips, a touch of white where it counts, an insouciant scarf or even an over the knee sock or two for the brave among us.

Take it as far as you dare, Mariannes!

Bo, I think the term is a bit of a flexible one, which can be used to mean a range of things, and fairly often pejoratively. It often means "libéral" and Keynesian, I think.
But I've seen and heard people refer, in articles and in speech, to "the Anglo-Saxon education system", for instance, which is pretty meaningless given that even within the UK there are fairly big differences and those systems differ hugely from the American one. And "Anglo-Saxon contract law" is just as peculiar, since contract law in Scotland isn't identical to English contract law...
In the French university system, the National University Council, which oversees hiring and promotion of lecturers and professors, is divided into sections according to the areas of study and research, one of which is entitled "Langues et littératures anglaises et anglo-saxonnes". Since these are supposed to be the specialists of that field, it's weird that they think that's a good name for it.
This is neither stylish nor beautiful, though . Just a bugbear of mine.

VitaminC, sorry if my post seemed snippy.
I wasn't really offended, and it's interesting that you use the term to mean the whole English-speaking world, while Bo sees it as more limited than that... Which confirms my feeling that it's quite flexible in meaning.

I'm pretty I was never able to pass the pencil test beyond the age of about 12 and my boobs were certainly not very big. Wonder where that test originated.

Oh and another annoying/useful link. Can't remember who it was looking for a blazer a la Ines dlF in the navy blazer and grey sweatshirt pic. That was actually from her collection for Uniqlo, a similar one is on eBay, they just lowered the price, it's navy but slightly darker with stripes in a size S. link here

Hmm you think it goes back further than the modern definition, maybe, possibly? It is odd, that it's used officially like that, it also makes it sound like they'll be invaded any moment now...

I think it may well reflect a fear of invasion. Maybe in a post-Brexit world that will recede...

AuldAlliance (love your name ) - as a fellow Scot, I also get mildly irritated at "Anglo-Saxon". I can accept "English speaking" as that is the language that we speak more or less intelligibly . (I'm Bearsden/Milngavie raised, so speak a clear posh version ).

(I spent a year in Provence, in Bagnols-sur-Cèze, as an assistante as part of my French degree)

bo it was me!! Thank you! I’m a 10-12 do you think a small would be too small for me? I’ve only recently made my first uniqlo purchase (a coat in a small which is a perfect fit) so I’m not used to their sizing.

I find them coming in big but people swear up and down they're small so I don't know. I need an XXS with them at a 6 so S at 10 would work by that logic, and I personally prefer a blazer a little tight as I never wear them closed. So long as boobs are not massive or you have extra weight on arms it should be ok, I guess. They seem a bit desperate to sell, think I only saw it come up a few days ago, meant to flag it on here then but forgot, now dropped 10 pounds and got the notification.

I found the Ines blazer a bit scratchy when I saw it in the store a while back.

Boden actually had some nice ones in the sale.

That makes a lot of sense bo re changing silhouettes. How long do you hang onto stuff for whilst you wait to see if it comes back in? Clearly the if you haven't worn it in 6 months/a year you won't ever wear it so get rid advice isn't helpful here...

I have a question about jewellery. Was watching Justine Le Conte and she says French women tend to wear all one metal in whichever best suits their undertones. The majority of fashion jewellery now is in yellow gold (and as an aside I bought a funky IM necklace in the sales which I am very excited about receiving!) which is somewhat at odds with this. I am cool toned but tend to wear much more gold as I associate silver with my teenage years (and virtually all my decent jewellery is in gold) and am wondering if I am committing some huge faux pas by this? I've found myself looking at more mixed metal pieces recently in an attempt to bring some silver into it to work with my undertones more. Any thoughts on my ramblings?

Re HOC, I paid £40 for an online consultation mainly out of curiosity, and was diagnosed as a soft summer. I can see it, but find a lot of the colours don't particularly appeal, and the stylist's outfit boards were quality frankly depressing and would have aged me beyond belief!

Style emergency!!! DH has just announced he'd like to buy me a Hermes scarf for our upcoming wedding anniversary. I will go and have a look but not 100% about Hermes- any other brands worth a look at? I'm thinking silk scarf to be worn as an accessory rather then warmth- I really don't need warmth in my current country of residence!!

What size scarves do you like?

Do not go unhesitatingly to HOC! I understand it to be crap based on my mum's experience (early 50s). F you have some sense of your own style I think it can be helpful, but if you're very hesitant then I think it can be very dowdy.

Canters I think wear the jewellery you like and enjoy - much of this thread is about finding your own style. Also gold is nice again now. If you looked dreadful in yellow gold I think you'd know by now to avoid it.

Hello all. Finally decided to put pen to paper finger to screen...

As the English born and raised daughter of a Parisian mother who never looks anything other than obviously Parisian (whilst I always look anything but ) I think I could well do with being more proactively engaged with this thread in order to receive more detailed inspiration/tips to be more like my DM!

bloomed I generally prefer big, drapey scarves. My only other expensive scarf is the McQueen skull print which I find a good size, though wouldn't mind it being a bit bigger.

Mary yes that's a good point, it definitely doesn't look dreadful on me. I bought a necklace a few months ago in silver and mint green (rather then the gold and pink I was drawn to) because the sales assistant said it looked better with my colouring. Whilst I don't doubt that's true it doesn't feel like me and consequently I've barely worn it.

Loving this thread. It's astonishing how much more I've been able to make of my wardrobe (and hopefully myself) just with a few tips from here. Thank you all so much!

A few random thoughts: the only thing I'm wary of is falling into the trap of dressing 'older' than I need to. As I've mentioned on a million s&b threads recently I've just started embracing the grey in my hair, which I really like. But that, coupled with a short crop, red lipstick, plus 'grown-up' clothes has me a little worried I'm going too far in the opposite direction to my usual 'scruffy mature student' look . I've tried to keep things balanced with trainers, casual rolled-up sleeves, interesting shapes etc but wouldn't mind some tips on keeping things looking 'cool' as well as classic, iyswim?

I know I'm getting older and I have no issue with that but I don't want to look significantly older than I already am!

Also - textures. I like the idea of keeping a fairly limited palette (mine is really just black, grey, silver, navy and a bit of dark green/wine) and using texture instead but have never really thought about it before now! Perhaps this just happens naturally when one starts to buy better-quality clothes?

Anyway random train musings, have a lovely day all!

I had my colours done by HoC a while ago. I found it useful to an extent - I am an autumn but had always thought I was cool toned (as I have dark hair, pale skin). It has meant I can finally find lipsticks that suit me and also gave me the confidence to buy, say, a bright orange jumper, as I know I look good in that colour, rather than defaulting to black.
Saying that, I wouldn't want to follow their colour palette slavishly as they tend to encourage lots of different colours together and it can all look a bit CBeebies presenter on me. I also find that 'my colours' are only available in certain types of clothes. There aren't many summery clothes in orange/teal/etc. But for lipstick, scarves, colour close to the face it has proved very useful. I also enjoyed the experience of being fussed over by an obsequious stylist!

Is there a good way to tell what suits best - gold or silver? I have tried holding both up to my face in daylight, but I can't seem to see any real difference. I have dark brown hair, blue-grey eyes and fair skin if that helps any.

Drools at the Stella Luna shoes. Had never even heard of that brand!

Thanks for all the thoughts on shape and shirts botemp I've added chambray and silk shirts to my watch list and put a trip to Antwerp on my bucket list.

Still waiting on my assortment of boots to arrive. Some will be going back, but I may post here for advice when I can try on.

I think my outfit today is getting close, but when I looked in the mirror at work I realised that I really need a belt and probably a necklace (fine chain) of some sort to pull it together. It looks a bit bare. I lay my clothes out the night before beacuse I have very early starts and mornings are hectic with the kids, but have typically not included accessories, possibly throwing on something that comes to hand while heading out the door. It's not the most thoughtful way to dress. I think I need to include jewellery and bags in the prep.
This is the wool blazer I have on today. I'm taking baby steps so it's just with jeans and a white t-shirt and boots. I picked it up in the sales locally for EUR 595 so significantly cheaper than Matches . I don't think it looks amazing online, but the wool is lovely and the sleeves are lined in contrasting silk (beige) which makes them looks really nice when turned up IMO and of course easy to slip into. Does that sound like I'm approaching the look?

Canters15 Silk scarves are not my thing, but I do have a giant cashmere / silk shawl from Hermes. I think they call them stoles. I wear that a fair bit cowboy style with a jacket / coat when it's cold here, but it sounds like you may not be in a climate where that makes sense? I suspect it's not very Parisienne though. like this shawl

That blazer is gorgeous toElle! I have been having a pre-move clearout and discovered an old blue Paul & Joe blazer that I thought I'd chucked out ages ago. The sleeves are just the perfect length.

Joyeux 2018, mesdames Parisiennes. A big thank you (I think) for the Soeur jeans link; I am taken with the Cédric cords in dark green, and hoping the sale starts soon, but slightly fearful about getting the size right. I am a Euro 36/38 in another brand I buy sometimes, so any advice?

Re looking cool in 'grown up' clothes. I sometimes prefer to buy 'classics' (not that I really believe in classics) from the fast fashion stores. I know you lose out in quality but the cut and the small details will be current and they make a big difference. I also think you can get away with a lot more if your hair and accessories are modern. And I change my specs every couple of years although the cost nearly kills me.

Am loving this thread. Haven’t caught up completely but just read that gold is back, thank God because I never stopped —and probably looked frumpy for years— .

Canters if it's too hot for scarves where you live, perhaps a nice watch/bag/jewellery is a more suitable present. I'm sure he wouldn't want to buy something that won't actually get used?

Rr gold/ silver, I read (probably on MN!), that most people could wear either, so I bought a gold necklace, and a couple of outfits with gold in (a black tweed dress with gold flecks and a black tee with gold stars), but they feel wrong every time I wear them, so I am going to stick with silver! Is it “cool” colouring for silver? I look better in white than cream, which I once read makes me a “winter”, but am not sure how useful it is!