Catching up, I think it may very well be that COS discriminates against pear shapes somewhat, and petites. It's mostly ample apples, straight up and down types and hourglasses that do well there. I love the look of that dress Elle, never seen an online exclusive with them before though. Although in my case it's usually the things that look promising that look awful and the things that look dreadful on a hanger or the online models that look good on me at COS.
Speaking of COS' antisocial marketing, remember that wooly conceptual 'tribe' new millennial brand from H&M I mentioned yonks ago, linking to that delightfully poncy article 
. Was supposed to launch in Jan IIRC but got an email today to expect something soon, good luck to them, apparently, H&M is sitting on $4.5 billion worth of stock that isn't shifting...
I have a grudge to bear with Alois Guinut (though I'm sure the book will be nice, but unlikely to offer much new, but who knows), she was once featured in the Guardian revealing her 'best' shopping addresses as you can book her as a sort of stylist session whilst visiting Paris. A lot of shops I never heard of, went to check them out and they were all universally shite...
Auld, are you doing an ACV and clay mask? I did that once, and whilst nice (mine had jojoba oil and rice bran oil in too) I kept finding dried clay everywhere for weeks 
peony, the band on SMc is smaller so if you're wearing one size up for comfort that size usually is ok, just a touch snugger at first, otherwise size one up. Bottoms I've not noticed them being smaller or bigger than other brands but they are generally cut lower on the stomach.
Sock, I want that coat for myself! Definitely, pull up the vendor, by EU law all e-commerce retailers have to accept returns within a certain time frame (can't remember if it's 7 or 14 days). There is a 'but' coming, I'm not a fan of the justification that you'll wear it forever hence it's worth the money. It's so easy to slip into that when it's a pricey item, I think the problem is that you're then inclined to keep it for best (as it was costly, and to be worn for special occasions, etc.) and realistically doesn't come out much. I can see that working far beyond regular formal wear, as a trans-seasonal outer coat over a woolly (charcoal) jumper. I think the doubling up of coats should work well for men too, the extra bulk usually flatters, so he can experiment wearing it under or over another coat to make it less formal. Combining it with (vintage) denim could be exciting, there's something vaguely Kimono-esque about it.
Midlife, I really don't like the neighbourhood around Gare du Nord and wouldn't be all that comfortable staying there on my own. Is there not a shuttle service from Le Palais de Congres, that was the case last time I visited a trade fair in Paris at La Villette and the hotels there are very cheap and the RER A connection into Paris is very quick as it's train rather than Metro, it's 10 mins at most IIRC.