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Les Parisiennes de Mamansnet: Orangutans in Paris make for poor gondoliers

995 replies

botemp · 21/08/2018 10:14

The sunshine might be fading from our passion fruit punch but we're looking forward to what autumn will bring.

Un

Deux

Trois

Quatre

Cinq

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Floisme · 07/10/2018 08:06

Thanks for that link Xing - good to see so much Margaret Howell love!

I enjoyed the Gabriella Hearst too although I did snort out my coffee at the 3rd century BC earrings. Grin

SophieLion · 07/10/2018 09:51

Hello all, I've still been following this fantastic thread but not posting as sadly I can't keep up.

I've just bought these trousers which I love but they are far too long so I need to take them up. I want to be able to wear them with heels (not super high stiletto ones though) as well as flats. Is it possible to find a length that works with both? And do I first measure them against the heels and see if they work and then try on with flats or better the other way round? Thank you.

Floisme · 07/10/2018 10:17

Love those trousers Sophie. I don't wear heels so I'm not the best person to answer but I'm wondering if they would work with an adjustable turn up like these Me and Em transformers? I'm sure some heel wearers will be along soon!

XingMing · 07/10/2018 11:54

Yes, Flo! A couple of GH's purchases had that effect on me. Clearly much deeper pockets than most people... Is she somehow related to the Hearsts of publishing fortune?

Nice trousers Sophie. I think I'd be asking a friend to pin them to a similar level on me as shown on the model who seems to be wearing lowish heeled boots, which would also work with a substantial brogue/trainer/flatform sole. But it would be hard to get the length perfect without help I think.

Floisme · 07/10/2018 12:11

Yeh I instantly thought of Patti Hearst and googled. (Well it is Sunday.) Gabriella's married to John Augustine Hearst, who appears to be the son of William Randolph Hearst Junior.

XingMing · 07/10/2018 13:02

While I like her designs and not wishing to detract from the success she has achieved, the clothes are very Upper East Side. And it must help to have a publishing empire to spread the word. I like her a little less now, or is that insufficiently feminist of me?

botemp · 07/10/2018 13:59

What? Don't we all have some prehistoric earrings laying about that we bought whilst in Gstaad Shock

It's very New York to drop the price of everything one mentions and the vacation attached to it, isn't it? Although I did give the benefit of the doubt that it may have been the way it was presented by the magazine. Also the love for the Financial Times at the end was a bit much. It's a Hearst publication IIRC?

Don't consult me on the feminist viewpoint, I'm a poor excuse of one, but I think that's very valid criticism for both her brand and the Row. They're run by people who already had an in, the right friends, etc. and probably most importantly the cash to fail without any major consequences. Considering the higher than high price points there'd be more admiration if there was a point of access for working women where a job is less choice/hobby and more essential. I'm not talking supermarket prices, or even high street for that matter, but there's a large disparity between the upper end of the high street and brands like these for professional women working up the ladder where dressing appropriately is a very difficult to navigate line. I think it's great that brands like the Row and GH are out there but what they offer should be in easier reach rather than exclusively for women just like them, who have it good and, for the most, always had it good.

Sophie, are you going to do it yourself or see a tailor? If the latter, just take two pairs of shoes with it that you intend to wear with them. There's usually about a 5cm range of difference in height by my best estimation. So low heel/flat to mid heel is doable as is mid-high but flat to high would be difficult to do. Start with flats as you want them as long as possible for the heels but not touching the floor when wearing flats, so get them almost touching the floor, if you can then go up a cm or so with the heels on consider that. But keep in mind if you wash them they will usually lose a bit of length, if they're dry clean only then there's less shrinkage.

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Floisme · 07/10/2018 14:29

Hmm I don't think I'll be fist bumping and calling her 'sister' but then again, I'm all for spending your money on beautiful things. I just hope she's ensured that all the workers in her supply chain are fairly paid.

Floisme · 07/10/2018 14:44

But that photo of her flat - with the (presumably priceless) vase just standing around on a plinth for any passing toddler or dog - made me laugh almost as much as the ''2,500$ well spent' Grin

botemp · 07/10/2018 14:50

Even though the Wiki reads a like a PR piece, GH is very on the ball when it comes to sustainability (and it's actually a lot more forward thinking/acting than most who actually make a song and dance about their credibility) and animal cruelty. I assume it means that the same fastidious attitude is carried down the supply and labour chain. Saying that, it's a lot easier for a luxury brand with money to spare to do that.

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XingMing · 07/10/2018 14:54

FT is now owned by Nikkei, but was formerly part of Pearson (says Google); I checked because I didn't think it was Hearst.

XingMing · 07/10/2018 15:00

Interesting article about stylish women over 50 in the ST Style section today for those that can get behind the paywall. All three interviewees make the point about prioritising health, fitness, and skin care over make up, while keeping hair carefully 'undone' which are cardinal rules for me.

Floisme · 07/10/2018 15:37

Dammit I've used up my 2 free articles for this week!

That reminds me about make up, I forgot to take any on holiday with me and couldn't be arsed buying any so I went totally make up free for nearly 3 weeks. And since coming back and resuming, I've not been happy with it. I don't even wear that much but it looks quite artificial and painted on. So basically I'm thinking of giving up although not for any reasons of principle. Has anyone else tried it?

XingMing · 07/10/2018 15:46

An attempt at linking. Fingers crossed

1frenchfoodie · 07/10/2018 16:45

Thanks for the Hermes collage Bo , I walk past a lot of high end designer shops daily (central Paris) and Hermes is where I’d spend my time if a rich dowager aunt died and left me her estate. I have no such aunt so I’ve yet to cross the threshold but their leather goods, wool, flow of tailoring etc look fabulous.

I may be the only one to think it but I liked that Hearst wore the earring(s?). It is a bit show offy to drop that provenence and price in but amazing to be connected to a 3BC craftsman and wearer in that way.

I was not enough of a dedicated make-up wearer to formally give it up but I find I wear less and less now. Mainly a bright lipstick.

Floisme · 07/10/2018 17:01

Oh I totally get her wearing them. It was the comment about it being money 'well spent', as if she'd been putting away £30 a month to buy them, that made me chortle.

And yes I've been wondering whether it's time to drop the rest of the make up and um... embrace lipstick. I can hear bo laughing from here.

The link won't work for me Xing but thanks for trying - I think I can get another 2 articles from tomorrow.

botemp · 07/10/2018 18:31

It probably was money well spent, I assume they're insured and they'll only appreciate in value over time. I'm quite amazed that something so old can just be worn out and about though. Admittedly, I am being a bit of a Euro snob about the dropping of all the price tags within the conversation, but I do suspect that's catering to the FT audience, or rather what the FT projects their audience to be.

French, but you've got to go snoop in the St Germain Hermes store that's in a converted art deco swimming pool, I mean ignore the clothes (sans price tags) and just gawk along with all the other tourists and feel up a bit of leather while you're there.

I have to say I'm getting somewhat annoyed with the less is more/sensible diet and exercise vs. excess and purge narrative because it continues to be framed as the one and only proper way to do things. It works for me, for the most part because I'm too lazy to bother with much and I'm lucky that the hair, skin, and nail genes worked out in favour of bone idleness, mostly, but I'm not a fan of enforcing it on everyone.

Flo's considering bright lipsticks?

Grin
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XingMing · 07/10/2018 19:27

Is that the swimming pool that used to be a night club?

botemp · 07/10/2018 19:50

Les Bains (I think that's what it was/is called)? I'm not sure, thought that was in the Marais.

Totally forgot about the collages today. They're the staples, the ones I'll continue to always have a look out for for some time now for their consistent easthetic so there's not much to say about them really, just lots of lovely gazing. Although I don't know what will become of Joseph now that the head designer left and I'm not sure who replaced her.

Les Parisiennes de Mamansnet: Orangutans in Paris make for poor gondoliers
Les Parisiennes de Mamansnet: Orangutans in Paris make for poor gondoliers
Les Parisiennes de Mamansnet: Orangutans in Paris make for poor gondoliers
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botemp · 07/10/2018 19:52

Bonus collage for Flo. Quite like the Victorian chimney sweeper/paper boy looks, haven't seen that for a bit.

Les Parisiennes de Mamansnet: Orangutans in Paris make for poor gondoliers
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quirkychick · 07/10/2018 21:13

Love the Joseph and Margaret Howell! I could do the chimney sweep or Artful Dodger look, tweed jacket, baker boy cap, wide-legged trousers, but I'm much more likely to mix it up a bit, tbh.

I haven't read the ST Style section yet (it's somewhere about and I'll catch up with it this week). bo, I think the right way to do things is whatever works for you. I do find, as I get older, good diet and moderate exercise works for me, it doesn't mean I don't lapse from time to time, though Grin.

Bright lipstick, has someone hacked into flo's account?

Floisme · 08/10/2018 09:43

Grin Yes this is Flo's evil twin.

I know ... Quelle comeuppance! But something about my make up isn't working any more, probably hasn't for a while but I'm only noticing now because I've had a break from it. It might be that I need to change my foundation again which would be annoying as I've just splashed out on some more Bobbi Brown. Or I'm wondering if it's because I'm not wearing much colour at the moment so need a bit more on my face to compensate. And if my blue eyeshadow days are over, that really only leaves my mouth.

So as I'm not In work till later today, I'm experimenting: no make up, just lipstick. I resisted the urge to wipe it all off straight away and am now glaring at the stain on my coffee cup. It'll all be gone in an hour anyway.

Thanks for the Margaret Howell collage bo!

botemp · 08/10/2018 12:36

If Flo starts talking about a crisp white shirt I think we're obliged to organise an intervention Wink

Have you tried diluting the foundation with a bit of moisturiser? I've never worn foundation, I had a dalliance with tinted moisturiser for about a year and a half but it just feels a bit much now. Especially when you've had a break from it.

Quirky, obviously with diet/exercise, a moderate and measured approach has good scientific backing, so I don't question that at all but I hate the lumping together of it all. Reality is, it isn't achievable for many and I'd rather not support an ongoing narrative that makes people feel shit about themselves because they don't measure up to something presented as easily managed when it isn't. Never mind the cost, simplicity is always far more expensive than it appears.

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Floisme · 08/10/2018 12:51

Now then there's a thought. I used to dilute my foundation like that but gave up on moisturiser a couple of years ago due to various skin sensitivities. So I now just moisturise with almond or wheatgerm oil plus a touch of sunscreen which is possibly leaving a faint cast. I will ponder on that, thanks.

The lipstick didn't last an hour - it was way too full on. I'm trying again with a pinkier shade in case it was just the colour, but I still don't like the feel of it.

I do like lipstick on other people by the way - I just can't get it to work for me.

If I ever start wanting a crisp white shirt it will mean I have officially lost the plot and you can't start crowdfunding for a one way ticket to Switzerland.