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

[botemp]

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

Hi Everyone, I found this thread a while ago and have been slowly trying to catch up right from the start! @Botemp - you are unbelievably knowledgable and incredibly generous with all of your advice and links and ideas - really amazing. Thank you so much. I have just got to the part in Post Deux where you finished last year's advent calendar so am loving that this year's one has started!! I live in France (just outside of Paris) and since starting to read this thread have really noticed a lot of the things that @Botemp and others mention about the French and their style/attitude. Even though I am surrounded by French people, I hadn't necessarily picked up on lots of the things mentioned here regarding attitudes and styling. We had a family over for "apero" on Saturday night and the Mum is just one of the most stylish (and lovely!!) of the people we have befriended over here. She was wearing a beautiful cream wool (looked like wool) jumper - oversized and coming off over one shoulder with gorgeous cami-style top on underneath and a similarly toned scarf (a bit more camel in colour actually) draped over it - just beautiful. She was wearing jeans as well (just to be complete!). Anyway, very much inline with what you already discussed Bo! And, to top it all off she was wearing a most gorgeous drapey soft Maje camel coat. Just beautiful. Anyway, I just wanted to say hi and that I love this thread and - thanks @Botemp

Coat sounds great, flo. at death by scented candle, we ventured out the other weekend to a Christmas Market at a local farm... seemed like a good idea at the time, but it was a case of how many people can you cram into a marquee and how much can you charge for homemade soap.

Very happy for a Celine inspired advent, bo.

My parents are in South West France and there's certainly been demonstrations there, a lot of roundabouts and roads blocked.

flo I am liking the idea of men vintage wool / silk scarves... I will hunt in the second hand shops. I love a good find!
I have a few vintage silk ones but in summer tones so I might look at something in camel / grey

bo thank you for the recommendations on the Ace Studios and Weekday! Do you know if they shred much?

DAY 3

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New Partners

Now there’s nothing wrong with the classic palette of camel/ivory or white/navy or black but it can feel a bit ‘been there, done that’. Whilst camel is riding high in the fashion scene, pairing easily with the other colour darling, brown, it can venture overly warm and autumn-esque. Meanwhile old faithful grey has faded into the background now that it’s missing from front and centre attention. However, when paired with camel it delivers a refreshing twist to an old classic that somehow feels crisp without a white shirt in sight.

White, ivory, navy and black remain great conduit colours in updating this palette, simply swap out the dark or the light in place of grey. The addition of grey toys with the cool and warm direction of the former palette. The injection of grey doesn’t require much, can be as minimal as an accessory or it can be an entire look.

The reverse holds just as well, grey that was feeling a bit out of touch and drab can be livened up with an injection of camel. It's particularly effective when the camel is a less expected piece, eg. a pair of camel trousers rather than a coat.

Nor does it need to be confined to the winter season, works just as well in summer.

The token Parisiennes* are already on it, need I say more…

DAY 3 - DAY 3 - DAY 3 - DAY 3

I've reached my image limit for the day , will add the last pic later. Ahem MNHQ*.

flo, I didn't read your comment as crass. I do get what you mean though, even within Europe Brexit is the main news story as it is something happening within isolation and I think we're ignoring a lot, and therefore missing a lot, in the process. Orbán is destroying democracy in Hungary within precious EU borders and no one is really paying attention. Similarly, the yellow vests were protesting for weeks without notice until it got out of hand. Let's not even mention Italy...

Welcome WaterLily, feel free to join in and flatter me some more

Red, I don't know about the Tuva scarf as I don't own it but the Acne Studios one holds up really well and I've never had any noticeable shedding. I do look after my things well but I can hardly see it has aged.

Well it was a bit insensitive of me given that Catherine was posting from there but anyway!

Love, love love Day 3. I wear quite a lot of grey and had been wondering if it was starting to look a bit tired and this looks like a great way of re-booting it with no (or minimal) spending.

Red I find those men's scarves are quite plentiful in vintage shops or, even cheaper - if you have any near you - at weigh n' pay sales where, if you get silk, they literally cost pence. There are some lovely colours, very flamboyant in a restrained kind of way. I also love - athough these are much harder to find now - the white silk 'opera scarves'. I don't normally do white but for these, I make an exception whether it suits me or not. I used to have a beautiful monogrammed one that I gave away to my husband I thought I'd find another fairly easily but I'm still looking.

Hello again all, I've fallen off the thread, it's been busy in JonSnow household (if any of you frequent parenting threads you may have seen me there).

And I come in time for the advent calendar! Thank you bo what a treat. How delightful. I love the grey and camel combination, I remember we have been talking about it when I deliberated whether to buy those grey cropped trousers from Cos (I did, and I wear them a lot - although with colder weather coming I do need to get some ankle boots with taller shaft, and I don't seem to find the right ones anywhere).

Thank you also for the PP pictures, I love the silhouettes of the first three especially. The soft rose and yellow make me yearn for spring already...

My most recent style epiphany came from watching Killing Eve. Everybody was talking about Vilanelle's designer clothes and range of outfits but actually I thought that Fiona Shaw character killed the winter dressing in Russia scenes. And I realised why my earrings never work with scarves - because I always go for dangly earrings. Duh! She had some really interesting large stud earrings that really worked with big soft scarves and polo necks.

Oh, I wear lots of grey, mixing it up is a great idea, bo. I look positively ill in shades of beige and camel, but this is a nice way to introduce it, maybe with taupe or brown and grey?

JonSnow I find I can wear some lightweight long earrings with polo necks or scarves, but they need some kind of back so they stay on. I remember in a previous earring wearing phase losing quite a few as the scarf pushed the earring out of my ear!

flo I used to "borrow" one of my dad's silk cravats (that he never wore) as a teenager in a green paisley pattern.

I love, love the day 3 advent! My favourite so far. Thank you Bo

quirky yes I get asked if I am ok if I wear certain shades of camel ... although I have an old sleeveless cashmere top in a very light shade of camel (light shades usually work well on me), I also have a pair of wool grey trousers ... I am trying to think the tone, towards dark grey ... like a rodent grey 😂 if there is such a thing ...
What should I wear under the sleeveless top ... maybe I will get them out later, photo and send for inspiration or to be told - do not dare go out in those 😂

Redandblue I know what you mean about a very light beige. I was thinking that I used to have a Windsmoor camel coat (sadly lost to moths ) that was a pale camel with a fur collar that was slightly cool toned and that worked well. Yes, to rodent grey, I tend to think of it as elephant grey, it goes with most colours.

Here are my camel and grey pieces in my winter wardrobe.
Would you wear the top with sleeveless cami underneath? Or a long sleeve? What colour?

Redandblue would a slim fitting long-sleeved t-shirt work underneath? Maybe in a toning grey/camel? I have a short-sleeved jumper dress, that I wear a long-sleeved t-shirt underneath which is similar. They look gorgeous, btw.

Back in the UK and blinded by the flair and bling of Christmas on absolutely everything.

Does this Cos coat count as a dark camel - www.cosstores.com/en_gbp/women/new-arrivals/product.double-breasted-wool-coat-light-walnut.0689517003.html - I've been admiring for it a while.

Black Friday stuff still hasn't arrived, so grr to that. John Lewis trainers did though and are keepers so that's quite happy-making.

I don't have my ears pierced but I've been wondering if I should go for it.

Loving the calendar as usual.

Hi redandblue, and welcome, mind if I ask where the skirt is from?

Depending on how you feel about your upper arms, Red, I'd go with an off white long sleeve. Otherwise you could try a black slimfit long sleeve (possibly with turtleneck) with the trousers, think it might look too much like you're wearing a black bodysuit if you do black opaques under the skirt as well. I'm always a bit odd about bare arms in winter but at an overheated party that may work.

Catherine, I refer to my MM coat as Camel when technically it's more of a cognac but it performs the same function so I'm not that precious about the terminology, actual camel hair coats have quite a unique colouring that isn't really emulated by mainstream camel. I'd still count that coat as camel-esque. Have you seen it in RL? It has greenish undertones which make me look really sallow but if you're more rosy undertoned it shouldn't be as draining in colour.

Thanks for the welcome @Bo! I predict that my flattery will continue because you are such a GENEROUS mine of amazing information!!

I'm still catching up on the previous threads whilst keeping up with this one! Will be interested to see if French "high street" shops have already been discussed in terms of which ones you recommend. I saw the discussion on Uniqlo cashmere. Wondering what people think in general of shops like Comptoir des Cotonniers, Maje, Sandro, APC, Sézane ... I'm sure there are lots more to be considered ... but maybe it has already been discussed and I will get to it in part deux, trois, quatre or cinq!!

I see that our fuel tax hike has been postponed for six months.

catherine skirt is from Stories, here

bo thank you for the suggestions ! You are good!

DAY 4

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Turtle in a shirt

In case you’re wondering what to do with that white shirt that suddenly looks a bit harsher than you remembered why not utilise it under a turtleneck for that slither of white.

It works well if you’re still struggling to embrace anything that isn’t a skinny leg (or weather is dictating its very practical implementation). However, a wider leg silhouette can be just as appreciative for this extra layer. Rather than a graphic sliver, it functions as a soft gradation of colour and texture.