Les Parisiennes des Mamansnet: Too much good taste can be very boring. Independent style, on the other hand, can be very inspiring.

[botemp]

Lovers of Parisian style and fashion with a conscious mindset and lots of chatter in between.

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Favoured Parisian addresses:

Second Hand Shops

Outlets

Favoured London addresses:

Charity Shops, Dress Agencies, and Outlets

Favoured NYC addresses:

Consignment shops, Vintage, and Restaurants

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Previous threads:

Un

Deux

Trois

Quatre

Cinq

Six

Sept

Huit

I skall link to icebugs for you.

These are without metal spikes but with some sort of super tread by Michelin and the ones I’m thinking of getting because a friend has them and likes them a lot icebug.se/p/wander-w-michelin-wic-coffee

And these have more hardcore metal spikes for really icy roads icebug.se/p/speed-w-bugrip-r-true_-black

Oh now I want icebugs! I have seen them and tried them before when I went to Norway in the winter a couple of years ago. I was very tempted as I tend to do a fair amount of winter walking/trekking and a week in a skiing place too where I like to walk around. I liked them as they were ice proof, which to be honest would be very useful those few weeks a years as I live up a hill and need to do a mile walk down hill to train station and in winter I find myself wanting to ice skate! But I am not spending now so will pass

Ok, today a work from home/appointments day so my outfit is a green silk cami (second hand Karen Millen) that I never worn before (2 years lost in draw) and a second hand silk oversized shirt that I bought in Brighton years ago and probably worn a handful of times as I always had a bit of an issue with that colour on me. But I think looks ok. I tried it different ways and settled for just peeking and one side at the bottom leaving the detail of the cami out and the shirt in a loose knot.

And here at Bani’s request the kimono top in yellowish colours. The first one is the ‘original’ bought in Malaysia a good 13-15 years ago. The photo comes out as shiny satin, is more matte and fabric texture lovely. I used to wear it loads.
10 years ago when I was living in the Middle East I took it to the local souk and asked a tailor if they could copy it and make another one, I bought an inexpensive cotton with turquoise colours and they put that satin edge. A tailor in the Middle East would charge you something equivalent to £8-10 to do that job. They were all men and all were in rows in this market with only a sewing machine and a few threads, each had a space no wider than 1.5 mts.
Basically I wanted something cool (wide sleeves provided that) and modest for a dessert life. They were mainly doing repairs for robes and abayas.
A few years ago I took the fastenings out to see how it would look open (you can see the green cami detail here)
Haven’t worn them for a few years now.

red you just need what we call dubbar. www.apotea.se/slip-stopper-halkskydd-medium They’re the cheap option. ;) The councils in Sweden sometimes give them out for free to old people so they don’t break their hips and cost us money.

I loooove the kimonos! And esp this telling spelling mishap modest for a dessert life 😂😂😂 the turquoise is quite bright though outside of the brilliant southern sunshine so I can see that you might slip into using it less. I have a brown kimono top a bit like your yellow one there I have steadily refused to get rid of I think it’s so wearable! So nice to find things like that again. Thank you for pics

The silk cami is very unusual too, a bit of a wardrobe find! Nice details.

Dessert life and more

bani at the slush, yes, that's what we tend to have here too. I think we just caught Stockholm in the fresh snow the weekend we went, so we're lucky. In ice I've used www.amazon.co.uk/YakTrax-Walker-Traction-Device/dp/B001CZJBKM?tag=mumsnetforu03-21 yaktrax over boots (I did have some similar to your dubbar ones, but these stayed on better. Though, this year I have my Sorel boots, so wonder if they need yaktrax as they have soles like the dubbar? The icebergs look good too.

red love your kimonos, I don't often go for yellow, but that soft lemony yellow is one I can wear, actually. They look very Noel Coward or Oscar Wilde, very beautiful.

I agree that I'm also that generation who had lots of help, university fees were paid by the local education authority. Also, house prices in London were low (though mortgage rates, not so much) in the mid 90s.

Sorel might be very unslippy too, I haven't had a pair myself. I'm just falling for the Icebug marketing about how great their soles are. I'm doing about an hour walking every day and it's working well with my calorie counting, so am (already) panicking a little over what to do when the pavements are crap. I like walking, it's easy and requires nothing of me - no coordination, no planning. Metal grips on the shoes are great for pure ice but not as great when the tarmac is clean (or when you step into a shop). My runners (trainers) have very slippery soles so this has been on my mind a lot. Ideally I'd have runners AND boots.

This is however not Parisian style at all, lol.

I was listening to a radio programme the other day where they interviewed a tailor/seamstress kalled Kerstin Neumüller, who with her partner runs a shop in Stockholm called Second Sunrise. secondsunrise.se/ She was talking about mending and repairing clothes, denim in particular. Her passion is giving people back control over their lives through being competent and learning how to take care of - mend - their clothes, instead of only being consumers and getting new things. Consumers are people who are easily led, she said. If you can do things for yourself you become a stronger person. That hit home!

Yeah, the yaktrax only work if it's properly icy (they are in fact quite slippy on normal surfaces) so some years I don't even need them. The icebugs look lovely, I also walk a lot, bani so need weatherproof footwear too.

I think mending clothes is becoming a lost art. I regularly have a pile to mend/alter.

I too need modest when I’m living my best dessert life.
Packing up the house is having me wear things I haven’t worn in ages- the thought process is ‘haven’t worn this in literally years , should get rid! No I like it I’ll wear it tonight.... ’. Good and bad - this finery dress is an example. Too boyfriend’s shirt to pass at work which had been my original idea so hardly worn (eBay originally), but I do like it. I think they were the wrong shoes though.

Slightly changing topics. My hairdryer died a ghd one that I wasn’t over the moon with and had spent good money on.
Do you recommend anything? Other thread is recommending parlux.
I need something half decent as I have a lot of hair that if left to dry on its own ... it would be very damp hours on, even worst in winter.
Suggestions welcome

Ah don’t ask me - mine is from 1993 or so and still going strong. Nightmare if that dies.

Red I love the silk shirt and the cami - that green would be awful on me, but looks great on you.

Time that dress is lovely.

As to boots, I quite like the Icebugs! Alas I'm looking for sledging boots and they aren't high enough. I've been eyeing up some Sorel boots - they look warm and promise to be waterproof. Ice isn't such an issue here - it's trudging through the woods in snow = wet and cold feet! I won't use them often, but they would be great to have when we do get snow.

I did cave today and order the burgundy oversized jumper from the H&M Studio collection. If that isn't great, Olive have a couple of options I like the look of.

Olive?

Olive!

www.oliveclothing.com/

lightningstrikes, I bought some Sorel boots at the end of last winter, but didn't really have much chance to try them in bad weather. Mine aren't the traditional duck style, but lace all the way down, as the reviews said that Sorels could be quite narrow and I have high insteps, though this may not be a problem for you. They are very warm and kind of bouncy cushioned to walk in. Mine aren't very high, either but they come in a knee high version: these, but in grey.

www.amazon.co.uk/Sorel-Womens-GLACY-EXPLORER-SHORTIE/dp/B01N7HR0KT?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

I'm a bit allergic to people claiming 'taking back control', Bani. Granted I'm a control freak, so that probably explains a lot 😬 but anecdotally I don't feel any loss of control by getting someone else to mend or repair something even though I'm perfectly capable of it myself. They just have to meet my high standards and because I know how it should be done that's an easy measurement. That's the rub really, being this demanding of yourselves and others isn't necessarily healthy either.

The dress is very nice time, but I get what you mean with it being a challenging thing to wear. It suits a dressed up shoe and then the range of the dress becomes limited.

Red, I have an ancient Remington that does the job in an emergency as I only ever really dry my hair in an emergency. My hairdresser recommends a Parlux or a Dyson (uses both in the salon). I've tried the Dyson a few times on my own and fail to see any benefit to other hairdryers on my hair. I find the Parlux a bit hot on my scalp but I have fine hair.

Some interesting reads in the guardian:

There's a French fleabag with the actress (my fave character) from call my agent. Hoping this one will be on Netflix too.

Also, wasn't aware William's vintage in London was under French direction, not really the focus of the article but an interesting read regardless.

I assumed it was the mending/repairing rather than who did it that had control. But I would see it as more giving you choice, you can still wear this or buy something new.

In that spirit, my french fisherman's cap has arrived, which is obviously new, but I'm hoping to wear it for years. I have a very warm, grey baker boy cap that I wear loads, but it is wool and wool/fleece lined so need something less cosy for milder weather. In the photo, I am wearing it with secondhand jigsaw, petrol dress and old M&S cashmere cardi (it's cool in my house, but warmer outside). It probably needs red lipstick and a gaulloise to do it justice, though . I would probably wear it with my hair up. It came beautifully wrapped in tissue from De Toujours.

Interesting article, bo, I have worn secondhand my entire adult life, but never gone for the retro look you get at vintage fairs. I think because I tend to mix styles up or alter clothes and I'm not a fan of the victory roll look.

I do get what was trying to be said, capitalism thrives on a special kind of stupid that feeds a sense of urgency to continue on spending endlessly. In essence, knowledge is power and breaks that habit/force. I would think agency is a better term than control, probably because the phrase 'taking back control' is now pretty much synonymous with populist rhetoric.

The hat looks great as do the locks, quirky, lovely to see them dry and enviously frizz free.

I was attempting the dropped waist again but didn't have a belt that worked in the colour palette, so just for a try I grabbed a skirt with a grey accent waist just to see how it would work but then ended up with a skirt over trousers look instead. It sort of has the secondary line at the hips but I'm not sure it qualifies as a dropped waist look, but I liked the unexpected discovery. Tried on a few long line roll necks at Cos to aid in my dropped waist experiments, they come in a few nice colours but they're far too transparent, unfortunately.

Weather was a bit idiosyncratic today, warmish at 21° but cooler in the morning, hence the odd choice of shoes. It'll be quite nice until Monday so I'm glad I didn't put away all summer clothes yet and can put off feeling like a morose toad again for a few days.

I agree that agency or choice is a better word than control, bo.

If my hair is frizzy it tends to be put up . It definitely has a tendency to fluff up .

I like the skirt combinations, what a shame the cos roll necks were see through, the last pic is a lovely colour. Weather here is weird too, chilly first thing then quite windy and humid. I went for sleeveless dress with trainers and cardi, then sandals, then took off cardi...

They had a lovely orange one as well. I really liked this latte/mushroom(?) colour too which was the same roll neck but with a longer body length. That really did the job of showing me the potential of the dropped waist. Can only attach a pic with blazer on top as the others would be far too revealing.

I am currently double frizzy, jus the usual that comes with any sign of humidity and the new hair growth which is just sticking up like a halo that reads as frizz

You have to make allowances for my on the spot translating dontchaknow. ;) I don’t suppose the woman minds people paying her to mend things, but she seemed passionate about teaching people that mending wasn’t that difficult really, since she had a lot of customers saying “oh I could never do that, I can’t sew” etc. Agency might be a better word alright haha.

Time I like that dress but it seems hard to wear alright. Are you keeping it or letting it wander on?

Haven’t watched Fleabag, saw 15 minutes and it seemed depressing. Also my husband’s laugh was annoying me, he was laughing as if it was only funny and it was bloody dark. But I enjoyed the interview there, the idea of a French fleabag is so ... what word am I looking for? When two things are so different you can’t imagine people seeing similarities? Something like that.

Have to admit I tried dropping a waist myself the other day (🐑) just by wearing my top on the outside like. With the right top it’s nice, but I run the risk of looking like I’m trying to hide something. Then I spilled tomato sauce on those trousers so didn’t take a photo. I shall return to the matter.

I noticed those Cos tops when flicking through the website and I agree the colours are lovely but so so transparent. Very annoying.

Attaching pic of today’s clothes. Cardigan is cotton from Mango and I love it. It’s just perfect. They will of course never make it again.

I have a very soft spot for dresses and skirts over trousers myself, but daren’t wear them for fear of looking a bit too bohemian. But I have a dress that could pass as a tunic top ... maybe I could drop waist-ish that?

Oh I forgot: Youse’ve kept olive clothing quiet haven’t you? Some nice basics! Someone on another thread linked to another decent one, Sunspel I think it was.

I’m not buying mind you, but I like to compile mental lists of shopping options you know.

Also - is anyone else hoping already for an advent calendar?

bani, if it's your translation, fair enough, my linguistic skills are quite rusty (though, I managed with De Toujours' tracking pages in french). I like your outfit and the turban and hoover lend a certain glamorous housewife vibe . Is your cardigan a wrap around, or buttoned up? I think Olive was mentioned on one of the first threads, but I had forgotten about them, too.

bo, my hair managed to degenerate into frizz by the evening, the school pick up in warm humidity, seemed to do it.

Not the advent calendar but Justine has a nice autumn trends video

m.youtube.com/watch?v=uQAZszRlfEc

Wrap around! I love wrap around. Have a red one today - merino wool from Gap. A tad small, I'm pretending it fits. Also I'm wearing the coat! But not now, I'm boiling. Wearing a merino top as well was a mistake ;)

Kontroll in Swedish and control in English might be somewhat false friends I mean. I don't see it as negatively (ie I did in no way hear her as being sanctimonious). We shall ponder the question in our theses, eh? (had to look up the plural)

A colleague was complaining of frizzy hair only yesterday, must be a European-wide current complaint!

Ehm, I think in the delirium of finishing up the last advent calendar I demanded a Liberty's advent calendar in payment before I even contemplated making another one. I really must have been delirious as I'm pretty sure 75% of a Liberty's AC will irritate the hell out of my skin

Control is fairly innocuous in Dutch too, it just gets used to mean to check/verify something.

Yes, I mentioned Olive fairly early on, I like that they're an affordably priced ethical brand with predominantly natural fabrics. The downside is that the sizing is limited, a lot is one size or s/m/l so I've never actually ordered anything there but I do like the look of the jumpers from the latest newsletter.

I find it quite interesting which brands mentioned on here spread into the rest of the board, I've seen Olive recced by others on other threads and Bobbies has also gotten some traction.

Oh speaking of newsletters, I got this one in to continue our interpretive Anglo fashion watch. I must admit I was quite amused by the idea of a punk going in for a manicure, hair appointment, and supping on a black hamburger with a rose latte. (24s is the e-shop of LVMH owned luxury department store Le Bon Marche).