Les Parisiennes des Mamansnet: Ce n'est pas bon de faire du lèche-vitrines avec de l'argent en poche

[botemp]

Lovers of Parisian style and fashion with a conscious mindset and lots of chatter in between. Feel free to join in

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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

Neuf

Dix

Merch in celebration of our tenth (previous) thread:

Les Parisiennes de Mamansnet shop

flo, they look lovely. I really like the pleats down the front. I do like Toast clothes just not the pretentious waffle that goes with them.

My leather flip-flops have finally arrived, after being held up with all the other international shipping. I was torn between two sizes, as the gladiators that I have have some extra room in front of the toes which I thought might cause me to trip in flip-flops. I ended up sizing down, which means there is not much sole around my feet but I think that's better than tripping. I'll try to link later to the Etsy store. I still fancy some of the lace up gladiators, but just couldn't justify them.

Those are great trousers Flo I am no pouffe on the stomach is like gold dust.

Admiration Flo... they look really good.

Thank you, yeah even my Armani chinos (the ones these are meant to replace) pouff out a bit over the tum, even if it is vintage Armani pouffing and therefore acceptable.

The pretentious, new agey waffle is indeed the downside of Toast.

I need to catch up with this thread - I'm at least a page behind - but bani I feel quite annoyed on your behalf at that Uniqlo dress as it's so nearly spot on and, if they'd only taken a bit more trouble to get a better cut and slightly heavier linen, then I bet it would have been great.

You've inspired me to wear my (very different) toast trousers: loose, tapered, linen/wool mix, fold over front today. I hope I don't end up too hot as they're a mid weight. Worn with a sleeveless Levi's t-shirt as I grabbed it from the drawer. Works quite well, I wouldn't have normally paired them together either.

I meant to say, I finally got round to watching Unorthodox, due to needing to be in for workmen, but not being able to do much was the perfect opportunity. Really interesting and moving story.

The first bit was to flo.

Oh Flo that’s brilliant that they were good trousers!

Well I am in complete admiration at Bo summer dress , I absolutely love it. If you lived near me I would pay good money (if I had) for you to make one

Flo those trousers are great , everything the cut and colour perfect.

I will pop into my local dress agency later today, I heard they are open . I want to see how they are managing etc, I think they said they would steam every item after being tried by a client. Is that enough? Would you try something in a changing room? I will go and wonder ... I am not sure I am ready for that ...

Thank you Red

Steaming should be enough, the chance of transferring the virus through objects is already extremely minimal anyhow. I'm not sure what the numbers in the UK are like, I was very shocked to read about axing the social distancing measure (I've become rather attached to it and feel it's pretty essential to keep another outbreak at bay, it may no longer be necessary but it's certainly effective preventatively). We're down to very low numbers (less than 2 patients per hospital, and the daily death rate has been anywhere between 0-5 for the last week and a half or so) so even though I'm still cautious I'm less anxious about it all. It took a bit to get at ease with it all again, so you just need to ease back into it.

Sorry, no need to dig Sophie, I found it on their site but it was hidden by an extra link. It's mostly oils, not CGM friendly due to beeswax but otherwise no major red flags. I fear it's too heavy for me though. I'll go and have a sniff of the Clarins in the shops if I can get there today.

My dress agency is open too Red. I'm dying to go in, even if only to say 'hello', but I have family in very precarious health and, although it's allowed, it just doesn't feel right.

Catching up - I like that Cos kaftan dress and I think silk's a lovely fabric in hot weather, but the slit goes too far up the leg for me - which reminds me bani your legs, if I may be so bold, are cracking.

Great sewing skills bo - my Merchant and Mills top is still in pieces, where I left it nearly two weeks ago.

And that chevron tweed is divine, as is the tweed coat - can't remember where it's from but the men's one. I've pretty much written off this summer and occasionally catch myself thinking about autumn dressing, when I firmly intend to get some colour back into my life.

The risk of catching the virus through objects is tiny unless you rub your face in them, so I wouldn’t worry. Crowding in shops is a bigger worry. I’ve been in a charity shop here a few times and left quite quickly because there have been so many people and NO distancing. Cycled by yesterday and was pleased to see the shop was being responsible and was letting people in via queue to avoid crowding. About bloody time.

Bo I think you meant to post the last post on the skincare thread ;)

Flo, no one has ever described my legs as cracking I’ll be living off that for a long time, and also reevaluating my stance on short skirts

I impulse bought a loose denim coat/oversize blazer on sale today. Went in to buy knickers. attaching pic. Not sure if it’s the Toast and Merchant Mills threads going to my head or what.

I couldn’t work out what Bo was meaning with that post ... I think you are right Bani.
That coat looks very good Bani, I am unsure how to describe it but very Scandinavian and perfect for idyllic country sceneries.

I looked around in my dress agency, no problem about being crowded, only two of us and plenty of space. Where I live they respect people’s personal space in general and people queue outside shops even when there is no guard or anything, they peek and if they see people they start a polite queue

Oh in a local boutique I bought a t-shirt with the embroidery of a bee Completely by impulse

That sounds very chic though, like the sort of thing my youngest daughter would get!

I’ve spent the entire evening working on a pattern for a wrap skirt and failing because everything keeps shifting on me 😭😭😭😭😭

[delurks] Can I join please? I've been following the fabric discussion and somewhat ridiculously, I'm squinting at botemp's Merchant & Mills samples to see what the colours look like, without personally sending away for the samples.

I have begun to get into sewing during lockdown - I am round & busty, so online shopping is pretty much a nightmare. I recently discovered Cos, but I have to try everything on and 80% of it never works. So in lockdown, I've been trying to make some tops that are Cos-like but more fitted. Fabric is also a bit of a lottery though. There are so many British online fabric shops, which is good, but it takes a while to pick through them. I've done quite well with Higgs & Higgs and Lamazi fabrics. Most recently, I got some nice Italian shirting material from Croft Mill (though it took forever to arrive).

I have also bought some fine white cotton sheeting to make into a blouse that will be awesome in my head and rather difficult in real life. I really like the whole minimal Japanese-style sewing aesthetic but it doesn't translate terribly well to big boobs.

Yes, please join orange, I worry a tad no one's really interested in my sewing and the proper sewing thread doesn't really feel like my thing.

It's maybe a bit much now but have a look at the Pattern Magic books by a Japanese author. It's really interesting and since it works with block patterns (really useful once you've figured it out, everything fits like a glove instead of trying to make a standard pattern work). Here's a . I can see that one work with boobs provided they're somewhat in proportion to your body.

What fabrics were you curious about from M&M? I thought it was a bit hit and miss. I'm going to have a look at Croft Mill as good shirting cotton is very rare for some reason.

Ah Bani, I feel your pain. I thought I'd just whip up a face mask this morning as I need one in Belgium. Stupidly I totally got lost in the science of it and decided to follow some test results that found cotton with silk chiffon was the best way to go. I still had some silk chiffon from an abandoned project years ago so I thought it was all meant to be. Forgot the reason I abandoned it is because silk chiffon is a pain to work with before deciding I wanted an extra layer on the outside because I was feeling fancy 🤦 Ended up doing most of it by hand in the end and it therefore took forever

I'm going with calling it a couture mask 🤣 even though the fit at the bottom isn't that great as I have a heart shape face so nothing to fill that void. I'll have to play with makeup a bit because currently I look like Minnie Mouse decided to become a bio terrorist

I also came across this and her slapdash attitude to it all reminded me of your self description when sewing. She has a ridiculously easy body to dress though (she's a dancer) so even the worst sewing seems to look good

I like the blazer, it's giving me vintage lab coat vibes.

orange! Hello we like having new people here
Even if I cannot help with the sewing I hope we can all still bounce ideas off each other?
Even if Bo feels like we are not interested in her sewing ... I for one, am really interested, and more than that ...
The idea of repurposing clothes or modifying them interests me.
I loved that video Bo, she makes it look so easy though...

Can I presume to join (or rather just post once and then fade away?) Also part of the dress gang, but I have bought this from Community Clothing which is also available in black linen:
communityclothing.co.uk/collections/womenswear/products/womenscollarlessshirtdress-black?variant=20442587856950

While we've been around for ages. chatting about clothes, there really REALLY isn't anything to exclude new members. We do tend to have ruled out most of M&S and are selective about the High Street offer, but most of us are delighted to see the best they can do on good days. The rest of the time, we seek high-end fashion inspiration but buy budget and vintage.

I haven’t seen anything in person from community clothing, but have browsed them and they seem to have nice basics. How is their quality Loelia?
I believe they are based in Leicester? I hope they are managing to stay afloat with the current situation, I wonder how the local lockdown is affecting them.
I think definitely support those type of business.

Does anyone know to to improve a basic cotton t shirt? Round high collar, men’s fit, boxy ... is my dh and he doesn’t want to wear (too tight for him) the cotton is really nice and is stripy grey and steel blue... I thought if had a better neckline it would be great.... maybe is my first project? A quick google and I get teenagers ripping off t shirts etc, is it possible to achieve something wearable without being naf?

While we’re welcoming new people, are lost souls welcome back too?

Lockdown has been tough in terms of juggling everything and I’ve been struggling for down time, but I’ve an hour to myself now so I’m looking forward to trying to catch up.

I love reading about the sewing and am in awe of the dress. I really like the Toast trousers Flo.

I caved and bought the Joseph trousers too. I promise not to wear them at any future meets! Net-a-porter has been shockingly slow, but does seem to be eventually arriving. Off to catch up....

Welcome Loelia

Speaking of (linen) dresses, karenbritchick featured a brand based out of Lagos and I'm 😍 with it all. And there's a jumpsuit that has me all swooning too. I don't even mind the higher prices as it looks like really nice linen but the import taxes really push them over into a stupid price so I'll have to wait patiently until a European retailer starts carrying them. They've had a lot of press exposure so I'm banking on either Matches or Browns to be carrying them by next summer. Míe.

Can you take a picture of it Red? I don't think it's that hard to alter existing things, it just depends on your own expectations/standards, mine tend to be ridiculously high which is then my downfall but if you're fine with fast and simple finishes then it's easily achievable with a bit of skill. It can be a bit difficult with finishing though, eg. if the original item is finished with an overlock machine (most cheaper items are) you can't really alter a section of it with French seams unless you alter an entire section. Also if it's stretchy fabric it's going to be a bit more challenging to work with.

Hello again Elle long time no see. Looking great as always.

Yes, Joseph trousers still haven't been dispatched by NAP for me either but it's crap weather anyhow so I'm not too upset and I'm happy with the price I paid for them so I'm not complaining.

Speaking of meet ups, I'm toying with the idea of going to London at some point, maybe October or November? I just want to swoon around in the fabric shops as there's so much more on offer there than here.

Well my expectations are very modest Bo
Here is a photo of such t-shirt ... apologies, not pristine as I have worn it to sleep on.
And here is a video with a hand sewing finish, I am relatively ok at doing a near invisible stitch (or used to be anyway).