Les Parisiennes des Mamansnet: Maids Cosplaying as Schoolboys are Going to Get Themselves Cancelled by North Korea

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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:

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Trois

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Cinq

Six

Sept

Huit

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Dix

Onze

Douze

Treize

Quatorze

Quinze

I think you can get away with the big shoulders, red, a bit like you stole your husband's jacket kind of feel.

I tend to be good at 18 degrees during the day (cotton knitwear is then my friend), but 18 at night definitely feels different but luckily it doesn't get dark until really late so it's a bit of a rare occurrence.

Yes maybe I'm picking up on the shifting silhouette at a subliminal level and so my favourite things are beginning to feel slightly off centre without me knowing why. Or maybe my ankles are slowly thickening without my noticing yet. Lovely.

I like the fit of that jacket Red, in fact I'm a bit jealous as I've tried on a few Levis and they've never sat right for me. I think the oversizing looks good, (although admittedly loads of my jackets are a bit big on the shoulders so maybe I would say that!) The only thing making me cautious is that I find a beige jacket can be weirdly difficult to match up with other things - a stone / taupey shade is normally fine but, if it's more yellow based, I can struggle. But that might be because I don't wear yellow - as discussed upthread - so I don't have much that would go.

I like it Red and think it suits you.

Also love the idea of clothes “turning on you” can completely identify with that (but that might be linked with the scales giving me a few home truths as well .. 😉)

I am catching up a bit on the past messages, I like the colour of the nina Ricci shirt Bo.
i have not seen those ‘dated’ threads but tbh I think is a pointless discussion nowadays. I am amazed at how long we have been going on here (well how long I lasted … which is probably half/three quarters…as long as this thread has gone on) .
Another oversized number, this time for a mere £4! At that price I got it, the fabric is lovely, it does not have a composition label but very soft and cool, it was in a local charity shop, it is H&M. When putting the photos just seen it is a tad see through at the top (bottom is lined) I had a black bralette so probably did not help .
Thanks for the opinions on the jacket, it will have to wait till Monday or Wednesday I will try it again and decide.

I had a look at the dated thread too. I agree it's so hard to be prescriptive, as you want to tow the line between personal style and fashion victim. I love the idea of clothes turning on you, flo, and agree, bo, it probably comes back to those early discussions about silhouette and proportion. As someone who has pretty much always worn some vintage/retro clothes, I think mixing in something more current can make it work, either item or styling.

Lovely dress, red. That looks cool and relaxed for summer. The oversized looks good.

I like the jacket, red! [for some reason can't open the photos of the dress] English summer needs a very specific kind of dressing, I found, so I hear you, red! After nearly 15 years here, I think it is about much heavier cottons and linens and - absolutely - a cotton drill or similar jacket. Otherwise I get overoptimistic when it is sunny and then angry as I hate being cold. It is a very different summer to places that are drier / hotter.

I loved the "clothes turn on you" too.
Flo, I found with the cropped trousers that very few people managed to get the length right. I keep seeing people with the wrong length of cropped so maybe it is annoyance and fatigue of that settling in? Don't know how it relates to you. Maybe it is a beginning of the shift again. Are we looking at leaner, longer...?

And flo, people who have their own style - isn't it that they just wear the same thing and yes, they don't follow changes in the silhouettes but it's also a bit boring? I am thinking of Charlotte Gainsborough and her black jeans, leather jacket look. Her mother though does change what she wears but then is it a specific identifiable style? We could probably describe it as more casual, with some masculine elements, etc but it is very loose

I've always had very similar style, even though I like a 'look' it's always a look that feels very me. It's MY look.

I'm wearing three things that are considered 'dated' in the thread.

Blazer

Gold jewellery

Hair scraped back.

I'm quite sure I don't look dated or 'frumpy'.

I was going to interject on that thread that no particular item is dated, it's entirely how it's worn.

Yeah, I have a style that's adaptable, I just enjoy novelty too much. Ugh, I hate the hair scraped backwards phrase for whatever reason it evokes nails going down a chalkboard sounds for me. It's just so laced with judgement when it's a thing pretty much everyone does because, weather and bad hair days, often simultaneously at the same time.

It is a shame that it seems to be verboten or rather somewhat impossible to discuss what's trending (or not) in fashion on here. Admittedly, the setup of that thread doomed it from the start, it's a very predictable script I can probably write it out and turn into bingo cards.

But speaking of silhouettes, from what I've observed of the new collections (and the various things I tried on), yes, hems are definitely dropping to sweeping the floor levels. Which means heels (and platforms) are probably going to have a mini revival among the dedicated.

To balance the floor sweeping hems arm sleeves are going long too but there's still a bit of poofy arms love so they're become quite sculptural things, ranging from cocoon like clever tailoring to slanted/tapered styles.

Outsized (I've recently learned this is the technical term for clothing that looks oversized but is still fitted to size in key places, oversized is just several sizes larger. In general, high end will be outsized, high street is oversized) tailoring still seems to be going strong, shoulders still somewhat bulky and trousers dropping low and wide and not fitted to the waist.

There's been a corsetry inspired thing brewing now for a while but it's really much more about boning and it's quite interesting but at the same time a bit limiting (size wise, boning really isn't a very good one size fits all, or rather everyone of a certain size fits their size boned).

As an extension of corsetry there's lingerie inspired elements as well. Lace is really due a comeback from a time cycle pov but it's still not landing imho, it'll be sheers and netting mostly.

Also with the lengthening silhouette, I saw a lot of what I call tank tops but I've forgotten what you lot call them. The female version of that horribly named wife beater top. So, yeah, somewhat reminiscent of heroin chic days, impossibly long and lean.

I'd add pics but I've got to get on with my day. I'll try and add some later.

Thanks for the jacket feedback, I will try it again though if I have time this week … which is looking tricky … unwell dog, nice and nephew coming to stay for a few days with us … etc etc
I might well sport the hair scrapped back all week 🤣 which to be honest I often do!! I never realised it was a no-no … I always saw it as very Spanish / Latin so I always really liked it.
I have to admit to be a bit clueless about trends and silhouettes, I get general gist of stuff I like and I go with that , yes sometimes it does not sit perfectly for my body but i just go with it.
not sure why you could not see the dress micro , I will try again

Thanks for the report, bo wish you'd been on that thread, it might have saved us a lot of grief, but I can see why you kept away 😀I'm going to try and remember 'Outsized' not 'oversized'.

Pretty dress Red! I'd say that Jane Birkin does change her look and follow - if I dare use the T-word - some trends, but that there's a thread running through it. I don't think I've ever seen her in, let's say a red carpet dress, and rarely in anything close fitting - tailored yes but always relaxed, low key, almost disheveled but deliberately so, like Boris Johnson's hair. I love that style. (JB's not BJ's)

Love your outfit, TreeOfPain

Regarding my cropped trousers, I think it's partly that a couple of pairs have shrunk just fractionally. I'm very fussy about where they finish, so it's annoying me, and yet not enough to actually do anything about it, which makes me think there's something else going on too. Although I've given up on reading Vogue and rarely use Instagram, I've probably registered at some level that full length is on it's way back so my head's adjusting.

I'm always fascinated by how this works - it's why it makes me cross that you can't discuss it on this board without people getting pissy, but then I've thrown enough strops in my time so I guess I should be more understanding. Anyway, I've really enjoyed the cropped trouser trend so I'm going to try and monitor the change in how I view them, and see how long it is before I'm looking at old pics and saying, 'What was I thinking?'

I love the outfit treeofpain. Also I think the denim jacket would be a good buy red. I'm very impressed with the yellow dress bo.

I won't even attempt to do a full catch up. I had a quick look through the thread on dated items and while there's the usual "could have bought a bench" brigade, the rest of the discussion is interesting if a bit sweeping. It's also hard to discern whether people mean "in" as "in Vogue" or "in with the mums at my local school gate". Not that there's anything wrong with the latter, I am one, but they are different concepts. Knee high boots were slated, but they cover an absolute multitude from the closely fitted zippered pointy toes which have been out for a least a decade to the flat abattoir-lite ones, that I will definitely be wearing this year. I'm also confident that my slightly slouchy block/heeled boots are not horrendous dated either.
Ankle boots so seem to be having a moment on the runway, as do those mid calf boots. I have one pair of mid calf ones pictured. They were one of my first PdMN purchases and they work well for me because my legs are thigh heavy so they add weight to the lower part of my legs. Since I'm long-legged I can also handle having my legs broken up like that in addition to a hem. I'm planning to wear them with skirts and jeans.

Yes to "dated" bingo, bo 😂. These threads pop up every so often and others get offended. I think these rules don't take account of personal style, body shape or lifestyle. The reason people can "carry off" apparently dated styles is that they are probably thinking whole outfit and styling them well. I think you look stylish, TreeofPain. I did laugh at all the posters saying ballet flats were outdated and then a Vogue article about the resurgence of them popped up on my news feed. So a big difference between catwalk fashion and what filters down to the person in the street.

Oh I remember those IM boots you bought off the back of this thread Elle, I think I pointed you to Vestiaire for them and they were miraculously your size. Also think Mr Elle suddenly decided you were a cool dresser.

Yes, I agree what's "in" is open to a lot of interpretation. I don't think what I've outlined above is especially useful to most (myself including) but it does give broad strokes that can be useful. I think what's often asked on here is how do I not stand out for the wrong reasons and essentially blending in without being wallpaper. Whereas asking what's in fashion really is asking to stand out (for the right reasons, in theory, but it's very much open to interpretation too).

As a tangent, I did enjoy these three shots from The Row's SS23 presentation. Shot in Paris on the streets and these pics somewhat grab the average person on the street's reaction to them and it's kind of brilliant photography imho. Even in a city that sees a lot of the fashion world it's still an odd sight in the flesh.

Alright, I'll work on Bingo quirky but if anyone gets mad I'll blame you

Oh I love those The Row photos. I adore that two of the watchers are children and it's impressive that two are men but without any straying into lecherous territory. That's a tough line to walk.

I don't think I told you about the cashmere The Row top I bought from a consignment store that had a teeny tag in it with the previous owner's name along with a code and barcode. Oh to have a wardrobe of The Row clothes that has to be itemised and scanned in and out of your wardrobe....

Did you also always dream to grow up and have Cher Horowitz' closet from Clueless, Elle? Barcodes seem a bit extra though, are you sure it's not a tagging system from a different consignment agency where it was previously bought and sold?

Ok, dated bingo, per quirky's request (it's all her fault). I'm admittedly incredibly unkind but fuck it I have a horrible cold and this is parody of past threads smushed together not about any individual poster.

(It's not Covid, I've tested negative three times now. I wish it was because now after this horrible cold I'll have to look forward to still eventually catching the dreaded Covid according to the good scientists and being horribly sick all over again and thus I'm very moody and this was somewhat cathartic.)

-North vs South England dressing up/down Olympics (the rest of the UK sensibly lets them duke it out, with popcorn at hand)

-Inevitable class warfare and accusations of snobbery

-Be thin. Be white. Be a crisp white shirt.

-The Grammar pedant enters to tell everyone they're mean bitches who can't spell (while inevitably making a SPAG error themselves)

-The Classisist insist they are never out of style but their views on other women certainly are

-The ones who wear the scorn of the thread adopt it as a badge of honour <high fives all round>

-The eternal outraged defender claiming something's a classic, basic, or staple goes largely ignored despite their best efforts with an ever increasing pitch of tone

-Massive norks and cold dead hands

-The word ubiquitous is ubiquitous

-"Classy" <vom>

-The initially reasonable poster transforms into the judgemental posters they were calling out, just the other side of the coin and twice as nasty

-My teenager is the ultimate authority on style, here's their useless advice

-The I'm so poor, poorer than any of you poster

-The I'm so rich, richer than any of you poster

-A helpful poster gains a following and is inundated with questions by the fangirls only to never return to answer or acknowledge them

-Hyacinth Bucket enters the chat to remind everyone they're horrible mean bitches

-OP only posts once, the opening post. If they post once more just before the thread closes they're definitely a journo

-Look at the state of the world, THIS is what you care about?!?!?

-Who cares

-Heels and toddling on them

-A poster bleeting on about comportment, etiquette, manners, or similar displaying they clearly lack any themselves by reminding everyone they're horrible mean bitches

-Some mention of French, Spanish and Italian women

-Posters linking the Times Style Section or Vogue as definitive proof of their authoritative stand (when really at this point traditional media is indiscernible from brand PR)

-This is Style and Beauty, we're allowed to be mean judgemental twats who speak with moral authority about anyone who buys their clothes in a supermarket, it's in the section title dontcha know?

-So what's in then?

<Crickets>

Ooh I reckon I'm guilty of at least two of those. I think you've missed out my favourite though:
'I'm 40 and I know what suits me.'
😀
Pass the popcorn.

i just snorted 😂
keep it coming
how about

• poster asking opinion and getting a wear what you like response

Love the bingo! Keep it coming

A pause from the bingo to ask for opinions.
I think Bo has (at least a pair) of Teva and I think Bani has Birkenstocks.
I am after a sandal, I want/need something that I can do a fair amount of walk in outdoors but does not look awful when stopping in towns (not full on trekking 30 miles, but something that I can be comfortable if I end up walking in outdoor paths for 8-10 miles type thing).
so I want something fully supported, years ago I had Birkenstocks and they were very comfortable for my feet, although recently I tried a model and were too wide, might have been just that model.
The good thing is that type of sandals can nowadays be worn in towns with skirts and dresses and look good. I tried over the weekend some Bimba y Lola but I do not trust the quality of them as they are probably getting on the looks van wagon.
Any opinions?

I've got Birkenstocks too Red, I think they're the Arizonas - 2 broad bands across the foot. I went without sandals for about five years, trying to seek out that elusive perfect pair and now I don't know why I dithered so long because these are spot on. I walk every day, although not nearly as far as you, and they've always been fine - I just wore them around the house for a couple of days first to break them in. I don't wear dresses though but, if I did I'd still wear them.

I don't have Tevas, that's quirky. I don't do long walks in rural areas in sandals, I'm not sure what's best for that, a covered shoe seems more sensible somehow to me? Saloman or Merrell may be more fit for purpose?

Birkenstock come in two widths, narrow and normal but their narrow is more like normal and normal is wide. I think it's down to unisex sizing but I've just always found them really uncomfortable even though liking the look of some (especially the high end collaboration ones). I'm still unconvinced that it's just an issue of walking them in for me, I had some knock offs from Muji years ago and they were really comfy from the off and then just molded to my foot shape over time. I didn't feel they were superior in support than any other flat sandal though, but that might be because I walk barefoot a lot.

*Saloman or Merrell sandals that should read, I'm not suggesting full on hiking boots instead

😂at the bingo, bo, spot on. Luckily, I had finished my coffee or would have snorted it out.

I have both tevas and birkenstocks. I walk quite a bit, not proper hiking, though. I had a proper pair of canvas, walking tevas that I wore to pieces and then a pair of voyas (look a bit like greek sandals) which have softer soles. I used them to help "train" my feet out of very supportive shoes, which I was relying on after having plantar fasciitis, as they have some support but less than birks. I have an ancient pair of navy arizonas (flo is right they have a double strap) and a newer pair of black/metallic ones. I would say the flor non-leather on them is quite stiff and can rub, although the leather ones are pricier. However, both of mine are now very comfortable. The standard tevas are more hiking sandals, though.

I think Birkenstock Arizonas would definitely do the trick. The big buckle version look great.
I don't like the feel of the footbed of the originals so I wear either these ones that I happened to have on today (they're the PS x Birkenstock ones), or the Birkenstock ones made out of eVA. The EVA ones are absolutely fab for holidays. We all have them- light, can get them wet and look smart.
I also absolutely love the latest 1774 collection too but it's pricy.

Also love the bingo - absolutely spot on! It's so interesting to me that the style threads attract the attention of the "I'm just posting to let you know I'm not interested in this (unsaid "because I'm much worthier") in the same way that threads about reality TV or celebrities do. No one ever feels the need to wade into a thread to tell people that they're not interested in boiling water taps or holidays or food.