Les Parisiennes des Mamansnet: Always Have a Ball Gown at the Ready in Celebration of Your Enemy's Demise

[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

Neuf

Dix

Onze

Douze

Treize

Quatorze

Quinze

Seize

😮at those platforms. Have to say, I was contemplating something a bit well.... flatter than that 😀They look great though. I'm actually quite looking forward to heels coming back, not because I have any intention of wearing any, but because I'm getting tired of all the sanctimoniousness around flats - this thread excepted of course (she says hurriedly).

The recycling of decades used to drive me nuts but I've grown kind of resigned to it. It's barking though that designers have got the whole planet and pretty much the whole of time at their fingertips, and yet all they seem able to do is re-mash western mid-late 20th century fashion.

They look like they'd break my ankles and I'm now old and responsible enough to know they're a really bad idea. I don't even know if I like them that much, it's mostly nostalgia, I think. Although I never had any that high but I had some at secondary school and everyone else was very envious of them.

The recycling of decades isn't really new, what bothers me about it is that used to be just a way to spruce up old clothing (I'm talking the 1800s here although probably still applicable for some of the 1900s) by adding some trim, ribbon, etc. So the silhouettes were recycled and made new again with some alterations. Now we're just replicating old shit and it's going to fall apart quicker than the actual old shit.

I suppose it's just down to business bottom lines and your average consumer not being that adventurous but the lack of innovation is just annoying me. You'd think they'd at least have some fun in Couture, those are just money loss leaders for PR purposes now, all the freedom in the world in that sense but from this article covering the recent couture shows and distillating it into trends it mostly overlapped with my previous observations of where things were headed (going by the new collections). So boring and same old same old with minor shifts basically (don't be dissuaded by that to actually read the article, it's actually quite interesting).

Anyhow, it's about to get super hot here again so my annoyance will be tempered by heat fatigue soon enough and in the meantime I am once again exploring hot hot weather clothing and coming up empty. I know the answer is linen shirt dresses but at the risk of being sent to the guillotine, for whatever reason linen shirt dresses feel really frumpy to me ATM, with an exception for the rich bitch versions that inexplicably stay crisp and seem to hover away from the body by some sort of magic (or maybe it's just stacks of money?) but I don't want to look like a rich bitch either.

interesting comparison you make there Bo to seasons and decades revivals. You are probably onto something… if it hasn’t been written yet in a fashion magazine, I expect to see that in one after a journ lurker steels it from here…

I will look away Flo 😅 I know what you mean, but I still like wide and cropped trousers, but I am liking long ones too.

I am sharing here these bermudas (how do you call them in English..probably not like that) I got that time I went to Edinburgh, there are some specs but they are marks on the mirror not on the fabric.

Also a dress I tried on a shop the other day, thinking about Ibiza, but it was £90 and I don’t want to spend that money on something I will probably only wear a handful of times.

I just posted and realised I missed reading a full page of posts … off to catch up on the last couple from Bo and Flo!

I know you're not looking for anything new Red but I did see this dress at Zara which made me think of you between the botanicals (you'd actually know what they are the best I can come up with is thistles, maybe, and palm leaves 🙈) and the colour as well as being Ibiza appropriate (it's a very light weight cotton).

The Americans call them bermudas, I assume it's the same in the UK or maybe there it's just normal length British summer appropriate shorts you wear them well, I've never managed it, but then again I seem to struggle with all shorts

I'm not sure what we call them in the UK - just knee length shorts I think! It's a good length I like them.

And sorry Red I got distracted and forgot about your Ibiza outfit - when do you go?

Oh, is not until end of sept Flo. I have ordered a couple of summer cover ups from Vinted and eBay that should be useful in a couple of weeks when we go to the beach (not uk so it should be reliable weather) and then in Ibiza.
I only need the night out type outfit now which I still have in my head that Zara skirt.
yes I am not looking for anything Bo (or so I say…) but a dress like that one I can see myself wearing it loads so I am not against buying new 😁
The top print in the dress looks to me like cow parsley or possibly Ammi Majus, but you are right on the palm … the bottom ones are more ‘palmy’.
What is disturbing me is the expression and pose of the model … just weird, she doesn’t look like she is enjoying life in general. 🙄

I lost my post :(. bani I hope things improve.
those Bermudas look right on you red, I can’t imagine carrying them off myself! The problem with long trends is some of us need to hem everything then, at least with cropped it just sits ankle length 😆. Unless you do go platforms but i always wonder at them- its amazing how destabilising lifting the centre of gravity just a little bit is.
I don’t really know what’s in style now- there was a piece in vogue on ballet flats and it didn’t look like anything new. I bought sunglasses today but I’m not sure I like them now, I was grumpy and tired and I have a small face so they are always mostly large. This was a high st place but still more than I’d like to spend on what feels like cheap metal and plastic I’m not even sure I like… I needed some though for a holiday in a couple of weeks. The pair that fit my face the best reminded me of what I wore when I was about 16 which probably means they were the trendiest but I couldn’t get past that.

Oops that was a name change fail, i thought I’d try a partial name change and turns out I’m not very good at them.

Please let us know how you get on in Ibiza red. If you have any family friendly recommendations I’m all ears. I like the Zara skirt and could definitely see it working with a white t-shirt. Annie’s Ibiza and the Loewe x Paula’s collection are probably both solid places to look for a
bit of visual inspiration before searching elsewhere to actually buy.

For hot weather you cannot beat a really thin cotton IMO. I’ve been living in this navy top. I’m not doing a great job of showing it to its best advantage with my too-short shorts, so I’ve included the model shot too. It’s lovely and swishy. Time I’ve also found it great for breastfeeding in. It’s been too hot for that vest plus t-shirt combo, which I hate anyway, but I’ve been able to just pull up this top and arrange the excess fabric to cover any exposed bits of stomach. Congratulations by the way! How old is your baby?

I agree with fashion relying on heavily referencing the past. My feeling was that basically every decade is in style at the moment with maybe the exception of 50s and 2010s. The former being too exuberant and the latter too recent (skinny jeans revival anyone?). Now that you point it out, I see the seasonality to it.l I hadn’t noticed that before. I also think certain designers just reference the same era endlessly (Celine - 70s) and others have become really entrenched in a particular vibe (Isabel Marant / Chloe) and that’s getting stale. I feel I can predict what will be on the rails before I even see it. I feel like brands used to be better a putting fresh twists on their signature looks.

Non fashion question incoming. We’ve just renovated our bathroom and I’d love good towel recommendations.

Also would someone mind DM-ing me if there’s a meet up in London. I might be over in September and if I could make it work I would.

I’ll be watching the platform trend from the sidelines, but if you are all at my eyeline in September I’ll know what’s lurking below those wide legged trousers.

I love the top elle! Is it still in shops? I have a fine floaty black cotton voile sleeveless slightly racer back shirt, pin tucked down the front that does a similar job for me in the heat and I love its simple lines, except they do get spoilt with a bra due to the cut in shoulders and nursing friendly bras are not that creative. Yours looks perfect for that light layer in the heat and my shirt is getting fairly worn (it’s years old now).

ugh I will get the hang of this, I will! Baby nearly 6m
elle, how old is yours? Similar I thought?

ugh I will get the hang of this, I will! Baby nearly 6m
elle, how old is yours? Similar I thought?

Red, it's not so apparent in that picture but the model has downturned eyes (I suspect she has some Japanese heritage or similar) so she just tends to photograph like that. Also something weird going on with the lips (filler, I guess, but it's more the surrounding area that looks unnatural as a result), anyhow there's a little filmed segment of the model in the dress as well (I think that's new, you'd think it'd be useful alongside Zara's weird editorial shots, but, no, you'd be really really wrong) and she's quite smiley on that so she wasn't being tortured. I saw the dress in the shops and it was very nice, they had quite a few similar things.

Cotton voile does work on paper and that top looks good Elle but does it require ironing 🧐 (<extra suspicious tone> also does Ireland actually get hot hot?) that's my main objection against thin cotton things, the idea of ironing in hot weather. But your top looks to have some premium finishing so I'm guessing it's not a high street cheapie and maybe that's a point of difference for requiring ironing like with linen?

Bath towels, ehm I've only ever bought a proper set of towels once so that does kind of speak for them (or alternatively makes me sound gross with really old towels, either/or 🤷) but I just checked the current prices so, ehm <ahem> don't die of sticker shock. They're the Frette hotel classic bath sheet series, and yes the fanciest hotels like the Ritz do actually use those (and probably pay a lot less for them). I also recommend the bathrobes. But, per above, I did buy them quite some time ago, no idea if they're still as good now.

Briefly delurking to say that JCrew have some great light summer clothes, especially their cotton / linen shorts and sleeveless tops and t-shirts. I’m currently living in them. Just need to watch out for the £35 flat return shipping fee, as they come from the US. There are free returns deals every now and then, so worth looking out for those. The quality has become hit and miss, but the user comments are very useful for this.

I also bought a great summer dress and shorts in the Studio Nicholson sale, I think it’s still on today.

really nice top Elle. I will check out for inspiration the site you mentioned.
I just DM you re London meet up too.
rushing off today, so will catch up later.

I am after recommendations of hotels in Paris. We are doing a stopover of just one day with DH and DS, ideally with a swimming pool. Something nice, as is one night we probably will be willing to pay a little bit more than average but not crazy money.
Any good places come to mind?

No towel recommendations from me Elle. (I could do with updating some of mine …)

By car in August Red? Paris is pretty dead in August and a lot is closed (restaurants, shops, etc.) so tbh I wouldn't bother and look at other places depending on your direction, Versailles, Châtres, Orleans, Compiègne that would make a better day trip stop and will likely have nice hotels with pools that aren't extortionate. Le Havre has an amazing architecturally designed pool by Jean Nouvel but I assume it's not in your direction. Tours also nice but probably too far.

If you're dead set on Paris, I'd probably not recommend most Paris city centre hotels with a pool (unless you're looking at something like a Mandarin Oriental, Intercontinental or Hyatt in the Champs Elysees area but prices are probably crazy money range) tend to be tiny, very limited hours or by reservation only and not altogether child friendly or just randomly closed and this isn't usually apparent until you get there. It's also not great driving into Paris either so it's just a lot of added stress.

The La Defense area is not the most exciting but it's an easy train ride into Paris centre with the Rer A and there's a lot of business hotels there some of which surely will have a pool that's open most hours. Otherwise around Étoile is similar as a Congress hot spot that'll have a lot of business hotels with a lot of vacancies in summer.

Versailles is a longer trip into Paris but could also work (I think it's a half an hour ish by train but it doesn't go very frequently). Meaux is also a nice town and near Disney with a lot of hotels that would tick boxes around Serris but a longer schlep into Paris (45-60 mins each way), so I'd just go for Meaux and maybe some of the activities around Disney (food and shopping).

Can someone DM me the London dates too, I think when you were first planning them the dates didn't work for me but I think a different day was decided on later.

I forgot to mention Hotel Molitor is essentially a giant outdoor pool with a hotel built around it and within the périphérique that's not €€€€ but it's not the best location within Paris itself for exploring and suspect not that great for getting in and out of Paris by car either. But you only need to go to and fro from the hotel once so it's potentially worth taking a look at.

Thank you for the recommendations Bo, we will actually be traveling by train but on the way back we have 1 day in Paris (long reasons why…), we will not be too bothered about any exploring tbh, we have all seen all the sights that need to be seen there. We are just using it as a comfortable place to feel like we are still on holiday.
Just seen hotel Molitor and seems to fit the criteria pretty much spot on. Thanks!

Ah, okay, I wouldn't recommend the Molitor if you're by train, location isn't great by public transport and to/fro to the train stations (I'm assuming you're arriving at Montparnasse or Gare de Lyon and leaving from Gare du Nord.

In central-ish Paris there are a couple of Accor hotels with a pool, Novotel or Mercure type. A bit of a quirky option is Off Paris Seine, location is good with the arriving train stations and okay for exploring Paris, better than Molitor. It's a boat or a floating hotel, it has a teeny tiny pool but it's cool, and I think some of the Paris 'beaches' which are essentially pools are nearby. It's often quite priced down for its class as the location is not useful for tourists (but a nice quiet area and easy to explore the left bank from). Molitor is rather overpriced for what it is it's a four star hotel really but the iconic character and pool USP sort of lift it up if that's worth it for you, the pool gets very busy though. Any other hotels with a pool, just avoid any that are billed as a Spa with pool those are just oversized bathtubs that often are only available at weird hours. There's also the Saint James Albany but it's another hotel with more stars than it really is worth, location is excellent on that one though, right by the Tuileries.

Thanks for PMing me the date, I'll have to check if I can make those work. Are you able to Elle?

Thanks Bo I will have a look at those.
Elle unfortunately cannot make that date in September, but she suggested she might be able to in Nov, so we could pencil something for then?

Sample sales are in Antwerp, usually third week of November but they're not always the quickest with announcing exact dates which makes planning difficult. I could fire off a few emails when everyone is back from summer hols at the end of the month.

I think you were the only one interested in Paris in October/November but that could be an option too? (Sorry, London in cold grey and wet November not the most enticing prospect 🙊)

Approaching London meetup doesn't look great for me, the trains are not ideal schedule/price wise and I don't really want to fly unless I absolutely have to and this is very much a really don't have to situation.

I await to hear Antwerp dates! I always wanted to go.