Do you dress French?

[Champooforyou]

I'm desperately trying to find my way again after years of pregnancy and young children. Youngest is 3 so I've no excuse not to put myself straight now!

My wardrobe is a mega mix of everything, I'm aiming to get a capsule thing going on.

I'm naturally drawn to breton tops, slim trousers, blazers etc, so I'm thinking to "go french". Trouble is I'm a freezer so need layers. Does anyone else loosely follow a French sort of look, what are your essentials? How do you keep warm 🤔?

I dont dress French- well sometimes I do, I need a massive dressing up style wardrobe to play who am I going to be today?
But I am a freezer too - so I wear thermals under everything, occasionally double layered. Which you could easi

Following as I love the classic French look and am also a freezer

I also like slim trousers, blazers, ballet flats etc but I like a bit more colour than a typical ‘French look’. This time of year I wear a lot of yellow, pale blue, pink sweaters. It is tricky in the winter though I could no way be described as très chic!

<currently drinking tea outside in dog walking attire>

Whoops....
Easily do under slim trousers and a breton/jacket.

I'm sometimes on the parrisenne threads here, which started off about looking French ans are now just about everyone's style tips and lots of lovely chat and sources to get beautiful clothes, fabric, shoes etc. You should come and join in - done be put off by the fact its thread no 16 or so everyone is very friendly and fun.

There's been chat on there about wearing brogues or bobbies with patterned socks. I often wear socks the same colour as my trousers if they are 7/8 length and I'm not ready to bare my ankle yet.

I also like the turtledove cashmere wrist warmers, they look quite sleek with a jacket and keep you warm.

Don't forget your beret! Or a fisherman's cap or some type of hat that is stylish but can keep your head warm.

If you are a trench coat person (I'm not, I've tried but they don't suit me) you can get some with removable liners for different seasons - just don't take the liner out. Or also wear a thin down coat underneath as well.

Black leggings or slimline jeans and breton tops with a cardi/ hoodie/coat...#easytodomumlook

You need to get on the Parisiennes de Mamansnet, a long series of threads by French style fans.

I wear thermal tops and also vests to add extra warmth. I invested in a lightweight feather down body warmer that’s thin but cosy and doesn’t look too bulky under coats and jackets. Scarves are a good addition too, and I second the suggestion of buying a pair of cashmere wrist warmers. I also bought a five pack of black school socks from m&s that help keep the lower part of my legs warm with the added advantage of not flashing a strip of very pale flesh whenever I sit down. These have made quite a big difference this winter for a small cost.

I love the French look, but I actually love colour and print more! And I think I'm probably not the right shape for slimline trousers and ballet pumps - it's a pretty unforgiving look imo.

I'm not entirely sure what the 'French' look is (and I worked in Paris for a short while), but if you mean a bit staid and dull which is what the prevailing look was at the time, then no. I prefer British 😀

There is a thread dedicated to this and is about 20 threads long by now.

You'll find lots of inspiration on there

I like the French aesthetic so love a Bretton, jeans and a nice bag etc. My understanding is that it’s all about good quality basics and having the confidence to not get sucked in to every trend which is what I like to try and do.

I definitely don’t but whowhatwear are obsessed with dressing french, so lots of articles on that there

This is a look that I’ve been wanting to get into recently too.
I’m imagining a nice long navy trench coat, ballet flats, skinny jeans and a soft roll neck top.

When I lived in France, albeit 20 years ago, I noticed there were a lot of blue jeans and navy v neck sweaters. And scarves. A black coat.

Having a nice scarf looped around your neck makes a real to body temp, I find. I wear navy Breton's with a plain red scarf. Or sometimes a floral scarf. Floral and stripes contrast surprisingly well - trick I picked up from Knicker's Model's Own blog.

I just spent 4 days in France & had no idea that there is a French look. Messy hair, maybe?

I used to live in Paris and genuinely don't remember seeing a Breton top on anyone there 🤔

But I definitely know the look you mean. I think French city-dwellers who look great spend a lot on their clothes and don't really lose or gain much weight so they never have to replace things! I have never succeeded with this as my size is all over the place due to a few health issues which cause me to bloat a lot. I now only wear dresses and skirts as trousers were always either falling off or digging in. I only wear trousers for exercise.

If you don't have that issue though, I'd invest in some neutral pieces. Try that "in pursuit of elegance" thread maybe if you like the idea of a quality capsule wardrobe.

I sort of feel as if I've simplified my wardrobe a lot by wearing mainly dresses which are one piece plus a layer if I'm cold.

In winter I wear wool thermals underneath as well and that makes a huge difference

I live in France and it hasn't changed !

Ooh. Maybe I do wear it after all! 😀

Great I can say I'm french now with my messy hair

Seriously though I think it's a great look but being older and having very pale skin I'm not sure if all the black and navy will just make me look tired

If you're going to ",dress french" be careful I accidentally did this a few weeks ago and caught sight of myself in a mirror and I looked like Marcel Marceau the famous mime artist.

I never get the I want to dress French look. The trench coat, blazer, Oxford shirt etc are British so it's an appreciation of British style?!

www.whowhatwear.co.uk/british-french-fashion-trends/slide22

I think the Breton tops and ballet pumps look is a bit dated rather than classic. The key French look for my age then (30’s) when I lived in Paris was a rock chick look. Think Carine Roitfeld and Lou Dillion - lots of black, tight, missed up hair. The essential, though, to the French look is to be thin and small busted. And French chic is usually accessoried to be practical - scarves for warmth, flat boots for comfort, sunglasses, a tote bag.

Thanks for all the replies and the heads up about the dedicated thread, I'll head over and have a look.
A pp mentioned body shape and I am slim with a small bust, so drown in big voluminous clothing. I actually do have rather messy hair so I tend to avoid pattern as I've got enough going on with my hair.
I'm autumn colouring so avoid blacks and greys, but I think the look can be adapted for a different colourway.
I've got a job that requires me to look quite sensible but not formal, so I'm hoping the wardrobe will take me from work to weekend quite easily.
I've just ordered some wrist warmers, I didn't know they existed so that's a revelation!