Les Parisiennes des Mamansnet: It's French charm, you know, beheaded people, red wine and blood all over the place - it's romantic, it's normal.

[botemp]

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

Previous Thread

I really hate breaking this red but when my dsis briefly worked in M&S, the M&S collection was regarded as for older ladies! Nevertheless, I bought stuff, because as you know I am an older lady, perish the thought!

Love M&S Collection for lots of things. That kilt looks fab.

ha! Older ladies! I have to admit to have a soft spot for an older lady accessory or item here and there. I don’t think I will carry it in an older lady fashion though, so not worried about that.

It is very quiet here… where is everyone? Up the tree already ?
choosing all the good items and keeping it all for themselves?

@Redandblue11 I am (as always) reading and not posting. I bought a pair of Louboutin sandals from the Outnet after a few glasses of champagne and am trying to convince myself to send them back (so pretty). I do not have occasions to wear them. And they are very much out of budget.

Other than that, shopping for wfh knitwear on Vinted.

After chemo, my hair has regrown after exactly like this - extremely curly, tight ringlets at the back, and a very different texture - most fuzz - at the front.

Can I ask where Aiden cuts hair? Thank you!

I had an older lady moment and couldn't find the thread Red My 'I'm on' function isn't working either so, if a thread drops off the screen, that's it at the moment.

I seem to be ending the year with a bit of a spend. So far I've snapped up:
A beautiful Aquascutum wool coat. It was in need of a clean so I can't post a pic yet.
Some Toast wide leg cords in a mid brown. They're not current season but maybe from last winter. Gorgeous and swishy.
A Cos long sleeved knitted round neck top in a kind of bronze with a bit of a sheen. Goes nicely with the cords.

And on the new front and still in my M&S celebrity collab phase, I've bought the Sienna Miller barrel leg jeans in dark grey. So I guess I've fallen for all the hype but I also really, really like them. I was quite surprised at how exaggerated the shape is - nothing like the standard M&S curve legs - and it makes me wonder if Sienna had to argue to get them like that. If so, I'm pleased she won. Admittedly The denim isn't the sturdiest I've ever seen so I'm not sure how long they'll keep their shape.

Back to say I'm excited by the mentions of Haider Ackermann. His craftmanship is exquisite, not to mention his use of leather and way of combining colour. Had quite forgotten he recently been appointed at Tom Ford. Am really looking forward to seeing what he does.

A thank you to @PoppySeedBagelRedux for the info about Other Stores Savoir collection. Have been contemplating the gold coat. What you have said about the fabric makes me want to buy it.

I'm just popping in to say hello and try to catch up properly. I realise I have missed several threads. We've basically had a shit year and I'm just trying to get myself back to life, really.

@doublec I also am excited by the mention of Haider Ackerman. Gorgeous shapes, texture and colour.

Im definitely still up the tree Red, in good Dutch tradition I've colonised it and have a monopoly on all the spice routes

Though largely uninterested in buying much of anything lately, the black Friday these do seem to be good these years and I'm contemplating some very sculptural jeans from JW Anderson. Did nearly buy a Haider Ackerman jumper/blazer hybrid, might go back for it. I am sort of looking for some sort of elusive 'switch things up' item, maybe a bag or scarf of something like that but it's all very abstract and I just kind of want to stumble across it and most things in the shops seem a bit middle of the road mainstream.

Sorry to hear you've had a rough year of it, quirky, I hope things are on the up now.

@botemp lol at the good Dutch tradition of commandeering the spice routes! 😂 The Haider Ackerman jumper/blazer hybrid sounds great.

Thanks for your good wishes, things are starting to get on an even keel. Dd2 essentially had a massive crisis which took months to get the proper support for. She is now in a fantastic residential home down the road.

Clotheswise, I'm enjoying wearing lots of clothes and jewellery that I couldn't wear around dd2. I also picked up a pair of Moda in Pelle leather trousers in the charity shop last week for £25.

@Voltefarce I love your champaign-fuelled sandals buying just before the winter kicks in :)

Flo, all the items sound exciting! Buying second hand in person must be yielding good results. My recent three (!) buys from Vinted were all damaged and had to be returned. It's amazing: people must think, oh, this shirt's armhole has torn. It's actually disintegrating. Shall I sell it, shan't I? So, red, no squirrelling of exciting buys :)

Updated as cross-posted. Sorry about the difficult year, @quirkychick, and hope things keep improving for your DD.

Now I am off to googling "Haider Ackerman jumper/blazer hybrid"

quirky is good to see you back here and sorry it has been difficult, hoping things work out better now.

Flo you are always a winner when there is stuff to be found.

I got a lovely max Mara tweed jacket. I will take a photo tomorrow.

that jumper/blazer thing sound fab Bo, and those jeans too. You Dutch and your spice monopoly 😋

Waving to @doublec ! Let us know if you get the coat!

Yes @doublec, he's at Vox in Manchester, Aiden Swann. I love him. I've honestly swerved hairdressers for years because they don't get my hair. I did say to him, I've always felt with hairdressers it feels like a first date where you're all giddy and excited and you come out feeling like you've had an abusive relationship.

I don't want that!

He gets it.

https://www.phorest.com/salon/voxhairdressing

I saw the Savoir coat in the wild on Saturday at lunch at my husband's club. Worn as an indoor long jacket rather than a coat, over black trousers and a black polo neck. Very nice it was too. If it's of any relevance it was on an "older lady"

Savoir coat

@Tatare So helpful, thank you. Funnily enough, there's a colourist I want to see who is in Manchester too, so it looks like when my hair is a suitable length, will be spending a long weekend up there.

@IHaveNeverLivedintheCastle Fabulous, not to mention exactly what I am aiming for. While I wouldn't wear it with all black, it's the 'older lady' vibe I'm drawn too. It is very ladies of Madison Avenue, particularly if I add a few brooches.

@Redandblue11 Absolutely! It's calling my name...

@quirkychick Have never understood why HA isn't more well-known. An ex has a pair of Berluti shoes designed under his tenure. So beautiful, were one of the few pieces of black footwear I have ever been envious of

Just a note to say I have interacted with quite a few of you before under a different user name. This is the user name I use for all things cancer and chemo related. (Will ask MN to delete this part of the post later today).

I also have curly hair and really laughed at your description! Many moons ago I used to go to a very chichi (but crap) hairdresser in Chelsea - I worked near by - who used to laboriously straighten my hair and then recurrent it 🤦‍♀️. I currently cut my own, started in lockdown after my old hairdresser shut and didn't reopen. I get plenty of compliments, so I must do it OK.

@Redandblue11 thanks, I think we're out of crisis and now into the long repairing the damage. Social Services were particularly crap at stepping in when needed and it's taken a toll on all of us.

@doublec how does it go?

Cancer is shit.

@Tatare Much love to you and anyone on here who has either had cancer or lost a loved one to it. It really is shit.

Am fortunate that I caught it relatively quickly, unlike my mother. She died within six months of diagnosis at 50, which I'll be in a few years time. Am not quite out of the woods yet. Tbh, I don't think I'll breathe easily until I reach 52.

I try not to think about the negatives, stats, recurrence, if I do, I'll never stop. All the way through this, have only allowed myself to think at the matter in hand. (Cancer diagnosis and treatment is concrete anyway, things are constantly shifting and changing as a result). Instead, I concentrate on positives, be it clear margins and an opportunity to reinvent myself. Not only has it changed my mindset, it has also given me an opportunity to buy new clothes! Ergo, have embraced the changes forced on my body, particularly my new super chic very flat chest. No reconstruction for me. It's a whole new world of super deep v-neck tops and open blouses. My scars are beautifully neat, so have no issue showing them off!

Apologies for the mini-essay 😬

@quirkychick Am glad my hair amuses you! I so relate to yours. Maybe I should just come to you for a cut!

Have blow dried and straightened my hair into submission since my teens, so it's just fuzz if left to dry naturally. When I found out I had to have chemo, I decided not to cold cap as it would be easier to lose my hair. I also hoped it would grow back straight. It didn't. It grew back pretty much same as before albeit a different colour. Had forgotten the horrors of short hair, it wasn't something I ever thought I'd have to endure as an adult.

Congratulations on your recovery doublec, and delighted the surgeons facilitated your re-invention!

@doublec I was laughing at your description of the hairdressers being an abusive relationship! I remember having short hair in my 20s (from the above mentioned terrible hairdresser) it's really hard to manage with curly hair. I cut mine using a Manes from Mell YouTube. I find the balance is enough length to give weight and control the curls but enough volume to have shape. Not easy. Congratulations on your recovery, too. Flatter chest is definitely easier to dress. I have realised who you are now.

You two have really been through the wringer this year, sorry, I feel a bit of a dick up my tree acting like a spice girl 🤦

Quirky, is your other DD still at home? I know you mentioned exams when you were last active but can't remember if it was A or O levels, are you unexpectedly empty nesters now?

Doublec, I lack quirky's sleuthing skills, so I'm clueless, but welcome back 🙂 I cut my own hair since the pandemic too but I'd probably be clueless with short hair with contradictory curl patterns. Have you tried any bonding products? My hair becomes very well behaved with K18, I know others get on really well with Olaplex, Curlsmith or Living Proof. I had a sample of the Living Proof one recently and it worked really well on top of K18 but i have way too many hair products to justify buying more...

Gosh it has been wringer time. I was treated for breast cancer in 1992 when I was 32. I found it when it was tiny so had a lumpectomy then radiotherapy & chemotherapy & didn't lose my hair, which in hindsight was A Bad Thing as i didn't realise how much was being taken out of me by the treatment and stupidly did too much. Make sure you rest and rest!

Clothes-wise, the result of my lumpectomy is that one shoulder is a lot lower than the other, so generally only expensive shirts and jackets seem to fit me...

@botemp dd1 is now at uni, but the whole situation has affected her v badly. We are unexpectedly empty nesters. It feels v weird. Don't feel bad, we all go through difficult times at various points in our lives (though I wouldn't wish the last year on anybody).