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If anyone can provide an insight into how to ooze Parisian chic, it’s Ines de la Fressange. The French former model, aristocrat, designer and long-time muse (and sometimes close friend) to Karl Lagerfeld was inducted into the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1998 and is currently ambassador for luxury shoemaker Roger Vivier.
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“To be Parisian, it’s a question of attitude, and pleasing yourself above pleasing anyone else,” Fressange, who still models in her fifties, told GRAZIA. “Parisian women are self-confident. If they don’t want to wear stilettos, they don’t. We French women don’t feel we need sky-high pumps to look great – and you can still be very feminine and very sweet with kitten heels or even ballet flats. It’s all in the way you feel about yourself and how you act, not what you wear.
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“With the mixing of pieces, in Paris, you see women wearing a sweater from a store like Carrefour, but with Prada sunglasses and sneakers. The idea is to mix: wear gym pants with ballet flats and a nice jacket. She will then be carrying a basket as a handbag, just for something a little different.”
Credit: Getty Images
Credit: Getty Images
Fressange believes that Parisian women are able to creatively mix their clothes with such a sense of style because of the French capital. “It comes from the city. It’s because of the mix in Paris. There are many different types of architecture – you can see buildings from the eighteen century and new ones popping up – and a different ambience in the north to the south, and the east to the west. There’s a mix of old and new. Because of this, you will find Parisians wearing an extremely eclectic mix of garments.”
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“Ladies in France aren’t interested in timeless or classic pieces. And if you label something “timeless” suddenly it makes the piece slightly boring,” Fressange says.
“Fashion shouldn’t have anything to do with being reasonable. Most of the time we buy something because we want it, not because we need it.”
She adds: “The Parisian woman lives like this. Clothes, handbags and shoes are there to make you feel wonderful.” We at GRAZIA would argue that Lauderee macarons fall into the same category.