How To Be {Un Peu} More French
My fascination with the style of french women goes back a long way. From summers spent visiting family on the fashionable beaches and idyllic villages of the south, to a regrettable fortnight spent in a freezing farmhouse whilst on french exchange {it was here I also learnt how foie gras was made - regrettable to say the least}, and now making trips to Paris for work, I can assure you this is one subject I have studied beaucoup.
Regardless of age, locale, or income French women generally seem to nail it in the style stakes. In an attempt to dispel the myth surrounding these alluring creatures, I have narrowed down my findings to just ten simple ways we can all adopt a little more je ne sais quoi - without the aid of your Tricolore text book.
1. Daily bread.
If you are dedicated to the art of le femme, start by ditching your faithful Hovis in favour of a freshly baked baguette each day. So much chic-er to tote under an arm, or poking out of your Goyard, and extra points if placed in the basket of your bicycle – c’est vraiment le français!
If you are lucky enough to have an independent local baker, marvellous, otherwise Le Pain Quotidien – as the name would suggest – bakes fresh bread throughout the day, or, your local supermarket counter will suffice.
2. Befriend your pharmacist.
French women LOVE a pharmacy. A national epidemic of hypochondria sees prescription collection in France as a weekly social activity, thus leading pharmacies to stock beautiful and high-end products like Nuxe, OPI, Clarins etc to captivate their patrons whilst they wait. We are, after all, talking about a nation where orange peel is considered a medical condition. Personally I come back from every trip to France with a new exciting product in tow, my latest being the Crème Embryolisse, which countless French women swear by.
3. Ditch the Starbucks.
Apologies team, but French women do not take away. Nor do they do paper cups, sugar syrups or almond milk. Coffee – to the French - should be drunk sitting down, usually with an equally friend for essential potins {french for gossip} and usually taken black or with just a smidge of milk. Take your time and enjoy.
4. Get a dressing table
I always remember my mother’s confusion when viewing my first room in a rented flat in London “But where will your dressing table go?” I laughed at her naivety back then, but now consider sitting down to do my make up a {luxurious} necessity, and it would seem Coco’s Crew would agree. No tip-toeing in front of bathroom mirrors or dodgy halogens for French women, oh no. Make up is applied at leisure, ideally next to a window with all materials to hand and if square footage is an issue {well duh}, then do as a great friend of mine does and seek out a retro full length mirror with drawer underneath and you can sit cross-legged, teenage style in front of it, before tidying everything away. You. Are. Welcome.
5. Drink wine daily.
See? Not all hard work. Ditch the vodka and enjoy the harnessed power of the grape. Although, if we are being authentically French about this, your glass should be tiny and you should continually place it down during conversation to alternatively sip on your water, because THAT is how French women don’t get fat, or hammered actually. But hey, we are only on 5 of 10, let’s not overdo it.
6. Walk everywhere.
This one is two-fold really. French women don’t jog, nor do they seem to take much public transportation. Remember Emily Blunt in The Devil Wears Prada saying to Anne Hathaway in scathing tones “You do not under any circumstances take public transportation.” This is how French women react when I say I take the bus in London: which leads me to understand the much-sought after French silhouette is maintained, aside from a diet of coffee and cigarettes, by walking or cycling just about everywhere. Research* also suggests a weekly genteel swim is permitted, just be sure not to get your {immaculate, french} hair wet.
7. Flirt. Hard.
Thought the national sport of Les Gauls was Pétanque? Think again, it’s flirting. Baker (see above), sales assistant, colleagues – anyone goes, and en France, it is virtually expected. Thought that Alpine ski instructor liked you? Maybe he did, but more likely, he was happily devoted to his {effortlessly chic} wife but also enjoyed an enthusiastic flirtation with you on the chair lift. You will not find builders yelling in the streets in France, because it isn’t necessary when there is this refined, grown up undercurrent of sexual chemistry being tapped into at every available opportunity. Ahhhh, L’Amour!
8. Wear matching underwear.
Whilst we are on sex, let us not forget that a French woman is never sartorially off duty and her underwear is almost guaranteed to be as chic as her outer wear. Before trips to the South I am usually handed a list by a friend who cannot get enough of the bras I buy her in the village market whilst also stocking up on my weekly veg shop. So, your Grandmother was right, and you should indeed pair up as if you might be hit by a bus anytime.
9. Put down the Athleisure.
See point 6 above, but essentially if you really want to take le masterclass francais seriously, then we need to agree on this one. Work out if you must, but it is time to accept that leggings are best kept for the gym/studio only….even if they are Lululemon.
10. Own one piece of Chanel.
And I solemnly promise that one piece will be enough to see you through the rest of your life.
À bientôt! x
*Ahem…conversations with waitresses in cafes or the store manager at Sandro in Chelsea
