Parisian Chic: A Style Guide by Ines de la Fressange Author: Ines de la Fressange | Language: English | ISBN:
2080200739 | Format: PDF
Parisian Chic: A Style Guide by Ines de la Fressange Description
About the Author
Inès de la Fressange started as a runway model, became the face of Chanel, and launched a clothing line; she is the essence of Parisian style and elegance. Her drawings have regularly appeared in Elle. She is creative consultant for Roger Vivier shoes and is designing the interior of a new Parisian hotel. Sophie Gachet is a fashion journalist for Elle in Paris.
- Paperback: 240 pages
- Publisher: Flammarion; 5th PRINTING edition (April 5, 2011)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 2080200739
- ISBN-13: 978-2080200730
- Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
- Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
I bought this based on the reviews, product description, and product video here on Amazon, and was very surprised when I actually received the product. Everything suggests that this is a guide to dressing like a Parisian. For the most part, it is not. Here's why
1. My most important point is that most of this book is not a guide to fashion or style, it's a guide to shopping and travelling in Paris. I did a breakdown, of the 239 pages in the book (many of which are blank, or contain very little text and big cute drawings) 77 pages is comprised of shopping guides (for clothing, housewares, children's goods, almost exclusively shops in Paris, although many have websites), and 55 pages is an idiosyncratic travel guide, listing hotels, restaurants, and some museums and other tourist stops. There is a 16 page guide to home decor and entertaining, 14 pages of beauty tips, leaving only 62 pages discussing fashion and clothing.
2. The fact that only 25% of the pages address the apparent topic of the book wouldn't bother me if those 62 pages provided some really keen observations and solid advice, but the whole thing is very glib and basic. Almost all of the information can be found in nearly any modern style guide. I was hoping for some advice on composition - putting clothes together and accessorizing well - which seems to be the real skill of French dressers. The closest I got was the "mix high and low" chestnut, and advice to dress simply and not be too matchy matchy. So essentially a basic description of what French style is, not how to achieve it. Most of the other advice was of the truly revelatory "you must own a trench and an LBD" variety. Um... thanks.
3. Like many guides to dressing, eating, whatever like the French do, the text is annoyingly reductive.
The book is dedicated "to my new best friend" and then there's a dotted line for you to fill in.
Cringe-worthy?
Yes, if the author of a book intended to get you up to speed on Parisian style was just any old supermodel.
But Inès Marie L?titia Églantine Isabelle de Seignard de La Fressange --- let's call her Inès --- is not like the others. Despite her impeccable breeding (she's a distant heiress to the Lazard banking billions) and her privileged upbringing, she's astonishingly down-to-earth, smart and friendly, with a goofy good cheer that suggests a refusal to take herself very seriously. Proof: at 53, she walked the runway for Lagerfeld, never having had plastic surgery or even Botox.
Interesting story there. In the `80s, Inès was the first model to have an exclusive contract --- with Lagerfeld. A few years later, she was asked to be the image of Marianne, the native beauty who is the symbol of the French Republic. Lagerfeld ended their relationship, saying, "I do not dress up historic monuments." Inès went on to start her own company and consult for Roger Vivier. But it wasn't until she was named the chicest woman in France by the readers of Le Figaro and became the French face of L'Oreal that Lagerfeld had to have her back.
"Parisian Chic: A Style Guide" is like a visit with a friendly, clear-eyed woman you trust immediately. It's the best kind of guide book --- you not only get information, you get it in context. That is, you learn quite a lot about the author and how she came to her opinions:"In the magazines we see the latest fashion, on gorgeous girls, but in my book I just wanted to help the busy woman --- a woman who is not thin, and not that fat, but in a hurry, in a hurry, in a hurry!
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