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Post by tammij on Oct 26, 2008 12:03:36 GMT -5
I thought I would provide an update on this subject since so many people ask. We just returned yesterday and stayed in the 4th in the Marais (and it was the perfect area!).
Nearly every woman under 50 wore very nearly the same uniform in the residential areas: tall flat boots with skinny jeans tucked in or leggings, long tunic shirts, the requisite scarf and a dark - usually black - trench coat. If they weren't wearing pants, then they were wearing a short above the knee skirt with colored tights and the same top, scarf and coat. Very few women wore flared or boot cut pants. In spite of the chilly temps - no gloves or hats - or very few anyway. I had to break down and buy gloves though. Also, the women wore very natural matte makeup with no lipstick or subtle lip color. And the one thing that surprised me was that they did not "do" their hair as we do in the US. Styles were very natural and sometimes quite unkempt! Of course, near the Champs, things were a bit more "done".
Men all wore very nearly the same thing - skinny jeans, well tailored button down shirts or fitted sweaters and nice shoes. I only saw 2 Parisian men with relaxed fit jeans and they were young waiters and they were belted at the waist with NO sagging as we see all over the US. No one wore sporty attire unless they were a tourist and many men carried messenger bags.
No one wore t-shirts at all.
As most have said, the color palette trends toward blacks with other neutrals like browns and grays. Tights were colorful but that was the only color outside of a tasteful scarf. I saw a few colored jackets but 9 times out of 10 they were tourists. Oh and the popular sneaker - if any - is Converse.
Of course you can wear anything but I tell you, it's easy to spot a tourist!
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Post by cybee on Oct 26, 2008 14:11:03 GMT -5
Tammij,
YES! I love fashion reports direct from Paris! Yours was most informative! Merci!!! I had just bought some new jeans and did not get flares/bootcuts (hoping to wear with flats or tucked in with boots..as soon as I find that elusive perfect pair of boots!) and hoped that was the correct choice! Indeed, it sounds like it was the correct choice ! (I had seen just that look (jeans tucked into boots) in April 2006 in Paris...by one wearer and was smitten by the look and have since been looking for those boots she had her jeans tucked into...leather flats (not suede) scrunched..or what is the word?). Well, I quite enjoyed all your report from makeup to hair to colors, etc.! Again, merci! (p.s. Yes, I also noted the absence of hats too...at least when I was there.)
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Post by Shoesy on Oct 26, 2008 14:28:21 GMT -5
Tammi - Thank you for that very detailed fashion report. I ADORE the look of jeans tucked into tall boots (says the lady who has recently bought 2 pairs of boots ;D) .
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Post by denise on Oct 26, 2008 14:34:05 GMT -5
:)Welcome back tammij...hope all went well. I can't wait to hear all about your trip. Thanks for the fashion update, very interesting. I bought some flat boots last year in black from Paris and wore them with skinny jeans tucked in all winter because I had seen it in Paris and it was comfy. This winter in England the fashion is starting...so just call me a trend setter!!!!!!  I bought some more brown flat boots this time, people were just beginning to wear them at the start of October. I must say I noticed a lot of hats on people, because I was looking for one to buy. Apart from my feather race hat I bought two beret types to go with my new purple coat and my existing orange winter coat. Now I am back in Bolton I realise that not many people wear hats and I feel a bit silly in them! Still, maybe I will start another trend. As for tights, boots and short tops or shirts, well after a certain age they are definatly a no no. Unless you are on a stage slapping your thighs and shouting for Buttons! ;D ;D Denise love from england  |
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Post by GitteK on Oct 26, 2008 15:15:42 GMT -5
If you really really want to keep updated with the ultra-latest and hippest fashion trends seen in the streets of Paris, New York, Milan, Rome, London etc. you should check in regularly at The Sartorialist. thesartorialist.blogspot.com/They "shoot" people in the street who make a stunning fashion statement quite of their own. Not necessarily - in fact mostly not - designer-brand clothes from tip to toe, but displays of the secure, selfconfident taste that stands out from the crowd. www.thesartorialist.com/bio.html |
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Post by tammij on Oct 26, 2008 16:34:01 GMT -5
Cybee, sounds just like what I saw on the streets. I bought 2 pairs of shoes in Bata. It was a reasonably priced shoes store right across from the Hotel de Ville. They had hundreds of different styles of flat boots. There were a lot of flats too. But mostly people were wearing boots. I loved the fashions though. We were in a great shopping area - 1 block from the Pompidou both convenient to the Les Halles area and the Jewish section of the 4th which guaranteed 7days of shopping!
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Post by sunshine817 on Oct 26, 2008 17:58:46 GMT -5
Lots and lots of sky-high heels on the boots, too.
My only comment? If the skirt is too short to wear without tights, it's too short to wear at all. Women of a certain age shouldn't wear skirts that short, anyway.
And oh yes -- a treatment for static cling is imperative. I saw a very tall woman with a very bad case of static cling walking on the train platform the other day -- and her knit miniskirt had climbed to well above her derriere. She was absolutely oblivious -- and had I been on the platform instead of on the train, I would have brought it to her attention.
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Post by cybee on Oct 26, 2008 19:39:20 GMT -5
Tammij,
Bata, eh? I will definitely have to check that store out and maybe score myself a pair of flat boots! But I won't be there until maybe February or March..sigh (starting to figure out when I will go to Paris ...wonder if that is too cold a season...anyway, fun to dream, but now I really need to start ACTUAL serious planning!). Sounds like you stayed at a wonderful spot especially for purposes of excellent shopping!!!
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Post by Anne on Oct 28, 2008 3:31:16 GMT -5
There are many flare jeans in shop windows everywhere and in magazines, but it's true that I don't see many women wearing them (I do) . Still some grey, and much mauve/violet . Tartan is the big thing in fashion magazines . Even tartan-patterned tights, which isn't exactly the most figure-flattering thing  . One word of warning : Bata (same goes for Eram) are indeed cheap shoes but usually quite poor quality too  ... |
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Post by sunshine817 on Oct 28, 2008 4:38:41 GMT -5
You're not alone, Anne -- I wear flare jeans, too -- I wore skinny jeans when they were all the rage the last time..been there, done that.
I like the browns that are on offer, and the mauve/violets are very pretty, too. Pink seems to be bygone.
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Post by cybee on Oct 28, 2008 7:50:26 GMT -5
Anne266, Very interesting. In the States, it seems the flares/bootcuts are still heavily marketed and so I was confused when buying my last pair of jeans. My daughter (when asked) said to just pick whatever I prefered. I would translate that to pick whatever flatters the best!  Interesting to hear about colors! I like gray and mauve/violet...but may pass on the tartan! (but interesting to know regardless!). Also good to know about the shoe brands/stores, etc.! (hopefully I will find my dream boots before my next jaunt to Paris as likely most of winter will be over by then!). Oh, Sunshine817....so browns too!? My children can tell you that I tend to like brown...too much!  |
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Post by Anne on Oct 28, 2008 7:56:19 GMT -5
<<In the States, it seems the flares/bootcuts are still heavily marketed>>
Well, here bootcuts went OUT of fashion, replaced by the "skinny" trend, and now they are back, together with the new flare fashion .
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Post by Happygoin on Oct 28, 2008 8:03:27 GMT -5
It gives me a headache trying to keep up with this stuff  |
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Post by mossie on Oct 28, 2008 9:49:18 GMT -5
I'm glad I only have to look at these things.
BUT tartan tights, that is a step too far LOL
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Post by sunshine817 on Oct 28, 2008 15:21:43 GMT -5
I have been told that wide-leg/boot-cut/flare jeans tend to balance out the rest of the body, making one look taller, slimmer, and more evenly proportioned from top to bottom.
Don't know if it's true or not-- but I *feel* like I look better in wider legs, so that's what I wear. But I still wear very pointy-toed shoes for anything except lots of walking or working in the garden.
I had to laugh, though -- there are a couple of mums at my son's school who are very, very fashionable -- the rest look like mums everywhere. It's good -- it's helped me to feel as though I belong at least a little bit. They've also been incredibly warm and friendly -- the benefit of an international school is that everyone else has been in your shoes, waiting for furniture, and trying to get all the papers in order, etc., etc., and trying to get by as a stranger in a strange land.
Last Friday I helped apply maquillage to all of the 125 eleves in the school for the Fete d'Halloween -- we all had ordered citrouilles, and the kids had a terrific time before breaking for Toussaint.
Guess my girlfriends in the PTA (Parent-Teacher Association) back home were right -- I didn't make it two weeks before I'd volunteered to do something!
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Post by phread on Oct 29, 2008 2:06:19 GMT -5
If you want to look thinner and "balance out" the body... wear high heels. Any pair of jeans will do, but the flared jeans allow you to hide the heel and give you a a leggier look.
ANOTHER trend this fall.. short knit dresses. Again, worn with those boots.
For hats, precious little knit caps are the way to go, preferably cashemire if you are a fashionista, preferably not if you are into the environment (those goats are wreaking havoc on the Mongolian plains).
ALso, for the grey and mauves, I find it really interesting. In Paris this is a slightly visible trend, but the second you visit any other Paris town (Nancy, Biarritz, Bayeux, Deauville, Bayonne, etc...) it is THE predominant palette on display EVERYWHERE. Keep in mind, these towns all have the same brands you'll find in Paris. I don't how it is that their palette is so much clearer in the provinces.
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Post by joan1 on Nov 9, 2008 1:17:49 GMT -5
Thanks for the report!
I too like my jeans boot cut, skinny jeans really only look good on skinny people, and Gitte, every one on that link you posted was skinny. In fact it seemed that you could wear pretty well anything, as long as you were skinny, and preferably tall.
As I have aged I have discovered how picky I have become about shoes/boots, they absolutely, positively , must be comfy,, I have no patience at all for anything not super comfy. I find this is narrowing my shoe choices down to some pretty plain and boring choices. I do think the pointy toe heel is a nice look though, in boots or shoes, makes a foot look dainty and a leg look longer.
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Post by Anne on Nov 9, 2008 8:03:56 GMT -5
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Post by jo on Nov 9, 2008 8:26:26 GMT -5
Anne,
Those are beautiful (very sexy!) boots. You are quite right in not wanting to hide them, go out and flaunt them with your skinny jeans!
You go, girl,
JO
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Post by Shoesy on Nov 9, 2008 9:09:41 GMT -5
What beautiful boots they are, Anne! Wear them in good health. |
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hahahha