Last night, I got to sit in on an intimate chat with Jessica Matlin, beauty director of Harper’s Bazaar US and author of the book, “Sophie The Parisian”, Natalie Peigney, where they discussed the book, being French, and how to have effortless French style.
The setting was the beautiful Rizzoli book store in the Nomad section of NYC; the ever growing area just north of Madison Square Park and the Flatiron district. The quaint bookstore, that looks like a serious literary den for any book lover was the perfect backdrop to discuss effortless style.
Matlin moderated the evening’s questions, and asked things like, “is it exhausting to be a French woman?”, “what are some staples of French style?”, and “are French values outdated?”
Natalie explained (in her beautiful French accent), that the French culture is about moderation, maintenance, preparedness and a lifestyle that the French are born into, which is why it looks so effortless to an outsider looking in. They don’t let anything get too far gone. So if they have a few bad eating days, they make sure to balance it with a few good eating days. They don’t do anything to excess and they take care of themselves in a very natural way as opposed to more surgical approaches to maintaining their appearance.
“It comes down to education (education in how they are raised, not in a literal sense), French education is about quality and being good at everything. So by the time we’re adults, we know we have to do something and we do it without complaining and we do it well because it has to be done. There is a lot of work that has to be done to be prepared for everything.“
Author, Natalie Peigney and Host Jessica Matlin discuss how to get effortless French style.
*click the image to see more of the chat on our YouTube channel, The Scoop!
The author also cited things like “elegance and sexiness”, as to why French women have a certain appeal to them. Noting that French women maintain themselves all of the time, are great at selecting basic, investment clothing pieces rather then trends so they always look nice at a moments notice if needed and manage their personal grooming in “moderation”; nothing is done in excess.
When I thought about this in relation to my own personal care and style of dress, I’m French apparently :-). My Jamaican mother and the women in my family taught me many of the same things and I can attest that it is much easier to maintain than to start from scratch…with anything.
How do you maintain your personal style? Tell us about it! We want to hear from you. Comment below or join the conversation on Instagram @tiesidesandscoops. You can also follow our brands journey on Insta @nagerbynichyl or on youtube at THE SCOOP!
Комментарии