10 Definitive French Style Heroes
From Coco Chanel to Vanessa Paradis, the French women who inspire our wardrobes on a regular basis
Parisian style has arguably been pored over more than any other. The artful insouciance of French women has served as inspiration for many of us who have woken up not knowing what to wear. Of course, the truth is it all comes down to attitude - it might have taken an age to create your perfectly messy hair or to find a navy jumper that is oversized without being too big - but it should look effortless, even if it wasn't. French style is about having a uniform, and sticking to it, where understatedness and restraint are the stars of the show. It isn't the most creative of looks, but it's enviable in its timelessness and apparent ease. Here, we look at the women who have made French chic one of the most famous terms in fashion history.
This post originally originated from Harper's BAZAAR UK
Mick Jagger called her his ideal woman; Alexa Chung and Carly Simon consider her a style icon and Bob Dylan fell head over heels for her with no success; the enigmatic Françoise Hardy has beguiled both men and women alike with her melancholic sound and restrained bohemian style. Her look, which is as pervasive today as it was back in the 60s, was characterised by a blunt, thick fringe, shaggy fur coats, classic straight-leg jeans and streamlined mini dresses. She was also first to see the appeal in vinyl trench coats, and ankle boots.
Designer and influencer Jeanne Damas has long since said that our obsession with French style is less about clothes and more about the details, a certain way of tying a belt or a carefully chosen gold necklace. "It's about the way you wear your clothes, rather than what you’re actually wearing," she told us back in 2017. "I think French women tend to keep it simple. I'd say try the less-is-more approach, which is not always easy to get right.”
French women tend to veer from bright pops of colour, a truth Carine Roitfeld tends to honour. The Harper's Bazaar global fashion director sticks to dark shades of navy, green and black, occasionally throwing on a leopard print coat over the top. Texture plays a key role in Roitfeld's look - leather or vinyl skirts are teamed with sheer chiffon blouses or fine knit jumpers. Her timeless style inspired a collaboration with Uniqlo, where her signature pieces were sold to the masses - think black pencil skirts, towering heels, lace tights, fitted jackets and a sheer shirts.
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Caroline de Maigret brings androgyny to the classic Parisian look. Again, she knows what looks good on her and stays to true to that - by day, jeans, trainers, T-shirts worn with biker jackets or an oversized coat and by night, high-waisted trousers, shirting and suit jackets, and - regardless of what time it is, messy hair. De Maigret isn't afraid to wear the same thing more than once - indeed she understands that the key pieces that you love the most are what creates a signature style.
Brigitte Bardot was the ultimate French bombshell, and her influence still appears on catwalks today. Back in the 50s and 60s, she was the first to wear ballet pumps outside of dance studios, prompting Repetto to launch a style for alfresco use. Her look oscillated between kittenish femininity and overt sexiness, but always purveying an image of unabashed freedom. Her dishevelled blonde hair and black eyeliner were defining markers - a look that has long inspired Kate Moss.
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Oversized knitwear and shirts, flats and skinny jeans make up Clémence Poésy's signature uniform. She doesn't think much of make-up and her hair follows the standard French girl déshabillé. On the red carpet, she'll team a floor-length gown with a pair of brogues, but really she's most at home in her grey Acne jeans and a T-shirt that she's customised to fit better. A Chanel muse and Chloe ambassador, Poésy is a bastion of pared-back Gallic effortlessness.
Legendary jazz singer Juliette Gréco impressed Jean-Paul Sartre with her poetic voice and wooed Miles Davies so much so that they fell in love. Muse to Paris' Left Bank in the 50s, Gréco was drinking partner to Orson Welles and party guest of Truman Capote. In 2014, Hedi Slimane shot her as his Saint Laurent campaign star. Her style is just as distinctive as her voice - a typically Beatnik look of a black roll neck and slim-cut black trousers, cropped above the ankle, and always kohl eyeliner.
There was little chance that Charlotte Gainsbourg wouldn't inherit style smarts given that her parents are the perennially chic Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg. The actress and singer adopts a low-key rock 'n' roll-inspired approach to fashion - skinny jeans, T-shirts, leather jackets, tennis shoes and skinny scarves form her daytime wardrobe, while she amps it up by night with leather mini skirts, ankle boots and simple T-shirts, occasionally choosing an sequinned mini dress again paired with boots. It's little wonder that she plays muse to Louis Vuitton's Nicolas Ghesquière and Saint Laurent's Anthony Vaccarello.
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It's difficult to imagine what the fashion landscape would look like without Coco Chanel. If one of the prerequisites of French style is comfort and freedom of movement, Chanel was a pioneer, liberating women from the corseted silhouettes of old. It was she who - through both her eponymous brand and personal style - introduced a more relaxed, sporty femininity. The designer herself was a keen sportswoman (she loved sailing and horse-riding), and wanted to wear clothes she could move in, spanning trousers, slouchy breton tops and fisherman knits. Just one look at this picture of her taken in 1930 in a timelessly elegant ensemble proves how ahead of the game she was.
Vanessa Paradis' gamine look has remained a constant since she first became famous aged 14 with the success of song Joe le Taxi. Hers is an aesthetic underpinned by classics - skinny jeans, ankle boots, slouchy T-shirts and androgynous wool coats. She has always loved vintage, particularly pieces infused with bohemia, from embroidered jackets to men's waistcoats. As a long-standing Chanel muse, she counts the brand among her favourites turning to Antik Batik for more hippie-inspired items.
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